07 28th, 2010
After postponing the hearing on Tuesday, the House Financial Services Committee met on Wednesday to discuss Rep. Barney Frank’s proposed bill H.R. 2267, the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act. Many representatives were on hand to file amendments and make their voices heard, and after several hours the bill was passed by a vote of 41-22, finalizing the first of many steps to be taken in order to regulate online poker in the United States.
The hearing got underway just after 10:00 a.m. ET and the committee began discussing provisions of the bill in the markup phase. This is the phase where a Congressional committee makes changes to a bill before it is voted on and eventually sent to the House of Representatives for another vote. Should the bill get the majority vote from the House of Representatives, it would then be passed along to the Senate for another majority vote, before being signed into law by the President.
Several amendments were made to HR 2267 on Wednesday. Each amendment was handled individually and voted on by the representatives in attendance. Here’s a recap of what was discussed:
Amendment 1 (Congressman Brad Sherman, Calif.): Sites that have intentionally broken Internet gaming laws cannot get a license to conduct business in the United States. This will likely affect larger online poker sites such as , and the old , all of whom allowed players from the U.S. to play on their site after the went into effect. Amendment is taken to a voice vote, where representatives are asked to motion whether they are in favor or against the amendment. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 2 (Congressman Peter King, New York): Prohibits sports betting, excluding horseracing. King and several other representatives strongly support the notion of keeping sports clean and away from anything that will undermine the integrity of the game. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 3 (Congresswoman Mary Jo Kilroy, Ohio): Secretary of Treasury has the power to prohibit unsolicited emails and advertisements targeted to minors and problem gamblers. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 4 (Congressman Spencer Bachus, Alabama, and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Minnesota): Forbids offshore sites that have illegally done business in the US, along with people who have been employed by said sites, from getting a license. Bachus aims to include everyone associated with an “illegally-run” online gambling site be banned; Frank disputes the provision, saying that a janitor or restaurant worker employed inside of a brick and mortar casino would not be held responsible for the mishandlings of upper management; the same should hold true for an online company. Bachus withdraws amendment and says he would like to resubmit. Bachus reintroduces amendment later in the day, stipulating that only those who knew they were working at an illegally-run Internet site will be banned from obtaining a license. Amendment is later voted on by roll-call.
Amendment 5 (Congressman Joe Baca, Calif.): Allows Indian tribes to participate in Internet gambling. Frank quickly denies the amendment as it is not germane, or relevant to the subject.
Amendment 6 (Congressman Joe Baca, Calif): Allow states/tribes to opt-in to Internet gambling. Frank emphasizes that the choice to gamble online should be up to the person, not to the state where they reside. Amendment denied by voice vote, but is later voted on by roll-call.
Amendment 7 (Congressman John Campbell, Calif): Includes several provisions: 1.) All facilities of licensees that operate and/or accept wagers be located in the US; 2.) States and tribes must have parallel authority; 3.) Bettors must be at least 21 years of age; 4.) Age and residence of bettors must be verified; 5.) Odds of winning at each game must be posted online, 6.) The identities of legal and illegal gambling sites must be verified by the treasury in order for banks to prohibit certain financial transactions; 7.) Owners must meet licensing requirements; 8.) Sites must provide loss limits for each bettor. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 8 (Congressman Brad Sherman, Calif.): States are given one full legislative session to opt out, as opposed to the original period of 90 days. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 9 (Congressman John Campbell, Calif): Internet sites who advertise towards minors will have their license revoked. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 10 (Congresswoman Melissa Bean, Illinois): Treasury is required to observe Internet sites and accordingly sanction fines and revoke licenses if minors are found gambling. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 11 (Manager’s amendment — the majority and minority member who managed the debate): Bets are to be made with prepaid cards and debit cards only; bettors will be restricted from using credit cards on Internet gambling sites. In addition, the House Financial Services Committee will have no jurisdiction on tribal rights. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 12 (Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, Minnesota): Internet sites are forbidden from allowing people who are delinquent on child support from gambling on their site. Sites who don’t obey this rule lose their license. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Amendment 13 (Congressman Gary Peters, Michigan): State and tribal lotteries are exempt from licensing requirements, as long as they are intrastate activities. Currently, these lotteries are already subject to state licensing, and the Federal government should not get involved. Amendment passes by voice vote.
Following the passing of the final amendment of the afternoon, Rep. Bachus called for a roll call vote, which Rep. Frank scheduled for 3:20 p.m. ET. The first roll call vote was on the opt-in amendment by Rep. Baca, which was defeated by a vote of 37-22. The next in line was Bachus’ amendment, which was also voted down, by a vote of 43-22. Finally, HR 2267 came before the committee, and it passed by an overwhelming margin of 41-22.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily as we continue the follow the fight to regulate online poker in the U.S.
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07 28th, 2010
PartyPoker.com and MatchRoom Sport announced Wednesday that the PartyPoker World Open VI will take place Monday Sept 6 through Friday Sept 10 in London.
The prestigious poker event which is in its 6th incarnation will host 48 of the worlds…
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What’s in the lineup for tonight’s Nightly Turbo? Poker Table Ratings has discovered an issue on the Cake Poker Network, the ESPN Inside Deal team is bringing you another episode, this time, David Williams joins them, and we’ve got a little eye…
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One of the major players in the Canadian poker scene, Heads Up Entertainment – which owns the Canadian Poker Tour and will host the upcoming Canadian Open Poker Championships in August – is the subject of good news on the financial front in a time when such reports are rare for various poker tournament schedules and companies.
Heads Up Entertainment (listed under the stock ticker “HDUP” on the OTC Pink Sheets) last week reported that their revenues for tournament entries and corporate sponsorships have exceeded previous expectations. Their July tournaments, including the recently completed Stampede Poker Classic, saw a 30% increase in total player registrations. According to Kelly Kellner, the president and Chief Executive Officer of Heads Up Entertainment, the growing success of the CPT should only extend to the upcoming COPC.
“Right now, we’re ahead of schedule with player registrations for the COPC compared to past years,” Kellner stated in an exclusive interview with Poker News Daily. “Everything is looking very good for the COPC, but there’s always some concerns that you have directing such a big event. I constantly am thinking, ’what if no one shows up,’ and then the next minute thinking, ’what if everyone shows up’. There’s no point of happiness until the tournament goes off,” Kelly said with a laugh.
The news from player registrations has been exceptionally good. Heads Up Entertainment expects a complete sell out for the COPC, which will put total revenues from just the COPC and the Stampede Poker Classic at around $250,000 (Canadian dollars). Overall revenues from events that have been held by the CPT have passed $400,000 to this point in 2010.
Several corporate sponsors have stepped up to become sponsors of the COPC in August. Kellner stressed the importance of those sponsors in not only being critical to the bottom line, but also important in working with the local community. “We have lined up three major sponsors for the COPC,” Kellner told Poker News Daily. “Big Rock Brewery is a local Calgary company and one of their best products, Gopher Lager, is also a part of the COPC. Joining those companies is another quality sponsor in Dank Energy Drink.” Kellner also stated that he is “continuously” looking for other sponsors that want to be a part of such a prestigious tournament.
With the fields for the COPC tournaments quickly filling up, Kellner stressed the importance of early registration to ensure players can get into the events they want. “Pre-registering for tournaments can be done on the tournament’s and players don’t have to prepay for any event other than the Heads Up Championship,” Kellner says. “It is definitely looking like this year’s COPC will surpass everyone’s expectations.”
Kellner also noted that Heads Up Entertainment is looking to improve its standing as a publicly traded company. “We are going through the processes to become a fully reporting member (reporting in-depth financials quarterly is a must for any publicly traded company) and, as such, to be able to move from the pink sheets to a higher level of investment,” Kelly reported. “Heads Up Entertainment is a solid organization and a good opportunity for investors.”
The COPC is Canada’s version of a national championship, with their penultimate event, the $5000 Heads Up Championship, serving as their Main Event. From August 19th to the 29th, eleven events will take place (including the $5K) over three casinos located in Calgary. The Deerfoot Inn and Casino, the Grey Eagle Casino and the Cash Casino will all be running events during the COPC. Satellites will run at all three casinos, with different events during the COPC schedule to be held at each casino. Buy ins range from $170 for satellite tournaments to the $5000 Heads Up Championship.
The COPC has been popular with everyone in the poker world, from grinders looking for an inexpensive event to top pros looking for a major championship. Over the past few years, such players as former COPC Heads Up Champion , former World Champions and Joseph Hachem, Canadian poker professionals Brad Booth, and Greg Mueller, and other poker pros such as , and have played in COPC events. Because of the strength of the fields throughout the ten day schedule – and the entertainment organized by Heads Up Entertainment during off nights – it is extremely likely that this year’s COPC will be one of the largest poker festivals in Canadian poker history.
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07 27th, 2010
Although technically, we’re more than halfway through the calendar year, the second half of the poker year really begins when the World Series of Poker is completed in mid-July. It’s time to gaze into the crystal ball to see what we can expect on…
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07 27th, 2010
PokerNews and Betfred Poker have teamed up to bring you an exclusive freeroll series throughout the year. The next one coming up will see $1,000 added to the prize pool and distributed as per Betfred Poker’s standard payout structure.
This is a…
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An eventful Sunday of online poker concluded early Monday morning with five players pocketing six-figure scores. The biggest went to “BarneyR2005″ for claming an outright victory in the PokerStars Sunday Million for $244,749.39. The PokerStars…
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07 26th, 2010
The next $1,000 Cash Freeroll at Winner Poker is just a day away. This is just a reminder for those of you who have already met the qualification requirements. It only takes one player point to qualify!
The freeroll is on July 27 at 19:35 GMT…
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In case you missed anything over the week, we’re here to bring you up to speed. PokerStars is bringing someone new to the team, the Brunson 10 added a new member to the team, and more.
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07 24th, 2010
There was a hearing for Barney Frank’s new online poker bill, two big live tournaments began, tons of online action and of course everyone got to know the 2010 November Nine a bit better.
There are always lesser-known stories that threaten to fall through the cracks, however. Fortunately PokerListings has compiled them down in our ongoing Poker News in Brief feature.
This week we’ll take a look at Tony G winning the Poker Lounge, PokerStars giving away a Gallardo, Full Tilt renewing a popular cash game show and more.
Tony G Takes Poker Lounge
Tony G won the new six-player winner-take-all Poker Lounge for $120,000 in Cardiff this week.
The PartyPoker pro had his work cut out for him as he had to outlast Mike “The Mouth” Matusow, Jennifer Harman, Chris Ferguson, James Dempsey and an online qualifier.
Tony G would eventually take a slight chip lead into heads-up play against Mike “The Mouth” Matusow.
In the final hand Tony G got it all-in with A-9 against Matusow’s A-5 and ended up winning the hand.
The show is set to be broadcast in Britain later this year.
Full Tilt Renews Million Dollar Cash Game
Popular European poker show the Million Dollar Cash Game will be around for at least three more years as has renewed its sponsorship.
In years past Gus Hansen, Patrik Antonius, Chris Ferguson, Allen Cunningham, Tony G and Mike Matusow have all been regulars on the program.
Last year’s show was perhaps the most memorable in the show’s history as Tom Dwan raked a $1.1 million pot from Phil Ivey. It was the biggest pot ever won on television.
This year’s Million Dollar Cash Game will take place an exclusive venue in London on Sept. 8-9.
Free Lamborghini on PokerStars
PokerStars players could potentially drive away in a new Lamborghini Gallardo thanks to a new promotion.
The online room announced this week that it will run a series of daily freerolls where players can qualify for nine weekly finals, each with $100,000 added to the prizepool.
The top 2,000 players from each weekly final will progress to the grand final where players will compete for a $250,000 and a Gallardo.
The promo will run July 25 until Sept. 25 on with the grand final scheduled for Oct. 3.
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