Online gambling raising concerns in South Carolina

Friday, March 24, 2000 | 1:56 a.m.

Harold Worley, who owns the Ocean Drive Beach and Golf Resort Hotel next to the four acres owned by Collins Properties, said he raised an eyebrow when he got the request.

"Here in the Ocean Drive area we're working hard to create a family-friendly beach," Worley said.

Worley said he rejected Collins' request, fearing that if he granted the access, he would be forced to allow online gambling. Worley also says he has a contract to buy the land and has sued Collins Properties to force the sale.

Collins could not be reached by The (Myrtle Beach) Sun News for comment.

Online gambling is the future of the industry, said Ken Allen, a Columbia lawyer who specializes in gambling cases. Video gambling machines will be banned in South Carolina starting July 1.

"It's going to be the next wave of video gambling. I can confirm that," Allen said. "People have no concept of how big this opportunity is."

Nearly 50 countries are licensed to set up a server on the Internet to maintain a gambling site, Allen said.

According to a January report by investment company Bear Stearns, one Internet casino in the Cook Islands reported earning $4 million its first four days online.

But businesses must go outside the United States to set up a server on the Internet that offers gambling, said John Russell, spokesman for the U.S. Justice Department.

Russell said federal law prohibits people from using their telephones, computers or a wire to gamble online in a state that bans gambling. Violators could face two years in prison, he said.

Kevin Byrd, a Real Time Technologies Inc. consultant in North Myrtle Beach, said he has installed Internet access machines at various businesses along the Grand Strand. Customers can log onto the Internet and pay $1 for every five minutes online.

Carla Williams, part-owner of Oscar's restaurant, said numerous customers and employees use the Internet machine, but none gamble on it.

"Someone could reconfigure a machine such as ours to accommodate gambling by creating hyperlinks on a shell or desktop that you see on the computer," Byrd said. "Our computers are built solely for entertainment."

State Rep. Tracy Edge, R-North Myrtle Beach, said he wanted to look into the issue of online gambling.

"I want to examine our laws to see if we're protected," said Edge, a strong video gambling opponent.