Unibet Poker launches Fast Poker - their version of FTP Rush Poker

There’s been a new development in the U.S. online poker legislation saga, with IMEGA (Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association) arguing for its legalisation in front of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia.

The objective of IMEGA is to prove the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) is unconstitutional. The UIGEA’s implementation has had far reaching consequences – numerous websites forbid US players, several US states have outlawed poker, and $30 million in player bank wire funds to PokerStars were recently seized.

At the centre of proceedings was a discussion on where an actual ‘bet’ took place, as IMEGA Executive Director Joe Brennan explained, ‘We argued that the bet took place in another country like Costa Rica. When a person enters into a bet, it comes from an account already placed on the site.’ Website server headquarters are often placed outside the US, and so independent of US legislature. The Kahnawake Gaming commission for instance, which regulates several networks including Cereus (Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker) and Merge, is located on an Indian reservation. The UIGEA argues that since the ‘bet’ is made from a computer located in the US, it is illegal. Further discussion revolved around the incorporation of affected poker players into the IMEGA case. Although personal accounts of funds seizure would strengthen the IMEGA position, a player would have to testify under oath he played online poker, opening him to potential civil penalties.