Gambling Gurus Discuss the State of Internet Betting in the US

American internet casino owners are meeting with the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade for a serious and thorough debate on online gaming. Both pro and anti-gambling supporters have been invited to the big meeting held on Capitol Hill, as officials are interested to gather as many testimonies as possible from both sides of the argument.

With the main topic being “The State of Online Gaming”, chances are that the two opposing teams will do everything within their power to defend their positions. However, one of the most fervent opponents of online gambling sites in the US, Sheldon Adelson – the head of Las Vegas Sands – won’t be attending.

Les Bernal, the National Director of Stop Predatory Gambling, and Rachel Volberg, an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, will be joining the opposing team. The two have expressed their opinions on the matter several times before and believe that the main issue with online gambling is the tendency to overly depend on tax dollars.

The team in favor of online gambling has John Pappas, the executive director of the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) on their side, who has been lobbying for the legalization of online poker sites in the US, both on a state and a federal level. American Gaming Association president and CEO Geoff Freeman is also on the list of supporters. As the successor of gambling law expert Frank Fahrenkopf, Freeman is sure to bring solid arguments in favor of the online casino industry.

While major changes to American gambling laws, on a federal level at least, are not in the pipeline, this meeting could lead to some interesting developments in a potentially huge market. Many operators have been maneuvering to offer their services in the newly opened markets of New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada, and this is sure to intensify.