A new study from Congress has given a much needed boost to the ongoing battle to re-introduce legal online gambling in the US. According to its findings, published last week, the regulation and taxation of internet gaming, including online bingo, would bring in revenues in excess of $41.8 billion over the next ten years, a much needed massive infusion of cash at a time when the current US administration is struggling to navigate the nation through harsh economic times.

The future of internet gambling in the US has been a question mark since the Republicans passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. The bill, which took aim at the banks and financial institutions processing players transactions, enforced previous legislation prohibiting wire transfers of funds for the purposes of gambling, but has been widely criticized for it's lack of clarity and ambiguity. With the onus squarely on the banks to police the new policy, the result has been an effective universal ban, halting gambling at the source.

Since then, several bills have sought to reintroduce more open regulatory legislation to permit online gambling, including online poker and internet bingo, including the efforts of Democratic representative Barney Frank, perhaps the industry's most outspoken and eloquent advocate. Frank's recent proposals have removed the burden from the financial institutions, and while not "legalizing" internet gambling per se, has left the door open for future licensing.

The issue famously leapt back into the headlines earlier this year when zealous government prosecutors seized $34 million in player accounts belonging to 27,000 internet poker players. This marked the first time individual players were the direct target of enforcement of the Act, an unpopular move that renewed calls for clarification