FBI focuses on Second Life gambling

\'We have invited the FBI several times to take a look around in Second Life and raise any concerns they would like, and we know of at least one instance that federal agents did look around in a virtual casino,\' said Linden Lab\'s vice president Ginsu Yoon. Linden Lab operates the phenomenally successful online service. The US Department of Justice has been operating a crackdown on Internet gambling. Yoon said the company was seeking guidance on virtual gaming activity in Second Life but had not yet received clear rules from US authorities. The Sydney Morning Herald says that hundreds of casinos offering poker, slot machines and blackjack can easily be found in Second Life. While it is difficult to estimate the total size of the gambling economy in Second Life, the three largest poker casinos are earning profits of a modest $1500 each per month. Most lawyers agree that placing bets with Linden dollars likely violates US anti-gambling statutes, which cover circumstances in which \'something of value\' is wagered. But the degree of Linden Lab\'s responsibility, and the likelihood of any crackdown, is uncertain. Full Out-Law.com report Full Sydney Morning Herald report

Despite a six-month-old law prohibiting online gaming in the US, gambling sites insist they hold the stronger hand. Information Week notes that Daniel Negreanu understands the odds, as one of the most successful poker tournament players in the world. In December 2005, wary of increasing government hostility toward Internet gambling, he knew it was time to fold. \'Clearly, it wasn\'t going to be possible to live in the US and run an online poker operation,\' he says. So he sold his successful online poker site, Full Contact Poker, to Big Stack Enterprises, in Curacao. Ten months later, however, Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act as part of the Safe Ports Bill. Within two weeks, President Bush signed the Bill into law, and the global online gaming industry – which derived as much as 60% of its revenue from the US market – took a devastating hit. Full Information Week report