Monthly Archives: February 2018

London Conference Week 2018 day two recap: ICE TOTALLY GAMING

Today marked the grand opening of ICE Totally Gaming’s expo floor, one of the largest displays of land based and online gambling industry products, services, innovation and more. Traditionally the first day of ICE’s expo floor includes a number of special announcements and reveals, a phenomenon that also proved to be true for 2018.

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Steve Wynn resigns from Wynn Resorts after harassment claims

Casino operator Wynn Resorts has announced that its embattled CEO Steve Wynn has stepped down following allegations of sexual harassment against his female employees.

Late Tuesday, Wynn’s board of directors announced that it had “reluctantly” accepted Steve Wynn’s resignation as its CEO and chairman. Wynn president Matt Maddox has been appointed the company’s new CEO, while director Boone Wayson has been named non-executive chairman.

Nearly two weeks ago, the Wall Street Journal published a bombshell report alleging a pattern of sexual harassment by Steve Wynn against Wynn Resorts female staff going back decades. Since then, there’s been a steady drip of followup reports, including allegations that a $7.5m settlement Wynn reached with a manicurist in 2005 involved a paternity claim.

The allegations prompted investigations by gaming regulators in Nevada, Macau and Massachusetts, and it was becoming increasingly apparent that regulators were questioning Steve Wynn’s suitability to remain at the helm of Wynn Resorts, possibly jeopardizing the company’s future operations in these jurisdictions.

Auditor general finds no fault with Pa. Lottery, but unusual wins remain unexplained

Pennsylvania’s Auditor General says that he has full confidence in the integrity of the Pennsylvania Lottery following a review in response to an investigation in 2017 that found some Pennsylvanians have claimed lottery tickets with seemingly improbable frequency.Pennsylvania, Investigation, Government, Won multiple times

Auditor general finds no fault with Pa. Lottery, but unusual wins remain unexplained

Pennsylvania’s Auditor General says that he has full confidence in the integrity of the Pennsylvania Lottery following a review in response to an investigation in 2017 that found some Pennsylvanians have claimed lottery tickets with seemingly improbable frequency.Pennsylvania, Investigation, Government, Won multiple times

Multilotto appoint Alex Sakota as Chief Growth Officer

Multilotto have continued their senior recruitment drive by installing iGaming veteran and profitability expert Alex Sakota as their new CGO.

Multilotto have made yet another key appointment with the announcement that Alex Sakota is their new Chief Growth Officer.

Mr Sakota has a strong reputation within the industry, having organized Malta’s first-ever internet marketing seminar, acted as a lead spokesperson at a number of major events, including eProfitMalta and RE/MAX Europe and managed in excess of 90M visitors a month, setting new records in the process.

In addition to this Alex has led on acquisition for a number of leading organisations on the island such as EPC Masters, Dating Factory, Traffic Mansion and GFI Software.

Yggdrasil named Innovator Supplier of the Year at International Gaming Awards

February 7th, 2018 ­­– Yggdrasil Gaming has been named Innovator Supplier of the Year at the 2018 International Gaming Awards (IGAs), held in London on the eve of ICE.

Yggdrasil was awarded the honour by a panel of expert judges drawn from across the industry.

The supplier has a particularly strong record at the IGAs, having previously been crowned Innovator of the Year and Gaming Software Supplier of the Year at previous ceremonies.

Yggdrasil Gaming CEO Fredrik Elmqvist said: “We always strive to be the best, and it is always an honour to be recognised by our industry peers.

Introducing MansionBet: The new sportsbook from the Mansion Group

Mansion are proud to announce the expansion of their product portfolio and a launch into the sportsbook market with new brand, MansionBet.

The Mansion brand name has been synonymous with the UK sporting industry over the past decade. With ties to a number of Premier League football sponsorships – and currently the Principle Partner to AFC Bournemouth – the move into sportsbook was instinctive.

The sleek, easy-to-navigate mobile adaptive website currently features 35 different sports and over 30,000 live betting events per month, which will be attractive to any sports fan. MansionBet will feature regular impressive promotions, such as weekly free bets and top-ups on accumulator wins, along with a competitive Welcome Offer.

Alongside the extensive sports betting suite, MansionBet will also offer a variety of popular casino games, including slots and live games, from a selection of the industry’s leading providers.

Kambi named Online Sports Betting Supplier of the year at Global Gaming Awards

Judges select Kambi ahead of nine other providers in competition independently adjudicated by KPMG 

Kambi was yesterday named Online Sports Betting Supplier of the year at the prestigious Global Gaming Awards ceremony in London.

The supplier was selected ahead of nine other contenders following a rigorous judging process, which was independently audited by leading professional services firm KPMG.

The award was collected by Kambi chief executive Kristian Nylen, who highlighted Kambi’s global reach as a contributing factor to it winning the prize.

Play’n GO kick-off ICE with second straight IGA Award

7th February, 2018 – Slots specialist Play’n GO has won Slot Provider for the second year running at the 2018 IGAs.

Play’n GO’s CEO, Johan Törnqvist was present to receive one of the most competitive awards of the ceremony, which celebrates the leading suppliers and operators in the global betting and gaming industry.

Judges in the category were impressed by the supplier’s consistently strong output of innovative games, featuring vibrant graphics and unique gameplay features, complemented by its pioneering OMNY® product which allows for a truly omni-channel experience.

Johan Törnqvist, CEO at Play’n GO, said: “This is the perfect start for what we expect to be a very constructive week at ICE.

Maryland casinos eke out modest revenue gain in January

Maryland’s six casinos eked out a modest year-on-year revenue gain in January, but only two casinos posted better numbers from the same month last year.

Figures released Monday by the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Agency show the state’s six licensed casino operators brought in a combined $127.8m in January, a modest 1.2% improvement over January 2017’s number but a far cry from December’s near-record $141m.

The state’s newest and biggest venue, MGM Resorts’ National Harbor, continued its dominance with a January haul of $50.2m, up 2.9% from January 2017’s total, neatly split between table games ($23.6m) and slots ($26.6m).

Cordish Gaming’s Live! Casino & Hotel reported revenue falling 1% year-on-year to $43.5m, while Caesars Entertainment’s Horseshoe Casino Baltimore slipped 0.7% to $20.1m, Hollywood Casino Perryville fell 1.2% to $5.7m and Rocky Gap Casino Resort dipped 1.1% to $3.7m.

NetEnt’s latest Live creation brings revolutionary new dimensions to online gaming

NetEnt, the leading provider of digital gaming solutions, has at ICE Totally Gaming 2018 unveiled its newest gaming solution developed in collaboration with Mr Green; a fully immersive 3-D live casino experience with embedded live streams and graphics at the touch of a button.

NetEnt’s fully customizable solutions add a real differentiation to the live casino world using an innovative approach. This gives operators an interactive and social environment to provide to their players. Mr Green’s customized solution, Live Beyond Live, will offer their players a unique branded gaming experience.

NetEnt’s latest addition to its Live portfolio offers a totally new and full casino experience on mobile whether playing on the move or from home.

The fully customized digital experience has been enriched thanks to NetEnt’s digitalized background technology, which has realized its full potential with this product and adds a new dimension to the standardized live casino market.

JPMorgan Chase to permit online pari-mutuel credit card wagering

America’s horseracing industry is predicting a banner year ahead after the nation’s leading financial institution okayed online betting with its credit cards.

On Tuesday, the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) announced that JPMorgan Chase & Co had begun approving credit card transactions with US-licensed advance deposit wagering (ADW) sites, otherwise known as online race betting.

JPMorgan Chase & Co is the nation’s largest credit card issuer, with over 80m active credit cardholder accounts across the country. Its decision to approve transactions stamped with the ADW industry’s 7802 merchant category code could lead to other major card issuers approving similar measures, which would significantly boost online pari-mutuel betting handle.

NTRA CEO Alex Waldrop hailed Tuesday’s announcement as “a major victory for our industry” and singled out the lobbying efforts of Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY), who serves as Co-Chairman of the Congressional Horse Caucus and (more importantly) serves on the House of Representatives’ Financial Services Committee.

Eddie Hall lends his weight ICE to BettingJobs and FindMyExpert

World’s Strongest Man 2017 helps provide a test of industry’s muscle

Glasgow, 6 February, 2018: Specialist online gambling industry recruitment firm BettingJobs is once again bringing strongman Eddie Hall to its stand at ICE this year to help launch the company’s new FindMyExpert offering.

Eddie won the World’s Strongest Man crown in May last year having been the UK’s strongest man for the past six years. He is the current world record holder in the dead lift category having heaved up 500kg or over 1,100 lbs

Hall is set to appear at the BettingJobs and FindMyExpert stand S1/202 on Wednesday 7 February between 12-4pm where he will be providing exhibition attendees with the opportunity to get a selfie or record an inspirational message on their phones.

NYX’s Matt Davey to head up Scientific Games’ new SG Digital

Gaming technology giant Scientific Games (SGMS) continues to solidify its online gambling presence via the newly established “global proposition” SG Digital.

On Tuesday, SGMS announced the launch of SG Digital, which will combine the company’s existing portfolio of SG Interactive B2B products and services with the online casino and sports betting assets of NYX Gaming Group, which SGMS acquired in January.

SG Digital’s offering will include NYX’s Remote Game Server, Open Gaming System and Open Platform System, plus the OpenBet sports betting platform – which SGMS hopes will give it first-mover advantage should the US Supreme Court strike down the federal sports betting prohibition – as well as the SG Universe’s Play4Fun Network social casino and Mobile Concierge technology.

SG Digital’s estimated 1,500-strong workforce will be headed by NYX CEO Matt Davey (pictured), while Jason Walbridge will serve as SG Digital’s chief operating officer. Davey called it a “privilege to be tasked with leading and shaping” the new division, which he said would provide “unrivalled, seamless solutions” to the industry.

3 Barrels: Chidwick with US Open Pole; Lim wins $100k; Hitler says HRs are dead

Three Barrels from the higher echelons of power including Stephen Chidwick taking the lead at the US Poker Open; Michael Lim winning the Aussie Millions AUD$100k Challenge and a view from Adolf. 

A catch up on the heroic heedlessness of poker’s high rollers beginning with the US Poker Open. The eight-event tournament is taking place at the ARIA Poker Room, and Stephen Chidwick is the current king of that enchanted den.

The Global Poker Index (GPI) #1 ranked Englishman took down Event #4: $25,000 No-Limit Hold’em after carving through a field of 44-entrants as a stray knife eats through a thumb holding a piece of melon.

The event attracted 44-entrants.

EPL review week 26: The Hornets sting Chelsea; Moyes summer solstice; winter is coming

Week 26 of the English Premier League sees Watford hammer Chelsea at Vicarage Road, West Ham publicly backing David Moyes and Premier League chiefs positive on winter break idea. 

Watford 4 v 1 Chelsea 

There is a saying that the most terrible of sorrows are the silent ones. So maybe the recent nightmare that Chelsea find themselves in the midst of isn’t that terrible – Antonio Conte won’t shut up.

Conte took his side to Vicarage Road with two defeats in three games including the embarrassing 3-0 hiding against Bournemouth at Stamford Bridge. After that shock defeat, Conte asked his board to back him publicly. Violins have never sounded so violent. Had nobody told Conte that a public backing from the board almost certainly means death?

Gamma rays and overlays: Hulk wins troubled Sunday Million anniversary special

PokerStars was forced to eat a $1.2m overlay in their 12th Anniversary Sunday Million Special as Hulk9950 overcame 43,975 entrants to win the $970,000 first prize. 

When 34,274 people pay $215 to play in your poker game, and 9,701 of them stump up another $215 after hitting the rail, it has to be a success, right?

This weekend was paradise for the poker community. partypoker hosted some big buy-in POWERFEST events, there was a certain sporting event called The Super Bowl, and PokerStars guaranteed $10m in prize money for the 12th Special Anniversary Sunday Million.

The Sunday Million is THE flagship Sunday spectacular, and in the past, the loyal faithful have turned out in their droves to ensure $10m Guarantees are eaten alive.