A woman who gambled away more than $70,000 on the Net and then sued major credit card firms for allowing the transactions soon will get her day in court.
Cynthia Haines admits that she bet the large stake and lost it to more than 50 cybercasinos, which she accessed from her home in California--a state where those types of wagers are illegal.
But after her credit issuer, Providian National Bank, took her to court over unpaid bills, Haines filed a countersuit against the bank and Visa and MasterCard, as first reported by CNET News.com.
As early as today, the state Superior Court in Marin County, California,
could set a trial date for the case. If the judge ultimately finds in favor
of Haines, the outcome carries wide implications for the burgeoning Net
gambling sector.
Online gambling has been a contentious issue in the United States, where
some want to ban it, while others say it should be regulated as it is in parts of Australia. The federal Wire Act clearly prohibits sending wagers over phone lines, but each state is placing different odds on the legality of online gambling. New York and Missouri have gone after online wager houses based outside their territories, while others have yet to step into these murky legal waters.
Although Haines's lawyers said she doesn't admit to breaking the law, their
argument is this: Credit card companies are engaging in unfair business
practices and aiding and abetting a crime by giving online wager houses
merchant accounts to process bets for customers who live where the activity
is outlawed.
Not only could Haines be excused from her debt, but the lawsuit seeks a
permanent injunction to prohibit credit card firms from serving Net
gambling houses. Credit firms typically get a 2- to 5-percent cut from
purchases made using their cards.
"Visa and MasterCard know that their credit cards are being used for
illegal online gambling, are making money off of it, and have done nothing
to stop it," said Ira Rothken, Haines's lead attorney.
His rationale is that "they can't sue someone else for an unlawful act if
they also committed unlawful act."
MasterCard declined to comment, and a Visa spokesperson wasn't immediately
available.
But in January, Judge William McGivern rejected the firms' motion to
dismiss the case, stating that: "If the court were to dismiss this
action?it would deprive the public a means of addressing alleged violations
of the law and fundamental policy."
In about a month, sources say Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Arizona) will revive his
Internet
Gambling Prohibition Act, which aims to eliminate most online gambling
by hitting Net users with a $500 fine and three months in prison each time
they rolled the dice online. Cybercasino operators would face up to $20,000
in fines and up to four years in prison.
However, some legal experts say Net gambling will thrive despite the Haines
case and U.S. lawmakers' attempts to eliminate it.
"Her case does hit a real pressure point with credit card companies. If she
wins, the boys at CyberCash are going to be very happy, because people will
just migrate from credit cards to using 'e-cash,' which is untraceable,"
said Philip McGuigan, an attorney at Gordon & Glickson who
specializes in
Net gambling.
"But is this case going to stop Internet gambling? No," he added. "Nothing
will."
In Haines's case, the court may simply find that she has to bear the brunt
for her bills, McGuigan noted.
Her attorney would rather see Visa, MasterCard, and Providian National Bank
eat the debt.
"My client has some responsibility," Rothken said. "But this case is about
Visa and MasterCard encouraging illegal activity in California and
profiting from it."
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MIT creates a simulation to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Spacewar. A relic of the early days of minicomputers, it was one of the first computer video games and set the stage for many others, including Asteroids.
A new Apple lawsuit takes aim at Motorola Mobility in the U.S. for breaking a contract both companies have with Qualcomm for the license of one of its wireless patents.
A study by Harlequin--yes, the romantic-book people--says more women are sending naughty texts (shocking) and that 27 percent have sent a nude picture via e-mail or text.
Tor's "obfsproxy" technology would make encrypted data look innocuous and let it dodge government censors. That could help citizens in Iran reach blocked sites as antigovernment protests reportedly loom.
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