Let your mouth speak archive

The District of Columbia Council remains bitterly divided on how, or even if, the nation’s capital should have the first government-run online gambling venture in the United States.

Online gambling is already legal in the district, but it became law in an unusual way. A councilmember inserted language that would allow online poker, blackjack and other games into a budget bill, and it became law last spring when Congress declined to intervene. Some councilmembers were unhappy with that process and want to roll back online gambling before it starts.

On Thursday, D.C. Lottery officials said during a council committee hearing that with the council’s blessing, they could launch the website to offer the online games within 30 days. But Councilmember Jack Evans, who chairs the committee that’s considering a bill to repeal the law, said he’s not concerned if there’s a delay in rolling out online gambling, or even if D.C. is the first in the nation to do so.

“Given where we are now, should we go back and revisit it or not? That’s what I’ll decide,” said Evans, a Ward 2 Democrat. “There’s no rush to get this done.”

The repeal bill was introduced last year by Councilmember Tommy Wells, D-Ward 6, and at least two of the 12 other councilmembers support it. The councilmembers who want to repeal online gambling also are concerned about the district’s $39 million contract with Intralot, its Greece-based lottery vendor.

While online gambling essentially is banned in the United States, the Justice Department clarified last month that states can authorize it within their borders. Several states are expressing interest, but only Nevada and the district have approved laws or regulations authorizing online gambling. Officials in Nevada have said they hope to begin offering online poker by the end of the year.

The lottery’s executive director, Buddy Roogow, said Thursday that the lottery no longer plans to offer the online equivalent of slot machines out of respect for district voters, who have rejected slots in the past. Games would be free for 30 to 60 days after the launch to allow for software to be tested, he said. Players would have to be at least 19 years old and would only be allowed to wager $250 a week. The low limits are intended to appeal to recreational players and not professional gamblers. The lottery intends to verify Internet protocol addresses and use global positioning software to ensure that players are within the borders of the district. Interstate online gambling remains illegal. The office of Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi has estimated that online gambling will bring in $13 million over four years after Intralot takes a 50 percent cut. The figure has not been revised to reflect that other states might move in ahead of the district.

During the hearing, Council member David Catania, I-At Large, accused Gandhi of “going rogue” by inserting the online gambling language into the lottery contract without approval from the council and suggested that Gandhi should step down. He threatened to sue Gandhi’s office for illegally altering the contract if online gambling goes forward.

“I’m pretty sure we can throw a monkey wrench into this,” Catania said at a hearing on the program.

Gandhi said there was nothing improper about the change to the contract. The D.C. Inspector General has cleared Gandhi’s office of illegal conduct, but his report raised questions about the way the gambling language was added. The contract did not specify that Intralot would be able to bring online gambling to the district. Instead, it only included language about “nontraditional games.” After it was approved in 2009, the contract was amended to specify that Intralot could implement an online gambling system.

Some councilmembers have said they did not know they were putting the district on a path toward online gambling when they approved the contract, and civic activists have complained about a lack of transparency in the process. Councilmember Michael A. Brown, I-At Large, who has led the push for online gambling by inserting the measure into the supplemental budget bill, said there still was value in coming first. He expects people to travel to the district from nearby states to play legal online poker instead of playing on unregulated overseas sites.

Many peer-reviewed studies have found no connection between casinos and the social problems Sam Skolnik attributes to the influence of gaming (“The House Loses,” PostScript, Jan. 22).

For many years, Iowans were asked to vote every eight years on a referendum to continue allowing gaming. Each time, voters overwhelmingly approved the measure. If casinos were responsible for bringing crime and corruption to communities, Iowa’s casinos would have closed long ago.

Finally, multiple reports have confirmed the prevalence rate of pathological gambling has held steady at approximately 1% of the adult population for more than 30 years despite the widespread growth of casino gambling.

Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., President & CEO, American Gaming Association, Washington, DC

Empty pockets

“Take Take Take” documents how government confiscation of wealth, via taxation, has grown out of control (Kyle Smith, PostScript, Jan. 22).

Sooner or later, the producers of wealth will be outnumbered by the takers. Those who create wealth and income will eventually demand that they be able to keep more of what they earn.

To end this spiral, the government must destroy all its credit cards and be put on a fiscal diet. A multi-year freeze on spending, balanced budgets, pay-as-you-go spending, means-testing for entitlement programs and down payments to reduce long-term deficits are the cure.

Larry Penner, Great Neck

Numbers game

The federal government deliberately cooks the books to understate inflation (“Worry About Inflation,” Michael Kinsley, PostScript, Jan. 22).

Artificially low inflation numbers keep interest payments on the government debt down and reduce government expenditures by keeping things like cost-of-living increases for those on Social Security below what they should be.

The rationale of government bureaucrats is that they’re lying for the greater good. But fudged inflation numbers lend an aura of competency to the government that it does not deserve.

Michael Kinsley will be proven correct. Government debt will eventually be repudiated through monetary inflation.

Peter Skurkiss, Stow, Ohio

Un-Godly fanatics

Ben Hirsch is correct that ultra-Orthodox extremism cannot usurp civil-rights laws or, in the worst example, be used to protect child predators (“A Jewish Civil War,” PostScript, Jan. 22).

The Catholic Church was permitted to handle cases of sexual abuse by members of the clergy. Similarly, individuals have attempted to use sharia law as an excuse for the abuse and murder of Muslim women.

Laws exist for the protection of everyone, and no one should be allowed to hide behind religion to do harm.

Diane McVey, Scotch Plains, NJ

It’s the so-called leaders of these faithful who must be ostracized for their cowardice and arrogance in encouraging and directing such activities.

Whether it’s spitting on an innocent child, encouraging suicide bombers or teaching that racism is permissible, the words and actions of religious fanatics are a violent distortion of religious principles.

Leaders behind religious violence must be exposed. Hopefully, they’ll crawl back into the shadows where they belong.

Jeffery Cohen, The Bronx

David Milch had the script for a horse racing drama kicking around in his head for 30 years. The screenwriter and producer was just too busy living it to put words to paper.

As a 6-year-old, Milch first accompanied his father to the racetrack in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. He was too young to wager, but Milch’s father worked things out anyway. “’You want to gamble, don’t you? Well, you can’t gamble because you have to be 18 years old,’” Milch recalled his father telling him. “’I’ve set it up with Max the waiter. He’ll run your bets for you.’”

That mixed message sent Milch off on a lifelong fascination with the track and an eventual gambling addiction. Along the way, he owned two Breeders’ Cup champions.

Milch’s portrait of horse racing’s seedier side comes to life in the drama series “Luck,” starring Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte, debuting Sunday on HBO at 9 p.m. EST.

He couldn’t write it sooner “because I had to quit gambling,” he said.

The nine-episode first season was filmed at sun-dappled Santa Anita in suburban Arcadia, an art deco racetrack set against the San Gabriel Mountains. Milch has won and lost money there, but he said he never hit the betting windows during shooting.

“You can’t do what we were doing and conduct yourself that way,” he said. “It’s disrespectful to the material and distorts everything that you’re doing. I had to let that go.”

Michael Mann (”Heat,” ‘’The Insider”) directed the pilot and Milch wrote it, with the eight subsequent episodes directed and written by others, including Daily Racing Form columnist Jay Hovdey.

Mann lent a theatrical touch to the sound and look of the series, with Massive Attack’s “Splitting the Atom” playing over the opening credits and racing scenes unfolding mere feet from the camera mounted on a tracking vehicle.

“We were able to get where you never can get,” Mann said. “We’re used to seeing animals sprint but they’re rabbits, they’re not 1,400 pounds. A really athletic horse with not much body fat moving that fast, you don’t really see things that can move that fast. That informed some of the shots.”

Milch’s script eschews the heroic story lines seen in recent movies such as “Secretariat” and “Seabiscuit” in favor of the sport’s insular side featuring the characters who populate the stable area and grandstands.

“We’re not sentimental,” Mann said.

Viewers may find themselves tripping over the language unique to racing, including terms such as “bug boy,” ‘’Pick Six” and “chalk,” referring to the wagering favorite in a race.

Milch assumes the audience will catch on as the show unfolds.

“It’s an act of faith,” he said. “Your fundamental response is to stay true to the deepest nature and intention of the materials. That’s what we did.”

Mann said, “To this day I don’t think I know how to bet a Pick Six.”

The wager involves selecting the winning horses in six consecutive races, with the bet having to be placed before the start of the first race. Payouts can be huge, and the wager is a central theme in the pilot episode.

Hoffman takes on his first recurring role on television as crime kingpin Chester “Ace” Bernstein, who is released from three years in federal prison as the series opens.

He’s met by his driver and bodyguard Gus Demitriou, played by Dennis Farina, who fronts as the owner of a $2 million horse that Bernstein just bought. It’s part of a mysterious revenge plot engineered by Bernstein.

Nolte plays Walter Smith, a veteran trainer turned owner with his own promising horse, who has a dark history and shadow of scandal behind it. Jill Hennessy, John Ortiz, Jason Gedrick, retired Hall of Fame jockey Gary Stevens and current rider Chantal Sutherland have recurring roles.

“I don’t get ensembles like this in regular movies,” Hoffman said.

The 74-year-old two-time Oscar winner relished the opportunity to take his character in so many different directions.

“I have not had this experience before,” Hoffman said. “You can’t get a shot at doing your best work in the studio system. They can get involved in kind of a quasi-creative way, but they buck heads with people they shouldn’t be bucking heads with.”

In Gov. Steve Beshear's State of the Commonwealth address Jan. 4, he called for the state legislators to introduce and approve a bill to allow voters to decide if they want casino type gambling in this state. I say to you, "Expanding gambling is not the answer to Kentucky's financial problems."

In an article by Chuck Stinnett this past Sunday, he reported how the Spectrum Gaming Group has estimated that a casino at Ellis Park would bring the equivalent of jobs for 552 full-time employees and 192 construction worker's jobs.

"Gaming" is just a more politically acceptable word for "gambling." I have no way of checking it out, but I hesitate to trust the figures set forth in a study done by the gambling industry. Those kinds of studies done by the gambling industry on the economic impact of expanded gambling often manipulate the numbers for their purposes in a kind of "math in fantasyland" fashion.

The gaming industry is quick to give figures regarding the positive economic impact of gambling, but neglects to mention the negative side. With increased gambling additional law enforcement is needed because crime increases in the area. State and county agencies that deal with welfare needs are impacted because the families of gamblers have less money for rent, groceries and utilities. Also, churches and faith-based groups are affected because they have to take up more slack to help families because a family member has gambled away some money.

I personally knew a man grieving from his wife's death who started going to the boat in Evansville to gamble. His losses caused him to lose his house and most every other thing he had. He robbed a bank. After being caught he spent the rest of his life in prison at a huge cost to our state.

Gambling is a business issue. It doesn't create any additional money. While gambling makes money for casinos and race tracks, which pay taxes and give a small cut to the state, local businesses are losers because the money spent gambling is money that's not available to be spent in restaurants, groceries or local stores.

Gambling is a moral issue. Many Kentucky residents will have to lose a lot of money for the government to get additional revenue from gambling. For the most part gambling takes money out of the pockets of those who can least afford it. It's a bigger temptation to certain social economic groups who are struggling financially and are willing to put money in slot machines and to bet on horses in order to hit it big.

It's bad public policy for a government to make its own citizens losers for it to gain. Shouldn't our state government be protecting and alerting its citizens of the grave potential dangers of losing their hard-earned money rather than encouraging them to gamble when the odds are stacked against them to lose? When people lose their money gambling, marriages are affected adversely, children do without school supplies and clothes, and individuals are depressed.

This past Sunday I spoke to a man at church whom I'd been missing. He explained he has been going to Louisville to help take care of his 80-year-old uncle who's in assisted living. He said the uncle's son has been going to the "boat" and has gambled away $100,000 of the man's money. Now, the family is concerned if there is enough money for the uncle to be properly cared for. Gambling hurts a lot of people.

Gambling is a religious issue. The Bible doesn't encourage gambling, and God doesn't bless it. God's plan for making money is called "Work." Gambling urges people to lust for more money. Greed and covetousness are sins (Ten Commandments – Ex. 20). God wants you to use your money wisely for his glory and to help others. The Bible warns, "Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income" (Eccles. 5:10).

Don't feel sorry for the racetrack owners. Mr. Geary, the owner of Ellis Park, stated, "Last year (2010) saw a 22-percent increase in on-track attendance, averaging about 3,700 ... and a nearly 17-percent increase in on-track wagering" (June 30, 2010 front page article in The Gleaner).

I urge you to join the fight against expanding gambling in the Bluegrass. Increased gambling in our state is "simply bad public policy." Call or email your state elected officials and ask them to do everything possible to turn back the tide on expanded gambling in Kentucky. You can contact your legislators via the legislative message line at 1-800-372-7181 or via the Legislative Research Commission website at Kentucky Legislature Home Page.

You can be assured the gambling industry is going all out to lobby your legislators, so it's imperative you speak clearly to them about this issue. They work for you!

Right.. See you all there and hope to play with you guys.


_________________

One hell of a game😡

In an industry such as internet gambling the source of inspiration and innovation may be not that obvious to the average user of the services. Gaming Intelligence is a firm that specializes in serving the business intelligence needs of the global interactive gaming industry. It provides timely coverage and analysis of all the developments impacting industry stakeholders, GamingIntelligence.com and its sister publication GIQ Magazine are an invaluable daily tool amongst key decision makers within gaming operators, national regulators, the legal and financial communities and the wider media.

Gaming Intelligence Services Limited is a firm registered in England with a highly regarded team of analysts possessing a resourced knowledge of online gaming, risk management, marketing, finance and law. Gaming Intelligence is also considered a leading source of independent, analytical and agenda-setting content for the online gaming industry.
In an effort to make those people in the online gambling industry known to their colleges and the public Gaming Intelligence publishes a list called the Hot 50 of Online Gambling’s Brightest Stars. The annual list of the most talented, innovative and inspiring individuals working in online gambling is chosen by a panel of experts, includes entrepreneurs, captains of the industry, regulators, technology personnel, lawyers and marketers from around the world, reflecting the diverse range of talent that is driving the gambling industry on the internet.

Managing Editor of Gaming Intelligence, Bobby Mamudi, commented, “We often write about the success of companies and their top executives, but the aim of the annual Hot 50 list is to recognize the achievements of all those who are shaping the future of this vibrant industry.”
The GIQ Hot 50 includes well known individuals such as Denise and John Coates of Bet365 and Isai Scheinberg of PokerStars, influential regulators such as the UK Gambling Commission’s Jenny Williams, as well as unknown talents such as Daniel Lindberg, the Chief Executive Officer of online casino supplier QuickSpin which has not yet launched its product. Industry greats exposed and celebrated by their peers it just can’t get much better than that.

The beautiful State of Hawaii in the middle of the Pacific Ocean is one of only two States along with Utah that prohibits all forms of gambling. That situation may be about to go through some changes if a three recent bills introduced are passed in the House Representatives for the State of Hawaii.

The prolog for the bills explains that internet wagering has become a past time that many people around the world are actively engaged in. The explanation goes on to express concerns for the punters in Hawaii who are currently playing at online gambling sites that are not regulated, leaving players vulnerable to various problems.

The first bill calls for the establishment of a state lottery commission, to operate a state lottery, the second would allow for the establishment of land based casino operations in Hawaii. The third bill, HB 2422 looks at the creation of an Internet Lottery and Gambling Corporation that would authorize “internet wagering on games of chance and games of skill, including lottery, poker and casino games.” To comply with the Department of Justice’s recent announcement clarifying the Wire Act Hawaii will not allow, “wagering on any sporting event or sporting contest.”
Hawaii is thinking far ahead should the third bill HB#2422 pass the State would like to enter into, “agreements with other state gaming entities for the offering of multistate games, consistent with state and federal law.” Residents in other states would be allowed to participate in “free-play games and sweepstakes” offering “Hawaii related prizes … for the purpose of attracting tourists and providing free exposure for Hawaii and Hawaii businesses.”

The revenue from the proposed legalization of internet wagering in Hawaii is listed in the bill with thirty five percent of proceeds being allotted to the improvement of public schools while another twenty five percent would go to capital improvements to the University of Hawaii. Five percent of funds would be given to programs for the prevention and treatment of problem gambling.

As the Finance Committee was hearing expert testimony on the pitfalls of online gambling, one of the committee’s younger members demonstrated on his iPad one reason for the state to allow it—it’s already happening.

Sitting in a hearing room in the Legislative Office Building, Rep. Roland Lemar, D- New Haven, pulled up the leading online gambling websites.

“I was able to go through the entire application process, provide my credit card number, do everything except click start,” he said Monday.

The sites were careful to point out for him that no American has ever been prosecuted for online gambling and that all the legal risks associated wouldn’t be on him if he chose to gamble, he said.

Lemar demonstrated what Gov. Dannel P. Malloy has been saying for weeks: online gambling is coming to Connecticut whether we like it or not. The U.S. Justice Department cleared the way for states to get involved with Internet gaming last month when it clarified a law that had previously been interpreted to prohibit intrastate Internet gambling.

“The playing field with respect to gaming is about to change,” Malloy said Monday following the Bond Commission meeting. “And we have to consider those changes and be aware of them.” However, Marvin Steinberg, executive director of the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, said that when a state passes a law legalizing it, it promotes a form of gambling.

“It increases the number of people who gamble and a certain percentage of them will have a problem,” he said.

Due to the private and individual nature of online gambling, it can be more dangerous than other forms of gambling, he said. Where someone in a casino may interact with other people and pick up on social cues suggesting it’s time to stop, someone on gambling on their laptop has none of that input, he said.

Steinberg’s assistant director Mary Drexler said online gambling can be especially dangerous for minors who have grown up playing video games where they are comfortable taking risks. The younger a person develops a gambling habit, the more likely they are to have a serious problem later on in life, she said. Sen. Gary LeBeau, D- East Hartford, asked how parents in Connecticut can prevent their kids from going online to gamble when states like Massachusetts and New Jersey seemed poised to get into the game themselves.

“You’ve already acknowledged that children are already online gambling, I know my kids have. I’ve got three kids in their twenties, I know one of them has. I know that they play poker online, they can go offshore, they know how to do that,” he said.

If that’s already happening, wouldn’t it be better for Connecticut to offer its own version of gaming with controls and protections to prevent children from playing, he asked. Other states may not have controls, he said.

Malloy agreed, saying if the state choose to pass online gaming legislation, it could devote additional funds to helping people with gambling problems.

“Either way whether we make changes in Connecticut or not, the number of increased opportunities for gaming in our region, including online gaming even if we didn’t do it—and I’m not saying we’re going to,—but even if we didn’t do it is going to cause that problem to probably rise to another level,” Malloy said. “That’s why if we do anything we need to increase the amount of money available to address that problem to the greatest extent we can.”

Currently the state spends about $1.9 million on problem gambling, which doesn’t represent 1 percent of the revenues the state takes in for gaming.

“If we were to go any further with respect to gaming I think an appropriate factor would be 1 percent of any increase,” Malloy said.

Steinberg agreed that if the state decides to generate additional revenue through gambling, more money should be spent on problem gamblers based on a percentage of that revenue.

He asked that lawmakers drafting any bill that would legalize to keep a few things in mind. One thing they should ask themselves is whether residents actually want to legalize online gambling. Steinberg said the state should sponsor a review of scientific literature on the impact of online gambling.

Any bill that legalizes online gambling should include provisions that have proven to reduce underage gambling in other places like Canada and Australia.

Steinberg did not tell the committee his organization was there to oppose a bill to legalize online gambling.

“We’re not here to say don’t do online gambling. We’re not here to say don’t do casinos. We’re here to say, if you’re going to do it, know what you’re doing, know what the downside is, research it, provide funds for prevention and treatment and research, and got on with it,” he said. Rep. Sean Williams, R- Watertown, questioned why, given all the negative potential of online gambling, he wouldn’t oppose its legalization.

“Understand there are a lot of people on this committee and throughout the legislature who are, to say the least, very skeptical about online gambling, a lot of people who are poised to oppose it,” Williams said.

Steinberg said that as an affiliate member of the National Council of Problem Gambling, they need to be neutral on the issue. Their job is to provide enough information to cause people to pause and think about it, he said. However, Steinberg, who will leave his position at the group later this week, said his personal feelings on the matter are different.

“As a citizen, I’m not in favor of this much dependency on gambling but it’s an easy way for government to get some funds. As opposed to waiting a long time to grow the business sector,” he said. “... It is on shaky grounds to continue to depend on gambling funds because eventually it’s going to be tapped out.”

Slot-machine maker International Game Technology (NYS: IGT) looks poised to jump on the bandwagon of companies that are increasing their stake in online gaming. The company plans to acquire Double Down Interactive, one of the biggest virtual casino operators on Facebook.

What's it all about?
Under this deal, IGT will pay $250 million in cash and $85 million in retention payments over the next two years. Additionally, IGT will pay up to $165 million to Double Down, depending on the latter's performance in the next three years.

All in all, this looks like a large amount to pay for a company the size of Double Down, but it's not as if IGT can't afford it. IGT generated over $400 million in free cash flow over the last year.

So is the cash worth it?
This deal will certainly broaden IGT's scope of operations. Already a seller of gaming equipment to casinos, it will now be able to sell virtual products to virtual casinos as well. Being the third-largest social gaming application, Double Down may well provide IGT with a valuable foothold in casino-style social gaming.

Double Down has significantly increased its user count, to 4.7 million now from 3.3 million in October last year, as it capitalizes on the rapidly growing online gaming industry. The industry in itself is expected to grow to $30 billion in 2012 from $20 billion in 2010. What I do like about the deal, however, is the exposure to a new and complementary set of gamers, which is sure to drive IGT's fiscal 2012 earnings. But there's another, larger aspect to it.

What's the catch?
The Double Down deal would mean that IGT is investing around $100 for each one of the former's roughly 5 million users. Now that's a lot of money, something that can be justified only if we consider the potential big bucks IGT can earn if online gambling is legalized. In fact, legalization of online poker would be a dream come true for the casino and gaming industries, something that may be fast becoming a reality as the Justice Department considers doing away with the ban on online gambling.

However, IGT isn't alone. Facebook game maker Zynga (NAS: ZNGA) has about 30 million players for its online poker game and could be a great partner for a big branded casino. Industry titan MGM (NYS: MGM) has already partnered with Bwin.Party, and Boyd Gaming and is likely putting pressure on other operators to get a foothold in the space while they still can. IGT could be in for a lot of trouble if an operator inks a deal with Zynga.

Stakes in online gambling will be lower than those at real casinos. Nevertheless, the company's exposure to a widespread online audience should create abundant volumes to push up revenue. Looking at it from that aspect, $500 million doesn't seem particularly extravagant to me, after all.

The Foolish bottom line
This deal could very well be IGT's royal flush. The company seems to be banking on potential revenue based on the expectations that online poker will be legalized. Till then, let's keep our fingers crossed on this one.

Stay tuned for more on this company's fortune. Add International Game Technology to your Watchlist: Click here.

Navjot Kaur does not own shares of any of the companies mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of International Game Technology. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Don't Get Ripped Off By Social Security
For most people, Social Security won't provide enough income to live off of. Sure, it'll pay for the essentials. But it won't give them the golden years they've dreamed of — traveling, spoiling grandkids, and so forth. That doesn't have to be you! You see, there's one little-known way to boost your Social Security payout by as much as 25%. All the details are laid out in a new report from The Motley Fool, which can be yours FREE today. Enter your email address below to access this FREE report!

A dramatic drop in poker machine spending in Northland last year has been offset by an increase in internet gambling.

The rise has led to addiction workers calling for more restrictions to curb punting on the net.

Online gambling is a new addiction for Northlanders, helping to reduce regional spending on poker machines by $8 million in 2011, almost a quarter less than in 2010.

Internal Affairs figures show $32 million was poured into Northland pokies in 2010, but a 24 per cent fall last year trimmed the amount spent on the addictive machines to $24.3 million.

The number of gaming machines also dropped from 758 in June 2010 to 745 at the end of January.

In the three months to the end of December 2011, Northlanders put $8,065,372 into poker machines across the district, or about $90,000 daily. There are no figures on how many Northlanders gamble in Auckland or elsewhere.

However, a Problem Gambling Foundation counsellor in Whangarei, Diane Matthews, said online gambling was becoming more popular in the region.

"People are getting a bit bored [with gaming machines]. internet gambling is way more accessible, but the sad thing about that is all money goes overseas," she said.

Ms Matthews called for restrictions on online gaming because it could be as damaging as playing poker machines.

She blamed the recession for the drop in gaming machine spending in the region last year, attributing some of the reduction to Northland having fewer poker machines.

"At the start of recession people usually gamble more, but as time goes by they gamble less. The number of people gambling is also directly related to the number of machines," Ms Matthews said.

Since 2003 local councils had some say on how many gaming machines should be located in their districts, a move the Whangarei District Council and Kaipara District Council supported.

The Far North District Council, she said, had a sinking lid policy, arguing in the past that the number of gaming machines or venues would be reduced only when the national average was reached.

Internal Affairs spokesman Trevor Henry said the department did not monitor online gambling.

"The law says it's not illegal to gamble over the internet, but it's illegal to advertise or promote online gambling," Mr Henry said.

A department survey in 2005/06, the most recent research available, showed fewer than 1 per cent of respondents gambled online.

At the turn of the year, Governor Malloy voiced his support for a U.S. Department of Justice ruling paving the way for online gaming.

A favorite issue of Connecticut's two resort casinos, gambling online gives Mohegan Sun in Uncasville and Foxwoods in Mashantucket a chance to use their brand recognition to grow their revenue base.

The Justice Department ruling has accelerated decisions in other states, such as New Jersey, to pass online gaming legislation, and Connecticut's casinos are in discussion with the Malloy administration for something of their own, said Chuck Bunnell, the Mohegan tribe's chief of staff for external affairs.

"Our focus has really been on poker online," Bunnell said.

So far, Malloy hasn't committed to any proposals with respect to gaming, including online, Keno, the expansion of off-track betting or anything else, said Juliet Manalan, spokeswoman for Malloy.

The primary issue for Mohegan and Foxwoods is working with Malloy and the General Assembly to make sure the two casinos are in a position to compete as gambling expands to other states.

New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island all have expanded their gambling facilities, eroding the Mohegan and Foxwoods revenue base; but the major change came in 2011 when Massachusetts approved three casinos.

While Massachusetts casinos won't open for business until 2014 at the earliest, the new competition is expected to sap Mohegan and Foxwoods revenues by 15 percent.

The Connecticut casinos, which are taxed 25 percent of their slot machine revenue for state coffers, want to make sure the state helps keep them in business.

"All of our conversations with the state have been very positive," Bunnell said.

At least two states – Florida and Ohio – are addressing the problem created by cafes, bars and restaurants that provide computer terminals so that patrons can play casino-styled games. And both have strong supporters that lean toward licensing and taxing the activities.

Some Ohio communities have been plagued by raids carried out by detectives or even firefighters that have confiscated computers and gaming machines as well as operating money. But Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine feels the proper way to handle the problem is to regulate the activity by requiring operators to be licensed and the number of machines limited.

There are so many sites being operated in Ohio that DeWine has stated that it has become one of his top priorities.

The Florida legislature, although divided in its approach to the problem, also had supporters who were leaning toward licensing and regulating the machines. Recently, a Senate panel voted to require operators to be registered with the state and pay a $100 fee for every computer terminal. They argued that banning the machines would put thousands of people out of jobs.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott is firmly against the Internet cafes, as they are called, and said that the legislature should immediately ban the practice. His view has strong support among lawmen in the state including Attorney General Pam Bondi.

The Senate’s moderate view of registering and licensing the machines is opposed by what appears to be a majority of House members.

Rep. Scott Plakon of Orlando said there was no way that the House would go along with a bill regulating Internet cafes because it would be viewed as a massive expansion of gambling in the state.

Internet cafes have become very popular in a number of states, particularly along the east coast. However, most states have, so far, ignored their presence. :thumbsup

CardRunners pro and MIT Ph.D student Will “HalcyonDays” Ma has found a way to put poker onto a syllabus.

In the aftermath of online poker’s shutdown in the United States, the 23-year-old was looking to meet more people and talk about the game he enjoys. So, he proposed and was awarded his own three-week course on poker theory.

“I think there is a lot of interest in poker in the academic community here,” Ma said.

There are 150 people playing in the class’ online league on PokerStars.net. Students need to accumulate just 10 points in the virtual home game in order to pass the course. No tests.

Ma hosts three in-person meetings per week, where he gives PowerPoint presentations during a 90-minute time slot.

He also gives prizes as incentives, which includes private coaching from fellow poker pros Mike McDonald, Cole South and Tom Marchese.

According to Ma, his poker theory class is likely the first of its kind at the school, but he is hoping that he will be able to teach one again or that one of his students will keep the course going in the future.

However, right now, Ma is not the only one exploring poker as a learning tool. There is a poker bot competition and class at MIT that attempts to gather data to teach a computer to teach itself how to play cards. According to Ma, you don’t have to tell a computer that pocket aces is the best hand in Texas hold’em — it will deduce this from playing.

Many students sit in on lectures from both courses.

At some point Ma may have his students square off against a poker-playing machine created by his colleague’s course.

“I think that would be really exciting,” Ma said. “I’m hoping my class will kick his class’ ass. We’ll see.”

According to Ma, the computer world pretty much already has unbeatable programs for heads-up limit hold’em. Beating a full-ring tournament is a different story, he said, since a machine would have a hard time spotting the fish at the table.

Despite being able to gain interdisciplinary knowledge from poker, Ma admitted that there is one caveat.

“A lot of academics is learning from your results. If you did something that works you should do it again. But, in poker, that isn’t always true. You can get lucky and it might be bad if you do it again. This is the biggest caution with poker becoming a mainstream class. This is the biggest hurdle when teaching this class; you have to convince people that just because you did something and you think it works a bunch of times, doesn’t mean that it’s the right thing to do.”

Ma, who at one point took a break from school to play poker for a living, tries to keep his class from thinking about the money.

There is no instruction on how to move up stakes or build a bankroll. He isn’t allowed to advocate that people can make a lot of money from playing and should leave school.

However, Ma has received a lot of emails asking about the lifestyle of a professional poker player and how much money can be made in the industry. He is going to address the questions in his last lecture, and advise his students against “taking all their money and going to play poker with it.”

He said he doesn’t know what percentage of his class would leave school for cards if given the opportunity.

“If the number is high, I might get in trouble with MIT,” Ma said jokingly.

Another GOP debate and another murky result.

On Thursday night, the Republican Party had yet another debate, this time in Florida, and it’s unclear if there was a true winner. As it stands now, it looks like the Republican Party has a lot of noise but no one clear leader cutting through it.

Join Bovada Sportsbook right now and make your Presidential vote count even more.

The storyline has played out as follows: Mitt Romney has been consistent, yet struggling to win everyone over. Meanwhile, his competitors have all had spikes, but have all faded to the background after a brief spotlight in the foreground.

The one contender that looked like he’d change that was Newt Gingrich. He won the South Carolina primary and was the early favorite in Florida, but he also fizzled. He had an opportunity to knock one out of the park at the Thursday debate, but instead looked on even footing with Romney, and that’s not what he needed.

In any case, Romney is the favorite, but he hasn’t been able to separate himself from the crowd. Even if he does win, does that mean four more years for current President Barrack Obama? The odds makers sure think so.

2012 US Presidential Election - Winning Party
Democratic Party -155
Republican Party +135

If it is in fact Romney, he might have an easier time impressing the masses than simply the Republicans. He’s a little bit closer to the center with his political and economic views and that might appeal to a lot of Democrats who want some change. We’ll find out in November if that’s the case and we’ll find out even sooner if Romney’s the man to institute that change.

Now it’s easy to play online gambling at home without any expenses. So trend of online gambling rising day by day.

I am completely agreed with you Manne .There should be a third party approach to solve this problem. Anyway the issue you raised is highly considerable.

Hi,

This is pity and sad that at last they finally divorced. I hope Katy is all right.

Fans of online gambling rejoiced when the District became the first jurisdiction in the nation to legalize online gambling within its borders. But those who like to roll virtual dice may be best served to keep the champagne on ice.

The D.C. Council is poised to repeal the program before it launches.

The strong backlash on the council to the district’s online gambling program has little to do with moral opposition to gambling. Instead, councilmembers are upset with the way it became law, saying they didn’t realize they had voted to approve it.

Councilmember Jack Evans told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he plans to move a repeal bill out of his finance and revenue committee on Wednesday. Evans also said he would vote for the repeal bill when it goes before the full council, and the bill has the support of a majority of councilmembers.

Evans, a Ward 2 Democrat, said neither the council nor the public was given enough opportunity to weigh in on the program before it became law. He also said he was troubled by a report from the district’s Inspector General that raised questions about changes to the district’s contract with its lottery vendor that paved the way for online gambling.

“We just need to start over,” he said, adding that he had no plans to introduce a bill.

Councilmember Michael A. Brown, who has led the push in the district for online gambling, said he would introduce a new bill if the repeal is successful.

“Most of the folks that are supporting the repeal are OK with” online gambling, Brown said. “They just want to start the process all over, which I find curious.”

Brown warned that offering online games later may mean the district would no longer experience the “revenue bonanza” it would receive by being the first jurisdiction to offer the games.

The program would have allowed people using computers inside the district to play online poker, blackjack and other games of skill and chance. Players would have to be at least 19 years old and would be barred from wagering more than $250 a week.

A Justice Department ruling in December clarified that intrastate online gambling is legal, and several states are considering it, but so far the district and Nevada are the only jurisdictions to approve laws or regulations authorizing it. Nevada officials hope to begin offering online poker by year’s end.

In the district, online gambling became law outside the normal legislative process.

The program would have been run by the D.C. Lottery and its Greece-based vendor, Intralot. But when the council approved Intralot’s $39 million contract in 2009, the contract did not specify that Intralot would be able to bring online gambling to the district. Instead, it only included language about “nontraditional games.”

The district’s chief financial officer then added an option to the contract specifying that Intralot could implement an online gambling system if it were legal, according to the Inspector General’s report. Then, in late 2010, Brown inserted language in a supplemental budget bill that legalized online gambling in the district. It became law last April when Congress declined to intervene.

Several councilmembers have since said they did not realize they were authorizing online gambling as part of the budget bill, and Councilmember David Catania has threatened to sue CFO Natwar Gandhi for modifying the lottery contract without council approval.

The council took testimony from the public only after the gambling program became law, and lottery officials held a series of community meetings last fall for people to express their concerns. Civic activists have raised concerns about the security of the software and the broad discretion given to the lottery agency and the CFO to run the program.

People who attended the forums supported online gambling by a more than 2-to-1 margin, Brown said.

Evans said Tuesday that competitive bidding would need to be part of any future effort to legalize online gambling in order to ensure that the district, not Intralot, would be the chief beneficiary of the program.

Catania and Councilmember Muriel Bowser, who are on the Finance and Revenue Committee that’s chaired by Evans, also intend to vote for repeal. The two other committee members, Brown and Marion Barry, want to see the program go forward.

Brown has pushed online gambling as a source of needed revenue — Gandhi’s office has estimated it would bring in $13 million over four years — and said it would protect Internet poker players who currently use illegal offshore sites.

“There will continue to be thousands of residents playing unprotected, and there has yet to be anyone that has shown outrage for that,” Brown said.

In addition to Evans, Bowser and Catania, at least four other members of the 12-person council say they support a repeal: Yvette Alexander, Jim Graham, Phil Mendelson and Tommy Wells, who introduced the bill. Council Chairman Kwame Brown has not taken a position on repeal but has said numerous times that he opposes all gambling.

Mayor Vincent Gray also wants to see online gambling repealed, said his spokesman, Pedro Ribeiro.

“It’s become such a divisive issue. It’s not critical to the fiscal needs of the city,” Ribeiro said. “It’s just better to stop this, take a few steps back, take a deep breath and figure out where to go from here.”

The great and the good of the global online gaming industry turned out in London this week to celebrate the achievements of the ‘Gaming Intelligence Hot 50’, the annual list of the 50 most talented, innovative and inspiring individuals working in online gambling.

The Hot 50, as chosen by a panel of experts, includes entrepreneurs and CEOs, regulators, technology wizards, lawyers and marketers from across the globe, reflecting the diverse range of talent that is driving an incredible growth curve.

“We often write about the success of companies and their top executives, but the aim of the annual Hot 50 list is to recognise the achievements of all those who are shaping the future of this vibrant industry” said Bobby Mamudi, Managing Editor of Gaming Intelligence.

Growth in the online gambling industry is bucking the global economic trend with the GIQ20 quarterly ranking of the fastest growing listed companies in online gaming showing an average growth rate of 58.9 per cent during the third quarter of 2011.

The GIQ Hot 50 includes prominent industry leaders such as Denise Coates of Bet365 and bwin.party CEO Jin Ryan, influential regulators such as the UK Gambling Commission’s Jenny Williams, as well as relatively unknown talents such as Daniel Lindberg, the CEO of online casino supplier QuickSpin, which is yet to launch a product. A massive 24 per cent of those in the Hot 50 represent online gaming companies that are licensed in Gibraltar.

Andrew Bulloss, a Hot 50 judge and the head of betting and gaming at international headhunters Odgers Berndtson, commented: “The list of industry heroes, some well-known, some unsung, recognises how the industry has changed and the diversity of talent needed for success. The industry is becoming much deeper, broader and international as it moves into the mainstream.”

According to Global Betting and Gaming Consulting (GBGC), the world-wide gross gaming yield in 2011 is estimated at US$34.4bn. The UK generates nearly 14 per cent of this amount with US$2.5bn and UK citizens accounted for 40 per cent of the Hot 50. The next most represented nationalities are Swedes, Israelis and Canadians, representing the innovation centres that have shaped the industry thus far.

Recently the New York Times reported that several studies had concluded that there would be only modest returns to states that legalized online gambling. For Iowa, for example, the forecast was less than $13 million. Even California could count on no more than about $100 million. These sums are “chump change” compared to the $18 billion the states reap from lotteries. Nonetheless, the lure of more gambling may prove, once again, to be irresistible.

Where 30 years ago legal gambling was rare, largely limited to Nevada, today it is as American as apple pie. And as apple pie has given way to more exotic and prepared desserts, gambling has taken on increasingly varied games and venues to attract customers.

Encouraged by our state governments and enticing advertising, we have become a nation of gamblers. And our state governments are addicted to gambling revenues as a substitute for direct taxation. The lure of raising money through “gaming” has proved irresistible. In fact that there isn’t any debate about the bite the lottery takes out of low income families. We know that this basic form of state sponsored gambling is highly regressive in impact. Lottery revenues, in fact, are more regressive than just about any other “tax.” In general upper income people avoid the lottery, but the working poor are hooked.

And that process has been led by our state governments. Their attraction to and dependence on lotteries opened the door to all sorts of other gambling. Lotteries were seen as an easy alternative to raising taxes or as a way to meet promises to lower or freeze taxes by only, as the Godfather might put it, putting in place another “harmless vice.”

But, of course, gambling is no such thing. It creates great problems for those susceptible to problem and pathological gambling, and it compromises the state’s ability to govern and regulate gambling. In addition, in the nature of the case, it seems to generate some of the most important political players in a state, people who are willing to spend money on campaigns and lobbyists and in order to influence the public decisions that determine how much gambling there will be, where it can take place, who gets the advertising contracts, and for how many hours a day it can operate.

But in addition to offering a way to avoid taking the heat for taxes, the expansion of gambling is seen as a powerful economic development tool. That argument was front and center in the 1970s when New Jersey permitted gambling in Atlantic City. Legalized gambling also brought ancillary befits to its advocates in the political world. Today, gambling interests rank as one of largest sources of political fund raising in the United States. A $5 million check from a gambling mogul to the PAC backing Newt Gingrich’s campaign is a case in point.