England's Oxford University Examines Online Gambling

The Oxford Internet Institute (OII), the first multi-disciplinary internet institute to be based from a major university, will be conducting a survey of online gambling activities. The web-based survey will include users of online gambling sites to provide an in-depth examination and graphical display of the implications of behavioral patterns involved with online gambling.

Other researchers at England's Oxford University have offered their assistance in the project. Funding for the study will come from several avenues, including the Responsibility in Gambling Trust (RGT), Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), the Remote Gambling Association (RGA) and the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA), representing both European and British remote gambling operations.

According to the OII, the web-based questionnaire would take approximately 20 minutes to complete, and would provide complete anonymity to it's users. The survey has been developed securely in such a way that users could not be traced.

A spokesperson for OII encouraged everyone to take part, "We would welcome your participation in this survey effort, whether or not you gamble online. In fact, we hope to have a wide range of respondents, some of whom gamble frequently to those who never gamble on or off-line."

Many companies in the online gambling industry have offered their full support and cooperation by supplying links to the OII web site through their respective online poker rooms, casinos and sports betting venues.