Regulatory body altered verbiage to move into line with court ruling, but issue currently only concerns Quarter Horse racing.
Monthly Archives: July 2016
Russian ISP Blocking Knocks PokerStars Out of Joint
A fresh wave of Russian ISP blocking left thousands of players in the country unable to access PokerStars over the weekend, as they turned instead to Russian-language poker forums to voice their displeasure. The block was confirmed by PokerStars Russia’s Twitter account, which provided a link to a new client that would restore access, as […]
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Macau casino regulator wants more slot machine revenue, less VIP baccarat
Macau gaming regulators want casinos to focus more attention on slots and less on VIP baccarat.
On Wednesday, the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) announced that it had conducted a series of meetings with internationally recognized slot machine certification firms, including Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) Asia and BMM Testlabs.
DICJ director Paulo Martins Chan (pictured) stated that the meetings were intended to bring regulators up to speed on the latest trends in slot machines.
Beijing and Macau have been pushing casino operators to diversify their offering to appeal to a broader swathe of society than the usual real estate magnates and corrupt public officials. The casinos have responded by adding more entertainment, retail and dining options but Chan wants this demographic shift to also occur on the casino floor.
First-Half Numbers Show Gains in Ireland
Horse Racing Ireland July 14 reported generally positive economic indicators for the industry in the first half of 2016.
First-Half Numbers Show Gains in Ireland
Horse Racing Ireland July 14 reported generally positive economic indicators for the industry in the first half of 2016.
First-Half Numbers Show Gains in Ireland
Horse Racing Ireland July 14 reported generally positive economic indicators for the industry in the first half of 2016.
Frosted Big Mover in Latest World Rankings
After winning the Mohegan Sun Metropolitan Handicap (gr. I) by 14 1/4 lengths, Frosted finds himself as co-second-highest rated horse in the world and is the biggest mover in the fifth edition of the Longines World’s Best Racehorse Rankings for 2016.
Divining Rod Stretches Out for Fair Hill Work
Lael Stables’ Divining Rod, a grade III winner who has been away from the races since last August, worked five furlongs at Fair Hill Training Center July 14 in preparation for his 4-year-old debut.
Horseplayers Get Shout-Out as Regulators Meet
Horseplayers will determine the success or failure of racing, regulators were told during a two-day training program held recently at Emerald Downs and the Seattle Thompson Hotel in Washington.
Flipcup Looks to Continue Synthetic Streak
Flipcup looks to continue her winning ways July 17 at Woodbine Racetrack in the $150,000 Ontario Matron Stakes (CAN-III), the second start of her 5-year-old campaign.
Twitch warns users to stop streaming eSports gambling content
eSports skin betting has taken another hit after the Twitch live streaming video platform warned its users to stop promoting gambling activity.
On Wednesday, just hours after games developer Valve Corporation said it would no longer permit third-party gambling sites to access its Steam marketplace, Twitch posted a blog message warning users that “content in which the broadcaster uses or promotes services that violate Valve’s stated restrictions is prohibited on Twitch.”
eSports has become a mainstay of Twitch programming, responsible for more than one-fifth of total viewership, according to some estimates. Valve titles like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Dota 2 are among the most popular eSports titles streamed via the platform.
The past few weeks haven’t been kind to eSports, with Valve hit by class action lawsuits for allegedly facilitating skin betting by minors as young as 13 years old. Then there’s the ongoing revelations of eSports stars publicly shilling for skin betting sites without revealing their ownership of said sites.
NetEnt after-tax profits jump 46% in H1
Online gambling technology supplier NetEnt said revenue rose nearly one-third during the first half of 2016.
In a trading statement issued on Thursday, the Stockholm-based NetEnt announced that its revenue during the first six months of 2016 had risen 31.7% to SEK 697.4m (US $82.3m) while profit after tax was up 46.3% to SEK 235m ($27.7m).
Second quarter figures were equally impressive, with revenue up 30% to SEK 352m and margins improving to 34.8%. NetEnt CEO Per Eriksson said Q2 had featured “strong demand for our products” and said all indications suggested “continued strong growth” for the rest of the year.
The company inked 12 new customer agreements in Q2, including a major deal with UK gaming operator Rank Group to supply online casino games to Rank’s Grosvenor Casinos and Mecca brands. NetEnt also launched its products with six new clients in Q2.
WSOP Day 43 Recap: Ivey, Negreanu Both Fall from Main, While Pokémon Go Fever Sweeps the Rio
Day 2C of the WSOP 2016 Main Event saw 3,252 players return to action. But after five-and-a-half levels of play, just 1,416 remained, with Gustavo Lopes and his stack of 630,700 leading the way. That is more than 200,000 behind Valentin Vornicu, who finished the combined Day 2AB flight as chip leader, with 838,600. Lopes is […]
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Inspired Gaming sold to acquisition vehicle led by ex-Sci-Games CEO for £200m
Nasdaq-listed virtual sports betting technology supplier Inspired Gaming Group has been sold to a newly formed acquisition vehicle for £200m.
On Thursday, New York-based Hydra Industries announced it had convinced Inspired’s hedge fund owners Vitruvian Partners to sell the company. It’s the second major shedding of gaming operations by Vitruvian this year, following the April sale of betting tech outfit OpenBet to NYX Gaming Group for £270m.
Hydra will pay Vitruvian around $100m in cash upfront, with the remainder payable in Hydra shares, giving Vitruvian a 35% stake in Inspired. Vitruvian could receive additional shares if Inspired hits future performance benchmarks. The deal is expected to close in October, after which Inspired will be rechristened Inspired Entertainment.
Hydra is led by Lorne Weill, the former CEO of gaming technology supplier Scientific Games Corp. Weill will become Inspired’s new executive chairman while Inspired founder and CEO Luke Alvarez will continue in his current role while also getting a seat on the new Inspired’s board of directors.
Inspired Gaming sold to acquisition vehicle led by ex-Sci-Games CEO for £200m
Nasdaq-listed virtual sports betting technology supplier Inspired Gaming Group has been sold to a newly formed acquisition vehicle for £200m.
On Thursday, New York-based Hydra Industries announced it had convinced Inspired’s hedge fund owners Vitruvian Partners to sell the company. It’s the second major shedding of gaming operations by Vitruvian this year, following the April sale of betting tech outfit OpenBet to NYX Gaming Group for £270m.
Hydra will pay Vitruvian around $100m in cash upfront, with the remainder payable in Hydra shares, giving Vitruvian a 35% stake in Inspired. Vitruvian could receive additional shares if Inspired hits future performance benchmarks. The deal is expected to close in October, after which Inspired will be rechristened Inspired Entertainment.
Hydra is led by Lorne Weill, the former CEO of gaming technology supplier Scientific Games Corp. Weill will become Inspired’s new executive chairman while Inspired founder and CEO Luke Alvarez will continue in his current role while also getting a seat on the new Inspired’s board of directors.
$333 MILLION: Powerball offers up summertime riches
This month it’s not just the weather and backyard barbecue that’s been hot — Lottery jackpots also continue to sizzle.Powerball, Jackpots, Multi-State Game
California Chrome to Run for Cancer Research
Majority owners Perry and Denise Martin and Taylor Made Stallions announced that California Chrome will run to benefit cancer research, as a portion of his earnings through the remainder of his racing career will be committed to the charity.
Matchbook Announces Goodwood Sponsorship
London, July 11 – Matchbook is delighted to announce a sponsorship deal to be an official betting partner of the Qatar Goodwood Festival. The Qatar Goodwood Festival, also known as Glorious Goodwood, is one of the highlights of the flat season and will see some of the finest equine athletes compete at the famous Sussex racecourse.
Matchbook, a peer to peer betting platform, has just launched horse racing to complement its existing sports betting product. Spokesperson for Matchbook, Cian Nugent, commented; “For years Matchbook has built a reputation of providing unparalleled value to sports betting customers, and adding horse racing is the obvious next evolution of that. Over the last 18 months, we have invested significantly in the development of an industry leading platform and now that we are ready to raise the gate on horse racing it seems only fitting that we choose an event with the pedigree of The Qatar Goodwood Festival to debut a much-improved experience for Matchbook customers.”
He added, “as a betting exchange, we have the unique advantage of winning when our customers win – not many people know this. Unlike most bookies, we will never restrict or close customers’ accounts if they win so we look forward to celebrating the festival’s winners, both on the racecourse and on our exchange.”
As part of their on-course presence at Goodwood, Matchbook is sponsoring five races across the first three days, including the first race of the event, “The Matchbook Betting Exchange Stakes” a Class 2 Handicap for older horses over a mile and a quarter. Racegoers are invited to visit Matchbook in the Lennox Enclosure throughout the festival, where they will provide betting tips and strategies, and a chance to watch a race with an exclusive view from the Matchbook Hot Air Balloon.
She's Not Here Seeks Yellow Ribbon Repeat
G. Watts Humphrey Jr. and St. George Farm Racing’s She’s Not Here did some of the best running of her career last summer at Del Mar and she’ll look to find that form again July 16 in the Yellow Ribbon Handicap (gr. IIT) at the seaside racetrack.
Daily fantasy sports considered game of skill in West Virginia, AG says
There’s no need to legalize daily fantasy sports in West Virginia, since the state already considers it a game of skills.
This was the answer that Attorney General Patrick Morrisey had in response to West Virginia Senate President Bill Cole’s query over the legality of DFS in the state.
A bit of recap: The state Senate passed legislation early this year that explicitly stated fantasy sports games with monetary payouts—including daily fantasy sports—were legal, but that bill was shot down by the House of Delegates. This prompted Cole to turn to Morrisey in order to clarify the legality of DFS given that games of chance like private lotteries are prohibited by West Virginia’s Constitution.
However, in a 14-page opinion released this week, Morrisey said certain “fantasy sports games are a bit different than games that are decided predominantly by chance.”