Legal Roundup – Online Lotto Coming for MD, Playtech Seeking Partner, and Facebook’s Predicted Revenue

Several small but important stories made headlines on Tuesday.  Playtech is currently in the hunt for US business partners, Maryland may have online lotto sooner than most think, and Facebook could be positioning themselves for a massive payday.  Check out these stories in our legal roundup.

Maryland Lottery Could Be Online July 1st

According to Maryland Lottery Commission Director Stephen Martino, Maryland could have legal online lottery sales as soon as July 1st of this year.  Martino told members of the House Ways and Means Committee that their goal is to have six months of lottery sales by the end of 2012.  They are hoping that sales from online lottery reach $2 Million for the fiscal year of 2013 which runs from July 2012 to July 2012.

Sales would be solely for scratch-off type games and Powerball style games.  They will not offer other online gambling through the lottery website.  In addition, Director Martino said that they are looking to establish age checkpoints that include entering a valid Maryland driver’s license and potentially identification cards that would have to be purchased at a live lottery establishment.

Playtech Looking for US Partners

According to a report in Reuters, Playtech is looking to establish a business relationship with a US partner.  CEO Mor Weizer stated that “”We have lots of potential customers that approached us or that we approached that would like to have us as their suppliers of online gaming products when the market opens up.  There is a lot of work being done behind the scenes in various states by various local authorities. We have people on the ground now in the U.S. working with us in order to monitor all these processes.”

Playtech is obviously looking to take advantage of the recent opinion given by the DOJ that states the Wire Act is just for sport betting.  Many feel that national online poker legislation could come this year while others think that it will remain a state issue.

Facebook Could Generate $100 Billion in Online Gambling

Bold predictions have been made by an insider close to Facebook according to businessinsider.com.  The popular social media site could potentially allow online gambling, and if that happens the insider said that “Facebook will be a $100 billion company.”

That $100 billion is referring to the amount of revenue that the site could generate via online gambling.  At present, Facebook is estimated to get close to $400 Million a year though Zynga based off of their social gaming platform that sells virtual credits.  They receive a 30% cut of any virtual goods sold.

If online poker is legalized in the US, this could open a massive market for Facebook and any of the companies wishing to operate through the site.  While $100 billion may seem a bit steep of an estimate, but it is definitely safe to say that online gambling will make the company infinitely richer.