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The BBC is reporting that two UK YouTube video creators have been charged in relation to online gambling:
Two men have appeared in court charged with offences under the Gambling Act in what is believed to be the first prosecution involving betting on video games.
Craig Douglas and Dylan Rigby, who are both from Essex, are charged with promoting a lottery and advertising unlawful gambling.
Mr Douglas makes gaming videos on YouTube under the pseudonym Nepenthez.
He is also charged with inviting children to gamble.
There is more coverage on engadget
The two allegedly used their online presences to push lotteries and "unlawful gambling" in FIFA 16 matches through bets with in-game coins. Douglas is also accused of encouraging underage gambling by refusing to warn viewers that bets were only for people 18 and over.
Both Engadget and PCGamesN highlight that Douglas (Nepenthez) was aware of the issue, but had not seen this as a problem:
Douglas didn't seem worried about the law back in June 2015, when he replied to a tweet warning him of the dangers of not indicating the site was for people over 18, saying, "Let us worry about that kind of stuff, yeah. Jesus, lmao. Go annoy someone else, somewhere else."
(Score: 1, Flamebait) by jmorris on Monday September 19 2016, @08:30PM
My political preferences have nothing to do with this story. Reality is what is left when your attempt to disbelieve it as strongly as you want fail. The State currently holds a monopoly on the use of violence AND a monopoly on gambling. Infringing that monopoly was going to end badly and anyone who couldn't see that is defective and should be culled from the herd. What is right ain't got nothing to do with this sonny.
(Score: 2) by Hyperturtle on Monday September 19 2016, @11:35PM
I agree with you -- people of any political stripe are more likely to gain my respect if they actually make an effort to understand the laws and work within them, if even perhaps to change them. Exploitation of people like what this guy was doing, even if it wasn't physical exploitation and more about peer pressure (all the cool kids are doing it!)... laughing at the laws and claiming ignorance later doesn't really warm me to their plight.
Only the likes of Uber can get away with breaking the law openly like that, but as to why they mostly manage to get away with it is up for discussion. They clearly are able to provide a more valuable set of user details.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday September 19 2016, @11:56PM
people of any political stripe are more likely to gain my respect if they actually make an effort to understand the laws and work within them
There's nothing inherently good, bad, or respectable about following the law; the matter has nothing to do with morality.