Poker (Texas Hold'em) surprisingly has started to decline in popularity which could be due to various factors. Omaha (high) and high low has began to increase in popularity over the past several years due to a softer player field and winning potential which could be considered one of the major factors. Conversely, the field for Texas Hold'em has increased with higher level players making the game tougher and reducing earning potential for professional players. Another is obviously the ban of online poker in the U.S. which will be the main topic for this weeks blog.

In the poker world the loss of "legal" online poker in the U.S. was a drastic impact for several players. Myself included, loved the the ability to sit around the house during downtime turn some sports on and enjoy playing poker from my home without having to commute to a casino or charity gaming room. In order to properly discuss this some background is needed on why the U.S. banned online poker websites and the controversy involved. Several legitimate concerns such as tax evasion, money laundering, and various other monies related issues where the main grounds for shutting down these websites. It also took a small portion of business away from casinos and poker rooms (poker is generally the lowest earning game played) which pays high taxes to the state that is in. These are all valid concerns but without the development of the internet and ability to reach consumers wouldn't it be beneficial to develop regulations and allow these billion dollar companies to operate and found American tax dollars?

A valid point that is brought up is how Europe and other non U.S. related countries treat gambling winnings. In the U.S. a capital gains tax has to be paid on the winnings from gambling. The argument and the belief of non U.S. entities is that the money used is POST tax dollars (taxes already paid) so if someone wins 100k on a tournament that was all funded with POST tax dollars why pay taxes on this again? Seems redundant in my opinion and I fully understand paying standard taxes (income tax) on the profits that are won and also being able to use any loss as a deduction come tax time as well. The U.S. is missing out on literally millions if not billions of taxable revenue if they allow these websites to operate or develop their own. A few websites are gaining popularity for example wsop.com which is operated out of New Jersey and available to anyone available in New Jersey to play freely on. Another develop is Pokerstars (worlds largest online poker site) having communication with California in allowing online poker. Some stipulations also exist for being located in the state Nevada similar to New Jerseys laws.

With all of the changes and development of the internet and web based business and laws such as "legalization of Marijuana" in specific areas which is now generating taxable income how is Poker not legalized online? It would be very easy for the government to regulate transactions and auditing through the IRS to make sure everything is being ethically done. This would allow for several states and federally for the U.S. to generate additional tax dollars that could be used to further develop our nation.

http://www.pokernews.com/news/2014/04/pokerstars-inks-online-poker-partnership-in-california-18118.htm