Names and Faces -- Paddy Power plc is appointing Nigel Northridge to its board of directors. Northridge is the chief executive of Gallaher Group plc.
Testing -- Cigital Inc. recently completed an evaluation of PokerStars' random number generator to confirm its reliability and security. The Dulles, Va., company said it tested PokerStars' source code, entropy sources and documentation to make sure that the site's RNG was generating truly random seeding values. "Software that can generate reliable random numbers is an absolute requirement in the gaming industry," said Gary McGraw, the chief technology officer at Cigital. "Our analysis included extensive examination of the underlying algorithm for random number generation. We can state with confidence that use of the PokerStars RNG results in statistically random sequences used to generate the poker hands dealt on PokerStars.com. This, in turn, should provide a safe and fair gaming environment for the site's players."
New Stuff -- The Las Vegas Sands Inc. announced plans today to build what it is calling a "mega tourism development" in Cotai, which is one of the Macau islands. (Macau is a peninsula attached to mainland China that also consists of a few islands attached by bridges). The company, which owns and operates The Venetian hotel and casino in Las Vegas, also recently announced that one of its subsidiaries, Venetian Interactive, will launch an Internet gambling site.
European Stuff -- To no one's surprise, streakers emblazoned with GoldenPalace.com tattoos made their way to two of the weekend's major sporting events, the World Swimming Championships in Barcelona and the British Open. Mark Roberts jumped into the synchronized swimming pool of the swimming championship wearing only a pink tutu, red swimming cap and the Golden Palace URL. The golf streaker, Laura Gosling, was less successful and was escorted away by security before she could accomplish her goal of kissing winner Ben Curtis during the presentation of the trophy while being topless except for pasties and the URL.