As the U.S. Congress deferred a vote on online gambling until the health care reform issue is settled, there has been considerable action on the European forefront.  Last week, the top executives of the world’s most prestigious online gambling sites met at the Belle Centre in Copenhagen, , for the European i-Gaming Congress and Expo.

The esteemed panel of online gambling business leaders included the following:  David Yu of Betfair; Ed Andrewes of Ladbrokes; Henry Birch of William Hill; and Jim Ryan of Party Gaming.  The panel received a report that the future of the online gambling industry appears strong since only about 8% of the $350 billion in gross revenue comes from online activities.  That leaves a great deal of opportunity for growth within the online gambling industry.

While all panel members did not concur on the participation of their respective companies in online gambling in the should the opportunity arise, they did agree that they should be looking into ways to include the market in the future European plans.

Mr. Yu made it clear to all on the panel that Betfair continues to approach the legal issues involved with U.S. gambling from a conservative perspective, although he acknowledged that the U.S. market is extremely fertile ground for the industry.  While the panel remains confident in the future of gambling in the near future, it is divided on the future prospects of the Asian market.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress has delayed discussions of the Barney Frank Online Gambling Bill, at least until the end of October.  The U.S. Government is under siege on its proposed take-over of the health system, so the online gambling issue will have to take a back seat until the health issue has reached a resolution. 

The Bill has gained four new co-sponsors over the past month, and it seems a forgone conclusion that the UIGEA law that banned online gambling in the will be repealed by the end of the year.