“Indiana's New Legislation: Illegal Operation of Internet Gambling Sites a State Felony”

Following in the footsteps of Arizona Senator Kyle, Indiana Senator David Ford is behind the latest legislation seeking to control internet gambling in his state. Previously legislation had viewed internet gambling as a misdemeanor. The new legislation – which Ford co-authored – now deems the operation of an internet gambling site unless permitted by statute to be a state felony.

In an interview with the Indianapolis Star, Senator Ford advised that the new legislation is part of a bid to give the government more control over gambling in Indiana. Ford commented that in the past internet gambling operators had found loopholes in existing legislation and had had little to fear by way of repercussion.

In a separate interview with the Louiseville Courier Journal, the bill's other co-author Senator Rose Antich-Carr supported Ford's statements. She added that the bill's intention was to stop other forms of gambling, referring to poker and sports betting.

The law passed in April with a 74-21 majority in house. It was subsequently passed by the Senate 46-0 and was made effective by the Governor of Indiana, Mitch Daniels, on April 25.

The legislation has directly affected companies such as Television Games Network, who are no longer entitled to legally conduct business in the state of Indiana. As a result, the company is refunding money to customers and closing accounts. John Hindman, the Vice President of Television Games Network, made a statement concerning the new legislation in which he said, "…while we have no reason to believe the intent of the Legislature was to curb legal forms of wagering…we have decided that the prudent course of action is to suspend wagering transactions with Indiana residents."

Two other gambling enterprises based in Indiana are currently awaiting a review of the new legislation by legal advisors. WinTicket and BrisBet – part of the American Tab Family betting providers – are not planning any immediate action until the findings of the review are known.

XPress Bet of the Magma Entertainment Corporation and Youbet.com are also affected by these changes; however no comment was forthcoming from either company on the new legislation.