PartyGaming founder to pay out $300m

ft.com

10 points·peter123··9 comments

I've met the unfortunately named Mr. Dikshit and he was a bit of a douche. He was splashing around chips and bragging about how rich he was. So while I hate to see this happen to the industry, especially given that what they did probably wasn't illegal, I have a hard time feeling sorry for him in particular.

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This is a knock against FT's credibity. How can their business advice be relied upon when they can't get the human resources together to make a paywall instead of a payhurdle?

why is online gambling illegal anyways?

Because Las Vegas casinos and their highly paid lobbyists want it to be illegal. They'd actually prefer it to be illegal for anyone but them to run a casino online, but having it be illegal for everyone is the next best option.

The government (both state and federal) would also prefer to get a cut of gambling profits.

On a state level, the three states with the most explicit anti-online gaming laws are three states with sizable casino operations: Nevada, Louisiana, and California.

Ironically they've largely reversed their opinions on that, especially now that their occupancy rate is half of what it was a year ago. Now they want it to be licensed and they want in on the action.

these guys were at some point richer (on paper) than the google guys, when their stock price was inflated.

Their stock price was never really that high relative to earnings. The threat of U.S. government action kept it in check. That company was making eBay like profits with even better margins and their growth was strong.

Let's hope he doesn't try doubling up at roulette to win it all back...

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