Column: Washington companies take big bet on online gaming

Tuesday, November 13, 2012  

"Seattle’s becoming the new Barbary Coast.

First it legalizes marijuana. Next it’s likely to become the hub for online gambling.

The city’s already on the forefront of online casinos, with Seattle companies building some of the leading virtual-gambling operations on Facebook and mobile devices such as Apple’s iPad and iPhones.

For now they’re using virtual chips — not real money. But the federal government may legalize online gambling within the next year or two as a way to boost tax revenue.

An early sign of this gold rush came in January, when Las Vegas gambling giant International Game Technology (IGT) bought Seattle video-game company DoubleDown Interactive in a deal worth up to $500 million."

Get the Story:
Brier Dudley: Seattle companies bet big on legal online gambling (The Seattle Times 11/12)