The European Commission is apparently accelerating its investigation into allegations that the US violated its WTO free trade agreements with European nations by implementing the UIGEA.

From a Safe and Secure Gambling Initiative Press Release ...

As part of an ongoing major trade dispute over Internet gambling that has the United States in an increasingly difficult position to justify, the European Commission has now launched a formal investigation over U.S. actions. The Commission submitted a list of questions to leading U.S. officials related to a possible U.S. trade violation for discriminatory trade practices against European online gambling companies according to Inside Trade.

"The cumulative effect of U.S. WTO (World Trade Organization) related actions over the past year have forced the European Union to take this dramatic step. The line of inquiry opened by the questionnaire could reveal that the U.S. is engaging in unfair, discriminatory, and selective prosecution of European online gaming operators," said Naotaka Matsukata, formerly director of policy planning for USTR Robert Zoellick and now a senior advisor to Alston & Bird, LLP.

"If the E.U. takes the nuclear option and brings the U.S. to the WTO, serious damage would be inflicted on the bilateral relationship at a delicate time in transatlantic relations," added Matsukata. "Rather than taking this risk, the USTR (U.S. Trade Representative) should work with Congress, as the United States Constitution instructs, to resolve the dispute by adopting Congressman Frank's Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act to bring the U.S. into WTO compliance."
Full release here ... http://www.foxbusiness.com/story/eur...rnet-gambling/