Reports on iGaming Suppliers and other information sites Tuesday indicate that the Bodog franchising operation in the UK is the latest in founder Calvin Ayre’s business group to be restructured, reportedly with the loss of 70 UK jobs. The report in iGaming Suppliers quotes sources as saying that the lay-offs are associated with the company’s …
European Court of Justice Advocate General Mazak was critical of Austria’s restrictions on internet gambling advertising this week, commenting that these are discriminatory and a potentially concealed total ban for cross-border advertising. The Austrian Gambling Act had previously banned all advertising for non-Austrian based gambling operators. After its amendment in 2009, in reaction to an …
The reaction to Playtech’s announcement that it was to spend Euro 95 million on social gaming initiatives through acquisitions from its 48 percent main shareholder Teddy Sagi was not long in coming Tuesday. Reuters reported that amidst investor concerns the share price waned, falling as much as 9.7 percent to 316.66 pence, although there was …
Antigua and Barbuda prime minister Baldwin Spencer met last week with US Trade Representative Ron Kirk to discuss the islander’s long-running internet gambling World Trade Organisation dispute with the Americans, reports the publication Caribarena this week. The discussions with Kirk saw the prime minister express his disappointment that although the WTO case was first adjudicated …
Online slot fans have plenty of treats in store despite the launching of several new games already announced this (April) month. Starting on April 18, RealTime Gaming licensees will be offering a different version of the Bulls and Bears slot, themed on the stock market rather than ball sports. In the new game, the Bulls …
The Playtech acquisition of PT Turnkey Services Limited is to be finalised earlier than agreed with the payment of the remaining initial purchase price ahead of the agreed timeframe, in return for a Euro 4.2 million discount. Playtech advised in a stock exchange advisory Tuesday that the main points of the transaction are: * Consolidation …
Staff at the headquarters of the internet gambling software developer Playtech plc were hard at work this week laying the groundwork for the company’s imminent move to a Premium Listing on the main market of the London Stock Exchange and its penetration of the burgeoning social gaming sector. The company signed a non-binding memorandum of …
The British press is currently reporting that the Ladbrokes betting sites went down temporarily earlier this week on one of the busiest betting days of the year – the confluence of Grand National horse racing and the Scottish and English FA Cup football semi-finals. The website was reportedly overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of online …
The Malaysian police anti-online gambling drive moved to the Jelan Slim area over the weekend, with police mounting a raid on an online gambling operator’s premises after receiving a public tip-off. The raid, launched at 8pm, may have been premature, because police found only a young caretaker on the premises, which was protected by sophisticated …
It appears that the UK Gambling Commission has wisely backed away from any action against British television shows Deal or No Deal and Red or Black following a probe into whether the presentations might have constituted unlicensed gambling. Earlier this year the producers of the prize giveaway shows, which attract millions of viewers, were warned …
The Washington DC publication Politico reports that Republican Party leaders have chosen Google and YouTube as the “Official Social Platform and Live Stream Provider” of the 2012 Republican National Convention. “For the Republican National Convention, the new partnership with Google means it can upgrade its convention experience ahead of the most digitally oriented presidential election …
Local media in New Jersey is reporting that state Senators Ray Lesniak and Jim Whelan expect to see their online gambling legalisation bill before the Senate for voting on May 31 this year. The bill made it through the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee earlier this month , and is running a little behind Lesniak’s …
Bookmaker William Hill paid out GBP 100 000 on a GBP 500 000 single bet placed on Big Bucks continuing his winning streak by making a record-breaking seventeenth consecutive win at the Grand National Festival meet at Aintree. The bet goes down in William Hill’s record books as the biggest single bet taken in the …
The Spanish trade association of digital gaming JDigital (formerly AEDAPI), whose current interest involves working together with the Spanish Regulator in creating effective channels between it and its members, added its twenty-sixth member recently. The association’s membership comprises local and international entities from a variety of sectors in the online gaming industry. Associated companies now …
The National Football League in the United States has relented – a little – on its anti-gambling advertisment position, according to reports from the Associated Press news agency. For the next two seasons the League will allow its teams to accept ads for casinos and other state-licensed gambling-related establishments…but there are conditions attached thereto: * …
The current management of suspended spread betting firm Marketspreads are still trying to get the Irish Central Bank to let them return to normality, as the news spread this week that accounts filed by the company showed that former directors and executives engaged in undisclosed trades. The Irish Times reports that returns for the nine …
Online gambling games developer World Match has released its latest offering, a card game dubbed Casino Hold’em which has the same dynamics as Texas Hold’em but, instead pits the player against the casino. The new game is designed for optimum player readability and features large cards and attention to detail, along with outstanding 3D effects. …
Sarah Vincent, chief executive officer of UK internet media and gambling company Media Corp, revealed in a trading update this week that the company has shed underperforming publishing subsidiaries Onthebox and Forexspace, along with the domains associated with them, for a total of GBP 250,000. The two sites are on the group’s balance sheet at …
The independent testing and standards company eCOGRA has successfully completed a rigorous assessment by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service to achieve an extension to its International Organisation for Standardisation ISO/IEC 17025:2005 accreditation. The extension enables the company to include the Danish Gambling Authority’s Technical Standards and Change Management Programme to its area of professional expertise. …
In what appears to be an exercise to hive off non-core interests, Betsson directors are proposing that at the agm in May this year, shareholders should decide on the distribution of all of the shares in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Angler Gaming plc. The board is suggesting that all shares in Malta-based Angler be distributed to …
Rank Interactive, the gaming company that owns internet gambling operational brands Blue Square, Mecca Bingo and Grosvenor Casinos, has appointed advertising company Carat to handle its GBP 7 million media planning and buying account, reports Brand Republic. The Aegis-owned agency won the account after a pitch against agencies including PHD and Initiative , with further …
Early reports by the Cyprus Mail indicate that local police last (Wednesday) night raided two premises suspected of facilitating online gambling. Details are at present sparse, but it is known that in the first raid 7 computer systems were confiscated, and a further eight were seized at the second. The owners of both premises were …
The Irish Central Bank, which suspended the operations of financial spread betting firm Marketspreads last week , has loosened the restrictions slightly, allowing the company release between Euro 5 million and Euro 10 million in cash to clients. The Irish Examiner reports that the Central Bank ordered Marketspreads to cease trading last Friday, citing “legacy …
Trinidad and Tobago horse race betting shops could soon find their wings clipped for resisting and evading the payment requirements of the Betting Levy Board (BLB). The issue was raised this week in the Caribbean island nation’s Parliament at a sitting of the Public Accounts Committee, where BLB chairman Kama Maharaj claimed: “Knowledgeable people have …