Black Friday/Blue Monday/Ash Wednesday?
Absolute Poker reportedly has only about 10% of the cash it needs to pay its debts; Full Tilt took a long position and got caught; an increasingly pessimistic District of Columbia will hold a hearing for their proposed intrastate online poker scheme on Wed. June 29; while wreaking havoc stateside, the US legal actions haven’t had much effect on European gaming markets.
World Series of Poker latest
John Juanada spoiled Phil Hellmuth’s bid for a 12th bracelet, while Bertrand ‘ElkY’ Grospellier earned the second triple crown of the tourney, which so far has seen a 9.2% increase in attendance over 2010.
PokerStars says it won’t let Down Under down
To paraphrase Mark Twain, rumors of PokerStars’ Australian pullout have been greatly exaggerated.
Federated Sports and Gaming acquires Heartland Poker Tour
FS+G, the folks who brought you the über-exclusive Professional Poker League, have gone slumming with their purchase of the meat-and-potatoes Heartland Poker Tour. Guess it’s true – the American middle-class really is extinct.
Betfair unnecessarily ponies up £6m to racing industry
Despite shifting their operations to Gibraltar, which relieved them of the obligation to pay the ransom, er, levy to UK horseracing, Betfair have nonetheless handed over a £6m “voluntary donation.” Much like Betfair shareholders did when they saw the stock lose half its value following the company’s Oct. 2010 IPO.
Donde esta Señor Apuestas? Victor Chandler kills off Spanish alter ego
Victor Chandler has decided to rebrand its Spanish operation, ditching Mr. Apuestas in favor of BetVictor. We like the new moniker. So much better than another early frontrunner, BetLoser.
Ladbrokes browbeats Microgaming into renegotiated deal
Lads CEO Richard Glynn warned his core suppliers that he was mad as hell and he wasn’t going to take their shite terms anymore, and after just a few hours of waterboarding, Microgaming agreed to see things Glynn’s way.
Facebook IPO expected in 2012, that is, if anyone’s still using the site by then
CNBC reported that Mark Zuckerberg’s creation will likely go public in 2012, and the company rubbished those ugly rumors that the social media site has already peaked in every country where The Social Network was a hit.
Melco Crown acquires 60% stake in Macau Studio City
Melco Crown has splashed out $360m to acquire a 60% stake in the stalled Macau Studio City project on the Cotai Strip. Macau labor shortages mean the restarted development will slow down construction of competitors’ new Cotai projects. Boosting your own fortunes while blocking those of your competition — that’s why they wear the Crown.
Vancouver loses a hockey game, fans lose their shit, couple finds fame
In an apparent bid to gang rape the ‘polite Canadian’ stereotype, a bunch of Vancouver twenty-somethings went on a flame-filled temper tantrum after some rented millionaires lost a hockey game, but one couple managed to find love and fame among the ruins.
Ayr United fans scoop Bodog brand PR on new team jerseys
Offside! C’mon, ref! Ayr United FC fans let the Bodog out of the bag by posting pictures of their team’s new Bodog-branded jerseys, which the team will sport during the 2011-12 season.
VIDEO PICKS
Dana Workman was pretty mobile for her video contributions this week, conducting a two-part Stateside quiz with gaming law rock star I. Nelson Rose, then heading to Macau to shine a spotlight on the region’s booming junket operations; meanwhile, Rebecca Liggero took mobility literally by crashing the mGaming Summit 2011.
