Thursday night brought two differing conclusions to the Minnesota internet gambling case by the Poker Players Alliance (PPA) and Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA). A settlement between the industry and the Minnesota Department of Public Safety may still be up in the air.
In April, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division served notice to 11 of the world’s largest internet service providers (ISPs) calling for the blockage of 200 internet gambling websites by its residents. These included both USA-friendly sites like Players Only, Bodog, and Full Tilt Poker. In addition, the list featured online poker outfits that do not accept players from the United States. The latter group was headlined by Everest Poker, the official on-felt sponsor of the ongoing 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP), and Titan Poker, one of the largest sites on the iPoker Network.
A press release distributed by the PPA on Thursday night claimed victory in Minnesota. The one million member strong lobbying force for the poker industry sourced Representative Pat Garofalo, who claimed, “This is a great day for internet freedom. In the spirit of cooperation and in recognition of the rescission of these notices, I am more than happy to withdraw my bill and in its place sponsor a discussion aimed at establishing a framework for regulating and licensing the online gaming industry.” In addition, Garofalo credited the PPA and Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) with the positive result.
Shortly thereafter, it was learned that an official settlement might not have been reached. iMEGA Chairman Joe Brennan told Poker News Daily, “There is no final agreement as of yet. The Attorney General’s office and our counsel are still talking and the Department of Public Safety hasn’t sent any letters out to ISPs because we’re still negotiating the language. I hope a deal will be done soon, but there isn’t one yet.” A statement distributed by the organization noted, “Press reports that iMEGA has declared victory in this matter are inaccurate.”
Dennis Smith, a spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, told Poker News Daily, “No official settlement has been reached. This issue remains in the office of our counsel.”
The industry will now take a wait and see approach until a settlement has been reached. Shortly after the Department of Public Safety distributed letters to the 11 ISPs, which included Charter, Comcast, Qwest, and Verizon, iMEGA filed a civil suit against John Willems in his capacity as the Director of the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division. The organization cited violations of the First Amendment and Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution as reasons for the legal proceeding.
The statement posted on iMEGA’s website and sent to Poker News Daily noted, “Statements of other parties outside of the negotiation are speculative and premature.” The 15,000 PPA members in the Land of 10,000 Lakes flooded Willems’ office with phone calls. In addition, Garofalo introduced legislation to prevent the Department of Public Safety from enforcing the ban. The list of 200 sites was derived randomly from a larger list and included the casino arms of Ladbrokes and Party Gaming, two publicly traded companies on the London Stock Exchange. Party Gaming has already entered into a non-prosecution agreement with the United States Government.
iMEGA and the IGC are also involved in the legal squabble over the seizure and potential forfeiture of 141 internet gambling domain names in Kentucky. Several of the websites in question belong to the internet gambling industry’s goliaths, including PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Doyle’s Room, Ultimate Bet, and Bodog. The latter recently recouped the rights to Bodog.com from 1st Technology, LLC after settling a patent infringement lawsuit in April. The company also owns the rights to BodogLife.com.
iMEGA filed its brief with the Kentucky Supreme Court last week and the State now will submit a response; the PPA has filed an amicus brief. In January, the Kentucky Court of Appeals overturned a lower court’s ruling that upheld the seizure order. Shortly thereafter, Commonwealth attorneys appealed to the state’s highest judicial body.
We’ll have full updates on the status of the Minnesota case right here on Poker News Daily.
