Gambling News

ABC, CNN Talk Sweeping Changes for Internet Poker in 2012 With DOJ New Stance

The Department of Justice (DOJ) last week announced that it will no longer apply The Wire Act to online poker, thus placing the gambling sector into a frenzy during what would normally be a slow holiday season.  Essentially, the new stance allows individual states to begin allowing legalized regulated Internet poker for real money without the threat of federal intervention provided the activity takes place within that state’s borders.  Nevertheless, pooling of players from multiple states may become an option similar to what we see with Powerball. 

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/30/2011

Jonathan Duhamel Suddenly Becomes Relevant: Opens Up About Home Invasion

Nothing against Jonathan Duhamel.  We know he’s a great poker player.  But up until last weekend he was one of many World Series of Poker Main Event champions who were – let’s just say – forgettable.

Duhamel was best known for becoming the first Canadian to win the Main Event. 

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/30/2011

Kelly Clarkson Twitter Endorsement of Ron Paul

GOP candidate Ron Paul got an unusual endorsement from none other than American Idol Season One winner Kelly Clarkson.

She tweeted on Thursday: 

"I love Ron Paul. I liked him a lot during the last Republican nomination and no one gave him a chance. If he wins the nomination for the Republican party in 2012 he's got my vote. Too bad he probably won't."

Clarkson fans don’t appear to be Ron Paul fans.  She came under their wrath for her endorsement.

Submitted by Carrie Stroup on, Dec/29/2011

Michele Bachmann Calls Former Iowa Campaign Chairman “Sell Out” to Ron Paul

GOP Presidential candidate Michele Bachmann called her former Iowa campaign chairman, Kent Sorenson, a “sell out” after he jumped ship Wednesday and headed over to the Ron Paul campaign.  She accused Sorenson of essentially being paid off by the Paul camp.  Texas Congressman, Ron Paul, is leading in some Iowa caucus polls while Bachmann trails far behind. 

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Dec/29/2011

Caesars IPO in 2012 Includes Provision for Legalized Internet Poker in US

Caesars is preparing an IPO for the upcoming year 2012 and, in it, there is a provision for legalized Internet poker in the United States, which the casino giant obviously believes will be bountiful to its future business. 

From Pokerati.com

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Dec/29/2011

Gambling News: Bill Will Allow Pari-mutuels to Become Casinos in South Florida

Revisions to a bill that would bring destination casinos to South Florida would now allow for existing pari-mutuels like racetracks and jai-alai frontons to become full fledged casinos.

Sen. Ellyn Bogdanoff, R-Fort Lauderdale, sent fellow Florida legislators a draft of tweaks to her bill, based on feedback gleaned from two major workshops held on the issue in Tallahassee, she said.

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Dec/29/2011

Breaking News: Jonathan Duhamel Assailants Arrested

Four individuals have been arrested in connection with the home invasion of World Series of Poker Main Event 2010 winner Jonathan Duhamel.  He was the first Canadian to ever win the coveted WSOP Main Event bracelet and walked away with $8.9 million US.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/29/2011

Arrests Made in Jonathan Duhamel Home Invasion

Arrests have been made in last week's brazen home invasion of 2010 WSOP winner Jonathan Duhamel with a rolex found but bracelet still missing.

Four individuals have been arrested and taken into custody following last week’s home invasion and beating of World Series of Poker Main Event 2010 winner Jonathan Duhamel. 

The attack occurred at Duhamel’s home in Longueuil, just outside of Montreal. 

Police say two men and one woman were charged Wednesday in connection with the case and a fourth person was arrested and questioned.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/29/2011

Commission Must Act on NADEX Political Betting Request by January 4

The North American Derivatives Exchange (NADEX) has filed with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to permit offering of betting on the upcoming political elections.  The deadline for a decision is January 4 and should the Commission fail to act, NADEX could begin offering such bets (or trades) within the next couple of weeks.

Three of those on the Commission must vote against the proposal for it to be discarded.  So far, only one Commissioner has come forward to oppose the NADEX request.

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Dec/29/2011

South Point Poker Expecting to Move to Real Money Play Soon

The South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa could find itself the biggest name in online poker by the end of 2012 if they play their cards right (pun intended).

Already offering a free-to-play online poker website, prominently featured throughout Gambling911.com, South Point Poker is expecting to offer real cash play as soon as their license is granted by the state of Nevada, quite possibly as early as February. 

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/28/2011

Top Gambling Stories of 2011 Revealed and Daring Predictions

Gambling911.com has compiled its list of the top 10 stories in gambling for 2011.  Few of our regular readers will be surprised as to what story tops the list.  Additionally, we attempt to offer a few predictions for 2012. 

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/28/2011

Ron Paul Surging in Iowa: 4 to 5 Odds Favorite to Win Caucus

GOP candidate Ron Paul continues to climb in Iowa state polls.  His odds of winning next week’s Caucus were now at 4 to 5 at PaddyPower.com, which does not accept bets from US citizens at this time. 

Fox News noted that Paul’s success places him first in line to become the primary political punching bag.

Submitted by Gilbert Horowitz on, Dec/28/2011

SOPA is the End of Us Say Bloggers: TwoPlusTwo.com Could be Wiped Off the Web

Politico had an interesting read Wednesday morning on how bloggers believe SOPA will ultimately kill their business, not to mention those around them.  As Gambling911.com has been reporting, there is something truly ominous about this particular ACT and its far reaching consequences. 

Submitted by Alejandro Botticelli on, Dec/28/2011

TheHill.com Talks DOJ New Stance on Internet Poker

Over the past couple of days, industry experts have been attempting to determine the possible impact of the Department of Justice new stance on Internet poker.

The Friday before Christmas, the DOJ decided to play Santa for poker players. A ruling issued in September but only made public last week clarifies that the Wire Act's ban on interstate transmissions related to gambling applies only to sports betting.  As such, there now appears to be an opening for intrastate poker, and quite possibly the pooling of players from multiple states. 

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/27/2011

Casinos in New York City: Bloomberg Offers His Support

Mayor Bloomberg on Tuesday offered his support for having casino gambling in New York City.

Governor Andrew Cuomo backs the idea of having casinos based in the Big Apple.

“Whatever he decides to do,” Bloomberg said of the governor in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, alluding to Cuomo’s potential plans, “we’ll be supporting him. I just want to make sure that if there is gambling, some of those revenues do come to New York City. We need the revenues as well, just like every other part of the state.”

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Dec/27/2011

Nadex Derivative Exchange Asks Permission to Trade Political Contracts

Intrade.com has been doing it for years, but now Nadex wants to get in on the act.  The popular derivative exchange Nadex asked the federal Commodity Futures Trading Commission for permission to sell contracts involving the predicted outcome of next year’s US Presidential race as well as which political party will control the House and Senate come next November. 

From USA Today

Submitted by Aaron Goldstein on, Dec/26/2011

Optimism Grows Over DOJ Position Change Regarding Internet Poker

Individual states are the most likely beneficiaries of a new stance taken by the US Justice Department, which essentially concluded that online poker will not be deemed as illegal on the federal level should state law mandate otherwise.  Nevada is one such state that has already approved a regulatory framework.  Those in the poker community hope that smaller states will ultimately follow Nevada’s lead and pool their player base with the Silver State. 

Lee Amaitis, president and CEO of Cantor Gaming, believes Nevada has enough players to support the industry in the short term.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/26/2011

GoDaddy.com Gets Crushed by Supporting Domain Seizure Policy

GoDaddy.com, one of the largest registrars, has bowed to pressure from consumers and changed its support of the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA).

Submitted by Alejandro Botticelli on, Dec/25/2011

Has Online Poker Become Legal in the United States: DOJ Plays Santa

Following a shock announcement that has the online poker community wondering if the floodgates may soon be opening, experts and the media alike were attempting to interpret the US Department of Justice new stance on Internet poker’s legality.  It appears the activity may no longer be viewed as “illegal”.

From the Wall Street Journal

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/24/2011

Early Christmas Gift: Department of Justice Changes Position on Internet Gambling

The DOJ was playing Santa Claus for the Internet poker industry coming into this Christmas weekend. 

The Department of Justice on Friday announced it has changed its long held stance related to Internet gambling.  The federal Wire Act of 1961 will now only apply to sports betting and not to online poker.

“The Department’s Office of Legal Counsel (“OLC”) has analyzed the scope of the Wire Act, 18 U.S.c  § 1084, and concluded that it is limited only to sports betting,” U.S. Deputy Attorney General James Cole wrote in a letter on Friday.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/23/2011

Jonathan Duhamel WSOP Bracelet Stolen in Home Invasion

Jonathan Duhamel, last year’s World Series of Poker Main Event winner, became the victim of a brutal home invasion Wednesday.  Two masked men forced their way into his home in a suburb of Montreal, beating up Duhamel and getting away with his diamond encrusted WSOP bracelet.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/22/2011

World Series of Poker Champ Jonathan Duhamel Hospitalized After Brutal Home Invasion

The 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event winner, Jonathan Duhamel, was released from a hospital after being attacked during a home invasion Wednesday.

The crime occurred at his home outside Montreal in the Boucherville borough, which is known to have a relatively low crime rate.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/22/2011

Quadjacks Thursday 5 PM EST: PPA Director to Discuss I. Nelson Rose Joe Bartton Flap

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) Richard Muny is slated to appear on the popular Quadjacks.com Live Internet Radio Stream Thursday afternoon to offer his opinion on the controversy swirling around noted industry attorney I. Nelson Rose and his disparaging comments about Republican Texas Congressman Joe Barton.

Rep. Barton has sponsored a bill that would allow online poker at the federal level. 

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/22/2011

Absolute Poker Founder Brent Buckley No Rat Says Website

The founder of an online poker website, Brent Buckley, plead guilty on Tuesday to violation of the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act (UIGEA) and money laundering/bank fraud.  As a result, he is expected to serve up to 18 months in prison.  Based on past cases involving similar charges, it is doubtful Mr. Buckley will serve more than a year behind bars.  Buckley was among those charged April 15 as part of a multiyear investigation into three online poker ventures including Mr.

Submitted by C Costigan on, Dec/21/2011

Minted Poker Bug Exposes Mucked Hole Cards Without Showdown

The PokerFuse.com website was reporting on Tuesday that a bug on the Everleaf Network’s biggest online poker room skin, Minted Poker, was exposing mucked hole cards without a showdown

PokerFuse.com reported:

The hand replayer in the browser client of Minted Poker was revealing the hole cards of all players – even of those that folded before showdown.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/20/2011

Poker Players Alliance Lashes Out at iGaming Attorney I. Nelson Rose’s Attacks on Barton

The Poker Players Alliance (PPA) came out swinging Tuesday, expressing frustration with noted Internet gambling attorney I. Nelson Rose.  The attorney has, in recent interviews, attacked Texas Republican Joe Barton, author of a bill to legalize online poker in the US. 

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/20/2011

Carbon, Merge Poker Traffic Up 74 Percent, Bodog Traffic Stabilizes

Merge Gaming Network climbed to ninth place after spending seven weeks in 10th, according to the popular traffic monitoring website PokerScout.com.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/20/2011

Online Poker Founder Brent Beckley Pleads Guilty in U.S. Fraud Case

By Thom Weidlich - Dec 20, 2011 12:02 PM ET

(Bloomberg) - Brent Beckley, a founder of Absolute Poker of Costa Rica, pleaded guilty in a U.S. illegal-gambling case that seeks at least $3 billion in forfeitures and penalties.

Submitted by Guest on, Dec/20/2011

California Online Poker Bill on Back Burner Until the Summer

California wants online poker legalized and they need online poker legalized to help pay the bills.

But for once maybe, the state legislature wants to sit back and “do things right”.

That will happen after they return from a three-month vacation.  Yes, this is the state that is dead broke and the state legislators get to take a three month vacation. 

Here is the audio from KXJZ.

Submitted by Ace King on, Dec/20/2011

Barney Frank Has Joined the Infamous Club of Celebrity Nip Slips (Video)

Yes it’s true, Democratic Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank has joined the infamous club of celebrity nip slips.

Frank, who has been a huge supporter of one’s right to gamble online, appeared in a CSPAN video recently with a wardrobe malfunction.

From PerezHilton.com

Submitted by Jagajeet Chiba on, Dec/20/2011

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