Home / Poker News January 2014 / 2013 Poker Retrospective – Part 15
2013 Poker Retrospective – Part 15
Posted by: Jo Martin - Thu, 2014-01-02 04:53
Arguably, the biggest poker moment of 2013 was the launch of legal and regulated online poker (and casino gaming) in the US. For years, lawmakers had bickered over federal legalization and regulation, with not much to show for it at the end of the day. The lack of action on the federal stage led to what experts had long predicted: state-by-state regulation. Some states felt they could turn extra revenues from online gaming taxes, so they decided to go at it alone, especially because federal laws expressly allowed them to explore and to eventually go down this avenue. That’s how it happened that after years of uncertainty and after what seemed like an eternity for those making a living at the
online poker tables, the game has finally been legalized, first in Nevada, then in Delaware and New Jersey too.
Of the three jurisdictions, New Jersey is arguably the most significant one, given the size of its population and the fact that it already has a vibrant live gambling scene in Atlantic City. New Jersey-based operations have already overtaken Nevada-based ones in traffic and overall action-volume, and with lawmakers aiming to turn the Garden State into a regional online gaming hub, the numbers are expected to further improve.
New Jersey’s online gaming bill was signed into law by Gov. Chris Christie on February 26, 2013, a moment which is likely to go down in history as that of the true return of online poker to the US.
No fewer than 7 operators have been granted licenses in the Garden State, all of them joint ventures between an online gaming platform provider and a land-based, Atlantic City casino operator. The number of online poker/online gambling accounts created in New Jersey has already surpassed even the most optimistic expectations.
Despite all the progress made in 2013, several major challenged lie ahead for online poker in 2014.
Full Tilt Poker is the top destination for cash games on the global online poker scene.
