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Internet gambling is both attractive, dangerous
June Lewis' love affair with Internet gambling began shortly after she ripped the packaging off her first computer five years ago.
To fend off loneliness after the death of her husband, the 73-year-old disabled retiree soon was taking cyberjunkets from her apartment in Phillipsburg, N.J., to Internet gambling sites like Genie's Gem, English Harbor and Flo's Diner.
``It was fun,'' Lewis recalled in a recent interview. ``Sometimes, I could get up in the middle of the night and play. I'd play, and nothing bothered me.''
But before long the losses began to pile up. In three years, she lost a $52,000 insurance settlement and her savings -- $109,000 in all.
Today she is $25,000 in debt and receives a federal subsidy to help her pay the rent.
With the proliferation of Internet gambling sites -- there are now more than 1,800 -- Lewis' troubles could become all too common, according to therapists who work with compulsive gamblers.
The ingredients for trouble are clear, experts say: These sites are accessible 24 hours a day to virtually anyone with a computer and an Internet connection -- at home or at work.
There's no need to travel to a casino, and privacy is virtually guaranteed.
``With a click of the mouse, you can lose the house,'' said the Rev. Tom Grey, executive director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling Expansion.
Internet gambling companies have moved quickly to address concerns about problem gamblers, said Sue Schneider, president of the St. Louis-based River City Group, an industry consultant.
A key trade group in North America, the Interactive Gaming Council, promotes a program to encourage responsible-gambling initiatives by online operators. Many of those operators, in turn, have started programs, which include self-evictions to block problem gamblers from sites, Schneider said.
The industry ``has really been proactive,'' she said. ``They've said this is important.''
Banned in U.S.
The 1,800 Internet gambling sites -- all of them in other countries -- are expected to generate $4 billion in revenue in 2002 and nearly $6.1 billion in 2003, according to Christiansen Capital Advisors LLC, a research firm.
About 60 percent of that -- roughly $2.4 billion this year -- comes from the United States, even though online casino betting is illegal here.
Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, said it's not surprising that online gamblers are seeking help in greater numbers.
He said the risk factors most often associated with compulsive gambling -- easy credit, 24-hour access, privacy and the speed of the games -- are all present with Internet gambling. People trying to hide gambling problems, he said, are likely to be attracted to Internet wagering.
On the positive side, people who need help are sometimes able to get it through the Internet. Addicted gamblers, including Lewis, are increasingly contacting therapists and problem-gambling resources online, said Kevin O'Neill, a New Jersey therapist who lectures on the Internet and gambling.
Few obstacles
Cabot and others think global interactive gambling will continue its amazing surge -- despite a thicket of legal, technological and regulatory problems.
One obstacle is federal law, which prohibits bettors and gambling companies in the United States from taking wagers via the Internet or over phone lines across state lines.
The U.S. Justice Department has successfully prosecuted at least one online gambling operation based offshore -- winning a 21-month prison sentence and a $5,000 fine against the co-owner of an Antigua site in August 2000.
But the very nature of the Internet, and the size of the online gaming industry, virtually guarantees that the vast majority will never be prosecuted. In fact, such companies advertise in this country with apparently little concern about prosecution.
Several big American banks, including Bank of America and Citibank, have blocked online gaming transactions on their credit cards because some courts have held that gambling debts are unenforceable.
Moreover, PayPal, the eBay Inc. unit that has been one of the most popular ways for gamblers to bet online, stopped its gambling payment service in November. And Yahoo! Inc., a widely used Web site, stopped carrying Internet casino ads.
Therapists routinely hear stories from addicts about how they slip into another world after going online, said Lori Rugle, a researcher and clinical director of training at Trimeridian Inc., an Indianapolis-based gambling research center.
Help on the Web
For Lewis, taking a gambling excursion into cyberspace relieved her loneliness.
Because she's on oxygen and uses a wheelchair and walker for hip problems, she doesn't drive and seldom leaves her apartment. Once she found the casino sites, her stretches at the computer grew longer and longer.
Finally, her bank account disappeared, and she became seriously depressed. At the computer one day, she clicked on the ``responsible gambling'' box at an online casino home page.
The information led her to e-mail the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey, which quickly called her and provided help.
Their counseling and support, Lewis said, saved her life. She has quit gambling and has relied on the council -- which made calls on her behalf -- to help her deflect demands for payment by credit card companies.
``I tell them all the time I've got nothing to pay them with,'' Lewis said. ``I'm doing OK, but I cry a lot.''
She now uses her computer to chat online with other problem gamblers.
``It's helped me so much,'' she said. ``If I had a million dollars, I'd never gamble again.''
Gannett News Service
To fend off loneliness after the death of her husband, the 73-year-old disabled retiree soon was taking cyberjunkets from her apartment in Phillipsburg, N.J., to Internet gambling sites like Genie's Gem, English Harbor and Flo's Diner.
``It was fun,'' Lewis recalled in a recent interview. ``Sometimes, I could get up in the middle of the night and play. I'd play, and nothing bothered me.''
But before long the losses began to pile up. In three years, she lost a $52,000 insurance settlement and her savings -- $109,000 in all.
Today she is $25,000 in debt and receives a federal subsidy to help her pay the rent.
With the proliferation of Internet gambling sites -- there are now more than 1,800 -- Lewis' troubles could become all too common, according to therapists who work with compulsive gamblers.
The ingredients for trouble are clear, experts say: These sites are accessible 24 hours a day to virtually anyone with a computer and an Internet connection -- at home or at work.
There's no need to travel to a casino, and privacy is virtually guaranteed.
``With a click of the mouse, you can lose the house,'' said the Rev. Tom Grey, executive director of the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling Expansion.
Internet gambling companies have moved quickly to address concerns about problem gamblers, said Sue Schneider, president of the St. Louis-based River City Group, an industry consultant.
A key trade group in North America, the Interactive Gaming Council, promotes a program to encourage responsible-gambling initiatives by online operators. Many of those operators, in turn, have started programs, which include self-evictions to block problem gamblers from sites, Schneider said.
The industry ``has really been proactive,'' she said. ``They've said this is important.''
Banned in U.S.
The 1,800 Internet gambling sites -- all of them in other countries -- are expected to generate $4 billion in revenue in 2002 and nearly $6.1 billion in 2003, according to Christiansen Capital Advisors LLC, a research firm.
About 60 percent of that -- roughly $2.4 billion this year -- comes from the United States, even though online casino betting is illegal here.
Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling, said it's not surprising that online gamblers are seeking help in greater numbers.
He said the risk factors most often associated with compulsive gambling -- easy credit, 24-hour access, privacy and the speed of the games -- are all present with Internet gambling. People trying to hide gambling problems, he said, are likely to be attracted to Internet wagering.
On the positive side, people who need help are sometimes able to get it through the Internet. Addicted gamblers, including Lewis, are increasingly contacting therapists and problem-gambling resources online, said Kevin O'Neill, a New Jersey therapist who lectures on the Internet and gambling.
Few obstacles
Cabot and others think global interactive gambling will continue its amazing surge -- despite a thicket of legal, technological and regulatory problems.
One obstacle is federal law, which prohibits bettors and gambling companies in the United States from taking wagers via the Internet or over phone lines across state lines.
The U.S. Justice Department has successfully prosecuted at least one online gambling operation based offshore -- winning a 21-month prison sentence and a $5,000 fine against the co-owner of an Antigua site in August 2000.
But the very nature of the Internet, and the size of the online gaming industry, virtually guarantees that the vast majority will never be prosecuted. In fact, such companies advertise in this country with apparently little concern about prosecution.
Several big American banks, including Bank of America and Citibank, have blocked online gaming transactions on their credit cards because some courts have held that gambling debts are unenforceable.
Moreover, PayPal, the eBay Inc. unit that has been one of the most popular ways for gamblers to bet online, stopped its gambling payment service in November. And Yahoo! Inc., a widely used Web site, stopped carrying Internet casino ads.
Therapists routinely hear stories from addicts about how they slip into another world after going online, said Lori Rugle, a researcher and clinical director of training at Trimeridian Inc., an Indianapolis-based gambling research center.
Help on the Web
For Lewis, taking a gambling excursion into cyberspace relieved her loneliness.
Because she's on oxygen and uses a wheelchair and walker for hip problems, she doesn't drive and seldom leaves her apartment. Once she found the casino sites, her stretches at the computer grew longer and longer.
Finally, her bank account disappeared, and she became seriously depressed. At the computer one day, she clicked on the ``responsible gambling'' box at an online casino home page.
The information led her to e-mail the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey, which quickly called her and provided help.
Their counseling and support, Lewis said, saved her life. She has quit gambling and has relied on the council -- which made calls on her behalf -- to help her deflect demands for payment by credit card companies.
``I tell them all the time I've got nothing to pay them with,'' Lewis said. ``I'm doing OK, but I cry a lot.''
She now uses her computer to chat online with other problem gamblers.
``It's helped me so much,'' she said. ``If I had a million dollars, I'd never gamble again.''
Gannett News Service
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