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Turkey Passes Law Against Online Poker & Online GamblingTue, Mar 6th, 2007 @ 12:00am Turkish legislators passed a law on February 28 that forbids online gambling services to be offered by any 'unauthorised' domestic or foreign company to citizens in Turkey. Like the United States passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) which was designed to protect online state lotteries and horse betting, the Turkish law is designed to protect its partially state-owned gaming company IDDAA. Several companies have already reacted. Austria-based Bwin, whose Ongame e-solutions includes PokerRoom.com, has already suspended business activities in Turkey. Since Turkey represents 6 per cent of Bwin's gross gaming revenues, the hiatus will cost Bwin a 25-20 million Euro drop in gross gaming revenues per year. Swedish public company Betsson, is parent to BetssonPoker, CherryPoker and CasinoEuroPoker. Turkey represents 20 percent of Betsson Online's revenues and 15 percent of its subsidiary Net Entertainment's revenues. Betsson issued a statement quoting CEO Pontus Lingwall as saying, "We hope the legislation can be positive to us. Protectionistic legislation has shown to be of our advantage, and I believe it is applicable to this case as well. We are in the middle of a phase of strong growth, where the first quarter has started out fantastic. The underlying growth of online gaming will not be threatened by individual countries' actions." Though the Turkish law's long-winded title is "Law for amending certain articles of the law on bookmaking organisation concerning football contests", the new legislation has sharp teeth, with fines up to between two and five years imprisonment to "anyone involved in enabling access, promotion or operation of sites offering egaming products to Turkish nationals."
Since Turkey is about to enter the European Union (EU), some observers point out that banning foreign companies may not be a good move for Turkey because the European Union promotes policies of free movement of trade and services between member states. They wishfully suggest Turkey might be pressured to change its law. But litigation has raged among several European Union nations who object to such free movement, notably Germany and France who arrested two Bwin executives last fall (click here to read related article). Another tactic is being used by Bwin. Reuters reported that Bwin is investigating the possibility of becoming licensed in Turkey in the future, though Turkey has not explicitly mentioned any possibility at this time. Read Related Articles:
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PokerStars Launches New UK and Ireland Poker Tour PokerStars.com has announced the start of a new poker tour with stops throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland. The UK and Ireland Poker Tour (UKIPT) will kick off in Galway, Ireland in mid-December, and the first event in the UK will be held in Manchester in February.
Peerless Media Agrees to Purchase World Poker Tour Enterprises According to a Monday press release, WPT Enterprises Inc., mothership of the World Poker Tour, is now the rightful property of Peerless Media, Ltd., subsidiary of online giant PartyGaming.
Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho Hit the Amazing Race Rail After surviving six legs of the Amazing Race by the skin of their teeth, poker pros Tiffany Michelle and Maria Ho were finally eliminated in the CBS reality show's most recently aired episode. Michelle and Ho, the last women standing in the 2008 and 2007 World Series of Poker Main Events, gave reality television fans another chance to watch poker personalities compete away from the felt. Annie Duke garnered quite a following earlier in the year on another reality show competition, NBC's Celebrity Apprentice.
Isaac Baron Dominates Caesars Classic Main Event Isaac "westmenloAA" Baron ran over the final table of the Caesars Palace Classic $5,000 Main Event, amassing a huge chip lead and going home with the $246,928 first prize. It took two long days to narrow the 162-person field to the final ten. A very high percentage of the entrants were recognizable tournament circuit players, and unsurprisingly, the stacked field produced a tough final table lineup.
Tonight- ESPN shows Day Before WSOP Main Event Final Nine are Set- Oct 27 Tonight (Oct. 27) at 9pm ET, ESPN will broadcast highlights of action on the day before the Final Table of the 2009 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Main Event was set. Only 27 players remain when this one-hour show begins.
Frenchman Wins PokerStars EPT Warsaw Poker Tourney At the PokerStars European Poker Tour Warsaw No Limit Texas Hold'em main event that wrapped up yesterday, French businessman Christophe Benzimra finished first taking home 358,644 Euros in prize money, while Italian poker pro Alfio Battisti finished second in the tournament.
Vedes Conquers WPT Festa al Lago Final Table Tommy Vedes is the WPT's newest champion! Vedes outlasted 274 players to win the Festa al Lago title and the $1,218,225 first prize. Freddy Deeb, who began the final table with the chip lead, hoped to win his third WPT title and tie Gus Hansen's record. Instead, Deeb was forced to settle for 4th place, leaving room for a new WPT champ. Click here for in-depth coverage of the action and photos from the final table.
Will Hungarians Get Taxed on Poker Soon? Hungarian lawmakers have plans to tax poker winnings and regulate clubs to generate much-needed revenues during the country's worst economic crisis since the end of communism, reports Germany's Deutsche Weele.
Freddy Deeb Leads World Poker Tour Final Table The WPT Festa al Lago Main Event is down to the final six after five tough days of play. Two-time WPT champion Freddy Deeb brings the chip lead along with the benefit of his under-the-lights experience into Monday's televised final table. Deeb previously won the WPT Season III Aruba Poker Classic and the Season VII Celebrity Invitational. He also owns two World Series bracelets and has amassed over $6 million in tournament winnings. A win on Monday would add $1,218,225 to that total. Click here for photos from the felt and final table chip counts.
11 Remain in WPT Festa al Lago Main Event The fourth day of the Festa al Lago WPT $15,000 Championship began with 37 players, just ten eliminations away from the money. Though action was painfully slow at times, it hit break-neck speed before the end of the night, leaving only 11 players standing heading into Day 5. Click here for Day 4 photos and chip counts. |
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