Friday, Jan. 21
Stanley and Playtech -- Stanley Leisure, England's largest casino operator, has re-launched the Acropolis Casinos brand, which it bought in 1999. The new site will target the U.S. market and use technology by software provider Playtech. Stanley Leisure has also indicated that it will soon launch the entire Playtech gaming suite as well, including casino, poker room, bingo system and soft gaming products. The company has two additional online casinos--stanleycasino.com and crockfordscasinos.com--that use proprietary software.
Bodog in UK -- Costa Rica-based betting company Bodog.com has obtained a bookmaker's license in the United Kingdom. "We have focused heavily on the North American market over previous years," explained CEO Calvin Ayre, "and seeing our explosive growth during that time, we feel that we are now prepared to move our world class services into the U.K. marketplace."
Counterpoint -- Betfair spokesperson Antonia Sharpe told eGaming Review that there's no truth in a Sunday Observer article indicating that the U.K. government will raise the tax rate on betting exchanges in a few months. Sharpe said the story is likely the result of some clever spinning on behalf of betting exchanges' rivals: traditional bookmakers. "It looks like the story was motivated by vested interests because we have heard nothing along those lines from the Treasury" Sharpe said. "We are not concerned, and we await the finding of the Treasury with interest." She also pointed out that the primary finding of a recent National Audit Office report from which the Sunday Observer story was spun is that the government's gross profits tax reform on betting in 2001 was successful in encouraging bookmakers to keep their core operations in the United Kingdom. She said this is important to remember because if the government were to raise taxes on betting exchanges, relocating offshore would always be a viable option.
Quoteworthy -- "The government just seems to have lost the plot. We have now got an act that nobody wants, and they want to railroad it through before the feneral election. These kind of reforms only happen once every 40 years."
- Neil Goulden, CEO of British bingo and casino operator Gala. Goulden believes the U.K. government's new plans for the Gambling Bill will make it extremely difficult for native companies to compete against foreign competitors. He added, "It will be like tying our hands behind our backs and asking us to fight Mike Tyson. It's no surprise that when the government's amendments were made, shares in quoted U.S. casino companies went up (and) British ones went down." The next reading of the Gambling Bill before the House of Commons is scheduled for Jan. 24, one day before the International Casino Exposition gets underway in London.
US Agenda -- U.S. Senator Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, has announced his committee's agenda for 2005. Though it was not listed as a top priority, Internet gambling prohibition was named as an issue that the committee expects to address either at the full, subcommittee or staff level in 2005.
Farewell -- Rob Hartnett is leaving his position as managing director of betting exchange Betdaq next month to lead a new media and betting organization that will launch this year with the backing of leading players in British racing. After joining the Betdaq in 2001, Hartnett helped launch the company's P2P site in 2002 and has since been a vital voice of betting exchange advocacy. Betdaq CEO Brain O'Sullivan will assume Hartnett's duties until further appointments are made in the coming months.
Oddities -- GoldenPalace.com has purchased another religious relic to accompany its Virgin Mary-emblazoned grilled cheese sandwich. The latest acquisition, which sold for $2,550 on eBay, is a rock that bears the image of a weeping Jesus. Seller Steven Wolfe said the rock helped to heal his mother and brother from cancer and also helped his mother and sister win $600 playing bingo. Yesterday a man in Switzerland announced that he will auction off an oyster shell that also bears the image of Jesus; perhaps it could be the next Golden Palace purchase.
Pay Bills With Lotto -- Customers of Enel, Italy's largest electric company, can now pay their bills via Bancomat cards at lottery outlets, tobacco shops, bars or any other facility connected to the Lottomatica Totobit network, which happens to be the most extensive citizen services network in Italy, handling about 190 million transactions per year.
Live Betting -- Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc. (ISWI) announced that the three Internet terminals at the Welsh Open snooker tournament at Newport Center will be equipped with the SportXction play-by-play wagering system so that spectators at the venue can place bets on live action while they watch.
Thursday, Jan. 20
iGGBA Meeting -- iGGBA (interactive Gaming, Gambling and Betting Association) will hold its fourth annual general meeting on Jan. 27 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Cromwell Room at Earl's Court while the London International Casino Exposition is taking place. The meeting's program includes speakers Sarah Thomas of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and Nigel Payne, CEO of Sportingbet. iGGBA will also elect a new council and chairman at the meeting. Director Wes Himes said iGGBA welcomes guests who would like to learn more about the association. .
British Happenings -- The Sunday Observer reported that the within a matter of months, the U.K. Treasury will "close a loophole" that allows betting exchanges to pay far less betting duty than traditional bookmakers. The paper quoted one of its well placed insiders as saying, "The duty and the commission that exchanges make just doesn't add up. It's all pointing to the Treasury acting to stop this." A National Audit Report released last week revealed that betting exchanges received £2.67 billion in wagers and paid £7.3 million to Customs and Excise last year while traditional bookies received close to £30 billion in wagers and paid £376 million. . . . Following a request by Sports Minister Richard Caborn, the Treasury has asked the National Criminal Intelligence Service to perform a risk assessment investigation to determine whether criminals could be using bookmakers to launder money. Caborn has apparently been influenced by the report published last week by the Center for the Study of Financial Innovation. He stated, "As the independent report shows, this could well be a potential avenue for money laundering. We have to take that seriously. We have to do a proper risk-assessment and then we can legislate properly. An assessment was made some time ago but in light of the new gambling legislation and all that is going on. We are asking the Treasury to consider whether it is necessary to have a new risk-assessment. We believe it is." Caborn has also stated that the government will receive a cash advance to create the Gambling Commission before the Gambling Bill has even obtained final approval. A repayable advance of £367,000 will be paid from the government's Contingencies Fund and used to hire senior staff and pay for office space. "Our intention, subject to parliamentary approval, is that we protect as many individuals as we can, from as early a date as possible," Caborn said. "In order to do this we need to carry out essential activities to set up the Gambling Commission, which will require some expenditure in advance of the legislation receiving Royal Assent."
One Ball and 100 Million Bets -- Sportsbook.com, the flagship brand for Sportingbet, announced that it has taken its 100 millionth bet. The company also claims to be taking an average of 8.3 bets per second. . . . Sportsbook.com recently stated that it is "determined to purchase" the ball that Boston Red Sox first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz has refused to give to the Red Sox Major League Baseball franchise. The ball was used in recording the final out of the Red Sox' historic World Series victory in October 2004. The Red Sox want the ball back, Mientkiewicz wants to sell it and Sportsbook.com wants to buy it and give it to the city of Boston. The company hasn't made the amount of its offer public.
More from China -- Chinese police have arrested close to 600 people in relation to online gambling with a Taiwanese company called Baoying. The cases involve over $60.5 million in gambling funds, $2.8 of which has been seized. According to China's Ministry of Public Security, Baoying had been cooperating with individuals in mainland China since March to organize online gambling. Of those arrested, 395 were organizers and 202 were gamblers, some of whom are government officials. China announced two weeks ago that it would implement a strict policy on all types of gambling because it was discovered that some government officials had gambled large amounts of public money with foreign operators.
Satellite Deal -- BettingCorp, an OpenTV Corp.-owned developer and operator of multi-channel remote gaming solutions, has signed up to the global distribution network of GlobeCast, a satellite services subsidiary of France Telecom. The deal makes BettingCorp's PlayMonteCarlo fixed-odds games portal available on BSkyB's platform, uplinked via Eurobird 28.5°E from GlobeCast's Brookman's Park teleport. Globecast will also house PlayMonteCarlo's servers, which will be controlled via a VPN to enable remote access from PlayMonteCarlo's production center in London.
Wednesday, Jan. 19
Queensland Racing -- It has been discovered that Mark Read, executive chairman of betting firm International All Sports, had informed Queensland Racing Minister Robert Schwarten of betting price distortions, conflicts of interest and other concerns about Queensland Racing in April 2004, a full six months before the Daubney-Rafter inquiry was ordered. Schwarten replied to the letter in June and referred Read's concerns to Queensland Racing, a move that Read described as tantamount to sending a whistleblower back to the agency he was blowing the whistle on, according to the Courier-Mail. The letter is at least the second example of Minister Schwarten neglecting to act on a warning. Allan Reardon, former chief metropolitan steward, has said that he personally briefed Schwarten about potential corruption for an hour in March. It wasn't until October, when Sportingbet Australia's CEO Michael Sullivan publicly questioned the integrity of racing in Queensland, that attention was given to the matter and an inquiry was eventually called. Schwarten stated at the time that Queensland Racing had never received any complaints. The Daubney-Rafter inquiry will begin public hearings on Feb. 7.
Mobile Coral -- I-gaming applications and solutions provider Zone4Play Inc. has signed an agreement to supply U.K.-based bookmaker Coral Eurobet Limited with a mobile Java-based fixed-odds gaming suite. Zone4Play will install its proprietary ZoneITS solution, a designated server that creates an API between the client and bookmaker's back office. Keno, hi-lo, dice and a slot machine game will be offered at first, and one new game will be released every month thereafter.
Bill Reading -- The third reading of the U.K. Gambling Bill will take place before the House of Commons on Jan. 24, one day before delegates representing most of the industry will be gathered in London for the International Casino Exposition.
Deck Customization -- MagicPokerCards.com has created a software program that enables players to create custom card decks with images of their choice for use at some of the most popular online poker rooms, including Party Poker, Empire Poker, Paradise Poker and Poker Stars. The program can use most image files already on a hard drive and can pull images from a digital camera or scanner.
Welcome Aboard -- Betting exchange and skill gaming software provider CES Software has named Richard Weil president of the company's business operations. Weil had previously worked for Scientific Games Corp as corporate vice president of international business development. For the past six months he has been acting as an advisor and consultant to the CES management team.
China -- China's aggressive new policy to stamp out online gambling includes enhancing the Ministry of Information Industry's ability to monitor the Internet and tightening related approval and filing procedures. Any company that provides online gambling services will lose its business license and incur other serious punishments. Additionally, gambling Web sites set up by foreign companies will be destroyed. Although the Chinese government had already been pursuing an increasingly tough campaign against online gambling and pornography for several months, it decided to take even stricter measures after it was revealed last week that several government officials have spent millions of dollars in public funds gambling in foreign countries.
Philippines Bill -- A gambling bill that would extend Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation's (PAGCOR) gambling rights for the next 25 years passed its third reading before the House of Representatives yesterday by a vote of 113-26. The bill must pass the Senate before it becomes law.
New Table Game -- Play for fun gaming site Slingo, Inc. has announced that its game, "Bonus 21," has been made into a table game and is available at two casinos in Atlantic City. Bonus 21 is similar to blackjack, but offers more side-bet options, including betting on the outcome of the first two cards dealt.
Essential Skills -- The World Poker Exchange has signed a promotional deal that will have FHM magazine promoting poker playing as an essential skill that every man should possess. The ad campaign will begin in February with a series of editorials and advertisements. The magazine will also launch a section of its Web site, FHM.com, that will enable users to download videos explaining poker techniques. Readers will be encouraged to visit World Poker Exchange, where 10 players will be invited to play in a televised tournament for £10,000.
Tuesday, Jan. 18
Frank Must Die -- Last week IGN reported that Golden Palace's winning $10,700 bid on eBay for a bumper sticker that says "Frank Must Die" was rejected because the parents of a child who required the money for a difficult biopsy did not feel comfortable accepting the money from an online gambling company. It is now apparent that our source at the time was incorrect. In reality, the family has received a tremendous amount of cash in donations since gaining publicity, and the doctor has agreed to perform the operation for free. Because they had already received enough money to pay for their son's biopsy, his family asked Golden Palace to donate the winning bid to Growing Hope, a Virginia-based charity for children with cancer.
Quoteworthy -- "I would be very happy for you to quote me as saying there has been a turning point. If anything, it was actually last spring. When you look back at the cases such as Ice Saint and Ballinger Ridge, prior to that Red Lancer and Intox, and before that Hillside Girl, there has not been anything of that caliber since."
- John Maxse, public relations director of the U.K. Jockey Club, in an interview with the Racing Post. According to the Jockey Club, it has been 11 months since any British horse race has sparked a serious investigation, and the group is confident that it now has appropriate measures in place to combat corruption within the sport.
European Tribeca -- Internet poker software provider Tribeca Tables has created Tribeca Tables Europe, Limited to better serve Tribeca Tables' existing clients and also to help the company spread throughout Europe. The new division is based in Alderney.
Mobile IGW -- I-gaming software provider IGW Software and mobile technology firm Phantom Fiber Corp have signed a five-year license agreement, whereby IGW Software will use Phantom Fiber's wireless framework to offer mobile sports books, race books and casinos to its licensees. IGW Software's mobile solutions enable operators to extend their wagering service through over 600 modes of browser-based phones and mobile devices.
Monday, Jan. 17
WPT Boot Camp -- The World Poker Tour has announced the creation of the WPT Boot Camp, an intensive two-day poker training experience that will begin touring U.S. cities at the end of January. The Boot Camp is designed to compress the poker learning curve into two days, and it has enlisted the World Poker Tour television series' commentators, Mike Sexton and Vincent Van Patten, as well as associate producer Alex "The Insider" Outhred, as instructors. The curriculum includes live lectures, archived WPT videos, hands-on game play and personal tips from professional poker players. Only 50 students are accepted per each camp, and enrollment is $1,495.
Lingerie League -- Horizon Productions, the company that produced last year's "Lingerie Bowl" on pay-per-view television during the Super Bowl, will bring another presentation of supermodels displaying their gridiron talent during halftime of this year's NFL championship game. The company recently partnered with a cable broadcast network to air Lingerie Football League games in summer 2007. However, an element of its broadcast agreement does not allow the airing of a Lingerie Bowl broadcast on pay-per-view this year. Instead the company's pay-per-view Super Bowl halftime offering this year will be an ancillary brand offering called "The Girls of Lingerie Bowl: Halftime Challenge." The event promises two hours of sports and entertainment, a lingerie fashion show, celebrities and "a shocking moment that will be the absolute talk of the water cooler on Monday morning." Due to this recent development, the company says it has "four heavily discounted sponsorship tiers" and will begin finalizing the 2005 sponsors within the next two weeks. Last year's event was sponsored by PartyPoker.com, which now dominates the online poker market. Forty million viewers (80 percent of whom were males aged 18-34) tuned into last year's presentation, and 58 million visitors logged onto LingerieBowl.com between Dec. 3, 2003 and Feb. 4, 2004.
ARGO Member -- The Association of Remote Gambling Operators, a trade body of European online gambling operators founded in August 2004, has welcomed Gibraltar-based iGlobalMedia, owner of PartyPoker.com, as its latest member. Clive Hawkswood, general secretary of ARGO, said of iGlobalMedia, "Their membership underlines the fact that ARGO represents all types of remote gambling operators and their involvement will be extremely valuable as we move ahead on a range of issues.”
Conference in Sweden -- The European Association for the Study of Gambling will present the sixth annual European Conference on Gambling Studies and Policy Issues in Malmo, Sweden June 29 - July 2. The conference will bring together experts from a variety of disciplines with the aim of increasing dialogue between all who are professionally involved in commercial gaming.
Hong Kong Considerations -- Hong Kong's government and Jockey Club are considering lowering betting taxes as a result of steadily declining horse racing and lottery revenues. Jockey Club Chairman Ronald Arulli recently stated that this season's turnover may fall 8 percent to $7.7 billion, thereby cutting government revenue by about $77 million. The government currently takes 12 percent of standard win, place and quinella bets and 20 percent of longer-shot bets. It also takes 25 percent of proceeds from the lottery, which is called the Mark Six. The Jockey Club hopes that lower tax rates will allow it to pay higher dividends to punters. The club is also waiting on approval of a plan that would allow Macau's Jockey Club to take bets on racing in Hong Kong.
Quoteworthy -- "Gambling at bookmakers is a simple and relatively risk-free option for laundering money. Typically, the money launderer makes frequent high-stake bets at very low odds, resulting in a minimal profit or, more usually, an overall loss. However, all winnings are effectively 'clean,' since they are received in the form of cheques, payable either to the individual or to third parties. Betting exchanges also provide an opportunity to launder money. The customer can set up two accounts, bet against him or herself and receive a bona fide cheque from the betting exchange provider for the payout of the winnings."
- Passage taken from the British National Audit Office's recent report, "HM Customs and Excise: Gambling Duties."
Problem Gambling -- The Guardian reports that gambling charity GamCare will next month release its annual "Care Services Report," which this year links a rising number of calls to its helpline to the spread of fixed-odds betting terminals in British betting shops. Gamcare's report also supposedly contradicts a recent report by the Association of British Bookmakers which concluded that there was "no evidence that [roulette machines] are closely associated with problem gambling."