Online casinos are the redheaded step child of the gambling community.  It may not be clear to people as to why they are so highly controversial, particularly in countries that allow brick and mortar gambling of all types.  Politicians will often boil it down to a moral issue and stress that online casinos are the worst thing that could possibly happen to impressionable minors and people already struggling with gambling addiction.  However, the truth is that nothing can stir up this much angst in modern politics without being about the all mighty dollar.

The problem with online casinos is not that its 24 hour availability will be too overwhelming for the problem gambler.  Even if that were the case, that is not the reason that governments are choosing to ban online casinos.  After all, cigarettes and nicotine products are highly addictive and lead to cancer and they are still very much on the market.  The problem with online casinos is that they take potential dollars away from local gambling markets.

Most governments around the world take their local gambling markets significantly and make significant income from those tax revenues.  Online casinos are more often than not stationed in some remote offshore location and away from the tax jurisdiction of the countries where residents play online. 

Bans on online casinos are nothing more than a vain attempt for governments to keep the hand of online gambling providers out of their cookie jar.  Online casinos are not going to wither and die, a new solution will be required in the near future.