Good day to everybody. I'd like to ask one question.. In somebody wants to start an online lottery (or some variation of a lottery/casino site - site that pays to its' visitors for some actions on the site on a basis of random generation). Does this person have to obtain any official rights/licence/etc. from the government or any other organizations? Or is it legal to start that kind of online business without any [permissions ?] from government/organizations? Thanks beforehand to everyone involved in conversation.
Where do you live ?? There's different laws about that depending of your state\country.. If you are in the USA, check at this website : http://www.gambling-law-us.com/ Select you state and everything you need should be there Greeting, alber BTW, you are in the wrong place for Legal Issues threat... You thread should be there : http://forums.digitalpoint.com/forumdisplay.php?f=44
Thank you very much, people. Do I have to incorporate in order to host a lottery/contest (and earn money by it) or can I just do it like a simple blog (set up and go make money) in case money is earned from third party affiliate companies ("pey per click", "pay per view" or "file sharing" business models , etc..) ?
stanamox - there are 2 very different concepts here: A promotional website is one that gives stuff away for free (i.e. contests, etc). Usually they get sponsorships or free products from companies to give out. A lottery is a licensed organization that collects money and gives out ballots for draws. They are heavily regulated, you'd have to check with your local city hall regarding the legality of it, but it's probably not worth it as there's a lot of legal loopholes to jump though. But something you CAN do is create a site that says "we're entering you in a draw for $100 cash, all you have to do is complete any of these offers to get entered..." and send them to various affiliate programs. The law comes in when you start taking cash from people to get in, but if you are sending them out via affiliate programs to complete offers it doesn't effect you as you get paid by the affiliate network/merchant, not the individuals entering the draw.
It depends entirely on whether you're positioning yourself as a "Giveaway", whether there is any prior interaction from the user or not, or a lottery, which I believe it automatically becomes as soon as you start taking payments. The laws vary from country to country, but generally yes you need a licence, certainly to comply with anti money laundering laws etc. Hope this helps.
You have to obey the country law and regulations and properly get advices from government agencies regarding this
In the US, it is legal to have sweepstakes. Some sites based totally on that concept. Example: http://giftcarddrawings.com
yes. but you will need a licence to do so. I have no idea how or where to go for this licence. I guess that all depends on the area in which you reside... But hey, this sounds like a real moneymaker idea you got there! Best of luck.
Yes you need to obtain license if you collect money from your client coz government want to tax you for the business.
As I see comments from our respected guys here: in case I'm not charging site's users - I may do anything I want (even free gambling [???]) without being licenced and not pursued and punished for that. Is that correct?