North Jersey – State Democratic leaders on Wednesday denounced a proposed Congressional ban of online gaming that would roll back the 2013 legalization of such games by New Jersey, Nevada, and Delaware while also barring the other 47 states from enacting such legislation. New Jersey Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto, D-Secaucus, said in a press release that online gaming “is clearly an issue best left for the states to decide and regulate.” While Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein of California are sponsors of a recent bill to ban the gambling, state Senate President Stephen…

iGaming Business – The Advertising Standards Authority Ireland (ASAI) has ruled that an advert campaign by Irish bookmaker Paddy Power featuring Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius was “offensive” after it breached several rules. The campaign referred to the outcome of a trial in which Pistorius is accused of murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, in February 2013. The advert offered the opportunity to bet on the outcome of the trial and stated punters that placed a bet could access a special money-back offer. The advert stated: “IT’S OSCAR TIME. MONEY BACK IF HE WALKS. WE WILL REFUND ALL LOSING BETS ON THE…

Poker News – While Poland keeps its online poker market in the hands of “grey operators” by continuing to ban the game from the country, DLA Piper Anna Wietrzyńska-Ciołkowska told PokerNews that the country’s missed tax revenues due to gambling restrictions could be about PLN 600 million — approximately €142 million. Since 2011, Poland’s online gambling market has been regulated by the Polish Gambling Act, a very restrictive set of norms that forbids online poker and allows online betting only on four operators holding state-issued licenses. Yet, on March 25, 2014, amendments to the Polish Gambling Act made it possible…

Hawaii News Now – We are learning more details about the take down of a multi-million dollar illegal internet gambling ring. An undercover officer worked for a year to nail 26 key players in the high stakes sports betting scheme that stretched from Hawaii to Costa Rica. Defense Attorney Megan Kau told Hawaii News Now, “For most of these defendants, when their houses were searched, their computers were found. The computers are in their house, the link. That coupled with the fact the government has the records, is difficult to defend.” Kau represented the first two people sentenced in the…

Forbes – In America there is a war going on for the hearts and minds of thousands of online poker players, many of whom have been frozen out of the game they love.  In one corner stand the lobbyists pushing for a federal ban on online poker.  In the other, individual state lawmakers who are forging ahead with plans of regulated online poker for their residents. Three states – Nevada, New Jersey and Delaware – have thus far pushed on with legalized online poker, and New York could be up next. However, with disappointing returns reported to date and tax…

Online payment solutions provider Optimal Payments has further expanded its presence in the North American market after agreeing a five-year partnership with the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG). Under the agreement, Optimal Payments will provide its NETBANX payment service to OLG for its new online gambling service PlayOLG. The new service will offer regulated interactive lottery, casino and video poker games to Ontario residents. The NETBANX solution will support the new offering by providing payment options, as well as delivering real-time fraud and risk prevention and mitigation services. “PlayOLG will be the only regulated internet gaming option in Ontario,”…