Group Sues Over US Online Gambling Law

from the not-so-lawful dept

It's well known that, last year, Congress hid an anti-online gambling law inside a bill about protecting our ports, knowing that politicians wouldn't vote against protecting our ports. There's been quite an uproar about this, and at least some politicians are starting to reconsider the law. However, that process is apparently too slow for some. A group called the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association, an organization apparently put together so hastily that it has no website, has filed a lawsuit preventing the government from enforcing the law. The lawsuit apparently also notes that even the WTO says that the US is violating international treaties with its stance on online gambling. While any court case would take years (probably longer than any change to the laws), it could certainly bring some more attention to the law (and potentially prevent its enforcement for the duration of the case).
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  1. identicon
    sMART gUY, 6 Jun 2007 @ 12:58pm

    They will never win the U.S. Government is above the law.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    -Sx-, 6 Jun 2007 @ 1:04pm

    How old is this law?

    Their WhoIs record was created this year, LOL:

    Domain ID:D138572431-LROR
    Domain Name:IMEGA.ORG

    Created On:30-Jan-2007 21:31:57 UTC

    Last Updated On:17-May-2007 15:25:24 UTC
    Expiration Date:30-Jan-2008 21:31:57 UTC
    Sponsoring Registrar:Go Daddy Software, Inc. (R91-LROR)
    Status:CLIENT DELETE PROHIBITED
    Status:CLIENT RENEW PROHIBITED
    Status:CLIENT TRANSFER PROHIBITED
    Status:CLIENT UPDATE PROHIBITED
    Registrant ID:GODA-031560546
    Registrant Name:Edward Leyden
    Registrant Organization:iMEGA
    Registrant Street1:1850 K Street NW
    Registrant Street2:
    Registrant Street3:
    Registrant City:Washington
    Registrant State/Province:District of Columbia
    Registrant Postal Code:20006
    Registrant Country:US
    Registrant Phone:+1.2026590711
    Registrant Phone Ext.:
    Registrant FAX:
    Registrant FAX Ext.:
    Registrant Email: Whois Privacy and Spam Prevention by DomainTools.com
    Admin ID:GODA-231560546
    Admin Name:Edward Leyden
    Admin Organization:iMEGA
    Admin Street1:1850 K Street NW
    Admin Street2:
    Admin Street3:
    Admin City:Washington
    Admin State/Province:District of Columbia
    Admin Postal Code:20006
    Admin Country:US
    Admin Phone:+1.2026590711
    Admin Phone Ext.:
    Admin FAX:
    Admin FAX Ext.:
    Admin Email: Whois Privacy and Spam Prevention by DomainTools.com
    Tech ID:GODA-131560546
    Tech Name:Edward Leyden
    Tech Organization:iMEGA
    Tech Street1:1850 K Street NW
    Tech Street2:
    Tech Street3:
    Tech City:Washington
    Tech State/Province:District of Columbia
    Tech Postal Code:20006
    Tech Country:US
    Tech Phone:+1.2026590711
    Tech Phone Ext.:
    Tech FAX:
    Tech FAX Ext.:
    Tech Email: Whois Privacy and Spam Prevention by DomainTools.com
    Name Server:NS1.IMEGA.ORG
    Name Server:NS2.IMEGA.ORG

    link to this | view in thread ]

  3. identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 6 Jun 2007 @ 1:19pm

    Re: How old is this law?

    "How old is this law?"

    How old is what law? By posting the whois-lookup record, I dont understand what law you are referring to... or did you NOT mean "law", and instead meant "website".

    Back to the article; The only law that is being referred to is the bill that was passed in October 2006 which is also one of the links in this article (http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20061002/124356.shtml).

    link to this | view in thread ]

  4. identicon
    Shun, 6 Jun 2007 @ 3:01pm

    So they're holding out for an injunction?

    I guess that would be the point of filing the suit, but I am still confused. I guess it's a "kick 'em while they're down" mentality. Still, I like how the article at the gambling911 site mentioned that the U.S. is attempting to modify its treaty obligations to Antigua/Barbuda.

    Good luck with that. The U.S. record on living up to its treaty obligations is hardly stellar. It would be nice if they were held to account, for once. Also, since when does the re-negotiation of a bilateral treaty == curing violations of the WTO? Even if they changed their relationship to this one country, they would still be in violation, generally, for favoring their own gambling operations over those of foreign competitors.

    I don't gamble, but I can see the basic unfairness of this law. It's a riot, seeing rulings go against the U.S. in WTO proceedings. Such irony.

    link to this | view in thread ]

  5. identicon
    patrick, 7 Jun 2007 @ 1:22am

    online gaming

    Before the govt decides to watch over the morals of US citizens, they should police theirselves.

    link to this | view in thread ]


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