The American Gaming Association is a lobbying organization that is a strong proponent for the gambling and poker industry. The AGA has now announced they are no longer supporting the iGaming industry in the United States and will not be supporting legalization and regulation in the states. This comes as a major hit to the movement for regulation in the US and hopefully will not hurt the industry as more states move forward trying to propose and pass legislation for the option.
A report by PocketFives states that Kate O’Keeffe of the Wall Street Journal reported that the AGA was not going to be backing the industry in the US due to the AGA members being unable to come to an agreement regarding online poker and gambling issues. Instead of creating a strong platform for the group to operate from, the group has now decided to remove themselves from the equation.
O’Keeffe spoke with Geoff Freeman, the Chief Executive Officer of the AGA and Freeman stated that major leaders in the organization have been in disagreement and the stance of online gambling is one that the group ‘cannot lead on’. Freeman then stated that he has learned in the industry that ‘we are extraordinarily competent at shooting at one another…the snipers in this industry are of the highest quality and, if you let that be the focus, we’ll kill each other.”
The decision of the AGA is a surprising one as the group has been involved in the discussion of online gambling in the past. Back in December of last year, Freeman testified in front of Congress that working to prohibit online gaming does not work and the government cannot simply put the internet back in the bottle. Also the very next month, Freeman published an article speaking about the regulation of the industry instead of a ban.
According to PocketFives, the Poker Players Alliance may be able to step in and fill the void of the AGA. John Pappas, the Executive Director of the AGA, stated that he was disappointed in the AGA’s decision and that the AGA has stated very clearly and publicly that they were in support of sensible regulation of internet poker over a misguided prohibition. Pappas stated it was a shame the group has ‘chosen to be absent from this important debate’. Pappas continued by stating the PPA would continue to work on the issue and help poker players and anyone who is in support of regulation for iGaming.
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