Apple Takes a "Gamble" on Betfair

[Michael Essany]

It was the moment many anticipated and others feared in anticipation. Apple has officially approved and welcomed into its App Store the first "gambling" application. Dubbed "Betfair," the downloadable game is the first ever betting application that may truly usher in a new gambling era for iPhone users.

Several months ago on MMI, yours truly covered how some Apple fans had begun expressing concern about a change of language in the iPhone developer agreement - a change that, for all intents and purposes, dictated that gambling is now "possible" via the iPhone. According to Apple:

3.3.17 Your Application may include promotional sweepstakes or contest functionality provided that You are the sole sponsor of the promotion and that You and Your Application comply with any applicable laws.

The window of opportunity opened by the revised language has made it possible for Betfair to arrive in the App Store. And, ready or not, it could spark a new gaming trend. But, to clear up any confusion, the app in question is not available in the US, where online gambling isn't necessarily legal. For now, Betfair is available in the UK and Ireland. It utilizes GPS to make certain that bets are only wagered from within those defined territories.

Charles Palmer, Betfair's head of mobile, has been widely quoted in the media today about the controversial app and how it got Apple's stamp of approval. “There were no terms and conditions about gambling," said Palmer. "We approached Apple with the proposal and our app, showing it does the normal KYC and age verification. We have also added the ability to locate where the customer is. It can tell if you are in the UK or Ireland, and if you’re not, it won’t function. We put that in there as an extra precaution - they didn’t request that."

Of course, the arrival of Betfair will makes lots of folks nervous and fearful about all sorts abuses and the potential societal ills that could result from this app and, possibly, a fleet of others like it.

Image via 9to5Mac

[TheDirtyDiddler]

Wow. Gambling on the go...

[kraziebone]

Think we will ever see an app like this arrive in the US?

[magusxxx]

Think we will ever see an app like this arrive in the US?

I hope so. I'd love to be able to put down some money on John Cena from the comfort of my own home.

[cypherpunk]

Good. Sounds like Apple are finally beginning to accept that some of us who use iPhones are adults.

[Go Gators]

What in the hell are you or other people "concerned" about? If you don't want to gamble then don't download the app. Jeez!

[Poseidon79]

Anyone in the US want to try this with a location spoofer app?

[boxxa]

I don't understand how people think that becuase there is a gambling app, people think that everyone is going to become addicted. You can go to the store and buy over the counter drugs to OD on too but you dont see people running to do that.

[whereswaldo]

phirst

thanks for your great post, and your great spelling

[goodluck4287]

I, of course want to be in compliance with all local, state and federal laws:

For informational purposes, don't us jailbreakers have a wonderful location spoofing app. I believe it originally showed it's usefulness for watching local sports on some of those college/pro apps that were locked out in your city?

[lolcats1]

phirst

yeah can this fool get banned or some ****?


this takes all the fun out of gambling. Why take the risk if you're doing it over your phone? takes the excitement and the social implications out of it.

lame

[knguyen]

yeah can this fool get banned or some ****?


this takes all the fun out of gambling. Why take the risk if you're doing it over your phone? takes the excitement and the social implications out of it.

lame

Gambling comes in all shapes and forms buddy. This would be great if you bet on sports.

[delizaza23]

ohhh I love betfair and hopefully it is usefull on iphone

[senorian]

so gambling is legal while pr0n is illegal for Apple???

[awesomeSlayer]

I wonder if I could cheat on this app to get money without losing...

What's the point of gambling? A way to throw out your money. Unless if it is fake money.

[chrlswltrs]

This is at least a step in the right direction, hopefully there will be an app in the US that will allow us to gamble soon. You have been able to gamble on blackberry and a few other phones for a while on a couple internet casino sites, but they didn't work on iPhone. Can't wait to see where this goes!

[rudeboy2k]

i hope so. I'd love to be able to put down some money on john cena from the comfort of my own home.

bahahahahahahahahhaahahahahahahahaahhaaaaaaaaaahah ahahahahaha!