Partypoker has experienced unexpected downtime on Saturday due to a system upgrade.

An unspecified network error has crashed PartyPokers system a day before the Powerfest kicks off on Feb 21st. According to the company, the system’s downtime was caused by “a routine update to the software deployed earlier this week.” Because of the interruption, Partypoker has chosen to back out from the update until the end of the four-week Powerfest Series.

“We understand the frustration felt by our players who had their tournaments cancelled and rest assured that we will honour all of the guaranteed prize pools in full for those tournaments that started before the technical issues arose last night,” said PartyPoker in a statement. “The customer support team is working around the clock to process these refunds. As you can appreciate this is a substantial task, but should you not receive your refund in the next day or two, please contact customer support who will be happy to assist you further.”

Powerfest series, starting with the Featherweight Week on Sunday, will collectively offer $5 million in guaranteed prizes and runs from Feb 21 through March 20. A total of 98 no-limit Hold’em tournaments will take place at PartyPoker tables

Macau Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac is backing the government forecast for casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2016.

In November, Fernando Chui Sai On Macau’s Chief Executive said that economic forecast for 2016 is MOP200 billion, an average of MOP16.6 billion per month.

Leong, based on year-to-date figures, said that the government’s forecast is “unreasonable.”

“From the third to the fourteenth day of the Chinese New Year [February 10 to February 21] we observed that it [casino revenue] had equaled the same period last year,” Leong quoted by Business Daily. “As the gaming revenue earned during Chinese New Year is almost equal to that of last year, we estimate that the gaming revenue of February will maintain at a similar level to December 2015 and January.”

Macau Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac is backing the government forecast for casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) in 2016.

In November, Fernando Chui Sai On Macau’s Chief Executive said that economic forecast for 2016 is MOP200 billion, an average of MOP16.6 billion per month.

Leong, based on year-to-date figures, said that the government’s forecast is “unreasonable.”

“From the third to the fourteenth day of the Chinese New Year [February 10 to February 21] we observed that it [casino revenue] had equaled the same period last year,” Leong quoted by Business Daily. “As the gaming revenue earned during Chinese New Year is almost equal to that of last year, we estimate that the gaming revenue of February will maintain at a similar level to December 2015 and January.”

Throughout my time working in the online gambling industry, donating to charity has been a constant focus and passion of our companies and leaders.

Raising money for charity is the driver behind several annual industry events such as The BiG Sports Dinner and the International Gaming Awards and our very own Calvin Ayre has raised money for a number of causes including schools in Antigua, hurricane relief in Haiti and typhoon relief in the Philippines via the Calvin Ayre Foundation.

The generosity of our industry is commendable and its my hope we can do even more for those who are in need.

James King is the Group Head of Business Development at iGaming Business, also a well-known and respected personality in the online gambling industry.  King has decided to dedicate over one year of his life to intense physical training for the Marathon des Sables (MDS), coined as the “toughest footrace on earth” by the Discovery Channel, all in the name of charity.

Throughout my time working in the online gambling industry, donating to charity has been a constant focus and passion of our companies and leaders.

Raising money for charity is the driver behind several annual industry events such as The BiG Sports Dinner and the International Gaming Awards and our very own Calvin Ayre has raised money for a number of causes including schools in Antigua, hurricane relief in Haiti and typhoon relief in the Philippines via the Calvin Ayre Foundation.

The generosity of our industry is commendable and its my hope we can do even more for those who are in need.

James King is the Group Head of Business Development at iGaming Business, also a well-known and respected personality in the online gambling industry.  King has decided to dedicate over one year of his life to intense physical training for the Marathon des Sables (MDS), coined as the “toughest footrace on earth” by the Discovery Channel, all in the name of charity.

MGM stock has not had a great start to the year. Neither has the rest of the US market of course. MGM is down 17.5% year to date with the S&P down 5%. A look at the headlines for MGM could give the impression, which I believe false, that MGM is declining for fundamental reasons. Earnings were far off the mark, with a loss of 1 cent per share compared with consensus estimates of a gain of 7 cents. Sounds bad, sure, but the loss can be blamed, once again, on Macau.

While MGM does not have a huge presence there compared to its competitors, it still lost a lot of money on its Cotai property, and it was MGM China’s losses that accounted for both the earnings and revenue misses. MGM China revenue on the whole declined 31% year over year. There is now a big hole in MGM’s balance sheet due to a goodwill impairment that will take years to rebuild. But other than that, things look good for Las Vegas’s largest single employer.

Net revenue at MGM’s domestic resorts is up 2%. EBITDA, which gives a much clearer idea of pure business going on there, is up 15% year over year. EBITDA margin is up 27.3%, an impressive 330 basis points from the year ago quarter. CityCenter earned an all time record EBITDA, 36% up year over year. Gaming volume is slightly down, but hotel occupancy was at 89% for 2015, up from 88% in 2014 despite a higher average daily rate. That means Las Vegas guests are packing in even at higher rates, willing and able to spend more. The credit supply is still growing nicely. In short, there is nothing to indicate, as per the MGM Economic Indicator, that the US economy is in any immediate danger right now – not to say that it won’t be in a few months, just that right now it looks fine.

So why is MGM down so sharply so far this year? Well, along with the rest of the market, MGM seems to be suffering from the side effects of the oil downturn. I had said this over a month ago as speculation, but now it’s getting some traction from the more official people with bigger names and more impressive sounding acronyms and credentials than me, like the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute, the SWFI. Both Bloomberg and CNN are picking up on it now, as both are quoting the SWFI as saying that over $400 billion may be withdrawn from global stock markets this year by governments if crude stays below $40. They also said that 2015 saw liquidations of $213 billion, meaning this year’s selling could double last year’s.

MGM stock has not had a great start to the year. Neither has the rest of the US market of course. MGM is down 17.5% year to date with the S&P down 5%. A look at the headlines for MGM could give the impression, which I believe false, that MGM is declining for fundamental reasons. Earnings were far off the mark, with a loss of 1 cent per share compared with consensus estimates of a gain of 7 cents. Sounds bad, sure, but the loss can be blamed, once again, on Macau.

While MGM does not have a huge presence there compared to its competitors, it still lost a lot of money on its Cotai property, and it was MGM China’s losses that accounted for both the earnings and revenue misses. MGM China revenue on the whole declined 31% year over year. There is now a big hole in MGM’s balance sheet due to a goodwill impairment that will take years to rebuild. But other than that, things look good for Las Vegas’s largest single employer.

Net revenue at MGM’s domestic resorts is up 2%. EBITDA, which gives a much clearer idea of pure business going on there, is up 15% year over year. EBITDA margin is up 27.3%, an impressive 330 basis points from the year ago quarter. CityCenter earned an all time record EBITDA, 36% up year over year. Gaming volume is slightly down, but hotel occupancy was at 89% for 2015, up from 88% in 2014 despite a higher average daily rate. That means Las Vegas guests are packing in even at higher rates, willing and able to spend more. The credit supply is still growing nicely. In short, there is nothing to indicate, as per the MGM Economic Indicator, that the US economy is in any immediate danger right now – not to say that it won’t be in a few months, just that right now it looks fine.

So why is MGM down so sharply so far this year? Well, along with the rest of the market, MGM seems to be suffering from the side effects of the oil downturn. I had said this over a month ago as speculation, but now it’s getting some traction from the more official people with bigger names and more impressive sounding acronyms and credentials than me, like the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute, the SWFI. Both Bloomberg and CNN are picking up on it now, as both are quoting the SWFI as saying that over $400 billion may be withdrawn from global stock markets this year by governments if crude stays below $40. They also said that 2015 saw liquidations of $213 billion, meaning this year’s selling could double last year’s.

This is a guest contribution by Mukesh Choudhary is a the Editor-in-Chief for http://OnlinePokerNews.in. If you would like to submit a contribution please contact Bill Beatty for submission details. Thank you. 

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government of India is all set to present the union budget for 2016-17 on 29th February and alike other sectors, the poker and gaming industry is hopeful of supportive reforms. The tax on poker winnings has been absurdly high in India and with the increasing market size and the growing number of professional players; everyone wants the slab to be expanded as well as percentage to be decreased.

Current Scenario

Section 115BB of the Income Tax Act imposes 30% Tax on the winnings from poker or any card game. Section 2(24)(ix) expands the taxation umbrella to lotteries, crossword puzzles, races including horse races, card games and other games of any sort or from gambling or betting of any form or nature whatsoever. The organizers of the game (online and offline) is responsible for deduction of tax and furnish TDS certificates to the players. At many instances, poker players as well as operators have raised their voices against high tax rates but the authorities had left everything unchanged.

This is a guest contribution by Mukesh Choudhary is a the Editor-in-Chief for http://OnlinePokerNews.in. If you would like to submit a contribution please contact Bill Beatty for submission details. Thank you. 

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government of India is all set to present the union budget for 2016-17 on 29th February and alike other sectors, the poker and gaming industry is hopeful of supportive reforms. The tax on poker winnings has been absurdly high in India and with the increasing market size and the growing number of professional players; everyone wants the slab to be expanded as well as percentage to be decreased.

Current Scenario

Section 115BB of the Income Tax Act imposes 30% Tax on the winnings from poker or any card game. Section 2(24)(ix) expands the taxation umbrella to lotteries, crossword puzzles, races including horse races, card games and other games of any sort or from gambling or betting of any form or nature whatsoever. The organizers of the game (online and offline) is responsible for deduction of tax and furnish TDS certificates to the players. At many instances, poker players as well as operators have raised their voices against high tax rates but the authorities had left everything unchanged.