Monthly Archives: June 2017

Resorts World Manila casino under terrorist attack

Masked gunmen are besieging the Resorts World Manila casino in the Philippines, in what early media reports are describing as a likely terrorist attack.

According to Interaksyon.com, an unspecified number of heavily armed men wearing black clothes and face masks opened fire at the Travellers International-owned casino shortly after midnight Thursday local time.

Explosions were also reportedly heard at the scene and thick smoke has been observed coming out of the building. A casino employee told DZMM Teleradyo that one of the gunmen had spread flammable liquid on some casino tables.

The gunmen reportedly began their assault on the property’s second floor, where the bulk of the casino’s gaming operations are located. Witnesses reported seeing gunmen searching the third floor, which houses many of the property’s VIP gambling rooms.

Ben Lee: Philippine casino market can’t support further expansion

A prominent gaming industry consultant has expressed doubts that the Philippine casino market can support further expansion.

In an interview with Forbes’ Muhammad Cohen, iGamiX Management & Consulting’s managing partner Ben Lee said his group didn’t believe the Philippines gaming market was “large enough to sustain four major operators” and that the resulting competition “will become extremely fierce to the point where profitability will be significantly impacted.”

The City of Dreams Manila casino was the star performer in Melco Resorts & Entertainment’s Q1 earnings report, posting strong gaming revenue growth and even earning a modest profit. Many analysts have attributed this turnaround to the Philippines’ warming relationship with China leading to an influx of Chinese gamblers, but iGamiX’s Lee begs to differ.

Lee admits that Chinese visitation to the Philippines has enjoyed impressive year-on-year growth, but “the actual numbers are still extremely low.” Lee said there are still “very few Chinese mass [market gaming] players” on Philippine casinos’ main gaming floors, where South Korean tourists dominate the international presence.

Jack Lam gives up Jimei International chair post

Veteran Macau junket investor Jack Lam has resigned from his position as chairman of Jimei International Entertainment Group, effective immediately.

Aside from leaving his chairman post, Lam has also stepped down as executive director, the Hong Kong-listed junket investment company said in a filing on Wednesday.

Lam is replaced by Yan Xu as Jimei International’s chairman of the board, effective on May 31, the company said. Yan has been holding the executive director position in the company since May 11.

Another executive director, Luo Lei, has been appointed as chief executive officer of Jimei International, the company said.

€3.7 million hit on Microgaming’s famous Mega Moolah

ISLE OF MAN – Just 27 days after the record-breaking €8 million mobile jackpot payout, Mega Moolah has struck again, this time awarding a €3.7 million pay day.

The jackpot was hit on Monday 22 May 2017 by a Tipico player. The €3,722,530.12 win will be paid out to the player in full, as a lump sum.

Marlon van der Goes, Tipico Chief Commercial Officer, comments: “We are delighted that another big jackpot has been hit by one of our customers!”

David Reynolds, Games Publisher at Microgaming, adds: “Two hits in one month on the same casino – it’s no wonder Mega Moolah is often referred to as the ‘Millionaire Maker’! Congratulations to Tipico and their player on this mega win.”

UK online gambling sites preview new self-exclusion scheme

UK-facing online gambling operators have unveiled the name of their new national online self-exclusion scheme to better protect vulnerable gamblers who have difficulty controlling their gambling activity.

On Thursday, the Remote Gambling Association (RGA) trade group announced that it would soon launch its new GAMSTOP program, which aims to meet the responsible gambling conditions specified in the UK’s Gambling (Advertising and Licensing) Act 2014.

GAMSTOP will enable UK punters to exclude themselves from all UK Gambling Commission-licensed remote gambling operators through a single visit to the GAMSTOP website. In addition, the GAMSTOP site will offer other measures to allow problem gamblers to better manage their activity and help steer these individuals to third-party advice and support services.

Fiona Palmer, the RGA’s director of social responsibility, said that with the self-exclusion program’s “branding now established and process design well established, the focus in the coming months will be on technology integration and industry communication.”

Onshore gaming expansion pays off for India’s Delta Corp

Efficient marketing strategies, coupled with a strong retail focus, proved to be a boon for India’s only publicly traded casino operator Delta Corp, which saw its profits grow by 94.7 percent in the 2016-2017 financial year.

In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, the company reported profits of INR737.49 million (US$11.44 million) for the 2016-2017 financial year, up from FY16’s INR382 million (US$5.9 million).

Meanwhile, revenue for the full financial year reached INR4.6 billion (US$71.33 million), a 21.3 percent increase from the INR3.8 billion (US$58.9 million) recorded in 2016.

The casino group pointed out that EBITDA margins were also up 32 percent year-on-year during the same period.

Genius Tech Group partners with Draftstars

Melbourne, Australia, June 1 2017: Technology and data provider Genius Tech Group is delighted to announce that it has partnered with Draftstars as its Official Digital Daily Fantasy Sports Partner.

Draftstars is Australia’s leading daily fantasy sports provider, giving consumers the opportunity to pit their sporting knowledge on select popular local and international sports against others, with the chance to win cash prizes. The partnership will see Genius Tech Group provide an additional suite of innovative fantasy sports products to Draftstars’ players.

The first output from the partnership is the new QuickDraft™ product. Built on Genius Tech Group’s iFantasy Genius technology, QuickDraft will provide Draftstars players with an intuitive, automated lineup for AFL or NRL based on the match conditions they deem key to player performance, all in a matter of seconds. This product is a world first in the daily fantasy industry and is available free to all Draftstars players on Draftstars’ iOS and Android platforms.

Nathan Rothschild, co-founder and partner at Genius Tech Group, commented:

ICE sits at the summit of gaming expos as audited attendance tops 30,000

ICE 2017 has been confirmed as the most successful edition on record with attendance independently audited at 30,213, up 6% year-on-year and the sixth consecutive year of growth experienced by gaming’s leading business-to-business event.

Arguably the most notable statistic relates to a double digit increase in the number of non-UK based attendees to ICE which totalled 20,032, up 18% on 2016 and a figure which represents a formidable 66% of the audience share.  Excluding host nation the United Kingdom, the top five represented jurisdictions were Malta (1,478 attendees), Germany (1,133), USA (921), Italy (853) and Spain (784).  The increase in attendance is more than matched by an increase in the physical size of ICE, which has grown from 21,000 sqm of net space in 2012 – which was the last tenancy at its previous home in the now demolished Earls Court – to the 2017 total of 41,000 sqm (both figures rounded to the nearest 500 sqm).

Reviewing the figures, Kate Chambers, Managing Director, Clarion Gaming, said: “Firstly these are excellent figures which are a reflection on the hard work and commitment shown by of all our stakeholders, not least the community of  ICE exhibitors who bring energy, enthusiasm and creativity to their presence In London.  I am also extremely grateful to our body of critical friends including those working in the international gaming media, who ensure that we remain relevant to the industry and in tune with the latest developments and trends in the market place.  To achieve consistent year-on-year increases in attendance does not happen by accident and I am indebted to the team at Clarion Gaming for their professionalism and commitment to continuous improvement, a philosophy and approach which underpins all of our gaming brands.  Over six editions of ICE, the event has grown in size by 42%, vindicating the decision to relocate to the purpose built ExCeL Centre, the only London venue which has the capacity to stage gaming’s most important business event.”

The attitudinal survey undertaken each year by Clarion Gaming reveals some interesting insights to the ICE experience.  Top of a list of positives was the response to the quality of exhibitors with 92% of visitors rating them either Good or Excellent.  91% of visitors said they were happy that ICE met their objectives for meeting with the international gaming industry.  The quality of the exhibitors at ICE was matched by the seniority of the visitors, 73% of whom had direct control or influenced the purchasing decision.  The overall feeling of satisfaction was reflected in the list of values visitors associated with ICE, which included Informative, Friendly and Innovative.

Macau’s May casino GGR beats analyst expectations

Macau’s casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) pulled yet another surprise after it grew by 23.7 percent year-on-year in May.

Data from the city’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau showed that Macau’s casino GGR jumped to MOP22.74 billion (US$2.83 billion) last month, beating analyst expectations of 16.5 percent.

Macau market’s GGR tally for the first five months of 2017 stood at MOP106.38 billion (US$13.25 billion), up 15.8 percent from the prior-year period.

Grant Govertsen of Union Gaming describes the latest data as “encouraging,” noting that the suprising GGR is yet another proof that the former Portuguese enclave’s recovery is now in full-tilt.

Iao Kun narrows Q1 losses on diversification bet

Nasdaq-listed junket operator Iao Kun Group Holding Co. Ltd.’s move to diversify away from gambling is apparently paying-off.

Iao Kun, now called LiNiu Technology Group (LTG), announced in a regulatory filing that it narrowed its net loss to US$446,634 in first quarter of the year, compared to the US$3.5 million net loss it incurred in the same period last year.

The company also chalked a reversal of bad debts amounting to US$200,000 during the first quarter of 2017. Iao Kun credited the significant decrease in commission to junket agents as the main reason why it was able to slash its net losses in the first three months of the year.

“After the company closed four VIP gaming rooms at the Sands Cotai Central casino, Galaxy Macau, StarWorld and Le Royal Arc in Macau in 2016, the company maintained minimal operations and temporarily relocated the Macau VIP gaming operation to Altira complex, which provides remuneration at a predetermined fixed rate commission,” Iao Kun said. “The lower selling, general and administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2017 was primarily due to no longer paying management fees… and lower salaries [payments] due to the closure of four VIP rooms in 2016.”

Juegos Miami hosts LatAm thought leaders

Miami’s Biltmore Hotel played host to one of the largest concentrations of C-Level influencers in the history of Latin American gaming when the second edition of Juegos Miami was officially opened (Wednesday 31 May). The opening ceremony was attended by industry leaders, including top decision makers, key operators, legislators, major buyers and business owners – alongside key representatives from Juegos Miami organisers Clarion Gaming and Urban Expositions.

Heralding the event, Kate Chambers, Managing Director, Clarion Gaming, said: “The Juegos Miami vision was to create a unique event in order to meet the specific needs of this exciting and dynamic market. Following a history-making launch last year, we have worked in partnership with all of our stakeholders in order to take Juegos Miami on to the next level. I am delighted to confirm that every metric we use has shown an uplift, with more thought leaders, more influencers and more gaming innovators from more countries supporting us in Miami. Juegos Miami is playing a pivotal role in the development of the gaming industry across Latin America and the Caribbean and I am immensely grateful to all the many individuals and organisations for contributing to this success.”

The post Juegos Miami hosts LatAm thought leaders appeared first on CalvinAyre.com.

Bodog to sponsor SuperPoker’s WSOP coverage

Bodog, one of the biggest names in the online betting and gaming world has recently launched in Brazil and are pleased to announce their latest sponsorship in the region. SuperPoker is the largest poker news portal in Brazil. The country is sending more than 200 players to compete in the WSOP Main Event which boats the largest purse in world sport.

Bodog, famous in the online poker world for 

their unique product offering, are teaming up with SuperPoker and hope to see their players go deep in the Main Event. SuperPoker will bring news about Brazilian players at the WSOP ‘back home’ and want Brazilian people to get behind their players.

Victor Marques, Editor of SuperPoker explains: “We’ll do a daily dedicated coverage of WSOP and we are very proud to have Bodog with us. There´s a lot of Brazilian talents going to the WSOP and we’d love to see they fighting hard for a bracelet. All the Vegas stories will be told by SuperPoker. To have the boost of Bodog behind the coverage means we will be able to bring bigger and better content and, fingers crossed, a huge result for Brazil!”

Better Collective acquires leading German affiliate group SportFreunde

JUNE 01, 2017 – Better Collective, the world’s leading provider of betting tips, bookmaker information and builder of iGaming communities, has acquired Austrian company Hebiva Beteiligungen GmbH, the owner of affiliate SportFreunde Informationsdienste GmbH (“SportFreunde”), for an undisclosed sum, significantly expanding its presence in German speaking markets.

The acquisition includes SportFreunde’s complete website portfolio, including wettfreunde.net, sportwettentest.net, and fussballportal.de, which have attracted millions of unique visitors. This acquisition makes a substantial contribution to Better Collective’s goal of growing 50% year-on-year.

The move is a key step in Better Collective’s rapidly-advancing M&A strategy, as the Denmark-based company, which operates more than 1,000 products and websites, continues to make a major impact on the iGaming industry.

SportFreunde’s high-quality content will benefit from heightened visibility and the opportunity to develop alongside Better Collective’s products, resulting in even more insightful sports betting content being produced across all platforms targeting the German-speaking market.