Online gambling firm PartyGaming said on Monday it was in talks with U.S. authorities following the recent spate of arrests of industry executives, after the U.S. effectively outlawed Internet gambling last year.

PartyGaming said it had initiated talks with the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York and had been responding to requests for information.

It added that it was too early to assess the likelihood of any particular outcome of the discussions.

The U.S. crackdown on online gaming began last July with the arrest of BETonSPORTS chief executive David Carruthers during a layover at a Texas airport.

Last month BETonSPORTS pleaded guilty to U.S. racketeering charges and agreed to cooperate in a case against the company's founder Gary Kaplan and other co-defendants including Carruthers.

In March Sportingbet brokered a deal with the state of Louisiana to have charges of "gambling by computer" against its former chairman, Peter Dicks, dropped.