Representative Barney Frank held a hearing on Thursday morning, which was sparsely attended, about the regulation of the internet gaming industry in the United States. The hearing lasted roughly 90 minutes and included testimony from expert witnesses and questions from the House Financial Services Committee presented to the witnesses. There was no vote on the regulation of the internet gaming industry but Frank did say the following thing at the end of his hearing “We will be returning to this subject next year.”

Frank opened the hearing with this sentiment, “I continue to believe that it is a great mistake for the Congress of the United States to tell adults what to do with their own money on a voluntary basis.”

The witnesses used during the hearing included Robert Martin, tribal chairman of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians; Malcolm K. Sparrow, of John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University; Parry Aftab, executive director of WiredSafety;  Samuel A. Vallandingham, chief information officer and vice president of The First State Bank on behalf of the Independent Community Bankers of America; Keith S. Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problem Gambling; Jim Dowling of the Dowling Advisory Group and Mike Brodsky, executive chairman of Youbet.com.

The hearing was not entirely calm as Frank and other members of Congress argued vehemently during the process. Things will continue to get worse as the conversation will open up again in 2010 after the New Year break, causing more concern among the internet gaming world.