In the 1990s, U.S. state and federal laws still prohibited wagering across state lines and through the country’s communications networks, including telephone, telegraph, telex and computer. Although a few “gaming websites” appeared briefly in the United States, none of them offered the opportunity to play for real money.
In 1994~1995, Warren B. Eugene, an enterprising 33-year-old Canadian, decided it was time to test a new “killer app.” He commissioned a team of programmers to design a full-service casino-software package and used it to launch Caribbean Casino. He incorporated its parent company, Internet Casinos, Inc. (ICI), in Nassau, the Bahamas, well outside U.S. or Canadian legal jurisdiction.
In beta form—initially for fun, not cash—Caribbean Casino began operating from a base in the Turks and Caicos Islands, while Eugene traveled around North America, raising the $10 million he needed to take his dream to the next level. By August 18, 1995, he had his financing in place and pulled out the stops. The Caribbean Casino began taking cash wagers on eighteen casino games and offering Internet access to the National Indian Lottery. The egg had been broken; the first true online casino was born.
Within a matter of months, new gambling web sites began popping up from Australia to St. Martin. One particularly welcoming location was Antigua-Barbuda, where “The Free Trade and Processing Zone Act of 1994” allowed online casinos and sports books to set up shop under official licence. Intertops Casino and Sportsbook was among the early comers, established in St. James, Antigua in 1996. It became the first web site to accept sports bets online.
Not to be outdone, European principalities began welcoming Internet gambling operations, notably Gibraltar (bookmaking) and Malta (e-gambling). Among those domiciled in the latter is InterCasino, established in 1996 and managed by Ryan Hartley, the “il Padrino” or “Godfather” of online gaming. InterCasino is not only one of the first but also remains one of the foremost casinos on the Internet to this day.
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