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Online casino industry development timeline...

 


1994
The Government of Antigua Barbuda passes The Free Trade and Processing Zone Act, 1994.  Many online casinos and sports books today operate under licenses granted pursuant to this legislation.  Antigua Barbuda continues to be one of the online gambling industries most popular licensing jurisdictions.


1994
Microgaming, one of the internet casino industry's first and largest software developers and suppliers, is founded.


1995
Brothers Andrew and Mark Rivkin found CryptoLogic, with the aim of developing a series of unique encrypted communication protocols to settle transactions securely, reliably and quickly.


1995
Starnet Communications, based in Vancouver, Canada, is established to develop, license and provide online gambling technology and websites, including online casinos and sportsbooks.  To get around local legal barriers, offshore subsidiaries, are established to carry out development, licensing and e-commerce functions for clients.


1996
The Kahnawake Gaming Commission is established in Canada.   Kahnawake Gaming Law is created with the express purpose of regulating Kahnawake licensed online gambling activities hosted within its jurisdiction.


1996
Boss Specialtidningar AB, Boss Media's parent company, begins to develop a system for casino operations on the Internet.


1996
Microgaming sells off existing casino operations and concentrates on developing of internet casino technologies.


1996
Cryptologic begins developing the first Ecash and gaming application, and complete its first generation of gaming software later in the year.


1996 
CryptoLogic's wholly owned subsidiary, WagerLogic, completed its first license.

InterCasino goes online in October 1996, claiming to be the first internet casino to accept a real money wager online.


1997
Boss Casinos system development work is transferred to Boss Media AB.  The game server system is located in Antigua & Barbuda, in the West Indies, one of the few countries in the world willing to sanction Internet gaming operations at that time.


1997
Starnet Systems International Inc. is created as a subsidiary of Starnet Communications, to license turnkey, customized, Internet gaming systems to independent operators in exchange for a share of the licensees' revenues.


1997
Starnet launches WorldGaming.net, a proprietary website licensed in Antigua to accept, process and manage wagers via the Internet.


1997
PartyGaming is founded as a network of gambling sites offering casino games and operating in the Caribbean. The incredible growth of the company, lead the shareholders to list the company on the London Stock Exchange in 2005.


1998
Microgaming launches Cash Splash, the Internet's first progressive jackpot slot.


1998
Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), Congress' foremost opponent to online gambling introduces the Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, designed to make it illegal for any company to offer an online gambling product to US citizens.  The bill eventually fails to pass.


1998
Starnet Systems signs its first Internet gaming licensee, Atlantis Corp, operating out of Antigua Barbuda.


1998
Frost and Sullivan report that online gambling industry generated $834.5 million in revenue in 1998.


1998
Boss Media signs its first license agreement with an external customer.


1999
Royal Canadian Mounted Police raid Starnet Communication's Vancouver office for suspected participation in illegal gambling.  While all gaming servers are located offshore, Canadian Authorities claim that the Starnet's e-mail server which is located in Canada, is an extension of gaming activities and therefore in violation of the Canadian Criminal Code.


1999
Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), reintroduces a revised Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, designed to make it illegal for any company to offer an online gambling product to US citizens.  The revised bill also fails to pass.


1999
Microgaming forms a deal with a big five auditing firm (PriceWaterhouseCoopers) to review and report on casino payout percentages.


1999
The first Australian Government licensed internet casino, Lasseter's, goes online.  Lasseter's operates under license from the Northern Territory Government, which moved quickly to legislate for and offer licenses to online casinos.  Meanwhile other Australian states move toward the release of their own online gambling legislation and licensing schemes.


1999
Boss Media´s shares are quoted on the OM Stockholm Exchange´s O-list.  


1999
As at September 1999, Christian Capital Advisors estimated that there were approximately 700 casinos taking money bets over the Internet


1999
Boss Media takes the online gambling world by storm with the release of its new gaming software platform with multi-player functionality, allowing multiple players to play the same game at once, and chat to each other while at the virual gaming table.


2000
The Australian Federal Government passes its Interactive Gambling Moratorium Act, making it illegal for any Australian Based online casino or sports book operators not already licensed and operating prior to May 2000, from operating.  Lasseters Online is the only Australian based Internet casino able to operate under the new legislation.


2000
Microgaming releases its second progressive internet slots game, Lots a Loot Progressive Slot.


2000
Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) introduces a new Internet Gambling Prohibition Act to the US House of Representatives.  The bill fails to attract the required two thirds majority vote to pass


2000
Cryptologic's annual report claims that the number of customers who have used its electronic payment system for online betting has climbed to 680,000 since operations began in 1996.


2000
The UK sovereign territories of Gibraltar and the Isle of Man offer online sports betting licenses.  A number of large UK betting shops purchase licenses from these jurisdictions in a move to avoid UK betting taxes.


2000
Microgaming releases 3 more of its progressive internet games: WowPot, Fruit Fiesta slots, and SupaJax video poker progressives.


2000
South African giant Sun International Hotels Limited signs a license agreement with Boss Media for use of the latters online casino software.  This is Boss' first agreement with a land-based casino company.


2000
Cryptologic lists on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol CRYP.


2000
Casino Sur is launched, becoming the first online casino licensed in Argentina.


2001
Results of a survey published in PRNewswire (22 March 2001) claims that around 8 million people had already gambled with real money online at that time.  


2001
The Australian Federal Government passes legislation making it illegal for any Internet casino or sports book to offer its product to Australian residents.  Following numerous last minute amendments resulting from pressure from powerful terrestrial gambling associations, the legislation contains significant concessions for local sportsbook and racing operators.


2001
The Nevada legislature passes a bill opening the way for licensed online casinos to operate out of Nevada.  It is estimated that it will still be a year or two before the drafting of license regulations and agreement from the US Department of Justice will allow the granting of the first licenses.


2001
Starnet Communications is fined $100,000 for involvement in internet gambling.  No company officers were fined or charged.


2001
The Kahnawake Gaming Commission hosts its 20th online casino licensee, up from 12 the previous year.


2001
An online casino player wins  US$414,119 playing the Rags to Riches slot game at The Sands of the Caribbean online casino.  This is the largest internet progressive jackpot win to date.


2001
Alderney (British Channel Islands) passes legislation for Interactive Gambling, and the Alderney Commission is now is a position to accept license applications.


2001
The Gambling Review Report is released in the UK. Subject to rounds of negotiations before its recommendations become law, the review suggests legalizing all forms of online gambling, which would make Britain one of the few OECD countries to allow it.


2001
Partypoker.com, now one of the largest online poker brands launches.


2002
A bill sponsored by Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va that would update a 40-year-old law banning telephone wagers (the Wire Act) to cover Internet betting, and online casinos in particular, was passed unanimously by the U.S. House Judiciary subcommittee on crime.  The bill fails in the House and Senate and doesn't become law.


2002

The first ever $1 million plus online casino jackpot goes off on 30 May.  A player at Captain Cooks Casino playing the Microgaming progressive slot game Major Millions wins $1,594,649.


2003
eCOGRA (eCommerce and online gaming regulation and assurance) is founded with the goal of providing a best practice operating framework and related compliance testing for the as yet largely unregulated industry.


2003

Chris Moneymaker, an accountant and part time poker amateur, takes out the 2003 world series of poker, providing what many believe to be one of the major catalyst to the general and online poker boom that sees sites like Partypoker.com grow their customer bases exponentially over the ensuing years.


2004

Worldwide online casino revenues are estimated by research group Frost and Sullivan to have reached just over $8 billion, up from $3 billion in 2001.


2004

Search engine giants Google and Yahoo make the decision to remove all online gambling related advertising from their websites, following a US Justice Department announcement that advertising online gambling may be construed as "aiding and abetting" illegal betting pursuant to the Wire Wager Act 1961.


2005

Only 4 years after launching their online poker business, PartyGaming lists on the London Stock Exchange with a market value of approximately £4.6 billion.


2005

Online casino portal Casino City sues the US Justice Department, seeking a declaration from the court that the act of advertising online casinos is legal and protected by First Amendment Rights.  The action is dismissed, as is a subsequent appeal in January 2006.


2005

The Caribbean island nation of Antigua Barbuda, now one of the world's established online gambling hubs, files an action against the United States Government before the World Trade Organization on the basis that US anti-online gambling laws (interpretation of the Wire Wager Act) violate the WTO's General Agreement on Trade in Services.  The WTO finds in favor of Antigua Barbuda.


2006
Italy becomes the first European country to move to ban access by its residents to non-Italian licensed online gaming sites.  The move to block all gaming sites not licensed in Italy was put into effect in Italy's 2006 Budget, and specifically identifies 684 internet gaming sites which are considered to be illegal.  The law imposes an obligation on Italian ISP's to block the listed illegal gaming sites, or face fines of up to €180,000 a day for infringements.


2006
The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act ("UIGEA") is passed by the Bush Administration, attached to the Safe Ports Act.  UIGEA renders it illegal for US financial institutions to facilitate payments between US residents and offshore online gambling sites.  Share prices of listed online gambling operators with significant US facing operations, like Sportingbet.com, Ladbrokes and Partygaming plunge overnight as a result.


2006
Frost and Sullivan estimate worldwide online casino revenues to be $15 billion, almost doubling since 2004.  Estimates of future growth are revised considerably following the passing of UIGEA.


2007
Antigua Barbuda files a claim with the WTO against the United States for
USD $3.4 billion in relation to GATS  violations.  The EU files similar claims.


2007
Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) introduces the first of a number of legislative attempts to either modify or repeal UIGEA


2008
In April, Klaus E. from Finland hits the first online casino progressive jackpot in excess of $5 million.  The win of $5,556,753.68 playing Microgaming game Mega Moolah at Blackjack Ballroom is not eclipsed until May 2009 when the same game is hit for EUR 6.3 million.


2008
The European Commission begins infringement proceedings against a number of EU member states including France and Germany on the basis that their anti-online gambling laws are in breach of EU 'Freedom to Provide Services' provisions.  France subsequently announces intentions to open its market to online gambling with a new licensing and regulatory regime to come into operation in early 2010.


2008
The '
superuser account' scandals hit the online poker industry with player analysis and investigations revealing that UltimateBet and Absolute Poker software security had been compromised and fraudsters were able to play with knowledge other players' hold cards.  Millions of dollars in fraudulent winnings remain unrecovered.


2009

Microgaming's Mega Moolah progressive slot jackpot goes off at a record EUR 6.3 million.  It is won by Georgios M from Greece, playing at the Riverbelle.


2009

Industry stalwart Bodog.com reaches the milestone of signing its 3 millionth customer account.  Bodog is one of the few large brand online gambling operators choosing to defy the UIGEA and continue to accept US player accounts.


2009

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke grant a 6 month reprieve on UIGEAs implementation date. The new June 1, 2010 deadline gives Rep. Barney Frank and cohorts a window of opportunity to push their proposed regulatory approach.


2009

Gambling Giant Harrahs launches its first online casino.  www.caesarscasino.com goes live in November and marks the first major US based terrestrial gaming house to launch one of their brands online.  The move is an about face from Harrah's staunch anti-online gambling stance and (via AGA) support of UIGEA in 2006.


2010

Despite the UIGEA implementation reprieve, Mastercard surprises the industry by beginning online gambling payment blocking measures for US players in February.


2010

Online poker room Pokerstars.com deals its 40 billionth hand of poker.  The milestone is celebrated with a tournament that attracts 36,169 entrants and generates a prize pool of $7,233,800.  The tournament winner received $1.1million.


2010

France's newly formed online gambling regulator ARJEL begins taking license applications for online poker and sports betting providers wanting to participate in the regulated French online gambling market.


2010

UIGEA is implemented in the US on June 1. 


2010

North America gets its first government owned and operated online casino with the launch of Playnow.com.  The casino is operated by the Canadian crown corporation the BCLC, and available only to residents of British Columbia.  Other Canadian provinces looking to address growing deficits are rumored to soon follow suit with net casinos of their own.


2011

In April the US Department of Justice Indicts key figures at major US facing online poker rooms Full Tilt, PokerStars and Absolute Poker, in addition to a number of individuals alleged to have been instrumental in the processing of online poker transactions at US banks. 

 

 

 

         

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