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 Posted: Sat Oct 06, 2007 2:22 pm Post subject: |
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The Guardian
Occasionally Dodgy News Source
Stalled compensation talks could
hasten end to U.S. online gaming ban
By David Gow in Brussels
Sept. 27/07
| Quote: | The US ban on British online gaming companies such as PartyGaming and Sportingbet could be overturned as negotiations between Washington and Brussels over compensation stalled.
... The companies, which saw billions wiped off their share prices after the ban, would not receive any cash and instead Brussels wants Washington to open up other areas of its services industry to European firms, such as insurance or reinsurance. But such a deal could cost the U.S. billions of dollars and it might opt to allow overseas operators back into its market under licence. A bill to regulate and tax online gambling offered by all operators has been drafted by the liberal Democrat congressman Barney Frank. An EU trade official said: "The UK operators and others who have lost out would get nothing. But the Frank bill would go a long way to meeting our demands."
... Raul Herrera, a Washington-based trade attorney, said the compensation merited by the EU would be a multiple of 20 or 30 times the $3.4bn of sanctions prepared by Antigua, a country with a GDP of only $1bn but home to dozens of online gaming operators that once controlled half the American market. That would imply compensation of up to $90bn. But the EU official said this was exaggerated. "If there's compensation it will not be cash but in the form of the U.S. opening up its services industry or part of it, say insurance or re-insurance, to others and not just the Europeans under WTO rules. "
The EU online gaming industry, mainly based in the UK, employs 15,000 but faces a growing challenge from U.S. operators such as Yahoo!, Google and Sands.
... Jonathan Cohen, a New York-based public affairs consultant acting for EU operators, said the U.S. legal regime was "wildly inconsistent" as it allowed online fantasy sports leagues and racecourse betting but specifically banned other services provided by European firms.
Clive Hawkswood, chief executive of the Remote Gambling Association, said the European industry suffered from outrightly protectionist measures from the US. "It is using unjustified trade barriers to stop EU operators and a proper licensing system would attract many EU operators." |
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| Posted: Wed Oct 10, 2007 2:19 pm Post subject: |
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Is America's OUCH! case signalling trade war with Europe?
| Quote: | Centre for the New Europe (CNE)
Non-profit, Non-partisan Research Foundation
The U.S., the EU and the WTO
Internet Gambling Dispute:
Implications for EU/US trade policy
Oct. 10/07
| Quote: | In a case brought by Antigua, the WTO has recently ruled that a U.S. ban on gaming is illegal. The U.S. is now refusing to to take heed of the WTO finding, and the conflict now threatens to spark a trade war between the U.S. and not merely Antigua but the EU, too, given EU companies’ expertise and operations in online gaming. Over €80 billion in possible trade concessions is now at stake between the EU and U.S.
The case is analogous to Ecuador’s victory over the EU in its dispute over banana imports, showing that WTO disputes can deliver results for smaller countries. The issue here is: what next?
The seminar will cover the implications for the WTO and the economic implications for the EU of the US’ refusal to allow EU gaming companies to operate.
Speakers:
Sallie James
Trade Analyst, CATO Institute
Nao Matsukata
Fmr. Director of Policy, U.S.T.R.
Lode Van Den Hende
Herbert Smith
Wednesday, 10 October 2007
Renaissance Hotel
Rue du Parnasse 19, Brussels
14:30
Welcome, refreshments, panel
15:30
Q&A
16:30
Closing |
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| Posted: Mon Oct 15, 2007 4:21 pm Post subject: |
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Sys.Con Media
Panelists at European Think Tank Take Aim at U.S. Policy on Gaming Trade Dispute
$100 Billion In Potential Benefits for European Union Industries
Because of U.S. Policy "Mistake" At WTO In Antigua Case
By PR Newswire
Oct. 10/07
| Quote: | Panelists at a trade forum held at a leading European think tank today leveled harsh criticism at the U.S. government for abandoning its commitments to the World Trade Organization over the gaming industry, claiming the decision threatens the credibility of the WTO itself and could lead to a chain reaction of similar withdrawals by other nations.
The Centre for the New Europe, a leading Brussels-based think tank with a special interest in open trade, focused the forum on a burgeoning trade clash between the U.S. and Europe over Internet gaming. According to analysts, the U.S. could be liable for up to $100 billion in trade concessions to European industries because of illegal discriminatory trade restrictions placed by the U.S. against European gaming operators. The amount of the dispute is the largest in the history of the WTO., and the U.S. withdrawal of its commitments represents the first time that has happened in WTO history. The withdrawal alarmed the speakers, all of whom specialize in trade issues.
"The U.S. decision is a major threat to a rules-based international trading system," said Nao Matsukata, the former Director of Policy Planning for the office of the U.S. Trade Representative. "If more countries follow the U.S. lead and do the same thing, the entire WTO system could implode and that would be extremely dangerous for U.S. economic interests and for free trade generally," he added.
"Part of what makes the U.S. such a formidable opponent in international negotiations is its credibility," Matsukata said. "That credibility is now at stake for the U.S. government not just in the trade area but in foreign relations generally." Matsukata, one of the most respected trade specialists in the U.S., also called the U.S. policy decision a "mistake not backed by any logical explanation of which I am aware." (emphasis added)
... "The WTO has worked largely to the advantage of the U.S.," said Sallie James, a trade specialist at the Cato Institute who also spoke on the panel. "Any action the U.S. takes to undermine the integrity of the system is extremely dangerous to U.S. economic interests and to free trade generally."
Lode Van Den Hende, a trade lawyer at Herbert Smith in Brussels, criticized the U.S. for prosecuting foreign online gaming companies while letting domestic online gaming interests operate with impunity. "This is absolute discrimination against foreign operators that the W.T.O. has found to be illegal," he said. "It is exactly the kind of practice that the WTO was set up to eliminate, and now the U.S. is violating this very basic principle that it fought hard to put in place at the inception of the organization."
... The panelists agreed that in the near future the U.S. likely would have a regulated, licensed, and non-discriminatory system in place for Internet gaming that would bring the U.S. back into compliance with W.T.O. rules. (emphasis added) Gaming industry representatives believe a legislative bill in the U.S. Congress sponsored by Rep. Barney Frank -- which essentially creates a regulatory system for online gaming -- could alleviate their concerns about market access and discriminatory prosecutions.
... The European Union has developed the world's leading Internet gaming businesses and is considered to have a strong lead over the U.S. in this sector, with operations in the U.K., Gibraltar, Malta, Austria, Bulgaria, Ireland, Estonia, and Sweden, employing an estimated 15,000 workers. ... The $100 billion U.S. gaming market is the largest in the world, employing more than 350,000 people and generates billions of dollars of tax revenues.
The online gaming dispute also has broader implications for Internet commerce. It is the first WTO case supporting a small country's right and ability to create a globally important business sector on the Internet, as Antigua claims it was doing with online gaming. The WTO will most likely deal with other Internet cases soon, as U.S. search giant Google has suggested it will press a claim against China for violating the WTO by barring Chinese users from certain Internet sites using the Google search function. |
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