THE AMERICAS
New Jersey’s second full month of online gambling saw revenues rise but not enough for some; Sheldon Adelson said Las Vegas Sands may quit the American Gaming Association over its online gambling support and Sands websites were taken over by hackers; a line in Canada’s federal budget suggested an online gambling crackdown is coming; Caesars Interactive Entertainment acquired social gamers Pacific Interactive; a new Pechanga-backed online poker bill prepped for its California debut; a botched casino sale revealed Saskatchewan was open to letting tribes offer online gambling; Connecticut casinos were criticized for putting liens on debtors’ homes; the World Series of Poker released its 2014 tournament schedule; Bitcoin had the week from hell; Mike O’Donnell contemplated how to mix online and offline marketing while Jason Kirk wondered how to o restore Joe Hachem’s faith in tournament poker.
EUROPE and MIDDLE EAST
Dutch cabinet ministers gave thumbs up to the country’s draft online gambling legislation; Spain finally made progress on introducing online slots and exchange betting; Full Tilt Poker decided to add a sports betting vertical; Net Entertainment’s 2013 profits were fantastic while Unibet’s profits reached ‘all time highs;’ UK gambling participation rates fell last year; Stanleybet made a return to the UK high streets; the Israel Sports Betting Board upgraded its website; Rasmus Sojmark revealed what sports betting affiliates can expect in 2014; two students determined online poker avatars may be giving off tells; Lee Davy listed the reasons why he respects Erick Lindgren and Rebecca Liggero took her camera to the London Affiliate Conference closing party.
ASIA
Melco Crown Entertainment declared its first ever dividend after doubling profits in Q4; VIPs scored a record low share of Macau’s casino revenue in January but lunar new year numbers got February off to a good start; NagaCorp profits rose 25% thanks to mass market strength; SJM Holdings said it would reopen the Macau Jockey Club’s dormant casino; SkyCity profits fell as VIPs delayed their flight plans; Laos decided to offer online football betting through its national lottery; Kazuo Okada may have found a way to turn the tables on Philippines investigators; Malaysian police shot a bettor who thought he was bulletproof; Lee Davy recapped the Aussie Millions madness, including the great main event hoax and Rosalind Wade invited the world to the upcoming iGaming Asia Congress 2014 in Macau.
