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US states eye Internet gaming, but Vegas is divided
2010 could be the deciding year for online gaming in the U.S., according to analyst GamblingCompliance. A report from the firm says: “More than three years after the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act, restrictions on Internet gaming are facing crucial tests in 2010, with federal and state governments making moves that will have a significant impact on the future of the U.S. gaming industry.”
New Russian casino has to bus in customers
Anew casino has opened in the Rostov region of Russia just seven months after the government sequestered all gambling into four remote zones. The Oracle is about 60 miles from Rostov-on-Don, near the Black Sea and Russia’s border with Ukraine.
Slot server set to tighten tax collection in Peru
Authorities in Peru hope that the introduction this year of a central server linking all the country’s slot machines will make it impossible for gaming operators to avoid paying tax.
Peru levies a 12 percent tax on gross gaming revenues. But until a 2006 law tightening the regulation of gaming came into force, most gaming businesses were unlicensed and the government was collecting less than $1m a year.
News in brief
Comma component
Quixant will show a PC motherboard designed specially for the Italian Comma 6a market at the Enada show in Rimini this month.
The QXi-106, based on an AMD chipset and including game storage, is compliant with requirements of the Italian regulator AAMS. “This is the first PC-based product designed from the ground up to comply with the special Italian gaming requirements,” said Sales Director Gary Mullins.
Octavian to link 12,000 Italian VLTs; conference will focus on new market
As video lottery terminals (VLTs) start to appear in Italy following last year’s legalisation and issuing of licences, vendors are beginning to land large orders, and a conference devoted to the new market is planned for this month.
Octavian Global Technologies has signed a ten-year contract with AWP gaming concessionaire BetPlus, which will deploy Octavian’s Symphony VE system to manage Comma 6b devices, as VLTs are known under Italian rules.
Harrah’s “could go public again” when Vegas revenues recover
Harrah’s Entertainment could return to the stock market in 2013-15, CEO Gary Loveman has speculated. Loveman told Reuters that the company – taken private by buyers TPG and Apollo in a $31bn deal at the beginning of 2008 – would wait, however, for economic recovery and the legalisation of online Poker in the U.S. before returning to the market. There had been no discussion of firm dates yet, he added.
Aspers Newcastle enlarges card room
Aspers at The Gate in the northern English city of Newcastle Upon Tyne has doubled the size of its card room, which can now hold 200 people.
Opened in 2005, the card room has hosted Poker events such as the Sky Poker Tour and the Virgin Festival. After extending it into the former Club Aspinall VIP room, Aspers management now hope to hold more such high-profile events as well as more tournaments for local customers.
Playtech moves into Bingo with Virtue Fusion acquisition
Gaming software provider Playtech has acquired the business and assets of online Bingo developer Virtue Fusion.
Virtue Fusion is claimed to have the largest independent network in the fast-growing online Bingo sector, with 30,000 daily players and more than €100m ($135m) staked each month.
Cambodian casino looks over the border
Anew casino in Cambodia, the thirtieth in the country, is wooing foreign players including Vietnamese, Chinese and Malaysians.
The Titan King at Bayet, near the Vietnam border and about 70 miles from Cambodia’s capital Phnom Penh, opened late February after three years of construction.
Princess Hotel, Guyana: where only guests can gamble
The new Princess Casino in Providence, Guyana, plans to work closely with tour operators in order to comply with local rules that only resident guests can gamble there.
The casino in the Princess Hotel – formerly Buddy’s International Hotel – offers Blackjack and Poker as well as slots.
Harrah’s Cherokee enlarges casino, adds leisure facilities
The Harrah’s Cherokee Casino in Swain County, North Carolina, is getting a substantial $633m makeover.
The venue, owned by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, will double the size of its casino floor as well as building 532 new hotel rooms, a 3000-seat events centre, and a spa.
GLI gives approval to BaseSys Navigator
Gaming Support has gained Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) certification for its BaseSys Navigator jackpot controller. The approval allows BaseSys Navigator to be used to manage mystery and progressive jackpots at venues in California, Delaware and Rhode Island.
Cirsa sells La Toja stake to ambitious Egasa
Cirsa has sold its 50 percent stake in Casino La Toja to the brothers Gonzalez Fuentes, whose firm Egasa operates more than 60 arcades in Spain and is now moving into casinos.
Egasa already has stakes in the Mallorca and Bilbao casinos, as well as licences – as yet unused – to run venues in Chile and Croatia.
SHL renews Inspired deal
Silver Heritage (SHL) has extended its agreement with Inspired Gaming Group to sell Inspired’s server-based gaming products across the Asia Pacific region.
The contract will run for another three years, with an opportunity to extend it still further. SHL, which already runs Inspired content and its Open SBG on more than 300 terminals, hopes to grow that number to more than 1300 during the new contract period.
More gloom for Atlantic City as Delaware OKs table games, Philadelphia awaits new casinos
Delaware legislators have dealt the beleaguered Atlantic City gaming industry a further blow by approving a bill that allows the state’s three racinos to offer table games.
They could be introduced at Delaware Park, Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway – all of which currently have only slots – by summer.
Rank files
Britain’s Rank Group recorded a 3.4 percent rise in gross revenue during 2009, to £540m ($810m), although operating profit was down 3.8 percent to £58m ($87m) thanks to tax increases. Revenues grew at Rank’s two largest businesses, Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos. The latter was named as the main driver of growth, with the G Casino brand spreading during the year from six to ten properties.
