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Written by Thomas Jensen
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Tuesday, 13 November 2007
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 The following statement may be attributed to Edward Leyden, President of the Internet Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA) in response to comments made by Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick (pictured to right).
"This past Saturday, The Boston Globe reported that casino legislation filed by Gov. Deval Patrick contained a provision to ban online gaming. The proposed law, which would criminally punish conduct carried out by Massachusetts residents on the Internet, would be another unconstitutional infringement of Americans' digital civil rights.
"Currently iMEGA is embroiled with the Department of Justice in litigation in federal court over the constitutionality of the Unlawful Internet Gaming and Enforcement Act, a bill that banned most Internet gaming nationally. We believe our lawsuit will result in an affirmative recognition by a federal court of the existence of fundamental privacy and associational right to communicate and interact with others via the medium of the Internet in a manner similar to communication and interaction outside of the Internet.
"As this case makes it way through the legal system, we believe that it would be best for the Massachusetts legislature to forestall action on this provision and, if, as we expect, a preliminary injunction is issued in iMEGA v. DOJ, et al., legislators should remove this provision from the legislation."
About iMEGA – The Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMEGA), a 501(c) 6 trade association, was founded in 2007 with the goal of working constructively and cooperatively with government at all levels, and other concerned citizens and corporations, to continue the remarkable growth of the Internet, and to promote innovation, openness and freedom as the path to even greater benefit of this medium for all. For more information, visit www.imega.org. |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 13 November 2007 )
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Written by Thomas Jensen
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Friday, 09 November 2007
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 It looks like Barney Frank's trip to Europe a few months ago is finally paying off as EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson tells Washington that the United States must change an Internet gambling law that discriminates against European companies.
"What we need to see is a change in U.S. legislation that removes that discrimination against EU operators," stated Mandelson. "It's not in the interest of American consumers to have good responsible competitors in this market excluded by regulatory mechanisms."
European internet gambling companies via the EU are seeking $100 billion in compensation from the United States for business lost as a result of the illegal US ban. Antigua and the European Union have been in compensation talks with the United States over Washington's decision to retroactively remove gambling services from its GATS Treaty Commitment.
"When a member of the WTO defaults on its commitments, compensation is due. That's the case of online gambling," Peter Mandelson said. "We're in talks about the magnitude of that compensation. I think what we're asking for is reasonable and realistic. The numbers aren't quite as large as has been advertised, but they need to be substantial."
Mandelson was headed to Capitol Hill to speak with Barney Frank and other members of Congress about the illegal ban on internet gambling in the US and possible resolutions that would include EU companies being licensed and regulated within the United States.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 09 November 2007 )
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Written by Thomas Jensen
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Tuesday, 06 November 2007
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 Payment processor NETeller plc reported a US$145.9 million loss for the third quarter. Despite the large loss, $136 million of which was due to the forfeiture to US authorities, NETeller reported a 24% increase in revenue from continuing operations to US$11.8 million. The internet gamlbing e-wallet provider saw strong growth in the Asia Pacific region.
“The third quarter has demonstrated the resilience of the Neteller business and the results from our European and Asia Pacific businesses show that we are regaining the trust of customers and continuing to deliver innovative solutions to our merchants," stated NETeller President & Chief Executive Officer Ron Martin. "Geographic diversification remains a key part of our growth strategy although the Board continues to be mindful of regulatory concerns in certain markets. Our strong presence at EiG in Barcelona reiterated our commitment and focus to the online gaming sector and I believe we are progressing well in one of our core mission objectives, to be the pre-eminent provider of payment solutions for selected markets in the online gaming sector. The launch of the first phase of our global card programme is proceeding as planned and we are on track to offer additional card-related services during the first half of 2008.”
NETeller's active customer base increased 21.4% to 142,153 for the third quarter of 2007. The regional distribution of active customers included 72,849 in Europe (up 12% over Q3 2006) and 17,638 in Asia Pacific (up 21%) The total number of non-North American active customers at the end of Q3 was 94,925, an increase of 14% over the same period last year. The strong grow trend outside the United States shows the company's commitment to life after UIGEA. |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 06 November 2007 )
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Tuesday, 23 October 2007
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 For the past five years, Clarion Gaming (formerly River City Group) has produced an event for the Asia Pacific region called Pacific Congress on I-Gaming (PCIG). That event doubled in size in 2007 attracting over 200 attendees, and organizers expect it may double again in 2008, given the high level of interest in the potential of the Asian markets.
This anticipated growth will come from a concerted focus on marketing the event to Asian operators, developers and marketing partners. To reflect this new focus, the event will now be known as the Asian I-Gaming Congress and Expo or AiG, modeled after its successful European counterpart, EiG.
In keeping with Clarion Gaming's pioneering work in this area, it is fitting that AiG will be among the first gambling-related conferences to be held at the fabulous new Venetian hotel and conference center in Macau. Scheduled for February 26-29, 2008, the conference will maintain its focus on i-gaming opportunities in Asia, while including coverage of the established industry in Australia and the emerging Indian market. Building on comments from last year and capitalizing on recent developments in the marketplace, the conference will feature additional streams and add-on days to ensure you get full value from your learning experience.
"We're pleased to build on the success of this targeted event and broaden its focus into specialized days on investment and marketing," said Clarion Gaming CEO Sue Schneider. "While other events may have a session or two and a small number of exhibitors related to i-gaming, AiG is devoted solely to this side of the industry. For exposure to people interested in the i-gaming space, AiG is the only established and growing event in this region."
The AiG team is working to expand its outreach to new companies and new countries in the region to make this the most comprehensive conference and expo for the remote gambling industry in Asia. To achieve this, they are working with Beacon Events, one of the most reputable and successful conference companies in the region. Beacon's efforts will be invaluable in reaching out to the local Asian market and ensuring maximum participation from regionally-based companies.
Two specialized days added to the core conference in 2008 will be of prime interest to delegates. One is an investment seminar exploring both public and private investment options in the region. It will focus on the opportunities and challenges for investors in this growing industry and is sure to be an excellent one-day event for those in search of investment as well as those seeking to invest.
Another add-on day will look at the marketing challenges inherent to the region. For those looking for a review of the pertinent laws in various countries, as well as feedback on the types of marketing and advertising methods that work best for the myriad of cultures living in this region, this will be the chance to meet the experts and learn.
Networking events will be plentiful during the four days of AiG to facilitate meeting and networking with the high-powered executives in attendance. These will include receptions and parties, plus we are hoping to offer poker and mahjong tournaments for added interest and fun.
For more information on these events, keep an eye on www.aigcongress.com . |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 23 October 2007 )
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Written by Thomas Jensen
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Saturday, 13 October 2007
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 The same patent troll that Bodog Founder Calvin Ayre believes is behind his domain name hijacking, Ray Niro, has ties to the patent shell that is currently suing Red Hat and Novell, two open source Linux software sellers. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Eastern Texas and seeks damages and a permanent injunction prohibiting any further infringement. IP Innovation and Technology Licensing Corporation sued Red Hat and Novell earlier this week claiming the software products infringe U.S. patent 5,072,412, "User interface with multiple workspaces for sharing display system objects," and two identically named patents.
IP Innovation is a subsidiary of Acacia Technologies, according to a company filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Acacia and its many subsidiaries have been involved in approximately 220 patent lawsuits over the last 5 years or close to one patent lawsuit per week over the last 5 years. Anyone that follows patent troll lawsuits knows that Ray Niro has represented Acacia.
Back on September 24th, 2007, Niro sent the following letter on behalf of his clients Acacia to the blogger behind Troll Tracker:
Please identify yourself. You may be infringing United States Patent No. 5,253,341.
Raymond P. Niro
(Transmitted by Donna L. Wartman)
Troll Tracker response stated:
Dear Mr. Niro,
I have received your email dated September 14, 2007. TrollTracker respects the intellectual property rights of third parties, and takes such accusations seriously. In order to better investigate your claim that I "may" be infringing U. S. Patent No. 5,253,341, please provide me with more information. How, exactly, am I infringing any claim of this patent? Is any blogger automatically infringing the '341 patent by posting a blog? Or does your claim pertain to my methods of searching public databases to get information? Is it your claim that anyone who searches the PTO Assignments database or the Illinois Corporations database automatically infringes Acacia's '341 patent? Would you be willing to put that in writing?
I look forward to your response. However, unless and until I get a more detailed response outlining how, exactly, I am infringing the Acacia '341 patent, I will be unable to further respond to your letter.
Sincerely,
TrollTracker
PS Greg Aharonian, help me now!
Update: Well, that didn't take long. Just yesterday, Global Patent Holdings, LLC, a subsidiary of Acacia, sued the Green Bay Packers, Ed Napleton Acura, Apple, Orbitz, Peapod, OfficeMax, Caterpillar, and Kraft Foods, for infringement of the '341 patent. Case filed in Chicago by Ray Niro, of course. Didn't show up on my radar because Niro filed it as an amended complaint in a case that had been originally filed against Greg Aharonian and stayed for 7 years. In the Green Bay Packers' case, they were accused of "participating in at least one football contest against the Chicago Bears every year." Suing the Packers in Chicago? To get the jury swayed? Right. Anyway, evidently this patent just emerged from a 7-year reexamination, where only a single claim survived. And supposedly the posting of a JPEG picture on a website is the act of infringement. I guess there goes the Troll Crossing photo (temporarily)!
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 13 October 2007 )
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