Virgin Casino suspend Canadian accounts

[Ian_go]

Had this e-mail from them today

Dear Ian,

We are sorry to inform you that we will be suspending all accounts
registered by players from Canada effective from the 13th April 2007. Due
to recent developments in the global Internet gaming environment and
following a review of the legalities of online gaming within Canada, we
have determined that it is inappropriate for us to continue accepting
online wagers from Canada.

We will be suspending all Canadian accounts on 13th April 2007 09:00
EST, we ask that you please withdraw any funds before this date and time.

Neteller has also announced that it will cease processing Canadian
transactions from 9th April 2007. If you use NETELLER to transact with us
you will need to withdraw any remaining funds in your account BEFORE the
9th April 2007.

After the 13th April, you will not be able to login into your account.
However, you will be able to initiate a withdrawal of your funds by
calling our customer support center at +44 800 458 6003

We appreciate your patronage and apologize for the inconvenience.


Kind Regards


Customer Service Team

Virgin Casino
http://www.virgincasino.com

Neteller Members can find more information at
http://content.neteller.com/content/...ate_canada.htm

[cynthial]

I do not understand exactly what about online gaming is illegal in Canada.
Why are these pull outs occuring? Is this thing like a virus spreading out from Washington or are there issues I know nothing about?

[TheZodiac]

Yepp, I got the same letter, where else can we play Cleopatra?

[Dewberry]

Canadians can't play at Banana Gold either, got an email from them yesterday.

[vinylweatherman]

Looks like the industry are in a panic. They never thought that they would more or less get kicked out of the US, and have seen what a huge mess this left them to clear up. Online gambling was never illegal in the US, and even now still isn't except in a few states. What IS illegal is the movement of money. They must be thinking that a similar situation is about to happen in Canada, and upon seeing Neteller pull out must believe it is going to happen very soon.
They got their asses kicked in the US, and it seems that they now run for the exit at the merest suggestion of changes in the law in other countries.
No casino or eWallet has been able to give a specific indication of what has changed in Canada, they are just quoting changes in the legal climate. If they pull out now, they will not be left with the embarrassment of unpaid players on the books, many of whom will be making negative posts on the forum.

[jetset]

Originally Posted by vinylweatherman

No casino or eWallet has been able to give a specific indication of what has changed in Canada, they are just quoting changes in the legal climate. If they pull out now, they will not be left with the embarrassment of unpaid players on the books, many of whom will be making negative posts on the forum.

I agree, but what a lot of business to throw away just on "the uncertain legal climate" !!! Unless these companies have more potent information than the rest of us....

Thankfully the EU is watching European nations carefully, or they would be taking note of how easy it is to scare (some) online gambling companies away from their monopolies!

We've now seen English Harbour and VIP groups run for the exit, followed later by Neteller and now Virgin. Before that a marketing outfit in Vancouver shut down after a "friendly" visit from the Mounties, acting on "a request for assistance" from the US DoJ - anyone want to speculate on who will be next?

[KasinoKing]

Originally Posted by TheZodiac

Yepp, I got the same letter, where else can we play Cleopatra?

There are at least 5 other WagerWorks casinos - but I couldn't tell you if they accept Canadian players or not...?

PS: Would the last country where citizens are allowed to do what they like with their own hard earned and highly taxed money please close the door on their way out...

KK

[jenn1381]

*sighs*... I just don't get it. Gambling is still legal here and if it were to ever change there would have to be some notice of the bill even being introduced to the government body. It didn't happy overnight in the US, Neteller just didn't pull out in time as they thought they were invincible. Oh well, I am amazed at how much $$ I have saved and that is even after a night out at the casino (threw $20 into a machine and took out $210 5 minutes later... NO playthrough, all mine.. lol was kind of refreshing) and dinner. My other half will be here from England May 1st so perhaps this all happened at a good time for me. It's still sad though and I have to say not gambling on the weekends is really taking some getting used to. I don't know what to do with myself, lol.. Perhaps an addiction that needed to be killed.

[prk]

Hi all,

Due to the current legal climate in North America, Wagerworks (our casino software provider) has taken the decision to stop accepting online wagers from Canada from the 13th April 2007.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all canadian citizens (CM members and others) who played with us over the past few years. We hope to see you again under clearer skies.

Cheers,

[jetset]

So - the root cause of the Canadian ban seems to be the fears Wagerworks (or its mainly land gambling oriented parent group in the USA) has about the Canadian situation, and that may be connected to their licensing from Alderney and subsidiary membership of IGT (see history below).

"WagerWorks was initially established as an operating subsidiary of Silicon Gaming, the highly innovative slot manufacturer, whose games and system hardware reshaped the slot machine industry.

"Shortly after the formation of WagerWorks, International Game Technology (IGT), the world's largest and most successful slot manufacturer, acquired Silicon Gaming and all of its proprietary slot technologies and game library.

"Upon completion of the merger, WagerWorks became an independent entity, founded and managed by key members of Silicon Gaming’s management team, benefiting from their accumulated wealth of experience in the areas of casino operations, loyalty marketing, game development and regulatory compliance. Following the management team, the lead designers at Silicon Gaming formed a dynamic team comprising graphic artists, computer animators, producers, Flash gurus, and math modelers.

"WagerWorks recognized the full potential of legalized online gaming and set out to develop leading solutions for the market. Among the myriad of Internet gaming developers, WagerWorks is the only company with deep roots in the traditional land-based casino business; the wealth of knowledge and experience in the land-base sector provided the company considerable credibility as it began delivering proven land-based content online.

"WagerWorks was acquired by IGT in August 2005, providing the company access to IGT’s content and intellectual property portfolio, extensive business partnerships and experienced management team which will serve to further enhance its product offering and market presence. WagerWorks continues to deliver successful online gaming websites that are both entertaining and legally compliant."

Still, it's a pity that Virgin has had to move out of the Ggreat White North because I think those guys are a lot more professional than some of the others knocking around the industry.