Joe Don Rooney and Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts kick off their mini-residency “Vegas Riot!” at the Joint on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, in Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas. Joe Don Rooney of Rascal Flatts kicks off their mini-residency “Vegas Riot!” at the Joint on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2015, in Hard Rock Hotel Las Vegas.
Monthly Archives: March 2015
Lawmakers look at bill to keep lottery winners anonymous
A customer at Carlton’s convenience store in Clemmons, N.C., purchases a lottery ticket on Friday, March 6, 2015. Legislation being considered by the N.C. General Assembly would give winners of significant lottery cash prizes the option of remaining anonymous.
Game of Thrones’ hotties liven up 32Red, Gala Coral Group and Sportech results
The new season of HBO’s Game of Thrones debuts on April 12, so what better way than to liven up this otherwise dull-as-dishwater review of three UK-listed online gambling operators’ earnings reports than with four of the show’s UK-born actresses?
Such as Reading native Nathalie Dormer (pictured right), who plays Margaery Tyrell, the bride who (spoiler alert) got to watch her husband Joffrey Baratheon die at his wedding feast before the little shit got to put his little girlish hands on her grown up woman goodies.
GALA CORAL GROUP
Gala Coral Group issued a fiscal Q1 trading update for the 16 weeks ending Jan. 17, showing continued strong performance by its digital division. Overall revenue was up 5% to £267.4m while earnings rose 11% to £67.3m.
Online revenue rose 27% to £45.8m while online earnings rose 19% to £12.9m. The numbers were all the more impressive given the infamous run of adverse football results that all the other operators are bitching about, plus the Dec. 1 imposition of the new 15% online point-of-consumption tax (POCT).
The quarter saw the merger of the back-office functions of Coral Interactive and Gala Interactive and the adoption of a single management structure, from which the company expects to realize a £1m cost reduction in the current fiscal year.
Coral.co.uk actives rose 49% and spend-per-head rose 17%. Mobile channels accounted for 61% of sports and casino stakes, up 13 points in sports and up 11 points in casino. GalaBingo.com spending was up 33% and mobile usage improved 17 points to 45% of stakes. Coral’s phone betting revenue rose 9% to £1.2m.
Editorial: Winning the NC lottery shouldn't be kept a secret
Secrecy and government don’t mix. That’s our message to Rep. Darren Jackson, of Wake County, who wants to keep you in the dark about who wins the North Carolina lottery.
Shared Belief Untouchable in Big 'Cap
Shared Belief did what was expected of him in the $1 million Santa Anita Handicap (gr. I) March 7, blowing an overmatched group of horses away with ease.
Wild Dude Shows Speed in San Carlos Win
Wild Dude may not have fired his best shot against Conquest Two Step last time out, but he did so in the $250,000 San Carlos Stakes March 7 at Santa Anita Park.
Sarah Sis Much the Best in Honeybee
Sarah Sis cruised to an easy win in the $150,000 Honeybee Stakes (gr. III) March 7 at Oaklawn Park, defeating favorite Oceanwave by 1 1/2 lengths while tallying a breakthrough stakes win.
Ring Weekend Rallies to Capture Kilroe Mile
St. Elias Stable and West Point Thoroughbreds’ Ring Weekend stormed by on the far outside to win the $400,000 Frank E. Kilroe Mile Stakes (gr. IT) March 7 at Santa Anita Park.
Holland Casino posts first profit in seven years; no more Dutch house lotteries
Holland Casino is back in the black after recording a €12m profit in 2014, its first positive annual report in seven years.
The Netherlands’ state-owned brick-and-mortar casino monopoly credited the turnaround to a reorganization that has included several hundred redundancies among its staff. The chain’s 14 gaming joints also saw improved table game revenues.
The Dutch government is in the process of privatizing Holland Casino, with 10 casinos to be sold off in a group that will continue to use the Holland Casino brand, while the other four casinos will be sold individually. The government hopes to complete the process by 2017, by which time Holland Casino’s online gambling partnership with technology firm Playtech should be up and running.
The Netherlands is in the process of regulating its online gambling market but public officials have suggested the Remote Gambling Bill won’t take effect for at least another year. On Jan. 30, Michel Groothuizen, director general of sanctions and prevention policy for the ministry of security and justice, said officials were neck deep in preparing their response to a 586-question critique of the Bill by members of the Dutch parliament’s Lower House. As such, Goothuuizen said he didn’t expect the licensing process to begin until mid-2016 at the earliest.
NO MORE ONLINE HOUSE LOTTERIES IN HOLLAND OR ELSE
Meanwhile, the Kansspelautoriteit (Dutch Gaming Authority) has triumphed over yet another person trying to sell their house via an online lottery. In 2013, a homeowner in Winterswijk launched a website (dreamrealize.net) that offered the chance to buy 60,000 ‘certificates’ at €50 apiece to win his home. The Kansspelautoriteit declared this was an illegal lottery and warned the homeowner to cancel the lottery. Instead, the homeowner lawyered up and the parties went to court.
Last month, a court in Gelderland sided with the Kansspelautoriteit, saying that describing the chances to win as ‘certificates’ couldn’t hide the fact that this was an unauthorized lottery. The homeowners’ promotion of his raffle also violated the Games of Chance Act. It didn’t matter that the company set up to process the raffle was based in Costa Rica; if the lottery was being offered in the Netherlands, then Dutch laws apply.
Stephanie's Kitten Returns a Winner at Tampa
Stephanie’s Kitten was ready to run in her return to the races, as she took the $150,000 Hillsborough Stakes (gr. IIIT) at Tampa Bay Downs March 7.
Playing the odds
Out on the streets it’s a game of odds. “One in a hundred, you’ll get verbal abuse.
Carpe Diem Returns a Tampa Bay Derby Winner
Carpe Diem made his 2015 debut in style March 7, taking the $350,000 Tampa Bay Derby (gr. II) at Tampa Bay Downs by about four lengths. The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile runner-up claimed his third win from four starts.
Eh Cumpari Closes to Claim Palm Beach
Anstu Stables’ Eh Cumpari claimed his first stakes victory in the $150,000 Palm Beach Stakes (gr. IIIT) March 7 at Gulfstream Park.
Dortmund Cruises Wire-to-Wire in San Felipe
Dortmund preserved his undefeated record March 7, cruising gate-to-wire in the $400,000 San Felipe Stakes (gr. II) at Santa Anita Park. The son of Big Brown has won five in a row and looms on the road to the Kentucky Derby.
El Kabeir Continues NY Success in Gotham
Zayat Stables’ El Kabeir continued his success on the New York circuit March 7, running to a polished victory in the $400,000 Gotham Stakes (gr. III) at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Honor Code Surges to Take GP Handicap
Lane’s End Racing and Dell Ridge Farm’s Honor Code, in his first start of 2015, mowed down the front-runners with a strong rally to capture the $300,000 Gulfstream Park Handicap (gr. II) March 7.
Quality Rocks Rolls to Take Florida Oaks
Flavor Racing, Brous Stable, and Wachtel Stable’s Quality Rocks rallied from just off the pace to capture the $200,000 Florida Oaks (gr. IIIT) for 3-year-old fillies March 7 at Tampa Bay Downs.
Shayjolie Gives Russell Win 1,000 in Cat Cay
Maryland-based jockey Sheldon Russell won the 1,000th race of his career March 7 in style by guiding Sean Shay’s Shayjolie to victory in the $100,000 Cat Cay Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack.
Salutos Amigos Powers to Tom Fool Victory
Salutos Amigos continued to show he’s the top sprinter in New York with a powerful victory in the $200,000 Tom Fool Handicap (gr. III) at Aqueduct Racetrack March 7.
BetVictor close in-house live dealer casino; Evolution Gaming planning IPO
Gibraltar-based online gambling firm BetVictor has closed its in-house live dealer casino after less than two years of existence.
A BetVictor spokesperson said the decision had not been “taken lightly” but was necessary to “ensure the long term sustainability of our business.” The in-house product “did not deliver sufficient value in innovation or differentiation to justify its cost when compared to third-party providers.” BetVictor will continue to offer live dealer products from suppliers Evolution Gaming, Microgaming and Net Entertainment.
Betvictor’s live dealer product launched in October 2013 in conjunction with MediaLive, making BetVictor the first operator to open its own in-house live dealer studio. The closure affects around 50 staff members, who have been offered comparable positions in Malta and Belgium.
EVOLUTION IPO?
Meanwhile, Evolution Gaming is reportedly preparing for an initial public offering. Investment watchers GlobalCapital reported that Evolution management plans to sell some shares on Stockholm’s NASDAQ First North Premier market with an eye towards an eventual IPO. Evolution reportedly isn’t planning on raising any new capital via the premarketing phase but global institutional investors would get a crack at owning a piece of the company. Evolution has yet to confirm or deny the report.
Evolution recently launched a second live casino environment for UK bookies William Hill at Evolution’s facility in Riga, Latvia. The new operation went live last month and features two tables (one blackjack, one roulette) accessible 24/7 via desktop, smartphone or tablet. Hills has been an Evolution client since 2011.
MEDIALIVE APPOINTS JOHN GALAJSZA