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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.
With 2015 underway, new online casino games have started pouring in and it's only the beginning. So far we have already seen new releases from Microgaming and Amaya at which we take a look further below. Apart from these recent releases we've got an exclusive sneak preview for upcoming games from some of the biggest developers, and boy is there a lot to expect! Read on. Microgaming's Gung Pow Microgaming's newest game Gung Pow is themed on the Chinese New Year, it's a fun and festive 5-reel, 243-ways-to-win slot with crackling wilds and multiplier-laden free spins. Gung Pow can be played at Microgaming casinos like BETAT Casino and Jackpot City Casino. Two New Amaya Slots Amaya has widened its collection with two new slots: Wonder Woman and Frog 'n Flies. Wonder Woman brings back DC comics with a feminine bang featuring the popular warrior princess superheroine: players can collect wondrous wins with three different jackpots. Frog 'n Flies is an entertaining 1024-ways-to-win slot taking place in a marsh where players strive to hit frogs and flies wilds and scatter symbols with generous multipliers. These two are available now at Amaya-powered online casinos such as Bet Victor Casino, William Hill Casino and Unibet Casino. Fire & Ice from Spinomenal Built on 5 reels and 40 paylines, Fire & Ice is Spinomenal's newest slot that entices players into a fantasy world where a war of temperatures is being waged. The differences between fire and ice come into play with symbol transformations, 2 free spin modes and 2 bonus modes where players are prompted to choose their side. While Fire & Ice is currently available only on Spinomenal's Facebook-based Casino Desires app, the slot is expected to hit online casinos separate from the social app. Net Entertainment's Tornado: Farm Escape (January 22) Tornado: Farm Escape is showing all the signs of becoming a NetEnt classic. Players are cast into a farm hit by a tornado, much to the delight of its animal inhabitants who despise their demanding overseer farmer. The hazardous weather comes into play with the Storm feature which replaces symbols with wilds and the Tornado feature that generates an actual tornado sweeping the reels prompting players to pick nominated symbols for extra wins. Tornado: Farm Escape will be available January 22 on desktop and mobile at NetEnt casinos the likes of Slotty Vegas, LuckyDino Casino and Moon Games Casino. Play'n GO's Game Release Schedule for Q1-Q2 2015 Play'n GO's tightly-packed schedule for new game releases demonstrates this developer's ability to deliver interesting high-quality games with varying themes and unique features for each. Here's what they're going to release during the first half of 2015. Pimped (February 24) – Pimped is one of Play'n GO's most intriguing upcoming games. Presented in a blingy theme with stylish art inspired by the popular video game GTA5, Pimped will immerse players in the behind the scenes world of hip-hop where the lines are blurred between piles of Benjamins and art. And there's much cash to be won with Play'n GO's WinSpins feature which guarantees wins on all free spins which are re-triggerabble by themselves. Easter Eggs (March 18) - Easter Eggs brings the world's coolest eggs to the forefront with painted eggs inspired by those found in UK and Scandinavian markets. Expect cute Easter-themed symbols like Easter bunnies, chicks, lambs and roosters. Easter Eggs will feature a customizable free spin mode where players choose their number of spins and multipliers and a bonus ladder will enable a pick-a-prize gameplay. Tower Quest (April 7) – Tower Quest brings back the fantasy role-playing games theme with sorceresses, dragons, orcs, mages and potions. Apart from a very impressive art style, Tower Quest will introduce two collectable items which players will be able to use to upgrade free spins and re-spins. Fans of fantasy cards are going to love Tower Quest's unique card bonus game which features plenty of demons and wins to be had in a classic D&D dice setting. Golden Legend (April 21) – The splendor of Macau's slots hits online casinos with Golden Legend. This shiny slot is loaded with glitz as its reels flash different Asian related golden symbols like Koi fish and tigers. Apart from a gamble feature, Play'n GO promises that the game will deliver a "Macau" style of gameplay with a refreshing UI and support for mystery jackpots. Wild North (May) – Themed on the Northern wilderness, Wild North's symbols will feature different wildlife such as Timberwolves, owls and grizzlies which will also come stacked and super-sized. Players will be able to squeeze the best out of their wins with a new bonus round filled with 7 different features including free spins and respin modes. Expect to see these new games pop-up the moment they release at leading Play'n GO-powered casinos like Vera and John Casino, Casino Cruise and Tivoli Casino. Hail of New Games from BetSoft and Endorphina We've also got exciting news from developers BetSoft and Endorphina. BetSoft is preparing to release two intriguing titles named "Pinocchio" and "Ninja" and Endorphina has no less than 11 games lined up for release this year – more info is expected to come in next month's Totally Gaming ICE 2015 conference in London so stay tuned!
A glittering new slot game has been added to Microgaming casinos in time for the Chinese New Year in February. Gung Pow is designed with the dazzling visuals of a festival illuminated by lights, lanterns, and exploding fireworks. At a glance, the slot is obviously impressive, but what else does it have to offer? Gameplay The build of the Gung Pow slot is a familiar design in that there is a grid of five reels by three rows. A total of 15 symbols will land across the reels after each spin. Players need to assign a betting value to determine how much they will wager on each spin of the reels. Rather than implement a clear system of paylines, Microgaming has instead elected to build Gung Pow with 243 ways of winning. For some years now, Microgaming has favoured this design technique for its higher profile slot releases. And the presence of 243 ways of winning indicates that Microgaming has high hopes for the popularity of its Gung Pow slot game. The highest possible jackpot is 30,00 coins for a max bet. Extra Features The first of the special features is the ability of the wild symbol to substitute for all other missing symbols except for the scatter symbol. Look out for the logo symbol of the game to find the wild. Nobody will be surprised to learn that the scatter is one of the other most important symbols in the game. Three or more scatter symbols after a spin will trigger as many as 15 free spins. And the fact that these can be retriggered means that the maximum winning during free spins is 90,000 coins. There is also a gambling option for trying to increase winnings. Any gamers who wish to try out the new Gung Pow slot can visit All Slots Casino or Jackpot City Casino.
After winning a bracelet from the World Series of Poker (WSOP) in 2010, the career of UK poker player Darren Woods was in the ascendancy. However, the present is a much bleaker tale for the once-promising player. Woods is currently faced with the choice of repaying £1 million in the next six months or else spending six years in prison because of the string of frauds he committed at online poker sites. The sheer weight of evidence gave the 29-year-old no choice but to plead guilty. During the court case, it came to light that Woods had created multiple identities with a string of poker websites. The first element of fraud stems from the fact that he used real-world identities in creating multiple accounts with each site. His next step was to use the accounts to his advantage. Being reasonably adept with web-based technology, Woods set up multiple computers in his house, with each connected to the internet via a proxy server that would disguise their location, which was in his Grimsby residence. Along with taking defrauding promotional schemes, Woods would occupy at least two seats at poker tables to gain an unfair advantage over other players. Years of Cheating Before going to trial, Woods pled “not guilty” to 13 counts of fraud. However, his plea was quickly changed to guilty on nine counts of fraud after discovering the overwhelming extent of the evidence, which spanned from 2007 until January 2012. The cheating of Woods did not go unnoticed by his fellow professionals, who submitted and signed a joint-statement to poker website 2+2. Within the statement, they specifically accused Woods of using multiple accounts to beat them. When speaking to his local newspaper just a couple of days ago (17 January), Woods claimed to be the victim, and also tried to claim that he had been colluding with other players as well.
Charles Barkley recently shared some personal details about his gambling losses in Las Vegas. The 'Round Mound of Rebound' has been one of the most celebrated NBA players of all time and continued his success as a beloved sportscaster. His love for gambling has never been a secret. With the likes of Michael Jordan and others sharing his affinity for making wagers on sports, one would never think that such wealthy company would ever admit to having a gambling problem. Win Millions, Lose Millions In a recent interview, Barkley was forthcoming about times in his life that he has spent the weekend in Vegas and won over $1 million in a single weekend. He also shared stories of losing twice, and even three times as much over the span of a couple of days. Barkley now says that he still gambles, but not for the amounts that he used too. He believes that everything in life is about moderation and limiting oneself to a specific wagering amount, with regards to gambling, is key to living a happy and healthier life. No one is saying not to gamble, but just like NBA superstar Charles Barkley now understands, "You know, it's like anything, if you do it in moderation it's alright." Responsible Gambling Online gambling has become one of the most common ways to make bets on virtually all sporting events. Online casinos are also one of the most popular forms of gambling and the number of brands is growing by the year. One of the most important aspects of gambling, whether at a land-based or online casino is knowing how much to play, when to play and when to stop. Keeping control while gambling is crucial for success, which is why online sportsbooks and casinos make sure they have unique and useful responsible gambling programs for players and punters respectively. Winner Casino is an example of a brand that goes the extra mile to ensure their members have a safe and enjoyable experience. Anyone that enters their site can scroll down to the bottom of the page and find a 'Responsible Gambling' button, which holds valuable advice on how to gamble responsibly, a problem gambling questionnaire and even methods to self-exclude oneself from the online casino and sportsbook.
A fresh press release from LeoVegas has just revealed that a Nordic player earned a huge £4.4 million windfall while playing the Mega Fortune slot with the online casino’s mobile gaming platform. In Swedish krona, the original value of the win prior to conversion was SEK53 million. Meanwhile, additional reports have confirmed the value as €5.7 million, which is the January 2015 equivalent of SEK53 million. Incredibly, the new multimillionaire from Sweden won their huge jackpot with a stake of just £1 on Sunday 11 January. Aside from the fact that the winner was playing using their tablet, there is not much else to share as they requested to remain anonymous. Any spending of winnings will be left to your imagination. A Record-setting Slot Game A UK manager of LeoVegas Casino named Shenaly Amin was eager to point out that the £4.4 million jackpot was the largest mobile casino win history. He was also please that players would now see “the great winning potential at Leo Vegas.” Mega Fortune is video slot with a three-tier progressive jackpot that increases in value. This is not the first time that Mega Fortune has made headlines for giving away millions in prize money at LeoVegas. In September 2014, there was a player named Anton who earned an enviable £2.2 million. What makes the win even more interesting is that Mega Fortune is already the holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest-ever win on an online slot, following a colossal win of €17.8 million in January 2013. Mega Fortune is now a record-setter for yielding the largest-ever mobile slot win. Simon Harmon, chief product officer with NetEnt, explained that the latest win would further highlight “the huge profit potential of our pooled jackpot portfolio.” NetEnt has a number of other online slots and casino games that feature lucrative progressive jackpots.
It may have been the draw that Liverpool had least hoped for, for their first leg of the Capital One Cup Semi-Finals, but they will face Chelsea tonight at Anfield. Liverpool are not playing well enough in the Premier League (13th spot); let alone trying to beat the Blues tonight. However, that will not stop Brendan Rodgers and his club from pushing Chelsea to their limit. The Blues Look Unstoppable Chelsea is in top form and Jose Mourinho is as always looking for his next achievement. The Blues hammered past Derby County for their Semi-Finals berth and they have looked especially good over the last month. They are five points clear of the second place Manchester City in the Premier League and face PSG in the Round of 16 in the Champions League in mid-February. Expect big things from the Blues tonight, coming off a vicious thrashing of Swansea City 5-0 at Liberty City. Costa and Oscar came through with a pair apiece, followed by a fifth by second-half substitute Andre Schurrle. Chelsea is on fire right now and it doesn't look like there is a team in the world that can take them down. Liverpool may be comfortable coming into tonight’s game as the underdogs but with the way they are playing lately, even with the home field advantage tonight, they do not stand a chance against Stamford Bridge. Capital One Props with bet365 Sports There are hundreds of pre-match betting markets at UK online sportsbook bet365 for both Capital One Cup matches. Chelsea are favorites tonight at 2.05, while Liverpool are at 3.50. A draw is almost the same as a Liverpool win at 3.40 and that could be the ultimate outcome tonight. With Goal Props like Correct Score, Half Props, Full Time Props, Win Props and much more. An attractive line that may happen tonight is a 2-0 win by Chelsea for which bet365 is paying out 10.00. bet365 is also offering their Bore Draw Money Back offer, which will refund bets if the game ends in a goalless draw. Even a 0-0 finish on pre-game Scorecast or Half-Time/Full-Time result will also refund all real money bets. Who is going to make the Capital One Cup Final? Check out the action tonight at 19:45 (UK time).
So far the new year has not been so kind to the popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin. It began with headlines about investment mogul Warren Buffett calling Bitcoin a mirage that doesn't innovate in anything, and now the last few days have seen the cryptocurrency's value shrink. As of January 20th, Bitcoin's value is oscillating $204 to $214 with the current value standing at around $210 (4pm GMT). Why Is Bitcoin Tanking? The situation has led some economists to mark 2015 as the year of Bitcoin's final demise. This is helped by Bitcoin's loss of roughly two-thirds of its previous value in the last six months, as reported by USA Today. The lack of centralized regulation and support of a central bank, along with the suspicion that Bitcoin has earned itself with different scandals throughout 2014 are not working in favor of the cryptocurrency. Although he is a sort of Luddite himself in all that has to do with technology, Warren Buffett's words about how Bitcoin doesn't hold any intrinsic value are echoing loudly now. The Oracle of Omaha ruled that what Bitcoin does can be done in a lot of different ways – in other words, Bitcoin can be easily replaced. The suspicion towards Bitcoin and the fact that no big player has picked up yet are major factors in its recent drop. Effect on Online Gambling Bitcoin's anonymous nature appeals to the world of online gambling and there are online casinos and poker rooms which have added the cryptocurrency as a payment method. Yet, Bitcoin has still not gotten a tight grip on the majority of online gambling sites and its current situation will certainly not help the odds. Despite the pessimistic vibes, it is still too early to push Bitcoin into the grave, generally and from the online gambling angle; even the Internet took time to catch in the early 90s. Stay tuned as we keep monitoring for updates from the Bitcoin front.
Last year the Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl, punishing the Denver Broncos 43-8 to win their first ever NFL Championship. This year, they have once again made it to the most prestigious of all professional football games and will face the New England Patriots at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Arizona on February 1. The Road to the Super Bowl The New England Patriots led by their all-star quarterback Tom Brady are in search of their fourth Super Bowl title. The Pats went 12-4 throughout the regular season, were fourth place in the NFL in scoring and went through the playoffs beating the Baltimore Ravens 35-31 and in the Conference Championships they crushed the Indianapolis Colts 45-7. The Patriots look like they could easily leave Arizona with another Super Bowl ring, led by their high-flying offense and their solid defense. The biggest problem is that they face the best defense in the world, which could easily shut their passing and rushing games down. The Seattle Seahawks are going for two-in-a-row titles. They were absolutely fantastic defensively throughout the regular season and the playoffs, leading the NFL in points against, yards against, pass yards against and they were third in rush yards against for a record of 12-4, just like the Patriots did. Russell Wilson barely led his team to the Super Bowl, pulling out a dramatic overtime win against the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Conference Championships. The Seahawks looked off their game during the first half but bounced back in the second half and ultimately won the game. They now face their toughest challenge of the year and many people think that they don't have what it takes to win in Arizona. Super Bowl XLIX Odds and Betting Props The biggest online sportsbooks in the world have already posted their lines for Super Bowl XLIX and there are hundreds of betting props to choose from. Both bet365 Sports and Winner Sports were two of the first to offer punters the complete list and the markets are looking very exciting. In the outright winner categories, bet365 has the Seahawks as favorites over the Patriots by a very slim margin of 1.86 to 1.95 respectively. In contrast, Winner Sports is even tighter having both teams at 1.85 to win, not leaving a large margin for profit. The good thing is, both bet365 and Winner have literally hundreds of Super Bowl props. Bet365 is offering a total of 139 markets, which is around the same over at Winner. Both are offering attractive Score Props, Team Props and even player props with odds for punters regarding Super Bowl MVP hopefuls. Tom Brady is Winner's favorite for the MVP honor at 2.40, while Russell Wilson is at 3.20. It will most-likely be the most watched and most wagered Super Bowl in the history of the world. Don't miss out on the chance for lucrative cash and try your luck with your favorite online sportsbook prior to the Super Bowl.
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