Online gambling is any form of gambling that is done via the internet, it could be on a computer or any internet enabled device, online gambling includes, sports betting, poker and casinos. The first online casino was opened in 1994 when Antigua and Barbuda passed the Free Trade and Processing Act which granted licences to corporations who applies to open an online casino.
Everyone is free to walk into a casino either at Las Vegas, Atlantic City, or a racetrack to participate and enjoy any form of gambling legally but when it comes to online gambling it is not as clear cut as it should be with some states allowing it and some prohibiting any form of gambling.
All except four states (New Jersey, Delaware, Nevada and Pennsylvania) in the USA ban online gambling but some are in the process of allowing people of legal age gamble online. The power to determine the legality of online casinos rests on the different states in America and even in states where it is allowed not all forms of online gambling are legal.
Poker and other forms of casino games are available at state licenced online casinos in New Jersey, only poker is allowed legally in Nevada, while Delaware permits blackjack, video roulette and several other games. The ban on online sports betting was lifted by the Supreme Court in May 2018 and each state was given the power to determine the legality of the activity. You are advised to check the legal status of online gambling in your state before participating and once you do there are sites to check for reviews of online casinos.
It is important to note thatthere are no federal laws prohibiting online gambling or casinos in the United States. There is a general misconception that stems from the improper understanding of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 where it states that no person or entity may receive knowingly any funds from a person associated with illegal online gambling this can be translated to mean anyone is free to spend their money anyhow they choose but accepting such money is regulated.
There are several arguments for and against the legality of online gambling and one of the major arguments against is that the instant gratification brought on by internet gambling will escalate the problem of gambling addiction but this argument was squashed by a study conducted in 2014 at the University of Buffalo which concluded that the popularity of online gambling has not led to an increase in the cases of gambling addiction.
One other argument against online gambling is that it takes revenue away from land based casinos and there have been several attempts by lobbyists to make it illegal at the federal level but this argument has also been disproved by the fact that New Jersey has recorded a boost in its total gambling revenue that is from both online and land based casinos.