1994 saw the launch of the first online casino, when the government of Antigua-Barbuda passed the Free Trade and Processing Act. Antigua-Barbuda is one of the most popular licensing jurisdictions for the online gaming industry, with many sites operating with licenses granted under this legislation. In 1996, Intercasino.com went online and this site claims to have been the first to take a real money wager.
Online casinos are played by downloading special software, a product known as Cryptologic. The company, which was founded in 1995, developed software the following year that enabled the sites to securely process online payment transactions. By 2000 they reportedly had 680,000 customers using their payments system. In 1999 Boss Media released new multiplayer gaming software, which allowed players to play the same game at the same time and interact with each other at virtual gaming tables. Many of the online casino sites now offer the ‘live’ casino as an additional way of playing.
In 2003, eCOGRA (eCommerce and Online Gambling Regulation and Assurance) was set up to make online gambling safer. This became one of the first moves towards proper regulation of the online gambling sites, as members must follow security guidelines and have strict safety measures.
Today, there are thousands of online casino and gambling sites and their popularity still seems to be on the rise. Many of these companies are floated on the stock market and are doing very good business, even during the recession. Although there are some sites that are not properly regulated and are possibly illegal, these are the minority. It is still not legal in some countries to gamble online, so before taking the plunge, please ensure the sites are reputable and that it is legal to do so.
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