Internet Gambling on the Rise

by Tim Boggs
FOR THE POST

With the recent surge of online gambling and sports betting, one might thank Al Gore for the ease of betting using the Internet.

Legal sports gambling has been on the rise because of overseas companies conducting business using the Internet. All of the Internet gambling companies operate outside the U.S. where online gambling licenses are issued legally. Most online gambling outfits are located in Australia, Costa Rica, the Caribbean and Europe, according to betmakers.net (http://betmakers.net).

Led by Sen. John Kyl, R - Ariz., the movement to make all forms of online gambling illegal is taking hold, but until these laws are passed it is legal to place bets with gambling companies using the Internet.

To be able to gamble using the Internet, players must be at least 18-years-old and usually must have a credit card. To start gambling, an application is filled out on the Web site. Then an account can be created. The account can be established through the use of a credit card or cash deposit. Once the check or money order is received, the company will directly deposit the money into the account, and gambling can begin.

When the account is activated, betting can take place on anything from dog races to soccer games to future Super Bowls. Not only can betting take place on the winner of the game or race, but also on how much the winner wins by and how quickly they score.

There are several common methods of betting with many more imaginative bets for different companies. The three basic bets are straight, parlay and round robin bets.

In a straight bet, the gambler is betting simply on the outcome of the event. These bets garner a smaller profit than most other types.

Parlay wagering is betting on the outcome of two or more events. To win a parlay, all events chosen by the better must be won for a payoff.

A round robin is a series of parlay-type bets grouped into smaller combinations of teams. Individual groups usually consist of two or three teams. In this type of bet some series can be lost and others won to still guarantee a profit.

If a player wins a bet, the method of payoff used by most companies is a direct deposit into the winner's account. The profit can also be sent to his or her address in the form of a check.

The popularity of online gambling has reaped great rewards for the participating companies, but it makes only a fraction of the profits traditional gambling outfits make, according to 800gambling.org (http//www.800gambling.org).

Not everyone thinks online gambling is beneficial.

"Online gambling is becoming more and more popular," said David Strow of casinos-gambling.com (http://www.casinos-gambling.com). "Sen. John Kyl believes this is bad, dangerous, addictive, a menace to our youth. He wants to outlaw gambling on the Internet."

Another reason why many want online gambling to be illegal is the ease at which one can now become a compulsive gambler.

With the widespread use of the Internet, gambling is rapidly catching on with many people who never were able to reach a casino.

"Why go to Vegas when you can gamble in the privacy of your own home," Strow said.