Poker players and online gamblers in the United States are busy collecting $60 million with a few computer clicks, but not all of them are thrilled. The money, you see, was theirs to begin with and has been held hostage for six months. Until July 30. That's when electronically deposited funds frozen by a U.S. Department of Justice investigation finally were released for distribution. The release was part of an agreement reached with Neteller, the world's largest independent money transfer business.
The probe followed passage in Congress last fall of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which doesn't make playing online poker illegal, but aims to disrupt the funding of accounts at online gaming sites. The UIGEA certainly worked in the case of Neteller. Neteller suspended transactions with online gambling sites for U.S. customers on Jan. 18, two days after DOJ investigators charged two of the company's former executives and founders with money laundering. On Feb. 8, Neteller officially froze all U.S. customers' accounts. Also, the company's shares were suspended from trading on the London AIM exchange.
The tangled mess unraveled recently when Neteller entered a deferred prosecution agreement with the United States Attorney's Office. If the company complies with the agreement, in two years all pending charges related to transactions between online gaming merchants and U.S. residents will be dismissed. Neteller also forfeited $136 million to the United States, including the seized $60 million. "We know that for some of you, lack of access to your funds has been very frustrating," Neteller CEO Ron Martin said online last week. "This has been difficult for our staff, too. Return of the funds has been our highest priority."
Although the UIGEA put a huge dent in online poker, with most sites shutting off U.S. customers virtually overnight, a number of popular sites with good reputations remain. Each offers legal ways to fund an account, but Neteller was the biggest and easiest method.
The future of online poker remains uncertain. The deadline for government agencies to decide how to enforce the UIGEA expired two weeks ago. Until those provisions are known, it's hard to predict what will happen to the remaining online poker industry.
Meanwhile, there are several countermeasures in play, such as the grassroots Poker Players Alliance, which has grown to about 500,000 members. Headed by former New York Sen. Al D'Amato, the group seeks to overturn the UIGEA in favor of a law that controls, licenses and taxes the industry.
More recently, the new nonprofit Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association filed a restraining order in U.S. District Court in New Jersey to prevent implementation of the UIGEA until a pending court challenge is decided on the constitutionality of the act itself. A hearing is set for Sept. 4.
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