FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — An internet gambling site has agreed to pay $300 million to Kentucky to settle a long-running lawsuit filed by the state, Gov. Andy Beshear said.
Flutter Entertainment, the parent company of PokerStars, agreed to the settlement, the governor said Wednesday in a news release.
“After 10 long years, the commonwealth has not only prevailed, but collected dollars that the General Assembly will be able to direct to critical areas, like education, health care and economic development,” Beshear said.
The settlement ends a long legal fight. Under state law, proceeds from the settlement will go to the state’s General Fund.
The state filed legal action in 2008 to stop the unregulated and untaxed offshore gambling operations that were operating in Kentucky, the governor’s office said.
From 2007 to 2011, PokerStars, the largest offshore gambling operator, collected almost $300 million in actual cash losses from thousands of Kentuckians who played on PokerStars websites, Beshear’s office said.
