For sometime now, U.S. players have felt horribly slighted when it comes to their rights to participate in online gambling. Although many battles are being fought at the legislation level, the status remains the same in 2009. Micrograming represents the last major online gaming software developer to prevent its licensees from opening accounts for U.S. players. After the threatening and bullying by the U.S. Department of Justice, this was probably a wise move on their part. With that said, Micrograming is openly expressing regret due to the business losses that have resulted from this decision.
Piling onto this regret is a recent announcement stating that Intertops, one of the company’s longtime licensees, would be ceasing its partnership with Microgaming. Many are speculating that this is being done so that they can once again allow U.S. players to open accounts. When considering the large number of players in the states that want to participate, the reasoning should be a no-brainer. Intertops’ plans became known when it was revealed that the company is moving its online casino platform to industry leading software provider Real Time Gaming.
Online casinos powered by RTG technology make the best option for U.S. players for a number of reasons. First of all, RTG does not put restrictions on its licensees. Once its software platform is licensed, it is up to the individual casino operator on whether or not they accept bets from U.S. players. Although some have made the argument that this could lead to a greater probability of unethical practices on part of the casino, the truth is that RTG is a respected name in the business. Both its software source code and RNG have been certified for fairness by acclaimed third-party testing firm Technical Systems Testing.
If you look at its business model, it becomes much clearer to see why Intertops is making the transition to Real Time Gaming. RTG has appropriate licensing credentials in regulatory jurisdictions such as Antilles and The Netherlands, better ensuring that players can enjoy a high-performance, secure gaming environment. Despite the split, Michl Posch, a spokesman for Intertops, had nothing but good things to say regarding the relationship with Micrograming. After 10 years, the two companies had what was one of the longest running partnerships in the gaming business. Porsh expressed what a difficult decision it was to leave Microgaming in favor of RTG. On another note, following the recent seizure of gambling site domains in Kentucky, the debacle that ultimately led to Microgaming’s choice to dip out of the U.S. market, it is said that Intertops wondered if this market was worth ending the relationship. Today, it has become clear that it was.
While there is much talk about the announcement, Intertops has yet to fully make the transition as its casino site still has Microgaming progressive jackpots on display. While the company appears to be looking out for U.S players, customers still need to leery of where they play. Intertops also allows online sports betting, a very sensitive subject in the eyes of U.S. lawmakers. Because of this, the company could be putting its players at the risk of having their casino accounts seized, even if they are not participating in sports betting.
