THE AMERICAS
The American Gaming Association took the unprecedented step of filing a protest against PokerStars’ bid for a New Jersey gaming license; just two days after Gov. Pat Quinn vetoed casino gambling expansion legislation, Illinois introduced online gambling legislation with the harshest ‘bad actor’ provision to date; 888 Holdings got preliminary approval for its Nevada online poker license; Intralot launched a US-facing free-play online gambling site; Texas introduced federally-dependent online poker legislation; Antigua reps headed to Washington to discuss a resolution to the WTO trade dispute; Nevada’s casino revenue fell due to the timing of the Lunar New Year; Genting announced it would build a Resorts World casino in Las Vegas; SHFL Entertainment’s profit fell in Q1; Canadian cops made 18 more arrests in the PlatinumSB case; Vince Martin recapped the IGT proxy battle and pondered the effect of iGaming on US equipment manufacturers.
EUROPE
Rank Group inked a deal with Williams Interactive and was rumored to be selling Blue Square to Betfair, while Betfair saw revenue slip 4% in Q1; Paddy Power’s profits rose 15% in 2012 while William Hill’s profits rose 20%; Gala Coral’s profits grew for the first time in five years; Perform’s earnings doubled in 2012; Greek betting monopoly OPAP profits fell in 2012; iPoker skin Win Poker added full Bitcoin functionality to its cashier; a Spanish gaming association expressed its opposition to online slots; Dusk Till Dawn added some sorely needed credibility to the International Stadiums Poker Tour and Becky Liggero interviewed the IGB Affiliate Awards winners and the Remote Gaming Association’s Sue Rossiter.
ASIA
MGM Resorts walked away from its contract to manage Vietnam’s troubled Ho Tram Strip resort casino project; Entertainment Gaming Asia posted record profits in 2012; Neptune Group profits rose by a third in its fiscal H1; Universal Entertainment shares shot up 20% after Wynn Resorts amended its complaint against the Asian gaming firm; speculation mounted that Hainan province will soon host real-money casinos; the Philippines brought the legal hammer down on former PAGCOR boss Efraim Genuino, NSW premier Barry O’Farrell confirmed Echo Entertainment’s Sydney monopoly is safe until 2019 and Becky Liggero discussed the Asian gambling market with GMM Business Solutions’ George Mangion.
