AGA criticised over position on legalised online gambling

The American Gaming Association’s about-turn on legalised online gambling last year (see previous  reports) clearly still rankles with Party Poker’s US online poker chief, Jeffrey Haas, who has accused the trade body of “betraying” the online gambling sector in its decision to cease supporting legalised internet gambling in favour of a hands-off neutral position.

Commenting on the issue during an interview with the publication Bluff, Haas said the abrupt switch in policy raised the perception that the AGA had taken the cheap and easy way out, possibly under pressure from just two prominent opponents – land casino moguls Sheldon Adelson and Steve Wynn.

Haas concedes in the interview that the New Jersey online market has so far delivered a disappointing performance in business terms, saying that he had expected it to grow to three or four times what it has achieved thus far.

But he was generous in his praise for the professionalism and quality of the regulatory regime in the Garden State, assessing the regulatory and operational implementation as an unqualified success, and emphasising that contrary to negative predictions there has not been a single proven case of underage or out-of-state play.

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