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Seattle’s becoming the new Barbary Coast.
First it legalizes marijuana. Next it’s likely to become the hub for online gambling.
The city’s already on the forefront of online casinos, with Seattle companies building some of the leading virtual-gambling operations on Facebook and mobile devices such as Apple’s iPad and iPhones.
For now they’re using virtual chips — not real money. But the federal government may legalize online gambling within the next year or two as a way to boost tax revenue.
An early sign of this gold rush came in January, when Las Vegas gambling giant International Game Technology (IGT) bought Seattle video-game company DoubleDown Interactive in a deal worth up to $500 million.
IGT paid $250 million in cash and promised another $250 million if revenue and retention goals were met.
IGT’s primary business is making actual slot machines and other gaming systems used in casinos. Last week IGT finally revealed in its quarterly earnings report what a good bet it placed.
DoubleDown helped IGT grow its revenue from interactive games by 302 percent in the quarter and 293 percent in its fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, to $144 million.
DoubleDown operates one of the largest digital casinos. It had 5 million players per month on average during the quarter. On a daily basis, about 1.4 million played.
Players may pay DoubleDown $2.99 to receive virtual chips “worth” $150,000 in the casino. It’s like buying digital Monopoly money.
“They were leading when we got them and together we’re moving even faster,” IGT’s chief financial officer, John Vandemore, said last week.
DoubleDown’s growth suggests there’s still good money to be made in the social-gaming business. It helped IGT blow past analyst expectations and its stock rose 5 percent the day after its earnings report. That’s in contrast to social bellwethers Zynga and Facebook, which are struggling to gain investors’ favor.
IGT’s giving DoubleDown everything it needs to keep growing the operation in Seattle, according to DoubleDown Chief Executive Greg Enell, a veteran of Microsoft, Wild Tangent and Big Fish Games.
When I interviewed Enell last month in his office a few floors below Paul Allen’s penthouse near CenturyLink Field, Enell employed 128 people. Now it’s up to 147 and the company’s moving this week into adjacent offices that will double its space.
“There really are no restrictions, any kind of hiring cap for us,” he said. “We’re building out as fast as we reasonably can, without sacrificing the quality of the people we hire.”
DoubleDown started in 2010 with a handful of people in a little office on North Lake Union. Back then it was just another one of the dozens of small startups in Seattle trying to make a go building games.
The venture was more deliberate than a roll of the dice. Enell had previously sold another game company to Big Fish, then started a profitable online trivia-game company that provided funds to start DoubleDown.
“The idea was let’s go build the biggest gambling-oriented audience online in the world. If we do that and online gambling legalizes, we’re going to be really valuable,” he recalled. “We saw a clear exit, and our exit happened a little sooner than I thought it would, but it did happen.”
The team had expected legalization of online gambling to come between 2013 and 2015. Enell still thinks it could happen in the next year or two. But he’s leaving that issue to the experts at IGT and staying focused on building virtual gambling games for Facebook and mobile devices.
IGT has a big library of slot-machine games that DoubleDown draws from to expand its online lineup. It adds about two games a month.
DoubleDown’s also working to extend its global presence by localizing its games in different markets. It’s also been building its own suite of tools to build browser-based games using HTML5 technology.
Meanwhile Enell’s former employer, Big Fish, in August launched an online casino that’s now making more money on Apple devices than DoubleDown.
But DoubleDown still has the lead on Facebook, where it’s the fifth-highest grossing app, behind Zynga’s Texas HoldEm Poker, FarmVille, ChefVille and FarmVille2.
Since this is all virtual currency, I’ll make a bet of my own: The success that IGT’s having with DoubleDown is going to draw other big gambling companies to Seattle, looking for expertise building online audiences and virtual games. Maybe a gambling company will finally put enough money on the table to buy Big Fish.
It’s hard to predict the future, though. Just ask Enell’s parents, who weren’t enthused about his love of video games when he was growing up in Bellingham.
“My dad always thought it was such a waste of time,” he said.
Seattle companies bet big on legal online gambling | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times
First it legalizes marijuana. Next it’s likely to become the hub for online gambling.
The city’s already on the forefront of online casinos, with Seattle companies building some of the leading virtual-gambling operations on Facebook and mobile devices such as Apple’s iPad and iPhones.
For now they’re using virtual chips — not real money. But the federal government may legalize online gambling within the next year or two as a way to boost tax revenue.
An early sign of this gold rush came in January, when Las Vegas gambling giant International Game Technology (IGT) bought Seattle video-game company DoubleDown Interactive in a deal worth up to $500 million.
IGT paid $250 million in cash and promised another $250 million if revenue and retention goals were met.
IGT’s primary business is making actual slot machines and other gaming systems used in casinos. Last week IGT finally revealed in its quarterly earnings report what a good bet it placed.
DoubleDown helped IGT grow its revenue from interactive games by 302 percent in the quarter and 293 percent in its fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, to $144 million.
DoubleDown operates one of the largest digital casinos. It had 5 million players per month on average during the quarter. On a daily basis, about 1.4 million played.
Players may pay DoubleDown $2.99 to receive virtual chips “worth” $150,000 in the casino. It’s like buying digital Monopoly money.
“They were leading when we got them and together we’re moving even faster,” IGT’s chief financial officer, John Vandemore, said last week.
DoubleDown’s growth suggests there’s still good money to be made in the social-gaming business. It helped IGT blow past analyst expectations and its stock rose 5 percent the day after its earnings report. That’s in contrast to social bellwethers Zynga and Facebook, which are struggling to gain investors’ favor.
IGT’s giving DoubleDown everything it needs to keep growing the operation in Seattle, according to DoubleDown Chief Executive Greg Enell, a veteran of Microsoft, Wild Tangent and Big Fish Games.
When I interviewed Enell last month in his office a few floors below Paul Allen’s penthouse near CenturyLink Field, Enell employed 128 people. Now it’s up to 147 and the company’s moving this week into adjacent offices that will double its space.
“There really are no restrictions, any kind of hiring cap for us,” he said. “We’re building out as fast as we reasonably can, without sacrificing the quality of the people we hire.”
DoubleDown started in 2010 with a handful of people in a little office on North Lake Union. Back then it was just another one of the dozens of small startups in Seattle trying to make a go building games.
The venture was more deliberate than a roll of the dice. Enell had previously sold another game company to Big Fish, then started a profitable online trivia-game company that provided funds to start DoubleDown.
“The idea was let’s go build the biggest gambling-oriented audience online in the world. If we do that and online gambling legalizes, we’re going to be really valuable,” he recalled. “We saw a clear exit, and our exit happened a little sooner than I thought it would, but it did happen.”
The team had expected legalization of online gambling to come between 2013 and 2015. Enell still thinks it could happen in the next year or two. But he’s leaving that issue to the experts at IGT and staying focused on building virtual gambling games for Facebook and mobile devices.
IGT has a big library of slot-machine games that DoubleDown draws from to expand its online lineup. It adds about two games a month.
DoubleDown’s also working to extend its global presence by localizing its games in different markets. It’s also been building its own suite of tools to build browser-based games using HTML5 technology.
Meanwhile Enell’s former employer, Big Fish, in August launched an online casino that’s now making more money on Apple devices than DoubleDown.
But DoubleDown still has the lead on Facebook, where it’s the fifth-highest grossing app, behind Zynga’s Texas HoldEm Poker, FarmVille, ChefVille and FarmVille2.
Since this is all virtual currency, I’ll make a bet of my own: The success that IGT’s having with DoubleDown is going to draw other big gambling companies to Seattle, looking for expertise building online audiences and virtual games. Maybe a gambling company will finally put enough money on the table to buy Big Fish.
It’s hard to predict the future, though. Just ask Enell’s parents, who weren’t enthused about his love of video games when he was growing up in Bellingham.
“My dad always thought it was such a waste of time,” he said.
Seattle companies bet big on legal online gambling | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times
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2006/12/07
Messages:
29893
"In this 50th year of the James Bond series, with the dismal "Quantum of Solace" (2008) still in our minds, "Skyfall" triumphantly reinvents 007 in one of the best Bonds ever. This is a full-blooded, joyous, intelligent celebration of a beloved cultural icon, with Daniel Craig taking full possession of a role he earlier played well in "Casino Royale," not so well in "Quantum" -- although it may not have been entirely his fault. Or is it just that he's growing on me?"
I love the backstory of how the talents behind Skyfall came to work together as I think it makes a big difference that Skyfall is directed by Sam Mendes,
"It was Craig who, on a sudden instinct over conversation at a party, asked Mendes -- better known for his stage direction and dramas like "American Beauty" and "Revolutionary Road" than action movies -- if he wanted to direct. The two had previously worked together on 2002's "Road to Perdition," before Craig's stardom swelled.
"It mattered that it came from him," says Mendes. "I don't think I would have done it without Dan. It's much easier going to Javier or Ralph knowing they're already into the franchise because of Daniel. He's made it cool in a different way."
Craig also approached Bardem, a selective actor whose performance in "Skyfall" is already being considered among the best Bond villains.
"I asked him as well," Craig confesses sheepishly. "Overstretching my job description. You're an actor! Stick to f(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk) acting! You can't go hiring people.""
If you are a James Bond fan, go watch the film, don't set your expectation too high, 4 out of 5 stars is about right. And I am sure you will come out enjoying it.
Seriously, go watch it and then come back to this review after you watched it and enjoyed it.
Now, for the rest of this review, I am going to be that loving but grumpy old Skyfall fan and I am going write and focus on what bugs me! I am going to write under three types of Spoilers Warning: Household-grade, Chemical-grade, and Nuclear-grade Spoilers Warning because it is hard to explain what I dislike in Skyfall spoilers free.
Household-grade Spoilers Warning:
In one particular casino fight scene where animals are involved, two or three bad guys were supposed to kill Bond. Yes, it brings back some nice memories of old Bond films but I don't buy that Bond could so gentlemanly walk off the scene afterwards leaving his secret agent partner standing there. What the heck?! There are only three baddies? Oh, and they don't have guns?
Now, the filmmakers have shown the subway train crash scene in the trailer so I am not spoiling too much. But you know what, I kinda liked the crash in the trailer. But in the theatre, I checked my watch while watching the setup of this scene. And then the actual execution of the subway crash COMPLETELY underwhelmed me! It didn't work for me. I understand filmmakers put the best bits in a trailer but this is the first time for me to see a thrilling and expensive bit in a trailer that is a waste of money in the film itself. Oh, because I was so bored plus our attention was directed to the train anyway, do you noticed the train was completely empty! Too expensive to put cheap CG people on the train to have more death and destructions?!
Chemical-grade Spoilers Warning:
I love Javier Bardem's evil villain in Skyfall but this is James Bond villain after all, and definitely NOT and no where near the evil in his Oscar winning No Country for Old Men. But creating all these mayhem just so Bardem's character can have a personal revenge and kill M to her face? Sorry, there are so many other ways Bardem's character with his smart can capture and kill M.
So sweet to find out who Naomie Harris's "Eve" turns out to be at the end of the movie!
I love Bérénice Marlohe's Séverine, a super hot mixed (French & Khmer-Chinese) Bond girl! May be we have have world peace through mixed marriage and hot girls/boys?! 😁 I am a bit pissed how they dispose of Séverine! Either don't kill her, or kill her by showing some blood and shock us! The character worth a better death is what I am saying!
I love the backstory of how the talents behind Skyfall came to work together as I think it makes a big difference that Skyfall is directed by Sam Mendes,
"It was Craig who, on a sudden instinct over conversation at a party, asked Mendes -- better known for his stage direction and dramas like "American Beauty" and "Revolutionary Road" than action movies -- if he wanted to direct. The two had previously worked together on 2002's "Road to Perdition," before Craig's stardom swelled.
"It mattered that it came from him," says Mendes. "I don't think I would have done it without Dan. It's much easier going to Javier or Ralph knowing they're already into the franchise because of Daniel. He's made it cool in a different way."
Craig also approached Bardem, a selective actor whose performance in "Skyfall" is already being considered among the best Bond villains.
"I asked him as well," Craig confesses sheepishly. "Overstretching my job description. You're an actor! Stick to f(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk)(asterisk) acting! You can't go hiring people.""
If you are a James Bond fan, go watch the film, don't set your expectation too high, 4 out of 5 stars is about right. And I am sure you will come out enjoying it.
Seriously, go watch it and then come back to this review after you watched it and enjoyed it.
Now, for the rest of this review, I am going to be that loving but grumpy old Skyfall fan and I am going write and focus on what bugs me! I am going to write under three types of Spoilers Warning: Household-grade, Chemical-grade, and Nuclear-grade Spoilers Warning because it is hard to explain what I dislike in Skyfall spoilers free.
Household-grade Spoilers Warning:
In one particular casino fight scene where animals are involved, two or three bad guys were supposed to kill Bond. Yes, it brings back some nice memories of old Bond films but I don't buy that Bond could so gentlemanly walk off the scene afterwards leaving his secret agent partner standing there. What the heck?! There are only three baddies? Oh, and they don't have guns?
Now, the filmmakers have shown the subway train crash scene in the trailer so I am not spoiling too much. But you know what, I kinda liked the crash in the trailer. But in the theatre, I checked my watch while watching the setup of this scene. And then the actual execution of the subway crash COMPLETELY underwhelmed me! It didn't work for me. I understand filmmakers put the best bits in a trailer but this is the first time for me to see a thrilling and expensive bit in a trailer that is a waste of money in the film itself. Oh, because I was so bored plus our attention was directed to the train anyway, do you noticed the train was completely empty! Too expensive to put cheap CG people on the train to have more death and destructions?!
Chemical-grade Spoilers Warning:
I love Javier Bardem's evil villain in Skyfall but this is James Bond villain after all, and definitely NOT and no where near the evil in his Oscar winning No Country for Old Men. But creating all these mayhem just so Bardem's character can have a personal revenge and kill M to her face? Sorry, there are so many other ways Bardem's character with his smart can capture and kill M.
So sweet to find out who Naomie Harris's "Eve" turns out to be at the end of the movie!
I love Bérénice Marlohe's Séverine, a super hot mixed (French & Khmer-Chinese) Bond girl! May be we have have world peace through mixed marriage and hot girls/boys?! 😁 I am a bit pissed how they dispose of Séverine! Either don't kill her, or kill her by showing some blood and shock us! The character worth a better death is what I am saying!
Join:
2006/12/07
Messages:
29893
While online gambling is still forbidden in the U.S., many countries around the world welcome it with open arms. Chris Griffin thinks the market potential is big. Very big. Mega big.
Griffin is CEO of Betable, a San Francisco-based startup that has built a “gambling engine” that can be plugged into both traditional and non-traditional games of chance. The company has survived a grueling licensing process for the U.K. and other markets, and has begun to sign up online video game companies interested in adding a gambling component to their games.
The idea here is that Betable manages the gambling and transactional stuff, freeing developers to focus on game play. Griffin thinks there’s room for both traditional gambling games like poker, as well as games not generally thought of as having a gamling element. (Think Zynga’s Farmville, for instance; I bet I can grow twice as much corn as you can.)
Betable's Chris Griffin On The Future Of Online Gambling - Forbes
Griffin is CEO of Betable, a San Francisco-based startup that has built a “gambling engine” that can be plugged into both traditional and non-traditional games of chance. The company has survived a grueling licensing process for the U.K. and other markets, and has begun to sign up online video game companies interested in adding a gambling component to their games.
The idea here is that Betable manages the gambling and transactional stuff, freeing developers to focus on game play. Griffin thinks there’s room for both traditional gambling games like poker, as well as games not generally thought of as having a gamling element. (Think Zynga’s Farmville, for instance; I bet I can grow twice as much corn as you can.)
Betable's Chris Griffin On The Future Of Online Gambling - Forbes
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2006/12/07
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29893
As Internet connectivity has skyrocketed, it is common that many industries have been hesitant to accept the disruption of online commerce and state governments have been wary to regulate it. Gambling is no exception. However, in an era plagued by budget deficits, many believe these preconceived notions about Internet gambling are unnecessarily leaving millions of dollars in tax revenue uncollected.
Federal and state governments have not traditionally been supportive of online casinos and even staged a raid on April 15, 2011, which came to be known by Internet gamblers as Black Friday. Since that day many of the best Internet gamblers, like Alex Fitzgerald, have moved abroad in order to continue earning their income. "I can never live in my country of birth again without giving up the only job that has consistently fed me since I was a teenager," Fitzgerald said.
As many in the US struggle to find work and make ends meet and states continue to cut services, an increasing number of people are pushing states to legalize, regulate and tax online gambling, a potential source of valuable income for cash-strapped states.
Helping to Close a Growing Gap
Every state in the nation have been tightening its belt and making very painful cuts in an attempt to quell rising deficits; however, in most places extreme deficits continue to persist. To put this into perspective, here are the three states with the more severe budget deficits:
California: $21.3 billion
Illinois: $17.5 billion
New Jersey: $10.5 billion
These deficits are so large that it is hard for the average person to understand them; however, the shortfalls translate directly into hardship for some of society’s most vulnerable, as it is often welfare programs that are the first to be cut in an attempt to close budget shortfalls.
For example, CalWORKS, California’s state welfare program, saw $428 million cut for its 2012 budget. More $240 million was cut state-supported child care and $90 million was cut programs that provide in home elderly assistance. Additionally, as more states pass laws that prohibit them from increasing taxes, it is likely that attempts to reduce state budget will rely more heavily on cuts to social services in the future.
Every Reduction to State Budget Deficits Helps
Although Internet gambling will not create as much revenue as traditional gambling, nor will it eliminate state budgets completely, states are not in a position to turn away revenue. For example, in California, supporters of online gambling estimate the state will bring in $150-$250 million annually; a small chunk of the estimated $9.2 billion shortfall, but that money would not go unnoticed.
However, something extremely important to consider when looking at revenue projections is only online poker is being considered; this number would be far higher is online bingo and Internet blackjack were factored into the equation. These estimations also only consider the number of players willing to play illegally, in unregulated games. Many believe that if there was more of a guarantee that games were fair, far more people would play, many online gambling websites in UK offer free bingo deposits for the same reason.
Currently several states are considering regulating online gambling. Nevada and the District of Columbia have begun taking steps to authorize Internet poker. New Jersey and California are making a second attempt to legalize it – they were encouraged by a recent Department of Justice decision that reversed the Federal Government’s stubborn dislike of the activity.
Read more: Closing State Budget Gaps With Online Gambling? - Business Insider
Federal and state governments have not traditionally been supportive of online casinos and even staged a raid on April 15, 2011, which came to be known by Internet gamblers as Black Friday. Since that day many of the best Internet gamblers, like Alex Fitzgerald, have moved abroad in order to continue earning their income. "I can never live in my country of birth again without giving up the only job that has consistently fed me since I was a teenager," Fitzgerald said.
As many in the US struggle to find work and make ends meet and states continue to cut services, an increasing number of people are pushing states to legalize, regulate and tax online gambling, a potential source of valuable income for cash-strapped states.
Helping to Close a Growing Gap
Every state in the nation have been tightening its belt and making very painful cuts in an attempt to quell rising deficits; however, in most places extreme deficits continue to persist. To put this into perspective, here are the three states with the more severe budget deficits:
California: $21.3 billion
Illinois: $17.5 billion
New Jersey: $10.5 billion
These deficits are so large that it is hard for the average person to understand them; however, the shortfalls translate directly into hardship for some of society’s most vulnerable, as it is often welfare programs that are the first to be cut in an attempt to close budget shortfalls.
For example, CalWORKS, California’s state welfare program, saw $428 million cut for its 2012 budget. More $240 million was cut state-supported child care and $90 million was cut programs that provide in home elderly assistance. Additionally, as more states pass laws that prohibit them from increasing taxes, it is likely that attempts to reduce state budget will rely more heavily on cuts to social services in the future.
Every Reduction to State Budget Deficits Helps
Although Internet gambling will not create as much revenue as traditional gambling, nor will it eliminate state budgets completely, states are not in a position to turn away revenue. For example, in California, supporters of online gambling estimate the state will bring in $150-$250 million annually; a small chunk of the estimated $9.2 billion shortfall, but that money would not go unnoticed.
However, something extremely important to consider when looking at revenue projections is only online poker is being considered; this number would be far higher is online bingo and Internet blackjack were factored into the equation. These estimations also only consider the number of players willing to play illegally, in unregulated games. Many believe that if there was more of a guarantee that games were fair, far more people would play, many online gambling websites in UK offer free bingo deposits for the same reason.
Currently several states are considering regulating online gambling. Nevada and the District of Columbia have begun taking steps to authorize Internet poker. New Jersey and California are making a second attempt to legalize it – they were encouraged by a recent Department of Justice decision that reversed the Federal Government’s stubborn dislike of the activity.
Read more: Closing State Budget Gaps With Online Gambling? - Business Insider
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2006/12/07
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29893
A recent Royal Canadian Mounted Police investigation into an online gambling ring in the nation’s capital Ottawa has resulted in the arrest of 21 individuals who are alleged to have run an illegal online credit betting operation.
The investigation called ‘Project Amethyst’, run by the RCMP also involved the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ottawa Police had been ongoing since September of 2010. Search warrants for 10 residences and businesses were executed in July and September. Reported to be a major bust in the world of illegal online gambling a spokesperson for the RCMP revealed the gambling web location did “millions of dollars” in sports wager transactions on the Olympic Games as well as other National League sporting events.
Benedetto Manasseri, Stephen Parrish and Gary Saikaley, three of the eighteen arrested during the raids have made bail and are on the street. These alleged illegal online gambling conspirators, all face serious charges including, “conspiracy to commit an indictable offense”, “recording or registering bets or selling a pool, engaging in bookmaking or pool-selling or being in the business or occupation of betting”, and “willfully and knowingly sending any message that conveys any information relating to bookmaking, pool-selling, betting or wagering.” The three defendants all had to put up $10,000 each plus other securities to obtain their freedom for the time being. The charges vary for the three individuals with Saikaley, who was convicted of bookmaking back in 2006, which resulted in a fine of $22,500.He and Benedetto Manasseri, are both facing 18 charges in the case. Additionally Saikaley has also been charged for his “involved in a criminal organization.” Manasseri has also been accused of “committing extortion by threats, accusations, menaces or violence.”
Stephen Parrish for his involvement in the illegal online gambling operation is facing 15 charges, which include, “recording or registering bets or selling a pool.” The suspects are facing a total of 54 charges and seventeen of those arrested have been released.
Canadian Illegal Online Gambling Bust Results in 54 Charges
The investigation called ‘Project Amethyst’, run by the RCMP also involved the Ontario Provincial Police and the Ottawa Police had been ongoing since September of 2010. Search warrants for 10 residences and businesses were executed in July and September. Reported to be a major bust in the world of illegal online gambling a spokesperson for the RCMP revealed the gambling web location did “millions of dollars” in sports wager transactions on the Olympic Games as well as other National League sporting events.
Benedetto Manasseri, Stephen Parrish and Gary Saikaley, three of the eighteen arrested during the raids have made bail and are on the street. These alleged illegal online gambling conspirators, all face serious charges including, “conspiracy to commit an indictable offense”, “recording or registering bets or selling a pool, engaging in bookmaking or pool-selling or being in the business or occupation of betting”, and “willfully and knowingly sending any message that conveys any information relating to bookmaking, pool-selling, betting or wagering.” The three defendants all had to put up $10,000 each plus other securities to obtain their freedom for the time being. The charges vary for the three individuals with Saikaley, who was convicted of bookmaking back in 2006, which resulted in a fine of $22,500.He and Benedetto Manasseri, are both facing 18 charges in the case. Additionally Saikaley has also been charged for his “involved in a criminal organization.” Manasseri has also been accused of “committing extortion by threats, accusations, menaces or violence.”
Stephen Parrish for his involvement in the illegal online gambling operation is facing 15 charges, which include, “recording or registering bets or selling a pool.” The suspects are facing a total of 54 charges and seventeen of those arrested have been released.
Canadian Illegal Online Gambling Bust Results in 54 Charges
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2006/12/07
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29893
U.S. Senators Harry Reid (D-NV) and John Kyl (R-AZ) are advocating legislation that would limit Internet gambling. More importantly, the legislation would ban the online sale of instant-win lottery tickets.
Several years ago, Congress took steps to limit the abuses of Internet gambling and to protect Americans, including children, from a rapid explosion of gambling on the Internet. In late December 2011, however, the Department of Justice revealed that it had changed one of its longest held positions on Internet gambling, stating that the federal Wire Act of 1961 only applies to sports betting. The change marked a huge shift for the Justice Department, which had long relied on the law when asserting that all forms of Internet gambling, especially online poker, were illegal.
Because of this dramatic change, NACS is encouraging convenience retailers to take action: Write your members of Congress requesting that they pass legislation during the lame duck session to limit online gaming — including the online sale of lottery tickets.
Sending a letter to your members of Congress is easy through the NACS Grassroots site. Simply personalize the letter NACS has created by including where your store(s) are located, along with information about how serious your company is about age verification.
Washington Report: Take Action to Limit Online Gaming | NACS Online
Several years ago, Congress took steps to limit the abuses of Internet gambling and to protect Americans, including children, from a rapid explosion of gambling on the Internet. In late December 2011, however, the Department of Justice revealed that it had changed one of its longest held positions on Internet gambling, stating that the federal Wire Act of 1961 only applies to sports betting. The change marked a huge shift for the Justice Department, which had long relied on the law when asserting that all forms of Internet gambling, especially online poker, were illegal.
Because of this dramatic change, NACS is encouraging convenience retailers to take action: Write your members of Congress requesting that they pass legislation during the lame duck session to limit online gaming — including the online sale of lottery tickets.
Sending a letter to your members of Congress is easy through the NACS Grassroots site. Simply personalize the letter NACS has created by including where your store(s) are located, along with information about how serious your company is about age verification.
Washington Report: Take Action to Limit Online Gaming | NACS Online
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2006/12/07
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Playtech, the online gambling games supplier, posted its interim statement regarding its performance in the third quarter of 2012, showing a 30% year on year rise in gross revenues.
According to the report, Playtech saw its gross revenues climb to €79.9 million in the three months leading to the end of September.
Casino revenues grew 33% year on year, and were up 4% quarter to quarter to €38.5 million. Another surprise improvement was bingo which saw a 17% improvement compared to the same quarter in 2011. Online bingo operations grew to €4.4 million - up 1% compared to the last quarter.
Earnings from Playtech's Services division and Videobet subsidiary also increased. Unfortunately, Playtech was forced to post a 27% year on year drop in its online poker operations, with a 6% drop compared to the last year.
"Playtech has continued its strong performance into the third quarter, delivering impressive year on year growth across the business in what is usually a seasonally quiet period," said the Chief Executive Officer for Playtech, Mor Weizer.
Strong Performance in Joint William Hill Venture
In the Playtech third quarter financial results report, it was showed that its share of profit in its joint venture with William Hill grew 50% year on year to €12.8 million. This was also seen as a 36% quarter on quarter on growth. Playtech will begin a valuation process on its 29% stake in William Hill Online, as Will Hill makes a decision about exercising its buyout option on the joint venture.
"In the event that the call option is exercised, Playtech will ensure a smooth handover of its 29% stake to deliver a seamless transition that supports William Hill Online's continued progression," noted Playtech in its statement.
"William Hill Online has once again exceeded expectations, proving to be a transformational partnership for William Hill and Playtech," the group continued. "Regardless of William Hill's as yet undetermined final decision on the call option, we remain committed to our important relationship with William Hill and the continued success of William Hill Online going forward."
Playtech Looks Ahead
Looking ahead, Playtech said that the positive trend experienced in the third quarter has continued into the fourth quarter.
The group said that, given the expected contribution of new licensees launched, further expected legislation in regulations such as Italian slots, as well as the introduction of new products such as sports and mobile applications.
As such, Playtech appears to be confident and excited regarding its future prospects.
Improved Financial Results Posted By Playtech - GamblingKingz-com
According to the report, Playtech saw its gross revenues climb to €79.9 million in the three months leading to the end of September.
Casino revenues grew 33% year on year, and were up 4% quarter to quarter to €38.5 million. Another surprise improvement was bingo which saw a 17% improvement compared to the same quarter in 2011. Online bingo operations grew to €4.4 million - up 1% compared to the last quarter.
Earnings from Playtech's Services division and Videobet subsidiary also increased. Unfortunately, Playtech was forced to post a 27% year on year drop in its online poker operations, with a 6% drop compared to the last year.
"Playtech has continued its strong performance into the third quarter, delivering impressive year on year growth across the business in what is usually a seasonally quiet period," said the Chief Executive Officer for Playtech, Mor Weizer.
Strong Performance in Joint William Hill Venture
In the Playtech third quarter financial results report, it was showed that its share of profit in its joint venture with William Hill grew 50% year on year to €12.8 million. This was also seen as a 36% quarter on quarter on growth. Playtech will begin a valuation process on its 29% stake in William Hill Online, as Will Hill makes a decision about exercising its buyout option on the joint venture.
"In the event that the call option is exercised, Playtech will ensure a smooth handover of its 29% stake to deliver a seamless transition that supports William Hill Online's continued progression," noted Playtech in its statement.
"William Hill Online has once again exceeded expectations, proving to be a transformational partnership for William Hill and Playtech," the group continued. "Regardless of William Hill's as yet undetermined final decision on the call option, we remain committed to our important relationship with William Hill and the continued success of William Hill Online going forward."
Playtech Looks Ahead
Looking ahead, Playtech said that the positive trend experienced in the third quarter has continued into the fourth quarter.
The group said that, given the expected contribution of new licensees launched, further expected legislation in regulations such as Italian slots, as well as the introduction of new products such as sports and mobile applications.
As such, Playtech appears to be confident and excited regarding its future prospects.
Improved Financial Results Posted By Playtech - GamblingKingz-com
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Pop star Kevin Jonas and his wife Danielle are set to become reality TV regulars - their family show has been renewed for a second season.
Married to Jonas proved to be popular with fans when it debuted on America's E! network earlier this year, documenting the couple as it settled into its marital home in New Jersey and dealt with Jonas' life on the road.
Now the Jonases have signed a new deal to return to the small screen next spring.
Lisa Berger, president of the network's entertainment programming, says, "We are excited to continue following Kevin and Dani's journey as they juggle love and marriage with pop superstardom and eager in-laws." And executive producer Ryan Seacrest adds, "As we thought they might, Kevin and Dani Jonas proved both relatable and captivating to E! audiences. We're excited to continue chronicling their marriage and relationships with extended family and friends in season two. I expect they'll continue to charm and amuse people along the way, generating even more Jonas family fans."
The couple wed in 2009.
Married to Jonas proved to be popular with fans when it debuted on America's E! network earlier this year, documenting the couple as it settled into its marital home in New Jersey and dealt with Jonas' life on the road.
Now the Jonases have signed a new deal to return to the small screen next spring.
Lisa Berger, president of the network's entertainment programming, says, "We are excited to continue following Kevin and Dani's journey as they juggle love and marriage with pop superstardom and eager in-laws." And executive producer Ryan Seacrest adds, "As we thought they might, Kevin and Dani Jonas proved both relatable and captivating to E! audiences. We're excited to continue chronicling their marriage and relationships with extended family and friends in season two. I expect they'll continue to charm and amuse people along the way, generating even more Jonas family fans."
The couple wed in 2009.
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Under the whip of political and economic pressures, the federal government and some states are racing toward legalizing online gambling and, on Tuesday, a key Connecticut legislator said the state should re-examine the matter when the General Assembly convenes in January.
"Absolutely, it's something we need to look at," said Rep. Stephen Dargan, co-chairman of the legislative public safety committee, which oversees legalized gambling.
Connecticut lawmakers considered Internet gambling early last year, but didn't act, despite the U.S. Justice Department's December 2011 finding that the 1961 Wire Act prohibits online sports betting, but not other forms of Internet gambling. Since that ruling, other states, including New Jersey, have moved closer to instituting online wagering programs. Nevada is on the verge of starting online poker. Dargan, D-West Haven, said in an interview Tuesday that he expects his committee to at least consider the matter because Connecticut faces continued state budget deficits at the same time that revenue from the two tribal casinos in the state continues to diminish.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy wasn't enthusiastic about online gambling last year and there's been no change in his attitude, one of his top political lieutenants said Tuesday. "Certainly, it's the legislature's prerogative" to consider online gambling, said senior adviser Roy Occhiogrosso, "but it's not something that the governor has any intention of pushing."
"It's not something he supports," Occhiogrosso said, and "it's not something he thinks the legislature will follow through and send him a bill on." Would Malloy veto a bill if the legislature passed it? That decision can't be made "until you actually see a piece of legislation on your desk," Occhiogrosso answered.
One major obstacle to online gambling legislation in Connecticut is the state's legal arrangement with the two tribal casinos, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun. Under a state "compact" with the tribes, each operation turns over 25 percent of its slot machine revenue to the state annually — a projected $305 million by the end of this fiscal year on June 30, 2013.
Last year, tribal spokesmen said the state's legalization of online gambling might interfere with that legal arrangement, and there was preliminary mention of how to get around that — including the idea that the casinos might run the online gambling.
State House Majority Leader Brendan Sharkey, D-Hamden, who will become House speaker when the session opens Jan. 9, said Tuesday that he would not support online gambling legislation that would disrupt the compact between the state and the tribes.
Sharkey said that "the casinos are an economic driver for southeastern Connecticut" and are already threatened by new casinos planned in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and additional slot machine installations at New York racetracks. "We have to do everything we can to protect [the Connecticut casinos], to keep them thriving — for their sake, and for the sake of the state," Sharkey said.
If a bill were to be passed to start online gambling here, Sharkey said, his "litmus test" would be that it be written in a form that's "OK with the tribes." With that criterion in mind, he said, "I think we should keep our eyes and options open to whatever legitimate revenue streams we can develop."
Even though the state gets more than $300 million a year in revenue from the casinos, that figure has been sinking steadily for five years from a peak of $430 million in 2007, with the blame being placed on the economy and more competition for gambling dollars.
Meanwhile On Tuesday, in Washington, D.C., Congress opened a "lame duck session" that's scheduled to run through mid-December. One of the bills being discussed by U.S. Senate and House leaders would legalize online poker nationwide, but ban all other online gambling.
Under the bill, states could "opt in" or out of that nationally regulated program with programs of their own, which the legalized gambling industry favors since it would avoid a patchwork of different programs from state to state.
That federal legislation, if passed, could put a major crimp in states' plans to start online gambling that goes beyond poker. For example, Illinois' state lottery became the first in the country to allow the purchase of tickets online, and other states' lotteries considered the same.
"While we don't know whether the bill currently circulating represents the final version of legislation to be proposed by Sens. [Harry] Reid and [Jon] Kyl," the American Gaming Association "supports the general provisions outlined therein," said Holly Wetzel, the association's vice president for communications.
Up to now, only online betting on horse racing, at websites such as Twinspires-com, has been permitted in the U.S., while online wagering on sports such as football, basketball and baseball has been prohibited. It's been possible, but not legal, to gamble online at offshore websites on various card and casino games, as well as sports. These come and go as law enforcers try to shut them down.
"We know that millions of Americans are currently gambling online," Wetzel said. "This draft would restrict all online gambling with the exception of poker and puts in place necessary controls to strengthen law enforcement oversight and protect consumers."
Online Gaming Legislation: Online Gaming Legislation Is In Play In U.S. – But In Connecticut? - Courant-com
"Absolutely, it's something we need to look at," said Rep. Stephen Dargan, co-chairman of the legislative public safety committee, which oversees legalized gambling.
Connecticut lawmakers considered Internet gambling early last year, but didn't act, despite the U.S. Justice Department's December 2011 finding that the 1961 Wire Act prohibits online sports betting, but not other forms of Internet gambling. Since that ruling, other states, including New Jersey, have moved closer to instituting online wagering programs. Nevada is on the verge of starting online poker. Dargan, D-West Haven, said in an interview Tuesday that he expects his committee to at least consider the matter because Connecticut faces continued state budget deficits at the same time that revenue from the two tribal casinos in the state continues to diminish.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy wasn't enthusiastic about online gambling last year and there's been no change in his attitude, one of his top political lieutenants said Tuesday. "Certainly, it's the legislature's prerogative" to consider online gambling, said senior adviser Roy Occhiogrosso, "but it's not something that the governor has any intention of pushing."
"It's not something he supports," Occhiogrosso said, and "it's not something he thinks the legislature will follow through and send him a bill on." Would Malloy veto a bill if the legislature passed it? That decision can't be made "until you actually see a piece of legislation on your desk," Occhiogrosso answered.
One major obstacle to online gambling legislation in Connecticut is the state's legal arrangement with the two tribal casinos, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun. Under a state "compact" with the tribes, each operation turns over 25 percent of its slot machine revenue to the state annually — a projected $305 million by the end of this fiscal year on June 30, 2013.
Last year, tribal spokesmen said the state's legalization of online gambling might interfere with that legal arrangement, and there was preliminary mention of how to get around that — including the idea that the casinos might run the online gambling.
State House Majority Leader Brendan Sharkey, D-Hamden, who will become House speaker when the session opens Jan. 9, said Tuesday that he would not support online gambling legislation that would disrupt the compact between the state and the tribes.
Sharkey said that "the casinos are an economic driver for southeastern Connecticut" and are already threatened by new casinos planned in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and additional slot machine installations at New York racetracks. "We have to do everything we can to protect [the Connecticut casinos], to keep them thriving — for their sake, and for the sake of the state," Sharkey said.
If a bill were to be passed to start online gambling here, Sharkey said, his "litmus test" would be that it be written in a form that's "OK with the tribes." With that criterion in mind, he said, "I think we should keep our eyes and options open to whatever legitimate revenue streams we can develop."
Even though the state gets more than $300 million a year in revenue from the casinos, that figure has been sinking steadily for five years from a peak of $430 million in 2007, with the blame being placed on the economy and more competition for gambling dollars.
Meanwhile On Tuesday, in Washington, D.C., Congress opened a "lame duck session" that's scheduled to run through mid-December. One of the bills being discussed by U.S. Senate and House leaders would legalize online poker nationwide, but ban all other online gambling.
Under the bill, states could "opt in" or out of that nationally regulated program with programs of their own, which the legalized gambling industry favors since it would avoid a patchwork of different programs from state to state.
That federal legislation, if passed, could put a major crimp in states' plans to start online gambling that goes beyond poker. For example, Illinois' state lottery became the first in the country to allow the purchase of tickets online, and other states' lotteries considered the same.
"While we don't know whether the bill currently circulating represents the final version of legislation to be proposed by Sens. [Harry] Reid and [Jon] Kyl," the American Gaming Association "supports the general provisions outlined therein," said Holly Wetzel, the association's vice president for communications.
Up to now, only online betting on horse racing, at websites such as Twinspires-com, has been permitted in the U.S., while online wagering on sports such as football, basketball and baseball has been prohibited. It's been possible, but not legal, to gamble online at offshore websites on various card and casino games, as well as sports. These come and go as law enforcers try to shut them down.
"We know that millions of Americans are currently gambling online," Wetzel said. "This draft would restrict all online gambling with the exception of poker and puts in place necessary controls to strengthen law enforcement oversight and protect consumers."
Online Gaming Legislation: Online Gaming Legislation Is In Play In U.S. – But In Connecticut? - Courant-com
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Removing the financial control of mafia organisations over banks should be a priority in the EU’s fight against organised crime. Monitoring high-risk clients’ activities and sharing information on an EU database are among the proposals debated at a public hearing organised by the special committee on organised crime on Monday. Speakers also said taxing online gambling could help.
“Would the future banking union help fight money laundering?” asked Salvatore Iacolino (EPP, IT), the MEP responsible for drafting the committee’s final proposals. “Banks should act as they used to: financing activities, and not contributing to supporting money laundering and gambling”, said Antonio Maria Costa, former Under-Secretary-General of the UN. He added: “Banks are seeking liquidity after the financial crisis. Now the focus is on how to remove the mafia’s financial control over banks”.
EU banking database
Concerned about reducing mafias’ financial clout, several MEPs, including Mario Borghezio (EFD, IT), raised the issue of combating tax havens. Bill Newton-Dunn (ALDE, UK) said EU countries should be applying the same standards when it comes to monitoring the clients of banks.
“Banks should know high-risk clients and follow their activities through a unique European database for all the banks of the member states”, said René Wack, chair of the European Banking Industry Committee (EBIC). “We should create a European unit of financial information”, proposed Jean-Claude Delepiere, president of the Belgian financial intelligence unit.
Every attempt to track money flows should be carefully counterbalanced with “full respect of personal data”, warned Tania Fajon (S&D, SL), reacting to experts’ proposals.
Online gambling should be taxed throughout the EU
“Gambling is just a perfect tool for money laundering, because it is complicated to chase money flows. The major issue is that often online gambling is tax free, so it is a cheap resource for organised crime: the very first step is to tax this flow of money”, said Ingo Fiedler, professor at the University of Hamburg.
The special committee on organised crime, corruption and money laundering was set up to assess the impact of mafia-type activities on the EU’s economy and society and to recommend legislation and other measures to equip the EU to respond to these threats at international, European and national levels.
EU: Tax Online Gambling To Fight Mafia Business Eurasia Review
“Would the future banking union help fight money laundering?” asked Salvatore Iacolino (EPP, IT), the MEP responsible for drafting the committee’s final proposals. “Banks should act as they used to: financing activities, and not contributing to supporting money laundering and gambling”, said Antonio Maria Costa, former Under-Secretary-General of the UN. He added: “Banks are seeking liquidity after the financial crisis. Now the focus is on how to remove the mafia’s financial control over banks”.
EU banking database
Concerned about reducing mafias’ financial clout, several MEPs, including Mario Borghezio (EFD, IT), raised the issue of combating tax havens. Bill Newton-Dunn (ALDE, UK) said EU countries should be applying the same standards when it comes to monitoring the clients of banks.
“Banks should know high-risk clients and follow their activities through a unique European database for all the banks of the member states”, said René Wack, chair of the European Banking Industry Committee (EBIC). “We should create a European unit of financial information”, proposed Jean-Claude Delepiere, president of the Belgian financial intelligence unit.
Every attempt to track money flows should be carefully counterbalanced with “full respect of personal data”, warned Tania Fajon (S&D, SL), reacting to experts’ proposals.
Online gambling should be taxed throughout the EU
“Gambling is just a perfect tool for money laundering, because it is complicated to chase money flows. The major issue is that often online gambling is tax free, so it is a cheap resource for organised crime: the very first step is to tax this flow of money”, said Ingo Fiedler, professor at the University of Hamburg.
The special committee on organised crime, corruption and money laundering was set up to assess the impact of mafia-type activities on the EU’s economy and society and to recommend legislation and other measures to equip the EU to respond to these threats at international, European and national levels.
EU: Tax Online Gambling To Fight Mafia Business Eurasia Review
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The tempest the teapot may be the story in the latest news regarding the Belgium Police taking into custody one of Europe’s movers and shakers in the online gambling industry. Bwin.party digital entertainment co-CEO Norbert Teufelberger, has been detained in Belgium while he attended the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) Responsible Gambling Day in the capital of Brussels.
GamblingCompliance magazine quoted the legal advisor to the BGC Mr. Peter Naessens with the comment, “Norbert Teufelberger has made comments in the press they [Bwin.party digital entertainment] continue to operate in Belgium, and so we consider him to be guilty of operating illegally on Belgian soil. Therefore the Belgian police took him into custody today to ask him further questions.”
This is a fairly harsh public response to what some organizations call the non-compliant Belgian iGaming Blacklist which Bwin.party has refused to submit to. There are fifty online gambling operators on that list compiled by the Belgium government to enforce their particular legislated restrictions on internet wagering. Confirmation of the arrest by the firm was followed by a statement released promptly when the news broke, it read, “In response to press reports this afternoon, the Group can confirm that Norbert Teufelberger, Co-CEO, was requested to attend an interview with the Belgium authorities. He complied voluntarily with this request and is co-operating fully with the authorities. We will issue further details in due course.”
Regulatory changes recently in Belgium are costing the company dearly at an estimated €700k a month. The executive has been maintaining that the services provided by Bwin.party will continue in Belgium despite the hotly contested issues between Belgium and Bwin.party. In 2006 Norbert Teufelberger was detained in France after being charged with violating French gaming laws. The two Bwin bosses were each required to pay bail of €300,000 (£202,000) in order to cover any potential fines while at the time no official charges had been laid. It will be interesting to see how this tempest plays out for Bwin.party and Norbert.
European Online Gambling Executive Detained in Belgium
GamblingCompliance magazine quoted the legal advisor to the BGC Mr. Peter Naessens with the comment, “Norbert Teufelberger has made comments in the press they [Bwin.party digital entertainment] continue to operate in Belgium, and so we consider him to be guilty of operating illegally on Belgian soil. Therefore the Belgian police took him into custody today to ask him further questions.”
This is a fairly harsh public response to what some organizations call the non-compliant Belgian iGaming Blacklist which Bwin.party has refused to submit to. There are fifty online gambling operators on that list compiled by the Belgium government to enforce their particular legislated restrictions on internet wagering. Confirmation of the arrest by the firm was followed by a statement released promptly when the news broke, it read, “In response to press reports this afternoon, the Group can confirm that Norbert Teufelberger, Co-CEO, was requested to attend an interview with the Belgium authorities. He complied voluntarily with this request and is co-operating fully with the authorities. We will issue further details in due course.”
Regulatory changes recently in Belgium are costing the company dearly at an estimated €700k a month. The executive has been maintaining that the services provided by Bwin.party will continue in Belgium despite the hotly contested issues between Belgium and Bwin.party. In 2006 Norbert Teufelberger was detained in France after being charged with violating French gaming laws. The two Bwin bosses were each required to pay bail of €300,000 (£202,000) in order to cover any potential fines while at the time no official charges had been laid. It will be interesting to see how this tempest plays out for Bwin.party and Norbert.
European Online Gambling Executive Detained in Belgium
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The investment in online gambling stocks has always been somewhat risky mainly because most of the companies are relatively new and growing with competition always nipping at the heels of successful operations.
The recent news that Bwin.party digital entertainment’s co-CEO was detained in Brussels for questioning brought its stock down within seconds of the announced arrest. It’s not so much that the company has been experiencing anything all the others operators are its more that there is a perception the company is going to have some trouble that sends shudders through the market.
The investment in the bricks and mortar gambling outfits in the USA ,Hong Kong or Europe is just as interesting. Interesting, especially when you look at the huge debt loads that some of these operations have to contend with. MGM Resorts International and Boyd Gaming Corp signed a three way poker deal with Bwin.party digital entertainment last November 2011. This was an attempt to hedge their bets against other online gambling operators looking at entering the US online poker world should that ever happen. MGM has a debt load of as much as $13 billion that demands interest payments of $836 million in the last three quarters alone. This situation which isn’t as bad as Caesars Entertainment may cause some investors to think that maybe it wasn’t a great idea for MGM and Bwin.party to team up. MGM has a problem with too much debt and Bwin.party has a problem in Belgium.
The brick and mortar resort casinos need to find new markets so Caesars is moving into India and MGM into Canada meanwhile Bwin.party is trying to survive the online gambling world and its legal complications in Europe and the U.K. Investing in gambling is complicated and risky but it at least it remains interesting for those putting their bets on the new trend towards social gambling .
Online Gambling Stock May Be the Ticket
The recent news that Bwin.party digital entertainment’s co-CEO was detained in Brussels for questioning brought its stock down within seconds of the announced arrest. It’s not so much that the company has been experiencing anything all the others operators are its more that there is a perception the company is going to have some trouble that sends shudders through the market.
The investment in the bricks and mortar gambling outfits in the USA ,Hong Kong or Europe is just as interesting. Interesting, especially when you look at the huge debt loads that some of these operations have to contend with. MGM Resorts International and Boyd Gaming Corp signed a three way poker deal with Bwin.party digital entertainment last November 2011. This was an attempt to hedge their bets against other online gambling operators looking at entering the US online poker world should that ever happen. MGM has a debt load of as much as $13 billion that demands interest payments of $836 million in the last three quarters alone. This situation which isn’t as bad as Caesars Entertainment may cause some investors to think that maybe it wasn’t a great idea for MGM and Bwin.party to team up. MGM has a problem with too much debt and Bwin.party has a problem in Belgium.
The brick and mortar resort casinos need to find new markets so Caesars is moving into India and MGM into Canada meanwhile Bwin.party is trying to survive the online gambling world and its legal complications in Europe and the U.K. Investing in gambling is complicated and risky but it at least it remains interesting for those putting their bets on the new trend towards social gambling .
Online Gambling Stock May Be the Ticket
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High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Chile moves in on Uruguay gambling | beyondbrics
Place your bets … Chilean casino operator Enjoy is staking $140m on the purchase of a casino in Uruguay’s ritzy Punta del Este resort.
Announcing the deal, Caesars Entertainment Corporation, which is selling the controlling stake in Uruguayan hotel and casino operator, Conrad, to Enjoy, called Latin America “one of the fastest growing casino gaming markets in the world”.
That speaks volumes about a newly moneyed middle class in Latin America, especially as the casino trend is accompanied by rising internet gaming in the region. Enjoy is the only listed entertainment company in Latin America. Has it spotted a new growth trend?
It is making a clear bet on physical casinos, even though recent reports like this one, or this one, suggest that it is online gaming where the real potential lies as Latin America’s emerging middle class gets access to the Internet.
But there is evidently still money to be made in the old-style casino building. French hotelier Sofitel has refurbished the Carrasco hotel in Montevideo – it opens next month – which includes a casino. And there are many more across the region - Buenos Aires even has a floating one.
Enjoy is making a $156m capital increase to fund the operation and Caesar will take a 10 per cent stake in Enjoy. And it is betting on success.
Chile moves in on Uruguay gambling | beyondbrics
Place your bets … Chilean casino operator Enjoy is staking $140m on the purchase of a casino in Uruguay’s ritzy Punta del Este resort.
Announcing the deal, Caesars Entertainment Corporation, which is selling the controlling stake in Uruguayan hotel and casino operator, Conrad, to Enjoy, called Latin America “one of the fastest growing casino gaming markets in the world”.
That speaks volumes about a newly moneyed middle class in Latin America, especially as the casino trend is accompanied by rising internet gaming in the region. Enjoy is the only listed entertainment company in Latin America. Has it spotted a new growth trend?
It is making a clear bet on physical casinos, even though recent reports like this one, or this one, suggest that it is online gaming where the real potential lies as Latin America’s emerging middle class gets access to the Internet.
But there is evidently still money to be made in the old-style casino building. French hotelier Sofitel has refurbished the Carrasco hotel in Montevideo – it opens next month – which includes a casino. And there are many more across the region - Buenos Aires even has a floating one.
Enjoy is making a $156m capital increase to fund the operation and Caesar will take a 10 per cent stake in Enjoy. And it is betting on success.
Chile moves in on Uruguay gambling | beyondbrics
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The official line is "we'll see." But the Rolling Stones seem in such fighting trim, clear-eyed and focused, that it's hard to believe there's not more cooking beyond the current flurry of activity surrounding the band's 50th anniversary.
The archetypal rock `n' roll band is booked for five concerts in London and the New York area over the next month, the last one a Pay Per View event. The Stones on Tuesday released yet another hits compilation with two new songs and HBO is premiering a documentary on their formative years, "Crossfire Hurricane," on Thursday.
"Without saying yes or nay," Keith Richards said in an interview this week, "once this starts rolling, I can't see it stopping. The band feels good about themselves, they still feel they've got something to offer. Obviously there are a lot of people out there who agree. We'll go along with it."
Fifty years is hard to fathom ("It's impossible," Keith cackles. "I'm only 38."). The Rolling Stones have been through death, defections and addictions, through classic discs like "Exile on Main Street" and "Some Girls" and forgettable ones, and are still operating with Richards, Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts. Ron Wood, the new guy, joined in 1975.
"I thought it would be kind of churlish not to do something," Jagger said. "Otherwise, the BBC would have done a rather dull film about the Rolling Stones."
Fifty days was a better yardstick when Watts first set up his drum kit. "It was quite normal for a band to last a month," he said.
The Stones formed in London in 1962 to play Chicago blues, led at the time by the late Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart, with boyhood friends Jagger and Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and Watts were quick additions.
Anniversaries usually aren't big on the band's agenda, but Richards said the Rolling Stones felt external pressure to mark this one.
"This band is famous for not obeying the rules and bowing to pressure or anything," Richards said. "But over the course of the year we felt more and more aware that there are folks out there counting on us. You can't let them down. At the same time, you realize that the folks are right. Playing together over the last five months you realize that there's this thing out of your life that's been missing."
They spent several weeks in Paris rehearsing five hours a day for their concerts, including two dress rehearsals before audiences in a club and theater. To mark the occasion, the band has dug back into its catalogue for songs like "I Wanna Be Your Man" and "The Last Time," although Richards held the line at resurrecting their first single, the Chuck Berry cover "Come On."
Jagger didn't want the band to take on too much, "but I thought it was important to do some sort of a show, even if it was just a club gig," he said. "I didn't want it to be too nostalgic and I wanted to be pretty irreverent about it. My idea of the tour is calling it `F--- Off, We're 50.'"
Few people in the concert industry expect the Stones to mount one of the huge world tours that they have done in the past, given ages that range from Wood's 65 to Watts' 71, said Gary Bongiovanni, editor and publisher of the trade publication Pollstar. More live shows wouldn't be a surprise, however, perhaps as residencies in a number of large cities, he said.
The band's periodic sabbaticals sometimes stretch so long that Rolling Stones fans can't help but wonder whether it's all over now. The most recent time out lasted five years. If anyone threatened to make it permanent it was Richards, always the most protective and romantic about the band, because of his best-selling autobiography that took some shots at his songwriting partner Jagger. Richards dismissed the idea that it created a barrier.
"Anybody who thinks that doesn't know the band," he said. "This band's sense of humor is basically built upon insulting each other. I'm not saying there wasn't an issue here and there, but it's really water off a duck's back ... You cannot offend a really good friend. I happened to put it in print and everybody else was saying, `Oh, my God.' I thought it was fairly mild."
(Said Jagger: "I don't want to talk about Keith's book.")
Wood is often the diplomat if things get rough between Jagger and Richards.
"I still feel that necessary sometimes," he said. "They're getting along so much better than I don't have to be the referee or the adjudicator."
Wood said he's pleased with how the band has shaken off the rust. As Richards' fellow guitarist, he sees his role as keeping the band tight, and said the Stones have a greater economy in their playing than they used to, getting to the essence of the songs.
"You give Mick a song and have a good beat to it, he can entertain anyone," Watts said. "He's the best in the world at it. Now that Michael Jackson's dead and James Brown is gone, he's the best in the world."
Jagger was a driving force as co-producer of "Crossfire Hurricane." The film focuses on the rise and classic years of the Rolling Stones, back when their shows were considered dangerous and not an institution that you'd take the whole family to see.
Footage shows concerts cut short when enthusiastic fans rushed the stage and made it impossible to play. "We were playing pop songs to 10-year-olds," Jagger said. "It was very weird. You get used to it in 10 minutes, it's not that difficult. It's much easier to play three pop songs to teenagers than two hours of blues music to connoisseurs."
The film contains interviews from all Stones, including former members Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor. None are seen as they are today; Jagger wanted to keep the emphasis on the era and not go back and forth between the past and present.
For his part, Richard said he barely remembers the cameraman being there for all the backstage scenes. "I'm crashed out in the dressing room with some babe with me," he said.
From the looks of things, he's fortunate to remember anything. The thin, diss
The archetypal rock `n' roll band is booked for five concerts in London and the New York area over the next month, the last one a Pay Per View event. The Stones on Tuesday released yet another hits compilation with two new songs and HBO is premiering a documentary on their formative years, "Crossfire Hurricane," on Thursday.
"Without saying yes or nay," Keith Richards said in an interview this week, "once this starts rolling, I can't see it stopping. The band feels good about themselves, they still feel they've got something to offer. Obviously there are a lot of people out there who agree. We'll go along with it."
Fifty years is hard to fathom ("It's impossible," Keith cackles. "I'm only 38."). The Rolling Stones have been through death, defections and addictions, through classic discs like "Exile on Main Street" and "Some Girls" and forgettable ones, and are still operating with Richards, Mick Jagger and Charlie Watts. Ron Wood, the new guy, joined in 1975.
"I thought it would be kind of churlish not to do something," Jagger said. "Otherwise, the BBC would have done a rather dull film about the Rolling Stones."
Fifty days was a better yardstick when Watts first set up his drum kit. "It was quite normal for a band to last a month," he said.
The Stones formed in London in 1962 to play Chicago blues, led at the time by the late Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart, with boyhood friends Jagger and Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and Watts were quick additions.
Anniversaries usually aren't big on the band's agenda, but Richards said the Rolling Stones felt external pressure to mark this one.
"This band is famous for not obeying the rules and bowing to pressure or anything," Richards said. "But over the course of the year we felt more and more aware that there are folks out there counting on us. You can't let them down. At the same time, you realize that the folks are right. Playing together over the last five months you realize that there's this thing out of your life that's been missing."
They spent several weeks in Paris rehearsing five hours a day for their concerts, including two dress rehearsals before audiences in a club and theater. To mark the occasion, the band has dug back into its catalogue for songs like "I Wanna Be Your Man" and "The Last Time," although Richards held the line at resurrecting their first single, the Chuck Berry cover "Come On."
Jagger didn't want the band to take on too much, "but I thought it was important to do some sort of a show, even if it was just a club gig," he said. "I didn't want it to be too nostalgic and I wanted to be pretty irreverent about it. My idea of the tour is calling it `F--- Off, We're 50.'"
Few people in the concert industry expect the Stones to mount one of the huge world tours that they have done in the past, given ages that range from Wood's 65 to Watts' 71, said Gary Bongiovanni, editor and publisher of the trade publication Pollstar. More live shows wouldn't be a surprise, however, perhaps as residencies in a number of large cities, he said.
The band's periodic sabbaticals sometimes stretch so long that Rolling Stones fans can't help but wonder whether it's all over now. The most recent time out lasted five years. If anyone threatened to make it permanent it was Richards, always the most protective and romantic about the band, because of his best-selling autobiography that took some shots at his songwriting partner Jagger. Richards dismissed the idea that it created a barrier.
"Anybody who thinks that doesn't know the band," he said. "This band's sense of humor is basically built upon insulting each other. I'm not saying there wasn't an issue here and there, but it's really water off a duck's back ... You cannot offend a really good friend. I happened to put it in print and everybody else was saying, `Oh, my God.' I thought it was fairly mild."
(Said Jagger: "I don't want to talk about Keith's book.")
Wood is often the diplomat if things get rough between Jagger and Richards.
"I still feel that necessary sometimes," he said. "They're getting along so much better than I don't have to be the referee or the adjudicator."
Wood said he's pleased with how the band has shaken off the rust. As Richards' fellow guitarist, he sees his role as keeping the band tight, and said the Stones have a greater economy in their playing than they used to, getting to the essence of the songs.
"You give Mick a song and have a good beat to it, he can entertain anyone," Watts said. "He's the best in the world at it. Now that Michael Jackson's dead and James Brown is gone, he's the best in the world."
Jagger was a driving force as co-producer of "Crossfire Hurricane." The film focuses on the rise and classic years of the Rolling Stones, back when their shows were considered dangerous and not an institution that you'd take the whole family to see.
Footage shows concerts cut short when enthusiastic fans rushed the stage and made it impossible to play. "We were playing pop songs to 10-year-olds," Jagger said. "It was very weird. You get used to it in 10 minutes, it's not that difficult. It's much easier to play three pop songs to teenagers than two hours of blues music to connoisseurs."
The film contains interviews from all Stones, including former members Bill Wyman and Mick Taylor. None are seen as they are today; Jagger wanted to keep the emphasis on the era and not go back and forth between the past and present.
For his part, Richard said he barely remembers the cameraman being there for all the backstage scenes. "I'm crashed out in the dressing room with some babe with me," he said.
From the looks of things, he's fortunate to remember anything. The thin, diss
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Video: $20M Bet to Move Into Online Gaming | Fox Business Video
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High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Gambling: Asia internet gaming on a roll - FT-com
Away from the Victorian terraces of the lawyers and bankers in downtown Douglas is a glimpse of the future for the Isle of Man.
On the edge of an industrial estate stands a modern edifice clad in local stone with huge floor-to-ceiling windows. It is Celton Manx House, the new home of the Asian company behind the SBOBet internet gaming brand. High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Gambling: Asia internet gaming on a roll - FT-com
Bill Mummery, executive director of Celton Manx, says it is a statement of his business’ commitment to the island. His corner office, lined with prints of the island, commendations for the group’s charity work and photographs of Mr Mummery’s encounters with the sporting elite – SBOBet sponsors West Ham United and the Manx national football team, for example.
“Celton came here in 2005 because it wanted a quality jurisdiction. You have the English legal system, regulation specific to the industry and, as most of our markets are outside the EU, we pay VAT only on the revenue we generate in the EU,” he says. “Since then, the challenge has been managing growth.”
The island is on the UK’s white list, allowing licence holders there to serve UK punters. Celton’s main operations are in the Philippines, where it runs live casinos for its website and its customer service teams.
But the Isle of Man has huge data storage centres that are not vulnerable to typhoons, vast broadband and satellite communications capacity and the banking facilities to handle clients’ money.
Hence e-gaming, one of the island’s newest industries, is one of its fastest growing. From a standing start a decade ago it now accounts, with information technology, for about 9.7 per cent of gross domestic product.
As well as Celton, 188Bet is headquartered on the island, Paddy Power has a base there, along with software companies enabling the online growth, such as Playtech and Microgaming.
There are not, however, huge numbers of jobs (about 750), admits Tim Crane, the government’s e-gaming ambassador, but they are well paid. “It has been a very important contributor to our economy.”
It also provides the demand to justify investment in data centres and telecoms infrastructure that helps all businesses. Licensees pay £35,000 plus 1.5 per cent on the first £20m of gross gaming yield annually. There are 47 licence holders but Mr Crane says the policy objective is “quality, not quantity”.
Industry executives agree that the US move against Manx-based PokerStars, which runs online poker rooms, for money laundering, illegal gambling and bank fraud, has reinforced its reputation.
PokerStars struck a civil settlement with the US Department of Justice in July, paying back $571m to the government and reimbursing the non-US players of Full Tilt, a rival, for $184m but admitted no wrongdoing.
PokerStars acquired the assets of Full Tilt, which was also charged, as part of the deal. While PokerStars’ players had been protected by the Manx regulator – which insists clients’ money is kept in ringfenced accounts – those at Alderney-based Full Tilt were out of pocket until PokerStars took it over.
Anxious not to miss out on gambling revenue from its own citizens, the UK is proposing a move to a “point of consumption” model in which money would be levied depending on where customers are, not where the businesses they bet with are. “Globally there is a move towards tax and regulate. Governments are looking for new ways to generate revenue.”
He believes the EU, where member states operate as individual markets, will eventually create a single market in betting.
Garth Kimber, the government’s former e-gaming ambassador, was headhunted by Xela Holdings, another Asian company, last year to establish a base on the island. He says the company wanted access to Europe and the possibility of listing there one day.
However, he says most of the big Asian gaming companies are now on the island and the government needs to work on attracting more business service providers for the industry to ensure the cluster remains, whatever changes there are to international regulation.
Micrograming, a provider of casino and online gaming software, established its HQ on the island in 2001 and employs about 80 people.
Playtech, the market leader worth £1bn, this year moved its country of domicile from the British Virgin Islands to the Isle of Man, already its HQ, as it moved from Aim to the main list in London.
“The Isle of Man understands the industry. It is a good place to base a business,” says Roger Withers, the chairman.
He says recent growth, driven by mobile devices, will continue.
“There is a heck of a lot of growth to come. Most of the social networks are moving into games and will need a partner. We have the world’s biggest library of casinos and games and these can be applied to social networks.”
Gambling: Asia internet gaming on a roll - FT-com
Away from the Victorian terraces of the lawyers and bankers in downtown Douglas is a glimpse of the future for the Isle of Man.
On the edge of an industrial estate stands a modern edifice clad in local stone with huge floor-to-ceiling windows. It is Celton Manx House, the new home of the Asian company behind the SBOBet internet gaming brand. High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Gambling: Asia internet gaming on a roll - FT-com
Bill Mummery, executive director of Celton Manx, says it is a statement of his business’ commitment to the island. His corner office, lined with prints of the island, commendations for the group’s charity work and photographs of Mr Mummery’s encounters with the sporting elite – SBOBet sponsors West Ham United and the Manx national football team, for example.
“Celton came here in 2005 because it wanted a quality jurisdiction. You have the English legal system, regulation specific to the industry and, as most of our markets are outside the EU, we pay VAT only on the revenue we generate in the EU,” he says. “Since then, the challenge has been managing growth.”
The island is on the UK’s white list, allowing licence holders there to serve UK punters. Celton’s main operations are in the Philippines, where it runs live casinos for its website and its customer service teams.
But the Isle of Man has huge data storage centres that are not vulnerable to typhoons, vast broadband and satellite communications capacity and the banking facilities to handle clients’ money.
Hence e-gaming, one of the island’s newest industries, is one of its fastest growing. From a standing start a decade ago it now accounts, with information technology, for about 9.7 per cent of gross domestic product.
As well as Celton, 188Bet is headquartered on the island, Paddy Power has a base there, along with software companies enabling the online growth, such as Playtech and Microgaming.
There are not, however, huge numbers of jobs (about 750), admits Tim Crane, the government’s e-gaming ambassador, but they are well paid. “It has been a very important contributor to our economy.”
It also provides the demand to justify investment in data centres and telecoms infrastructure that helps all businesses. Licensees pay £35,000 plus 1.5 per cent on the first £20m of gross gaming yield annually. There are 47 licence holders but Mr Crane says the policy objective is “quality, not quantity”.
Industry executives agree that the US move against Manx-based PokerStars, which runs online poker rooms, for money laundering, illegal gambling and bank fraud, has reinforced its reputation.
PokerStars struck a civil settlement with the US Department of Justice in July, paying back $571m to the government and reimbursing the non-US players of Full Tilt, a rival, for $184m but admitted no wrongdoing.
PokerStars acquired the assets of Full Tilt, which was also charged, as part of the deal. While PokerStars’ players had been protected by the Manx regulator – which insists clients’ money is kept in ringfenced accounts – those at Alderney-based Full Tilt were out of pocket until PokerStars took it over.
Anxious not to miss out on gambling revenue from its own citizens, the UK is proposing a move to a “point of consumption” model in which money would be levied depending on where customers are, not where the businesses they bet with are. “Globally there is a move towards tax and regulate. Governments are looking for new ways to generate revenue.”
He believes the EU, where member states operate as individual markets, will eventually create a single market in betting.
Garth Kimber, the government’s former e-gaming ambassador, was headhunted by Xela Holdings, another Asian company, last year to establish a base on the island. He says the company wanted access to Europe and the possibility of listing there one day.
However, he says most of the big Asian gaming companies are now on the island and the government needs to work on attracting more business service providers for the industry to ensure the cluster remains, whatever changes there are to international regulation.
Micrograming, a provider of casino and online gaming software, established its HQ on the island in 2001 and employs about 80 people.
Playtech, the market leader worth £1bn, this year moved its country of domicile from the British Virgin Islands to the Isle of Man, already its HQ, as it moved from Aim to the main list in London.
“The Isle of Man understands the industry. It is a good place to base a business,” says Roger Withers, the chairman.
He says recent growth, driven by mobile devices, will continue.
“There is a heck of a lot of growth to come. Most of the social networks are moving into games and will need a partner. We have the world’s biggest library of casinos and games and these can be applied to social networks.”
Gambling: Asia internet gaming on a roll - FT-com
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Getting back to normal may take a few days for Norbert Teufelberger the co- chief executive officer for Bwin.party digital entertainment after his unexpected trip to the police offices in Brussels earlier this week for questioning about his companies online gambling activities in Belgium.
Bwin.party’s problems in other jurisdictions, namely Greece, have added to the mounting workload the executives have, deciding what to do next and how to stay profitable. Greece gambling officials announced they want all unlicensed gaming operators to remove their services from the jurisdiction by December 6th 2012 or face severe penalties. Those penalties include up to ten years in a Greek prison and fines of as much as half a million euro.
The removal announcement was made on November 5th giving the non-compliant operators a month the discontinue offering their gambling services. A blacklist similar to the one currently in Belgium will be created for the so called illegal online gambling operators who chose to run the risk of prosecution. Internet providers will be required to block gamblers for accessing the black listed sites. Money related to internet betting on any of the banned sites in Greece will not be processed by the banks by order form the government. Bwin.party is one of the operators in Greece being told to vacate the market.
There are many uncertainties for the company just as other firms have had to deal with the Greek gaming law’s discriminatory provisions. Other online gambling firms have lodged formal complaints with the European Commission regarding Greece’s unfair laws among them Betfair, Bet365 and William Hill. Ultimately the companies asked to vacate Greek territory will do so just to maintain a certain amount of distance from the black hole that opens up when the politics and business interests don’t jive. There is a very large rift in European politics when it comes to the e-commerce rules within the Union, something that seems to be getting more difficult to rectify.
Unlicensed Online Gambling Operators Banished From Greece
Bwin.party’s problems in other jurisdictions, namely Greece, have added to the mounting workload the executives have, deciding what to do next and how to stay profitable. Greece gambling officials announced they want all unlicensed gaming operators to remove their services from the jurisdiction by December 6th 2012 or face severe penalties. Those penalties include up to ten years in a Greek prison and fines of as much as half a million euro.
The removal announcement was made on November 5th giving the non-compliant operators a month the discontinue offering their gambling services. A blacklist similar to the one currently in Belgium will be created for the so called illegal online gambling operators who chose to run the risk of prosecution. Internet providers will be required to block gamblers for accessing the black listed sites. Money related to internet betting on any of the banned sites in Greece will not be processed by the banks by order form the government. Bwin.party is one of the operators in Greece being told to vacate the market.
There are many uncertainties for the company just as other firms have had to deal with the Greek gaming law’s discriminatory provisions. Other online gambling firms have lodged formal complaints with the European Commission regarding Greece’s unfair laws among them Betfair, Bet365 and William Hill. Ultimately the companies asked to vacate Greek territory will do so just to maintain a certain amount of distance from the black hole that opens up when the politics and business interests don’t jive. There is a very large rift in European politics when it comes to the e-commerce rules within the Union, something that seems to be getting more difficult to rectify.
Unlicensed Online Gambling Operators Banished From Greece
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RYK VAN NIEKERK: Let’s look at gambling. Are you a big gambler, David?
DAVID SHAPIRO: Well, I've been on the market for a long time. It's enough. I get enough excitement, I don’t have to go to a casino.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Well, as we heard from Chris, the PricewaterhouseCoopers report today gave a big number – nearly R260bn worth of bets being placed by South Africans, which is similar to the income they pay.
DAVID SHAPIRO: I was trying to work that out. If you go with R10 000 and you win R8 000, and you put R8 000 and you win R6 000, eventually I think that might multiply. You understand? You end up R10 000, but it might show 10 to the power of how much in the actual numbers.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Earlier I spoke to Nikki Forster of PricewaterhouseCoopers and asked her if she also thinks these amounts are enormous.
***
NIKKI FORSTER: It does seem to be an enormous amount, I do agree with you. You have to remember that the R257bn is the amount actually played on gambling, and not actually the amount retained by the casinos or the sports betting organisations.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: How much would a typical casino retain?
NIKKI FORSTER: A very small margin. Margins are probably only around 9%, so a lot of it actually goes back to the individual gamblers although you and I probably wouldn’t feel that way.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: If you look at the individual subsectors, casino gambling is the largest category. How big is it?
NIKKI FORSTER: Oh, by far. In terms of that R257bn, it accounts for about R224bn of that. So 80%-odd, yes.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: One element that also stood out was Bingo that seems to be growing very fast. I haven't seen it around. How prevalent is it?
NIKKI FORSTER: It’s really just across Gauteng. There are quite a few outlets in Gauteng, but you won't find them elsewhere in the country right yet. But we do see plans to move them into certainly the other major provinces.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: And the limited payout machines? There was a big noise when the regulation was passed, but we don't see many of those machines around.
NIKKI FORSTER: No, you are right. In fact, 50 000 of those machines were authorised to be put out into the marketplace. So far maximum 7 500 are probably out there, and it's probably just under that. There’ve been a lot of problems around the regulations and actually getting them in place.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Another section is sports betting, which includes horse-racing. How much of this sports betting subsection is represented by horseracing?
NIKKI FORSTER: About 78% of it these days is horseracing still, but we do see pure sports betting in terms of betting on a soccer game, betting on the Rugby World Cup; we see a lot of growth in that market. In fact in the last period it grew about 35% and we still see that coming. For the next Fifa World Cup in 2014, Rugby World Cup in 2015, that sector is expecting to grow and will quite rapidly catch horseracing.
***
RYK VAN NIEKERK: On the line now is Charl Fourie, the general manager of the Casino Association of SA. Charl, welcome to the show. How many gamblers are there in the country?
CHARL FOURIE: Thank you very much. I can't give you the number in terms of how many gamblers there are in the country, but certainly it's by far the minority, probably round about 20% of the people of gambling age that gamble in casinos at the moment.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: A very interesting report from PwC. It does predict pretty steady growth going forward – above inflation. Do you agree with that forecast?
CHARL FOURIE: Well if you look at the growth in the last two years, it has not really been above inflation. I mean, in 2011 the growth was 5% and in 2012 the growth was just over 6% if I remember correctly. So it's difficult to say whether it's going to be above inflation in the long run. But it's definitely tapered off over the last couple of years, both in terms of the economic downturn and also because gambling has sort of reached a level where I don’t think it can increase very much in the future.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: The industry is very competitive, but there also seem to be some regulatory problems. Some areas like Bingo and limited payout machines are seen as expansion-type sectors. How healthy is the sector currently?
CHARL FOURIE: Are you talking about the casinos there?
RYK VAN NIEKERK: The casinos, all the gaming sector.
CHARL FOURIE: Well, I can only speak about the casinos, and as far as the casinos are concerned the industry is healthy. Things are going reasonably well.
But we are very concerned about what's happening on the regulatory side, because there are all kind of developments on the go at the moment in terms of looking at the Gambling Act, possible changes to that. Taxes are being looked at, the whole question around black empowerment, new codes are being developed. So we are very concerned that the government must take notice of what's happening and the reality of everything, because they must be careful that they don’t kill the goose that lays the golden eggs in terms of regulation and taxes, etc. So we are in constant contact with the government and the regulators to try and ensure that the gambling, especially as far as our casinos are concerned, is something that is viable – because if you look at the tax levels of casinos and what is being invested in corporate social investment, it’s certainly something that the government needs to take cognisance of and be very careful in terms of how they deal with it.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: One contentious issue is the online casinos. How big a problem is it? Of course, they are illegal for South Africans to gamble on, but how big a problem are they for the industry?
CHARL FOURIE: At the moment it's not that much of a problem for the industry. But the problem as far as the industry is concerned, is just that it's not under control. It's very difficult in terms of regulators and government to try and control the curr
DAVID SHAPIRO: Well, I've been on the market for a long time. It's enough. I get enough excitement, I don’t have to go to a casino.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Well, as we heard from Chris, the PricewaterhouseCoopers report today gave a big number – nearly R260bn worth of bets being placed by South Africans, which is similar to the income they pay.
DAVID SHAPIRO: I was trying to work that out. If you go with R10 000 and you win R8 000, and you put R8 000 and you win R6 000, eventually I think that might multiply. You understand? You end up R10 000, but it might show 10 to the power of how much in the actual numbers.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Earlier I spoke to Nikki Forster of PricewaterhouseCoopers and asked her if she also thinks these amounts are enormous.
***
NIKKI FORSTER: It does seem to be an enormous amount, I do agree with you. You have to remember that the R257bn is the amount actually played on gambling, and not actually the amount retained by the casinos or the sports betting organisations.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: How much would a typical casino retain?
NIKKI FORSTER: A very small margin. Margins are probably only around 9%, so a lot of it actually goes back to the individual gamblers although you and I probably wouldn’t feel that way.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: If you look at the individual subsectors, casino gambling is the largest category. How big is it?
NIKKI FORSTER: Oh, by far. In terms of that R257bn, it accounts for about R224bn of that. So 80%-odd, yes.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: One element that also stood out was Bingo that seems to be growing very fast. I haven't seen it around. How prevalent is it?
NIKKI FORSTER: It’s really just across Gauteng. There are quite a few outlets in Gauteng, but you won't find them elsewhere in the country right yet. But we do see plans to move them into certainly the other major provinces.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: And the limited payout machines? There was a big noise when the regulation was passed, but we don't see many of those machines around.
NIKKI FORSTER: No, you are right. In fact, 50 000 of those machines were authorised to be put out into the marketplace. So far maximum 7 500 are probably out there, and it's probably just under that. There’ve been a lot of problems around the regulations and actually getting them in place.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: Another section is sports betting, which includes horse-racing. How much of this sports betting subsection is represented by horseracing?
NIKKI FORSTER: About 78% of it these days is horseracing still, but we do see pure sports betting in terms of betting on a soccer game, betting on the Rugby World Cup; we see a lot of growth in that market. In fact in the last period it grew about 35% and we still see that coming. For the next Fifa World Cup in 2014, Rugby World Cup in 2015, that sector is expecting to grow and will quite rapidly catch horseracing.
***
RYK VAN NIEKERK: On the line now is Charl Fourie, the general manager of the Casino Association of SA. Charl, welcome to the show. How many gamblers are there in the country?
CHARL FOURIE: Thank you very much. I can't give you the number in terms of how many gamblers there are in the country, but certainly it's by far the minority, probably round about 20% of the people of gambling age that gamble in casinos at the moment.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: A very interesting report from PwC. It does predict pretty steady growth going forward – above inflation. Do you agree with that forecast?
CHARL FOURIE: Well if you look at the growth in the last two years, it has not really been above inflation. I mean, in 2011 the growth was 5% and in 2012 the growth was just over 6% if I remember correctly. So it's difficult to say whether it's going to be above inflation in the long run. But it's definitely tapered off over the last couple of years, both in terms of the economic downturn and also because gambling has sort of reached a level where I don’t think it can increase very much in the future.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: The industry is very competitive, but there also seem to be some regulatory problems. Some areas like Bingo and limited payout machines are seen as expansion-type sectors. How healthy is the sector currently?
CHARL FOURIE: Are you talking about the casinos there?
RYK VAN NIEKERK: The casinos, all the gaming sector.
CHARL FOURIE: Well, I can only speak about the casinos, and as far as the casinos are concerned the industry is healthy. Things are going reasonably well.
But we are very concerned about what's happening on the regulatory side, because there are all kind of developments on the go at the moment in terms of looking at the Gambling Act, possible changes to that. Taxes are being looked at, the whole question around black empowerment, new codes are being developed. So we are very concerned that the government must take notice of what's happening and the reality of everything, because they must be careful that they don’t kill the goose that lays the golden eggs in terms of regulation and taxes, etc. So we are in constant contact with the government and the regulators to try and ensure that the gambling, especially as far as our casinos are concerned, is something that is viable – because if you look at the tax levels of casinos and what is being invested in corporate social investment, it’s certainly something that the government needs to take cognisance of and be very careful in terms of how they deal with it.
RYK VAN NIEKERK: One contentious issue is the online casinos. How big a problem is it? Of course, they are illegal for South Africans to gamble on, but how big a problem are they for the industry?
CHARL FOURIE: At the moment it's not that much of a problem for the industry. But the problem as far as the industry is concerned, is just that it's not under control. It's very difficult in terms of regulators and government to try and control the curr
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Twilight star Robert Pattinson has told frenzied fans at the final film's London premiere that the saga had "changed everything" about his life.
The arrival of the British actor and his co-stars Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner in Leicester Square was greeted with wild screaming and cheering from thousands of "Twi-hards".
Some 6,000 fans, some of who have camped since Saturday, packed the square. Many came from outside the UK, with fans from the USA, Dubai, Sweden, Norway and Hungary amongst the crowd.
Kristen, who plays Bella, dazzled in a black lace jumpsuit, designed by Zuhair Murad. Meanwhile her on and off-screen partner Robert, who plays Edward, and Toylor, who plays Jacob, dressed smartly in suits
Robert, 26, told the crowds in an interview on a specially erected stage that the saga connected to people on a "primal" level.
"For me it's changed everything about my life. I don't even think I'd be acting if I wasn't doing this, or if I hadn't done the first one. It's crazy. The character and the whole experience combined for me," he said.
"It's definitely really created something which connects to people on a very fundamental level, it's like primal."
Of the fans, he said: "(The reaction) makes me feel very foreign. It's really nice, it's really nice, especially after five years. They have stuck around, they're still camping out, I respect that. It's very, very, very cold and I don't understand what kind of mental disorder you have."
Kristen, 22, described the end of the saga as "a trip".
"This is weird, right? I don't know. I'm so happy that every single bit of the story is done," she said. "Usually we're at one of these premieres going, I don't know, you can't really feel it because you're not done. You're a little desensitised by it all because you have another one coming up. This time it's a trip, it is weird."
Read more: Twilight changed my life: Pattinson - News, Entertainment - Belfasttelegraph.co.uk
The arrival of the British actor and his co-stars Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner in Leicester Square was greeted with wild screaming and cheering from thousands of "Twi-hards".
Some 6,000 fans, some of who have camped since Saturday, packed the square. Many came from outside the UK, with fans from the USA, Dubai, Sweden, Norway and Hungary amongst the crowd.
Kristen, who plays Bella, dazzled in a black lace jumpsuit, designed by Zuhair Murad. Meanwhile her on and off-screen partner Robert, who plays Edward, and Toylor, who plays Jacob, dressed smartly in suits
Robert, 26, told the crowds in an interview on a specially erected stage that the saga connected to people on a "primal" level.
"For me it's changed everything about my life. I don't even think I'd be acting if I wasn't doing this, or if I hadn't done the first one. It's crazy. The character and the whole experience combined for me," he said.
"It's definitely really created something which connects to people on a very fundamental level, it's like primal."
Of the fans, he said: "(The reaction) makes me feel very foreign. It's really nice, it's really nice, especially after five years. They have stuck around, they're still camping out, I respect that. It's very, very, very cold and I don't understand what kind of mental disorder you have."
Kristen, 22, described the end of the saga as "a trip".
"This is weird, right? I don't know. I'm so happy that every single bit of the story is done," she said. "Usually we're at one of these premieres going, I don't know, you can't really feel it because you're not done. You're a little desensitised by it all because you have another one coming up. This time it's a trip, it is weird."
Read more: Twilight changed my life: Pattinson - News, Entertainment - Belfasttelegraph.co.uk
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