2010 has gone away, and it’s the right time, to sum up, the results of the year in the online casino industry. In general, there were no sudden shakes in the sphere, which may have turned the situation upside down. However, several important events happened, and it’s impossible not to mention them in the article. Each of them has changed the online gambling industry for the worse or for the better.

The first event is about online casinos in the USA, and it’s not very optimistic. It concerns mid-term elections in America, where the Democrats lost control over the House of Representatives. And it’s well-known, that exactly the Democrats favored the online gambling bill, introduced by Barney Frank a few times ago. Though it was actively promoted and even cleared the House subcommittee in 2010, it may never be put for a full House hearing, which means no future for legalizing online gambling business in the USA. Unfortunately, the bill is put in limbo again.

On the other hand, the situation with online casinos such as bola88 in Europe is rather optimistic. It was France, which took the step for the legalization of sports betting and online poker first. It’s common knowledge, that France kept online casinos out of law for years, but now the situation may change. Italy is going to make virtual gambling sites legal as well, and this gonna happen in 2011 already.

Another important event is the introduction of the QuickFire software platform by Microgaming. Technically, it’s really significant, as this platform allows other providers offering players to play Microgaming games without buying a full license. It’s a signal that the future is not for single software product online casinos. Currently, the QuickFire platform is used by several gambling sites, for example, Virgin Casino.

The merger of PartyGaming and Bwin is also a big event of 2010. As a matter of fact, this deal has connected two large companies and formed the biggest online gambling entity. It’s another signal, that the future of online casinos is in hands of large corporations, not small companies. By the way, Ladbrokes and 888 are now discussing the possibility of uniting.

And the last was the selling of the Slots.com domain name. It was bought by Bodog brand owner Calvin Ayre for $5.5 million. It indicates the growing demand for developing and growing up of the online casino industry.

Well, all these deals, technical developments, and other events played a big role for the past year. Now we should wait for something new to happen in 2011. Let’s hope, that the news will be only good ones.