Credit Cards Lobby for Online Gambling Reform

MasterCard and Visa have been busy lobbying for online gambling reform in the United States, with both credit card companies unhappy about the current state of legislation.

The two global giants have complied with the regulations set out by the 2006 Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which put the onus on companies that process transfers between players and online gambling operators.

According to a disclosure report released this past week, MasterCard Inc. spent $840,000 during the third quarter to lobby the federal government on a range of issues, including Internet gambling and online payments. That followed the $2.33 million it paid lobbyists in the second quarter of 2010, when the financial overhaul bill was before Congress.

For purposes of comparison, during the same three-month period the Poker Players Alliance reportedly spent around $500k and PartyGaming around $60k on online gambling lobbying.

The MasterCard disclosure is broken down into two key areas: specific lobbying issues and general lobbying issues. The latter contains a reference to Congressman Barney Frank's H.R. 2267 bill (the Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act), which seeks to overturn the effective ban on online gambling introduced by the 2006 UIGEA.