Illegal Gambling Facilitators in New Jersey Given 150 Days to Stop Providing Services

Companies that help facilitate illegal internet gambling won’t be prosecuted if they stop providing their services within 150 days New Jersey gambling regulators announced.

New Jersey Gaming Enforcement director David Rebuck stated that agency won’t prosecute companies that promoted or directed customers in New Jersey to illegal gambling sites after gambling was legalized in New Jersey in 2013. However companies won’t be prosecuted only if they stop promoting illegal gambling in New Jersey within a time frame of 150 days.

Rebuck explained that illegal gambling sites that accept bets from players in New Jersey are a real threat to the regulation of lawful gaming. He compared illegal and legal sites claiming that companies that are now licensed in New Jersey had to go through a long process to receive their licenses. Licensing process included investigation of their business history as well as the functionality of their systems and financial stability. He reiterated that illegal sites have not complied with any of these requirements.

All licensed operators in New Jersey are required to implement procedures and measures against fraud, underage gambling and money laundering. They also have to comply with consumer protection laws if they want to operate in New Jersey.

It was announced that all companies that continue to operate illegally in the state will probably face prosecution and will lose a chance to be approved for a license. Deputy Director of gaming enforcement George Rover said that thousands of gambling affiliates are affected by New Jersey’s move to defer prosecutions. Rover explained that if they don’t comply they will not be approved for legal internet gaming, not now or anytime in the future.

In his opinion such companies are not supposed to be licensed and he thinks that other states will follow New Jersey’s lead and refuse to give licenses to these operators.

However according to Rover this move has nothing to do with the world’s largest online poker site, PokerStars. PokerStars is currently going through the New Jersey licensing process and as David Baazov believes, company will soon launch site in the state. Many believe that arrival of the largest poker site would certainly raise interest in poker in the Garden State.

New Jersey is one of the three states that allow online gambling and even though revenue from online gambling failed to reach expectations, state is very optimistic when it comes to iGaming market.