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PartyPartners.com, the affiliate program representing several leading online poker rooms and online casinos in the PartyGaming plc group, has just been awarded an eCOGRA Affiliate Trust Seal after successfully passing on-site inspections and audits of its business systems. eCOGRA is a non-profit organisation that sets out online gambling standards to protect players and push fair and responsible gambling. PartyPartners can now display the eCOGRA Affiliate Trust Seal on its site signaling to players that it observes best practice operational standards of fairness and efficiency when dealing with affiliate marketers and is independently reviewed on a regular basis. Online Casino Report has also passed rigorous testing to be recognized by eCOGRA as a Reputable Portal and proudly features the Reputable Portal Seal.
Harrahs, the world's largest provider of branded casino entertainment, has announced that it has taken over management of Planet Hollywood's Las Vegas hotel. The casino operator, which owns over fifty casinos across four continents, trades under well known names such as Harrah's, Caesars and Horseshoe. It also owns The World Series of Poker. Prime Location Harrah's have been eying up Planet Hollywood since September when the previous owners, Sheraton Operating Corp., defaulted on a $860 million loan. The 2,500 room hotel is in a prime Las Vegas Strip location, next door to one of Harrah's properties, Paris Las Vegas. The takeover does not include operation of the hotel casino at this time, but this is likely their next step. Harrah's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gary Loveman said "We continue to work on a plan that would allow Harrah's to own and manage the entire casino-resort property. In the meantime, we are pleased to take on the management of the Planet Hollywood hotel for the current owners." Industry at a Crossroads With movement afoot across many US states to set in motion legislation to legalize intra-state online gambling, Harrah's newest acquisition builds on their brand and local standing. The growth of individual operators has strategic importance, with the casino industry currently standing at a crossroads which many believe will ultimately result in gambling regulation across the US. The countdown seems to be on for Harrah's to eventually take over the Planet Hollywood casino and they would surely be hot favorites to bid for any online licenses that might transpire in the future.
Independent player protection organization eCOGRA has been appointed to oversee a new compliance program for the Canada-based Kahnawake Gaming Commission, it was announced Monday. The commission, which is based in the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake just outside Montreal, launched the compliance program to inspect and monitor up to 55 online gambling operators it licenses. Announcing the agreement, commission chairman Dean Montour said he was pleased that the licensees had shown such a strong commitment to the compliance system, which he added exceeded international best practice standards. Montour also praised eCOGRA, saying: "The KGC has a long-standing working relationship with eCOGRA and is confident in eCOGRA's ability to effectively implement the Continuous Compliance Program while ensuring that all information received from operators is held in the strictest confidence." London-based eCOGRA currently reviews more than 140 gaming websites and their associated software suppliers and operators. The organization is staffed mostly by chartered accountants from the world's biggest audit firms.
Bingo.com Ltd (OTCBB: BNGOF) has announced a new partnership with software provider Cozy Games. The popular bingo and slots site has over 1,990,000 registered users but although already a US market leader, Bingo.com's strategic plan is to expand into a global brand. Striding Out into the UK Market Their international player base is growing and the bingo room is looking to continually improve and position itself as a preferred site, even in crowded markets, such as the UK bingo market. Tarrnie Williams, Bingo.com's CEO, commented, "When we entered the UK market we had to start again from scratch after leading the US market in online bingo. Our plan was to acquire as many players as possible in a cost effective manner utilizing the strength of the Bingo.com URL and a generous bonus structure. We believe we have achieved that task, having registered over 600,000 non- North American players - all of which was accomplished in a highly competitive market and in a challenging economic climate." 2010's Targets Having spent time, resources and considerable effort on building up their player base, Bingo.com are making changes in 2010 that will not only enhance their site but also aims to increase their revenue. Says Williams, "We believe Bingo.com is well positioned to capitalize on the next phase of our plan in the high growth and high value online bingo marketplace." More Games, More Chat In addition to their partnership with Cozy Games that will provide an "improved bingo product, the addition of over 30 new slots games (and) the upcoming availability of our games over smart phones." Bingo.com also have plans to enhance their interactivity. Aside from their Facebook page and Twitter, plans are afoot for a new social networking system to be integrated within the Cozy Games platform. 2010 seems to be a year of transition for bingo.com and their new partnership with Cozy Games is set to see their popular bingo site crank up the heat with some great new games and features.
This week sees a sports wagering bill being considered by Atlantic City lawmakers which could result in New Jersey being approved as the first US state to legalize internet gambling. There is currently a race to see which state will be approved as first to offer legal gambling favorites such as poker, blackjack, crap, roulette and slots. Pennsylvania and California are currently chasing hot on the heels of Atlantic City with their own bills planned. A Bold Move Part of the reasoning behind the bill is the law not reflecting the facts on the ground. According to statistics there are currently 500,000 online poker players in the state of New Jersey. State Senator Raymond Lesniak (D-Union) points out that "we're missing out on around $100 million in revenue". He added, "It would be a big boost to the casino industry in Atlantic City. It's a bold move, and in this economy we need bold moves." The bill sets up an annual tax on gross revenue from online casinos of 20% and would certainly see the tax coffers swell. Intra-State Gambling There would be no additional casinos planned for New Jersey, the State's existing land-based casinos, all located in Atlantic City, would be given the green light to open up online casinos for local residents. The bill has been created following on from a recent federal court of appeals decision which stated that online gambling must be restricted within the borders of a state. Pros and Cons Although the bill is being welcomed by local gamblers and some governing figures, it has many opponents who are nervous about a potential increase in compulsive gambling. Others argue that local regulation would provide increased protection for local online gamblers. Any future intra-state online casinos would be regulated by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission who would open a new online division to oversee licensing and operations. Seeking Normalization In a statement Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association Chairman (iMEGA) chairman Joe Brennan Jr commented, "We're happy that New Jersey has taken this issue into their own hands. New Jersey is recognized as having the toughest gaming regulators in the US... with a long track record of doing things the right way, Internet gambling will have a great home here and the opportunity to begin normalizing the industry."
January has seen two gaming giants start the year off with a confident swagger. Both Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and Wynn Resorts Ltd (WYNN) have seen their stock prices rise and continue to hold their own. Wynn Resorts were trading at $63.70 at the time of writing, showing a rise of 9.39% since they started the year at $58.23. Las Vegas Sands started the year at $14.94 and are currently $16.29, a rise of 9.03%. Las Vegas Sands Soars The Las Vegas Sands shares were buoyed by comments by analysts from UBS Securities who upped their expectations of LVS's 2010 gross gaming revenue from Las Vegas Sands' Macau from $3.5 billion up to $3.9 billion. There are high hopes not only for the casino but also the Four Seasons services apartments at the resort. Las Vegas Sands is developing the largest casino complex in Macau, on the Cotai Strip. Wynn are Winners In the US Wynn's shares jumped up following comments by analyst Robin Farley who upgraded their stock rating from ‘neutral' to ‘buy', feeling that their Macau business would bring in a strong revenue stream. Magic Macau Analysts expect Las Vegas casinos revenue to remain static over this year and have low expectations of the convention business. It is therefore those companies that have invested in Far Eastern resorts that seem to be the favorites to ride out the year with ease.
A strategic partnership between Playtech (PTEC.L.) and Scientific Games Corp. (SGMS) was announced last week. The move saw Playtech's shares rise by 11% on the day of the announcement. The partnership is being welcomed and will see the joint development of hi-tech land based and online gaming products in the international arena. Eying State Lotteries One of the attractions of Scientific Games Corp. to Playtech is their global presence and expertise, as well as their well-stocked client base in the sphere of global state lotteries. Their impressive list of B2G (business to government) clients includes the Chinese State Lottery, for which they are alleged to produce a mammoth eight billion scratch cards each year, as well as Camelot, the UK national lottery provider. An Ideal Partnership Scientific Games Corp. CEO, Mike Chambrello and Mor Weizer, Playtech CEO, issued a joint statement, "This is an ideal partnership in many ways. Customers will benefit from best of breed content, sophisticated player management systems, and long-standing industry experience in providing highly secure, regulated, compliance-oriented services." SciPlay Their first joint venture is SciPlay, the development of state of the art products such as a complete suite of online casino and skill games on a single platform and a range of support services including hosting, payment processing, content management and affiliate management. The Playtech and Scientific Games Corp's partnership looks set to keep us all enthralled over the coming years.
BSkyB's betting division, Sky Betting and Gaming are budding up with iovation to help them minimize charge-backs and ensure compliance across their range of gaming sites. Improving Player Protection Iovation's device reputation service will be used by sites such as Sky Vegas, Sky Poker and Sky Bingo to reduce revenue losses through fraud and add an extra level of safety to enhance player protection. According to Bernard Casey, Head of Gaming Operations at Sky Betting and Gaming, "We reviewed several fraud mitigation tools and found iovation to be highly effective at identifying and preventing fraud. Not only that, the service is completely transparent and doesn't impede the customer's activity across any of our e-gaming products. We're excited about participating in iovation's global fraud community and stopping fraud within the entire industry." Reducing Online Fraud The Sky sites can be played or viewed both online and through Sky's set top box. The introduction of iovation's reputation manager system will result in the real time management of transactions as well as a tool to help them identify suspicious behavior. iovation's product is used at retail sites as well as online casinos and has been successful in identifying and shutting down fraud schemes and other organized criminal activity.
It's well known that the NFL Super Bowl is the biggest television event in the American sporting calendar, but it's also worth noting that it's the biggest betting event, with billions set to be placed on the outcome of Super Bowl XLIV between Indianapolis and New Orleans. An estimated $7 billion was placed around the world on last year's game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Arizona Cardinals. In the US state of Nevada, where betting on sports is legal, the state's Gaming Control Board reported a total of $81.5 million in bets. And given the heavy impact of the financial crisis on last year's betting, the numbers are set to rise for this year's Super Bowl, which Indianapolis will start as slight favorites. Las Vegas bookmakers have the Colts as 5.5 point favorites a week out from the game, although plenty of teams - including the "Perfect Season" New England Patriots two years ago - have lost the Super Bowl after starting stronger favorites than that. Money is coming in for both teams at British bookmaker Ladbrokes, which has the Colts listed as 5/11, against the Saints at 9/5. However, there is some likelihood of the Saints getting a decent start. They are evens in Ladbrokes Super Bowl specials in the betting to score the first touchdown, while Indi are 8/11. And finally, for those who want to take their luck with numbers: The chances of the first touchdown scorer wearing an odd number are 2/5, against evens at 7/4. Super Bowl XLIV kicks off in Miami at 1825 Eastern Time on Sunday February 7.
The online poker community has come together to raise more than $1.5 million for the relief effort in earthquake-ravaged Haiti, according to the Poker Players Alliance. PPA Chairman Alfonse D'Amato congratulated PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Cake Poker in particular for "providing poker players across the globe and easy way to make a contribution." "The generosity online poker players are showing makes me even more proud to be part of this community, D'Amato said. According to the PPA, more than 50,000 players donated to the relief fund for a total of around $760,000. And with the promise from the websites to match each dollar donated, that brings the total raised by the online poker community to more than $1.5 million. All three sites set up special pages for their players to donate to the Haiti relief effort, while Full Tilt and Cake Poker also hosted tournaments in which registration fees were donated directly to certain charities working in Haiti. The money raised is all the more timely given that bad news continues to be reported from the tiny Caribbean island. An estimated 200,000 people died in the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that hit on January 12, with 170,000 people already confirmed dead, according to President Rene Preval. More than 1.2 million people are believed to have been left homeless, and once the more immediate relief efforts are finished, the daunting task of reconstructing Haiti will begin.
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