Monthly Archives: December 2019

Growth and Safety of Pari-Mutuel Industry to be Committee Focus at Winter Meeting of Legislators from Gaming States, January 10-12 in San Diego

credit: Sean Hamrock

With US pari-mutuel handle showing growth in each of the last five years, a legislative committee will focus on the future and safety of this gambling sector when the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States holds its Winter Meeting, January 10-12, at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina.

As the only gaming conference where the legislative decision-makers meet, more than three dozen legislators from 19 states are among the nearly 200 NCLGS Winter Meeting registrants.

The NCLGS Winter Meeting is open to the public. Although the Marriott room block has sold out, NCLGS is providing a list of eight first-class hotels that are within easy walking distance of, and offered at comparable rates to, the host hotel. To view the hotel information and agenda, and to register for the Winter Meeting, visit http://nclgs.org/index.php/events/nclgs-winter-meeting-san-diego-2020.

The NCLGS Winter Meeting has been approved for 10.0 credits by the Nevada Board of Continuing Legal Education, underscoring its prominence as a vital gaming forum.

“While the pari-mutuel industry endeavors to sustain its recent growth, it also seeks to ensure the safety of its equine athletes, including the use of proper racing surfaces and effective drug-testing programs. The Committee on Pari-Mutuel looks forward to welcoming four experts who will discuss the path forward in pari-mutuel racing,” said NCLGS President William P. Coley, a state senator from Ohio who will chair the committee.

Speakers on the Committee on Pari-Mutuels include:

  • F. Douglas Reed, Senior Pari-Mutuel Associate, Spectrum Gaming Group
  • Eric Hamelback, CEO, The National HBPA
  • Virgil Morgan Jr., Trainer, Member, Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association
  • Gregory Simpson, Commissioner, Ohio State Racing Commission

The agenda for the three-day NCLGS Winter Meeting also includes:

  • Six legislative-chaired Committee sessions that will focus on tribal and commercial casinos, responsible gaming, and lotteries, as well as legal, regulatory, and operational aspects related to sports betting
  • Two general-session Masterclasses focusing on sports betting and tribal-state compacting conducted by the International Masters of Gaming Law
  • Morning Keynote Address from Robert Zahradnik of The Pew Charitable Trusts
  • Luncheon Keynote Address from Bill Miller of the American Gaming Association: “State of the Industry”
  • Two Sunday morning general session panel discussions
  • Thursday evening networking reception
  • Friday evening welcome reception
  • Saturday afternoon tour of Pechanga Resort Casino in nearby Temecula

For sponsorship information, contact [email protected]. Legislators and others seeking NCLGS membership information should contact Wayne Marlin at [email protected].

NCLGS is the only organization of state lawmakers that meets on a regular basis to discuss issues relating to gaming. Members of NCLGS serve as chairpersons or members of state legislative committees responsible for the regulation of gaming in their state legislative houses. NCLGS does not promote or oppose gaming but is primarily concerned with the regulation and economic and social impacts of the industry. The NCLGS Foundation is the educational and research arm of NCLGS. The 501(c)(3) non-profit is a source of non-partisan data on issues of gaming legislation and regulation. Learn more about NCLGS at https://www.nclgs.org/.

NBA Christmas Day games betting preview

The marquee day on the NBA’s annual regular-season schedule is not opening night or the final day of the season but Christmas Day. That’s when the league draws its best ratings – there are no other major live sporting events in the USA on the holiday this year – and often draws its top betting action. Some fans believe the NBA should push the start of every regular season back to Christmas like it did during the 2011-12 lockout season.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The first game on the slate, with all of them nationally televised, is Boston Celtics at Toronto Raptors at noon ET. It’s only the second time in franchise history that the Raptors play on the holiday (no doubt reward for winning last year’s NBA title), while the Celtics usually do. Toronto is a bit banged-up right now so is a 2.5-point home underdog despite being on an 8-0 SU and ATS streak at home against Boston. The Dinos lost the first meeting this season 112-106 in Boston way back on October 25.

At 2:30 p.m. ET, it’s the Milwaukee Bucks at Philadelphia 76ers, the two teams most consider the best this season in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks are playing like that with the NBA’s best record and Giannis Antetokounmpo playing better than he did in his 2018-19 MVP season. The 76ers are excellent at home this year but very shaky on the road. Philadelphia is a 3-point underdog, and it’s the first meeting of the season between these clubs.

EPL Gameweek #19 preview

The Boxing Day football fixtures that approach this Christmas are going to be some of the most fiercely competed fixtures all season. With the Premier League title on the line at the King Power Stadium in Leicester, Liverpool could see their 30-year wait for the English Premier League virtually ended in the Midlands with victory.

Elsewhere, which United will be celebrating victory at Old Trafford where former United greats Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Steve Bruce meet? Who else will be gathering in the football present every manager wants under their tree—three vital points?

Manchester United vs. Newcastle United (26th December, 5:30pm)

While Manchester United have disappointed their fans with a haul of 25 points, Newcastle have delighted their followers with the acquisition of exactly the same. Such as the vagaries of football fans that these two giants of the English game in terms of fanbases meet when next to each other in the table, albeit 7 places lower than they did when they battled for the Premier League title back in 1996.

NBA Christmas Day games betting preview

The marquee day on the NBA’s annual regular-season schedule is not opening night or the final day of the season but Christmas Day. That’s when the league draws its best ratings – there are no other major live sporting events in the USA on the holiday this year – and often draws its top betting action. Some fans believe the NBA should push the start of every regular season back to Christmas like it did during the 2011-12 lockout season.

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

The first game on the slate, with all of them nationally televised, is Boston Celtics at Toronto Raptors at noon ET. It’s only the second time in franchise history that the Raptors play on the holiday (no doubt reward for winning last year’s NBA title), while the Celtics usually do. Toronto is a bit banged-up right now so is a 2.5-point home underdog despite being on an 8-0 SU and ATS streak at home against Boston. The Dinos lost the first meeting this season 112-106 in Boston way back on October 25.

At 2:30 p.m. ET, it’s the Milwaukee Bucks at Philadelphia 76ers, the two teams most consider the best this season in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks are playing like that with the NBA’s best record and Giannis Antetokounmpo playing better than he did in his 2018-19 MVP season. The 76ers are excellent at home this year but very shaky on the road. Philadelphia is a 3-point underdog, and it’s the first meeting of the season between these clubs.

Becky’s Affiliated: Top 10 most viewed interviews of the decade

The past decade has been one heck of a ride for the online gambling industry, everything from developments in technology to the rise and fall of big name companies and execs to regulatory surprises, the regulated U.S. market’s movement and so, so much more. In an effort to take a little trip down memory lane over the past decade, here are the top 10 most viewed interviews, including a wide range of industry experts from all over the world.

10) Interview with Kezia Noble: Applying the art of seduction to iGaming ads

After watching this interview for the first time in six years, now I can see why it hits our top 10 of the decade! This one-of-a-kind CalvinAyre.com video interview brings in expertise from outside the online gambling industry, a professional in the art of seduction, AKA a “pick-up artist”, by the name of Kezia Noble. Noble talks on ways iGaming companies can spice up their ads in order to entice customers, appropriately complimented with clips from existing industry ads that, lets just say, stand out from the rest.

9) Santiago Asensi discusses online gambling opportunities in Latin America

CalvinAyre.com’s most read business stories of 2019

2019 is almost ready to come to an end, and what better time for us to take a look back at the top stories. Here’s the five business stories that got the most attention from you, our readers.

SportPesa, Betin and Betway’s got in trouble wiht Kenya

Thanks to a new get tough stance from Kenya’s regulator, the Betting Control and Licensing Board, SportPesa, Betin and Betway got their licenses supsended in July. The operators were allegedly behind on their tax obligations and would have to settle up before they could resume operations.

The three in question here claimed they had little warning about this change in Kenyan attitude, but Kenya insisted that their licenses were a priveldge, and not a right.

Sazka Group profit spikes on OPAP’s VLT rollout

Czech lottery and betting operator Sazka Group saw its profits jump by more than one-quarter in the first nine months of 2019 and are poised to jump even higher in the new year following an acquisition spree.

On Monday, Sazka released its financial results for the nine months ending September 30, during which gross gaming revenue from continuing operations rose 6.4% to €1.37b, earnings jumped 18.5% to €429.6m and after-tax profit spiked 28% to €217m.

Sazka also booked profit of nearly €293m from the disposal this March of its Croatian gaming operations, including the market-leading SuperSport business. The disposal came after Czech investment group KKCG acquired the 25% of Sazka controlled by fellow Czech investors Emma Capital, which received the Croatian operations as part of the transaction.

Numerical lottery operations in Austria, the Czech Republic, Greece and Italy continue to generate the bulk of Sazka’s net gaming revenue, although the segment was relatively flat year-on-year at €515m. Instant lotteries fared better, rising 12% to €76.2m.

Japan arrests lawmaker, 500.com execs on casino bribe allegations

Japan’s casino quest has led to the arrest of a lawmaker from the country’s governing party on charges of accepting bribes from Chinese online lottery firm 500.com.

In an early bid for the title of 2019’s worst Christmas ever, Japanese authorities announced Wednesday that they’d arrested Tsukasa Akimoto, a lower house member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Earlier this month, news broke that Akimoto’s aides were suspected of bringing in large amounts of cash from overseas without declaring the cash to customs officials.

On Wednesday, the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office announced that Akimoto (pictured) had been arrested on suspicion of accepting around ¥3.7m (US$34k) from 500.com, which was at the time pursuing an integrated resort project near Hokkaido. Until a few months ago, Akimoto held a cabinet position with influence over Japan’s casino development process.

Akimoto confirmed his arrest in social media posts, in which he apologized for “causing this kind of situation and such a commotion.” Akimoto continued to deny any wrongdoing, although local media quoted LDP sources saying Akimoto had formally indicated his intention to quit the party to spare it further embarrassment.

Cambodia casinos warned to halt online gambling by Dec. 31

Cambodia’s casinos could face legal action if they don’t halt their online gambling operations by January 1, according to a government spokesman.

On Christmas Day, VOA Cambodia quoted Finance Ministry official Ros Phearun saying that government officials would conduct inspections of local casino operators to ensure they are complying with Prime Minister Hun Sen’s August directive to rescind all online gambling licenses by the end of 2019.

This past weekend, Hun Sen confirmed that the directive was no passing fancy, telling a local festival audience that “in days to come, online gambling will completely disappear.” The August directive declared that no new online licenses would be issued and that existing licenses wouldn’t be renewed when they expired at the end of this year.

Phearun, the government’s traditional point person on gambling issues, echoed Hun Sen’s recent comments by claiming that the online gambling ban was intended to reduce money laundering by unscrupulous operators. Phearun claimed Cambodia currently lacked the technical capabilities to ensure that all operators were complying with their regulatory obligations.