THE AMERICAS
Another big week on the daily fantasy front, as New York’s Attorney General filed for preliminary injunctions against DraftKings and FanDuel and added Yahoo to his list of DFS targets while a New York judge rejected DFS operators’ pleas for temporary restraining orders, Massachusetts proposed detailed DFS consumer protections, DraftKings’ CEO admitted his company wasn’t always UIGEA-compliant and new DFS class action suits targeted payment processors and pro sports leagues; a Pennsylvania House committee approved the HB 649 online gambling bill; New Jersey issued America’s first exchange wagering license; Quebec pushed ahead with its plans to IP-block online gambling operators; the Global Poker Index inked a media deal with USA Today and Daniel Negreanu joined Tatjana Pasalic for this week’s episode of Chats with Tats.
EUROPE
Paddy Power got a boost from its Aussie operations while Ireland’s advertising watchdog shamed the Paddsters for shaming immigrants; OPAP vowed a legal challenge of Greece’s new betting tax; billionaire Dermot Desmond urged Ladbrokes shareholders to say no to a Gala Coral merger; Dutch regulators handed out their largest ever online gambling fine; acquisitions more than doubled annual revenue at Stride Gaming; Rafi Farber said Amaya Gaming should worry more about its delayed sportsbook than currency fluctuations; Mainstream Marketing and Communications’ Mark McGuinness said traditional bookmakers need to create an ‘eSports hub’ within their gaming platform; Fonix CEO Rob Weisz talked up the benefits of charge-to-mobile billing; Grand Parade chairman John O’Reilly told betting operators to get up close and personal with punters; Rebecca Liggero dragged her camera crew around for Days One and Two of the Mobile & Tablet Gambling Summit and Days One, Two and Three of the Malta iGaming Seminar, which featured a special appearance by some guy named Calvin Ayre.
ASIA
China busted an online gambling ring that handled $78b in wagers; Tabcorp and Tatts Group broke off merger talks; gambling became Australia’s fourth biggest advertising spender while the Australian Wagering Council warned the gov’t not to cock up its online gambling regulatory review; Vietnam mulled halving its $4b casino investment requirement; Macau appointed a prosecutor as its new head gaming regulator while Macau’s chief exec said 2016’s casino revenue would suck donkeys; Wynn Resorts pushed back the opening of its new Cotai casino by three months; Cambodia approved online gambling at L.Y.P. Group’s three casinos and scared all the Chinese out of Sihanoukville; Russia’s newest casino Tigre de Cristal was accused of getting a tiger cub high; Hero Poker CEO David Jung offered Western companies tips to manage broker and partner relationships in the Asian marketplace while Stephanie Raquel offered video coverage of Days One, Two and Three of the Macao Gaming Show.
