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Internet gambling may have brought casinos closer to home - practically to your living room. But mobile gaming will allow you to take the casino with you to wherever you go. Although much talked about and apparently in development for over a year, mobile betting is just about upon us. The product is now ready and about to be launched by Australian online gambling group Centrebet International. The development was a joint project with UK mobile technology provider Mfuse. It will be based on the Orbis OpenBet wagering platform. The advantage is, mainly, for sports betting. Events that are time sensitive, like horse races or soccer matches, will be available to bet on, without having to stay at home or by a computer to do so. With all due respect, online casino games can always wait an hour, perhaps two or three hours too, before making the time to play. Indeed, the service was tested during Australia's Spring Racing Festival, only recently over. It is said to have performed well. The implications for gamblers aside, the companies involved have stated they expect the new site to broaden its customer base and increase betting turnover "as a result of the product's portability and accessibility and also as a flow-on from increased acceptance by consumers of other java-based mobile products," Managing Director for Centrebet, Con Kafataris said. Action. In real-time. On the go. That's a call you just have to take.
Kahnawake, otherwise a quiet First Nation enclave in Canada, is widely familiar among online gamblers and the industry at large. The residing tribe operates sophisticated Internet hosting facilities, through which 60% of the world's online gambling traffic runs through them. The local Mohawk tribe has been hosting hundreds of online gambling sites. But what was given, now seems threatened and might be taken away. Reports from late last week claim the Quebec provincial government is pursuing a case against the tribe and the casinos it hosts. Operators of one of the most famous casinos based in Kahnawake, Golden Palace.com, have pleaded guilty in Quebec to charges of illegal gambling. Cyber World Group, its owner, pleaded guilty to charges of illegal gambling and agreed to a $2 million fine. The case challenges the tribe's right to grant gaming licenses to companies that operate on its servers, preferring the Canadian Criminal Code, which is the sole authority allowed to grant licenses by law. In court, not only will the fate of the specific casino be discussed, but the principal according to which the Kahnawake Gaming Commission has awarded 443 permits without any provincial interference in the past. This right is protected, they claim, under traditional native rights enshrined in section 35 of the Canadian Constitution. The provincial and federal Canadian governments on the other hand is showing signs of cracking on online gambling. Whether it will succeed is anyone's guess. The issue has never before been settled in court, leaving what is referred to as a grey area. It might not stay grey for long.
The world's largest betting company, Betfair, has earned its fair share of publicity recently with the tennis match-fixing scandal. The company has voided all bets, which accumulated to $7 million, during a match between top Russian player Nikolay Davydenko and 87th-ranked Martin Vassallo Argüello of Argentina. It was concerned that the wagers, favoring the lower seed Argentine, were part of illegal activity. Davydenko suspiciously quit in the third set citing an injury. Betfair has an obligation to the sports it offers bets on, responsibility that comes with its 90% market share. Betfair and other betting exchanges stand to lose their entire business would the sports become open to outside influences, other than clear and objective athletic factors. Yet, betting exchanges are a sensible means for criminal elements to fix sporting events. Massive bets can be placed anonymously over the web, instead of placed with a bookie at daylight. On Betfair you can offer odds to other bettors, i.e. if you have inside information you can offer comfortable odds against your side and let people think they are getting a good deal. Betfair confronts such threats of match fixing by maintaining an open policy and sharing its detailed records with professional sports organizations and governments in questionable or suspicious cases. It was the betting exchange itself that traced the suspect betting patterns on the tennis game and voided the bets on its own discretion. So the question whether Betfair is fair or not, remains open. It is in the gamblers' best interest, as well as in the company's interest, to keep it clean. We'll let its track record will have to speak for itself.
David Carruthers was born in 1957 in Edinburgh, Scotland. He served as CEO and board member of the British online gambling company, BetOnSports, which was one of the biggest players in the US market. A Career in Gambling After Art college, in 1976, Carruthers joined Ladbrokes Plc, the UK's largest retail bookmaker. At the age of 19 he became the youngest betting shop manager and remained with the company for 24 years, managing as many as 40 high street betting shops. Carruthers served as CEO from July 2000. It was a privately held company at the time, and listed on the London AIM stock market during his term as CEO. He was arrested on July 16, 2006 and ended his term as CEO shortly after, on July 24. He has since been under house arrest at a hotel in St. Louis as he awaits his trial. His term was largely successful, as BetOnSports led the industry at large to growth and mainstream success. Between 1999 and 2004, the group generated a 276% increase in turnover. In a report released prior to his arrest, the company said it handled $1.77 billion worth of bets during the fiscal year that ended in 2006. The Arrest Carruthers was arrested at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in Texas on a Sunday, July 16, 2006, as he was changing planes, traveling with his wife Carol from the company's Annual General Meeting in the UK to Costa Rica, where he lived and where the company had its operations based. Ironically, Carruthers told shareholders at the General Meeting, only two days before his arrest, that the chances of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement being passed are 'remote'. The Charges Carruthers was arrested on charges filed in Missouri concerning his company accepting wagers from US citizens. Carruthers himself is not an American citizen. The indictment was handed down against 12 defendants. It includes 22 counts, of which Carruthers is the only defendant charged with the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, aka the RICO charge. Other charges include: Mail Fraud, Transmission of Wagers/Wagering Information, Interstate Transportation of Gambling Paraphernalia, and Interference with Administration of Internal Revenue Laws But in the end, it is widely speculated that his arrest was politically motivated, the Department of Justice flexing their muscle and pro-online gambling industry insiders being targeted. In Limbo Carruthers resides in a hotel in St. Louis area, is allowed to leave a few hours a day and is monitored 24 hours a day. Hotel expenses are not covered by the US, but cheaper options, such as renting an apartment, is impossible since his passport has been confiscated. At least he is free, not behind prison bars, like BetOnSports founder, Gary Kaplan, labeled a "flight risk" by authorities. As the trial keeps being put off, Carruthers remains under house arrest. The online gambling industry has largely recovered from the traumatic effects that followed the arrest and the passing of the bill in October 2006, though the US market has left the field and companies no longer target the North American market. Even activity on the FreeDavidCarruthers.com is slow.
The tenth Internet Gambling Report (IGR) was published this week and is now available. This end of year tradition is composed by industry analysts and serves the community with business and legal information. Forty one authors and analysts write up a review of the various aspects of online gambling. The Report, from Clarion Gaming, was founded by gaming lawyer Anthony Cabot and is edited by Mark Balestra. The Report serves as a legal guide, a business report and a periodical report for all involved in the industry, from site owners and operators, through technology specialists and all the way to the gamblers themselves. The IGR offers commentary and analysis on the past year's hottest stories including the positive approach by the UK government in regulating the industry; the US ban, contested by Antigua in the WTO court; inter-state conflicts and developments within Europe; and the greater reach across Asia and the rest of the world. Other topics include the intellectual property issues and the industry's solutions to age verification, 25 chapters in total. The IGR is a 661 pages long standard for the state of gambling on the web.
Spam has haunted the Internet for years. It continues to harass users today. Children are one potential victim group that may be exposed to inappropriate ads, not merely content that is a nuisance. Having been kept outside the mainstream advertising world, online gambling companies had to resort to alternative means to get their brands and services out. On these media, including social networks such as MySpace and Bebo, have a large number of underage members. There, children 7 to 16 years old might be exposed to such content as dating services, nudity and gambling. It poses a classic dilemma: keep an industry out of the mainstream and end up with children exposed to the alternative advertising strategies or embrace the industry and regulate it to avoid such harmful side-effects. A study released by the National Consumer Council in the UK shows that 25 percent of ads on websites popular with children were actually aimed at adults. The conclusion of the study solicitors and our own is better regulation of these sites. We add another conclusion, namely that of allowing online gambling companies to advertise like any other legit industry. As a matter of fact, the study was conducted prior to the Gambling Act taking force in the UK in September. These rules and regulations have changed the world of online gambling, allowing it a foothold in the mainstream market and monitoring its activity according to strict and clear laws. Now, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) says, "only permitted advertisers can advertise in the UK."
Players of two online casinos have noticed recently that they are re-directed from their desired destinations to a third. Trying to visit Trident Lounge and Vegas USA, both from the dent Entertainment online casino group, has resulted in arriving at King Neptune's Casino. Players have started inquiring about the practice, and soon after a memo was released that explained the matter. The official memo, released by Carmen Media, confirmed the merger, and explained both brands will be consolidated into the third, flagship brand. The two casinos no longer accept new players. Existing players have complained about the move. Many would have preferred being transferred, accounts and all, to the new brand and the old brands to have shut down. Instead they remain neither here nor there, stuck with a slowly dying brand. Players have also complained about the late notice' the memo was released only after their inquiries on the matter. Affiliates, in the meantime, were assured they will receive the same compensation for directing players to any of the sites. Explaining the merger, the memo states that Neptune will be the focus of their marketing efforts to bring it to the forefront of the competition and "become a recognized force in the marketplace."
The overlap between comic super heroes and online gambling is obvious. The excitement, entertainment and amazing adventures are common to both. Online casino company CryptoLogic, through its subsidiary WagerLogic, has introduced several more of Marvel's super heroes - Spiderman and Fantastic Four. The slots games featuring these figures give players a fun platform for their gaming experience. In the Spiderman slot game, the players will find themselves fighting Venom and saving Mary Jane in New York City. In the Fantastic Four addition to CryptoLogic's slots games, players watch Mr. Fantastic, Invisible Woman, the Human Torch and the Thing take on Dr. Doom. The company already features exciting comic super heroes including the Hulk, Blade, X-Men and Ghost Rider. These, among other features, have earned the company several industry awards in past years. With the ties between Marvel and CryptoLogic growing ever tighter, what's next? Spiderman playing online casino games in his comics? We wouldn't put it past him...
Antigua and Barbuda General attorney Mark Mendel ahead of the ruling told Reuters We feel pretty confident about our case, to be honest. We really feel like we have the upper hand here. In 2005 the World Trade Organization ruled that only US based companies could provide online horse racing gambling services. This Antigua say discriminates heavily against them. The US argue that as a result of this loss of earnings they should be entitled to a mere $500,000. Antigua came to rely heavily on its income from gambling after their tourist industry started flagging. They are now asking the US for permission to have other trade bans removed. For instance they'd like to have copyright protection from US music and films taken away to be able to sell to this market as well as to other areas of the world. This in fact is what they are asking of the US in the ruling, in the form of a cross retaliation of $3.44 billion. Mendel said: I think we provided plenty of proof to justify our figure ... We feel pretty confident it should be a high number, I think there is no doubt that were going to get the ability to cross-retaliate. Since the enforcement of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act the US have made it illegal for financial institutions to pay money into gambling sites. Bush further stoked the fire by backing out of World Trade gaming agreements he had committed to in 1994. This has so angered the European countries that have been locked out of the lucrative US gambling market, that they have urged the EU to go for a staggering $100 billion in compensation. The outcome of Antiguas case is a key one, not only for the huge amount of money at stake, but also could shape the Americans future gambling laws in relation to the rest of the world.
The report states that if the size of the scam is accurate, then this is the biggest scale casino fraud ever seen. Five executives at Macau casinos were questioned in a survey on how big they anticipated the scale of the problem. The average of their answers represents 78% of the casinos entire VIP gambling business. The scam involves both the High Roller and the Junket Agent. The Junket Agent is the person responsible for getting the gambler in the casino and actioning their bets. Side betting, the scam in question, is a form of unreported or secret betting. The high roller will make official bets in the casino and at the same time unreported bets on the side which the junket agent will action. This saves the 40% tax rate on the casinos revenue and brings in higher winnings to the gambler. It also means that local taxpayers are footing the bill. David Green, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers in Macau said "A high tax rate will always provide an incentive for some operators to take revenue 'off the table'". "Side betting is notoriously difficult to detect; I suspect it affects all casino jurisdictions with VIP operations. It should be recognised for what it is: a financial crime." Macau as a gambling destination has attracted many Las Vegas casino operators. In terms of revenue it has now overtaken Las Vegas, although this is largely due to the mafia bosses that operate in the area. All being said most people that go to Macau for the casinos would consider it a gaming haven.
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