US News -- The Internet gambling bill put forth by Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., is on schedule to be voted on by the full House of Representatives on Tuesday, June 3. The bill, which is the same as HR 21, the Leach bill, minus the civil and criminal penalties, has been placed on the House's suspension calendars, meaning that it will be debated for 40 minutes, with no amendments allowed and then will need a two-thirds majority to pass.
New Stuff -- Tab Ltd. said yesterday that it is teaming up with e-pay Australia Pty Ltd. to deliver a real-time prepayment option in retail outlets in Australia. Under the deal, Tab's 200,000 account holders can deposit funds into their betting accounts at more than 533 participating retailers such as 7-Eleven and Mobil stations. The customers can then use the funds to bet using Tab services either in person at a Tab establishment, on the telephone or on the Tab Web site.
Bit from Bermuda -- Nigel Hickson, a consultant with Bermuda's Ministry of E-Commerce, told the Bermuda Sun recently that the ministry is going to examine whether Internet gambling is legal on the island as part of an investigation into whether there is any illegal online gaming going on among land-based establishments. "We are very interested to learn of these reports (of Internet gambling) and indeed we are looking into the situation to see if these establishments are operating within the constraints of the legislation," he said.