The week that was…
AMERICAS
Bwin.party (and a few other companies) filed for a Nevada online poker license; California joined New Jersey in pushing for legal sports betting; New Jersey’s senate approved its latest online gambling bill but the Assembly’s bill hit a snag; regardless, NJ state Sen. Lesniak is predicting a Sept. 2012 online poker launch; Indian tribal gaming revenues hit an all-time high; Nevada gaming revenues topped a billion in January but Atlantic City’s February figures were still in the dumps; Bally inked a forward looking online gaming B2B deal with Aristocrat; Shuffle Master acquired the Ongame poker network and saw Q1 revenues rise; Spielo International opened a new Latin American HQ in Lima, Peru; Full Tilt Poker CEO Ray Bitar wants players to know he’s sorry (sorta) and US dog racing appears headed for euthanasia.
EUROPE
Paddy Power released some impressive 2011 numbers; also releasing report cards were Ladbrokes, Betfair, Sportech, Gala Coral, 32Red and Cryptologic; Sportingbet lost a court case in Spain, but the country’s regulators gave online gambling license applicants hope; Portugal confirmed online gambling regulation plans; Betfair Everywhere sought to piggyback the betting exchange onto other bookmakers’ sites; BodogUK hired a new head of casino; National Lottery operator Camelot threatened the UK Gambling Commission with a judicial review and Czech betting firms were accused of ‘essentially embezzling’ millions earmarked for charity.
ASIA
The newly-launched CasinoLeaks-Macau site demanded that regulators investigate junket operator Neptune Group, but Macau’s regulator said it wasn’t interested; Vietnam considered regulating sports betting; Singapore’s two casinos anted up nearly a billion in tax revenue in the past nine months; China’s Tianjin Union Development Group earned environmentalists’ ire for building a massive resort casino on Cambodian forest land; Hong Kong authorities posted their latest gambling survey and the Bodog Poker Network made inroads into Asia.
