Postponed -- A U.S. criminal court in New York today postponed the extradition hearing of former SportingBet non-executive chairman Peter Dicks until Friday, Sept. 29. Louisiana authorities are seeking Dicks' extradition to the state to face charges related to illegal Internet gambling. Dicks was arrested in New York on Sept. 7.
Reversal? -- Several news reports suggested today that Italy intends to change its legal stance on online gambling. After attempting to institute a blanket ban on Net gambling Web site IP addresses in February, the Italian government will reportedly move toward regulating the industry. As part of its regulatory initiative, the Italian government will impose a 3 percent tax on revenues generated by any Net gaming company that serves Italian customers. The initiative will also clear the way for public sports betting and bingo parlors. As of Jan. 1, 2007, Italian citizens may legally gamble online.
Quoteworthy -- "If we do not enforce this law, online gambling would be completely unregulated, and that would clearly be an expansion of gambling, which is unacceptable."
-Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco, highlighting the stakes of the state's case against Dicks.
Welcome to the Party -- PartyPoker.com has announced the availability of a Macintosh-compatible download and a browser-based application, giving Mac users greater compatibility with the site. The applications are still subject to ongoing testing, and a PartyPoker spokesman reported that some of the applications' capabilities, which include making notes on other players and compiling hand histories, are not yet up to speed.
Aproval -- The Ashanti Entertainment Group announced that its renovation project, Big Dollar Casino, has been awarded the eCOGRA seal of approval.
New Games -- Software developer Microgaming announced the rollout of three new casino slot games yesterday, which online casino partner All Jackpots will add to its inventory. The first game, "Chocolate Factory," is a nine-line video slot featuring two different bonus games; the second is a classic three-reel, five-payline machine with high stakes and payouts; and the third, "Jungle 7's," includes three reels and a bonus feature.