Kentucky adds Microgaming to target list

Isle of Man based internet gambling software developer, Microgaming, is the latest international company to be added to the state of Kentucky’s litigation list, according to reports surfacing in the United States over the weekend.
Kentucky’s joust with the online gambling industry started some years ago when the state claimed jurisdiction and attempted to hijack 141 global online gambling domains triggering a series of court cases in which it has so far achieved little success .
In the latest attempt to wring revenues from online gambling companies the states lawyers have added Microgaming to a list of leading internet gambling companies embracing both operational and software development entities.  Kentucky has attempted to claim cash from these companies on the rather tenuous grounds that they provided services to Kentucky residents although they have no presence in the State.  Other companies involved in the States litigation include Full Tilt Poker and Party Gaming.  The latter signed a Federal indemnity against prosecution earlier this year in return for a $105 million settlement with the US Department of Justice.
According to Poker News Daily, which appears to have had access to official documentation in case number 10-CI-505, Kentucky lawyers allege that Microgaming conducted commercial transactions; accepted monetary transfers; extended credit; hosted online poker games; set up and maintained accounts; took rake; shared in profits from its family of sites; employed proprietary software; and designed websites with “a purposeful, specific intention to do business over the internet” with players located within its borders.
The news is an indication of how wide a net Kentucky’s lawyers, who are reportedly working on a contingency basis, have been casting.  Whether their efforts will result in success is another matter.

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