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. . . . a roster of billionaires . . . are betting big on online gambling’s comeback. There’s just one problem with all of this: Sheldon Adelson. The very week that Caesars’ online gambling play started trading on the Nasdaq, Adelson, the nation’s fifth-richest man–and one of the country’s biggest political donors–thanks to his vast casino holdings, unleashed an army of lawyers and lobbyists on Washington and state capitals, telling FORBES he will “spend whatever it takes” to stop online gambling in America.
. . . . in the fall of 2006 Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), strengthening the Justice Department’s tools to go after online gambling firms operating in the U.S. Some companies, like PartyGaming, quickly ceased their U.S. operations, leaving the then $1.4 billion U.S. online poker market dominated by two offshore companies, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, which profited immensely because of the high-margin nature of the business. But federal prosecutors and agents kept investigating the companies, seizing their funds and eventually in 2011 shutting down the websites of the major online poker companies that cater to the U.S. and indicting their founders. . . .
Not long after shutting down the offshore operators, the Department of Justice reversed its long-held opinion that all forms of online gambling are illegal, unleashing states that wanted to regulate and tax online gambling except sports betting. Sensing profits, the billionaires followed. Why the turnaround? Expensive lobbyists and lawyers are a big part of the answer. . . .
So while Adelson’s limitless money–and his willingness to spend it–may slow the momentum for online gambling by blocking its spread into big states like California and Florida, the odds of him stopping it or bullying his rivals out of the game are slim. He’s got lots of chips, but all the other players at the table do, too.
. . . . in the fall of 2006 Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA), strengthening the Justice Department’s tools to go after online gambling firms operating in the U.S. Some companies, like PartyGaming, quickly ceased their U.S. operations, leaving the then $1.4 billion U.S. online poker market dominated by two offshore companies, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, which profited immensely because of the high-margin nature of the business. But federal prosecutors and agents kept investigating the companies, seizing their funds and eventually in 2011 shutting down the websites of the major online poker companies that cater to the U.S. and indicting their founders. . . .
Not long after shutting down the offshore operators, the Department of Justice reversed its long-held opinion that all forms of online gambling are illegal, unleashing states that wanted to regulate and tax online gambling except sports betting. Sensing profits, the billionaires followed. Why the turnaround? Expensive lobbyists and lawyers are a big part of the answer. . . .
So while Adelson’s limitless money–and his willingness to spend it–may slow the momentum for online gambling by blocking its spread into big states like California and Florida, the odds of him stopping it or bullying his rivals out of the game are slim. He’s got lots of chips, but all the other players at the table do, too.