This week, the GGB Podcast features a discussion with Roger Snow, a legend in the table game business, and now senior vice president at Scientific Games, on how tables have been impacted by Covid and why he believes a table-game renaissance will soon be under way.
Pent-up demand for the bright lights of Sin City has been building for months. Will “herd immunity” unleash a stampede of visitors to Las Vegas? Truist Securities analyst Barry Jonas says yes, eventually.
It’s no surprise that many of the 25 states yet to pass sports betting legislation will try to do so in 2021. The American Gaming Association predicts as many as 14 could join the club this year, but the realistic figure is probably six.
Following feedback from customers, Clarion Gaming cancelled the planned co-located 2021 editions of ICE London and iGB Affiliate London trade shows. First pushed back to April and later to late June, both shows will now be held at their regular time in February 2022. Stuart Hunter (l.), managing director of ICE, says exhibitors will now be able to focus their efforts on a 2022 recovery.
Five development groups will bid on the right to build and operate an integrated resort in Nagasaki. It’s one of four regions that hope to host a Japan IR, along with Yokohama, Wakayama and Osaka, where Yumeshima Island (l.), the site of the planned 2025 World Expo, is the preferred site for the IR.
Texas billionaire Tilman Fertitta (l.) has taken his restaurant and gaming businesses public, putting the Landry’s and Golden Nugget brands on the open market. Fertitta merged with blank-check company Fast Acquisition.
In the Covid-19 age, local patrons have become a lifeline for Singapore’s two integrated resorts, Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands (l.). And those patrons have remained loyal, as fourth-quarter results show.
The Arizona legislature is considering a deal reached by Governor Doug Ducey (l.) and the state’s two dozen gaming tribes. It would allow sports betting at tribal casinos and sites owned by pro sports teams.
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont (l.) is optimistic about reaching a sports betting deal with the state’s two gaming tribes, the Mohegans and the Mashantucket Pequots.
The U.K. Gambling Commission has issued rules for online casinos to reduce the potential harm from online slots. The rules require slower games, removal of auto-play and removal of reverse withdrawal.
A year-long review of Crown Resorts’ “suitability” to run a casino (l.) in Sydney’s Barangaroo neighborhood was issued last Monday, but its conclusions will not be made public for several weeks.
The Odawa Casino (l.) in Petoskey, Michigan has launched iGaming and sports betting, and Greektown Casino in Detroit has kicked off online gambling. That brings the total number of Michigan online operators to 10.
This week, the GGB Podcast features a discussion with Darnell Johnson, the director of product management, video poker for IGT on how the company’s stranglehold on the video poker market will probably continue with new products and innovations.
January gaming win in Macau hit US$1 billion, still far below pre-pandemic levels, but the result was better than December’s and was achieved despite new Covid-related travel restrictions in China.
Genting Hong Kong Ltd. has sold its stake in a five-star integrated resort project under development on Nam Vam Lake (l.), Macau. The complex, set for completion in June 2022, has hit some setbacks.
A news report suggests that Landing International may not be able to reclaim millions reportedly stolen by a onetime employee at its South Korea casino—even if that employee and the money are tracked down.
Beleaguered casino operator Imperial Pacific International, which runs the sole casino resort on the Pacific island of Saipan, has asked U.S. officials to give it more time to pay its long-suffering employees in full.
French gaming regulator L’Autorité Nationale des Jeux has published the "working objectives" of a new three-year plan to overhaul existing gaming regulations in the country.
U.K.-based bookmaker Ladbrokes has been sanctioned by the Advertising Standards Authority for allegedly breaching responsible gambling standards in an advertisement.
Offshore and land-based casinos in the Indian state of Goa have contributed tax revenues of 1,277.29 crore (US$175 million) over the past nine years, reports the state’s chief minister.
A Supreme Court justice appointed to hold hearings on money laundering at British Columbia casinos heard more witnesses last week, including Jim Lightbody (l.), president of the British Columbia Lottery Corp.
Entain Plc has offered to acquire the wagering and media division of Tabcorp, Australia's largest gambling firm. Blackstone and Morgan Stanley are also said to be considering bids.
PlayStar Casino has signed a market access agreement with Atlantic City’s Ocean Casino Resort to debut the online gaming site in New Jersey. PlayStar expects to launch in the second half of 2021.
The Ukrainian Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries has approved the country’s first iGaming license under the 2020 Gambling Act for operator Spacex.
Canada’s Prince Edward Island is launching an online casino to be operated by the Atlantic Lottery Corp. But the plan is coming under fire from those who say it take advantages of vulnerable players.
Chile will soon open a competitive iGaming market, according to the Ministry of Finance. Such a market is needed to generate taxes to help the country recover from the ravages of the pandemic.
A Georgia House committee led by Rep. Ron Stephens (l.) has voted 20-6 in favor of a sports betting bill. The state lottery would regulate the industry. Betting would not be allowed on collegiate sports.
In Missouri, two sports betting bills differ in tax rates and the use of official data from sports leagues, among other provisions. State Senator Caleb Rowden’s (l.) version would tax sports betting revenue at just 6.75 percent.
For the third time, a sports betting bill has been introduced in Kansas. The measure, filed by the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee, would allow casinos and racetracks, like the Kansas Motor Speedway (l.), up to 12 skins.
Minnesota state Senator Karla Bigham (l.) and state Rep. Pat Garofalo filed a bill allowing tribal casinos to offer on-site, then mobile sports wagering. The lawmakers said their motive is to provide consumer protections.
In Ohio, a seven-member committee will research gambling regulation issues. State Senate President Matt Huffman (l.) said regulation is one of the reasons sports betting measures failed in the legislature last year.
With online gaming now in Michigan, FireKeepers Casino Hotel has plans to introduce its own app to the property’s retail sportsbook, known as Dacey’s (l.).
Richard Childress Racing became the first NASCAR team to partner with a sportsbook when it struck a deal with BetMGM, just in time for the Daytona 500.
“Futures markets” are considered a hedge for farmers who have a bad harvest. Now a cryptocurrency exchange and a gaming attorney want to do the same thing for sports betting. They call it risk management.
Sports betting technology company Kambi is expanding its footprint in Argentina with a multi-year agreement to provide its sportsbook technology to operator Casino Magic.
BetMGM will become the exclusive sports betting partner of the online publication The Athletic. The deal will introduce the BetMGM brand to the publication’s readers.
Superstar Racing Experience, the racing circuit formed by NASCAR legends Tony Stewart (l.) and Ray Evernham, has partnered with Genius Sports to provide data for its sports betting platform.
Betting technology business Sportech has entered into a conditional agreement to sell its Bump Worldwide unit to the Canadian Bank Note Company for CN$2 million.
Luckbox and EveryMatrix have expanded their partnership from its original esports betting to offer a live sports solution featuring more than 105 traditional sports.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey says “good can come” from a state lottery and casino gambling if voters approve them. State Senator Del Marsh (l.) announced he’ll introduce the necessary legislation.
A bill introduced by Kentucky state Senator John Schickel (l.) could save historical horseracing. Last year, the state Supreme Court ruled that certain forms of the games are not pari-mutuel.
Indiana gaming regulators say Spectacle Entertainment can’t close its Majestic Star casinos (l.) if and when the new land-based Hard Rock opens, due to alleged illegal actions by the firm’s former CEO Rod Ratcliff.
Live! Philadelphia (l.), a Cordish Company entertainment complex, opened its doors to the public at 8 p.m. Thursday, opting for a soft opening ahead of a grand opening celebration February 11.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy (l.) has increased capacities for casinos and other businesses from 25 percent to 35 percent thanks to a reduction in the number of Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations in the state, and allowed restaurants to stay open past 10 p.m.
With its DiamondJacks Casino (l.) in Bossier City closed permanently due to the effects of Covid-19, Peninsula Pacific announced it will move that gaming license to the New Orleans suburb of Slidell and develop a $250 million casino.
Card clubs have reopened in Los Angeles County for the second time since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Clubs like the Commerce Casino (l.) will be limited to offering outdoor play.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s (l.) new budget offers a way for Covid-battered casino licensees to lower the rates they pay on slot revenue by more than 10 percent. But there will be strings attached.
Clark County, Nevada has OK'd agreements with the Boring Co., a division of tech giant Tesla, for an underground people-mover connecting the Las Vegas Convention Center with Resorts World Las Vegas.
Thanks to the success of the Gambling Treatment Diversion Court in Nevada, an executive with the New Jersey Council on Compulsive Gambling has pitched a similar idea for the Garden State.
A study of 1,512 gamblers in Massachusetts has found that many could benefit from knowing more about the games. The study by the consultant Gamres was presented to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission.
California’s Mechoopda Tribe has partnered with Palace Hospitality to build a casino in Chico, Butte County. Palace, an enterprise of Tachi Palace Casino Resort (l.), will build and manage the new casino for the tribe. Palace CEO Michael Olujic (l.) says it will be an “incredible” casino.
Former officers of the Quapaw Nation are accused of misappropriating millions in tribal funds. Onetime Chairman John Berrey (l.) led the tribe for more than 20 years.
Former Mashpee Wampanoag Chairman Cedric Cromwell (l.) says bribery and extortion charges relating to a $1 billion casino in Taunton, Massachusetts are “a Trump set-up.”
Oregon bars and restaurants that host video lottery terminals can turn them on again. New rules allow up to six people at a time to play the VLTs, and the state’s billion-dollar lottery will get a shot in the arm.
One of several bills filed in the Rhode Island House of Representatives would approve a 20-year extension of the lottery contract of International Game Technology that was negotiated by Governor Gina Raimondo (l.).
The North Dakota Lottery has agreed to a two-year extension of its agreement with Scientific Games, under which SG provides system technology to power retail and online sales.
Wynn Resorts' General Counsel Ellen Whittemore has been appointed chairwoman of the Nevada Resort Association for 2021-22. Other appointments were also announced.
Sega Sammy Holdings has named Haruki Satomi as the Japanese company's new president and group CEO. The appointment of Satomi, son of the company's founder, was part of an internal restructuring.
The Plaza in Downtown Las Vegas has created a slot area branded as containing the favorite slot games of “slot influencer” and YouTube celebrity Brian Christopher (l.).
Golden Entertainment is partnering with Marker Trax and Konami Gaming to introduce cashless markers at Arizona Charlie’s Decatur and its other Las Vegas casinos and taverns.
Solaire Resort and Casino in the Philippines’ Entertainment City has chosen TCSJohnHuxley to supply equipment for a newly upgraded table game area, including the company’s Blaze technology.
IT developer SoftConstruct Ltd., parent company of the iGaming provider BetConstruct and online sportsbook and casino VBET, has strengthened its France-based branch and appointed a president for local affairs.
