Minnesota Backs Down in War on Internet Gambling

June 13, 2009 | News Category: Gaming Law

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The state of Minnesota ordered a number of Internet service providers to block 200 online gambling domain names from users. iMEGA (Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association) and the PPA (Poker Players Alliance) challenged the validity of the order by the state legislators, and took them to court over the issue.

Upon receiving legal advice, the Minnesota authorities were told that basing their decision on the Wire Act was not likely to win the case in court. After receiving this legal advice, the state made a decision not to pursue the case at this time.

ISPs have received a new letter from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, which has requested their cooperation and assistance in order to figure out some regulatory ideas for online gambling in their state.

Since the letter was sent, iMEGA and the PPA have dropped their lawsuit. There had been some rumors, and the PPA had in fact released a statement before the weekend regarding the decision to drop the case. However, even though the outcome was as stated in the press release, the details had not yet been finalized, and were only done so on Monday this week. iMEGA's chairman, Joe Brennan, released a statement to this effect around the same time that the PPA released a statement stating the results of the negotiations, which have erroneously proved to be correct.

In the PPA's press release, their representative, Pat Garofalo, said "This is a great day for Internet freedom. In the spirit of cooperation and in recognition of the rescission of these notices, I am more than happy to withdraw my bill and in its place sponsor a discussion aimed at establishing a framework for regulating and licensing the online gaming industry."

The head of the Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division of the DPS, John Willems, who had publicly projected that the list of 200 sites to be banned would be followed by thousands of other sites, said "I believe it may be more appropriate to resolve this problem by working to create clear and effective government policies concerning regulation of gambling." Many doubt the sincerity of this statement that was likely made because Willems had no other choice at this time.

While the online gambling world and ISPs are celebrating their victory in this matter, a spokesman for the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Andy Skoogman said that they have not yet folded their hand. Skoogman said "The action raised awareness of the broader issue about who is policing the Internet and protecting the consumer."

Internet gambling has won this battle, but it seems that it may not be over yet. It may well happen, as a result of this attempted ban on online gambling sites, that Minnesota could become one of the first states that will help bring legalized and regulated online gambling to the United States.