Internet Gambling News Update

Welcome to this weeks round up of the latest internet gambling news.  This week :

Ozzie Osbourne Goes Slots
U.S. House of Representatives to Meet Over New Gambling Bill
WSOP Upgrades its Official Site

There's been a lot happening in the US this week relating to UIGEA, in particular with new proposed amendments to the ban on US citizens playing online.  Lucky for us, we're not US based and don't promote to Americans!  It does seem strange though that the "Land of the Free," really isn't free at all. 

Anyway onwards and upwards with the highlights of the Gambling World and the biggest stories breaking this week.

Ozzie Osbourne Goes Slots
What do the Osbourne clan and online slots have in common? We will see the answer, it seems, at the end of this year. Microgaming – the online casino software giant – announced that it was launching a new video slot game with the faces of Ozzie Osbourne and his family featuring on these machines, after an agreement was signed with this whacky, yet talented singer. This is clearly a classic case of the ultimate blending between the online casino and the entertainment worlds.

Skill Game Protection Act
Republican Robert Wexler introduced today, the Skill Game Protection Act which, if implimented will allow US citizens to gamble for real money with online skill games like poker, chess, backgammon, bridge and mahjong.

The legislation would be introduced as an amendment to UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) announced late last year.  However, the Act will not exempt online casino players that are US based from playing online.  The act does not exempt players looking to gamble against an online casino.  Wexler says that, "Poker is a game, not a crime. "  

The announcement comes one day prior to Republican Barney Frank holds a hearing to debate his new proposals termed the “Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act” which calls for gambling, in the US, to be made legal providing it is correctly licensed and regulated. 

Extension of Google’s Advertising Ban
The search engine, Google, has, for a while now, stopped accepting advertisements on pay-for-play online casino sites. The company announced this week that, effective immediately, it was halting advertisements on U.K play-for-free sites as well. This is the first time a search engine such as Google has taken such drastic steps to ban advertising on sites such as these.

U.S. House of Representatives to Meet Over New Gambling Bill
The House of Representatives in the United States will meet this week to discuss the online gambling industry in that country. Gaming on the internet was effectively banned in the U.S. when the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was passed in 2006. Since then, politicians such as Barney Frank (Rep.) have attempted to change this UIGEA and offer an alternative.

This week’s meeting will assess whether online gaming can be monitored in the United States so that players have the freedom to choose to partake in this form of entertainment within a regulated industry. It is clear from American history that total Prohibition does not work and Barney Frank’s attempts have been welcomed by the gaming public.

WSOP Upgrades its Official Site
Harrah’s Entertainment, the company responsible for running the official site of the World Series of Poker event, has announced that it is upgrading the website to include some exciting new features for the benefit of its poker fans. Some of the new additions include live streaming video coverage of the WSOP event bracelet final tables, which began this week.

Player blogs are also a fun, new way for poker fundies to stay connected and become part an exciting e-community.  'We believe this unprecedented coverage will expose many more people to the drama and excitement that is The World Series of Poker,' a spokesperson said of the new upgrade.

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