Online Gambling in the UK – It’s Legal, But
Still Illegal?
Online betting is any type of betting conducted via the internet online casino in Singapore. This includes casinos, live
casinos and online sports betting. The first online betting venue opened to the public, was
ticketing in the German town of Schladming in October 1994. Online bookmakers started
offering European football games including Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and French football
games. In the US, similar betting ventures began in Las Vegas. Now, millions of people from all
over the world visit Las Vegas each year to take part in the high-roller gambling events hosted
there.
Online gaming has become a billion dollar industry. Millions of people visit a casino or an online
gaming website on a daily basis, and this number is growing steadily. In the past few years,
many offshore gambling operators have come up, particularly in Switzerland, where there are no
personal taxes, capital gains tax or inheritance tax. In the US, online gaming websites have
operated in the form of an offshore gaming corporation, thereby avoiding the US shareholders’
tax and capital gains tax obligations. Moreover, the offshore jurisdictions offer better privacy and
protection from fraudulent activities by online gaming websites.
Online sports betting in the US has become very popular, especially in the sports of the New
Jersey sports franchises. In recent times, there have been substantial increase in the number of
people taking part in online gambling across the United States. In the process of promoting
online betting in the US, the state government has taken certain initiatives like development of
sports books and registration of wagering accounts with the state.
The online gaming business in the US is a multi-billion dollar one, which generates revenues in
excess of $50 billion dollars annually. A major portion of the revenues generated in the US, flows
out to outlying countries like Ireland, Canada, Germany and New Jersey. The growth of online
gambling in the US can be gauged from the fact that in the last decade the number of Americans
taking part in online gambling has more than quadrupled. Another main article of attraction for
Americans to take part in online gambling is the relative anonymity it offers.
Online betting in the United Kingdom includes lotteries, casino games, sports betting and race
gambling. The UK gambling commission has placed a lot of importance on online betting and the
provision of internet connectivity. According to the provisions of the UK gambling laws and the
Internet gambling legislation there are various kinds of internet gambling including offshore
gambling, UK gambling, online casinos, betting portals, online sports betting, and UK lottery
games.
All the four main types of online gambling have their own set of controversy and there are also
many gray areas. As far as the issue of online gambling in the UK is concerned, the authorities
have taken strict measures to control and prohibit the activities related to online betting. Initially
the Gambling Act of the UK states that online gambling is illegal, but in practice it is not. A lot of
people do take part in online betting throughout the year and it is also a source of revenue for
many individuals who operate sports betting companies.