Macau’s newly appointed gaming regulator, former assistant prosecutor Paulo Martins Chan (l.), says the industry, now in its 18th straight month of decline, needs greater oversight and an improved regulatory structure. He will begin by establishing set rules governing junket operators. Meanwhile, there is little hope of an economic rebound for the SAR in the foreseeable future.
The $65 million expansion at the renamed Wind Creek Casino & Hotel Montgomery in Alabama debuted December 1. The upgrade includes an expanded gaming floor with 2,200 machines, BB King's Blues Club, a salon, swimming pool and event center. A five-story, 123-room hotel will open soon. The expansion created 250 new jobs.
That’s the proposed number of large-scale gaming halls that could be developed in Brazil if Senator Blairo Maggi (l.) has his way. Maggi’s so-called “Brazil Agenda” would legalize casino gaming and bingo in the country.
A new bill to legalize iGaming in Massachusetts has been submitted by Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (l.), who believes that online casinos will help the still-to-open state casinos to get a leg up. State casino operators are ambivalent about the move.
Anti-corruption policies in the Peoples Republic of China have created tidal effects on Singapore’s casinos, with Genting Singapore’s Resorts World Sentosa (l.) reporting nearly a 50 percent decline in earnings in the last quarter. But the city-state is fighting back with policies aimed at attracting more tourism—and more casino customers.
In a case that could significantly impact Florida gambling, the state Supreme Court announced it will rule if Gretna Racing in Gadsden County can install slots without legislative approval. The facility today hosts barrel racing and poker (l.). Last May a court ruled the slots were allowed because county voters approved them, but the court reversed itself in October.
The leaders of the Bermuda Casino Gaming Commission denied rumors of a quick timeline on the establishment of casinos on the island, and that sites had been selected. Alan Dunch (l.), chairman of the commission, strongly denied that any sites were being shortlisted.
With few legislative developments in the daily fantasy sports battle this week, several small fantasy companies, such as European-based Mondogoal, have quietly taking actions to prepare for changes that may be coming to the industry. Several companies were scaling back while others stayed with current strategies as the two biggest companies—DraftKings and FanDuel—await a court decision in New York that could ban the sites in that state.
Coral Gala CEO Carl Leaver (l.) has responded to criticism by Irish billionaire Dermot Desmond, who said a merger of the UK bookmaker with rival Ladbrokes would be disastrous for Lads shareholders.
This week, the GGB Podcast sits down with Tristan Sjöberg, the executive chairman of TCSJohnHuxley, on new developments in his company and the fascinating world of table games.
Indian gamblers could soon be banned from playing in Goa’s 15 casinos. Legislation that would prohibit residents and young people from entering a casino is now on the desk of Home Secretary Kanjiv Gadkar. And the Deltin Suites (l.) will become one of the few hotels in Goa to host a land-based casino.
Hong Kong-listed gaming company Best Sunshine International, a subsidiary of Imperial Pacific, has opened a new temporary casino in the Galleria shopping mall (l.) and personnel training center on Saipan in the Marianas Islands.
The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority has placed its bid for a casino license near Incheon International Airport in South Korea. If approved, the $1.6 billion resort city would be the U.S. tribe’s first international venture.
In its budget for 2016, the Sri Lankan government has eliminated a proposed $100 casino entry fee but will make it up with a tax hike on operators, including the Star Dust Casino in Colombo (l.). Annual taxes will rise from Rs200 million to Rs400 million.
The Ho Tram Project Company and the Vietnamese construction firm Coteccons will develop a series of new residential towers on the Ho Tram Strip. The new development will include up to 900 condominiums.
OPAP filed suit in the London Court of International Arbitration seeking damages of $1.06 billion against the Greek government for its "abrupt and counterproductive interventions." The company said as a result it will not install 16,500 new games as planned. Meanwhile, OPAP posted third-quarter losses but year-to-date gains.
The Netherlands' ruling coalition parties reached an agreement about online sports betting regulation. Two amendments to a bill considered by the House of Representatives would prohibit betting on amateur matches and some side-betting, and require operators to report suspicious betting patterns. However, some observers said the agreement's timing could have been politically motivated.
A UK Court has ruled that poker pro Phil Ivey can appeal a decision that cost him 7.8 million pounds in winnings from the Mayfair gaming club Crockfords. Ivey lost a decision after winning the money using a technique called “edge sorting. Ivey maintains the technique is not cheating.
The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is seeking operators for the North and Southwest gaming bundles. Winning bidders will be announced in 2017. Operators for the Ottawa and East licenses were chosen earlier this year. The four regions were created in 2012 as part of OLG's modernization initiative. Casino Sault Ste. Marie (l.) is in the North region.
Genting has raised its projected investment in the Resorts World Bimini (l.) project in the Bahamas from an original $150 million to $600 million with additional amenities.
A proposed $250 million casino hotel in Barbuda by actor Robert De Niro and Australian billionaire James Packer received a 25-year “tax holiday” from the local government, which hopes to “expedite” the development through the recent enactment of the Paradise Found Bill, which supersedes prior governmental regulations and requires some locals to give up land.
Last month Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk (l.) signed a deal that could generate $1 billion for the government and creates one of Australia’s biggest gaming groups. The joint venture is led by Far East Consortium.
Casino operators in South Africa say they are contributing to the nation’s economy and that the government should encourage their economic prosperity with less onerous regulations and taxation policies.
Simon Hawkins (l.), general manager of the Raiders Group of Australia, says a number of clubs in the Bush Capital of Canberra could close if Casino Canberra gets the go-ahead to introduce poker machines.
Tsogo Sun’s Gold Reef City Casino in Ormonde, Johannesburg, South Africa, has opened its new VIP room, part of a yearlong R630 million renovation that also includes a renovated gaming floor.
The government of New Zealand wants its share of the estimated $58 million in profits generated each year by offshore gaming operators. It may end the ban on in-race betting and assess intellectual property fees.
Targeted at online gambling websites, the Quebec government is considering a measure that would require internet providers to block certain content. Quebec Finance Minister Carlos Leitao (l.) claims the law would protect consumers, but opponents said it's an effort to increase revenue from the government's own online gambling service, which has not met expectations.
Australia-based SportBet and several of the nation’s professional sports leagues want the Australian government to end its ban on in-play wagering to protect bettors from shady offshore operations and help to preserve the integrity of the nation’s sporting events. Calls to lift the ban come as Australian officials review the nation’s 2001 act making in-play wagering illegal.
Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt’s recent expressed support of resurrecting the Wire Act, which regulates wired communications and could have a stifling effect on the budding online gaming industry, is drawing criticism from Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval (l.), who says his attorney general doesn’t have the best interests of the state at heart.
A computer hack of databases for gambling payment providers Neteller and Skrill affected 7.8 million customers, Paysafe group has confirmed. Personal information and password recovery questions were in the databases. The hacks took place in 2009 and 2010.
Playtech’s bingo division, Virtue Fusion, has signed a five-year deal with News UK to operate the publisher's Sun Bingo and Fabulous Bingo products. The move replaces Gamesys as News UK’s main supplier.
The Remote Gambling Association has released a second edition of its “Anti-money laundering: Good practice guidelines for the online gambling industry” publication.
Florida handicapper Adam Meyer, who is currently charged with extortion, said in legal documents he helped federal authorities seize as much as $750 million from online sports betting operators.
The merged Paddy Power and Betfair bookmaker is looking for a 25 million pound reduction in labor costs according to the UK newspaper the Sunday Times. The company is planning a significant reduction in employees, the paper said.
Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby (l.) last week criticized MGM Resorts for not providing more details about why the project increased in cost by more than $150 million, yet decreased in space by 80,000 square feet.
New Jersey lawmakers, including former casino worker Ralph Caputo (l.), are working to have a ballot question ready for 2016 on expanding casinos outside of Atlantic City. A change is needed to the state constitution to permit the expansion. Several proposed casino projects in Northern New Jersey are waiting on the outcome.
Four proposed casinos in rural New York, including the Montreign in the Catskills (l.), mostly are stalled while awaiting final regulatory approval from the New York Gaming Commission, which casino developers anticipate will come this month. Without their gaming licenses, the casino developers can’t obtain financing to continue moving forward with their casino projects in Upstate New York and the Southern Tier.
Caesars Entertainment is appealing a ruling that would make it responsible for funding and managing pensions previously handled by the National Retirement Fund.
Milton McGregor (l.), owner of the shuttered VictoryLand Casino in Macon County, Alabama, said he will announce its official reopening date within two weeks. He said he's received more than 4,000 applications for 2,000 positions, and expects the casino to significantly improve the local and regional economy.
As criticism is growing that a state appointed financial manager is months behind in delivering a financial report on Atlantic City, Don Guardian, the resort’s mayor, says he’s seen a draft of the report and finds it “hard to disagree with.” The report calls for more municipal layoffs among other steps.
Originally scheduled to open in July 2016, the developers of Kansas Crossing Casino and Resort in Crawford County requested a second 90-day extension, due to a lawsuit by Cherokee County and Castle Rock Casino Resort requesting Kansas Crossing's selection be discarded. Castle Rock competed against Kansas Crossing for the final state-owned casino license.
Gaming revenues in Reno, Nevada, continue bucking a statewide trend by recording a 10th straight month of revenue increases when compared to a year earlier. At the same time, gaming revenues statewide are down slightly to level, while revenues on the Las Vegas Strip are down significantly, largely due to decreased baccarat revenues.
A report by Moody’s predicts that Atlantic City will see more casino closings in the face of new casinos being constructed in New York, Maryland and other parts of the Northeast. The new competition could also adversely affect existing casinos Pennsylvania, Maryland, New York and other East Coast locations.
Colorado casinos (Black Hawk at left) posted third-quarter gains of 7 percent or $281.7 million over 2014—second only to the $287.4 million posted in pre-recession 2007. Tax revenue grew by 11 percent to $27.5 million in the same period. Milder weather and alcohol service after 2 a.m. helped boost the numbers.
McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas is poised to surpass its 2014 passenger total after 4.1 million people arrived via the airport in October, making it the second month to surpass the four million mark this year. Through the first 10 months of the year, McCarran has handled 38 million arrivals.
Las Vegas-based Affinity Gaming’s largest shareholder, Z Capital, has until December 16 to negotiate deals to buy up remaining outstanding shares in the company, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ruled. Z Capital owns more than 40 percent of Affinity Gaming’s shares and wants to consolidate company ownership in the growing firm.
Isle of Capri Casinos, owners of Lady Luck Casino in Marquette, Iowa, and the Upper Mississippi Gaming Corporation, nonprofit partner and license holder, reached an agreement to start in 2019 granting UMGC 3.25 percent of the casino's adjusted gross income. Currently UMGC receives 50 cents per gaming customer.
Some 2,000 workers at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas now have union representation and will vote on their first collective bargaining agreement this month. A change in ownership made it possible for the labor deal, which ends the Cosmopolitan’s status as one of the few casinos on the Las Vegas Strip whose workers did not have a collective bargaining agreement.
Atlantic City casinos Bally’s and Caesars have agreed to pay $50,000 for jacking up their parking garage fees during free beach concerts held in July. The casinos were roundly criticized at the time for hampering the concerts.
The last full-time dog racetrack in Texas, Gulf Greyhound Park in La Marque, will stop offering live racing at the end of the year, but will continue to offer simulcasting. Kennel owners and breeders believe the track is using a loophole to stay open while their businesses will suffer.
Three of the largest casino operators in Las Vegas won approval of their applications to leave Nevada’s largest power utility, NV Energy, which is owned by billionaire Warren Buffet. But to leave, MGM Resorts International, Las Vegas Sands, and Wynn Resorts must pay a combined $126.6 million fee to the utility.
Nevada Gold & Gaming on December 1 announced it finalized its deal to buy the Club Fortune Casino in Henderson for $14.1 million and 1.2 million in common shares. The deal enhances shareholder value for Nevada Gold investors, and strengthens and diversifies Nevada Gold’s portfolio, its president and CEO said.
Southern California’s Bicycle Casino, “The Bike” to its loyal customers, has knocked things up a notch with a new hotel and a new moniker: Bicycle Hotel & Casino. The casino celebrated the $50 million addition on December 1.
A man wearing a Loomis uniform took more than $500,000 from a Loomis armored van outside Detroit's Greektown Casino. The driver, assuming the thief was a co-worker, opened the van door at the request of the man who then took several money bags. The FBI is assisting the Detroit Police in the investigation.
Atlantic City’s City Council delayed passage of an agreement to lease Bader Field, the city’s former municipal airport for athletic fields, after concerns were raised by the resorts state-appointed financial manager.
The Martha’s Vineyard-based Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head has announced that it will a decision by federal Judge Dennis Saylor that it can’t open a Class II casino on the Massachusetts island. The Mashpees, meanwhile, are going full steam ahead in pursuit their First Light casino (l.) in Taunton.
Florida state Senator Rob Bradley (l.), state Rep. Jose Felix Diaz, Governor Rick Scott's General Counsel Tim Cerio and Seminole Tribe lawyers still are trying to find a way to rework the expired banked-card provision of the Seminole compact. Meanwhile, legislators are exploring other proposals to expand—while containing—gambling in the state.
Penn National Gaming plans to open the $390 million Hollywood Casino it is building for its partner the Jamul Indian Village in San Diego County July of next year.
Old enemies have become new fast friends in Connecticut where the Pequots and Mohegans, who operated rival casinos for two decades, have joined forces to build a third casino to defend their interests against inroads by Massachusetts casinos being planned.
The city of Temecula, California and the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Indians, who operate Pechanga Resort & Casino (l.) have reached an intergovernmental agreement in which the tribe has agreed to pay $5 million for roadwork and pay for an additional police officer.
Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas Tribal Council Chairperson Nita Battise recently told the Deep East Texas Council of Governments board that the tribe plans to open a casino early next year. The state shut down its gaming operation in 2002 but the Interior Department said as a sovereign nation the tribe can operate a casino.
Southern California’s Pala Casino Spa & Resort announced last week that it would build a 10-acre, $5.6 million RV resort. The new money-generator will open next May. Customers will get free shuttle service to the casino.
Work seems to be starting, but the Enterprise Rancheria tribe says only talks are going and any work at the site doesn’t mean casino construction is imminent.
Gaming Laboratories International has named Marina Wong as it’s new business development manager working out of its Macau-based lab. Wong was former general manager and event director for the Macau Gaming Show.
After a four-year leave serving as chief executive officer/financial officer for Ute Tribal Enterprises in Fort Duchesne, Utah, Mark Brunson CPA recently returned to Joseph Eve CPAs in Salt Lake City as audit manager. Previously Brunson was senior manager at the firm.
Klaus Schernberger has joined BMM Europe in Vienna as a business development and client services manager. Schernberger has worked in the gaming industry for 10 years as an SW engineer/architect, and manager of products, compliance and research and development at WEBAK, Amatic and TAB.
Hong Kong-listed casino operator Imperial Pacific International Holdings Ltd. has appointed gaming industry veteran Yiu Ling Kwong as chief operating officer of its casino resort project on the island of Saipan.
Kentucky Racing Commission Chairman Robert Beck will leave the post on December 7. Appointed by Democratic Governor Steve Beshear in 2008, Beck is stepping down in anticipation of incoming Republican Governor Matt Bevin naming his own chairman and commissioners. An equine attorney, Beck works in the Kentucky office of Stites and Harbison.
The American Gaming Association has teamed up with the Humane Society and the National Sheriffs’ Association in a new awareness campaign on illegal gambling.
Nevada lawmakers and gaming regulators have enacted new regulations designed to attract more millennial generation gamblers and secure the state’s race and sports book industry as a national leader by spurring investment and ensure Nevada remains a hub for sports betting operations that might be approved outside of the Silver State.
KGM, Score Gaming and Alfastreet launched the first North American installation of Alfastreet’s Royal Derby horse-racing games at Fantasy Springs Resort and Casino.
Scientific Games announced a new contract to supply the West Virginia Lottery with a central control system and an extension to its instant game contract in Ontario.
Las Vegas locals can ride the High Roller for newly discounted rates and buy annual season passes to ride the world’s largest observation wheel. Clark County residents can ride the wheel for more than half off, and special pricing is available for birthdays and private cabins. Discounts also can be extended to guests.
The Macao Gaming Show for 2016 moved up a month earlier than this year’s event, to increase interest from Chinese and Asian markets. But a revolt from possible exhibitors convinced organizers to move it back to November 2016.
The 2015 BEGE Expo brought together the Eastern European gaming industry for eighth consecutive year on November 24-25 at the Inter Expo Center, Sofia.
