A popular sports gambling site has been kicked out of New Jersey. This isn’t in response to any nefarious Department of Justice opinions or an attempt to control the market by some out-of-control casino operator on a power trip. Instead, it comes down to simple legalities. The site was promoting off-shore gambling sites, none of which are licensed to operate in the U.S.

New Jersey Deputy Attorney General Anthony Strangia sent OddsShark.com a letter last week, informing the site that it was no longer welcome in The Garden State. The letter reads, in part, “The Division has accessed your website located at www.oddsshark.com and found that, alongside promotional links to authorized New Jersey online gaming and sports betting websites, your website also promotes [at least three offshore sites]which offer unauthorized internet gaming and sports betting to New Jersey residents.”

Strangia continues, “By copy of this letter, the Division is instructing all New Jersey casinos and internet gaming providers that they must cease doing all business with OddsShark.com, regardless of whether the platforms are promoting their New Jersey activity or activity in other jurisdictions.

“In addition, you may be violating the criminal laws of the state of New Jersey [regarding racketeering and promoting illegal gambling].

William Hill is becoming increasingly more entrenched in the U.S. and continues to expand its footprint. In the latest step forward, the sports gambling giant has now taken over the race and sportsbook operations for Golden Entertainment out of Las Vegas. According to a report by CDC Gaming Reports, it is now running the show at the sportsbooks of the Aquarius Casino Resort in Laughlin, Arizona Charlie’s Boulder in Las Vegas and Arizona Charlie’s Decatur, with plans to operate another sportsbook currently being built at The STRAT, which will open next month.

The global sportsbook already had an agreement with Golden Entertainment that saw it managing the sportsbook at the Pahrump Nugget, as well as offering full-service kiosks at the Lakeside and Gold Town casinos. William Hill has also been installing gambling kiosks at approximately 80 taverns owned by Golden and in third-party-distributed gaming locations across the state. Two other properties that were recently acquired by Golden – Edgewater and Colorado Belle in Laughlin – will also continue to have their sports gambling operations run by William Hill.

According to William Hill U.S. CEO Joe Asher, ““The addition of the four new casino resorts marks an exciting new chapter in our relationship with Golden Entertainment. We look forward to working together to offer sports fans an amazing experience for many years to come in Nevada and elsewhere as opportunities arise.”

Steve Arcana, the chief operating officer for Golden, added, “We are excited to continue expanding our relationship with William Hill, which has a proven sports wagering platform not only in Nevada but around the world. We look forward to growing our business in Nevada and other jurisdictions through this partnership.”

The only casino in South Korea that allows locals to hit the action saw a considerable slide in its profit during the last quarter of 2018. Kangwon Land Inc. said in a filing with the Korea Exchange yesterday that profit fell 75.8% year-on-year, driven by a decline in gaming revenue. Kangwon took in $69.43 million in the fourth quarter of 2017, but only $16.9 million during the same period last year.

Operating income at the casino resort dropped 31.1% year-on-year, settling at $58.26 million. Sales for the quarter were $311.7 million, a decline of 8.6% from the same quarter in 2017. That figure includes gaming revenue, which dropped 9.5% year-on-year to $276.37 million.

Across the board, all segments dropped at Kangwon Land. The mass table segment fell 8.8% to $137.56 million and slot revenue dripped 7.3% to $116.65 million. Sales from the resort’s Membership Club only produced revenue of $49.96 million, a drop of 13.6% year-on-year. Even non-gaming revenue saw a slight dip, dropping 1.2% to $35.34 million.

While the company didn’t expand on the quarterly results, it did note that the aggregate number of customers fell by 12.8% to 680,737. It also reported an increase in the cost of sales of 4% to $199.51 million.

The Pakistan Super League (PSL) has a new broadcasting partner for its upcoming T20 tournament. According to an announcement by the Discover Group’s DSport TV channel, it has signed an agreement with MyTeam11, a real-money daily fantasy sports (DFS) platform, to be the official broadcast co-presenting partner for the tournament.

[Photo Credit: Pakistan Super League Twitter]

The PSL T20 began yesterday and runs through March 17. It is played across six cities in the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan and will be aired on the DSport channel.

The managing director and CEO of DSport channel management partner Lex Sportel, R.C. Venkateish, said of the partnership, “Fantasy sports is a necessity for any sport and league to grow as it’s a natural extension for the fans to stay engaged to their favourite sport even after the live action is over. My Team 11 with their recent associations has only showcased the growing interest and increasing fan engagement in fantasy cricket and hence it was but natural for us to get them on board as the broadcast partners for the Pakistan Super League.

Macau Fisherman’s Wharf has been a staple of the city’s casino community. This could soon change, though, as the operator of the complex looks to include more non-gaming activities in an effort to attract more visitor segments.

The property is located on the Macau peninsula, close to the Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal and is operated by Macau Fisherman’s Wharf International Investment Ltd. In announcing the changes, the company’s president, Melinda Chan Mei Yi, stated that there would be a new “Celebrity Wax Figures Museum” and a new virtual reality experience center, among other items, added to the complex. Both the museum and the experience center are expected to be launched during the second half of this year, according to Chan.

Chan made the revelation while speaking to reporters during a company gathering yesterday. She explained that the experience center would be located in the meetings and conference center of the property and added, “We’re working with a Japanese brand for this VR [virtual reality] project, but for now we cannot disclose its name. It is planned that in April there will be an agreement signing ceremony and by then the [partner’s] name will be made known.”

The museum is expected to be housed in one of the buildings along Legend Boulevard inside the wharf and Chan asserted, “We hope that these new features will be in place within the second half of this year. Meanwhile, our meetings and conference centre will also undergo a revamp, which is expected to be completed in 2020.”

When Yoo Tae-Yeol was named as the new chief executive officer of Grand Korea Leisure Ltd. (GKL) in June 2018, he was viewed by many as a kind of “savior.” A J.P. Morgan Securities report highlighted a 1% decrease in revenue for the company in the first quarter of 2018, prompting a change in leadership at the top of GKL.

While the change may have been needed, it has not produced the desired effect that executives at the company had hoped. According to reports filed with the Korea Exchange, the company saw a 51.8% drop in profits in the final quarter of 2018.

The company reported a total profit in the fourth quarter of $6.1 million. This comes as total revenue generated by the three casinos run by Grand Korea Leisure reported significant losses across the board. Total casino revenue fell by 15.7% from 2017, as revenue generated by machines declined to $51.3 million, a 14.4% decrease from the previous year.

A number of factors appear to be creating the decline, including a decrease in Chinese tourism during 2018. Tensions between South Korea and China increased during the year, and the increase in Japanese tourism was not significant enough to help mitigate the loss of revenue.

Stephen Chidwick begins the defence of his 2018 US Poker Open crown by winning Event #1: $10,000 No-Limit Hold’em for $216,000, after beating Sean Winter, heads-up.

There was a time when the thought of someone catching Sam Trickett at the top of the UK All-Time Money List for live tournament earnings was as absurd as a young kid from a council estate in the North of England taking up basketball.

Since Trickett won $10m for his runner-up finish in the $1m buy-in Big One for One Drop at the World Series of Poker (WSOP) the blueprints for the high roller landscape has changed dramatically, as more and more money flowed into that part of the game.

The narrative changed also.

The gambling industry in Asia continues to expand and offer new opportunities, be they experienced operators or wily new startups. It’s almost that time of year again, when the best and brightest of the industry come together at the iGaming Asia Congress, to share their insights, mingle, and discuss how to approach the market best.

This year’s iGaming Asia Congress will take place from March 12-14. They are celebrating their 11th year of the conference by moving to a new venue, the Studio City in Macau.

The conference welcomes just about anyone who is working in the industry in some way, and advertises the opportunity to gain insights from experts, discover new technologies, and gain a better understanding of the Asian and global markets. In addition, they promise over 10 hours of networking opportunities, where visits can share partnership opportunities, discuss the industry, and of course, meet new people.

Anyone showing up for the Pre-Conference Briefings on March 12 can expect to learn about the emerging American market, as the beginning of the day will focus on “US Briefings – Untapping the Biggest Regulated Gambling Market in the World.” Operators looking to jump into the Asian market for the first time can also learn how to do so in the afternoon, with “Operational Briefings: The A-Z of Setting Up in Asia.”

The Arsenal legend and ComeOn! Brand ambassador speaks to CalvinAyre about gambling and retirement during his appearance at the London Affiliate Conference.

Over 5,000 people dragged suitcases, handbags and those expensive little Gucci manbags to 2019 London Affiliate Conference (LAC) at London’s ExCeL over the weekend.

One person attending the symposium on behalf of the leading sports betting and online casino brand ComeOne! Sports & Casino was the Arsenal and England football legend Ray Parlour.

Parlour played 339 times for Arsenal, mainly under the wing of Arsène Wenger, winning three English Premier League (EPL) titles, three FA Cups, and a UEFA Cup Winners Cup. During his career, Parlour was fortunate to turn every kid’s dream into reality when he scored a screamer in the 2002 FA Cup win over Chelsea. The midfielder also represented his country ten times.

The state of New York appears to be pushing towards sports betting as fast as it can. When it comes to online sports betting however, they make want to check the latest polls before they go too far too soon.

The latest research from the Siena College Research Institute (SCRI) indicates that New Yorkers are evenly split on if the state should allow online sports betting. Their research shows, “Equal percentages, 44 percent support and 44 percent oppose broadening the current sports betting law to allow for online sports betting.”

They provide a deep dive on the numbers to show where the support and opposition are. Generally, voters are aware that sports betting is coming to upstate casinos, but are very split on allowing it online. Democrats lean towards opposing it while republicans support it. City dwellers can’t make up their minds on the topic, but suburban citizens are slightly in favor. In a split that shouldn’t be shocking, men want online gambling, while women don’t.

The expectation is that these citizens will get their say in the matter, as it has generally been expected that the state would need to vote on an amendment to their constitution before they could broaden current gambling regulations.

MGM China Holdings has released its fourth-quarter financial report today and things are looking good. The company reported revenue for the quarter of $685.1 million, an increase of 33.2% over the same period last year. One of the main drivers behind the success was the company’s second property in Macau, the MGM Cotai.

EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) for the quarter increased by 9.1% year-on-year to reach $179.67 million. For the fourth quarter of 2017, it was $164.38 million.

Aggregate revenue for the entire year jumped 32.6% year-on-year to $2.44 billion. The full-year EBITDA was round $616.75 million, a considerable increase above the $584.91 million seen in the year prior.

The MGM Cotai opened in February of last year, helping the company find a considerable boost in revenue. Prior to that, only the MGM Macau on the Macau peninsula had been in operation.

Gambling giant Paddy Power Betfair is pulling out their wallet. It has been slapped with a large tax bill from both Germany and Greece, and will now have to dish out over €55 million ($62.89 million) to get back on the good side of both countries.

A court in Germany determined that Paddy Power was on the hook for around $46.2 million. That decision was based on a 2012 tax assessment levied against Betfair Exchange, which shut down in November of that year. Paddy Power and Betfair merged in 2016 in a deal with over $12 billion, but the company is disputing the bill, saying that it isn’t sure that it is liable.

In Greece, the taxman determined that taxes, as well as penalties and interest, are owed for interim licenses held by the company from 2012 to 2014. It reportedly has been handed a bill for over $16.6 million in unpaid taxes, which is most likely more than the company made during the three-year timeframe.

Paddy Power went ahead, reluctantly, and paid the bill in Greece, but is hoping to recover the cash. The company said in an announcement about the tax bills, “The group strongly disputes the basis of these assessments, and in line with the legal and tax advice we have received, is confident in our grounds to appeal. We therefore intend to do so.