I've been to this little country, and it's a beautiful place. We got off the cruise ship in Saint John's, hopped into a little van, and drove out to some guy's house in the middle of the island. There, we hopped on ATVs and drove on an 8-10 mile trek to a lookout point. It was so much fun! I love riding those things.
They drive on the wrong side of the road there. Their saying to remind us right-side drivers is, "The left side is the right side, the right side is suicide."
But, that's not the point of this post. The little Caribbean island nation of Antigua and Barbuda is fighting a David vs. Goliath battle with the United States on online gambling. It's a legal, regulated activity in many countries, and has grown to become a major part of Antigua's economy. The smack-down last year that is the fiasco known as the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) put a stop to our ability to move funds around, effectively cutting our ability to patronize these businesses.
Antigua lodged a complaint with the WTO that the US ban on online gambling was unlawful according to their International trade agreements, mainly because the law that made online gambling illegal specifically carved out state-run lotteries and horse racing as legal activities to conduct online. So, allowing the activity domestically, but barring foreign companies from participating in the market is the crux of their complaint.
And for once, the WTO has ruled against the US on this topic. Today, we are supposed to find out what penalties the Antiguans get to receive. The fantastic part of this is that the US CANNOT appeal the sanctions that are imposed.
I'm truly salivating at this because of what the Antigua government is asking for in return. They are requesting that they no longer need to recognize Intellectual Property laws. If this sanction is approved, they would then be free to make all kind of copies of computer software, DVDs, CDs, and sell them...and there would be nothing we could do about it.
My sincere hope is that this FINALLY wakes the US government up to realize that it is asinine to legislate an activity that consenting adults participate in in the privacy of their own home (boy, does this argument sound familiar), and legalize online gambling.
This guy has car payments to make....
UPDATE!
The sanctions amount has been announced, and it is a paltry $21 Million. Far from the $3 Billion+ that Antigua was looking for, but it's still more than the US had offered as compensation.
The United States faces a token $21 million in annual trade sanctions as a result of its online betting ban, the World Trade Organization said Friday in awarding Antigua and Barbuda the right to target U.S. services, copyrights and trademarks.
Until it gains the approval of all 151 members of the WTO, the U.S. online betting ban is illegal under international trade rules. As a result, Antigua will have the right to penalize U.S. services and intellectual property until the U.S. government either permits Americans to gamble over foreign-based sites or eliminates exceptions for off-track betting on horses, including over the Internet.
The U.S. said it was concerned that Antigua could now violate some American intellectual property rights — which could range from CDs and DVDs to computer software, industrial designs and designer clothing.
They have every reason to be concerned. A small country being able to set up a reproduction shop for popular American digital products, LEGALLY, should be a huge concern. Just wait until you have the Microsofts, Disneys, and Universal Musics of the world clamoring for the US to fix the gambling issue so that these sanctions can be struck down.
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