Online gambling

The Israeli business publication Globes Online says that an important legal ruling handed down this week by an Israeli judge could have consequences for foreign gambling companies based outside Israel.

Israeli Judge Abraham Heiman said that online gambling sites may not hide behind the fact that the company and its servers are located in another country.

A foreign company operating an online gambling site may not hide behind the fact that the company and its servers are registered and located in another country, and it is breaking the law if does not block access to Israelis, said the judge in the Rishon LeZion Magistrates Court.

Judge Heiman'sruling was in respect of a case against Victor Chandler CEO Michael Carlton. Heiman said, “In the era of the Internet, the original location of content (Internet services) is marginal and negligible. The centre of gravity, especially the territorial legal jurisdiction, must switch to the end point, in other words, the individual computer.”