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Poker pro Daniel Negreanu recently escaped the United States to his native Canada where he is now free to play online poker from the comfort of his home.
The US Justice Department indicted three of the world’s largest online poker rooms on April 15, forcing them to shut of hundreds of thousands of players including Negreanu. The companies were charged with funneling gambling monies through a small Utah bank, masking transactions as purchases for dog food and golf balls.
“During the Cold War, the “Big, Bad, Communist, U.S.S.R.” was seen as an oppressive regime, while the U.S.A. represented freedom. Who woulda thunk, that to enjoy the freedom of playing poker online you’d have to move away from Los Angeles and head to Moscow. That’s just bizarre.”
The Canadian government has not always been kind to the online gambling sector either. In recent years, various provinces including Alberta have considered imposing regulations similar to that of the United States.
Negreanu may not be familiar with the 1999 raids by Canadian law enforcement on what was at the time the largest online casino operator, Starnet Communications. Starnet was once the home to the Sportsbook.com Group that is now Merge Poker’s biggest client. The Royal Mounted Canadian Police assault on the company was widely criticized at the time.
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“…stay away from the U.S. because poker is on life support…For those of you who can, I really suggest moving out of the United States of America to a country that will allow you the freedom to play poker in your underwear. Canada is a great option, but you could go pretty much anywhere in the world that suits your fancy.”
The world climate as it relates to online gambling constantly changes. Just think, it was only two years ago that Italian authorities severely cracked down on the industry. Today, Italy has become the biggest regulated online poker market in Europe.
Meanwhile, Australia has mounted its own assault on the sector.
- Chris Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
