Cricket Australia MOU -- Betting exchange Betfair has signed another memorandum of understanding with a sports association, this time with Cricket Australia. Like all the other memorandums, this one states that Betfair will provide betting-related information to Cricket Australia in instances where corrupt betting is reasonably suspected. Similar agreements exist between Betfair and the International Cricket Council, the Football Association (UK), the Association of Tennis Professionals, the Darts Regulation Authority, and the U.K. Jockey Club.
Las Palomas de BoDog -- BoDog.com is an official sponsor of Las Palomas, the Costa Rican national paint ball team. The BoDog.com logo appears on the team's jerseys along with the logos of four other non-gaming companies.
Jockeys Can Wear Ads -- A court in Louisville, Kentucky has ruled in favor of seven jockeys who sued the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority after it told them they could not wear commercial advertising during tomorrow's Kentucky derby. The seven jockeys were successful in arguing that rules prohibiting advertising is a violation of free speech. Now that the door is open for them to begin taking endorsements, optimistic jockeys see this as a way to earn more income and to attract more attention to the sport. "Look what happened to NASCAR," said jockey Shane Sellers. "All of a sudden, NASCAR is one of the biggest sports. It's because of the endorsements. We need change, but in the end I think everybody is going to be happy." Jockey Alex Solis said, "All other athletes get to advertise, and they get paid 10 times better than we do." There are, however, limitations on what the jockeys may advertise. Offensive and inappropriate material is banned, so are advertisements for casinos, phone wagering, and Internet gambling. Ads for companies that compete with current track sponsors are prohibited.
Canned Spam -- U.S. authorities have filed charges against four individuals in Detroit, marking the first ever prosecutions under the CAN-SPAM Act that was passed in January. The four allegedly provided false identities in thousands of bulk unsolicited marketing e-mails. The four individuals, Daniel J. Lin, James J. Lin, Mark M. Sadek and Christopher Chung, are said to have been promoting their weight loss product under several different corporate names, including AIT Herbal, Avatar Nutrition, Phoenix Avatar, and more. Medical professor Michael D. Jensen of the Mayo Medical School told investigators that the ingredients in such a product would not help users lose weight.
Computer Misuse Act Inquiry -- In the United Kingdom, the All Party Internet Group (APIG), which provides a discussion forum between new media industries and members of Parliament, has organized an inquiry to determine whether the Computer Misuse Act (CMA) of 1990 (implemented before the birth of the modern Internet) needs a revision. Edward Andrewes of the Association of Remote Gaming Operators (ARGO; a newly formed organization that is affiliated with the Association of British Bookmakers and composed of Ladbrokes, William Hill, Coral Bet365 and Blue Square) was on hand yesterday to express the gaming industry's desires to propose new methods to combat distributed denial of service attacks and tougher punishments to deter them. According to PC Pro, "Most present agreed that while much of the original CMA has stood the test of time well in terms of application, the lack of cases brought under it means it has rarely been tested as to its real effectiveness as legislation against such crimes."