NORTH DAKOTA -– (PRESS RELEASE) -- The news that a key Bill seeking to
legalise online poker in the state legislature of North Dakota is making good
progress has been welcomed by the online gaming industry's regulatory body
eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance
The CEO Andrew Beveridge commended Representative Jim Kasper for
sponsoring the legislation, which now moves to the state Senate for hearing on
March 8.
"North Dakota is setting an important state precedent by introducing
legislation that will protect players of this popular card game through sound
and enforced regulations, and has the potential to make significant
contributions to the state economy through taxes and operational presence on
U.S. soil," he said.
Beveridge went on to reveal that eCOGRA has recently completed extensive
studies of viable online poker regulation in order to add enforced online
poker regulation to its services. "Three of the top seven poker operations (as
rated by PokerPulse.com) have already started our eGAP inspection process,
which is being carried out by one of the world's leading audit firms," he
said.
"Player protection is key to the industry's success. Players can feel safe
in the knowledge that gaming is fair, payouts are timeous and customer service
is superior on all sites certified by eCOGRA. eCOGRA is now well experienced
in designing and applying effective regulation of gambling operations through
rigorous assessment by internationally recognised audit firms. This
verification applies currently to fifty one online sites that handle much of
the international online gaming market. eCOGRA would be delighted to share its
knowledge with state legislators to further this process." eCOGRA is already
involved with a number of online gaming jurisdictions, sharing knowledge about
practical and effective regulatory requirements and the methodologies required
to ensure effective monitoring.
Gambling regulation has traditionally been the prerogative of individual
states in North America, a right that has been jealously guarded despite
occasional interference from the federal government. The governor of this
progressive state is reported to support the Bill.
The eCOGRA CEO drew attention to comments made earlier this year by eCOGRA
independent director Frank Catania. Addressing the National Council of
Legislators from Gaming States, the former director of the New Jersey Division
of Gaming Enforcement observed that 82 jurisdictions worldwide provide some
form of regulation for various types of Internet gaming.
He said, "The ability to do real time auditing makes regulation easier and
more efficient than the systems currently used by the terrestrial casino
regulators. State-of-the-art technology, combined with proper operating
procedures, has proven effective in preventing minors from gambling online and
in combating money laundering. "This form of gambling cannot be stopped, but
it can be effectively regulated and taxed. State legislators in Illinois and
Georgia recently introduced bills to permit the online sale of lottery
tickets."