Business & Financial
IGT, Entraction Scales Back on Internet Poker: Skins Left Homeless
Citing diminished returns, International Gaming Technologies (IGT), has opted to scale back on its Web poker business. Those online card rooms operating on the network were informed of this decision earlier in the week.
Camasino Poker Club: Online Gambling Site to Open Land-Based Casino Outside Montreal
Camasino has made a deal with the owner of a poker club located in Kahnawake to change its name from Snakes Poker Club to “Camasino Poker Club”. Camasino will hold major Canadian events at the location along with entertainment and other services giving the clients a Vegas feel!
Nevada Online Poker Applicant to Sell Lottery Tickets to Zynga
Scientific Games has announced a partnership with the world’s largest “free play” online poker venture, Zynga, whereby it will sell lottery tickets to the popular social gaming firm’s 320 million monthly customers, including poker players.
Steven M. Saferin, President of the company’s properties group and chief creative officer, stated during the World Lottery Summit in Montreal last week that “Zynga players could win instant tickets for cash or virtual goods.”
Coconut Creek May Become Casino Destination with Mammoth Entertainment Center Planned
The Seminole Tribe of South Florida are looking to develop a mammoth hotel, casino and entertainment complex in Coconut Creek.
The establishment would feature 20 stories, 1000 rooms and an expanded 2500-seat movie theatre and casino.
Still, the idea could be just a pipe dream as no firm date has been set as to when such a project might begin development.
Andy Murray Helps Betfair Smash Record After Slow Football Start
Betfair, the world’s largest betting exchange, revealed on Tuesday that the Wimbledon final was its biggest ever market following reports that the company has gotten off to a slow start with Premier League wagering.
Betfair.com reports that more than £58 million of bets were taken on the July tennis match in which Murray lost to Roger Federer but ultimately went on to secure his first ever Grand Slam title in New York.
Skybook.com Owner Sentenced to 2.5 Years in Prison
A St. Charles, Louisiana man, Anthony Buttitta, 43, has been sentenced to 2.5 years behind bars for tax evasion. He and his father, Dominic Buttitta, 69, of South Barrington, plead to two felony counts filed against them in U.S. District Court and were sentenced Friday by U.S. District Judge Milton Shadur.
Zynga Looks at Mobile Gambling and Online Gambling to Diversify
(NASDAQ) - Zynga ( ZNGA ) is expanding into mobile gaming and is looking to enter into real money online gambling. It recently tied up with Nokia to add Draw Something and Zynga Poker to Nokia feature phones such as Nokia Asha Touch and the Nokia Series 40 range. The games will feature in the phones released in Q3 and will cover nearly 100 million users. Zynga game apps are already available for smartphones and the company plans to expand into feature phones to increase its user base and target emerging economies.
Partouche Poker Tour Blames ‘External Media’ for Prize ‘Confusion’ but Will Honor €5 million
The Partouche Poker Tour has decided to honor its initial €5 million guarantee after quietly cutting the guarantee down by €750,000.
Everest Poker Moves to iPoker Network
Everest Poker and its Bet-Click brand have confirmed a move to the world’s number two most trafficked online poker network, iPoker, after weeks of speculation.
Poker Room at Gulfstream Casino Now Open Following Fish Tank Fiasco
The poker room at Gulfstream Park Racing & Casino in South Florida has finally reopened after a ruptured 13,000 gallon fish tank caused extensive damage to the facilities last Sunday.
New carpeting, walls, artwork and furniture have been installed since the flooding occurred, according to Mike Couch, Gulfstream's Director of Gaming.
"It's unfortunate we had to close five days, but we're very grateful to our guests for their patience and understanding," Couch said in a Saturday release.
Sheldon Adelson, Las Vegas Sands Select Madrid for ‘EuroVegas’ Casino
By HAROLD HECKLE Associated Press
(Associated Press) - The decision by Las Vegas Sands to choose Madrid for a big "EuroVegas" casino project was welcomed by city officials Saturday, but potential obstacles include the company's decision to fund only 35 percent of the resort and to demand changes in local laws.
Ana Isabel Marino, Madrid's counselor for planning and environment, said the regional government received the news "with contained satisfaction, given that this is the first step."
Bally Technologies Licenses NASCAR Slot Machine
Players, start your engines! Bally Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: BYI) has licensed NASCAR, one of the most sought-after brands in the gaming industry.
NASCAR is the first world-class licensed brand that Bally has carried across its games and systems businesses, in the form of the slot machine game and Elite Bonusing Suite’s Virtual Racing NASCAR. Both the slot and the systems-driven promotional tool take everything racing fans love about the sport and put it into a one-of-a-kind gaming experience.
Quincy Jones Denies Steve Wynn Threatened Porn Purveyor Joe Francis Life in Slander Trial
Music producer Quincy Jones denied ever telling “Girls Gone Wild” porn purveyor Joe Francis that casino mogul Steve Wynn wanted to "bury him in the desert.”
When asked if Wynn had said this to Jones, the Grammy Award winning music icon emphatically said "No. Absolutely not” more than a dozen times during court testimony on Thursday.
Steve Wynn is suing Francis for slander. The two have been embroiled in a bitter war of words for some years now.
Lock Poker September Promos Include Free iPads, Aussie Millions Packages, 110k GTD, More
One of the more exciting Lock Poker September promos includes leader boards that, will not only be ranking players on ROI, but Lock Poker will be giving away 2 ME seats to the Aussie Millions as well as brand new iPads. Watch Gambling911.com for more details shortly. Currently running promos appear below.
Rake chase
Zynga Introduces Sports Betting With Las Vegas Style Sportsbook Game
Zynga has teamed up with developer RocketPlay to deliver a “Vegas-like” sportsbook experience for its customers just in time for the new NFL season.
According to a release, Sports Casino offers "an authentic Las Vegas-style sportsbook experience" wherein players can bet on live sporting events like baseball and football as well as play video poker, slots, and blackjack.
Outdoor Gambling in Atlantic City as Golden Nugget Offers First Exterior Casino
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — (Associated Press) - For the past few years, Atlantic City's casinos have been thinking outside the box when it comes to ways to drum up new business and compete with gambling halls in neighboring states.
But the Golden Nugget Atlantic City is doing so literally by becoming the first casino in New Jersey to offer outdoor gambling.
Costa Rica Earthquake Causes Significant Damage: Online Gambling Businesses Fine
The hub for several dozen online gambling businesses, San Jose, Costa Rica, was spared any significant damage from Wednesday’s 7.6 magnitude earthquake just 100 miles to the west.
Malta-Based Online Gambling Company Head Jailed 14 Months
Dimitrios Drosos, 45, director of betting company Gold Victory Ltd, has been jailed for 14 months after being convicted of defrauding several people of a total of €500,000.
The court found that the Malta-based company had not paid winnings to several players and the accused had pocketed the money.
€70,000 paid by the accused as bail money were forfeited after it was established that Drosos,a Greek national resident in Kappara, had jumped bail and escaped from Malta.
He was re-arrested on the strength of a European arrest warrant.
Introducing iPoker 2: Online Poker Network Split in Two
The world’s second largest “real money” online poker network, iPoker, has split into two with the new entity being called “iPoker 2”.
So what is iPoker 2?
It is for smaller player pools and will feature mid to low stakes of No Limit Hold’em cash games. iPoker1 will be for larger player pools. Those on the iPoker 2 platform will incorporate skins (independent card rooms) that have at least 6000 active customers (raking $1 or more a month) and acquiring a minimum of 850 new active players a month (raking $5 in the first 30 days).
A statement from iPoker read:
Burst Fish Tank Destroys Gulfstream Park Casino: Called ‘Catastrophic Failure’
The damage caused by a burst fish tank at South Florida’s famed Gulfstream Park Casino appears to be akin to that of a massive flood sweeping through two floors of this sprawling establishment. Hurricane Isaac didn’t even cause this type of damage to the Louisiana and Mississippi riverboat casinos. Who would have thought a ruptured 13,000 aquarium could cause such destruction?
GOP Platform on Internet Gambling May Have Been Influenced by Sheldon Adelson
Some in the gambling sector have begun to speculate that GOP political donor extraordinaire, casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, may have had a degree of influence as it relates to the newly released Republican platform from last week – You know the one, it espouses family values and how legalizing Internet gambling will lead to the destruction of such values.
Forbes: Is Zynga’s New 888 Hire a Means to ‘Exploit’ Gambling or Consumers
Inquiring minds want to know, or at least Forbes.com Financial columnist Louis Bedigian: Will Zynga's New Hire Exploit Gambling or Consumers?
The question is being asked after it was revealed that the world’s leading social media company and biggest operator of a “free-to-play” online poker room, Zynga, just hired 888.com’s former VP of Regulated Markets, Maytal Ginzburg. 888.com operates the world’s 4th largest “real money” online poker room and is widely seen as having one of the largest global Web casino businesses.
Circumstances Surrounding Tank Explosion at Gulfstream Park Casino Remain Fishy
The Sunday morning explosion of a 13,000-gallon saltwater aquarium at the popular South Florida Gulfstream Park casino remained a mystery Tuesday.
David Gzesh Confirms Sale of Seized Online Gambling Domains
Michael H. Berkens of TheDomains.com has confirmed that attorney David Gzesh purchased and put up for sale online gambling domain names previously seized by US authorities.
Burst Fish Tank Shuts Down Gulfstream Racing and Casino Park Gambling for Days
A burst fish tank has resulted in the shutdown of all gambling operations at Gulfstream Racing and Casino Park in South Florida.
The situation occurred on the facility’s second floor where the 13,000 gallon saltwater tropical glass tank broke early Sunday morning. Both floors of casino gambling had to be shut down.
Macau Says August Gambling Revenue Second Highest on Record
HONG KONG, (Reuters) - Gambling revenue in Macau grew 5.5 percent year-on-year in August, government data showed on Monday, signalling a muted pick up in growth buoyed by demand from mainland gamblers.
CEO Anthony Tailor Leaves Merge Gaming
Merge Gaming CEO Anthony Tailor has resigned from a position he has held for five years. Details regarding the exit were not immediately known, however, the popular online poker network continues to thrive and, just this week, flagship brand Carbon Poker announced the return of the super popular Poker Maximus promotion (dubbed Poker Maximus II).
9 Seized Online Gambling Domains Put Up For Sale Including DoylesRoom.com
Nine online gambling domain names seized as part of a sting operation by the US Attorney’s Office in Maryland have been put up for sale or license. These include DoylesRoom.com and Bookmaker.com.
Survey Says: PokerStars Could be Preparing to Enter Sports Betting, Casino Sector
Could the world’s largest “real money” online poker company, PokerStars, be looking at entering the sports betting and casino market?
Zynga Hires Former 888 Poker Exec in Sign They Are Moving Towards ‘Real Money’ Play
Zynga, the world’s largest free-to-play online poker social gaming company, has reportedly hired Maytal Ginzburg Olsha, the former Senior Vice President of Corporate and Regulated Markets at 888 Holdings, the parent company of 888 Poker.
Zynga fouder and CEO Mark Pincus told analysts back in July that the company intended to have “real money” play ready for early 2013.
Zynga has seen its stock price plummet in recent months as a number of high ranking executives have chosen to leave the firm.
