NEWS & NOTES

Colorado’s Division of Gaming has fined MaximBet $80,000 for failing to implement geolocation rules. The alleged violation of gaming laws occurred between December 1-16. According to SportsHandle, the sportsbook collected money from consumers without knowing where they were, or if they were in the state. The division learned of the violation after a consumer complained about a “location check” failure on the company’s website. • Pala Casino Spa Resort in Southern California has announced that its hotel will be smoke-free by June 1, but the policy won’t apply to the casino. Guests who violate the ban will be charged $1,000 to cover cleaning. A spokesman said, “The hotel will be using state-of-the-art sensor technology to track smoke in the air. This is in an effort to satisfy guest wishes and to keep the air fresh and clean.” • Loteria de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Argentina has granted a betting and gaming license to Betway. Partnered with Bingo Pilar, Betway will serve 3 million people in the national capital. It will offer sports betting, casino and eSports—all through its mobile app. Betway CEO Anthony Werkman stated: “Latin America is already a successful territory for us, so we’re very pleased to be able to offer our products to the passionate sports fans in Argentina as we continue our growth in the continent.” • Chile’s casino regulator, Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego (SCJ), has announced that the gaming operator Operaciones el Escorial S.A has withdrawn its application to operate a casino in the Antofagasta region. The operator had applied for the license under SCJ’s casino permit renewal process, which opened last year. There are 12 other applicants. • Oklahoma’s Muscogee Creek Nation Casino was forced to close May 5 after the tribal gaming property flooded during heavy rains. It was estimated that at least 60 percent of the casino floor was flooded. No one was believed to have been injured. ● The South Korean government will open visa-free entry to Jeju Island for holders of certain passports, including those of Mainland China, starting June 1. The holiday island is home to a number of foreigner-only casinos. All foreigners entering South Korea must be vaccinated against Covid-19 and also be tested within 24 hours of arrival at the port of entry. Anyone who has positive test results must undergo a seven-day quarantine. ● The Supreme Court of Bermuda has appointed a liquidation and inspection committee for South Shore Holdings, the former backer of Macau’s 13 Hotel. The planned luxury hotel on Coloane, founded by Stephen Hung, whose company has $423 million in outstanding loans and interest. Trading in company shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was suspended in July 2021. ● The Rolling Hills Casino and Resort in Corning, California recently announced an agreement with Paskenta Brewery and Distillery for the naming rights to an amphitheater at the tribal property. Obsidian Spirits Amphitheater will allow the venue to host more prominent acts. Artists scheduled later this year for the rebranded amphitheater include Snoop Dogg, Pitbull, and Staind. The venue will feature craft beer and spirits from the Paskenta Brewery and Distillery. ● China’s Ministry of Public Security says it detected 42,000 cases of illegal cross-border gambling between January 2020 and March 31. A total of $28.3 billion in economic losses were recovered, the ministry said. ● The Macau government has granted Studio City Holdings a six-month extension to the deadline to complete the Phase 2 expansion of its cinema-themed resort in the SAR. The deadline was pushed back from December 27, 2022 to June 30, 2023. The New York-listed company is a unit of Melco Resorts & Entertainment. ● The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority has approved a budget of up to $19.5 million for three annual Formula One races in Las Vegas from 2023 through 2025. That shakes out to about $6.5 million per year, and LVCVA CEO Steve Hill told the Las Vegas Sun that the plan is for the race to eventually become a permanent fixture for the city. The race will be dubbed the Las Vegas Grand Prix, and the 3.8-mile track will weave through the heart of the Strip–as part of the agreement, the owners of the Formula One racing circuit, Liberty Media, will gain access to the Las Vegas Convention Center as well as their large volunteer network. ● Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana has launched its sportsbook. The venue is located inside the casino next to the Hard Rock Cafe. But the sportsbook will offer a meal too. Live sports and betting odds are displayed on monitors near the staffed betting counter and electronic wagering kiosks, and patrons can view games from tables in the cafe while enjoying a drink, a meal or live music, as well as from other nearby seating and gaming areas, according to Northwest Indiana Times. ● Affiliate giant Better Collective has called reports that it intends to buy Racing Post owner Spotlight Sports Group as “highly speculative.” The company was dismissing claims in the May 8 issue of London’s Sunday Times that Better Collective as “the odds-on favorite to clinch a deal” to acquire Spotlight from private equity firm Exponent. “The article is highly speculative, and given our defined M&A strategy and track record we are not surprised to be mentioned when there are rumors of sales processes in the industry,” a Better Collective spokesman told iGaming Business. • A Red Rock Resort slot technician is appealing a National Labor Relations Board decision denying technicians a union representation re-vote. According to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, slot tech Jereme Barrios asked the NLRB to reverse a regional board decision denying a union decertification vote. Barrios and fellow technicians are seeking the removal of Local 501 of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 501 as their bargaining agent. Barrios is getting free legal representation from the National Right to Work Foundation. • Despite recent rumors, WynnBET, the iGaming wing of Wynn Resorts, is not for sale, according to unnamed sources cited by SportsHandle.com. In January, rumors surfaced that WynnBET was on the market for roughly $500 million, a deep discount compared to the $3 billion valuation it had received a year earlier. “The report is not correct,” said a spokesman for the company. “We did lay off 12 full-time employees, mostly on the technical side. We also had to lay off some contractors on the technical side. But we are hiring about as many new employees, mostly on the customer service side.”