Is online poker illegal?

Whenever i see a commercial on TV for some poker website, they always say that they are not a gambling site, and the web address that they give usually takes you to a site where you can download play money software, but not play for real. the address they give will be .net, but the real money site is .com, or vise versa. my point is, clearly they are trying to hide the truth from the general public, but these days it seems to me that everyone and their mother knows that people are gambling online, so why try to hide it? i'm just wondering, is online poker illegal? because if it's not they certainly seem to act like it is. and i know a lot of theses sites are based in other countries or on indian reservations, so you don't have to point that out.

The United States Federal Government says online gaming within it's borders is illegal! Right now it is somewhat of a grey issue because of the different court decisions about it. The feds use the Wire Act most often when they prosecuted gamblers and gambling sites in the past. The only real answer I can give is right now the feds say it is illegal but that could change in the near future and there appears to be numerous loop holes if you do get prosecuted for it.

Yes, technically playing online poker is ILLEGAL, however, the actual enforcement of this rule is almost non-existent...

The reason the websites advertise as .net is because advertising for a gambling site is illegal, since the actual site is illegal to play on in the US at least. The .net address connects you to their actual site where you can download their game client, and you can play for free or for real money. So when they say partypoker.net is not a gambling site, they are right, because partypoker.com is the real site...

Every online poker site is based outside of the US for a reason...its illegal to conduct their business within the borders of the United States...

I'm sure if you google this you can find more information on the US Wire Act, etc.

playing online poker or gambling online in Australia is illegal and a prosecutable (i think i spelled that right) infringment.
i am in the process of starting a local poker league and we have been sponsored for events and equipment. the problem is that the dept of gaming and racing in NSW Aust makes it impossible to get a liscence to do this.
as a result we can hold our events and charge entry fees that go towards the prizes but cannot charge players a fee that goes to our poker associaiton. we have to rely on players making a contribution (usually on entering cause some leave broke) to make ends meet.
It takes alot of my time to organise these events and i cant be rewarded for it.
If i was Kerry Packer (Aust's riches man and owner of Star City and Crown Casino's) therte would be no problem.
the poker industry in Aust has boomed recently fuelled by our Joe's $10 Million win.
Illegal and improper

wow? this is crazy...i had no idea that government was so against it! interesting though...i was under the impression it was perfectly legal in the USA.

I live in Atlantic City, does that change the rules for me ...i mean, after all, im gambling in a place where gambling is legal! Right?

J.

HughHefner said:

wow? this is crazy...i had no idea that government was so against it! interesting though...i was under the impression it was perfectly legal in the USA.

I live in Atlantic City, does that change the rules for me ...i mean, after all, im gambling in a place where gambling is legal! Right?

J.

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now that is a good question. never thought of that. i'd like to know too. also, i wonder if online poker were completly legal if it would finally end all the 'is online poker rigged?' speculation that i see, even on this site. you'd think with some sort of legitiment regulatory commission people would have more confidence in the legitimicy of the game, like they do in places where gambling is legal.

quite a few european sites will not allow usa and a few other places on there sites due to licencing laws.So it is true to be said that it is illegal,but all depends on where you are playing.

HughHefner said:

wow? this is crazy...i had no idea that government was so against it! interesting though...i was under the impression it was perfectly legal in the USA.

I live in Atlantic City, does that change the rules for me ...i mean, after all, im gambling in a place where gambling is legal! Right?

J.

Click to expand...

You live in AC, eh I live near Absecon!

yep! pretty much right around the corner. actually, my family is moving to galloway...still close though.

I had no idea that it was illegal but that is good to know. I always thought it was just illegal to advertise thats why they use there www.net on TV.