Pondering the Implications
The Poker Player’s Alliance is one of the more powerful of the land and online
casino related interest groups in the United States. The PPA was launched as a
counter measure to the US government’s implementation of the UIGEA. The PPA
believes that internet poker, at the very least, ought to be legalized in the
United States. The PPA does not actively fight for the legalization of the
online casino gambling industry in the US market – only so far as it would also
then allow internet poker gambling. The lobbying budget for this year is a bit
staggering – the PPA has set aside $3 million in lobbying funds and plans to
really hit the politicians hard with lobbying efforts that support the
legalization of internet poker.
This year Congressman Barney has restarted his efforts to push through new
legislation that would legalize online casino gambling and thus internet poker.
Just last month he reintroduced new legislation into Congress – and with the new
Democratic administration in place there are high hopes that the US government
will change its current stance on the internet gambling issue. The international
online casinos naturally support the PPA’s efforts as well; when the UIGEA
passed through and the foreign gambling companies were forced out of the market
these companies lost one of the largest markets in the world.
US online casino gambling has huge revenue potential for the international
industry – the PPA though is less concerned about the revenues that would be
generated by legalized gambling and focusing more on the fact that the UIGEA
infringes on personal freedoms and restricts what US citizens are able to do in
the privacy of their own homes. Those within the PPA are vehement supporters of
the notion that the US government should take a large step back out of the
personal lives and internet habits of its citizens; the large lobbying funds
will go toward supporting these efforts. |