Online gambling faces chop

2004-02-25 12:00

Carel van Dyk

Cape Town - Gambling over the internet may be banned soon.

The online gambling industry is up in arms over suggestions in new legislation that would ban all online gambling facilities until legislation comes into effect to regulate this industry.

Advertisements for internet gambling sites as well as supplying support services to these sites will also be illegal, Reinhardt Buys, a legal adviser for an internet gambling business, said.

He said it could take four to seven years to put legislation in place to regulate the industry. Many people would lose their jobs in the meanwhile and government would give up a source of tax revenue.

Buys said authorities would find it difficult to catch people who still gambled on the internet because service providers would simply move outside the country's borders.

The department of trade and industry said it seemed as if the internet gambling industry was aware that their activities were not approved by government.

Astrid Ludin of the department said the internet gambling industry made no formal submissions when the proposed legislation was published for comment.

"It is therefore surprising that they're coming forward now, when the act is nearly completed. It clearly shows that they knew they were exploiting a gap that will now be closed."

Ludin said it would be a pity if jobs were to be lost, but said the industry was probably more concerned with loss of revenue from illegal activities rather than job opportunities.

She admitted that internet gambling might be difficult to regulate, but said the National Gambling Council would identify mechanisms to deal with the industry.

- Die Burger