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Apparently, the company hopes to benefit from the country's high-speed Internet penetration, which is the highest in the world. Xbox Live, which allows several gamers to play together via the Internet, provides Microsoft a chance to take on rival Sony Corp. and its hugely successful Playstation 2. Xbox Live is already available in the United States, Japan and some European countries. Microsoft's announcement comes a week after the International Telecommunication Union said, that up to 70 percent of all South Korean households have high-speed broadband connections. The U.N. agency also said that cybercafes where students play online games are widely prevalent. More than 10 million of the world's 63 million high-speed users are in South Korea alone, a rate of 21.3 broadband subscribers per 100 inhabitants. Hong Kong is in the second place with 14.9 percent and Canada is in the third with 11.2 percent. Koreans also widely use the Internet to play Playstation 2, which can be hooked on to the Web. Xbox, the predecessor of Xbox Live, failed to do well in South Korea, mainly because of a lack of Korean language game titles and ignorance of local customers' demands. Yonhap news agency quoted industry figures as showing only 30,000 to 40,000 Xbox units sold so far compared with PlayStation 2's 300,000 to 400,000 units. Microsoft's Korean unit declined to confirm the statistics.
"This has left me feeling bitter and distressed... but not surprised, because, unhappily, governments have become dependent upon gambling revenues," said Claude Bilodeau, a reformed gambling addict and founder of two gambling treatment centers. About 90 per cent of pathological gamblers in Quebec treatment programs used electronic gambling devices - VLTs or casino slot machines - said Serge Chevalier, a sociologist and addiction specialist with the Institut national de sant'ublic du Qu'c. Public health workers "are very disappointed in this lost opportunity" to fight problem gambling, Chevalier said. "We were hoping that health concerns would be more in the forefront of the decision-making process... This announcement is not an example of that." Loto-Qu'c recently announced its revamped, government approved policy on VLTs. It will maintain a network of 14,300 machines and cut, from 26 per cent to 21 per cent, the commission to the bar owners who operate the machines. Bar owners could take a "buyout" worth one year's commission. The former PQ finance minister Pauline Marois ordered Loto-Quebec to maintain revenues but reduce problem gambling. In 2002, the former head of Loto-Quebec, Gaétan Frigon, proposed a major "turnaround" for the agency that included cutting back on VLTs, notably reducing the number of sites that offer them. "The Frigon plan was never adopted by the government of Quebec," Cathy Rouleau, a spokesperson for the Quebec Health Department, said yesterday, adding her government has set up an inter-departmental committee to promote "a real debate" about gambling. MNA Russ Williams, who sits on that committee and who, in opposition was a harsh critic of Loto-Quebec, referred reporters to Rouleau. Gambling critic Sol Boxenbaum, who often worked with Williams, said he raised his concerns about gambling addictions with Jean Charest during the election campaign. "He said he knew about the problem and said it 'is going to be one of my priorities if I'm elected.' And he just isn't doing that," Boxenbaum said.
Over the centuries, gambling has always been a source of making quick money for some, and losing savings for others. In the United States alone, gambling rolls in an estimated amount of 40 billion dollars a year, more than the movie and music industries combined. With the making of the world wide web, internet gambling, too, has become a slowly rising sleeping giant. Although the internet gambling industry makes an estimated 600-800 million dollars a year, experts predict that the gambling turnover on the internet will soon surpass the billion dollar mark. In the US, internet gambling is illegal, but due to the vast influx of online gamblers, it has been impossible to enforce this law. Casino website operators bypass the law by creating their websites via countries in which gambling is legal, for example, the Caribbean. Thus, due to the global use of the internet, any citizen with a dial-up connection can gamble away. Authorities in the US attempt to combat the problem in several different ways. One way is be trying to pass a law in Congress the enables legal action to be taken not only against the online casino operators but also against the gamblers themselves. The US Federal Justice Department announced that no such action will be taken given that it stands in contradiction with the rights of the Constitution. Casino operators often have difficulties in collecting their earnings since users are able to stop their credit card payments by claiming that the industry is illegal to begin with. Despite these obstacles, there is no doubt that internet gambling is on the rise, and that the industry will continue to blossom.
Being that gambling is a significant source of development to any region, legalizing gambling in Israel would have certain affects, both positive, and negative, on the country. The current status of gambling in Israel is that it is illegal but there are attempts to present a case for legalizing gambling, and hypothetically of having a casino in Eilat. The social and economic impacts of having a casino in Israel are investigated, as well as the forecasted financial performances of the establishment. Finally, after reaching the conclusion that there is good reason to further investigate the topic, suggestions are made to policy makers and investors that would be involved making a casino in Israel a reality. The State of Israel is interesting in that although it has so many characteristics of a western country, it has no separation of religion and state. Therefore, the religious groups in Israel, that have always played a significant role in the Knesset, and who are fundamentally opposed to gambling, have been able to completely block any discussions on the subject. However, the growing popularity of gambling worldwide, and the fact that Israelis will travel abroad just in order to gamble, spending a lot of money in the process, and spend a lot of Israeli money to different country presents the case that it might just be a worthy economic venture for Israel to have a casino of its own. Thus, the money spent abroad will flourish within Israel's own economy. Also, legalizing gambling would considerably cut down, if not eradicate illegal gambling establishments in the country. In turn, it would also reduce the crime levels, and related felonies associated with these illegal establishments.
Some of Nevada casino officials, slot machine manufacturers and state regulators are puzzling over California Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger's stance on Indian gambling and the potential impact on the gambling industry in general. Bill Bible heads the Nevada Resort Association. He says some see Schwarzenegger's election as an opportunity, but some see it as a threat. Dennis Neilander chairs the state Gaming Control Board. He figures Schwarzenegger will start with an assessment of Indian gambling and the numbers of slot machines they should be allowed. Schwarzenegger's campaign statements on gambling reflect a harsher attitude toward the tribes than that of recalled Governor Gray Davis. But MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman cautions that the comments were campaign material and, "not a policy edict by a sitting governor.' He says the best strategy for Nevada is to wait and see what Schwarzenegger does once he's in office.
The leading European markets for online gaming are Germany and France. In the UK, Europe's second largest online market, only 1.1 million people are gaming online. The Netherlands outstrips even the US in terms of gaming penetration. What has driven this surge in online gaming? "Partly it's been an improvement in gaming technology", says Internet Analyst Tom Ewing. "The sector as a whole has been strengthened by the sales of current gaming consoles, which include broadband and online gaming in their development plans. Events like the forthcoming launch of X-Box Live in Europe, for instance, act to establish the concept of online gaming. There's a knock-on effect beyond specific brands." But the key factor driving the penetration of online gaming in Europe is probably the uptake of broadband connections over the last year. "What we've seen is a big rise in broadband take-up, and online gaming is one of the sectors these high-speed connections are best suited for. It's notable that France and the Netherlands two of the top three markets in terms of broadband penetration are also so prominent in online gaming terms. The growth of online gaming is the first sign that the long-awaited European broadband boom may actually be here." The financial attractions of online gaming are also apparent: The amount of time surfers spend online can be very high. In the Netherlands, for instance, the average visitor to online gaming sites spends over 2 hours a month on them. Compared to other categories such as News and Information sites, which attract surfers for just 13 minutes per month, online gaming sites are good value for advertisers. Online games are by definition Internet-only content, and so should make the transition to a subscription-based business model more easily' says Ewing. In terms of the audience profile, men are over-represented, with on average 2.5 times as many men as woman visiting online gaming sites. The Netherlands is an exception, with only slightly less women than men, which suggests that as online gaming becomes more established in a market, gender differences start to break down. In terms of age groups, the sites have the most appeal for 12-24 year olds, who are around twice as likely as other age ranges to play games online. But older surfers are far from absent, especially in more established markets. In France, for instance, 13% of all surfers aged 35+ visit an online gaming site.
Juliano, identified by state prosecutors as a capo in the Gambino crime family, pleaded guilty in April to attempted enterprise corruption and to the lesser charges of promoting gambling, conspiracy and presenting a false record for filing. Albany County Court Judge Thomas Breslin sentenced Juliano to 1 1/2 to 4 1/2 years in prison. As part of the sentence, Juliano will forfeit $578,000, part of which will go to pay taxes he owes, said Mark Fitzmaurice of the state Attorney General's Organized Crime Unit. Louise "Momma" Mancuso, who authorities said was the manager of the operation, was also scheduled to be sentenced Friday. Her sentencing was adjourned for six months, because she is being treated for cancer. She faces up to a year in prison on a gambling charge. Juliano had no comment. Before leaving the courtroom he stopped and kissed two younger men who Fitzmaurice identified as his sons. Juliano, Mancuso and 12 others were arrested Jan. 28 at their Staten Island and Brooklyn homes and arraigned in Albany after a two-year investigation. The probe, which used phone taps, ended in 2001. All those arrested faced tax-fraud and gambling counts. According to investigators, about 90 "runners" took bets based on state lottery daily numbers and racetrack handle totals, and the operation allegedly netted about $3 million annually before closing down more than a year ago. Four of those people, all considered middle managers, pleaded guilty last month to reduced charges, with three expected to get a year in jail, the fourth up to six months, court officials said. Eight men considered runners pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts and were each fined $1,000. Fitzmaurice said Juliano's brother, Richard, who ran the sports betting side of the operation, is scheduled for sentencing Oct. 30 in Albany.
Gambling opponents believe the risk of increased crime, bankruptcy, gambling addiction and family stresses would outweigh the benefits a casino can bring. Citizens, in a Nov. 4 referendum, will decide whether the casino is a go. In the five years since Caesars opened, it has paid more than $100 million in direct taxes to Harrison County. The county shares 16 percent of its riverboat funds with Crawford, Floyd and Washington counties (which border Harrison) and with local municipalities. A document prepared for the Indiana Gaming Commission to review in considering Caesars five-year license renewal reports an amount of $15,687,868 was distributed to the adjoining counties. In addition to the 16 percent, another 2 percent of the funds each year are divided among the towns in Harrison County for infrastructure. A portion of the Caesars tax money that is kept in Harrison County is dedicated to education. In remarks made to school board members in Orange County earlier this year, North Harrison schools superintendent Monte Schneider said 17 percent of casino money is earmarked to education in the county, where there are three public school systems. The money is funneled through the county government. Orange County officials also decided to help school systems cut their debt service funds. Also, Schneider said his school system has received about $314,000 in scholarships. In addition to the local taxes Caesars has paid, another $49 million in voluntary contributions from the gambling site has benefited Harrison and Floyd counties. That includes about $35 million paid to community foundations in the two counties. The five-year, license-renewal document reports that through June 30, the Harrison County Community Foundation had distributed $5,286,027 while the Caesars Riverboat Casino Foundation, Inc. had distributed $1,727,448. While the numbers illustrate Caesar's spending in five years, not everyone is convinced the gambling site is an asset to the county. One of the more outspoken critics has been Earl Becker, 54, of Elizabeth whose opposition to the construction of Caesars focused largely on where it was built. Becker maintains the chosen site, a flood-plain area known as Bridgeport, was not as suitable as a location farther west on the Ohio River at Mauckport. The Mauckport site, Becker said, had a lot of superiority as a project site, and there are a lot of environmental negatives associated with Bridgeport. Becker also suggested a casino does not create wealth, but redistributes it.
Police commandos tracked down the Ukranian-registered vessel using helicopters and speed boats after a tip-off to Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's office and a month-long investigation. About $US250,000 in cash and $US50,000 in chips were seized, while the 58 people arrested have been charged with illegal gambling. The AFP news agency says the boat had been leaving from Samut Prakan pier just outside Bangkok for weekend jaunts to international waters to escape Thailand's strict gambling laws.
The 14 dockside gambling venues, Harrah's New Orleans Casino and slot machine parlours at racetracks won $150.3 million last month, compared with $157.4 million in September 2002, state police reported Tuesday. The latest figures indicated a continuing trend: the opening of new casinos does not increase the overall gambling take. The Shreveport-Bossier City market, which includes five riverboats and the Louisiana Downs, won $60.3 million in September, down nearly 12 percent from $64.1 million in September 2002. A year ago, the slot s venue at Louisiana Downs had not opened. That outlet won $3.7 million last month. The Lake Charles market, consisting of the Delta Downs casino and a pair of two-boat complexes, tallied $32.5 million, down from $34.1 million a year ago. Delta Downs, which has sharply cut the riverboat take in that market since opening in February 2002, won $10.1 million last month, compared with $9.7 million in September 2002. The New Orleans market, consisting of three riverboats and Harrah's downtown casino, won $43.7 million last month, up slightly from $42 million in September 2002. Harrah's won $20.9 million last month, compared with $20.8 million a year ago. The two riverboat casinos in Baton Rouge won $13.8 million last month, down slightly from $14.1 million in September 2002.
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