News > Interactive Skill Games Association Formed
August 3, 2007
FUN Technologies Inc. and King.com, Inc. Join Forces to Launch Trade Association
Toronto and London – August 2, 2007 – The world’s leading interactive skill games companies, FUN Technologies Inc. (TSX:FUN) (AIM:FUN), and King.com, Inc., today announced the formation of the Interactive Skill Games Association (ISGA) and the selection of Harlan W. Goodson as its President.
“Skill Gaming is one of the most rapidly growing sectors of online entertainment and there is a pressing need to ensure the integrity of our games and to promote understanding of the services we offer,” said Toby Rowland, co-founder and co-CEO of King.com. “Mr. Goodson, as a former chief state regulator, is the natural choice to lead the new trade association toward these goals.”
“Through the creation of this new association, it is our goal to develop a code of conduct and best practices for the skill games industry, to which we hope member operators will voluntarily adhere without the need for government intervention,” commented Lorne Abony, CEO of FUN Technologies.
Skill-based games, defined as those in which the winner is determined based on the skill of the participants rather than on chance, are widely offered across the Internet and enjoyed by tens of millions of users worldwide. These games are most often offered as competitions in popular casual games, like Solitaire, Bejeweled 2, Luxor and Cubis, in which players compete against other players for cash and prizes. All of the leading games sites, including AOL, MSN, Pogo.com and Yahoo! , and hundreds of other popular Web destinations, offer skill games on their sites.
The Interactive Skill Games Association offers existing and prospective members an opportunity to join with other skill game operators to ensure that all industry competitors can compete in an interactive environment of the highest integrity. Additionally, the Association will fund ongoing legal research for the benefit of its members and will promote a broader and deeper understanding of the industry amongst regulators and lawmakers alike.
Harlan W. Goodson is the former Director of the California Division of Gambling Control within the California Department of Justice. He is an attorney practicing in California and was the inaugural recipient of the Regulator of the Year distinction awarded annually by the International Masters of Gaming Law, a membership organization comprised of the nation’s leading gaming law attorneys and educators.
*Eddie R Inzauto - Senior Editor, GameWad.com
