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Mobile analytical specialist App Annie has revealed in its latest UK report that there was a 55% increase in spending on mobile casino games for Apple’s iOS platform between November 2013 and November 2014. At present, the overall value of the industry is estimated at $2.7 billion. Intriguingly, though, much of the revenue was generated from social casino apps that do not actually facilitate real money betting. App Annie’s report also forecast that the global online gambling industry would surpass revenue of $100 billion by 2017. To put that figure into perspective, the 2014 revenue totals for console gaming and mobile gaming were $55 billion and $21 billion, respectively. Across the board, revenues have increased from November 2013 to November 2014 for cards, casino, and dice apps. Meanwhile, the increase in revenue from card game apps was up by 50% over the same period. Card game revenue was valued at $150 million for November 2014, while casino app revenue was said to be $100 million. Over at Google Play, there was an increase of 105% for the combined revenue of cards and casino apps. Mobile Fuels Wider Growth for Operators A key piece of analysis from the report explained that mobile apps have the potential to introduce new users who might not otherwise have played. For instance, more than 50% of new users signing up with PokerStars in Q3 2014 did so with a mobile device. Mobile success is so valuable because it can translate to growth in the additional platforms of an online gambling operator. The UK has proven to be a real asset for casino app developers, as the market also permits real money gambling. Consequently, developers have been able to create stable revenue streams before expanding into growing markets like Ireland and Australia. Having stable investment has allowed for some developers to then increase the presence of their for-fun apps in the rest of the world.
Horse racing fans will set their sights over to Ascot this Saturday as the Sodexo Clarence House Chase shoots off at 15:00 UK time. Run over 2 miles and 1 furlong, the track includes 13 fences to jump. Sprinter Sacre Returns to Action One of the biggest headlines for this race is the return of Sprinter Sacre, the highest-rated chaser which became the first horse in 14 years to bit three festivals in one season back in the spring of 2013. The 8-year-old Salle Francais has been off the races since December 2013 due to health concerns, but today he returns hoping for a bang. Sprinter Sacre has won 14 jump races in his career, but punters and bookies are still a little wary of the returning star. Added to the concerns is the forecasted rain which could affect the horse's performance, as trainer Nicky Henderson himself said that he doesn't want to bring the horse to a comeback on heavy ground. Over at bet365 Sports, Sprinter Sacre's antepost winning odds were 13/8. Dodging Bullets a Strong Favorite Should Sprinter Sacre be in his prime today, he'll still have two strong rivals: Dodging Bullets and Twinlight. The 7-year-old Paul Nicholls-trained Dodging Bullets has finished first in the 888 Sport Tingle Creek Chase back in early December. The horse received 6/4 in odds at bet365 and a Nicholls horse cannot be a bad pick. The 8-year-old Willie Mullins-trained Twinlight is also a good bet, having finished first in his last two races (although pulled up at the Kerry Group Hilly Way Chase in early December). Twinlight was 5/1 to win at bet365, and another interesting competitor is the veteran Somersby with 9/2. Live at bet365 Sports As always, today's chase will be live at bet365 Sports with the generous Channel 4/1 offer, price promise and best odds guaranteed. Don't miss out - get your horse racing action on today at bet365.
Compared to Nevada and Delaware, New Jersey is generally regarded by industry professionals to have better regulatory framework. Of course, on-going changes are required to maintain the standard of such framework. And that is why a new credit card code has been assigned for processing all online gambling payments made in the state of New Jersey. The new code was required after the US Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and New Jersey’s Division of Gaming (DGE) and Department of Banking and Insurance recognised a need to correct a concerning rate of failed payments attempted by state residents at online gambling sites. Widespread Declines of Credit Card Payments Since state governor Chris Christie legalised online gambling in New Jersey in November 2013, many consumers have been forced to repeat their transactions because failures when they attempt to make payments. Major credit card operators have been flat-out declining payments instead of approving them. Statistically, there were some interesting findings from the DGE. Most notably, an approval rate of 73% was reported for VISA payments, while the approval rate was just 44% for MasterCard. At present, VISA is clearly the more dependable method. While many players will welcome the easing of this situation, they will actually have to wait until the spring of 2015 before the new credit card will become active. In the meantime, players would be wise to use VISA because of its superior approval rate. US Bankers Not Quite Familiar A spokesperson from the DGE explained that “further improvements are expected”, with a period of patience required “as the banking industry becomes more familiar with legalised internet gambling.” Of course, the DGE could have been more specific in highlighting the US banking industry. Comparatively, people in Europe are able to rely on either VISA or MasterCard as a primary payment option.
The road to legalising online gambling in South Africa has been a long one, but the revised Remote Gambling Bill is due to be put before Parliament in February. The Story So Far Online gambling in South Africa is highly restricted, with casino, Poker and Bingo wagers illegal. Even playing at casinos using servers outside the country could lead to a R10 million fine and 10 years in prison, although sports betting is permitted to a certain extent. Several Bills, and court decisions have aimed to change this situation, but entrenched interests from the land-based casino operators, and anti-money laundering agencies have led to the current situation. The Next Steps The Remote Gambling Bill is being re-gazetted to Parliament by Geordin Hill-Lewis, shadow minister of trade and industry for the Democratic Alliance. Having previously treid to get the Bill through as a private members bill, Hill-Lewis is more hopeful that it will succeed this time around, even though online gambling is not regarded as a priority for the South African government. Under South African procedures, the bill will move from Parliament to the Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry, which will force the issue to at least be debated. Due to some amendments to how the bill is intended to work, Hill-Lewis is more confident that this time around it will pass. ''This time, we are proposing to split the licensing responsibility between the provinces and the National Gambling Board.'' This would keep overall responsibility at a national level, but allow each province within South Africa to decide whether or not to issue remote gambling licenses. The changes are also designed to ensure compliance with existing legislation, namely the Financial Intelligence Centre Act which covers fraud and money laundering activities. With the potential of millions in extra revenue for the government if the act is passed, Hill-Lewis is sure that all parties will benefit from the changes.
AMAYA Gaming has just unveiled two new video slots across all of the desktop casino sites that the developer shares content with. The first of the slots is an original concept in the form of Frogs n Flies, while Wonder Woman represents a new addition to AMAYA’s ever expanding line of superhero slots. Wonder Woman Joins the Team Lining up alongside the existing superhero slots of Batman, Spider-Man, and the Green Lantern, Wonder Woman now makes AMAYA’s team a formidable one. Officially licensed by DC Comics, the Wonder Woman slot features all of the authentic imagery that superhero fans will expect. Wonder Woman is also potentially rewarding because of the three-tiered progressive jackpot. When playing for the pot, players can improve their odds by increasing the value of their stake. Another enticing feature is the prospect of free spins, which can be triggered when the Wonder Woman symbol lands three or more times anywhere on the same spin. Frogs n Flies a Cute Slot Frogs n Flies is a nice change of pace to the action-packed nature of Wonder Woman. Designed with cartoon graphics, the Frogs n Flies slot is for gamers who like to encounter cute characters as part of their experience. And the wild symbols are especially cute because of their character animations. Free spins will also be appealing for players. Land three or more bonus symbols anywhere on the same spin and players can trigger between 10 and 20 free spins. During free spins, flies will land on reels two, three, and four to provide additional support in the form of wild symbols. Where to Play Of the many AMAYA sites on the web, four of the most impressive would have to be Dansk777 Casino, GrandGames Casino, Hopa Casino, and Karamba.com Casino. You now find Wonder Woman and Frogs n Flies at each of those sites.
Both the National and the American Conference Finals kick-off tonight, the first game at 20:05 between Green Bay and Seattle, followed by Indianapolis vs New England at 23:40 (UK). Both games are sure to be as exciting as one could possible wish, because the winners tonight will face one another at Super Bowl XLIX on February 1 from University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale Arizona. The Packers and the Seahawks have already met this season, surprisingly way back in Week 1. Seattle won that game decisively 36-16 led by excellent rushing and a solid game from Russell Wilson. By the end of the season, both teams had 12-4 records but the Seahawks allowed much fewer points over the regular season. Tonight these two NFC rivals go helmet to helmet for a chance to make it to the 2015 Super Bowl. Injured QB Problematic Green Bay come into tonight’s game as the underdogs, led by a hobbling Aaron Rodgers. He could not hide the pain during their previous playoff win, albeit controversial against the Cowboys. The Pack must overcome a number of obstacles before winning the game tonight and having a gimpy QB is never a good way to start. The Seahawks are the defending Super Bowl Champions and they have won their last eight-playoff games as favorites. Their defense has been the main reason for their success, making teams turn the ball over more times than not. Seattle have not given up more than two touchdowns in their eight game playoff-winning streak as favorites, nor have they given up more than two TD's against the Packers in their last two meetings. NFC Conference Championship Props The Packers are listed as 3.60 underdogs according to UK online sportsbook bet365 but they should cover the spread at 1.95 and +7. The Seahawks are at 1.31 and are 1.86 with -7 on the Spread. It is going to be a close game and bet365 has come through with first half props, team props and score props, offering punters many different and exciting ways to make lucrative cash. Don't miss the NFC Championship Game followed by the AFC Championship game at 23:40.
The London Affiliate Conference (LAC) is coming up at the end of January, and this is THE iGaming conference of the year. It will address everything from mobile apps to SEO to online poker rooms, and will feature expert speakers from around the world. Below is just a taste of some of the impressive speakers who will present at LAC. Oron Barber Oron Barber has been working in the iGaming field for over 12 years, and has spent the past two years dealing mainly with crypto coins. He will be presenting a session at LAC called "Bitcoin gambling: How affiliates can take advantage," along with Adam Leonard, Founder of Mew by Ogilvy & Trebax and Eric Benz, International Director of Operations, GoCoin. David Jung David Jung is the Managing Director of Hero Poker, and the former PokerStars regional marketing director of Asia. Many consider Jung to be the key business figure in the legal acceptance of poker in Macau, and the founder of the Macau Poker Cup. Jung will be part of a panel discussion on Poker at LAC entitled “The Tipping Point - What are the key attributes that make players choose to work with an affiliate or online poker room.” Judith Lewis Judith Lewis, founder of the deCabbit Consultancy, specializes in integrated online marketing and has expert skills in SEO, PPC, and Social Media Marketing. She will be presenting a session at LAC called “Advanced enriched SEO - Beyond the basics,” which will be a fast-paced look at some of the more advanced topics within SEO, including technical diagnostics for a site with woes, link-building safely and penalty removal. Julia Logan Founder of IrishWonder, Julia Logan has been involved in SEO since 2000, and is currently an SEO consultant at IrishWonder, a moderator of the Syndk8 blackhat SEO forum and Chief SEO Scientist at 90Digital.com. She specializes in SEO security audits, link profile audits, online reputation management, negative SEO investigations and private network consulting, and will be presenting a session at LAC entitled, “Diagnosing and fixing a hacked site.”
The Australian Open started today and the world’s top players, as well as many new hopeful’s take to the hard courts of Melbourne Park. There are 128 total singles players on both the men and women’s sides, whom will play in the sunny Australian heat, while much of the rest of the world is freezing in the cold winter. Bet365 Sports is offering live coverage of the Australian Open and punters can challenge themselves to try to win lucrative cash from Monday January 19 until February 1. Round One Highlights There are a number of highlights over the course of the first round of the Men’s singles action including: Novak Djokovic (1) vs Aljaz Bedene, Rafael Nadal (3) vs Mikhail Youzhny, Roger Federer (2) in hunt for his fifth Australian Open title playing in the first round against Yen-Hsun Lu and last year’s defending champion Stanislas Wawrinka (4) beginning his campaign against Marsel Ilhan. On the women’s side the top ranked players to watch out for during round one are Serena Williams, looking for a sixth singles crown in Australia, last year’s winner Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova. Live Streaming with bet365 The famed UK sportsbook has the rights to stream the Australian Open, while offering an extensive range of live In-Play betting markets. In-play lines include Next game Winner, Point Props, Current Set Winner and of course Outright Match Winner. The odds prior to the games are attractive as well and punters have made off with lucrative cash at past Aussie Open Tournaments. Inside Tip An excellent idea for punters is to consider betting with a player seeded between 5-9 positions, as they have had a lot of success at this tournament over the years. With the stars growing older and the young guns nipping at their heels the finals may be players not as common as one would think.
Some of the biggest names in the iGaming industry and known thought leaders are expected to attend the International Masters of Gaming Law (IMGL) Masterclass next month. The special seminar will take place during the ICE Totally Gaming Expo on February 3-5, 2015 in London. An entire roster of thought leaders from around the world will be there to present their ideas for the future of the gaming industry and cover several topics of great importance for operators in the business. Five Seminar Topics The IMGL Masterclass will take place on February 4th and it will offer an entire day of learning and C-Level networking, with five topics available for debate and discussion across the seminars. These will include a topic on sharing liquidity and finding a way for operators to have enough players to have success on the market, a seminar on online protection policies regulators can implement to better protect their customers, and predictions on where the industry will go in the upcoming years. Everything from ways to expand in existing markets to new and emerging jurisdictions will be covered in detail by the experienced though leaders during the full day of networking. Compliance in the new regulatory systems from different jurisdictions is also on the board for discussion. An Even Bigger Year For ICE In 2014, the ICE Totally Gaming expo saw a total of 156 different nationalities being represented, making it the most international conference in the industry. This year is expected to be even bigger and IMGL is a big part of the free to attend schedule that will bring so many of the most influential leaders under the same roof. The biggest gaming expo in the world will take place this year on February 3-5 and the ExCel Centre in London will once again host over 20,000 attendees from around the globe.
Casino Midas is a belated victim in the wave of casino closure announcements that were made following the implementation of licensing changes made by the UK Gambling Commission on 1 November 2014. Despite being implemented a couple of months ago, Casino Midas has closed suddenly with a sharp warning that UK residents can no longer access the site. The apology message appears with black text set against a white background and is displayed as the new homepage for Casino Midas. The casino attempts to explain that “online payment providers notified Midas in December 2014” of potential issues. Notably, Casino Midas was directly warned that the UK’s policy changes could result in the closure of payment systems used to process the transactions of UK players made to Curacao-based gambling operators. UK Services Terminated Based on the message, it would appear that Casino Midas attempted to remain operational for the remainder of 2014. However, the apology message on the homepage clear states that January brought about a notification that “payments for UK players will no longer be processed.” According to the message, there was a notification period of seven days. In response to the message, management was forced to refrain from providing its services to UK residents. Otherwise, the casino would have been directly contravening the new legislation from the UK Gambling Commission. All deposits and wagers from UK players were officially ceased on Monday 12 January. Players have been asked to contact customer services via [email protected] to withdraw any remaining funds. Smaller Casino Sites Affected Before the new legislation was introduced, smaller online gambling operators were permitted to operate in the UK under license from foreign jurisdictions. However, the November 2014 changes have forced lots of smaller sites out of the market. As a result, UK residents now have less choice in choosing where to play.
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