Now this is interesting on many levels.

According to the Financial Times, PartyGaming's co-founder, Anurag Dikshit, will take his money and his unfortunate surname to New York today to cut a deal with the Department of Justice.

The article claims that while no plea bargain has been arranged, there is a deal in place where Dikshit will agree to pay $300 million.

What? This is an insane story.

First of all, why in the world would Dikshit want to make a deal now, when all indications point to a more gambling-friendly environment once the new Obama administration takes control in only five weeks?

Furthermore, why would he go into this agreement without a plea bargain, risking actual jail time?

There is definitely more to this story than is being reported right now. Frankly, this whole situation reeks of behind-the-scenes pressure being applied by US authorities in unmentionable ways.

Otherwise, why whouldn't Dikshit wait a mere month to cut his deal if he wasn't being pressured with some sort of "deal with us now, or else you will regret it" kind of proposal? The DoJ obviously has something to hold over his head to force him into this right now.

Either way, this situation - and the fact he hasn't cut a plea bargain - is going to make things very interesting for Dikshit's PartyGaming partners, Ruth Parasol and Russ DeLeon.

Ruth and Russ are very much wanted by the DoJ right now, and they will be watching the proceedings very closely.

Now that the first domino is falling, we may see Ruth and Russ cut a deal, but the DoJ may not be so friendly to Americans - which is probably why the DoJ isn't setting any precedents by cutting plea bargains.

Further muddifying the situation is another question: If PartyGaming's founders all eventually cut a deal, will that open the door to another deal allowing Party back into the American market if/when online poker is legalized in America?

We'll be watching this situation closely.