The Interactive Gaming Council, a trade association of the interactive gaming industry, responded this week to the recent New York court decision enjoining World Interactive Gaming Corporation (WIGC) from offering its games to New York citizens.
The IGC has been monitoring the case closely even thought WIGC isn't a member. Our main concern was that the New York Supreme Court would attempt to stretch 30 year-old laws to cover booming, new information technology areas," IGC Vice-chairman Albert Angel said. "Evidently, our concern was well-founded."
Angel explained, "Judge Ramos' decision in the WIGC case, in part, reflected serious allegations relating to this issuance of WIGC's securities. And as we all know, bad facts make bad law. … If Judge Ramos' decision stands on appeal, then every village, town, city, county and state in America could assert jurisdiction over the internet. The patent absurdity of this outcome is clear. If upheld, the court's decision will mean that when a company does business on the internet, it will have to be prepared to defend itself in every court in the country."
In a portion of a 20-page opinion, New York state trial court Judge Edward Ramos held that advertising on Internet sites and placement of ads in national magazines was sufficient to confer the New York courts with jurisdiction over internet transactions.
Angel, who is the chairman of the IGC's public policy committee, continued, "What is particularly troubling about this case is that it completely ignored recent decisions by the U.S. Supreme Court about gaming advertising and by the U.S. Court of Appeals about where such bets are actually made. The case is long on tired, repetitions of old law, and short on a guiding policy approach on internet commerce"
ICC Chairman Sue Schneider, publisher of Interactive Gaming News, added, "If the
New York Supreme Court decision makes one thing clear, it's that the question of jurisdiction over internet gaming can only be addressed by implementing a comprehensive international regulatory regime. Until that happens, consumer protection will be undermined, confidence in the medium will be diminished, and the best efforts of the Internet community to comply with reasonable laws
and regulations will go unrecognized."