Word spread through the online poker community on Monday that popular online poker rooms Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker, which merged to form the CEREUS poker network last week, blocked customers in Kentucky from accessing either site. The state’s Governor, Steve Beshear, has sought to seize 141 internet gambling domain names, including those belonging to both of the Tokwiro-owned poker rooms.
Players on Absolute Poker received an e-mail early Monday morning that read, “We regret to inform you that, effective immediately, AbsolutePoker.com is no longer available to Kentucky residents. This means that you will not be able to access our website and software from within the state boundaries of Kentucky.” A link to the site’s cashier and e-mail address of its support is also given. A similar e-mail was sent to members of Ultimate Bet with a link to that site’s cashier and support included. Members pointed out that online poker rooms PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker are still accepting business from the Commonwealth of Kentucky, as is Bodog.
The departure of the CEREUS network rooms follows similar moves by Cake Poker and the sites on the Merge Gaming Network. The issue stems from an ongoing legal battle between J. Michael Brown, the Secretary of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, and the owners of 141 internet gambling domain names. One of the leading organizations in the case is the Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association (iMEGA). Its CEO, Joe Brennan, told Poker News Daily, “Pulling out of the Kentucky market, especially in advance of the December 12th hearing, means that they are bowing to Kentucky’s demands without going to the hearing. The seizure hearing has been stayed by the Court of Appeals, so there’s no reason for them to leave. Doing anything in advance of the December 12th hearing is premature.”
On that date, a three judge Appeals Court panel will meet to decide the fate of 141 internet gambling domain names. They include those belonging to Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker. In a decision handed down on October 16th, Judge Thomas Wingate, a Circuit Court judge, stated, “Any of the 141 defendants… who, on or before 30 days from this Opinion and Order, installs the applicable software or device… which has the capability to block and deny access to their online gambling sites… shall be relieved of the effects of the Seizure order.” The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) and a handful of other organizations have submitted briefs in the case, which has also attracted the attention of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
In essence, if a site disallows users from the Commonwealth of Kentucky from playing online, then they will be relieved of any wrongdoing. A final forfeiture hearing was scheduled for December 3rd, but that date has since been stayed by virtue of the Court of Appeals hearing the case nine days later. Brennan commented on why Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker, which are both owned by Tokwiro, would pull out of the market: “The only thing I can think of is that it’s an extreme reaction to the press that they’ve gotten from 60 Minutes and the Washington Post.”
Last night, CBS News program 60 Minutes aired a feature about the online poker scandals that occurred on Absolute Poker and Ultimate Bet. No mention was made of the federal action regarding the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) or the actions by Beshear in Kentucky. On multiple occasions, 60 Minutes claimed that the industry itself was illegal.
