The UK Gambling Commission has issued a series of informative notes covering issues of interest to players, affiliates and operators. New online complaints support tool: From 1 August, UK gambling consumers will be able to use Resolver, an online support tool, to make complaints related to gambling. Resolver is a free, independent tool for consumers. …
Both land casino and betting shop, and online self-exclusion facilities for punters who suspect they are developing a problem are being used on an increasing scale, according to figures released by the UK Gambling Commission. The figures show that across all forms of gambling in the UK in 2013 there were 30,000 self-exclusions for periods …
After two years as a subsidiary of Providence Equity Partners, ICE Totally Gaming organiser Clarion Events has a new owner following the acquisition of the majority shareholding by private equity firm Blackstone. The news was broken to staff in a brief Friday by Clarion CEO Russell Wilcox, who claimed that Blackstone is one of the …
The Australian newspaper reported over the weekend that the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has withdrawn its application for an injunction against the Tatts – Tabcorp proposed merger pending the outcome of a federal judicial review it requested regarding the Australian Competition Tribunal’s approval of the deal (see previous reports). ACCC chairman Rod Sims …
The Chinese Ministry of Finance has released its monthly lottery sales numbers for June 2017, reporting that overall sales fell 0.3 percent to RMB 33.8 billion (US$5 billion). Although Welfare lottery sales rose 88.8 percent to RMB 17.8 billion, Sports lottery sales declined 8.9 percent to RMB 16 billion, the figures show. On a year-to-date …
Online gambling games developers Yggdrasil and BetSoft launch new slots this week with widely disparate themes, giving players a choice between medieval battles for power and lucky Irish leprechauns. Yggdrasil’s Rainbow Ryan offering features a hopefully lucky leprechaun with a penchant for heavy rock music, an animated theme which underpins a six-reel game with two …
In an analysis of this year’s gambling legislation the Czech Human Rights Ministry is critical of manner in which its drafting was influenced, claiming that the interests of the industry were positioned above those of the public. The Prague Monitor reported over the weekend that the analysis found that practices such as favouritism, non-standard lobbying, …
Irish bookmakers may be required to turn away bets in excess of Euro 2,000 unless the punter produces ID when anti-money laundering regulations drafted by the European Union are implemented, according to a report in the Irish Independent. The changes will have a major impact on the gambling industry regarding large bets and pay-outs, the …
Dafabet Kenya Limited, an indoor sports spaces design enterprise, has launched litigation against Asia Betting and Gaming Enterprises, alleging that the latter’s use of the brand Dafabet in its illegal offering of betting facilities to Kenyan punters is creating confusion around the brand. Dafabet Kenya is not involved in betting and gambling, and has had …
Financial and business media outlets reported Friday that Shimon Akad, COO and Israel CEO of Playtech plc, had sold 18,856 shares the day before to earn GBP 181,583.28. Joining Playtech in 2011, Akad headed Videobet operations and served as VP Operations responsible for development, delivery and day-to-day operations, according to the Bloomberg news service. He …
Nigerians now have a wider choice of lottery providers following the launch of Western Lotto by a Nigerian-registered company of the same title. At a press conference in Lagos last week Western Lotto managing director Elvis Krovokuca said that the company was initially offering Powerball, Euro Millions, Euro Jackpot, UK Lotto and Mega Millions, and …
Finnplay, the Finnish-based open gaming platform provider, has announced that it has migrated the operator Norskespill.com, to its gaming platform. Martin Prantner, chief executive officer of the Finnplay Group, said in a statement Sunday: “We are delighted to provide our licensed technology platform to NorskeSpill. The desktop and mobile experience has had a complete redesign, …
On Friday New Jersey Governor Chris Christie signed a bill calling on the US President and Congress not to introduce federal prohibitions on online gambling. Earlier this month the bill was passed by the New Jersey Legislature, with a motivation that a federal prohibition against internet gambling would negatively impact New Jersey, “dismantling the investments …
On Friday the Mr Green online casino group posted an impressive set of second quarter and half-year 2017 results, highlighting the following: Q2-2017 * Total revenue increased by 36.3 percent y-o-y to SEK 287.8 (211.2) million; * EBITDA up a remarable 337 percent to SEK 52.4 (12.0) million, with margin up 12.5 percent at 18.2 …
A Tampa, Florida bookkeeper, Paul Wheeler (34) was sentenced to 4 years imprisonment this week after being convicted of wire fraud perpetrated over 15 years and involving six different employers. Prosecutor Thomas Palermo led evidence before US District Judge Mary Scriven that Wheeler diverted almost $850,000 from his employers to bank accounts under his control, …
MarathonBet, a sports betting company that has two licensed retail outlets in Russia, has extended its operations to the online environment despite rather onerous restrictions that require punters to physically register at a retail betting shop, and hefty tax and mandatory donations to Russian sports bodies. Through its membership of the local Bookmakers Self-Regulatory Organisation, …
The Mansion online gambling group is to launch television advertising to support its recent resurrection of its legacy Casino.com brand. The advert theme is “We are ready to play. Are you?” and features a party being enjoyed by a diversity of guests (press material indicates that some of the walk on extras are company employees). …
Online gambling games developer Tom Horn has announced a content provision deal with internet gambling solutions provider EvenBet that will see the latter company taking on board an extensive collection of licensed video slots, including Blackbeard’s Quest and Book of Spells, along with recent additions like Monster Madness and 243 Crystal Fruits. EvenBet will make …
Ladbrokes Coral plc and The Racing Partnership have come to an agreement ending their media rights dispute. The agreement takes effect immediately and will ensure Ladbrokes Coral’s 3,820 betting shops in the UK and Ireland can show racing from 15 Arena Racing Company (“ARC”) owned racecourses and seven independent racecourses. In addition to UK racing …
California has joined several other US states in preparing for the legalisation of sports betting in the event that the US Supreme Court rules in favour of New Jersey’s appeal against the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which restricts sports wagering to just four states (see previous reports). In an interview with Thoroughbred …
Argentina’s Public Prosecutor, Martin Lapadú has initiated action against online sports betting site Miljugadas1.com for illegal and unauthorised activity, ordering that the domain is ISP-blocked and obtaining a court order freezing bank accounts associated with the operation. The prosecutor’s office has also ordered financial companies to halt the processing of any financial transactions with the …
The social casino gaming scene in the United States continues to prosper, according to the latest quarterly numbers released by Social Casino Gaming Tracker, an independent monitoring organisation. SCGT reports that in Q2-2017 social casino revenues in the States rose 15.8 percent to $1.1 billion, with action on mobile devices up 4 percent but Web …
The use of performance enhancing drugs by eSports teams has been brought sharply into focus this week following an admission by 26-year-old Kory “Semphis” Friesen that he and his Cloud9 team mates used the prescription drug Adderall during an E.S.L. tournament for the shooter game Counter-Strike. Friesen, a Canadian professional eSports player, originally made the …
Shares in Paysafe plc were boosted as much as 9 percent Friday on the news that a private equity consortium comprising Blackstone and CVC Capital Partners has made a preliminary all cash offer to acquire the company. The deal has been brewing since May this year, with Paysafe rejecting previous offers before granting due diligence …