Gambling Companies
Gambling Companies, Gambling Stocks
Macau Scraps Bill on Big Payouts Following Record Protests
(Reuters) - The top official in Macau, the world's gambling capital, said on Thursday a bill providing lavish perks for senior civil servants would be withdrawn days after the largest protest in the enclave since China restored control over it in 1999.
The climbdown represents the first time the government has taken heed of a large civic movement in Macau, a former Portuguese territory with autonomy and provisions for free speech much like neighbouring Hong Kong.
Massachusetts to Award First Casino License, Nevada Casino Revenue Flat in April
BOSTON (Associated Press) -- State gambling regulators say they'll begin the final, four-day long deliberation on awarding Massachusetts' first Las Vegas-style casino license on June 10.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission said Thursday that the June 10 and 11 meetings will be in Springfield, the June 12 meeting in Boston and a June 13 meeting - when it is expected to issue a decision - will be in Springfield.
Churchill Downs, Showboat Hotel Online Gambling Lawsuit Moved to NJ Court
As if things couldn’t get any worse in the Garden State for its new online gambling industry, Churchill Downs and Atlantic City’s famed Showboat Hotel and Casino are embroiled in a lawsuit over a vendor agreement.
Churchill Downs had entered into a deal to purchase the Showboat Hotel.
NLR Entertainment owner Nicholas Ribis was paid $2.5 million as “earnest money" by Churchill Downs to be the exclusive vendor of NLR for the period 2014 until 2021.
Waddell & Reed Buys 16.96 Million Las Vegas Sands Shares
HONG KONG (Reuters) - U.S. fund manager Waddell & Reed Financial Inc said Wednesday it raised $1.38 billion by selling its remaining stake in Macau-based Sands China Ltd, and shifted most of its holdings to parent Las Vegas Sands to boost its global gaming exposure.
The sell-down comes as Macau gaming stocks face pressure due to a raft of negative news, after clocking a scorching pace of growth over the past two years.
Online Poker Processor Rat Daniel Tzvetkoff Will Likely Avoid Prison
The man who brought down PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker’s businesses in the US is not likely to receive any jail time.
Bitcoin-Only Casino Generates Over $1.4 Mil in Turnover in its First 3 Months
BitCasino.io, the first ever licensed bitcoin-only casino has grown to a player base of 7,000 users betting over 3,000 BTC (~$1,400,000) since February 2014. The success of the casino has been built around its world-class software that includes Live Dealers, Live Dice/Lottery and over 150 HD video slots as well as traditional table games.
Amaya Gaming Looks to Calm PokerStars Acquisition Rumors
Amaya Gaming’s share price rose 5% on rumors that it was in pursuit of a possible acquisition. The main target appears to be the world’s largest online poker room, PokerStars. Such a move would allow Stars to re-enter the US market on a clean slate.
The company was forced to issue a response Monday afternoon.
Online Poker May Not be in the Cards for California After All
California’s tribal casinos remain at odds as to whether they want to legalize online poker in the state.
Hard Rock Casino Ban of Ben Affleck Could Prove to be Big Mistake
Professional gambler and Pittsburgh Gazette columnist Mark Gruetze believes that the Las Vegas Hard Rock Casino’s recent decision to ban Hollywood actor Ben Affleck from playing blackjack in their establishment could backfire.
888.com CEO on Internet Gambling in NJ: ‘We Are Absolutely Shocked by Slowness'
Brian Mattingley, chief executive officer of London- based 888, said in a telephone interview with Bloomberg News this weekend, “We are absolutely shocked by the slowness of the (New Jersey online gambling) market.”
And he’s not the only one.
New Jersey casinos are in the process of shifting their marketing focus from poker to the online casino, which traditionally has been the cash cow for internationally based Web betting firms.
American Gaming Association Drops Support for Online Gambling in US
American Gaming Association chief executive Geoff Freeman said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal Wednesday that his Las Vegas-based organization will no longer support legalization of online gambling in the US, citing a nasty split between casino operators on both sides of the issue.
"One of the things I've learned in this industry is we are extraordinarily competent at shooting at one another," he said. "The snipers in this industry are of the highest quality, and if you let that be the focus, we'll kill each other."
Sheldon Adelson Insists He is Not Retiring: Right Hand to Step Down
80-year-old Las Vegas Sands Corp CEO Sheldon Adelson has dispelled rumors that he will be retiring any time soon following in the steps of 76-year-old President and COO Michael A. Leven, who announced his retirement this week.
Online Bet Startup Costs Shrink AC Casino Earnings
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (Associated Press) - Startup costs associated with Internet gambling, and the closure of one casino in January lowered Atlantic City's casino earnings by 8.4 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period in 2013.
Figures released Thursday by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement showed the casinos had a gross operating profit of $38.7 million.
Las Vegas Casino Strike Planned to Begin June 1
LAS VEGAS (Associated Press) - Hotel workers and bartenders plan to strike at nine downtown Las Vegas casinos next month if contracts aren't reached, labor leaders announced Wednesday.
Officials with the Culinary and Bartenders unions said employees are prepared to walk off the job at 5 a.m. June 1 at The D, Four Queens, Fremont, Main Street Station, El Cortez, Binion's, Golden Gate, The Plaza, and Las Vegas Club.
Global Poker Index to Launch Free Magazine in US to Compete With Card Player
In less than 5 days, the 45th annual World Series of Poker will begin with 65 Events spread across 7 Weeks. The whole poker world will attend - either to play or simply follow the action. Once again, Global Poker Index will be Official Partner and have a booth.
Breaking News: Jason Ader, Spring Owl Group Wins Settlement Deal With Bwin.Party
Gambling911.com – May 22, 2014 at 6:49 am EDT - Agreement with SpringOwl: Further to the Company’s announcement on 16 May 2014, concerning planned changes to the composition of the Board, bwin.party announces that it has agreed to work closely with SpringOwl on the appointment of its new directors and confirms its agreement to consider Michael Fertik, one of SpringOwl’s nominees, as a potential candidate.
Hard Rock Mulls Over Possible Purchase of Atlantic City Revel Hotel
(Associated Press) - The president of the Seminole Indians' Hard Rock franchise says the company would consider buying Atlantic City's Revel Casino if the price were right.
Revel, Atlantic City's newest casino, is seeking a buyer or a partner for a joint venture.
Florida-based Hard Rock has been a long-rumored suitor for Revel and made preliminary inquiries earlier this year to New Jersey casino regulators about what license it would need if it pursued Revel.
NJ Bill Would Require Online Gambling Processors to Get 'Stricter' License
ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey — (Associated Press) - New Jersey wants to subject companies that handle Internet gambling deposits and payments to stricter licensing requirements, in the hope it will make banks more willing to allow the use of credit cards to fund online betting accounts.
The reluctance of banks to allow credit card use to fund accounts is one of the main things holding back the growth of New Jersey's new Internet gambling industry.
New Jersey Attorney General Denies Access to Online Gambling Affiliates
Online gambling affiliates, some of whom had already obtained their vendor licenses in the state of New Jersey, were dealt a serious blow by that state’s Attorney General last week. But it is actually the casinos themselves that will feel the most pain.
New Jersey Assistant Attorney General George N. Rover informed those affiliates of state licensed online casinos that they would be restricted from directly targeting NJ residents or visitors unless they removed all links and banners from offshore gambling sites still conducting business in the state.
Borgata Faces New Lawsuit in Counterfeit Poker Chip Scandal
Six poker players filed suit against Atlantic City’s Borgata Casino this week over prize money not paid when a tournament was cancelled due to the discovery of counterfeit chips.
Bwin.Party Board Shakeup Begins as Bodner Exits: Shares Plummet 4 Percent
Non-executive directors of Bwin.party Manfred Bodner and Helmut Kern will be stepping down at the conclusion of the forthcoming annual general meeting on Thursday of next week, thus signaling the start of what is likely to be a major board shakeup.
75 Percent of Visa Credit Cards Not Working for NJ Online Gambling Sites
New Jersey online gambling companies are seeing around a 75% decline in credit cards, according to Matthew Katz of CEO of CAMS.
He recently spoke to Rebecca Liggero of CalvinAyre.com regarding the current climate in New Jersey when it comes to payment processing.
“I think the biggest challenge is just education, getting the bankers to understand how significant the technology and the processes all the regulators have in place to be compliant,” Katz said.
Deutsche Bank Sells Cosmopolitan Vegas Casino for $1.73 Billion
(Associated Press) - Deutsche Bank AG is cutting itself free of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas resort and casino, saying it’s selling the swanky but unprofitable high-rise complex on the Strip to Blackstone Real Estate Partners VII for $1.73 billion.
The German investment bank said in a statement Thursday that the cash deal remains subject to regulatory approvals. The bank had intended to sell the property from before it even opened in 2010 and had placed The Cosmopolitan in a separate bank division devoted to winding down or selling unwanted investments.
PayNoRake.com to Now Guarantee 24 Hour Payouts
The management of the Chico Poker Network are thrilled to announce that, following on their success with the fast payouts and impeccable records achieved on TigerGaming.com – they can now extend the same 24 hour guaranteed payout service to PayNoRake.com - via Skrill, Neteller and EcoPayz!
CNBC’s Cramer Says to Get Your Money Out of IGT
In Wednesday’s lightning round, CNBC’s popular stock analyst Jim Cramer offered his advise on slot maker International Game Technology:
“Online gambling isn't taking off and there aren't a lot of new casinos being built,” said Cramer. “Therefore, I think there are better places to put money.”
New Jersey Internet Gambling Sees Decline in April
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (Associated Press) — New Jersey's fledgling Internet gambling industry saw its first monthly decline, falling slightly to $11.4 million in April.
In March, which had one more day of gambling than April had, Internet gambling brought in $11.9 million. Figures released Wednesday by the state Division of Gaming Enforcement show the average online take per day was $380,958 in April, down from $383,173 in March.
UltimatePoker CEO Tom Breitling: Size Does Matter
UltimatePoker CEO Tom Breiting sat down to discuss the size of the online gambling market in a very small regulated portion of the United States.
“With the creation of a new industry, there are a lot of unknowns,” Breitling says. “And our company was pushed off balanced just a little bit (with emphasis) for revenue projections.”
Those projections for the Nevada market, where UltimateBet leads and is only one of two sites online, was for $80 million. In New Jersey, estimates were in the $250 million to $1.2 billion range.
Americas Cardroom Stops Serving New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada Markets
Americas Cardroom today announced a move to serve players only in markets without state-licensed poker sites. The online poker site today announced that, effective immediately, players in New Jersey, Delaware, and Nevada will no longer be eligible to play real money online poker at Americas Cardroom.
Paddy Power CEO to Step Down Amidst Two Worst Weekends Ever in Football
Paddy Power, the United Kingdom’s third largest bookmaker, suffered two of its worst weekends in football on record this year. The company’s stock has dropped 4% and CEO Patrick Kennedy has announced his departure in 2015. Kennedy has been CEO of Paddy Power since 2006 with the betting firm enjoying huge success throughout much of his tenure.
URINE-SANE!!! Paddy Power Handing Out Pure Urine Samples to Giro d' Italia Riders
Perhaps sensing they were being outdone by Stan James and that bookmaker’s infamous defacing of a medieval wall, the king of online gambling marketing, Paddy Power, has announced they will be handing out clean urine samples to riders during the final stage of Giro d' Italia in Ireland.
