It is not the first time we have heard mention that tax Cuts could be looming for British online gambling ops. It is also no secret that most of these operational companies have joined the exodus to more temperate climes. Most UK online gambling concerns, even the BIG guys such as William Hill, long ago ran away to "White Label" shores such as Malta, Gibraltar, Isle of Man and Alderney.

However, this does not prevent large operators from offering this form of virtual entertainment to a UK-facing audience. Therefore the UK Government needs to find a way to bring some potential tax pounds back to the country. The best and most obvious way to do this would be to offer tax cuts. But will the Government actually enact this – that is the multi-million pound question?!

If we think about it logically, gambling is a numbers game, but then so again is collecting tax. So, we ask you a simple question, would you rather have 5% on millions of pounds of potential income? Or would you rather have 15% of nothing? It doesn’t take rocket science to see that online gambling firms have left the country to take advantage of tax shelters for very obvious reasons.

Apparently now Government Ministers are seeing the madness in the tax situation, it has taken the longest time; and is hoping to encourage operators to base themselves in, or return to Britain.
One thing that is for certain – IS – online gambling is going nowhere at all, and unprecedented growth is being seen in this industry still. Mobile gambling growth using Android, iPhone, iPad, and other tablets, and smartphones, is becoming an off-the-wall trend. This kind of growth in popularity and spending is just too good to resist not getting a share.

While the Government in the UK, mulls over the idea of tax cuts on revenues from this massive growth industry, the Governments of Alderney, Gibraltar, Isle of Mann, and so on, are all cashing in on what has become a mainstream industry. These territories are also cashing in on the perks that work hand-in-hand with healthy industry – job creation for example.

Rumour has it that taxes in the UK will be cut from 15 to 10%, but we don’t really know if 5% would make all that much of an impression. 10% does bring it in line with some other territories, but whether this will be incentive enough, still remains to be seen. The wheels of law-making turn slowly, and we all know that money likes speed. Perhaps a little less "mulling", and a little more action might be required.

We have been reading in the news that the large online gambling concerns, which offer offshore services to UK residents, may be in for beneficial tax-cut to lure these industry players back into the country. While we think this is a very fine idea, whether it ever comes to fruition or not, still remains to be seen.

Recently there have been massive protests against the fact that industry giants such as Amazon, Google and Starbucks have been involved in corporation tax avoidance. Apparently the government has also been aware of this and has failed to crack down on defaulters. In the meantime, an across the board tax of 15% applies to all gambling concerns, and this has seen an exodus of big brand names such as Ladbrokes, William Hill and other interactive divisions of brands, taking to the hills to license their products offshore.

While this has provided big business for Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Alderney, Malta and other independent members of the ex-British Empire. It does not do a lot for Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise coffers. Not when we bear in mind that the majority of the customers who follow these big name brands are actually situated in the UK.

Luring interactive gambling industry giants, and even the smaller concerns, does not only mean licensing fees will be filling up UK tax coffers. The industry is a mostly high-tech concern, and therefore highly paid people are employed in jobs, office space is required for hardware, software designers, financial, administrative, and all kinds of other highly paid people, and all of these people pay tax. An active industry also stimulates the economy too.

As an example perhaps we should look at Tombola Bingo. This is one of the very few interactive online bingo concerns that keepsoffices in the UK. Although they too are licensed in Gibraltar, they have offices based, and employ people in the Sutherland area. Despite the strict tax regime, which is even tougher for the bingo business in Britain, this business has continued to grow, and has on more than one occasion actually doubled in size.

With attractive tax cuts scheduled – which seems to be what Chancellor George Brown is planning, Britain’s biggest gambling companies could move back to the land of their birth. Despite the fact that this is a highly controversial move, if we think about it in pure numbers terms. It is far more economically beneficial to have twenty online gambling companies paying licensing fees, salaries, overheads etc, as well as 5% or 10% tax. Than it is to have NO online gambling companies paying any of the above expenses we listed.

Bearing in mind that there are hundreds – if not thousands – of online gambling concerns offering services to the residents of the UK; the more attractive the government makes it for them, the better it is for everyone in the long term.

According to The Mail on Sunday – "the Treasury is considering slashing the gambling levy by a third to recoup some of the £2.1 billion in revenues that has been lost over the last seven years."

Nothing in moderation is actually bad for anyone, but human nature being what it is can certainly play tricks on us. Addiction happens to be one of the nasty tricks that human nature plays. It is not the end of the world, and no-one is alone in this, and it is for this very important reason that all responsible UK online gambling site offer links to GambleAware, GameCare and so on.

While online gambling operators are in this industry to make a living, this does not mean to say that they wish to do this at the expense of humanity. These operators provide a service for people who what this service, people will ALWAYS gamble and always have; this is also an intrinsic part of human nature, just like many forms of entertainment are. In most parts of the world, gambling is entrenched in the culture, much like bingo is as British as bangers and mash.

Speaking of bingo in the context of this subject, one little story we recently read, brings home what we mean when we say that gambling is not the problem, people are the problem. We have to be adults to play bingo online, so, we should behave like responsible adults would and not be daft about it. One pensioner from North Shields took things a little too far and received the shock of her life. Fortunately she got a fright and realised things had to change.

This pensioner, turned jackpot chaser, instead of just having fun playing a few games and then packing it in, actually turned to fraud and to loan sharks to manage (if you could call this "manage") her gambling debt.

She says she became hooked on playing bingo and gambling online after losing her job – supposedly she had too much time on her hands – or this is what she told the courts. Is it true what they say – "idle hands do the Devils work"?

The sixty-three year old enjoyed some moderate success, and spurred on by this, instead of simply enjoying her good luck, allowed things to rage out- of- control. After turning to loan sharks who threatened her to recover their debt, she actually committed fraud by selling an investment property before filing for bankruptcy. The bankruptcy trustees picked up the sale and the £35 000 profit she made; this was where the police were called in. You can’t make £35K and thereafter file for bankruptcy.

Yes, she was threatened by the loan sharks to return their money, and had to pay stupid amounts of interest, which just goes to show that her stupidity was quite simply two-fold.
Living life in the hope of catching a big jackpot is not what online gambling is about. It is about having a bit of fun, within a players means, and if Lady Luck is on your side and you win. Thank the fates. If not, pack it in and don’t get out of control.

Two rivals release domains following 32Red court victory over William Hill Online.

AIM-listed online casino operator 32Red Plc has announced that two further operators of online casino websites have given up infringing domains and relinquished control of them.

This follows 32Red’s avowal that it would “continue taking steps to assert and protect its intellectual property rights” after its recent High Court victory against William Hill Online, which was operating a site called ’32Vegas’.

Now it’s been revealed that the owners of ’32Royal’ have transferred their web address to 32Red unconditionally, and that another gaming operator, Spin32, has changed the name of its business and transferred all domains containing the digits ’32’ to 32Red again without condition.

The strength of 32Red’s intellectual property rights were publicly and unequivocally confirmed in the case against William Hill Online. In a Judgment handed down in January by Mr Justice Henderson, after a six-day trial the previous October, the court upheld 32Red’s claim that 32Vegas, an online casino operated by William Hill Online under a joint venture between William Hill and Playtech, infringed 32Red’s European Community trade marks.

The judge also dismissed William Hill’s claims that the trade marks owned by 32Red (’32Red’ and ’32’) should be invalidated. He concluded that “the 32Red brand was highly distinctive”, and “enjoyed a strong reputation in the online gambling community”. Mr Justice Henderson added: “The goods and services covered by the Vegas signs were identical, and the degree of similarity between the signs and the Community marks was high, including in particular the initial ’32’… the detriment to the distinctive character of the Community marks lay in the risk of a false association with 32Vegas, a brand with an inferior reputation which operated in the same marketplace”.

Ed Ware, CEO of 32Red Plc said: “We are happy to have these two other infringing domains safely under our control. The protection of an online entity’s intellectual property rights are vital to the wellbeing of any internet business, and as an entirely online enterprise, with no physical presence in our markets, this makes our brand, our domain name and our reputation pivotal to the success of the business”.

“We have had the imagination to create a distinctive and appealing brand in 32Red, and have invested millions in advertising it over nearly 10 years. We will continue to take action to protect our property and rights where necessary.”

City of London-based solicitors McDermott, Will & Emery represented 32Red throughout the
action with William Hill Online and continue to act for the Company in the upcoming Damages Inquiry and the appeal against the decision lodged by William Hill Online.

McDermott partner Hiroshi Sheraton added: “An effective strategy for enforcing IP rights is essential in building a strong brand like 32Red, particularly in the online world, which is often seen as a ‘soft target’. Although the decision to take legal action to protect a brand is never one that’s easily taken, particularly against an industry stalwart such as William Hill, the findings of the judge speak for themselves. It is reassuring that others are now taking notice.”

Bet365 has been officially recognised as the best online gambling company, having received a string of accolades in the recent eGaming Review Awards 2010.

The company received the coveted Operator of the Year title in this prestigious awards ceremony, confirming its position as the number one operator in a very competitive market. bet365 was also named Casino Operator of the Year, as well as picking up the award for Best Website Performance.

There was further recognition of the company’s success as bet365 took top spot in eGaming Review’s annual Power 50 league, which ranks the most influential operators. Make sure you sign up now and find out for yourself why bet365 offers such an award-winning online gambling experience!

Don’t forget, you can now keep up-to-date with the important Betting News stories on bet365’s Twitter feed. Simply follow @bet365_news to get all the latest updates and be among the first to hear about the exciting betting opportunities available with bet365.