Online Betting Sites
Online betting sites might or might not be legal where you live. For example, if you live in the United States, you not only have to take into account the federal laws that relate to online betting, but you also have state laws that might or might not relate to you.
The most recent federal law regarding online betting is called UIGEA, or the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. Most people think that this particular law made Internet gambling illegal, but that’s not the case. The law actually makes it a crime to transfer funds electronically for the purpose of illegal gambling. (According to the letter of this particular law, the transfer of funds for the purpose of LEGAL gambling is still okay.)
The other major federal law that matters when you’re talking or writing about online betting is the Wire Act. This law made it illegal for bookies to accept bets on sports over the phone. Depending on where you get your opinions, this law either covers all forms of Internet gambling too, or just some forms of Internet gambling, or it doesn’t affect Internet gambling at all. The disputes have to do with whether or not the Wire Act forbids ANY kind of betting or just sports betting. The disputes also have to do with whether or not the Internet is covered by the Wire Act, since the Internet, strictly speaking, isn’t the same thing as a phone line.
But on top of all that, various states have specific laws about Internet gambling. (Not all of them.) Other states have passed legislation that specifically legalized and regulated specific types of online gambling. For example, in 2010, New Jersey passed a law making poker games and casino games legal. Sports betting remained illegal.
At the time of this writing, no poker players, online casino gamblers, or Internet sports bettors have been convicted or even arrested for placing bets on the Internet. On the other hand, various poker companies, sports betting companies, and people employed by such companies have been arrested and/or convicted for their involvement in the gambling on the Internet business.
My suggestion is to avoid launching your own service that accepts bets. That’s an almost certain way to get yourself into trouble with the authorities. Make your own decision regarding whether or not you want to place bets. None of this is legal advice; it’s just one person’s reasonably educated opinion.
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