Full Tilt Saga Forces UK Online Gambling Reform

The drama over the US crackdown on online poker, mainly the full Tilt Poker collapse following the events, has had an impact across the pond in the United Kingdom - where the government is preparing to introduce vast online gambling reforms.

Reforms to regulation of offshore operators

Under the plan, introduced by British Culture Secretary Jeremy Huny, the government is looking to reform how offshore online gambling operators are regulated, and is planning to make an announcement on the issue in the coming weeks.

The government only recently completed a big consultation on the industry, whose laws currently do not prevent foreign, unlicensed operators from advertising and operating in the UK. As such, much trust has been placed in the hands of overseas regulators, but this is about to change.

Full Tilt spurs change

Full Tilt Poker, like its rival website PokerStars, has spent millions of pounds in recent years on advertising in British online and print media, and had become one of the most popular poker rooms with British players.

But it was one of three sites, along with PokerStars and Absolute Poker, to be charged by US prosecutors over various charges in April, in what has become known as Black Friday. Those events shocked the world and have now impacted the UK, as we can see from this latest news of reforms.