Online Poker and the UIGEA
By: CJ CARTER

With the creation of the World Poker Tour (WPT) in 2002 and the climactic World Series of Poker (WSOP) victory by amateur player Chris Moneymaker in 2003 a poker explosion created a new generation of poker players that filled card rooms both inside the casinos and on the every expanding online locations. This progeny had Moneymaker as the father, WPT as the mother and Doyle Brunson as a grandfather who never saw it coming. Unfortunately, in the wake of this boom the United States government decided it did not like having so much income avoiding taxes.

In 2003, the year Moneymaker won the WSOP there were 839 entrants. This number ballooned the following year with an unprecedented growth of over 300% to have 2,576 entrants. The following year the number of players more than doubled to 5,619 players. In 2006 growth slowed but continued with 8,773 players. It was predicted that 12,000 players would pay or play their way for the $10,000 entry fee to the tournament but then the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, a title within the SAFE Port Act, was pushed through the House of Representatives, largely Jim Leach. Bill Frist and Jon Kyl expedited the bill through the Senate. The UIGEA portion of the bill was pushed through quietly and signed into law on September of 2006.

Immediately after the passing of the bill, poker sites suffered huge losses in value with regard to the stock market. Funds were eventually locked in Neteller, the largest cash processor for online poker players. In 2007 only 6,358 entrants made their way into the WSOP. U.S. Congressman Barney Frank introduced legislation in 2007 to overturn the UIGEA portion of the SAFE Port Act, but includes taxing United States players and stronger regulation. Non-publicly traded money transfer entities are still the best bet for United States based poker players who want to continue online and it is possible to find them. The future is a shaky one for online gamers, but will hopefully continue to thrive as in the past.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article and look forward to your continued readership. When I’m not busy writing on things that interest me I retail clothing, accessories, and self help products.

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