The dreaded Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act has been postponed for at least six months while officials attempt to sort out any issues. Had the enforcement Act gone into effect on December 1st as initially planned would have made online gambling in the US illegal all around.
The US Department of Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board release a joint statement announcing that the new deadline for implementing the UIGEA will be June 1st, 2010. This announcement gives the US House of Representatives’ Financial Service committee more time to make a case to either extend the decision another six months or to regulate and license online gambling in the US.
This decision is seen as a gain for those in favor of online gambling licenses in the US and believe it is the first step in making online gambling legal for both players and operators.
Online casino operators from the US are currently unable to obtain a gambling license and can therefore not allow US players to sign up to their casinos. They must seek business from international players while US players must seek international operators. If the UIGEA comes into effect, online operators will not be able to take advantage of the increased popularity of online gambling locally and players will not have the option of choosing from the casinos with the best promotions, deals and bonuses.
