Business & Financial
Miami Casino Won’t be the World’s Largest
It will be enormous, but not the world’s largest casino as previously suggested. Casino giant Genting plans to build a sprawling casino complex in downtown Miami but the perceived enormity of the project has raised some concerns.
“That’s simply false,’’ Christian Goode, Genting’s top Florida executive said during a panel discussion where the casino was referred to as the ‘largest casino on the planet’. “It’s not even close to being the largest.”
French Gambler Sues Government Over Poker Sites: Defendant in MGM Suit Uses Condom Defense
A French gambler has sued the Government claiming it failed to prevent him from accessing online poker sites in that country.
The 37-year-old from the city of Reims registered with the interior ministry last year to be voluntarily banned from casinos and online gambling sites, but was still able to access them, lawyer Emmanuel Ludot told AFP on Monday.
Jamie Gold Named Spokesperson of Tropicana Resorts
2006 World Series of Poker Main Event winner Jamie Gold has been named Poker Spokespersona and Ambassador of the newly transformed Tropicana Las Vegas. The casino’s poker room will be named “The Jamie Gold Poker Room” in his honor.
Introducing Oddsfutures.com, the Future of Sports Trading
Oddsfutures.com, the world’s first odds trading exchange, is the ideal way for sports traders to make money on a race - regardless of the result! This is because Oddsfutures.com is a unique marketplace which allows its customers to take advantage of fluctuations in betting patterns, rather than having to purchase a bet and await the outcome of the race.
Zynga Introduces Texas Hold’Em Poker Game for Google TV App
The world’s largest online poker company, Zynga, has released its uber popular Texas Hold’em poker game as a Google TV app. It is the first set-top box platform to feature the game, which currently has almost 30 million active monthly users across various platforms, including Yahoo, Google+ and iOS.
Google recently updates its TV platform with support for the Android market.
The new Google TV version is being advertised as “especially optimized for playing poker from the comfort of your own couch,” and easily controllable with the Google TV remote, Zynga said.
Apple No Appetite For Texas Hold’em App
Apple has pulled its Texas Hold’em app from the Apple OS Store this week.
Apple’s only official iOS game, “Texas Hold’em” seemingly received little attention from the company with lack of additional development since debuting in 2008.
The “play money” app enjoyed some degree of popularity but has since been crushed by the likes of Zynga.
AGCC Commissions Independent Review Into Handling of Full Tilt Poker Debacle
The Alderney Gaming Control Commission (AGCC) has come under intense scrutiny for its handling of the Full Tilt Poker matter, which culminated in a suspension of the one time second largest online poker firm’s license.
The AGCC ordered all media outlets blocked from negotiations during the arduous affair, as such, leading to a lack of transparency.
State Casino Legislation: New York, Florida and Massachusetts
Three states are looking to expand casino legislation: New York, Florida and Massachusetts.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo expressed interest in allowing casinos throughout the state.
Report: Bodog Anonymous Security Not So Anonymous (Video)
Following the release of its new upgraded software, the online poker firm Bodog proclaimed it had figured out a way of preventing the so-called “sharks” from viewing critical player data. This week, some members of the online poker community were quick to report that critical data had reportedly been hacked. A video demonstration was released in an effort to support this notion.
From the HH Smithy Blog:
MGM Files Trademark Infringement Suit Against Poker Sites
MGM Resorts International has filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Las Vegas this past Thursday against four individuals and two companies related to websites they claim infringe on their own trademarks.
Website domain names that are part of the suit include:
bellagioonlinepoker.com
circuscircuspoker.com
excaliburpoker.com
luxorpoker.com
mandalaybayonlinepoker.com
mgmpoker.com
ariapoker.com
Five Casino Operators Apply for Licenses to Operate Online Poker Sites in Nevada
Five casino companies have reportedly applied for licenses to operate online poker rooms from the state of Nevada. The state gaming board anticipates licenses to be issued as early as February.
Ladbrokes Agrees to Debt Facility With Banks
LONDON, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Ladbrokes, Britain's second-biggest bookmaker, said it had agreed a new five-year, 540 million pounds ($847 million) debt facility with its banks.
Ladbrokes, which has 2,100 betting shops in the UK, on Friday said the new facility would mature in 2016 and replaces its existing 560 million pounds facility that was due to mature in 2013.
The company estimates that the new blended rate of interest for the group will be 7.5 percent in 2012.
Cara de Poker Taken Over by PokerStars
A former iPoker.com network skin, Cara de Poker, has been purchased by the world’s largest online poker room, PokerStars. The following statement was issued:
Facebook Real Money Online Gambling in the UK: Apps Coming Soon?
Facebook, the social networking behemoth, is considering real money online gambling in the United Kingdom?
Those are the latest rumors.
“We’re always in discussions with companies about lots of different ideas, but we don’t comment on future plans or speculation,” a Facebook spokesperson said in a statement issued to ZDNet.com late Wednesday.
Bodog.com Releases New Poker Software: Includes Rabbit Cam
Bodog.com has released its much-anticipated upgraded poker software on Wednesday, the same day the company officially began switching its affiliate partners over to a new platform, Betting Partners.
Bodog anticipates a heavy market push in Europe now that the new software has been released.
Bodog Europe CEO Patrik Selin pretty much admitted back in August that the company’s previous poker software platform just wasn’t up to par with competing networks.
Seven of Top 10 Online Poker Sites Lose Ground Last Week
It wasn’t the best week for the global online poker market as traffic rose a meager 1 percent. Most of the rise came at PokerStars while seven of the other top 10 online poker sites lost some ground.
PokerStars is currently celebrating its 10th anniversary with a series of special offerings. That site’s traffic rose 4 percent.
Istadeal Challenges Full Tilt Poker Over Rush Poker Patentability
The Instadeal Poker Network has rolled out its own version of now defunct Full Tilt Poker’s Rush Poker. The innovative concept allows a pool of players to play quickly and to continuously be rushed to a new table upon folding their cards at their previous table.
Microgaming Poker Site 24Poker Disappears Without a Trace
A skin of the Microgaming Poker Network, 24Poker.com, has been shut down, the second Microgaming poker site in the past 48 hours to do so.
24Poker.com did not accept US customers but many worldwide are likely to be affected as the brand received approximately 880 search inquiries per month. That is still a far cry from the 40,000 plus who search for Cake Poker on a monthly basis however so Gambling911.com does not anticipate a massive outcry from the online poker community.
With South Africa Deeming Online Poker Illegal: PiggsPeak Casino and Poker Shut Down
Long established online casino and poker room PiggsPeak has shut down following a court ruling in South Africa that makes online gambling illegal.
The judge's decision states the gambling takes place where the play is, not where the gaming site's servers are physically located.
PiggsPeak and other online casino companies attempted to appeal a ruling by the North Gauteng High Court that declared Internet gambling illegal in the country.
Play Online Poker Free: South Point Poker Site Flourishing
After just over a month of offering folks the opportunity to play online poker for free with a licensed and regulated Las Vegas casino, South Point Poker has seen its website generating plenty of momentum.
Global monthly searches for “South Point Poker” were at 390. These numbers were generated prior to South Point Poker opening its play-for-free site.
The free play model has proven extremely successful – Witness Zynga Poker with its millions of users.
SurebetPoker.com Reviews Mixed Early On
One of the newest proprietary online poker rooms to come out of the post-Black Friday era, SurebetPoker.com, debuted last month promising one of the lowest rakes – 3.5 percent – among Web card rooms. They also landed former UB.com celebrity poker pro, Trishelle Cannatella.
The site has hit a few early road blocks, including some isolated payment processing issues and affiliates of SurebetPoker.com are spamming the hell out of popular poker forums like TwoPlusTwo.com.
Still, SurebetPoker.com has some great things going for it.
Las Vegas Airport: New Gateway to Asia
Las Vegas tourism officials are betting that a new air terminal will offer a new route for air passengers to connect between the US and Asia.
A new terminal will make its debut in June and connect international passengers through six gates. Customs will be able to process 2,200 passengers per hour,
"We see Las Vegas not just as an origin and destination point, but also as another hub for us," John Jackson III, vice president of passenger marketing and sales for Korean Air's Americas region, says to AP.
Free-to-Play Game of Online Poker Zynga Won’t Offer Cash Games in Near Future
There has been a lot of talk about the world’s largest free-to-play game of online poker Zynga offering cash games once regulation takes place in the United States.
Zynga Poker General Manager Lo Toney has been talking down the prospect in recent days.
In fact, Mr. Toney is adamant Zynga Poker will remain free-to-play, even if legislation ultimately passes that would make cash games legal in the United States.
Ladbrokes, BetDSI.com Demonstrate Importance of Mobile Betting, Live Wagering
Ladbokes this week launched a live streaming of AtTheRaces live coverage of British and Irish horse races in an effort to expand on its vital mobile betting platform. iPhone users can currently access while the product will ultimately be available to Android and other mobile platforms.
Richard Ames, Ladbrokes managing director, products, commented: "Mobile betting is growing rapidly and Ladbrokes customers have a leading range of services. We continue to develop it and aim to make it the first choice for mobile betting and gaming customers."
Switch Poker Becomes First Bitcoin Poker Room
Mobile poker operator Switch Poker became the first to offer Bitcoin as a payment solution for players. Switch Poker does not currently accept US customers. The online poker room also promotes itself as being the first room compatible on just about every browser for iPhone, iPads, iPods and more.
Sky Bet, Other British Bookmakers Slaughtered After This Week’s Premier League Action
Sky Bet bookmakers were left reeling after a week where all of the Premier League favourites walked off victorious.
It was the “worst day in their sports betting history” according to a company statement.
Sky Bet paid out to thousands at 7/1 with Manchester City, Southampton, Charlton and Southend all winning.
Sky Bet's Head of Football Trading Sandro Di Michele said: "Pretty much everything that could of gone wrong for us today did, with the 'What If' market just one of our enhanced accumulators to have come in.
Online Poker Traffic Flat Lines This Week
Online poker traffic for the week dropped a mere 0.2 percent according to PokerScout.com.
PokerStars was among three sites in the top 10 that witnessed a slight gain, increasing its traffic by 2.5 percent after a sharp decline last week. Stars up and down traffic has been attributed to big time promotions in recent weeks. This week the poker site is celebrating 10th anniversary with freerolls and a $10 deposit bonus.
Meanwhile, PokerStars French website continued surpassing its Italian version.
CNN on Full Tilt Poker Shutdown: Did Poker Ponzi Steal My Rent? (Video)
With the Super Committee deficit-reduction failure drawing added viewers to CNN’s afternoon programming, the news network’s special look at how much money was lost by US poker players on Full Tilt Poker managed to garner additional attention, not to mention scaring off more potential poker players.
“A popular online gambling website shut down by the US Feds. Just how much money was lost by players?” a teaser asks.
While the shutdown occurred back in April, CNN continued to broadcast its segment throughout the afternoon hours.
Zynga Mobile No Match for Angry Birds…Yet
While Zynga, along with its online poker product, remains the biggest social games provider on Facebook, it is far behind where mobile gaming is concerned. Angry Birds currently holds the title there for “Most Popular” game platform.
Zynga has some 227 million monthly users.
From the Guardian Online:
World Wide Wagering Does Not Suspend Use of Alleged Rigged Online Casino Software (Correction)
A Pittsburgh Tribune-Review report last week claimed BLR Technologies offered rigged online casino software to its operators.
Tests studied as part of the article demonstrated that the BLR online casino software could be rigged.
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review piece, “the software by BLR Technologies, based in Costa Rica, detects a player's bet and increases the chances of a losing roll”.
