Gambling on the Internet

This paper explores the political and social implications of the emerging online gambling industry and the ability of the existing legal framework to halt the industry's development. Making gambling more broadly available via the networks threatens heightened crime, an increased incidence of compulsive gambling, and cannibalized spending in other areas of the economy. Yet, U.S. state and federal laws are inadequate to deal with the onslaught of virtual gaming. States are unlikely to be able to prosecute out of state casino operators operating in cyberspace. Although they may be able to prosecute their own citizens for gambling on-line, enforcement will be difficult. Federal statutes may criminalize cyberspace casinos, but the U.S. government's ability to prosecute foreign operators is questionable. As existing legal frameworks prove inadequate to deal with a global, intangible entity, new legal, technological, and political solutions will have to be crafted in order to protect Americans from the substantial externalities posed by on-line gambling.