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Renee of Rewards Affiliates tells us in this exclusive interview about her company, awards she has won, and recent jackpot winnings. Rewards Affiliates operates 18 casinos and 5 poker rooms, making it perhaps the largest Microgaming operator around, certainly the largest in Australia, where she is baed. The affiliate program manager has actually won an award earlier this year, at CAP Euro London, for Best Affiliate Manage. Rewards Affiliates has also won an award for Best Casino Affiliate Program Award at the event. Since then, it has set another record, by awarding one of the largest jackpots in memory, of $5.5 million, handed out on the Blackjack Ballroom gaming site, to a Finnish player at Mega Moolah.
If it ain't broken, don't fix it, the old saying goes. John Lancelet and Ondrej Tuma from Slotland believe this applies to their classy and dependable online casino. At CAP Euro Barcelona we had the chance to talk with the affiliate and development managers of Slotland, who were about to celebrate their brand's 10 year birthday. In the interview they tell us about their more familiar aspects, including the jackpots concept that calls for frequent winnings albeit of lower sums, as well as their more innovative and fresh concepts, such as iPhone friendly casino, financing of a school in Malawi, and more.
Barack Obama's increasing lead in the polls just two weeks out from the 2008 US presidential election is being mirrored by his shortening odds in the race for the US presidency. Obama is now a stunning 1/10 favorite (Ladbrokes), making the task for his opponent John McCain, 11/2, seem nigh on impossible. So strong is Obama's lead that his odds of winning over 370 of the 538 Electoral College votes on offer have narrowed to 15/8. The odds on him winning by the narrowest of margins, 270 to 289 votes, are at 12/1, which incidentally is the same chance McCain is given of winning by that slim margin. Betting options In an effort to keep things interesting, Ladbrokes online is offering some new types of betting, including the McCain Firewall Finder. In this category, a list of 27 states is given in a specific order, with odds next to each state beginning with the key battleground states of Iowa, Michigan and Pennsylvania. The guideline is to see how far down the list you go until finding a state McCain wins in the election (e.g. if McCain loses Iowa and Michigan but wins Pennsylvania, then Pennsylvania will be the winner). The shortest odds are on Indiana, 14th on the list, at 7/1. Betting is still available on several key states, although as expected Obama is a raging favorite in most of them. North Carolina (Obama 4/7, McCain 5/4), and West Virginia (Obama 8/11, McCain evens) are expected to go right down to the wire.
Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal, the former Las Vegas kingpin and inspiration for Robert de Niro's character in the 1995 film Casino, died last Monday, aged 79. Rosenthal died of a heart attack in his Miami Beach condo, a Fire-rescue spokesperson said. The former Chicago bookmaker, who Sports Illustrated named "the greatest living expert on sports gambling", ran four Las Vegas casinos in the 1970s and 1980s - the Stardust, Fremont, Hacienda and Marina. He is widely credited with bringing sports betting to Las Vegas during that period. However, he was later barred from casinos because of his alleged mafia ties. Mob stories "Lefty" grew up in Chicago, where he honed his skills through illegal bookmaking operations. He received his nickname after appearing before a Senate investigation into gambling an organized crime in which he invoked 5th Amendment protection against self-incrimination 37 times, and refused to answer even simple questions such as whether he was left-handed. Rosenthal moved to Las Vegas in 1968, where he was a member of staff at the Stardust Hotel and Casino In 1974 he was placed in control of the Stardust and three other casinos owned by the Argent Corporation, by the Mafiosi who controlled the pension fund for the Teamsters union, which had financed Argent's purchase of the Stardust. In 1982, "Lefty's" career in Vegas ended when a car bomb almost took his life. He retired to Miami, where he lived until his death on Monday.
Build up Argentineans are about to face the wrath of the authorities regarding all forms of online gambling. The long-arm of the law has decided to put an end to all untaxed, unregistered online gambling activity. The latest unpopular bill to be proposed would effectively eliminate all online gambling. Councilor Luis Alberto Mauri wants all gambling Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block Argentineans from accessing their websites. This is going to prove an unenviable challenge, given the country’s love of gambling activity. Greater Control Lawmakers are quick to point out that they are all for regulated and taxable gambling activity, but not for the unregulated version. The targets of the new bill include: casino games, sports betting, poker and bingo. This is the only way for government to get a slice of the action, so they think. The bill does not punish gamblers but imposes punitive measures on Internet casinos and gaming sites. However it must be born in mind that if increased revenues are desired, then regulation not prohibition is the answer. The two bills The first Bill basically called all forms of online gambling illegal – although what qualifies as ‘online gambling’ is still uncertain. The second bill places the onus on ISPs to prohibit citizens from accessing online gambling sites as well as listing the aforementioned gambling activities as illegal. Penalties for violation of these terms, if the bill is successful in passing, may result in fines or imprisonment. Now ISP will be in the position of blocking those sites that are online gambling sites. Amidst the controversy, citizens are calling for the widespread regulation of the industry, not it’s foreclosure.
It's the biggest news since Barney Frank introduced the PSPA, but this time the news is bleak for residents of the State of Kentucky. Governor Steve Beshear, a noted opponent of 'illegal' online gambling activities has met fearsome resistance from multiple gambling bodies. What was intended to be a quick state seizure of 141 gambling domains has turned into a potential nightmare that will be the governor's legacy. Judge Thomas Wingate has refused to back down on the issue and now the Online Casino Advisory - a prominent gambling news site - has issued calls for a boycott of all gambling in Kentucky. It's not just any call for a boycott, it's a boycott of everything gambling related that produces Kentucky tax revenue. Crisis approaching The Casino Advisory wants to hurt the state's income stream and to do this they are calling for residents of Kentucky to make their cigarettes, alcohol and groceries purchases across state lines. They want to apply significant pressure on the governor's office to overturn what they consider a witch-hunt against online gambling. The problem is in the perceived duplicity of Beshear's office. If they are against gambling because of its harmful effects on children then why are they targeting only online gambling? It appears the only reasons are because online gambling doesn't yield tax revenues and it competes with lucrative horse racing. With punters able to place wagers on horse racing through the Churchill Downs' online portal, it appears somewhat misplaced of Beshear to trumpet the 'anti-gambling' card. It is felt by many that the Kentucky legislature is infringing on the rights of its residents and of free trade. Perhaps it's the political muscle of an entrenched horse-racing industry that's weighing hard on the governor's mind.
Advocate Peter Wilson of Blake Lapthorn law firm delivered a timely and much needed legal update at CAP Euro Barcelona. With affiliates and operators from across Europe and the rest of the world present, and plenty of "legal" buzz in the background, all participant wanted to learn was where they stand. The first part of the lecture was dedicated to the legal situation in Europe, i.e. the 27 countries who make up the European Union. Wilson touched on Article 49 which assures services are offered freely across country borders.
One of the largest mergers in online gaming and sports betting history took place this week, with the joining together of the affiliate programs of William Hill, CPays and Webroute Affiliates, to pave the way for a new group - Affiliate Guarantees. In an email sent out just hours after the merger, William Hill Online CEO Henry Birch outlined several changes that the new group expects should be fully integrated by the end of 2009, including an assurance that "you will continue to receive lifetime revenue share or CPAs on all your existing and new players referred, no matter which affiliate program you are with." Other changes outlined Being able to promote casinos, poker, bingo, sportsbook, games and skill games all using the same affiliate program. Players will be using some of the best software and systems in the market such as Playtech Casino, I-Poker, Virtue Fusion and Playtech Bingo and the Orbis sports betting platform. A true global reach using one affiliate program with a large presence in all major markets except for the USA. Major bookmaker The British bookmaker William Hill has gone from strength-to-strength since opening its doors in 1934. Since branching out into online casino operations, the company has become one of the biggest in its field, with a total revenue in 2007 of 940 million pounds (around $2 billion).
Casino affiliates from all around the world traveled to Barcelona in September to meet, do business, listen to lectures and have some fun at the CAP Euro event held in the Catalan city. CAP organizers have taken the opportunity to hold some panels in Spanish for the local affiliates as well. One industry insider who attended the conference was Frank Tornatore. We got hold of Frank for an interview, the highlights of which we bring you here. Watch Frank as he tells us about his vision for a world of business opportunities, namely as the online gambling selection expands in the Spanish language.
This week's online gambling news brought to you by OCR Live! Google Ads Online giant, Google has reversed its previous policy by permitting online gambling operators to advertise on Google UK. Any licensed gambling provider from the EU will be able to advertise on the search engine from this week. Pajama Gamblers According to a new study, Pyjama Gamblers are the ones to watch out for. Apparently, players who gamble from home tend to play for longer amounts of time yet feel totally in control owing to the fact that emotions are less intense online. Jamie Gold spoke to us at CAP Euro about his own pyjama gambling habits. Giant Jackpots It was a home win for Kiwi plasterer, Daniel Craker who beat over 300 opponents to win the biggest poker tournament ever to be held in New Zealand. He won his entry via a satellite tournament and walked away with over $200,000 New Zealand dollars.
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