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PR Newswire US
May 31, 2005 Tuesday 12:01 PM GMT
HEADLINE: Major Poker Company Joins eCOGRA;
Way Now Open for International Self-Regulation of Online Poker
BODY:
The important turnkey online poker provider Ongame has successfully
completed rigorous acceptance inspections for membership of the
international regulator eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation
and Assurance (eCOGRA).
The announcement today has significant implications for the first
ever self-imposed regulation of the booming online poker industry.
Ongame powers PokerNetwork which hosts many poker operators including
PokerRoom.com
servicing some 4 million and rising online poker players, and
the successful accreditation of the software opens the way for
these companies to apply for the eCOGRA seal, conditional on meeting
the standards required.
The Swedish provider now joins a global regulatory framework
within which 55 top online casinos powered by leading companies
Microgaming and Casino on Net operate, handling well over fifty
percent of the online casino gambling market.
eCOGRA CEO Andrew Beveridge says the successful Ongame membership
is an important milestone for both the poker industry and his
organisation. "This is the first application of independent
regulations to elements within the online poker industry,"
he said. "Ongame is a welcome addition to eCOGRA. Our compliance
committee were extremely impressed with their professional approach
to corporate governance and responsible gaming. From the outset
they have put the player first, and an example of this is that
they were the first online gaming operation to achieve G4 responsible
gaming accreditation," he said.
"For eCOGRA it is the realisation of months of in-depth
research and professional advice in framing ground-breaking rules
or eGAPs as we call them, for online poker sites," he continued.
"We are confident that other high profile poker networks
will submit their sites to our independent inspectors and achieve
the eCOGRA seal".
The eCOGRA initiative is open to all and provides practical player
protection through a carefully developed set of regulations that
are applied through third party international professional services
organisations to member casinos and poker rooms.
Detailed inspection and ongoing monitoring to ensure continuous
compliance with the regulations are key to the success of the
initiative, and extensive financial and management probity checks
are carried out as part of the acceptance process.
Online gambling
operations that successfully pass the inspection are identified
by the eCOGRA "Play It Safe" seal, awarded by three
independent directors on the eCOGRA Board who control the organisation's
operational activities.
The eGAP regulations cut across political and geographic barriers
to address every aspect of online casino and poker room activity,
including FATF-relevant money handling procedures, fair gaming,
responsible gambling and efficient customer service.
The London-based staff of the regulator includes a Fair Gaming
Advocate to whom players can appeal if any disputes cannot be
settled at casino or poker room level.
Patrik Selin, CEO of Ongame commented: "This is the culmination
of tough, detailed on-site inspections and probity checks for
Ongame, but we believe it is an important step forward for our
poker rooms and the industry as a whole. Real and practical regulation
such as eCOGRA offers has benefits for everyone, protecting the
players and at the same time enforcing high levels of professional
and business conduct at both the software provider and poker room
level."
Website: http://www.ecogra.org/
CONTACT: Contact: Andrew Beveridge, CEO, Telephone: +44-(0)20-7887-1480,
Email: pr@ecogra.org
SOURCE eCOGRA Ltd
URL: http://www.prnewswire.com
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