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News & Updates 7/7/11

Jul06
2011 Written by admin

WSOP – Epstein Booed In Ladies Only Event

We’re now in the last few days of the annual gaming marathon that is the World Series of Poker at the Rio All Suite in Las Vegas.  Despite some dire warnings about attendance, related to the state of online poker in the U.S, numbers attending and playing have been pretty healthy.

We’ll report in a bit more detail when it’s all over but Event #53 is worth a mention as a

Epstein at the final table

news story in itself.  It was the Ladies Only No-Limit Hold’em championship, a competition that always draws a healthy number of entrants – many more ladies then would normally enter a mixed competition.  That fact in itself should be enough to respect the format.  However there are one or two male players who, over the years, have felt that it’s not fair to discriminate.  In fact there’s no discrimination at work here, sexual equality laws mean that anyone can enter the competition.  Normally though, everyone respects the very good reasons why this is a single sex event.

So this year then, step forward Jonathan Epstein, the young American poker pro, who for reasons best known to himself decided to enter Event #53.  Perhaps he thought it was an easy win (it wasn’t) or perhaps he thought he was making some sort of juvenile political point – whatever, the large crowd booed him every time he was in action.  In the end he was unceremoniously booted out in ninth place and hopefully he won’t try anything like that again.

Washington Adds Detail To Online Proposal

Washington D.C. has already outlined a brief vision of its plan to introduce state-wide online gaming.  It will be known as I-gaming and will only be accessible within the state boundaries.  Lawyers who have studied the proposals say that it is is legal under federal law.

Safeguards are being included with the proposal and these include a $250 per week limit on losses and the use of debit cards only – no credit cards.  It seems like a sensible, low-key start to what could become a model for other states to follow.

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News & Updates 22/6/11

Jun21
2011 Written by admin

Sahara Sell Off Begins

The famous Sahara Casino finally closed its doors on May 16th 2011 as you’ll have read elsewhere on this site.  A combination of giant mega-casino resorts opening at the other end of the strip, a lack of investment in recent years and some bad luck which left the Sahara surrounded by vacant lots and deserted building sites finally led to the closure of this iconic venue.

However this has given Las Vegas residents and those from further afield the opportunity to take their pick from around 600,000 items which have been put up for sale by liquidation specialist NCL.  In fact everything has been for sale, including the contents of 1700 hotel rooms and suites, commercial equipment from the extensive kitchens, theatre equipment and props, the contents of the gaming pits and everything that is not nailed down (and some stuff that is).

The organisers of the sell off have been letting around fifty people into the casino at a time and this has meant hundreds have been queuing for hours outside in the Nevada sunshine to await their turn to spend a few dollars on a lampshade or the best part of a thousand dollars on a chandelier.  The sale started on the 16th June but if you’re in the area there may still be a few items remaining to remind you of the time when the Sahara was the place to go and a favoured hangout for Rat Pack characters such as Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Frank Sinatra.

Republicans Push For Online Poker Legislation

One Republican senator from Texas, Joe Barton, will shortly introduce a bill that will attempt to once again legalise online poker in the United States.  In an unconnected move two more Republicans, Jim McDermott and Barney Frank, will also push forward their legislation.  They have two bills, one to overhaul tax legislation and one to legalise online poker.

One could argue that a joint effort between all three may be more beneficial but at least there seems to be a bit of momentum and thought behind these moves.  We will let you know the outcome as soon as we hear anything.

 

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News & Updates 25/5/11

May24
2011 Written by admin

Australia To Enforce Online Gambling Laws

Following Black Friday and the United States lead in cracking down on online casinos recently, it looks as though Australia may be following its big brother down the same route.

Firstly we should have a look at the legal aspects of wagering online in Australia.  The applicable piece of legislation is the 2001 Interactive Gambling Act (IGA).  For players it is not illegal to play poker online, or any game which you wish to play.  It is also not illegal to deposit money, to withdraw money or to gamble at an internet site as long as that site is not based in Australia.

However this only applies to the player and not the companies involved.  It is illegal for any company, whether inside or outside Australia to advertise and accept players for wagering.  This is easy enough to enforce domestically but so far there has been absolutely no appetite to stop players using offshore sites.  Some of those even operate subsidiaries inside Australia but are careful not to fall foul of domestic laws.  One of those companies is Pokerstars and it is thought that an information request from the federal authorities in the United States may have prompted the Australian government to look more closely at the efficiency of the IGA.

So why does the Australian government not want it’s citizens to gamble online – they don’t seem to mind them playing at the giant casinos of Sydney and Melbourne, or along the Gold Coast?  Pokies are almost part of everyday life in some states here.  There may be some protectionism involved – keep the online play to a minimum and rake in the tax from the bricks and mortar casinos – but then why not regulate domestic online gambling?  Other countries can manage it with no problems.

Possibly it’s a cultural thing – Australia seems to have a history of being a nanny state and the IGA was passed under the auspices of “protecting” the public from the evils of internet gambling – one might refer to it as “think of the children” syndrome.

The Australian government have also been trying recently to censor various parts of the internet – apparently its citizens need to be helped to decide what they want to look at online.  This poorly thought out action looks to be headed for the dunny though.

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News & Updates 4/5/11

May03
2011 Written by admin

William Hill Continues Acquisitions

William Hill, the long standing U.K. bookmaker has announced its intention to buy Brandywine Bookmaking, subject to the approval of Nevada gaming regulators.

This is William Hill’s third acquisition of sportsbook providers in Nevada in less then a month.  Several weeks ago it announced it’s acquisition of American Wagering ($18 million) and Cal Neva Sportsbook Division ($21 million), providing it with more than one hundred betting locations throughout Nevada.  The acquisition of Brandywine, a company established as recently as 2008, will cost William Hill around $15 million and provide them with another 17 sportsbook locations in the state.

Brandywine also has fingers in other pies, being the oddsmaker for the Delaware Sports Lottery and having a small foothold in the Caribbean.

Although a fairly aggressive move by William Hill, the numbers are very small compared to the number of bricks and mortar bookmakers operated in the U.K.  There are currently 2,359 locations there plus a 71% stake in William Hill online.  Ralph Topping, William Hill Chief Exec, said that:

“We did a lot of homework on Nevada and we set our sights on these three companies.  We wanted to have the size and scale and this is a great opportunity to establish ourselves in Nevada.”

No Smoking Battle Hots Up in Vegas

If you’ve never visited Las Vegas it may come as a surprise to learn that you can still smoke in some areas of casinos and other buildings there.  It’s especially surprising if you come from Europe, or California or anywhere else where smoking has been more or less outlawed unless you’re standing outside in the street.

Las Vegas is a continual target of anti-smoking campaigners where the battle is between the mega-powerful casinos who fear even tougher economic times if smokers are banned and those who want a smoke free environment for the benefit of their health.  This is good example of Vegas digging its heels in when everybody else has left the room and moved on to something more interesting.

Eventually health related lawsuits will surely persuade the casinos that the loss of smokers is not such a great price to pay.

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News & Updates 28/4/11

Apr27
2011 Written by admin

Antigua Unhappy With U.S. Protectionism

As predicted by many, the World Trade Organisation may be about to become involved in

Antigua's legal counsel, Mark Mendel

the legal action that the U.S. federal government has taken against online poker rooms.

In 2005, before the UIGEA was passed in the States, the WTO awarded damages to Antigua, agreeing that the Caribbean island was losing out as a result of laws designed to prohibit American gamblers betting with offshore providers.  The UIGEA then followed, rendering the whole argument moot but recent, well publicised action by the U.S. government has once again angered Antigua.

Antigua actually reached a compromise deal with the U.S. enabling it to continue to earn money from U.S. gamblers playing poker, Online Slots and the like but this has now been all but stopped as a result of the recent legal action.  Although the U.S. may be upholding domestic law, its actions conflict with the compromise agreement reached previously and this is why Antigua is unhappy.  We may yet see further drawn-out involvement from the WTO with regards to betting at an online Casino.

Florida To Allow Poker Rooms At Dog Tracks

Florida’s greyhound racing industry has been in a terminal state of decline for at least the last decade.  The majority of tracks are no longer viable and while casting about for a lifeline, tracks some time ago hit on the idea of hosting poker and Black Jack rooms.

While successful, the profits from the rooms have largely been used to prop up the ailing racing industry.  Now a bill has been passed in the Florida House which will allow dog tracks to host poker rooms even when there’s no racing going on.  This effectively turns the tracks into dedicated poker rooms which not everyone is happy with.

“All you’re doing is converting racetracks to card-room casinos,” said Rep. Dennis Baxley, who voted against the bill. “When you reduce racing, you increase gambling.”  Baxley though is on one side of the Republican camp, the other side favours the new bill as a recognition that gambling can not be held back forever and it’s better to legislate now rather than lose tax revenue to illegal sources in the future.

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News & Updates 22/4/11

Apr22
2011 Written by admin

Iowa Joins Washington D.C. In The Legalisation Club

Washington became the first state to legalise intrastate online gambling last week and now Iowa has become the second – although there are conditions attached.  Online poker appears to have been the main sticking point and the state will now undertake a study to investigate the its pros and cons. This will be completed by December 2011.

The driving forces behind the bill have long used the argument that it is better to regulate online gaming than to possible tax revenues disappearing into illegal betting websites.  The state will also hold a referendum every 8 years on the continuation of legalisation – Iowa residents have generally shown themselves to be in support of bricks and mortar casinos and sports gambling.

Online Poker Indictments Update

Following last Friday’s legal action against Absolute Poker, PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker among others, these three companies have at least managed to reach an agreement with the U.S. government to reacquire their .com domain names.  U.S. based players will still be barred from the poker rooms of course but there is now a mechanism for money to be withdrawn and Absolute Poker said that it

“…….wishes to make clear that it wants to work cooperatively with the US Attorney to safely and efficiently return its players’ funds.”

A piece of good news for all concerned then but the legal action continues.

Singapore Moves Into Second Place Ahead of Las Vegas

It was only a matter of time before this second centre of Asian gaming overtook Las Vegas in the revenue stakes.  Actually it hasn’t quite happened yet but the Royal Bank of Scotland’s recent forecast for 2011 puts Vegas on $6.2 billion compared to Singapore’s $6.4 billion.  That’s not a bad effort considering by the end of 2011 Singapore will only have been in the gaming business for two years.

Macau is of course the number one money maker with revenues far ahead of its two closest rivals and while Vegas is still stuck in a weak economy expect Singapore and Macau to make further strides on the back of Chinese tourists.

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News & Updates 15/3/11

Mar14
2011 Written by admin

60 Year Old Sahara Casino Will Close in May

The 1700 room Sahara Casino will close its doors on May 16th, 2011.  The North African themed resort has been operating in Las Vegas since 1952 but the age of the building and the perception that it is located at the wrong end of the Las Vegas strip has meant that, according to CEO Sam Nazarian, “….continued operation……………is no longer financially viable.”

Guests with room reservations until May 16th will have their bookings honoured and events will still take place.  Anyone with bookings following 11th will be helped to find alternative accommodation.

The Sahara was one of the most exciting and innovative casinos in Vegas in its early years.  It hosted many contemporary performers including Dean Martin, Don Rickles and The Beatles.  It also contains the famous NASCAR Entertainment Centre and was the setting for the original Oceans Eleven film.

Nevada Revenues Down Again

Despite all the hopes that the gambling industry may be leading the U.S. out of the recession,

The Cosmopolitan

Nevada’s gaming revenue fell by 1% compared to January 2010.  Possibly of more concern is the 2.5% drop in Las Vegas revenues.  This is the fourth straight January that revenues have decreased.

The picture at individual casinos is markedly different depending on where you take your measurements.  Many higher end casinos report a significant jump in revenues largely due to the return of the convention to Las Vegas.  Many mid and lower range resorts who have not been part of this business have suffered however.

Encouragingly more people actually came to Las Vegas although again, one has to take into account the number there for conventions.  Results for some casinos may also have been skewed by the opening of The Cosmopolitan nearby.

Nevada Could Legalise Online Intrastate Gambling

This one could be a fight to the death.  The land-based casino giants most likely put a stop to New Jersey’s attempts to legalise online gambling within the state but how will they fare up against their own state legislators.

Nevada has joined Iowa, Florida and California in pursuing the idea of intrastate gambling and Nevada has also raised the possibility of joining with other similar states should they be successful.

The land-based casinos will attempt to hold back this tide for as long as possible to avoid losing their competitive advantages in the U.S.

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