US Bit -- President George W. Bush today signed the Dot Kids Implementation and Efficiency Act of 2002 into law. The act creates a sub-domain, ".kids," which will only offer material suitable for children under the age of 12. Sites with the extension will not have links to external sites and instant messaging, and chat rooms will be monitored to make sure they are safe.
Makin' Deals -- Netgame Factory, the Scandinavian mobile lottery game developer, and Oberthur Gaming Technologies are joining forces to create a new company that will focus on solutions for mobile lotteries. The companies will each have a 50 percent stake in the new company, OberthurNetgameFactory Ltd., which will be based in Dublin. John Connelly, the vice president of corporate strategic development for Oberthur, said the venture is an opportunity to combine his group's lottery experience with Netgame Factory's technology. "In our view, Netgame Factory is the company that offers the most successful mobile lottery platform in the market today," he said. "Together we will be able to offer innovative turnkey m-gaming solutions."
Tidbits from the UK -- Sportech plc and British Sky Broadcasting are now offering a new variety of interactive betting pools, lotteries and instant-win games on the Sky Active platform, which is available in more than 6 million homes in the United Kingdom. The games will be available through the Winzone portal, via the Interactive Service Menu. Colin McGill, managing director of Sportech, said the service reflects Sky's commitment to sports coverage and interactive entertainment. "We anticipate that our football games in particular will have high appeal among Sky's dedicated football following," he said.
New Stuff -- The Interactive Gambling, Gaming and Betting Association (iGGBA) recently released a paper on how money laundering affects the online gambling industry. Andrew Tottenham, an iGGBA council member, recently told a conference audience that the lack of universally available I-gaming licenses leads to I-gaming sites setting up shop in countries that don't have strong rules against money laundering. "The main requirement for fighting money laundering is a robust system of vetting operators when they request licenses," he said. "By insuring that operators are responsible for initiating AML (anti-money laundering) measures is the best method of
stopping this crime."
Data Hub -- According to Espotting, a European pay-per-click advertising network, the most used search terms about online gambling for the period between Nov. 22 and Dec. 1 were, in ascending order: Internet gambling, gambling poker, net casinos, Internet casinos, gamble, craps, slots, blackjack, racing and casinos.
Names and Faces -- Thomas Auriemma has been sworn in as the director of New Jersey's Division of Gaming Enforcement. Auriemma has held the position on an interim basis since January. The former office holder, John Peter Suarez, left the job for a position at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.