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Industry | Casino |
---|---|
Founded | 1996 |
Products | Online casino |
Website | www.intercasino.com |
InterCasino established the first online casino in 1996[1][third-party source needed] and is part of the InterCasino Group, which is owned and operated by CryptoLogic Operations Ltd, a subsidiary of Goldstar Acquisitionco Inc. Registered in Malta, it is regulated by the Lotteries & Gaming Authority of Malta.
History
Intercasino was created on November 17, 1996.[1][third-party source needed] In 1996, InterCasino accepted the first genuine money wager online[2] after the business was initially launched in Antigua by William "Billy" Scott, a former Ohio bookmaker. In 1998, he was charged by prosecutors in the US for illegally taking sports bets online[3] and the business is now in the hands of new owners.
InterCasino's online platforms are powered by WagerLogic software, a division of CryptoLogic.[4]
In 2002, InterCasino launched InterCasinoPoker, a poker room. InterCasino is regulated by Malta[5] The name was later shortened to InterPoker. The following year, Gambling Online magazine voted InterCasino as 'Top Online Casino', an accolade it also won in 2004 (jointly with Omnicasino), 2005 and 2006. In 2007 it came in second place after 888.com took the top spot.[6]
In April 2012, InterCasino's parent company, CryptoLogic, was acquired by the Amaya Gaming Group in a $35.8 million cash for shares takeover.[7] Amaya subsequently sold Cryptologic's business-to-consumer facing subsidiary, WagerLogic, to Goldstar Acquisitionco Inc in a transaction valued at $70 million in February 2014.[8] This sale included all of Cryptologic's consumer facing online gambling sites including InterCasino, InterPoker, and InterBingo.
In 2019, casino operator JPG Group announced that it is to withdraw the InterCasino brand from operating in the UK market.[9]
Payouts
The then world's biggest online jackpot was won in December 2005 winning $1,768,518.49 playing InterCasino's Millionaires Club progressive slots.[10]
The record was then broken in May 2007 when a blacksmith with the player name of Obaesso won $8,000,000.[11]
Regulation
Wagers from US players for InterCasino games stopped being accepted in October 2006 due to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. This made transactions from banks and similar financial institutions to online gambling websites a crime.[12] As of November 9, 2011, InterCasino's services were not available to residents from the United States, the People's Republic of China, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Macau and Turkey.
In 2008, a series of online casino and poker TV adverts from InterCasino were banned by the ASA because they were deemed as using juvenile and slapstick humour that could appeal to young people and children.[13]
InterCasino's parent company at the time, Online Interactive Gaming Entertainment, defended the adverts, describing them as using "gentle slapstick humour reminiscent of old-fashioned routines by Charlie Chaplin or Benny Hill" and, as such, not designed to appeal to children or young persons.[14]
References
- ^ a b "About us" Archived 2011-11-26 at the Wayback Machine. InterCasino. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- ^ Somach, Tom (2 July 2007). "Gambling... Gold rush? A congressional push last year stopped many Americans from playing the games online, but the law may be changed". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on 9 October 2009. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
- ^ King, Ralph (1 April 2003). "Online Gambling's Mr. Big John Anderson's Web casino is a profit machine. If only he could convince the U.S. government that online gambling ought to be legal". CNN Money. Archived from the original on 4 September 2010. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
- ^ "Reader Poll Awards 2008". Gambling Online Magazine. Archived from the original on 14 November 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-01-20. Retrieved 2010-01-20.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Gambling Online Magazine Reader Poll Awards 2003". Gambling Online Magazine. Archived from the original on 12 March 2013. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- ^ "Casino Listings: Cryptologic Loses Ground In First Quarter". Archived from the original on 2014-10-19. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ "Amaya Gaming: Amaya Gaming Group announces its 2014 first quarter financial results". Archived from the original on 2014-07-02. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ "JPJ to withdraw Vera&John and InterCasino from UK". iGaming Business. 6 August 2019. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
- ^ "Englishman Hits the Jackpot at InterCasino.com". Gambling.co.uk. 15 December 2005. Archived from the original on 18 October 2014. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- ^ "Millionaires Club Jackpot Winners". Millionaires Club Progressive Slot. Archived from the original on 28 August 2012. Retrieved 18 March 2013.
- ^ Humphey, Chuck (13 October 2006). "Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006". Gambling-Law-US.com. Archived from the original on 4 January 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2011.
- ^ "Effective self-regulation: Keeping advertising standards high". ASA Annual Report 2008. Advertising Standards Agency. Archived from the original on 2012-06-03. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
- ^ Sweney, Mark (23 April 2008). "Gambling ads banned by watchdog". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.