The American Gaming Association (AGA) thinks all companies endeavoring to provide online poker services to U.S. customers must be held to a high standard in ensuring the games offered are safe, secure and free of any illegal activity. Now it has unveiled an online poker Code of Conduct, outlining the measures it thinks are necessary to institute an effective regulatory system that will protect American consumers, keep minors from gambling, provide tools to help problem gamblers, and create provisions to help law enforcement identify and prosecute illegal operators. The AGA also introduced a Wild-West-themed YouTube video that makes the case for establishing federal guidelines that would allow states to license and regulate online poker, ensure American consumers are protected and that the jobs and revenues associated with the industry are realized in the U.S.
The AGA Online Poker Headquarters puts the case for federal recognition of online poker:
“Poker is a favorite pastime for Americans, and today millions of men and women from all walks of life are playing the game online. And while worldwide online gambling is increasingly a legal and regulated form of entertainment that generates almost $30 billion of revenue each year, the United States currently prohibits companies from legally offering Americans a place to play poker online for money. Despite this prohibition and the U.S. Justice Department’s attempts to enforce it, hundreds of offshore companies are still handling billions of dollars a year in wagers from American residents. The result is Americans who play online are placed in harm’s way, playing on illegal websites run by overseas companies outside the reach of U.S. laws and regulations.
“The only way to protect U.S. consumers and effectively prevent foreign companies from continuing to break U.S. law is to legalize online poker in this country and establish strong federal guidelines that must be followed by those states that license and regulate online poker. Such action would preserve the right of states to allow or disallow online companies to offer online poker to their residents and, at the same time, ensure a consistent national regulatory and legal framework.
“We know without a doubt that state-licensed and regulated gaming companies following federal guidelines and using proven and rigorous gaming regulations would provide safe, honest and responsible sites for American men and women who want to play online poker. Licensing and regulation of online poker in the U.S. would also ensure American consumers are protected and that the thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in revenues associated with this industry are realized here in the United States.
“Let’s pass federal legislation with strong law enforcement oversight that allows states to license and regulate online poker, prevents fraud and money laundering, keeps minors from gambling, addresses problem gambling and ensures players aren’t being cheated.”
The Code of Conduct for U.S. Licensed Online Poker Companies outlines six requirements that must be met in order to obtain a license to operate an online poker website providing access to U.S. customers.
1. Submit to Extensive Background Investigations of the Company and Key Personnel – All companies will meet the regulatory standards established by the licensing state for online poker licensing and should agree
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to a thorough background investigation to determine its and its officers’ fitness to operate a gambling business, as well as strict auditing to ensure the fairness of games offered online.
Effective regulation of online poker must begin with the integrity of the operators themselves and the
fairness of the games provided.
2. Ensure Proper Identification of Every U.S.Online Poker Player – All companies will establish a
reliable method for identifying every poker player, using credit and public registration databases, as well
as the latest geolocation, age verification and other online customer identification technologies.
Only by reliable identification of online poker players can operators enforce the other regulatory
requirements detailed below.
3. Submit to Regular Testing and Auditing of Online Poker Software – All companies will allow their software to be extensively tested and audited to ensure that the games play out according to their own rules and that they pay off as promised.
4. Implement Effective Player Exclusion Processes – All companies will exclude from their websites:
(i) underage poker players,
(ii) all residents of U.S. jurisdictions that have not legalized online poker,
(iii) those players who have self-excluded from the site, and
(iv) those poker players found to have cheated or otherwise violated laws relating to online poker.
5. Incorporate Effective Responsible Gaming Protections on Their Sites – Companies will provide responsible gaming protections on all online poker sites, including:
(i) on-screen links to sites that provide problem gambling services,
(ii) easy access for the poker player to information about his gambling history, and
(iii) tools that will permit the poker player to limit the size of his bets, the amount or frequency of his
deposits into his online poker account, or to voluntarily self-exclude from the website entirely.
Although research has shown that online poker players are not particularly susceptible to developing
pathological gambling problems, they still should be provided with these responsible gaming tools,
which the online environment permits.
6. Implement Effective Anti-Money-Laundering Procedures – Companies will adhere to the federal anti-money-laundering procedures imposed on commercial and tribal casinos. Additionally, they will implement monitoring and auditing procedures and money transfer restrictions to limit and identify
attempts to launder money. They also will agree to share information on cheating with other licensed
online poker companies as required by state licensing authorities. (E-09.20.11)
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