Minnesota to Prohibit Access Between Residents and Gambling Sites. - Poker News

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety (DPS) Alcohol and Gambling Enforcement Division (AGED) today announced that it has served written notice to 11 national and regional telephone and Internet service providers (ISPs) instructing them to prohibit access of all Minnesota-based computers to nearly 200 online gambling websites. Online gambling is illegal in all U.S. states.

Written notice was served to AT&T Internet Services, San Antonio; Charter Communications, St. Louis; Comcast Cable, Moorestown, N.J.; Direct TV, Los Angeles; Dish Network, Englewood., Colo.; Embarq and Sprint/Nextel, both of Overland Park, Kan.; Frontier Communications, Stamford, Conn.; Qwest, Denver; Verizon Wireless, Bedminster, N.J.; and Wildblue Communications, Greenwood Village, Colo.

“We are putting site operators and Minnesota online gamblers on notice and in advance,” says John Willems, director of AGED. “Disruption of these sites’ cash flow will negatively impact their business models. State residents with online escrow accounts should be aware that access to their accounts may be jeopardized and their funds in peril.”

Believed the first attempt by a state to employ this federal statute to restrict access to online gambling sites, the letters cites U.S. Code, Title 18, Section 1084, (d); notices were delivered Mon., April 27. Congress enacted the statute in 1961 in recognition of the need for states to control illegal gambling activities and granted authority for use of the statue to state law enforcement agencies.

Response from the notified ISPs is expected within two to three weeks, at which time issues of non-compliance will be referred to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Acknowledging the effort as an initial sample, Willems anticipates the program expanding to address thousands of sites, depending on compliance. He notes that the required technology to restrict geographic access to particular sites is a relatively straightforward procedure on the part of service providers.

In the written notices, AGED also provided the sites’ telephone numbers and requested access to those numbers by Minnesotans to be prohibited. For more than two decades, telecoms have shut down telephone numbers at the request of law enforcement agencies when believed to be involved in illegal activities, such as sports book-making telephone numbers.

“In Minnesota, and for Minnesotans, the primary issues are legality, state self-governance and accountability,” says Willems. “In broader context, the long-running debate on online gambling continues to raise significant issues, including absence of policy and regulation, individual rights, societal impact, international fair-trade practices, and funding for criminal and terrorist organizations.”

Unreal. If the newly proposed bill doesn't pass, it seems as if we are definitely screwed on this one.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:32 AM

sircuddles

veteran

Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 3,290

2009 and the government is telling you you can't gamble. I want to 'lol', but it's so pathetic and sad.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:45 AM

bbq

veteran

Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2,036

Just plain sad

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:47 AM

NickyC

old hand

Join Date: Mar 2007 Posts: 1,840

Quote:

Originally Posted by sircuddles

2009 and the government is telling you you can't gamble. I want to 'lol', but it's so pathetic and sad.

No, this is wrong. You can gamble all you want, such as state run lotteries, scratch off tickets, powerball, etc. These types of gambling are good and moral, because they are endorsed by the state.

State lotteries are a tax on people who are bad at math.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:48 AM

dibbs

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 6,341

Probably good news for everyone else still playing limit hold em online, at least.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:54 AM

Speel Posher

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 7,355

man this is so ****ed up

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:57 AM

kk405

Pooh-Bah

Join Date: Dec 2007 Posts: 5,444

can't believe it's 2009 and a new president and we're still fighting/debating this in America... THAT is sad

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:58 AM

Punker

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 8,348

Quite odd that this isn't mentioned anywhere on their site. Not on their press release page:

http://www.dps.state.mn.us/comm/pres...stem/index.asp

not on their main AGED page:

http://www.dps.state.mn.us/alcgamb/alcgamb.aspx

and not on their gambling page:

http://www.dps.state.mn.us/alcgamb/gamenf/gamenf.html

Can someone confirm this is true?

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:59 AM

Skallagrim

PPA Board Member/LSN Dir

Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 6,713

Seriously, isnt it more important to avoid paying taxes than to work to have openly legal and regulated online poker? There are plenty of ways to get around ISP blocking, all we have to do is let the fish know about them.

That was sarcasm for all those unfamiliar with the concept.

Skallagrim

Quote

04-29-2009 , 10:59 AM

#10

CitizenBlow

centurion

Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 104

yawn

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:00 AM

#11

spaceman Bryce

anything you guys want

Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 20,646

The state: this is a robbery!
Poker players: No, it's not.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:11 AM

#12

Speel Posher

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 7,355

Quote:

Originally Posted by Punker

same article was just posted in the star tribune

http://www.startribune.com/local/439...EP7vDEh7P:DiUs

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:17 AM

#13

jayhawks

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 6,128

**** me

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:21 AM

#14

thatguy8853

centurion

Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 145

Oh. ****. i dont want to have to play at canterbury!

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:22 AM

#15

IAGTTAYM

journeyman

Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 272

Get a VPN, problem solved.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:23 AM

#16

spaceman Bryce

anything you guys want

Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 20,646

canterbury games are going to get tough as ****

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:28 AM

#17

stinkypete

Carpal \'Tunnel

Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 15,783

Quote:

Originally Posted by spaceman Bryce

canterbury games are going to get tough as ****

no they're not

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:31 AM

#18

beanie

old hand

Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 1,393

free speech advocates will open a can on these people, you watch.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:31 AM

#19

Smokey711

enthusiast

Join Date: Aug 2006 Posts: 94

This is fn terrible...

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:34 AM

#20

Loggjaw

journeyman

Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 332

Ruined my day for sure. I finally started winning Online.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:35 AM

#21

beanie

old hand

Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 1,393

the end user is not breaking any laws and the laws they are attempting to enforce are vague at best. AFLCIO will wear these people out.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:38 AM

#22

Fur

enthusiast

Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 71

Just another reason to move to Texas. This state is so redic some times.

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:38 AM

#23

thatguy8853

centurion

Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 145

Quote:

Originally Posted by stinkypete

no they're not

the day canterbury is tough will be the day poker is dead.
id be nice if running aces went down though..

Quote

04-29-2009 , 11:39 AM

#24

PokerPro1234565

Guest

Posts: n/a

can i get around this by using my blackberry as a modem (verizon broadband something) or buying an aircard? theyre only restricing certain ISPs right? so by using an aircard I won't be using the MN IP address? am i wrong?

xposted in the other thread