Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The controversial memo that essentially halted the spread of off-reservation casinos in the U.S. was withdrawn last week by the Obama administration’s Bureau of Indian Affairs head Larry Echo Hawk (l.), which will begin to accept applications again for taking land into trust for gaming purposes.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Ohio Governor John Kasich (on right) and Rock Ohio Caesars Chairman Dan Gilbert celebrate the signing of a deal that will enable ROC to open casinos in Cleveland and Cincinnati. Penn National, which will own casinos in Columbus and Toledo, agreed to the deal over the weekend. The deal permits almost 20,000 at Ohio’s seven racetracks, as well.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Boyd Gaming, which owns Sam’s Town in Tunica, Mississippi, will increase its presence in the state with the purchase of the IP Casino Resort Spa in Biloxi for $278 million. After the deal closes, expected before the end of the year, Boyd Gaming will invest another $44 million to renovate the property.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Bally’s iVIEW Display Manager system will be employed on slots across the casinos of Caesars Entertainment, the world’s largest gaming operator.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Ireland is on the verge of getting its first casino resort, if the government and legislators can see their way to legalizing casino gaming. The mixed-use leisure facility with the working title “Tipperary Venue” will feature a five-star hotel and a variety of racing and other entertainment options.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
By purchasing a majority interest in Macau Studio City, Melco Crown Entertainment, led by Lawrence Ho (l.), is poised to become the next integrated resort to open in the SAR, most likely beating out Wynn and MGM.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Illinois Senate President John Cullerton (l.) and other lawmakers are doing their best to give Governor Pat Quinn (enough time to decide to not to veto a gaming expansion bill both houses recently passed.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
New Zealand-based casino operator SkyCity has been chosen to build New Zealand’s first international-level convention center. The company will pay the entire estimated NZ$350 million construction cost but is expecting to be allowed to expand gaming at its adjacent Auckland casino.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Despite reports to the contrary, the Chinese central government has refused to allow betting on horse racing in the city of Wuhan. Trials had been held in 2008, and it was largely expected that approval would follow.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The major casino company in the nation of Cambodia announced that it would build two projects, valued at $369 million to supplement its dominant NagaWorld hotel and casino (l.) in the nation’s capital, Phnom Penh.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
As Macau continues to grow, the authorities are working to keep up with the increase in travelers, both current and anticipated. The planned expansion of the main airport, which will triple passenger capacity, is just one piece to a regional solution.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The lure of Asia continues to attract interest from the major international casino operators. With just a few miles of water between it and Mainland China, the Taiwanese island of Kinmen is a logical star of the latest rumors.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Thunderbird Resorts will go to court to fight a closure order by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, which alleges the casinos it operates, including the casino at Poro Point (l.), are operating without a license.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Sands China will use $3.5 billion in new loans to pay down debt and to fund expansion on the Cotai Strip in Macau.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The normally static U.K. casino sector is being animated by rumors that Rank Group might be making an offer for the casinos of Gala Coral. The news broke just days after Malaysian investment firm Guoco had obtained a 56-percent stake in Rank.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The competition for the lucrative Zurich casino license is almost at an end. The Swiss Casino Commission has recommended it go to home-grown operator Swiss Casinos AG. The justice department is expected to respect the commission’s choice.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
For over 15 years the private gaming clubs of Paris have been at the heart of France’s poker scene. Now the success of these clubs appears to have inspired some of their operators to illegal acts, resulting in the police stepping in and taking action.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Representatives of the European Casino Association recently spent three days inside Italian territory that sits within the borders of Switzerland. The occasion for the gathering at Campione was the annual summer meeting of the ECA.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The government of Mexico has begun an investigation of gaming officials at the country’s Ministry of the Interior following allegations that regulators illegally allowed industry expansion.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Despite introducing the new gaming platform Espacejeux.com last December, revenues from Loto-Quebec decreased slightly during the 2010-11 fiscal year. Overall revenues from the Crown-owned lottery and gaming monopoly fell 2 percent to C$3.67 billion (US$3.75 billion).
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Betfair has pleasantly surprised the U.K. horse racing industry with a donation equal to that which it would have been obligated to pay had the company not moved its license to Gibraltar. The news was announced at the Royal Ascot weekend, the biggest race on the U.K. calendar.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Isle of Capri Casinos and Paradise Casino, LLC have entered into an option agreement, giving Paradise the right to buy the Crown riverboat casino, one of two owned by the Isle of Capri in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Isle would consolidate its operations onto the adjacent Grand Palais gaming vessel. The option must be exercised by November 30.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The big three, Governor Deval Patrick, Senate President Therese Murray (l.) and House Speaker Robert DeLeo are reportedly near to an agreement on what will be included in a gaming expansion bill.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Investment firm buyout will strengthen the balance sheet of The Palms and enable renovations at the Las Vegas resort, which is a favorite with celebrities. The Palms opened in 2001.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The New Jersey Casino Control Commission has established application guidelines for two small-scale casino licenses. Interested companies have only to August 19 to apply, and must abide by several regulations. Hard Rock International is reportedly the only company to express interest in an Atlantic City license.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Maryland’s state Video Lottery Facilities Location Commission is set to release a new request for proposals for the slot license tied to Rocky Gap State Park, which would be located at the Rocky Gap Lodge (l.).
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Isle of Capri Casinos and casino developer MSEG LLC recently began a 60-day period to negotiate the sale of Isle’s Rhythm City Casino riverboat in Davenport. It’s the next step toward a land-based casino, to be developed by MSEG, in downtown Davenport.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Construction is going “very, very well” on the new Kansas Star Casino near Mulvane, said General Manager Scott Cooper. The $260 million casino, expected to open in early 2012, will feature a casino, a 300-room hotel, restaurants and a unique equestrian/entertainment facility, and will create 800 permanent jobs when completed.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Adding slot machines to the gambling options in New Hampshire is the agenda of two bills to be considered in January 2012. The bills would expand the state’s “charitable gaming” model; create new jobs and lower taxes.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval keeps pace with technology by signing legislation that will permit gambling in hotel rooms in Las Vegas.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
As Larry Gregory leaves his post as director of the Mississippi Gaming Commission, he advises his successor to encourage developing tourist attractions near river- and Gulf-front casinos. These investments, such as convention centers, water parks and motorsports tracks, would benefit local economies and help Mississippi compete with other states that offer destination casinos.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Incriminating comments captured on tape spark the early days of testimony in Alabama’s long-awaited bingo corruption trial.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Unless the Minnesota legislature and Governor Mark Dayton come to terms over the state budget, Canterbury Park Holding Corporation may have to suspend operations on July 1. That’s because Minnesota Racing Commission employees, who regulate Canterbury Park’s operations, have been notified they will be laid off July 1, and as a result will not be able to perform the critical regulatory activities they are required by law to carry out.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
New legislation would protect existing harness tracks from new competition, and would expand casino gaming to new racetracks.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Hundreds of visitors were on hand when the doors reopened at the Palace Casino in Biloxi, which had been closed two weeks for a $50 million expansion and renovation. The casino became first in Mississippi and among the few in the nation to voluntarily ban smoking.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Visitor authority seeks to increase foreign tourism to 30 percent by 2022. It will retain the ad agency that came up with the “What happens here, stays here” campaign.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The Tropicana Casino Hotel in Atlantic City has finally settled a contract dispute between the casino and three local trade unions. Though details of the contract were not disclosed, the AFL-CIO has declared it a victory for union members.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Yonkers Raceway will institute a 60,000-square-foot casino expansion—if it gets a tax break from the city. In any case, it recently added video craps games, giving table game players something to do.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The president of the Maryland Senate has criticized Governor Martin O’Malley (l.) for failing to show leadership on the casino issue, and letting the nascent industry languish.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Proposals for casino expansion are under debate in the Maine legislature, but Governor Paul LePage has threatened to veto them. Some gaming experts believe the fledgling casino industry is at risk of cannibalizing itself. The governor believes it should be left to the voters to decide.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
An old cosmetics warehouse could be renovated as a casino, says a source. The Southampton tribe is also considering buying up adjacent acreage.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Most of New Mexico’s gaming tribes oppose a casino that the Jemez Pueblo wants to build in the town of Anthony, near the Texas border.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Steve Hart, the former director of the Arizona Department of Gaming, recently said if racinos are permitted in the state, “Arizona has more to lose than the tracks have to gain.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
MGM Resorts has announced the promotion of Kacie Denny to the position of Regional Director of Casino Marketing for their Mississippi properties.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
International bookmaker William Hill has retained Ralph Topping as the company’s CEO until 2013. Topping has been instrumental in the company’s expansion into the Nevada gaming market.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Detroit’s struggling Greektown Casino has appointed a new CEO, Michael Puggi. A 30-year veteran, Puggi hopes to lead the casino into the future.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Gaming industry veteran and Minnesota headhunter will work together to mutually expand their reach.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Slot-maker International Game Technology announced a major deal to supply VLTs to Loto-Quebec, and the completion of requirements for its deal to buy online gaming company Entraction.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
The 13th annual AGEM/AGA Golf Classic, presented by JCM Global, recently raised $100,000 for the National Center for Responsible Gaming at Caesars’ Cascata golf club in Nevada (l.). The NCRG is the only national nonprofit organization that raises funds for research on gambling disorders and promotes education about responsible gaming.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Federated Sports + Gaming recently acquired Heartland Poker Tour, one of the largest independent producers of television poker content for an undisclosed price. Since 2005, the Heartland Poker Tour has staged close to 90 events with more than 81,500 entrants, more than $28.6 million in prize money and more than 170 hours of television.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Betting shop and online gaming operator Ladbrokes will continue to have its online casino and games software supplied by Microgaming. The undisclosed terms were described as offering both parties opportunities for revenue growth.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
U.K.-based Inspired Gaming Group celebrated the Asian debut of its new Sabre gaming terminal at the G2E Asia event in Macau recently. The company hopes to have GLI approval for the product by the end of July.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Slovenia-based manufacturer Interblock continues to have success in placing its automated gaming tables in casino and arcade settings around Europe. The latest installation, in Belgium, is the fourth of six now planned for the same operator.
Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Developments in California could mean further delays for the long-touted high-speed railway between Las Vegas and Los Angeles.
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