Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Limited has inked a deal with Singaporean social networking firm YuuZoo, that will see the behemoth investing $15m into eSports.

The Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Limited continues to delve into the realm of sport and gaming after inking a partnership with the Singaporean social networking firm YuuZoo Corporation.

The new coupling has resulted in a new eSports division called Ali Electronic Division and their first act in the burgeoning sport is to create the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG).

The groups have gone on record stating that they will invest $15m into the sport, with $5.5m heading into the coffers of the WESG. Prize pools of $1.5m for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, $1.5m for Dota 2, $400,000 for StarCraft 2, and $300,000 for Hearthstone have hit the eSports rags. Future prize pools are expected to get significantly larger thanks to the trend of crowdfunding via in-game purchases.

Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Limited has inked a deal with Singaporean social networking firm YuuZoo, that will see the behemoth investing $15m into eSports.

The Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba Group Holding Limited continues to delve into the realm of sport and gaming after inking a partnership with the Singaporean social networking firm YuuZoo Corporation.

The new coupling has resulted in a new eSports division called Ali Electronic Division and their first act in the burgeoning sport is to create the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG).

The groups have gone on record stating that they will invest $15m into the sport, with $5.5m heading into the coffers of the WESG. Prize pools of $1.5m for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, $1.5m for Dota 2, $400,000 for StarCraft 2, and $300,000 for Hearthstone have hit the eSports rags. Future prize pools are expected to get significantly larger thanks to the trend of crowdfunding via in-game purchases.

The floating casinos in the Indian state of Goa have been granted a one-year stay of execution.

On Thursday, Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar formally announced that the operators of the state’s four offshore casinos on the Mandovi river had been given until March 31, 2017 to find an alternate waterway to call home. The reprieve came on the same day the casinos’ licenses were set to expire.

Parsekar insisted that the relocation could happen before that 2017 deadline, assuming a suitable replacement location can be identified. Parsekar said the BJP had shortlisted four potential locations but they proved “either not feasible for the casino operators or there was opposition from the locals.” The government is therefore “thinking seriously” about amending the licenses to allow land-based operations, as there is ‘no opposition to land casinos’ in Goa.

Thursday’s reprieve marked the third time the BJP government has failed to observed a deadline for shifting the floating casinos. Parsekar said his administration had opted not to adhere to this latest deadline after receiving petitions from casino staff who feared losing their jobs or being forced to commute prohibitively long distances.

The floating casinos in the Indian state of Goa have been granted a one-year stay of execution.

On Thursday, Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar formally announced that the operators of the state’s four offshore casinos on the Mandovi river had been given until March 31, 2017 to find an alternate waterway to call home. The reprieve came on the same day the casinos’ licenses were set to expire.

Parsekar insisted that the relocation could happen before that 2017 deadline, assuming a suitable replacement location can be identified. Parsekar said the BJP had shortlisted four potential locations but they proved “either not feasible for the casino operators or there was opposition from the locals.” The government is therefore “thinking seriously” about amending the licenses to allow land-based operations, as there is ‘no opposition to land casinos’ in Goa.

Thursday’s reprieve marked the third time the BJP government has failed to observed a deadline for shifting the floating casinos. Parsekar said his administration had opted not to adhere to this latest deadline after receiving petitions from casino staff who feared losing their jobs or being forced to commute prohibitively long distances.

Daily fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel have continued their newfound bid for respectability by agreeing to “voluntarily and indefinitely” stop offering fantasy contests on college sports events.

The news, initially reported by ESPN’s David Purdum, comes after months of negotiations between the DFS operators and the NCAA, the group currently earning mad TV cash thanks to US sports bettors’ interest in the annual March Madness basketball tourney.

The NCAA has long expressed dismay about DFS operators – anyone besides the NCAA, actually – exploiting college athletes by making money off NCAA events. Accordingly, NCAA president Mark Emmert issued a statement saying his group would continue to work with state governments to ensure that any pro-DFS legislation under consideration carried similar college carveouts.

Cynics will note that the new college prohibition doesn’t take effect until after Monday’s March Madness final, thus allowing the DFS operators one last chance to store some fat until the next NFL season kicks off in the fall.

Daily fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel have continued their newfound bid for respectability by agreeing to “voluntarily and indefinitely” stop offering fantasy contests on college sports events.

The news, initially reported by ESPN’s David Purdum, comes after months of negotiations between the DFS operators and the NCAA, the group currently earning mad TV cash thanks to US sports bettors’ interest in the annual March Madness basketball tourney.

The NCAA has long expressed dismay about DFS operators – anyone besides the NCAA, actually – exploiting college athletes by making money off NCAA events. Accordingly, NCAA president Mark Emmert issued a statement saying his group would continue to work with state governments to ensure that any pro-DFS legislation under consideration carried similar college carveouts.

Cynics will note that the new college prohibition doesn’t take effect until after Monday’s March Madness final, thus allowing the DFS operators one last chance to store some fat until the next NFL season kicks off in the fall.

Italian authorities have broken up another illegal online betting and poker ring, the second operation of its kind this year.

On Thursday, Italian media sources reported that police had rumbled a Salerno-based criminal organization that operated at least 11 illegal gambling sites from servers based outside the country. The operation is said to be linked to the Naples-based Camorra crime organization.

According to the local Guardia di Finanza, the poker site operators reportedly employed a variety of rigging tools – including bots – to ensure customers’ chances of winning big pots were kept to the bare minimum.

The list of online sites involved in Thursday’s action includes dgbpoker.com, pkgambling373.com, pkwildpoker.net, betfaktor.com, planetwin365.com and betaland.com, along with five derivatives of the Malta-licensed Betaland brand (new1betaland.com, new2, etc.).