British Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet re-shuffle this week offers a better understanding of the gambling industry following the appointment of West Suffolk MP Matt Hancock (39) as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The appointment has been generally perceived as good news; Hancock is respected as a politician who has …
Bidding for 120 Italian online gambling licenses – the latest tranche offered by the regulator AAMS – is expected to be opened this week, according to a report from the news agency Agipro News. 40 of the 120 licenses have been reserved for existing licensees as renewals, it is understood. The opening of a new …
The action group Poker Players Alliance has unearthed a new attempt by Republican congressional representatives to persuade the US Deputy Attorney General, Rod Rosenstein, to revisit and overturn the important 2011 opinion by the DoJ’s Office of Legal Counsel that the 1961 Wire Act applies only to sports betting (see previous reports). The December 19 …
The Ontario Lottery is set to launch its interesting new hybrid retail-online product “Hit or Miss” today (Tuesday) amid claims by anti-gambling activists that the product will exacerbate the Canadian province’s problem gambling issues. Hit Or Miss players must buy their tickets from a retail lottery outlet, but can watch the draws on the lottery’s …
After weeks of denying that he had sold the originally $2.4 billion Atlantic City building, Revel Casino owner and Florida property developer Glenn Straub finally confirmed Monday that he had accepted an offer of $200 million on the asset from Colorado developer Bruce Deifik’s AC Ocean Walk company. Opened to great fanfare in 2012, the …
London-based Push Gaming and Microgaming on the Isle of Man have made pre-launch announcements regarding new upcoming slots for February. Push Gaming’s new offering Tiki Tumble is a five reel, 20 pay-line slot with an Aztec temple theme that will launch at the end of February. Features will include Wilds, Scatters, Free Spins, Multipliers and …
Several English Premier League football clubs found themselves unexpectedly (and negatively) under the Sunday Times spotlight this week in an issue around youth and gambling that could have been avoided with more sensitivity to a public environment in which youthful gambling has become a major issue. The UK Gambling Commission, anti-gambling groups and the British …
Indiana Representative Alan Morrison kept his December promise to launch an online and retail sports betting bill Monday, introducing to the House HB1325, which proposes to legalise intrastate sports betting contingent on the US Supreme Court overturning the provisions of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act. His bill follows a similar measure – S405 …
The Kenya government’s tough new across-the-board 35 percent tax rate of gambling GGR continued to create mainstream headlines in the country Monday, with the Daily Nation reporting on a study by professional business services provider PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) that reveals Kenya’s betting tax is the highest in the region and ahead of international gaming hubs. PwC …
Asia-facing online sports betting operator Vwin is betting that its new multi-year sponsorship agreement with Italian Serie A football club AC Milan will attract European football-mad Asian punters to its virtual doors. On Monday Philippines-licensed Vwin confirmed that it is the first to sign as the Italian club’s Official Regional Partner for Asia, an arrangement …
R.Franco games are now live on Spanish online casino brand Jokerbet.es, a member of the Veramatic Group, following a content agreement. The package includes over 15 games developed by R. Franco Group’s online gaming division, including classic in-house hits such as Game of Chronos, Treasures of the Seven Seas and Big Catch, as well as …
BetConstruct has announced an online platform and games supply deal with newcomer operator Babe Casino. The partnership will bring Babe Casino players a range of games available via both the mobile and desktop channels.
SteveM, a 30-year-old IT worker, had real cause for celebration during the festive season just passed, hitting a $103,000 jackpot on the Leprechaun Luck progressive slot at WinADay online casino, the casino management reported Monday. The lucky punter hit five Rainbows, triggering the jackpot to his amazement and jubilation. “When the game suddenly said I’d …
Online and retail gambling group Paddy Power Betfair confirmed in a stock exchange advisory Monday that as advised in notifications last year (see previous reports) Peter Jackson has taken up the position of chief executive officer, replacing Breon Corcoran, who stepped down from the Board on 7 January 2018. In related news, investment specialists Morgan …
The long-running regulatory debate between the Cyprus government and the European Commission saw yet another development last week as the island government again submitted its revised proposal for online gambling regulation. Our readers may recall that Cyprus submitted its Betting Law 2017 to the EC for approval in June last year, including amendments to address a …
Online gambling games developer BetSoft has signed an agreement to provide online gambling operator Betaland with its suite of games. The deal includes Betaland’s Italian AAMS-regulated sites Betaland.it and Enjoybet.it. “Betaland is a relatively young operation, but already they are considered to be a prominent and respected force in the Italian iGaming market,” said Francesca …
The Kenya government’s controversial imposition of a 35 percent tax rate on gambling operators (see previous reports) was back in the local headlines over the weekend when the Pambazuka National Lottery announced the suspension of sales in protest at the radically increased tax rate. Launched just 18 months ago by Bradley Kenya, the PNL was …
Some of the Pennsylvanian municipalities may be concerned at the prospect of mini-casinos as part of the gambling expansion legislation passed by the Legislature last year (see previous reports) but the state lottery appears to be keen to take advantage of the online business opportunities the new gambling laws offer. A spokesman told the Tribune-Review …
Online gambling games developer NetEnt has released advance details of its next big online slot, a Nordic mythology-themed, 5 reel, 20 line game titled Asgardian Stones which will go live on February 22. This is NetEnt’s second recent Nordic mythology-themed offering, following the popular Hall of Gods game. The NetEnt theme suggests that to gain …
Indiana’s moves to position itself to take advantage of a possible overturn of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) by the US Supreme Court (see previous reports) developed further Friday when S405 was filed in the state Senate. The bill is being seen as a companion for a House bill which Rep. Alan …
Daily fantasy sports operator FanDuel has announced the appointment as chief operating officer of Andy Giancamilli, who will retain his responsibilities as chief financial officer but take on oversight of the group’s products, strategy and operational activity. Commenting on his new responsibilities, Giancamilli said in a statement Friday: “There is incredible momentum across the sports …
Spanish media reports indicate that struggling gambling group Codere, which had to be bailed out of billion Euro debts by hedge fund shareholders in 2014, is to have a new CEO from next week. The reports suggest that founding family Martinez Sampedro has been ousted in terms of control by hedge fund shareholders, who have …
Online gambling games developer Spigo has announced the release of its latest a game, Starlight, a space-themed, brightly coloured offering that takes players into deep space to hunt for gems. Features in this five-reeler include expanding wilds, scatters, re-spins, and substitution symbols. The claimed RTP is 96 percent. See the preview here
Scientific Games has announced the completion of its acquisition of NYX and its intention to delist NYX shares from the TSX Venture Exchange on or before the close of business on January 10, 2018. “Today, Scientific Games moves forward as a leading digital provider of sports betting, iGaming and iLottery technologies, platforms, content, products and …