Earlier this week the Australian Government passed legislation to temporarily ban the issue of licenses to new Internet gambling operations. The ban is in effect until May next year. Several online casino operators who established gambling sites since May this year will be forced to close their operations.

"We are stunned by the double standard established by the Federal Government through the passage of this Bill," said Peter Bridge, Managing Director of Lasseters Online. Lasseters is Australia's first regulated online casino. Since its launch in April 1999 it has achieved gaming turnover of more than $210 million and attracted about 85,000 players from across the world.

Bridge believes the ban is a giant step backwards in the effort to establish consistent national regulation of all forms of online gaming in Australia.

"The tragedy is, the casino operators who have done all the right things in establishing responsible, regulated online gaming, are the ones who are most discriminated against through this Bill," says Bridge. "It is only these operators who set betting limits, require proof of identity and offer self exclusion facilities."

Bridge sees the moratorium as a threat to Lasseters international competitiveness. "The moratorium will prevent us from upgrading our site as new technology becomes available. It will also prevent us from extending the variety of gaming products offered. This is critical to retaining and attracting players particularly as Internet usage grows in new markets worldwide. It is difficult to run a business as diverse as Lasseters Online with so much government uncertainty. To change our site to reflect its status in May will lose seven months of continual development."

More operators are expected to move offshore because of the position being taken by the Federal Government in Australia. "There are already examples of casino operators moving to offshore jurisdictions with low standards of regulation as a result of domestic prohibition. For example, Christchurch Casino has recently established kiwicasino.com under a license from Antigua because of New Zealand's policy on online gaming."

Despite their displeasure with the Bill, Bridge said Lasseters will comply with the moratorium.