APCW Perspectives delivers content for readers

There are many fine publications out there that can tell players where the best bonuses are. There are many great industry rags out there that can tell webmasters the latest and greatest SEO techniques. We are not that kind of magazine.

APCW Perspectives is written by industry professionals, seasoned webmasters, and savy players. It is designed to be of interest to everyone in the industry, from the novice poker player in rural America to the Software CEO in London... from the webmaster in Tokyo to the slots lover sitting from Moscow. The APCW staff and contributing writers capture what is relevant and vitalto this industry right now.

Advertisers can spend twice as much to advertise with other publications with less reach. Why?

The next time your company plans to reach the online gaming market, do yourself a favor and consider APCW Perspectives first. Our circulation is equal to or greater than our competitors, and we are the only publication where you can reach players, webmasters, and industry professionals in one place... across Europe, North America, and the United Kingdom.

Not only are our rates extremely competitive, but members enjoy additional deep discouted rates. Joining APCW is easy, and membership rates are a fraction of what other "association" charge. Add your voice to ours!

All Quiet on the Western Front... for now

A First Hand Report from the Washington State Webmaster on the Front Lines of the American Governments War Against Online Gaming...

The following is an excerpt from our Fall Issue, 2006

When I first became a casino webmaster in 2001, I never would have believed that my first little gaming portal would become the focus of so much attention. Integrity Casino Guide was my love and devotion. And even though it was a moderate portal at best, it provided a very comfortable living for me and my family. Now I find myself dumbfounded, almost five years later, as the first casualty in the American governments never ending "moral" crusade against online gambling.

This story began in April of this year, as APCW Perspectives first looked at the anti-gambling bill introduced by Representative Bob Goodlatte. He pounded his podium and preached about protecting children from the monster of online gaming. He gave moving speeches about saving players with addictions from the "crack cocaine" that is internet gambling. He screamed about organized crime and terrorist organizations laundering monies through web based casinos.

What was more interesting, however, was what Goodlatte wasn't talking about, like the exemptions in his bill for the horse racing and dog racing industries. Not only could they continue to take bets over the internet, but ironically there were no provisions his the bill dealing with online age verification for their bettors. So much for protecting the kids, Bob.

There were also nice, fat carve outs for state run lotteries. Not only could they continue to sell tickets over the internet, but ironically there were no provisions in the bill setting limits on purchases to help prevent people with gambling problems from wasting their life savings on some government endorsed, chance-in-a-million pipe dream. So much for protecting the addicts, Bob.

Lastly, it seems Goodlatte loved to quote data provided by the American Gaming Association when it served his twisted purpose, but ironically we noticed that he left out some other critical data that the AGA found equally important. Take, for instance, that organized crime and terrorist organizations could more easily launder monies at brick & mortar casinos than they could at an internet based site where every transaction leaves a detailed electronic fingerprint. So much for getting your facts straight, Bob.

Additionally, I'm guessing that Mr. Goodlatte didn't read the letter that the Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA) recently sent to the Senate Banking Committee. If he had then he would know that the ICBA believes any proposed online gambling legislation is redundant and unnecessary in regard to money laundering and terrorists activity. "We urge Congress to recognize that the nation's banks have already taken on major responsibilities to help detect and prevent terrorist financing and illegal money laundering...", wrote the ICBA, adding that any attempt to monitor or block online gambling transactions would only over-burden an already taxed system.

While this little stuffed-shirt windbag was shoveling his pile of (Thoroughbred) horse manure on the U.S. House of Representatives, their was an equally dangerous threat in my own backyard that I was totally oblivious to.....

The full text of this document is available in back issues by clicking here.

Prisoner of War

The Department of Justice, Bet on Sports, and David Carruthers...

The following is an excerpt from our Fall Issue, 2006

Let's take a trip together...

Imagine yourself an American who owns and operates a horse racing track. This track is fully licensed in your state, and is even allowed to legally accept wagers over the internet... so long as you keep your taxes up to date.

Life is good and you make a healthy living, so one day you and your spouse set off on your dream vacation to Australia! You're excited about seeing the sites, taking in the culture, and soaking up some sun. En route, your plane lands briefly in Hong Kong, where you are scheduled to change planes for the final leg of your journey.

While fighting your way through the busy airport, you are approached and stopped by several Chinese military officials. They ask your name and you tell them, only to be informed that they have a warrant for your arrest! You see, there have been some Chinese citizens placing bets with you via the web, and that's illegal in China.

You're whisked off to a Chinese detention center and held for a week before being formally charged. It’s a month before you’re eventually given bail, and you learn that you are facing over twenty felonies in accordance with the gaming laws in China!

The sickest part about this ‘imaginary’ story is that it happened to David Carruthers. Not in communist China, but right in the middle of the bastion of freedom, the good ol' USA. And this is no dream, it's a ludicrous nightmare.

Walter Olson of The London Times recently commented that, “If war is the continuation of politics by other means, then prosecution can serve as a continuation of policy by other means.” Enter the US Department of Justice and their pursuit of Bet on Sports. The DOJ knew good and damned well that Britain would refuse extradition of suspects for breaking US laws against internet gambling. Extradition could only happen if the conduct was illegal both the United Kingdom and the United States.

Julian Knowles, a British extradition expert, reports that persons would not be extradited just for being accused of breaking an American gambling law. "A prerequisite of extradition is whether what you are accused of doing in a foreign state is also a crime in the UK if you had done it here.”

So the DOJ, in a typically American political manipulation, has now hatched a plan: Tax evasion! Why not? It worked with Al Capone! And evading taxes is illegal in both America and Great Britain... that could result in extraditions.

Let’s back up a moment, though. In the not to distant past, some online British betting companies have offered to pay American taxes. However, the US Government has refused to accept any payments, claiming that doing so would condone illegal activity. Knowles says that, by refusing to accept the tax payments, the US may have opened itself up to an “abuse-of-process” argument in British law. That could be enough to persuade an English court to refuse any extraditions.

The full text of this document is available in back issues by clicking here.

Can't We All Just Get Along?

Casino Program and Webmaster Relations...

The following is an excerpt from our Spring Issue, 2006

Casino affiliates work in a world of high stakes and closed doors. A world where trust is paramount to good business, but often times elusive. A world where riches and rewards abound, but with a tolerated level of suspicion. But are these feelings of uneasiness justified?

The Association of Professional Casino Webmasters has always been dedicated to building an atmosphere of trust and partnership between casino webmasters and affiliate programs… but this is no easy task. The very nature of this industry dictates that webmasters must rely on the hope that their partners will treat them with honesty. While affiliate programs must contend with webmasters who attempt to manipulate traffic and fraudulently increase commissions, and then go so far as to blackmail them on public message boards when the programs figure out their tricks and refuse to pay them.

Most arguments have three sides to them, and this one is no exception. On one side there are the webmasters points, on another the affiliate programs, and somewhere in the middle is the truth. So the simple solution to these issues is for everyone to strive for the center ground: That place where you haven't lost site of your personal beliefs, but where you can see the other side as well.

If we first consider life from a webmasters point of view, it's not too difficult to understand where their uneasiness comes from. Webmasters can see radical fluctuations in their statistical information, including players disappearing overnight, along with the thousands of dollars in commissions they generated. Internal cross marketing efforts from casinos can sometimes hijack players from webmaster accounts. Statistical interfaces sometimes stop reporting for days at a time, leaving webmasters to worry how many players they could have potentially lost.

The full text of this document is available in back issues by clicking here.