Credit Card Companies Cracking Down on Internet Gambling

Today, John Parker from Egaming Review wrote about MasterCard taking a significant step towards cracking down on processing Internet Gambling* (Online Casinos, Poker Rooms, Bingo Sites, Sportbooks, etc..) transactions.

According to Parker’s article, US casino operators were hit by an overnight crackdown on gambling payments by the credit card giant. Visa, MasterCard’s main competitor, will logically follow in doing the same. According to Online Casino showcase, Visa has yet to issue any statement regarding the matter.

This statement form MasterCard says that Credit Card companies are going to be cracking down on the popular practice of operators coding gambling transactions as other kinds of e-commerce. It appears that banks and payment companies are finally readying themselves to implement America’s Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA). The UIGEA Act bans the facilitation of online gambling payments.

Until recently, payment companies were given a December 01, 2009 deadline to conform to the new regulations.  However, these companies were granted an extension until June 01, 2010 in order to comply.

Most US players have not had any issues playing online since the law passed in late 2006.  However, this news makes light of the situation and players and gaming operators may soon be faced with new obstacles.  Casino operators are also preparing themselves by offering players alternative payment methods. Parker mentions Entropay, EwalletXpress and Poker Echecks as some existing alternatives.  Moving ahead, the reliance on elctronic wallets is sure to increase and casino operators will be offering as many different options as possible.

If you are a US player and intend to play online and not not sure what method of payment to use, check the cashier section of any casino software or better yet, contact a customer service representative to find out what your options are.

For additional details regarding John Parker’s article, check out Egaming Reviews’ website.

*Internet Gambling may be restricted in your country or state.