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Offshore Gambling Loopholes And Laws

By: Max Walker

Offshore Gambling

Internet gambling is against the law in some countries, so one solution utilized by online casinos is to move their businesses overseas to a more understanding nation. Since their business is conducted online, the physical location of their offices and facilities don’t truly matter. This is what is known as offshore gambling, and refers to the lack of jurisdiction over these businesses by any particular nation or state.

While Internet gambling is technically not completely banned in the United States (the Wire Act refers only to gambling over the telephone), 70% of the world wide offshore gambling business is attributable to Americans. This is mostly due to the fact that USA law imposes restrictions on all income coming from online casinos. All gains must be declared, but you are not allowed to take into account any losses made. Following this legislation, many casinos have decided to pack up and relocate their businesses overseas.

Many Online casinos and poker houses are therefore evading USA law (while still being able to service US customers) by starting up shop in Gibraltar, the Isle of Man, and other more relaxed countries. The costs involved in moving to other countries are negated by the fact that the online gaming business is now worth about $2.4 billion, and is still growing in popularity.

Because of the value of this niche, most casinos continue to look for loopholes in the laws that countries create to regulate online gambling. For instance, although the United States has pretty much banned advertising for online casinos in magazines, television, and the Internet, smart advertisers have discovered a solution. Instead of directly promoting the gambling portion of their websites, they advertise tutorials on how to play roulette (for instance) which uses only play money. But a link to the actual casino would be present for the gambler to be tempted by.

But punters at these casinos must, of course be more wary. Exactly because these casinos are ‘offshore’ and therefore beyond jurisdiction, the players are not as well-protected as they might be if they were playing in a land-based casino. Because of this, some organizations have been formed to act as watchdogs for the offshore casinos, protecting the gamblers and enforcing a degree of security.

Article Source: http://www.topicinfo.com

Max Walker is and avid gambler and recommends a UK Offshore casino offering a £500 new account bonus. Also recommended is a FREE Poker Downloadable Ebook

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