Fivos Polymniou, a 25 year veteran of the European gaming industry and former Western Regional Sales Manager for Bally Technologies Europe, has joined FutureLogic to head up Business Development for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Trump Entertainment Resorts, the company behind Atlanta's Taj Mahal, Trump Plaza Hotel & Casino and the Trump Marina Hotel Casino, has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, its third such filing in sixteen years.

WMS Industries is the first company to receive approval from the Nevada Gaming Commission for a networked gaming system and remote configuration and download application utilising the Gaming Standards Association's (GSA) award-winning G2S protocol.

MEI has been awarded the Industria Limpia (Clean Industry) certification at its manufacturing facility in Querétaro, Mexico, where it makes coin and bill validators. Overseen by the Federal Enforcement Agency for the Environment, Industria Limpia certification is the Mexican government's highest level of recognition for environmental excellence.

Bally has announced record diluted earnings per share figures for the second quarter, with an increase 40 percent year-on-year.

Atronic's Dragonboat slot tournament won the 2009 Asian Gaming Suppliers Award for Best Asian-Themed Slot Game, defeating five products from four competing manufacturers to claim the title.

Phil Satre, 59, a former Harrah's Entertainment chairman and chief executive, has been elected to the board of IGT. "To add a director of Phil's calibre, who brings valuable related gaming industry knowledge as well as broad business and board service experience, is a great plus for our company," said Thomas J. Matthews, IGT's chairman and chief executive.

IGT has acquired some of the operating assets of Progressive Gaming International Corporation (PGIC) and is integrating activities with its respective offices in Europe, Asia, Australia, Latin America, Canada and the US.

Promotion and gaming firm Jackpot UK has made its list of UK players of game and competitions available for rent via the Lloyd James Group.

Crystal.net, Atronic's new online platform, offers enhanced player communication and bonusing capabilities to slot operators, providing functions such as player information display, casino promotions, and live messages which can be delivered to individual players via a touch screen at the point of play.

Over 200,000 people have visited Alea in its first year of operation, attracted by the venue's bars, restaurants and special events according to the venue's operators, London Clubs International (LCI), part of Harrah's.

The Gala Coral Group has opened Ocean Village, a £6 million, multi-branded venue in Gibraltar.

Congressmen Barney Frank, chairman of the US House financial services committee, and Jim McDermott have announced that they intend to introduce a bill that will set up a legal framework for online gambling in the USA. "...we should make online gaming legal and subject it to a reasonable taxation like anything else," Rep Frank explained.

Ritzio International has opened a premium class Allegre Casino in the city of Medellin, Colombia. The 2,600 square-meter venue features 490 state-of-the-art gaming machines and 25 tables for Blackjack, Baccarat, Caribbean Stud, and a double zero Roulette, backed by a six-table Poker Room.

Tristan Sjoberg has been promoted by TCSJOHNHUXLEY to Managing Director for the Asia region.

UK company Poker Controls is poised to launch its wireless controller for online poker games, and is understood to be exploring partnership opportunities with providers of online poker services.

DisplayMaster developed by Atronic Systems to enhance Roulette tables, can be used to provide game information and winning numbers history on its 22-inch TFT screen. It can be used to provide a wide range of table and game information, including table code and minimum bet, winning number history, ‘No more bets' and ‘Dealer change' events, and includes a statistics area that show hot and cool numbers, percentages of black/red, odd/even, and 1-18/19-36 to players.

Gaming Laboratories International has expanded its GLI Italy lab, prompted by increased work load from manufacturers and suppliers submitting new and modified games for the Italian Comma 6A market.

After a nine-month pilot in three French casinos, Courses et Jeux, which regulates gaming in France and French territories, has approved Atronic as its Wide Area Progressive (WAP) provider and Atronic's System Division as its operator.

Probability claims that its new platform, Zaphod, is the first to include person-to-person mobile gaming.

TableMAX Gaming has received GLI certification for its Caribbean Draw poker, which is proprietary to TableMAX in the electronic table game arena.

Longtime European gaming technical expert Martin Britton has joined the GLI Europe staff as Director of Engineering, responsible for managing all engineering activities in the Netherlands office.

Former UK Shadow Gambling Minister Nick Hawkins sorts the wheat from the chaff in his bi-monthly column...

The Recovery and Reinvestment Act recently signed into US law has Sharon Harris seething...

Ricki Chavez Munoz reports from this gaming hotspot in March 2009...

Ricki Chavez Munoz reports on what’s happening in South America in our Spanish Language version of his monthly column...

With legislative changes afoot in Taiwan for regulated gaming on the islands, AMZ Holdings has a significant lead on any companies wishing to invest in the area, with a large quantity of beachside land on Penghu just waiting for the go-ahead. Casino International found out what the changes will mean to AMZ and for the gaming industry.

There was some trepidation going into the London Show early 2009 – but the jitters were unfounded, as another successful show went without a hitch

It was hard work to get it open, but Nottingham’s Dusk Till Dawn poker venue is thriving. Kevin Stanley finds out why...