Business & Financial

Online Poker Comes to California Courtesy of Iipay Nation

Forget waiting around another 10 years for online poker to become legalized in the world’s 8th largest economy.  One California Tribe is moving ahead, with or without legislation.

The Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel established Santa Ysabel Interactive and launched the I-gaming poker website Private Table at www.privatetable.com to offer Class II gaming to customers through Internet servers located on tribal lands, according to a press release issued by that Tribe. 

Submitted by Ace King on, Jul/16/2014

The Isle of Man Is Becoming Cryptocurrency Hotspot

Crypto Next plc is an Isle of Man company that wants to bring digital currencies to grassroots level by providing turn-key packages that include a company, operating and trading accounts and white label currency exchange platform, instantly overcoming regulatory and technological barriers.

Crypto Next plc is the second cryptocurrency company to launch in the Isle of Man, where the Government has openly welcomed digital currency companies; a development which is attracting cryptocurrency based businesses since the announcement on the 10th June 2014. 

Submitted by Press Release on, Jul/16/2014

Bwin to Make Additional Cuts of More Than $13.6 Million to Meet Targets

(Reuters) - Online gambling company Bwin.Party, under pressure from an activist shareholder to boost its performance, said an additional 10 million euros ($13.6 million) of cost cuts would help it to meet its targets for the year.

Bwin said last month it was looking at ways of boosting shareholder value but denied a report it was considering a break-up or sale of its business.

In a trading statement on Tuesday, bwin said sports betting had benefited from the soccer World Cup but described the performance of its poker and casino business as "soft". 

Submitted by Reuters on, Jul/15/2014

You’re Fired! 1000 Employees at Trump Plaza Get Pink Slips

(Reuters) - Layoff notices went out on Monday for roughly 1,000 employees of Atlantic City's Trump Plaza Casino Hotel, in anticipation of a Sept. 16 closure, the company said in a statement.

The pink slips came as the company that owns the casino, Trump Entertainment Resorts, has begun "reviewing alternatives for the property," the company statement said.

Submitted by Reuters on, Jul/14/2014

Another One Bites the Dust: Trump Plaza Latest AC Casino to Close

They are falling like dominoes.  Yet another Atlantic City has announced its intention to shut down.  This time it’s the Trump Plaza.

Trump Entertainment Resorts told The Associated Press that no final decision has been made on the Boardwalk casino. But the company said it expects the casino to close its doors on Sept. 16, immediately following the busy summer season.

Industry observers had predicted that the seaside gambling resort could lose as much as one quarter of its casino properties by year’s end.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Jul/14/2014

Las Vegas Sands Sued for $5 Billion: Accused of Misappropriating Funds

HONG KONG — (Reuters) A former Macau business partner of Las Vegas Sands Corp. accused the casino operator of misappropriating trade secrets and is suing the company for at least $5 billion in profits that it says are owed via their joint ownership of copyright related to a casino license bid.

Asian American, headed by Taiwanese businessman Marshall Hao, filed the complaint in U.S. District Court in Nevada on Wednesday. The case is in addition to two separate, ongoing legal actions in Macau over an alleged breach of contract.

Submitted by Reuters on, Jul/13/2014

Ultimate Poker Leaving New Jersey Market?

It’s no secret that online poker in the state of New Jersey has underperformed.

Ultimate Poker, one of a handful of online gambling firms licensed by the New Jersey Gaming Commission, announced on Friday September 19, 2014 it would be leaving the New Jersey online gambling market after the Taj Mahal announced pending bankruptcy. 

Robert Dellafav of OnlinePokerReport.com predicted the exit earlier this summer

Submitted by Ace King on, Jul/10/2014

Gay or Nay: Atlantic City Embrace of LGBT Community Could Prove Lucrative

Atlantic City just got gayer thanks to that seaside gambling resort’s first openly gay Mayor Don Guardian, who recently declared one of the region's beaches to be "gay-friendly".

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Jul/10/2014

Missouri Bookies: St. Louis, Columbia, Texas County, Shannon County More

No matter where you are located in the Show Me State of Missouri, local bookies are only a stone’s throw away.  You just have to know how to find them.

Submitted by Don Shapiro on, Jul/09/2014

Former Rep. Connie Mack Added to Adelson Arsenal

Former Rep. Connie Mack has been brought on to help lobby in favor of a bill to ban online gambling across the USA.

Mack, who lost his Congressional seat in 2012, will lobby on behalf of Sheldon Adelson’s Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Adelson has been on a crusade to abolish Internet gambling for the better part of a year now.  The GOP mega-donor had his lobbyists help draft anti-online gambling legislation introduced by Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) earlier in the year.

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Jul/09/2014

888 Holdings Forecasts Strong Earnings: Shares Rise 5 Percent

Shares in 888 Holdings rose 5 percent Wednesday on news that it was expecting a significant surge in interim earnings.

Little additional information was provided by the FTSE 250 company other that saying “continued to deliver a very strong performance and anticipates announcing ebitda for the period significantly ahead of the comparable period in the prior year”.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Jul/09/2014

Maryland Casinos See 8.4 Percent Increase in Gambling

(Associated Press) - Maryland's casinos are reporting gambling revenue of $72 Million for the month of June, up 8.4 percent from the same period last year.

Numbers released this week by the state Lottery and Gaming Control Agency show that the Maryland Live casino near Arundel Mills mall accounted for $56.5 million of the total, an increase of 10 percent from last June.

Rocky Gap Casino Resort in Cumberland reported the largest year-over-year increase, with gambling revenue up 50 percent compared to last June.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jul/08/2014

Bookies in the Topeka, Manhattan, Kansas Area

Bookies can be found throughout the Manhattan and Topeka region of Kansas thanks to the hardcore sports fans backing local Kansas State University, home of the Wildcats.  USA Today has pegged Kansas State to be one of the top 25 football programs in the nation for 2014, thus making the demand for Price Per Head outsourcing that much more important.

Submitted by Mary Montgomery on, Jul/07/2014

Breaking News: Amaya Considers London, New York for Secondary Listing

(Reuters) - Canada's Amaya Gaming Group Inc is working towards a secondary listing, either in London or in New York, the online gambling company's head told the Times on Saturday.

The company was weighing the benefits of a dual listing, but had not finalised which city it would be in, the daily quoted Chief Executive David Baazov as saying.

Amaya Gaming could not immediately be reached for a comment outside of regular business hours.

Submitted by Reuters on, Jul/06/2014

Russia to Open Up Sochi, Crimea for Gambling: Easing Online Poker Restrictions

Russia has announced plans to ease restrictions on Internet gambling while opening up Sochi and the Crimea for land-based casinos.

BetOnline

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Jul/04/2014

How Regulated Gambling Can Boost the Economy

In recent years, there has been a lot of focus on the potential impacts of a legalised worldwide gambling market. As more and more countries and U.S. states start to regulate the market to their residents, there have been calls from both critics and supporters of its possible effects.

One major argument for supporters is the major boost real-money gaming can provide to the economy. Since back in 1850, when gambling was legalised in Macau, governments have been reaping the benefits of a licensed gaming industry. 

Submitted by Payton on, Jul/03/2014

Aria Ordered to Pay $100k for Barring Agents

LAS VEGAS – (Associated Press) - A Las Vegas Strip casino has agreed to pay $100,000 to settle allegations that a supervisor shooed away state agents who were watching a high-stakes roulette table, even though state law requires all gambling to be open to the public.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board released the proposed settlement with Aria Las Vegas this week. The agreement must be approved by the Nevada Gaming Commission.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jul/02/2014

Macau Revenue Dips: First Decline in More Than Four Years

(Reuters) - Gambling revenue in Macau fell 3.7 percent in June on an annual basis, the first decline in more than four years, with analysts saying the soccer World Cup had diverted gamblers and their hefty bets away from the world's largest casino hub.

The southern Chinese territory of Macau, a special administrative region, like neighbouring Hong Kong, is the only place in the country casino gambling is legal.

Submitted by Reuters on, Jul/01/2014

Atlantic City's Competition Forces Makeover

In the old days, Atlantic City had legal gaming to itself on the Atlantic Seaboard and in typical fashion people thought that would always be the case. But casinos owned by Native Americans opened.

Pennsylvania approved gaming and gave Philly-area gamblers a choice of staying on their side of the river or paying a toll to ride across New Jersey to a town  many people don't think is safe. They have gaming to the south too.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/30/2014

Gambling911.com World Exclusive: Man to Sue Jay Cohen for Money Owed by WSEX

A man who is owed nearly $70,000 by now-defunct online sportsbook World Sports Exchange tells Gambling911.com in a world exclusive interview that he intends to sue World Sports Exchange former co-owner Jay Cohen for the owed funds.

Submitted by Thomas Somach on, Jun/30/2014

Luis Suarez Loses Sponsorship Deal With 888 Poker

(Reuters) - Poker brand 888 has cancelled its sponsorship deal with Luis Suarez after the Uruguay striker was banned from all soccer-related activity for four months for biting an opponent during a World Cup match.

Suarez, one of the most talented but controversial players, lit up the English Premier League last season with club side Liverpool and became one of the online gambling company's brand ambassadors only last month.

Submitted by Reuters on, Jun/28/2014

Famed Showboat Casino in Atlantic City to Shut Down

ATLANTIC CITY (Associated Press) — Casino contraction hit Atlantic City again Friday, as the parent company of the Showboat Casino Hotel announced it will close the Mardi Gras-themed casino on Aug. 31.

Caesars Entertainment told The Associated Press on Friday morning the company will shutter the poorest-performing of its four Atlantic City casinos.

CEO Gary Loveman said in a statement that the “difficult decision” is necessary to protect the rest of its business in Atlantic City, where it currently owns four of the 11 casinos.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/27/2014

Nevada Gaming Revenues Up 8 Percent in May

LAS VEGAS (Associated Press) - State officials say Nevada gambling revenue was up 8 percent in May compared with the same month last year.

The Nevada Gaming Control Board reported Friday that the state's casinos brought in $970 million last month. Las Vegas Strip gambling revenue was up 17 percent to $593 million, while downtown revenue was down 8 percent to $39 million.

Reno casino revenue was up 4 percent in May to $52 million, and South Lake Tahoe gambling revenue was up 18 percent to $17 million.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/27/2014

888.com Reviewing Luis Suarez Sponsorship Deal Following Bite Incident

Online gambling firm 888.com is said to be reviewing its sponsorship deal with disgraced footballer Luis Suarez.  The payer is accused of biting Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini during a Group stage elimination game that saw Uruguay advance.

On Thursday FIFA ruled that Suarez will undergo a nine-game ban from international play, which includes any remaining games at this year’s World Cup.

Submitted by Alistair Prescott on, Jun/26/2014

Bwin.Party on Verge of Breaking Up?

The party might be over for Bwin.Party.  Rumors surfaced this week that the world’s largest publicly traded online gambling firm is on the verge of breaking up.

The company on Thursday denied it was breaking up or looking for a selling but said it was examining ways to increase shareholder value.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Jun/26/2014

New Jersey Starts Review of PokerStars Buyer Amaya Gaming

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (Associated Press) - New Jersey casino regulators have begun their review of a Canadian company that's buying the PokerStars online gambling website and hoping to get it licensed in Atlantic City by this fall.

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement says Amaya Gaming Group has begun submitting documents required for a determination on whether PokerStars can be licensed in New Jersey.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/25/2014

Harrah’s Fined for Underage Drinking in AC

(Associated Press) - Two Atlantic City casinos have been fined a total of $66,000, with the bulk of the fines levied against Harrah's Resort Atlantic City for letting underage patrons gamble and drink.

Harrah's was fined $60,000 by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement for five incidents involving patrons ranging in age from 18 to 20. The minimum age for gambling and drinking in New Jersey is 21.

In one instance, Harrah's let a 20-year-old from New York play blackjack even after a security guard checked his ID.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/24/2014

Verdict Upheld Against ‘Girls Gone Wild’ Founder in Wynn Slander Suit

LOS ANGELES (Associated Press) — An appellate court on Monday upheld a $19 million judgment against "Girls Gone Wild" founder Joe Francis in a slander case filed over his claims that casino mogul Steve Wynn had threatened to kill him.

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The California 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles found no basis to overturn the judgment or order a new trial, and the justices also left in place an injunction barring Francis from repeating the claims.

Submitted by Associated Press on, Jun/24/2014

PPH World Cup Betting -- Americans Must Sit and Wait After Tie with Portugal

Was it a heart-breaking ending for the United States soccer team, not to mention PPH World Cup bettors who had a nice price on them to win, on Sunday in Manaus?

Submitted by Charles Jay on, Jun/23/2014

California Tribes Worry PokerStars Might ‘Cut Their Throats’

With Gambling firm Amaya announcing the purchase of the world’s largest online poker room, PokerStars, earlier this month, the firm hopes to enter the California Web gambling market.   Not so fast.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Jun/23/2014

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