You may or may not have seen the report Barclay\’s put out assessing the impact of American DOJ actions vs. Online Poker on the European online gambling sector. Now Moody\’s, the venerable global credit rater, has put out their own assessment of how the shutdown of Full Tilt and PokerStars in the US affects high finance and various state economies.
At least I think that\’s what they\’re saying … but a few things that stood out to me had more to do with what this report reveals about the perception of poker, both as a game and a needle-moving industry, including:
- \”Online gambling is no real threat to U.S. land-based casinos.\”
So it\’s official now. The rest of the world gets what poker people knew in 2006.
- \”Although the charges may have a chilling effect on lobbying efforts to legalize and regulate online poker in the U.S., we believe it will be short-lived. The DOJ may have slowed the momentum. But we still believe online poker will eventually become legal in the U.S. and that states may move more quickly now.\”
Cool. We\’d like to think that, too.
- \”It all comes down to money and political support. We believe online poker has the best chance of widespread legalization. Of all the types of traditional casino games, poker is considered the most accepted form of gambling in part because it is a game of skill, not chance. Many politicians, past and present, have been known to play. (Even President Barack Obama is regarded for his poker prowess.)\”
Hmm, game of skill … interesting concept. You guys are the experts, but I think the first sentence here kinda contradicts why poker may or may not see legalization before casino games. Also, don\’t hang your hat on that Barack Obama guy just because he plays poker … you get the sense he didn\’t ever play the Sunday Million.
- \”Estimates put the total U.S. online poker rake(1) at $4.0 billion to $6.0 billion. Assuming governmentscould impose a 20%-to-30% tax rate, online poker becomes an attractive source of potential revenueto cash-strapped federal and state governments.\”
Hmm, so everyone gets the concept of \”rake\” now … but 20-30% taxation? That\’s kinda a little steep, no? Have we talked to Ron Paul about this?
