ONLINE GAMING TAKES A SURPRISING HIT - Posted by KatA 

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) has ordered internet service providers to block their resident’s access to 200 online gaming sites. The state claims that the Federal Wire Act of 1961 made gambling “Illegal in all U.S. states.”. This act made the transmission of wagers over telephones or telegraphs illegal but has never been amended to include internet gambling. The matter has come before congress, but no policy changes have ever been made. The Department of Justice has used this act to charge people involved in international online gaming operations, but never local residents. That would make this a groundbreaking case, and as such, it’s caught the attention of the Interactive Media Entertainment & Gaming Association (iMega). iMega has immediately enlisted their legal team to begin challenging the order. In an effort to build their case, they’ve requested the list of the 200 banned websites, but so far have been denied. The DPS is currently debating whether or not to make the list of blocked sites public knowledge. iMEGA’s chairman, Joe Brennan Jr., is outraged at the ban. He feels that this is another example of a state government “operating in secret to deny citizens their freedom to use the internet as they see fit.” Brennan says that he’s most concerned with the “Shaky legal pretext that Minnesota has used to fashion their order”. He argues that no federal law exists making online gambling illegal for US citizens.