SL creator Linden Lab says:

We have invited the FBI several times to take a look around in Second Life and raise any concerns they would like, and we know of at least one instance that federal agents did look around in a virtual casino.

It's hard to judge the scale of gambling in SL as the biggest poker casinos are making a mere $1,500. The US government has not made a decision on whether virtual gambling with virtual money is legal — Even if SL's money can be exchanged for US dollars! Apparently, Linden could even face criminal charges under American anti-gambling statutes that say "something of value" is wagered. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, which was passed last year, targets credit card companies and other electronic funs transfers that make internet gambling possible. Linden could be held to that statue. But it gets tricky: Things like whether a 3D sim casino is actually the same as a casino. According to Sean Kane, a lawyer who has studied the virtual world legal issues:

If you're buying money on the Lindex (a virtual currency exchange) and utilizing it for gambling purposes, Linden could have a much higher level of responsibility. If they would be found in violation, that's difficult to say, but I can see a much stronger case being made.

Right now, it seems like the current system is like Japanese pachinko in which players play for metal balls. Those metal balls are then sold for actual money. But doing this, the pachinko industry is able to escape being labeled as "gambling" in Japan as it is technically illegal. Whether or not the US government will be as tolerant as the Japanese remains to be seen. Brian Ashcraft

SL Casinos [Reuters]
Storm Trooper [Danny Choo]

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