It’s only fitting that a company with “international” in its name should try to be as global as possible. International Game Technology (IGT), which primarily serves the casino and lottery gaming segments, is diligently working on improving its international operations, and has made a few adjustments on the top floor to make that happen. Going forward, as of yesterday, Renato Ascoli is now the CEO of global gaming at IGT in an effort to help the company “reduce complexity and increase organizational efficiency.”

Prior to beginning his new role, Ascoli was IGT’s CEO of North American operations. However, the position wasn’t limited to just what was going on in the US and Canada; he was also responsible for product development for all gaming, digital and lottery activity for IGT everywhere except for Italy, according to IGT’s website. Now, as the head of global gaming, he will oversee, among other things, PlayDigital, Sports and Italy gaming, global gaming sales, global gaming product management, global gaming studios, global manufacturing, operations and services including global gaming technology.

IGT’s CEO, Marco Sala, says in a press release about the change, “A simplified organizational structure grounded in our core competencies creates a stronger, more focused IGT. We have always maintained a customer-first mentality and are positioning ourselves to meet ever-evolving needs in a dynamic, global marketplace. Global product segments enable us to leverage our extraordinary talent, unique insights as both an operator and service provider, and economies of scale to continue delivering unrivalled gaming experiences and create value for all stakeholders.”

Along with Ascoli seeing his list of responsibilities increase, Fabio Cairoli will now manage IGT’s global lottery operations as chief executive. Cairoli has led the company’s business in Italy as its CEO, and started as the Senior VP of Business eight years ago. As he takes on new challenges, he will be responsible for IGT’s global lottery sales and operations, global lottery product and sales development, global lottery technology and support.

UK gambling operators have been dragged back to the woodshed by yet another government report equating their existence with virtually everything wrong on this planet.

The Time for Action report by the House of Lords Select Committee on the Social and Economic Impact of the Gambling Industry recommends sweeping changes to the local gambling sector, all of which the committee claims “are urgent if consumers are to be protected and lives saved.”

Committee chair Lord Grade of Yarmouth said that while most gamblers “enjoy it safely,” gambling has “made the lives of two million people miserable.” The 66 recommendations in the report aim to replace “lax regulation” with “a more robust and focused regime which prioritizes the welfare of gamblers ahead of industry profits.”

Before we go any further, the (lower-case-R) republican in us feels the need to point out that the House of Lords is an unelected body largely consisting of party bagmen and campaign contributors who never have to justify their decisions to an electorate with the power to remove them from their plum posts. And with that out of the way, let’s crack the cover.

Each week, we take a look at poker on our television or cinema screens. Sometimes, it’ll even be a moment in time when poker has popped up on your computer. The important thing is, it’s all visual. From the cameo appearances of the game to shows centered around the greatest card game on the planet, poker has always been an intriguing subject on screen. This week, we’re heading back in time to 2009, when Daniel Negreanu took part in a Million Dollar Challenge.

The concept of Million Dollar Challenge was quite simple, but it was a brilliant one. Each show, Daniel Negreanu would sit down with a relative unknown, teach them some tricks of the trade and prepare that person to take on a table of poker players, including names such as Joe Cada. That person would then take them on with Negreanu at their side, acting as a sort of poker Yoda, passing on advice, noticing the odd tell, with some genuinely hilarious consequences. Watching players like John Salley question just how much of his game Negreanu is going to give away for free is box office poker on TV.

Having coached his quarry to ‘beat the pros’, Negreanu then gets the chance to see his student risk the $25,000 they’ve won to turn it into $100,000…by beating Negreanu himself heads-up. If the contestant can do that, then they get that six-figure win, but if not then they get nothing but a free trip to the Bahamas. The interesting part was not only that Negreanu has taught them everything they know – during the episode that is – but that if they win through to the series final, then another $1 million is up for grabs if they can repeat the trick.

Presented by Chris Rose, the opening episode features an amateur player called Father Andrew Trapp, a priest who takes on the whole gang. We won’t spoil it but take a look and see for yourself whether he was worried about what was tossed into the collection plate at the next communion.

A long-delayed casino project on the South Pacific island of Tinian hit yet another snag this week after construction was ordered halted due to lack of permits.

On Wednesday, the Marianas Variety reported that the Commonwealth Ports Authority (CPA) and the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality (BECQ) had ordered Bridge Investment Group (BIG) to stop work on its in-development Tinian casino project after failing to secure the proper permits from local officials.

According to CPA exec director Christopher Tenorio, the BECQ raised the alarm when it learned of BIG’s plan to construct a massive septic tank at the project site, which is adjacent to Kammer Beach, a popular tourist destination. The area has no adequate sewer system to handle a septic tank of the size envisioned in BIG’s plans.

The kerfuffle follows last month’s reports that the CPA was expressing reservations over BIG’s plans to construct an 80-room barracks for workers on the same site. The CPA reportedly suspects that BIG needs the barracks to house foreign workers rather than hire locals to learn the tools of the casino trade.