And anonymous way of doing bitcoin gone...POOF
The devices are quite small and cheap and becoming moreso each day. Robocoin machines are enormous due to
, but Skyhooks are quite small (and have open-source code). They could be built at home without express authorization of any exchanges (if you should want to use one), while all a shopkeep generally wants to know is how much you're willing to pay and average stats on foot traffic it generates. "I don't want a contract -- I'll just pre-pay $500/mo cash for you to leave it on your desk, here, I'll give you a sign to hang if you'd like, and if I fail to pre-pay next month, throw the damned thing out on the street." Great - boom - done. He has no reason to care whether or not your shit's together, legally. Unless there are major regulatory changes, I'm fairly sure ATMs are going to end up being mostly black market, while many operate in gray market status now.
I think that Robocoin has done a very good job at marketing their ATMs as being somewhat legit and being AML complaint. People with a lot of money to lose do not want to risk breaking AML rules as the consequences for doing so can be great (they often also do not have a huge interest in bitcoin itself but are rather looking for a way to invest their money).
Yeah -- sorry, I didn't mean to come off as anti-Robocoin. Having a Robocoin machine (at least in the US) seems like a pretty good indication the operators are operating lawfully and likely legit otherwise. Clearly not a fly-by-night.
This is exactly the selling point of robocoin machines. Investors in the US with a lot to lose do not want to risk their freedom in exchange for potentially for a somewhat larger return on their investment.
