Legal Question in Technology Law in California

Re: Online Gaming

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Re: Online Gaming

I suggest re-posting this question in the "tax law" category. You are much more likely to receive helpful guidance there.

Although you are planning to use technology to assist you, your question is simply how to declare income from illegal gambling. That question is entirely about tax law and has nothing to do with computer & technology law. After all, there are many people who make money by gambling illegally and, from a legal standpoint, your dilemma is identical to theirs.

Re: Online Gaming

There are several issues.

First of all, use of a bot, and the use of multiple bots for that matter, violates the terms of service of PartyPoker and most (if not all) other online poker sites. The poker provider's software may be (probably is) able to detect bot software running on the same PC. They will certainly be able to detect multiple bots, or multiple PCs running their poker software, originating from the same IP address.

Second, to the best of my knowledge the US government takes the position that internet gaming by US residents is illegal.

Third, you have to get PartyPoker or other poker provider to pay you when and if you win, and if they detect you are winning millions you may have problems collecting (since you have an unfair advantage over the other, presumably human, players and you are therefore cheating).

Fourth, you have to pay US taxes on your winnings and declare the existence of any offshore accounts with a balance of $10K or more.

If I were you I would:

1) If possible, run your bot on a separate PC, and manually play on the PC that is connected to the internet poker provider so as to not run afoul of the terms of service or defraud the other players.

2) Play one game at a time and attempt to win

thousands, not millions. Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered.

3) Report all your gambling income.

(All of the above assumes that internet poker is legal in the US, and I don't know for sure whether it is or isn't. Nothing here is intended to advise you to break any law.)

Maybe your estimable programming talents would be better used writing poker-ISP software; software to analyze more legally and socially acceptable forms of gambling such as the stock market; or poker-instruction software for recreational / amateur poker players such as myself.

Finally, I am astonished that another LawGuru attorney would solicit a partnership with you for the purpose of cheating at online poker.

Re: Online Gaming

As another attorney indicated, this likely violates the terms of service of the online poker sites. Additionally, if you can make that much money and avoid problems with the site themeselves, I would think it would be worth relocating to a location where gambling is legal (and preferably also the tax rate is low)?

For more advice, you might seek the advice of a tax and / or gaming attorney.