Monthly Archives: September 2016

Bloomberry Resorts loses court fight with Solaire’s former management firm

Philippines casino operator Bloomberry Resorts has lost a court fight with the former manager of its Solaire Resort & Casino in Manila.

On Thursday, word broke that a Singapore-based arbitration court had ruled that Global Gaming Philippines, a division of Nevada-based Global Gaming Asset Management (GGAM), had been unjustly terminated from its role as manager of Solaire’s gaming operations.

Bloomberry gave GGAM the boot in September 2013, just months after Solaire’s opening, claiming the firm had failed to live up to the terms of its contract. Specifically, Bloomberry claimed GGAM had failed to deliver the expected number of VIP gamblers to Solaire’s gaming tables. The William Weidner-led GGAM counter-claimed that it had not only met but had exceeded its obligations.

The proverbial shit hit the fan when GGAM chose to sell off its entire 8.7% stake in Bloomberry. The casino operator sued to block the selloff and the parties elected to hash out their differences in the Singaporean Arbitration Tribunal.

Unibet to rebrand as the Kindred Group

Nordic online betting operator Unibet is proposing rebranding its parent company to better reflect its growing cornucopia of gambling brands.

On Thursday, the Stockholm-listed Unibet Group’s board of directors released a statement saying it was considering rebranding the group’s holding company as the Kindred Group “to improve synergy, clarity and flexibility around the Group’s multi-brand strategy.”

A flurry of acquisitions in recent years has seen Unibet grow to encompass 10 different gambling brands, and while the flagship Unibet brand has retained its dominant status among this collection, “the board sees a risk of confusion regarding the difference between the company Unibet Group and the consumer brand Unibet.”

The proposed rebranding of the parent company wouldn’t impact the identities of consumer-facing brands such as Unibet, MariaCasino, Bingo.com, Stan James and iGame. But introducing an umbrella identity distinct from these brands will provide Unibet with “the necessary strategic flexibility to ensure we remain at the very forefront of our industry.”

Singapore Pools, Turf Club okayed to offer online bets

Online gambling will be back in vogue in Singapore this fall, albeit in a far more limited form than before.

On Thursday, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) declared that the Singapore Pools lottery monopoly and Singapore Turf Club race betting monopoly had been “found suitable” for exemption from the Remote Gambling Act (RGA) that was enacted in February 2015.

The new Singapore Pools Account service will launch on Oct. 25, offering 4D and Toto lottery products, as well as betting on football and Formula 1 races. The Turf Club’s new iTote online wagering platform will debut on Nov. 15. Neither operator is permitted to offer online casino, poker or other gambling products.

The two operators’ RGA exemptions are valid for three years and could be revoked if routine audits and inspections show the sites’ failing to maintain social safeguards, including setting daily funding and gambling limits and no wagering on credit. Failure to maintain these safeguards could also result in fines of up to S$1m (US $734k) per offence.

Nevada gaming revenue slumps as Strip casino tables grow cold

Nevada casino gaming revenue took a dip in August thanks to a double-digit decline on the Las Vegas Strip.

Figures released Thursday by the Nevada Gaming Control Board show statewide gaming revenue falling 5% year-on-year to $860.7m. The downturn was driven by a poor showing on the Strip, where casinos reported revenue down 15% to $451m.

The state’s slot machines did their part to keep the numbers up, with revenue rising 3.2% to $594m, thanks to a particularly strong showing by penny slots, which rose 8.6% to $257m. But table games were uniformly negative, led by (surprise!) baccarat, which saw revenue slump 42% to $73.6m as win rate fell to 10.3%, down from 14.3% in August 2015.

Other table games fared only slightly better. Blackjack was the top table earner at $81.2m, but that was down 6.6% year-on-year. Craps was down 5.7% to $26.5m while roulette was off 0.5% to $25.4m. Three-card poker ($12.1m, +7.5%) and pai gow poker ($7.8m, +3.6%) managed gains, while mini-baccarat fell 22% to $6.4m.

Samsung Lions pitcher indicted in illegal online gambling scandal

South Korean baseball pitcher An Ji-Man has been formally charged of engaging in an illegal online gambling operation, despite earlier reports that he had been cleared of charges.

An, a former pitcher for the Samsung Lions in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), was summoned back in July by the district prosecutor’s office in Daegu for investigation over allegations that he provided funds to a friend who went on to launch an illegal betting site.

Prosecutors said An gave KRW160 million (USD146,000) to his friend, according to reports. The pitcher denied the allegation and told authorities that he’d lent his friend money for the purposes of opening a restaurant.

Prosecutors had cleared the 33-year-old former pitcher of his illegal online gambling charges back in August after they failed to find enough evidence to back the allegations, according to Yonhap News. Samsung Lions player Yun Sung-hwan was also cleared of the same charges.

Pennsylvania SC strikes down local slots tax

Pennsylvania is putting $50 million on the line after the state Supreme Court declared the local slots tax illegal.

Philly.com reported that the Supreme Court (SC) has given the general assembly to fix the 2004 law that legalized casinos in the Keystone State and paved the way for the state to impose different rates on casinos depending on their size.

The ruling, which declared that the municipal portion of tax on slot machines outside Philadelphia violates the state constitution, has dealt a heavy blow to the cash-strapped state that is now desperate for revenue. It is estimated that the state will be staking nearly $50 million.

It also comes as Pennsylvania mulls on introducing video-gaming terminals in bars and online gaming.

CEEGC2016 Budapest Results, Clarifications and CEEGAwards 2016

Thursday, September 29  2016, Budapest – The organizers would like to thank each delegate for honoring them with their presence once again and promised they have published all the presentations that are available.

In their recent post you will find the Power Point presentations of the following speakers and panels:

Hot topics of the online gaming industry in the Balkans – Moderated by Rita Gyaraki(GamblingCompliance)

Mirjana Acimovic – President @ the first Serbian representative association of gaming industry JAKTA

UK dependency pushes ahead with plan to regulate digital currency

Legislators in the States of Jersey, a British Crown dependency, are adjusting the laws to regulate digital currency exchange activities.

In 2015, Jersey authorities announced they are planning to introduce a legislation that would pave the way for the creation of a regulation system for certain service providers.

Then last week, the State Assembly published a government order that exempts digital currency exchanges from registration requirements if their annual turnover is less than £150,000. But those who will go over that annual amount will be required to notify the Jersey government within three months or face potential sanction.

“Article 4 makes transitional provision for the case where turnover first exceeds £150,000, so that a person carrying on such a business will not be criminally liable if, within a period of three months beginning with the day on which the turnover reaches or exceeds that figure, the person makes an application for registration under the 2008 law,” the government order stated.