Internet cafe owners in Ohio create website to fight ban on their operations

Internet cafe owners in Ohio create website to fight ban on their operations

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Owners of Ohio storefront gambling-style operations known as Internet cafes want to press their case against state regulations that could amount to a ban.

The group called the Internet Cafe Coalition of Ohio has launched a website and will organize owners to lobby state lawmakers.

Last month the president of the Ohio Senate put off a vote on a House-passed bill regulating Internet cafes, saying there was too little time to consider the measure.

The House-passed bill would have shut down nearly all of the estimated 800 sites by narrowly defining what counts as a sweepstake. In the Mahoning Valley, about 70 such Internet cafes are operating.

Opponents say the Internet cafe computer games that operate like slot machines with cash prizes amount to illegal gambling.

The group’s website is at www.internetcafecoalition.com/