Lawyer The New Chairman Of Interactive Gaming Council
Published: Friday, December 17, 2004 Online-Casinos.com
LAWYER THE NEW CHAIRMAN OF IGC
Tribute paid to outgoing leader Sue Schneider
Mark Stone, a lawyer and the chief financial officer of Creative Edge Enterprises, is the new chair of the Interactive Gaming Council. He is one of several new officers and directors who were recently elected and announced by the trade association.
Stone is only the second chair in the IGC's eight-year history. Sue Schneider, a co-founder and original chair of the organization, decided to step down this year. Stone has served on the Board of Directors for most of the IGC's existence. Creative Edge is a web development firm based in suburban Los Angeles.
The new chair said that he took over at an exciting time, with the UK providing First World recognition for online gambling for the first time, but staunch opposition still a feature of the US political scene. He said his goal was to provide new information to the US legislators so that their concerns were addressed in order to follow the lead of the British industry.
Stone went on to pay tribute to outgoing chairperson Sue Schneider. "All of us in the interactive gaming community owe a great debt to Sue Schneider for her years of devotion to this organization and her unceasing efforts to advance the cause of a legal, regulated online gaming industry. Hers is a hard act to follow. I only hope that I can be half as effective as Sue was in this role."
Schneider said: "Eight years is probably more than most association chairmen are allowed to serve in that capacity. It's simply time to turn the reins over to someone else, and the IGC is fortunate to have an experienced Board member like Mark who is willing to take on this demanding job. I will remain involved as needed as immediate past chair."
Two new directors have been elected to the IGC Board: Flaviano Fogli and Alfred E. (Freddie) Ballester.
Fogli is general manager of Azur Media, an Internet marketing firm in Saint Laurent, Quebec. He is also the chief executive and a founder of the Gambling Federation, which provides services to online casino operators. A native of Italy, he moved to Canada, where he now lives, to complete his MBA.
Ballester was appointed managing director of Bay Management Ltd., the Gibraltar-based subsidiary of iGlobalMedia, in August 2003. He is a 30-year veteran of the betting industry, and until recently served on the Board of Directors of Sportingbet PLC. From 1975 to 2000, Ballester was the managing director of Rock Turf Accountants Ltd., a chain of betting shops in Gibraltar.
Another founding member of the IGC has returned to again serve on the Board of Directors. He is Robert C. Vermeulen, a Dutch citizen who lives and works in Curacao.
Vermeulen is director of Antillephone Services N.V., and co-authored the gaming legislation in Curacao. He is the gaming representative of the Curacao E-Commerce Platform, a private group that advises the government on e-commerce services.
In addition to Stone, John Chalmers, Murray Marshall, Martin Thorvaldsson and Roger Raatgever have been re-elected to two-year terms on the IGC Board of Directors.
Continuing in their terms as Board members are Micki Oster, Nancy Chan-Palmateer, Howard Yegendorf, John Anderson and Michael Lipton.
"The new directors and new chair reflect changes in the leadership of the IGC" Smith said. "But the continuing assistance of so many industry veterans assures that we will continue to play a major role in the growth and evolution of interactive gaming. We are truly fortunate to have so many talented individuals who volunteer their time to nurture our organization. Our members and our public - the people who patronize Internet gaming sites - are the beneficiaries of the efforts of our directors and officers."
Popular Poker Card Rooms:
