THE AMERICAS
New Jersey confirmed Nov. 26 as the launch date of the country’s first full-fledged online gambling market, which has investment groups looking to buy any casino not nailed down and PokerStars promising to spend $10m building a new poker room at Resorts Atlantic City; former Cantor Gaming VP Mike Colbert pleaded guilty to knowingly allowing messenger betting but Cantor Fitzgerald denied a Wall Street Journal report saying the feds are probing Cantor Gaming CEO Lee Amaitis for doing likewise; federal authorities shut down the Bitcoin-powered Silk Road black market eBay; Satoshi Live launched the world’s first live dealer Bitcoin online casino; Nevada casinos had a very good August thanks to a stellar baccarat hold; Las Vegas Sands’ boss Sheldon Adelson had a bad week in court while that US Vice-Admiral learned he won’t face state charges for cheating an Iowa casino; Massachusetts said playing slots is only a business if you keep good records; a Canadian lottery chief had harsh words for Bet365; the AGA’s new boss loves online poker movie Runner Runner but Lee Davy called it a dud and Jason Kirk wondered why TV does poker so much better than the movie folks; Vince Martin gave thumbs down to Nevada’s not so dynamic online poker duo and pondered investment lessons from the recent Global Gaming Expo (G2E).
EUROPE
William Hill suffered a rare profit setback in Q3; Portugal announced it would liberalize its online gambling market; Gala Coral moved closer to a public float and even closer to moving CEO Andy Hornby out the door while getting spanked by UK regulators over anti-money laundering lapses; a French court granted Groupe Partouche protection from its creditors; 888 Poker took a stand against bum-hunting; Paddy Power re-upped with Manchester City FC; Mike O’Donnell examined the ways in which Ladbrokes had failed to deliver on its promises while CEO Richard Glynn attempted to rally the troops; Lee Davy gauged the popularity of mobile apps among poker players and pondered the line separating social gaming from social gambling; Becky Liggero compared sports betting affiliate programs while prowling the floors of the Barcelona Affiliate Conference looking for insights and/or drunk affiliates and finding plenty of both.
ASIA
Macau casinos had a healthy September and SJM managed to hold off Sands as the hub’s top dog; a draft of Japan’s long awaited casino legislation surfaced; South Korea decided to give international casino investors a second chance while Korean casino scammers won’t get a second chance anytime soon; Galaxy Entertainment’s chairman Lui Che-Woo was named Asia’s second richest dude; Universal Entertainment boss Kazuo Okada was summoned to face charges in the Phillipines, provided witnesses can be found to corroborate the DOJ allegations; Philippine gambling operator PhilWeb had a bountiful second quarter; Macau junket operator Neptune Group posted profits despite serious unpaid VIP gambling debts on its books; New Zealand reported a boost in race and sports betting and Angelia Ong brought her video camera to the Bodog Gaming Conference & Party.
