NEWS & NOTES

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) posted a slight decline in revenues in the first nine-months of the year. Data from the country’s gaming regulator and operator showed PHP30.1 billion in gross revenues through September (US$752 million), lower by 2 percent compared with the same period last year. The decline stems in part from a lowering of fees charged the four licensees developing resorts at Manila’s Entertainment City. The fee revision is intended to soften the impact of a Bureau of Internal Revenue decision to impose the country’s 30 percent corporate income tax on casinos.  •  The tropical resort of Vanuatu in the South Pacific has plans to develop a six-star hotel and casino complex, according to Radio New Zealand and the Daily Post newspaper. The Iririki Island Resort will be built on an island off the Port Vila waterfront. Finance Minister Maki Simelum signed an agreement for a 10-year license with the directors of Jewels Casino and Iririki Island Resort. The minister says he hopes the casino will attract wealthy tourists from around the world.  •  A New York State legislator wants to use casino revenues from a tribal gaming hall to fund economic development, not an amphitheater. Onondaga County Republican Kevin Holmquist hopes to scrap the amphitheater plan, which would use millions in annual revenues from the Turning Stone Casino to pay for the venue, which has a price tag of almost $50 million.  ?  Singer Celine Dion will return to her home stage, the Colosseum in Las Vegas, to continue her suspended residency sometime next year according to Caesars Entertainment. The French-Canadian entertainer tabled all her shows due to illness, and was replaced by guest artists including Elton John.  ?  Snoqualmie Casino in Washington State celebrated its sixth year in business November 6. To mark the occasion, the casino offered $275,000 in cars, cash and other prizes. The resort opened in 2008 and is one of the largest employers in the Snoqualmie Valley, providing jobs to over 1,200 residents.  ?  MGM Resorts International has announced a fall 2016 opening for its US$2.9 billion resort casino in Macau’s Cotai district. The property will be the company’s second in Macau, where operations are overseen by the company’s majority-owned, Hong Kong-listed MGM China Holdings subsidiary.  •  The six SIGA casinos in Saskatchewan have received the “highest accreditation” in responsible gambling from the Responsible Gambling Council. Casinos that received the accreditation include Gold Eagle; Bear Claw; Dakota Dunes; Living Sky; Painted Hand; and Northern Lights. The Responsible Gambling Council is an independent nonprofit dedicated to preventing problem gambling.  ?  Juniper Research has awarded its “Future Mobile Gold Award” to mobile technology supplier Giesecke & Devrient (G&D) for making an ”outstanding contribution to the future of the mobile contact-less payments market.” “This award confirms G&D’s position as an innovative technology leader and valuable partner for banks,” said Edgar Salib, senior vice president and head of the Financial Institutions Division at G&D. “After an era of tech talk surrounding mobile payments as an isolated bank service, banks now focus on the consumer experience in the mobile channel. Powered by G&D Portigo, the bank’s exclusive app store, banks can guide consumers to a virtual world of service categories such as the mobile financial service store, insurance services, or the retail connect sections.”  •  The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has released its latest review into gambling advertising, and identified areas that needed revisions, including the need to be proactive on issues related to socially responsible marketing and ads that could potentially affect small children. The research was conducted by the ASA in partnership with independent agency Research Works. Public opinion on the agency’s decision-making this year has been largely positive in light of recent controversial gambling ads the ASA has been forced to address, identifying “reckless” use of phrases such as “free bets.” But the agency also admitted that more work needs to be done to gain even more trust from the public.  •  Betting giant William Hill said its Manila service center has suspended operations in the wake of a government investigation into allegations of illegal gambling. No gambling activities are conducted at the center, which provides customer support and back office functions primarily for the group’s online business, the company said. The Philippines National Bureau of Investigation is conducting the probe.  •  Gaming content developer Net Entertainment is adding a number of new games to its portfolio. Four video poker games—Jacks or Better Double Up, Deuces Wild Double Up, Joker Wild Double Up and All American Double Up—will be available to customers. Each of the titles is available in one-hand, five-hand, 10-hand or 25-hand versions with a double-up feature that allows players the opportunity to choose the color of the next card. In addition, NetEnt has grown its Touch catalog with the addition of BlackJack Classic Touch. The new three-hand and six-deck game has been optimized for mobile devices.  •  Delaware’s Dover Downs Hotel & Casino announced the arrival of new table games including Heads Up Hold’em, High Card Flush and Big 6 Wheel. Heads Up Hold’em, which is exactly like Ultimate Texas Hold’em, has an additional side bet of a bad-beat bonus wager that will give players a chance to win even if they lose to the dealer but have at least a straight. Dover Downs is the first casino to have High Card Flush on the East Coast. The dealer and player each get seven cards. To win, player must have at least three cards of the same suit and beat the dealer.  •  Metric Gaming announced that it has reached a licensing and distribution deal with ONEworks, which has been appointed Metric’s exclusive distributor to sports book operators in Asia. It will integrate Metric’s sports wagering software into its ONEbook platform, providing access to Metric’s betting products, SuperLive and Bettor Option.  •  Slot-maker Aristocrat Technologies announced the launch of The Rolling Stones slot machine in Europe. Following its successful launch in the U.S. last year, Aristocrat is moving the game into all of its worldwide jurisdictions, starting with Europe. The 40-line game, in the company’s Feature Top Box format, features live concert footage and bonus events themed on the rock band’s 50-year career.  •  Macau casino giant Sociedade de Jogos de Macau has applied to the government for an extra 45 gaming tables, 35 of which are expected to be located at Fisherman’s Wharf, an indoor-outdoor hotel and leisure complex located near the ferry terminal on the city’s Outer Harbour. The site, which is being remodeled and expanded, hosts a
n independently owned casino that operates under SJM’s casino concession.  •  Scientific Games Corporation hosted more than 100 lottery professionals from around the world at a 2014 Security & Lottery Products Symposium, held in Atlanta at the Omni CNN Center. Featuring experts in security, technology, product development, marketing and consumer insights, the company’s biennial symposium facilitated collaboration and set trends for the global lottery industry for the next several years. “Our goal is to offer the opportunity to share and discuss innovations and happening in our industry and other industries, to refresh perspectives, rejuvenate purpose and apply relevant new thinking to lottery security and marketing,” said Scientific Games Lottery Insights VP Jennifer Welshons in describing the symposium.  •  The National Labor Relations Board has ruled that the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe cannot prevent workers from forming a union, or fire a worker for trying to do so. The tribe will be forced to distribute flyers informing workers that the Soaring Eagle casino violated federal law and union activities can begin again. Despite that fact, workers at the casino in fact voted last week not to join the union. The tribe issued a statement that the board’s ruling “ignores the inherent sovereignty of Indian tribes.”  •  A card room in Sacramento, California has been shut down by the California Department of Justice for alleged not keeping enough money to cover its bets. Last week state agents locked up the Casino Royale, putting nearly 100 workers out of a job. Owners of the casino have not returned the calls of the media. The raid came after a $60,000 jackpot winner alleged that the casino was unable to pay him at the time of the win. •  The UK Gambling Commission has licensed Bet-at-home to continue offering online sports betting services and internet casino games in the UK. In a statement, Bet-at-home said: “With the approved license Bet-at-home.com sets another milestone in terms of legal certainty in the European Union.”