THE AMERICAS
With the US election over, attention turns to online poker’s chances in the lame duck session of Congress; Nevada revenue rose on the strength of a record NFL win, but sportsbooks took a beating on the NFL last weekend; Atlantic City had its worst ever monthly revenue decline thanks to Hurricane Sandy; a Saskatchewan First Nation launched an online casino so the province sicced the RCMP on them, despite the fact that it could provoke a constitutional crisis, and First Nations in British Columbia have decided to challenge their own province’s gaming monopoly; the Canadian Senate may kill the single-game sports betting bill approved by the House of Commons; former Cantor Gaming sportsbook director Mike Colbert intends to plead not guilty to illegal gambling charges; Churchill Downs, Scientific Games and IGT turned in quarterly report cards and Rebecca Liggero discussed the roles of women in the gaming industry with American Gaming Association VP Judy Patterson.
EUROPE
Betfair pulled out of Germany and promptly took the axe to its payroll; Playtech’s Q3 revenue rose on the strength of its (for the moment) William Hill Online partnership; meanwhile, William Hill plans to appeal a High Court ruling on Betfair’s status with the Horserace Betting Levy Board; Full Tilt Poker’s relaunch wasn’t without its problems; betting shops’ fixed-odds betting terminals took a kicking from the BBC, despite the fact that a UK Gambling Commission study says their use is actually declining; sports betting accounts for 76% of mobile wagers; Italy’s YTD gambling revenue is off 5% which helped drag down Lottomatica’s Q3; mybet saw its margins fall in Q3 and Tipp24’s net profit doubled.
ASIA
China’s outgoing president said Macau should retain its autonomy; Melco Crown’s Lawrence Ho says high-rollers will return to Macau; PhilWeb’s net revenue was up 24%; local gamblers will be allowed to play at Manila’s Entertainment City casinos; Permira sold its stake in Galaxy Entertainment; Australia’s pokies clubs are protesting the government’s “supervisory levy” and Indonesian police busted an online gambling ring.
