US Bit -- The Interactive Gaming Council, a trade association for the Internet gambling industry, warned in a press release Monday that recent actions of the U.S. government and a handful of U.S.-based companies are driving legitimate business operations out of the industry. Those actions include New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer subpoenaing PayPal and Yahoo! 's decision to stop running advertisements for online betting sites, said Rick Smith, executive director of the IGC. "The cumulative message to the highly regulated U.S. casino firms, many of which would like to extend their business into cyberspace, is loud and clear: Stay away," he said. "But people should consider the implications of keeping some of the most responsible businesses from participating in this form of gambling."
New Stuff -- Websense Inc. , a maker of software that helps companies manage their employees' Internet usage, said today that employers in California should be aware that with legalized Internet wagering on horse races comes the temptation for staff to bet from the office. "Corporations may face a losing battle with dwindling worker productivity, increased legal liabilities and network congestion, as employees legal place horse racing bets over the Internet for the first time in California history," the group stated.