A Colorado man appeared in court after being charged with allegedly running an internet gaming business. David Howe was selling opportunities for small businesses through his company Venture Concepts.

The CEO of Venture Concepts, David Howe, was charged with professional gambling, fraud, providing gambling information and computer crimes which are all misdemeanors. Howe said he was offering a chance for the “little guy” to get a piece of the $12 billion online gambling action through his company Venture Concepts.

After answering an ad from Howe’s company, Venture Concepts, which is based in Denver, Mary Moreno was told she could make $25,000 in 3 months. It offered her a complete online betting web site for $999. The site featured poker, roulette, video slot machines and betting on sports.

No one gambled on Moreno’s web site so she said she was told to pay more for advertising. She said Venture Concepts asked her for an additional $7,500 to advertise the Web site.

Howe’s attorney said he’s not convinced online gaming is illegal in Colorado despite what the attorney general has said.

The U.S. House of Representatives is trying to make it illegal to process credit cards used to gamble online. Under the version passed by the House, authorities would be allowed to work with internet service providers to block access to gambling Web sites.

November 16, 2006