Is international online poker coming to an end? That’s seems to be the consensus on Two Plus Two. With countries like Italy, France and now Switzerland either already limiting or preparing to limit online play to only with their own countries this does not bode well for the rest of the online poker countries that are smaller. It likely wouldn’t have nearly the same effect with larger countries like the US but it still is not good for the game. My guess is that it would lead to some of the top tier online players from other countries moving to the US or Germany in order to continue to play against the top competition.
Clearly the United States is looking into legalizing online poker seriously for the first time since the UIGEA went into affect. Obviously the hope of US poker players would be to participate world wide against competition wherever it may be with the ability to play in any and all online poker rooms unrestricted. However, the precedent being established by the smaller countries may influence the decision making in a way that I am not too thrilled with. The US government has been very narrow minded about learning how the business of the game works and why the players want to be free of restrictions on where they can play. If they simply put in the tiniest efforts in understanding the players and began to listen instead of dictate it would go a long way in bridging the chasm between online poker and the US government as we move forward towards legalization.
Like it or not the bad economy is the best thing that could have happened for online poker. No longer can the clowns in D.C. ignore the potential revenue like they have been in the past. Online poker will be legal sooner than later in the U.S. Let’s just hope they get it right the first time.
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