Let your mouth speak archive

There are many online gambling jurisdictions in the world and few are as untapped and developed as the Latin American market. The recently concluded GES LatAm 2012 has wrapped up a big bundle in record time. According to Calvin Ayre’s roving reporter Becky Liggero the conference did well but not as well as last year. Attendance was down but expects to return to above normal expectations in 2013.

Some of Becky’s observations were interesting and insightful for those who couldn’t make it down to Panama for the two day event. The second day of the event saw fewer devotees but for those who resisted the open bar and the sun and the shopping they were treated to a fine presentation by BetMotion.com. The BetMotion team concentrates primarily on the Latin American Market and thereby had loads of information to share. This well thought out presentation spoke from valuable experience in this about to explode lucrative market. Some advice included some of the obstacles that carry considerable risk such as multiple cultures within the region, with some having sub-cultures within their cultures. Operators must become familiar with these cultures and sub-cultures in order to begin servicing the market.
Becky’s story on the two day information fest mentioned other factors that operators should be aware of when planning to penetrate the Latin American scene such as realizing that there are very few recognized “brands” in the region so operators must focus on personal relationships with their customers. Bandwidth restrictions diminish the use of technology in the region for offerings that include live dealer and higher quality graphics.

It appears that the key to doing business successfully in the region is to keep ones cards close to the chest, or in other words making sure business stays localized to develop trusted relationships with the consumer.
Alfonso de Leon of Axon Capital, a premier expert in the LatAm sports book services industry also gave insight into the market there pointing out the personality of punters in Latin America and the importance of competitive pricing.

The Bellerock Entertainment online casino review site reports that four times as many women played casino games in the UK in 2010 than in 2007. In addition, the number of women playing online casino games is now almost as high as men.

Although traditionally seen as a male pursuit, almost half of all UK online casino players are female. 48.38% of players in 2011 were female, compared to a slightly higher 51.62% being male, according to a survey carried out by Hitwise.

The internet has played a major part in increasing the number of female casino game players. Online casinos not only provide more convenient access to women who wish to play casino games, they also provide a playing atmosphere that women feel safer in. An increase in the number of female-oriented online casino and bingo sites has helped draw more women into the sector. The latest British Gambling Preference Survey figures indicate that while the number of women playing online casino games has increased, men tend to vary their gaming activities more than women. While men were found to strongly prefer poker, roulette and sports betting, women still strongly prefer online slots and bingo, with women twice as likely to play bingo as men.

The news comes alongside findings published by Women at NBCU, reporting that women are increasingly more tech-savvy than men. Their study announced that 54% of women in the US own a smartphone, compared to just 46% of men, and that women are more likely to own a smartphone app and Nintendo Wii too. Melissa Lavigne-Delville, of Women at NBCU, explains:

"Three-quarters of the female population is online and their increasingly passionate and widespread consumption of digital is shaping this ever-evolving space.

"As this growing number of digitally-dependent women alters the landscape in unexpected ways, marketers need to react in real-time."

With casino gaming being traditionally viewed as a male-oriented pastime, these latest figures indicate that a change in attitudes may be called for. Online casino sites that continue to market themselves strictly towards men are set to miss out on the valuable 50% female share of this emerging market.

ALBANY -- In order to resolve two of the more contentious issues facing state lawmakers in 2012, the Legislature will have to pass a bill -- twice.

And after that, it will have to be approved by the public.

Lawmakers and Gov. Andrew Cuomo face enormous pressure from lobbyists and advocates this year to finally settle a pair of perennially fractious Capitol debates: How to reform the state's redistricting process, and whether casino gambling should be legalized.

While the two issues on their face have been enough to split lawmakers for decades, the state's process for amending its constitution makes them even more difficult to tackle.

"Changing the constitution is supposed to be hard in the order of making law, so that's the intent," said Gerald Benjamin, a SUNY New Paltz political science professor.

Amending the state constitution, which has been in place in its current form since 1938, is a three-step process.

First, the state Legislature has to pass a bill. Then, the next separately elected Legislature has to pass the same exact bill.

After that, the amendment would be put to a public referendum on the November ballot.

There have been 16 constitutional amendments on the New York ballot since 1995, and all but two were either symbolic or technical. A total of six failed, including a 2005 amendment that would have curbed the governor's power over the state budget process.

With all members of the state Senate and Assembly up for reelection in 2012, the Legislature would have to act on any gambling or redistricting amendments this year to have them on the ballot in 2013. If lawmakers don't act this year, the next time a constitutional amendment could take effect is 2015.

Gambling is prohibited by the constitution, save for numerous exceptions like the state lottery and bingo games organized by non-profits and charities.

When it comes to redistricting, the constitution clearly gives power to the state Legislature to draw its own district lines, a process that has long been criticized for allowing lawmakers to protect political majorities.

On Wednesday, Cuomo laid out his strategy for getting a casino gambling amendment passed. He has proposed an eight-word amendment that would broadly legalize state-regulated gambling.

While he wants lawmakers to pass the amendment this year and next, Cuomo said he would push for it to be accompanied by a law negotiated next year that would contain specifics. That law would include provisions for how to site new casinos and who would sit on a regulatory board, should the public approve the amendment.

"I think there will be a specific plan next year, and I think you'll need a specific plan to go to the people because they're going to have questions that they'll want answered," Cuomo said. "How many casinos? What's your plan on siting them? What's your plan on making sure they're operated well?"

Not all lawmakers agree with Cuomo's approach, however.

Sen. John Bonacic, R-Mt. Hope, Orange County, said he'd like to see a specific plan laid out in the amendment. Specifics laid out in a law, rather than an amendment, could be easily changed by future Legislatures.

"My opinion, for what it's worth, is we should have specificity of where casinos should go, and it should be part of the amendment on the first passage," Bonacic said. "There should be nothing vague about this."

Meanwhile, Cuomo and legislative leaders in the Assembly and Senate have been negotiating behind closed doors on a potential amendment to change the redistricting process.

Assemblyman John McEneny, D-Albany, who co-chairs the committee tasked with drawing new district lines, said he's in favor of changing the constitution.

In particular, McEneny said he'd like to see more specificity when it comes to the number of seats in the Senate. As it stands, the number of seats is determined by a complex formula based on the New York counties that existed in 1894 -- before the Bronx and Nassau County were founded.

Senate Republicans and Democrats have been locked in a legal battle over the number of seats there should be in the upper chamber. The GOP claims the constitutional formula calls for 63 seats, while the Democrats say Republicans are bending that formula to meet their needs.

Currently, the Senate has 62 members.

"This ... arcane, complicated formula last set up in the constitution of 1894 has caused nothing but confusion and ill-feeling," McEneny told reporters this week. "I want a simpler system."

Benjamin, the New Paltz professor, said the courts have interpreted the redistricting provisions so many times over the years that it's difficult to know what's what.

"It's completely messed up," he said. "What's in there -- it's hard to sort out what operates and what doesn't. There is a lot of really anomalous stuff."

Benjamin is part of the Citizens Committee for an Effective Constitution, a bipartisan group -- including Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb, R-Canandaigua, Ontario County, and Democratic activist Bill Samuels -- that is calling for a constitutional convention.

A convention would open up the entire constitution to interpretation and provide an easier route for getting amendments on the ballot. Voters are asked every 20 years to approve a convention, but the last time it was approved was 1967.

The next time a convention would be on the ballot is 2017, but the Legislature could vote for one before that.

"Usually, there has to be a compelling reason to take up an amendment," Kolb said. "Then you need a driving force, with widespread support from the Legislature and the public. It's more about the notoriety of an issue than it is the difficulty of passing an amendment."

Someday soon, gamblers may no longer have to travel to a casino to ante up.

Legalized gambling may become as easy as logging on to the nearest computer.

Several states are now exploring their options on the heels of a federal ruling that experts believe has opened the door to legalized online gambling, potentially revamping the entire casino and gambling industry.

Opening up lottery sales via the Internet is also a possibility under the recent Justice Department ruling.

"Gambling is going to undergo a fundamental change as large as when it moved from alleys, backrooms and secret underground locations to legal storefront casinos," said Ken Adams, a consultant with Las Vegas-based CDC Consulting. "Gambling has moved out of the shadows and into the bright lights.

"Now it is poised to migrate once again, this time from the multimillion- and sometimes billion-dollar casinos ... to the apartments, offices and single-family houses of the nation."

But Texas, where opposition to any expansion of gambling remains strong, is unlikely to be at the leading edge of the action.

Critics say that even though it could mean additional revenue to balance the budget, expanding gambling in Texas, especially allowing it into people's homes, could financially devastate those who can least afford it.

Even some supporters of building traditional Las Vegas-style casinos in Texas say online gambling may not be the way to go. They argue that allowing casinos to open in the state would give a far bigger boost to jobs and the economy.

"The bottom line is -- however the Justice Department treats online gambling -- Texans are already voting with their feet and wallets," said state Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston.

"Texans spend billions of dollars every year ... driving to Oklahoma, Louisiana or Las Vegas. They spend money at Native American casinos here in Texas and spend millions on state-sanctioned lottery tickets.

"I do not think the right approach for Texas from a revenue-generating standpoint is to have these small, piecemeal changes."

The Wire Act

Texas lawmakers have long debated whether to allow gambling and potentially pump new revenue into the budget or to continue watching Texans travel out of state and spend their money at nearby casinos.

"The way for Texas to actually spur economic development and generate billions in revenue is to allow for a limited number of destination casinos," Ellis said.

Last year, the argument arose in the Legislature again. Proposals ranged from allowing destination casinos in Texas to adding video terminals at horse tracks. None of the measures passed.

Now, some observers say, the opportunity to allow online gambling in every state is there for the taking because of a Justice Department ruling issued late last year.

The ruling addressed the Wire Act of 1961, which restricts betting over telecommunications systems that cross state or national borders. In a departure from previous rulings, the department said the act applies only to sports betting.

The answer was prompted by officials in Illinois and New York who wanted to know whether the Wire Act prevented their states from selling lottery tickets online.

Other than sports betting, the ruling "theoretically [creates] a legal path for all other forms of wagering on the Internet," Adams said.

U.S. Rep. Joe Barton, R-Ennis, said he hopes the ruling means that his proposal to legalize Internet poker may find more success.

"My bill, HR2366, is needed now more than ever," he said.

"It creates one federal standard that protects the integrity of the game and the financial interests of players while protecting American consumers from nefarious and predatory overseas gambling operations. If Congress doesn't act soon, we could end up with fractured rules and regulations that vary state to state, leaving more opportunity for fraud and fewer safeguards for players."

Several states have started developing legislation to let their residents gamble online legally.

"Seven or eight years from now, I think that just about every state in the country will have online lottery sales and at least half of them will have online poker," gambling expert I. Nelson Rose said in a recent online seminar.

"It took 45 years for state lotteries to get to where they are now. But as we all know, the Internet speeds things up into dog years."

Opponents say they hope that doesn't happen in Texas.

"The state shouldn't be in the business of raising funds on basically a shell game," said Rob Kohler, a consultant with the Texas Baptist Christian Life Commission, which opposes expanding gambling.

"Traditionally, this argument has come in the form of whether they can raise funds by having casinos throughout the state. You put that activity in big urban areas, you are going to enable a lot of folks who can't afford it.

"Doing it on the Internet, that's the argument on steroids. Is this what we need to be encouraging folks to do? Bring that into their bedroom or living room?"

Texas laws

State law "still prohibits online wagering," according to an update by the Texas District and County Attorneys Association, which noted that the number of online casinos has been reduced by the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act.

The Texas attorney general's office confirmed that it has reviewed the Justice Department ruling and that online gambling remains illegal in the state.

Officials have said it would take legislation through the Legislature or Congress -- and possibly a constitutional amendment as well -- to change that. A 1995 attorney general's opinion also confirmed that online gambling is illegal in Texas.

Concerns have been raised recently that the Texas Lottery Commission may have crossed the line and strayed into a variation of online gaming.

The issue is Luck Zone, a scratch-off ticket that offers a second chance for people to win a prize through a promotional drawing.

Winning Best Picture at the Academy Awards may be the highest honor that you can bestow on a film, as well as everyone involved with the movie and on Sunday, the 84th edition of the Oscars will be handed out in Hollywood. One film is standing above the rest when it comes to being a frontrunner in the Best Picture race.

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The Artist, a silent black and white film from France that focuses on the relationship between a rising female star and a male star on the descent, has romped through the award season, picking up honors from New York to London, and it also won Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy at the Golden Globes. The Artist also took home the Best Film award at the BAFTAs and its cast, led by best actor nominee Jean Dujardin, have also been nominated for a host of awards.

2012 Oscars - Odds to Win Best Picture
The Artist 1/12
The Descendants 10/1
The Help 12/1
Hugo 20/1
Moneyball 40/1
War Horse 40/1
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close 75/1
Midnight in Paris 75/1
The Tree of Life 75/1

The Best Picture nominee list is rounded out by The Descendants, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, The Help, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, Moneyball, The Three of Life and War Horse, and The Artist will have fight off a lot of North American star power as The Descendants is powered by George Clooney (who is up for Best Actor alongside Dujardin) and Hugo was helmed by director Martin Scorsese. The Help has been another darling of the award season, and they are in the running as well.

Still, The Artist is considered the odds-on favorite and many experts are calling for the film to sweep the Oscars, which is incredibly tough to do and they may have to give up a couple awards. But when the biggest honor of the night is handed out, expect the cast and crew of The Artist to make their way to the stage.

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South Carolina suddenly is being targeted by a wave of gaming proposals pushed by powerful lobbyists who say gambling would bring hundreds of millions of dollars in investment to economically deprived areas state and millions into the state's recession-depleted tax coffers.

Native American casinos have been proposed by the Catawba Indians in York County and the Cherokee Indians in Hardeeville. Meanwhile, new sweepstakes machines are in action in convenience stores statewide and casino-style Internet cafes are operating in Charleston.

A decade-long fight to ban the $3 billion-a-year video poker industry has left lawmakers with little interest in allowing new forms of gaming into the state. "A lot of people are afraid to open that Pandora's box again and see what else will come out with it," said state Rep. Rick Quinn, R-Lexington.
As a result, the gaming interests are engaging lawyers to fight in the courts and lobbyists to make their case before Gov. Nikki Haley and the federal government.

Cherokee casino

The proposal with the most steam behind it would open a Cherokee-owned casino and resort on 50 acres in Hardeeville.

Proponents say the project, which already has gained initial support from some local government officials, could be under construction in two years and bring nearly 5,000 jobs and $92 million in wages and benefits for Jasper County. They also say the state would profit from a yet-to-be-determined portion of the casino's revenues.

Backers estimate more than 4.3 million visitors a year would frequent the casino along the Savannah River and the Georgia-South Carolina border.

And lawmakers would have no say.

Project backers only must win approval from Haley, who has made job creation and economic development her administration's highest priority. With a nod from Haley, the project's fate would be decided by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Backers hope to bring a formal proposal to Haley by the end of 2012.

However, Haley "has no intention of taking any action that would enable casino gambling," her spokesman said in a statement Friday.

"Gov. Haley desperately wants to bring jobs to South Carolina," said Rob Godfrey.

"However, she believes South Carolina does not have to settle and that there is a better way. ... Governor Haley does not support sweepstakes machines or anything that further opens the door to gambling."

But Bob McAlister, former chief of staff to then-Gov. Carroll Campbell and a public relations-political consultant who has been hired to market the project, is undeterred by that brushback.

McAlister says it is too soon to say what Haley will do.

He anticipates Haley will hear plenty from Lowcountry leaders, business owners and residents, pleading for the economic benefits the casino project promises.

"I know she and (state Commerce Secretary) Bobby Hitt are putting more emphasis on creating jobs than any other governor since Carroll Campbell," McAlister said.

"This is the chance. This is the project -- the only one in the foreseeable future -- to help a part of the state that is struggling."

Big players, big lawsuit

McAlister is just one of a growing cast of high-profile players working for gambling interests.

Dwight Drake, a Columbia attorney, lobbyist and unsuccessful candidate in the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial primary, also is working for the Hardeeville casino proposal, the brainchild of the Cherokees, and developers and investors in Myrtle Beach and Dallas.

Other big names -- including Columbia political strategist Richard Quinn, father of state Rep. Quinn -- are rallying support for a Rock Hill casino proposal by the Catawba Indian Nation, the state's only federally recognized Native American tribe. In January, the Catawbas filed a lawsuit arguing they should be allowed to offer gambling on their York County reservation just as the state allows casino cruise ships to operate off its coast.

Quinn is conducting polling for the Catawbas to gauge public opinion on their proposal to build a gaming facility and two hotels on their reservation.

"The public's attitudes toward gaming has changed since (David) Beasley was governor" and video poker was outlawed in 2000, Quinn said. "People are looking for economic development. We live in a state that has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation.

"It may not be the economic development that some people would prefer, but it's not like the plague of video poker -- people bringing their change in to play instead of buying food for their children. What the Catawbas have proposed for York is an entirely different enterprise and something the state could be proud of."

The Catawbas say their project would produce 4,000 permanent jobs and have an economic impact of $260 million a year on York County, reversing their tribe's long struggle with poverty and joblessness.

But Sen. Wes Hayes, R-York, said his York County constituents oppose a casino - and he does, too. Hayes also worries a casino would attract an unsavory element to the community.

"There's no groundswell of support for changing gaming laws and allowing casinos," Hayes said. "If the people we serve were demanding changes in the gambling laws, then you would see us working to change them. Nobody is pushing me, and I've heard from a lot of people who don't think it's a good idea."

Instead, Hayes says the Catawba proposal "is just another effort to get out of the (tribe's) agreement with the state."

The Catawbas have struggled for years in S.C. courts and at the State House to get out from under parts of their 1993 agreement with the state.

That agreement granted the tribe land in York County, $50 million and its rights as a tribal nation. But it also said the only gambling the tribe could sponsor was bingo in York County and one other site in the state.

"It's recognized as one of the worst (agreements) of any tribe in the nation," said Gregory Smith, the C

On Feb. 15, Mitt Romney's campaign held a conference call with political reporters to discuss the candidate's prospects in the upcoming Michigan primary. Rick Santorum, who had just won contests in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri, was leading by as much as 15 percent in state polls.

So how did Romney's advisers reassure the media he was still the GOP candidate to beat? By pointing to Intrade, an online exchange where investors buy shares in a market that bets on political outcomes. The exchange predicted that Romney had a 73.8 percent chance of winning the Republican nomination.

Started in 2001 for betting on sports and the Dow Jones industrial average, Intrade opened its political markets in 2004. The site has become a go-to source for the news media since the 2008 presidential race, when it predicted Barack Obama would win 364 Electoral College votes. Obama ended up with 365.

Changing odds

Unlike traditional polls that come out at regular intervals before a political event, Intrade odds change constantly as traders hunt for every last scrap of information churned out in the 24-hour news cycle that could sway public opinion leading up to an election.

This year the market correctly forecast that Newt Gingrich would win the South Carolina primary and that Romney would win New Hampshire, Florida, Nevada and Maine. (It wrongly predicted that Romney would best Santorum in Iowa and Colorado.)

Intrade's status as an oracle among political pros is enhanced because its investors vote with their wallets, not their personal biases.

"It's a mental contest," says Intrader Andrew Golding. "You're taking your knowledge against somebody else's and destroying them and taking their money."

The 10,000-odd Intraders - mostly male and many of them poker players - place their bets on hundreds of real-world events framed as yes or no propositions. Their cumulative bets are reflected in the share price. When the outcome of a particular event is known, Intrade closes out the market. If they guess right, investors get $10 per share. If they don't, zero.

For example, if someone bought shares for $6 each predicting Santorum would win the Minnesota Republican caucus, that investor would have walked away with a $4-per-share profit. On Wednesday, the president's chances of winning a second term were trading at $5.95 per share, or 59.5 percent.

Political junkies

Some Intraders are a unique breed of political junkie. Golding, a 34-year-old New Yorker who works in television marketing and has played the Intrade market for four years, says he has never voted, knows next to nothing about the candidates' records, and professes indifference toward the issues.

Even so, he tracks 500 politics-related Twitter users and opens text messages from Public Policy Polling every time a new opinion survey comes out, updating his Intrades at all hours - even on a recent vacation in Puerto Rico.

During a GOP debate two days before the South Carolina primary, Gingrich railed at CNN's John King for asking a question about his ex-wife's claims that he had asked for an open marriage - and got a standing ovation. Golding says he got a feeling Gingrich shares would "pop" and immediately bought 39 of them for the South Carolina contest at $3.85 apiece. The next day, as pundits applauded Gingrich's performance, Golding bought 342 more shares for $6.40 each. On Jan. 21, Gingrich won the primary, and Golding pocketed $1,471.05.

Event prediction markets are legal in Ireland, where the exchange is headquartered. In the United States, online gambling is heavily restricted and American banks don't process credit-card transactions for Intrade, so its users mail checks to the company in Ireland.

"We operate legally from all (European Union) business laws," says Carl Wolfenden, the company's operations manager.

Low-budget operation

For all its clout, Intrade is a fairly low-budget operation. It doesn't take any fees on the trades. Instead, traders pay $4.99 a month for membership. They have to deposit at least $25 with Intrade to use the exchange and keep enough money on hand for all outstanding shares until contests are settled. Wolfenden says in late 2008, some Intraders had more than $1 million in their trading accounts; this year a handful are already at $300,000.

Intraders brag about their insights, but not their earnings. Golding will say only that he moved from a studio apartment to a one-bedroom in a downtown Manhattan building with a doorman thanks to his Intrade winnings, which are good enough for him to keep at it.

"I have no idea about the pipelines, the moon landings, immigration or any of that stuff. And I have no interest," he says. "Politics isn't my thing. Intrade is my thing."

Gambling supporters are hailing the newest, state committee-recommended casino proposal as New Hampshire's last, best chance for expanded gaming. But the odds are, it might take at least another year.

Expanded gambling legislation has taken on a tone of immediacy this session after Massachusetts passed a law in November permitting three casinos and a slot parlor. Proponents in New Hampshire say this is the time to pass legislation, before Massachusetts corners the market and gambling stops taking such an interest in the state.

Soon, they say, New Hampshire will have all the ills of nearby gambling -- with none of its benefits.

The majority leaders in both chambers say passage is possible in each, but a two-thirds majority is unlikely in the face of Gov. John Lynch's promised veto.

House Majority Leader D.J. Bettencourt said a comfortable majority existed in the House, which has never passed expanded gambling legislation, but that was before Lynch drew his line in the sand. That threat "took a lot of wind out of the sails of a responsible expanded gaming proposal," Bettencourt said.

With his position stated repeatedly and no upcoming elections to worry about, there are no signs that the final term governor will change his mind. The chance of a veto override is minimal.

So, what about the next governor?

Lawmakers' opinions on gambling depend more heavily on conscience than party lines. Not so for the four announced candidates for governor. The line is already clearly drawn between the two sides, with Republicans opposed and Democrats in cautious favor.

Both Republican contenders pointed to their historical opposition to expanded gambling.

Although Ovide Lamontagne said he would use a "cost-benefit analysis" for any legislation that came to him, he expressed concerns about gambling's effect on the New Hampshire advantage. His opponent for the Republican nomination, Kevin Smith, was even more outspoken.

Directly opposed to proponents' chief argument of gambling as an economic engine, Smith said money from gambling would not result in sustainable growth.

"It's unreliable revenue at best and ... I have a firm philosophy government finds a way to expand to absorb revenue and then some," he said.

Gambling proponents would need to look for support in the two Democratic candidates, who both say they would consider expanded gambling, albeit with restrictions.

Former Senator Majority Leader Maggie Hassan, a Democratic candidate, said she would support "highly-regulated, high end casinos," but said the current proposition of four was too many.

Hassan -- who supported gambling legislation while a state senator -- said any expansion of gambling would require at least an equal amount of investment to what Massachusetts is currently requiring.

"It's more important -- if we're going to do it -- to do it right and protect the state instead of doing it too fast," Hassan said.

Former state senator Jackie Cilley said she is open to expanded gambling. She acknowledged the differing opinions region to region by saying any gambling legislation would need "a good deal of local control."

"Except for the revenues that flow into state coffers, the siting of a casino is a very local phenomenon," Cilley said.

There are several areas eager for gambling. Towns across the state are angling for a chance at a casino, one of the reasons opponents say the latest bill doubled the proposed casinos from two to four. The bill allows for 14,000 slot machines and 420 table games.

The New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon recently expressed interest in operating a casino, and Salem has tried for years to get expanded gambling for Rockingham Park.

With its location over the Massachusetts border off Interstate-93, Salem would be the most likely choice for one of two 5,000-slot, 150-card table casino, according to many gambling proponents. One of the smaller, 2,000-slot, 60-card table casinos would go to an economically depressed area of the state such as Coos County or certain towns in Cheshire County.

As proponents are quick to point out, gambling already exists in New Hampshire in the form of limited charitable gaming, and residents part with an estimated $80 million annually at out-of-state casinos in New England.

The most recent opinion poll on gambling was done in April 2010 by the Granite State Poll for the Governor's Gaming Commission Report.

The survey concluded there was modest support for expanded gambling in the state. Fifty-three percent of the 503 New Hampshire adults polled said they supported expanding gambling with resort-style casinos and 38 percent opposed it. The survey had a 4.4 percent margin of error.

Supporters say the numbers show New Hampshire wants gambling, and Bettencourt said he has hope the governor will change his mind.

But with the odds against them this session, supporters may need to wait for the next hand to be dealt.

Bayero Agabi, a top executive with AIT Infotech, one of the IT companies working with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Nigeria’s cashless society concept, speaks on the policy

How will illiterates cope with the cashless policy?

I believe that once any of them can press a button as ‘1’, ‘2’ and ‘3’ on their cell phones, they can basically fiddle with the terminal machines. But don’t forget that the cashless society does not mean that you will not transact with cash at all. It only means that if you withdraw above the allowed level, you’ll pay extra for that. I think the real challenges here is the infrastructural deficiencies in most of our banking institutions.

Let’s talk about the transmission link; how easy is it for a blue collar customer and business people to transfer money from one bank to the other?

The transmission links are the backbones for transmitting data. And all those consisting of Glo1 Main 1 and 3 are all landed in Victoria Island. And taking that to other parts of Nigeria like the North, East and others requires what you call the ‘Last Mile Service’ which for now is almost unavailable. So for instance, you may have the paying terminal machine in Alagbado, or one in Maiduguri, and let’s say you have a bank branch in Awka, you will have a challenge to transact that kind of large mass service in those areas. That is why most bank’s e-operations are down. This is because broad data service is needed for a stable and reliable cashless economy. And that is the point that the government needs to really come in because you need to dig ground to be able to fix the cables to help out to those areas where the installations are in demand.

What would you say are the obstacles to the cashless moves?

The banking institutions will tell you that they are ready because they would make money from it. But the ordinary man, that is those that would have to use it and pay for it, is unprepared for it. And this is because the other alternative that they have is also not working. So you are forced to, first go back to the bank to ask for your money above what you actually want. Those are the key issues. As we speak, Lagos is not yet ready as we have monitored and observed. So many economists, observers and even reporters that we sent to go and monitor it, they have also concluded and disclosed that the thing is not just working. If the hand-held exchange machines of a restaurant as big as Mama Cass and other bigger ones, are not just working; then when are you going to be able to use your card to do any transaction?

So, what are the major concerns here?

The very major issues that we are not yet addressing are our judicial systems –the laws guiding it. You know, our E-laws, that is, electronic laws which have been at the National Assembly for over seven years. And as with this our laws, you can’t take the banks to court until that bill is passed. So, we are just gambling with something that should a very laudable idea.

LEGISLATION for problem gamblers is redolent of King Canute attempting to stop the waves lapping around his feet on the shoreline; Canute knew it to be a futile attempt but needed to prove it to his knights.

For the few years I lived with my mother, Beria, I witnessed the shattering effects of problem gambling. After my parents divorced, my mother married an addicted gambler.

My one-man show Now you can eat Father Christmas was based on my mother’s life in the goldfields. In it she recalls dealing with her husband’s demons: ‘‘He was the highest paid underground machine miner on the goldfields. For the first five years of the 1950s he brought home £250 a fortnight. The basic wage was £22. I used to say to him, ‘Why don’t you save some for a rainy day?’ He thought I was talking about the weather.

“‘What you talk? What rainy day? We don’t have no rainy day,’ he’d say. ‘Oh, for God’s sake, how many times do I have to tell you. It means, put some away for later.’ He scoffed. ‘No one isa gonna spend my money.’

“He gambled every penny of it, and more. On the Sons of Gwalia mine he was paid every second Friday afternoon, and more often than not by Saturday lunchtime he’d have lost the lot down at Dickie Bates’ betting shop. He’d come home in a temper and nine times out of 10, I’d end up getting a hiding from him.’’

As implausible as it might sound, he promised to stop gambling if she agreed to have a child. Years later, in her self-deprecating manner, she said: ‘‘Do you know what? I believed him!’’

The household was awash with money. Not only did he earn huge wages, he and his mate ran the local Sunday afternoon two-up behind the purple dumps – the old slag heap. At the end of the afternoon’s gambling he would return home with a bundle of £100 notes, which he counted on the kitchen table. Plus, my father paid my mother £4 a fortnight board and keep for my sister and myself – money enough to feed a family of four. She also collected the quarterly child endowment of £9, and they regularly raided my school Commonwealth Bank savings account for which my father gave me the funds.

Oh its so sad of listening her death.. may she rest in peace... I have also listened her songs.....

On Friday, California Sen. Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) and Sen. Roderick Wright (D-Inglewood) introduced a bill that would allow online poker to be played within the state.

The Internet Gambling Consumer Protection and Public-Private Partnership Act of 2012, also known as SB 1463, seeks to generate "hundreds of millions of dollars" for the state in the fiscal year 2012-13. California is facing one of its most concerning budgetary crises in its history, and many state politicians have looked to online gaming to help get the budget under control.

Upon becoming a law, operators will be able to apply for a 10-year license once the regulatory framework is in place. If approved, operators will pay licensing fees of $30 million, credited against gross gaming revenue proceeds for the first three years of operation.

The bill states that only online poker would be permitted for the first two years of regulation. "After that two-year period, the department may phase in other games allowed under the California Constitution and the Penal Code," the bill states.

Wright has failed in previous attempts to push an online poker bill through the legislature, but recent changes in the Department of Justice's stance toward online gambling help could make this effort more successful.

One roadblock, however, could be the divided tribal casino community in California. Some tribes are open to an online gambling platform, but others fear they won't be able to compete in the market with the giants in the industry. Tribes contribute hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue and gaming compacts to the state and make major donations to political campaigns. Politicians could think twice about moving forward with online gaming if the tribal community is not in full support of the bill.

Stay tuned to ixgames as we bring you more on California's efforts to legalize online poker.

Some people may ask where the mobile gambling trend is headed and how much potential is there in the new direction the internet is headed, well the answer may very well lie in the statistics. Mobile has moved into every corner of the world and its impact will only increase. The number of active mobile broadband subscriptions has already reached nearly 1.2 billion worldwide, a phenomenal number by most standards. Researchers have determined that 84% of US adults have a cell phone, one third of which are smartphones, and that about 19% of Americans already own a tablet device.

While mobile applications are focused on performance in the working environment researchers say mobile is "really an important cultural change: we've got workers now who are very used to being able to access information wherever, whenever, in their own lives, and they want to do it in their working lives. It's having a big impact on the way the organization thinks about information flow". The public has the mobile advantage when playing games online as well as the ability to get up to the minute stats when placing bets on sporting events. Software developers for mobile applications are well aware of the potential of their creations and are moving to make those apps more universally available on the various platforms.

Forrester the research firm has predicted that by 2016, one billion people throughout the world will own smart phones and tablets. That sounds like huge possibilities for the mobile online gambling market.
According to a recent report from Forrester Research, mobile Is The New Face Of Engagement and CIOs Must Plan Now For New Systems Of Engagement. The executive summary suggests that companies implement an enterprise wide mobile strategy. For online gambling operators this means investing in the future which will most undoubtedly pay off in the long run for them and the consumers of mobile online gambling services.

Prima Networks Ltd. announced last October it would be providing its services to the NeoMobile Group, the first ever Italian mobile gaming operation. Neomobile Gaming, Managing Director Francesco Postiglione, said: “Since signing the agreement with Prima Networks Ltd in January this year to provide us with AAMS-compliant casino software and a suite of mobile games, we have been working hard to ensure our offering is the most complete and competitive in the Italian market.” Postiglione continued, “QuickFire’s uncomplicated integration combined with premium content from Microgaming made the decision to partner with Prima Networks very easy and we look forward to a long and successful working relationship.”

Prima Networks calls their network, “the richest mobile gaming experience in the industry”
That being said Prima Networks Ltd has recently announced it is now driving 34 brands in Denmark, including premier operators the likes of Ladbrokes and Unibet. Prima Networks is powered by Microgaming which offers a massive selection of popular online gambling titles.
Loraine Schoevers, Director of Prima Networks Limited, commented, “The regulation of the Danish market is great for gamers and operators alike and we are delighted to be one of the first software providers in this exciting new territory. As new markets like Denmark are regulated, our reliable, flexible solutions, combined with a steady stream of innovative and entertaining content, make us a very attractive proposition.”

Prima Networks was established in 2009 and is located in Malta. The firm was one of the first to offer live services to the Danish market, after the legal regulations came into effect January 2012. PNL operators now represent 25% of the total number of licenses issued by the Danish Gambling Authority so far. Prima Networks has made a strong commitment to establishing positive relationships between online gambling operators as well as regulators in various jurisdictions. With Microgaming as its power source this network will continue to grow and profit.

Dancing With The Stars soars into its 14th season on ABC on March 19th and as usual, the network is being tight-lipped in regards to their contestants. But you know that nothing stays a secret in Hollywood in this day and age of Facebook, Twitter and reality television, and the identity of at least four celebrities that will be on the show have been leaked.

Join Bovada Sportsbook right now and bet Dancing With The Stars!

So far, the only contestants that we know about are Sherri Shepherd, one of the co-hosts of The View, along with Melissa Gilbert of Little House on the Prairie fame, and Jack Wagner, who is known for starring on Melrose Place and being an ex-boyfriend of Heather Locklear, with whom he got into a massive fight just a couple months ago. Gilbert was actually supposed to be on Dancing With The Stars last season but the deal didn’t go through for unknown reasons.

Dancing With the Stars Season 14 - Who will win?
Male -115
Female -115

The final contestant to be revealed over the weekend was Maria Menounos, who is the host of Extra and she is out to follow in the footsteps of fellow Extra host Mario Lopez, who finished second to Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith in the third season of the show. Menounos may be able to boost the Dancing With The Stars ratings among males as it is no surprise that she is a beautiful woman, but she has also been involved in World Wrestling Entertainment and is 2-0 in her professional wrestling career, so she’ll bring in more than a few from that demographic as well.

Stay tuned as the completed list of contestants will be revealed on Good Morning America on February 28th and you can expect a few surprises as the next group of celebrities and their professional partners look to follow actor and Army veteran J.R. Martinez as the winner of one of the most popular shows on television.

Bovada Sportsbook already has lines up so put on your tap-dance shoes and bet Dancing With The Stars!

Great news...

Great info Manne thanks for sharing and for us daily updation

An audacious Internet gambling mogul long sought by authorities has been indicted in Baltimore, capping an investigation that spanned nearly a decade and several countries and comes amid a recent crackdown on the popular poker and gambling sites.

Canadian native and Bodog.com founder Calvin Ayre, 50, and three others were charged by a federal grand jury with conducting an illegal sports gambling site and conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to a federal indictment unsealed Tuesday.

Ayre's Bodog brand has became one of the biggest in the world of online sports betting and casino games and propelled him to billionaire status. The indictment alleges that Bodog and its conspirators moved at least $100 million from offshore accounts in Switzerland, England, Malta and Canada to bettors in Maryland and elsewhere, while paying $42 million for advertising to attract U.S. gamblers.

Internal Revenue Service investigators in Maryland have been examining Bodog.com since 2003, according to court documents, with immigration and customs officials joining a formal investigation in 2006.

Bodog.com's site — which the company abandoned last year after other popular gambling domains were shut down in the United States — on Tuesday featured the emblems of the U.S. Department of Justice and Homeland Security Investigations.

"No matter where a corporation is based, they can't run sports betting in Maryland," Rod J. Rosenstein, the U.S. attorney for Maryland, said in an interview. "It's easy for companies to comply with this law by not offering gambling services in places where that service is not legal. The fact that they're located offshore is irrelevant."

But industry and gambling experts say operators of such sites are more likely to shift tactics than shut down. Ayre, for one, contends that online gambling is legal under international law.

Ayre, whose parents were grain and pig farmers in Saskatchewan, appeared on the cover of Forbes magazine's annual ranking of the world's billionaires in 2006 in an article titled "Catch Me If You Can" — a reference to his position in the cross hairs of investigators. He also was featured in People magazine's "hottest bachelor" list.

An outsized personality whose website describes him as an "industry pioneer, megalomaniac and adrenaline junkie," Ayre has been living in exile in recent years. According to news reports, he has taken care not to keep any assets in the U.S. He was not in custody after the indictment.

Ayre released a statement Tuesday through his website denouncing the charges as a media stunt.

"I see this as abuse of the U.S. criminal justice system for the commercial gain of large U.S. corporations," Ayre said in an article posted to calvinayre.com. "It is clear that the online gaming industry is legal under international law and in the case of these documents, is it [sic] also clear that the rule of law was not allowed to slow down a rush to try to win the war of public opinion.

"We will all look at this and discuss the future with our advisers, but it will not stop my many business interests globally that are unrelated to anything in the U.S.," he said.

Though online gambling continues to be a booming, multibillion-dollar industry, transactions related to online gambling are illegal under the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006. Supporters say poker is an American pastime that remains easily accessible for players regardless of such restrictions and should be allowed and regulated in the United States.

Operators of online betting sites and payment processors have previously faced federal charges in Maryland, and Ayre derisively called the charges against him "another notch in the belt" for federal prosecutors here.

Last May, in a crackdown dubbed "Blue Monday" by players, federal authorities based in Maryland shut down 10 poker sites, including Beted.com. In that case, federal investigators set up a phony business called Linwood Payment Solutions and handled $33 million in transactions from Internet gamblers.

That followed the so-called "Black Friday" indictments brought by the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan in April that rocked the online betting world when it shut down the three most popular online poker sites: Fulltiltpoker.com, Truepoker.com and Absolutepoker.com. The owners of those sites are fighting the charges.

The day after the May indictments were unsealed, Bodog.com changed to a European domain name — Bodog.eu — in an apparent attempt to avoid a crackdown by U.S. authorities. Then, in the fall, Bodog.com was handed over to a site called bolvada.lv.

Ayre has said that he retired and transferred the brand to the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group, which is located near Montreal, Forbes.com reported.

Chris Costigan, publisher of Gambling911.com, said charges against Ayre have been expected for some time. "They were always targeting Bodog, it seemed, and most of the industry realized something was going to happen, they just didn't know when," Costigan said in an interview.

Costigan said many sites since the Black Friday and Blue Monday cases have switched their sites to European domain names to elude seizure by U.S. authorities and continue to operate. For that reason, he said, the indictment against Bodog is unlikely to have a major impact. He noted that cash wasn't seized.

"When they hear money has been seized, then they start to freak out. That's not the situation here, nor is it the situation that their current domains are no longer operational," he said.

But John Warren Kindt, a business professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, said such crackdowns could scare bettors.

Such sites have been "operating on the fringe for years, trying to find gray areas and legal loopholes," Kindt said. "The fact that [the government] is slamming down hard on several at one time is their way of getting the message to the public that gambling on the Interne

Prima Networks is now driving 34 brands in Denmark, including operators such as Ladbrokes and Unibet.

One of the first companies to offer live services in the Danish market after legal regulations came into effect on January 1, Prima Network’s operators represent 25 per cent of the total number of licences issued by the Danish Gambling Authority to date.

“The regulation of the Danish market is great for gamers and operators alike,” commented Loraine Schoevers, director of Prima Networks. “As new markets like Denmark are regulated, our reliable, flexible solutions, combined with a steady stream of innovative and entertaining content, make us a very attractive proposition,” she added.

Powered by Microgaming, the company provides a range of products to the Danish market, including Flash Casino, Download Casino, Poker and Quickfire. Flash Poker is also due to be launched as part of the offering this summer.

The Department of Homeland Security in the United States fired another shot in its war against online poker, by seizing the Bodog.com domain name; this, in spite of the fact that there is no poker operator working under this domain. Bodog.com was used mainly as a forwarding site to the brand’s new Bodog.eu domain, which can not be reached by US authorities.

Commenting from the CalvinAyre.com website, Bill Beatty speculated what the US government’s intentions were in seizing a dormant domain name. “Sportsbook.com, BetOnline.com and Merge Gaming Network (rumored to be owned by Sportsbook.com) all use a .com for their online business. Other sites such as BetUS.com and LockPoker.com use a redirect to send their traffic to a more friendly country coded domain such as BetUS.com.pa but as we’ve just seen, the US Government will seize inactive domains in an effort to intimidate internationally licensed companies.”

“We have not received word on the other gambling companies still actively using .coms but we can assume Bodog.com won’t be the last domain taken in the US Government’s razing of the competition as it clears way for the large Nevada casino corporations to dominate under a proposed federal poker regulatory scheme,” said Beatty.

In April last year, the government seized the domain names of other top online poker companies, including Poker Stars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker. The seizure sparked a number of events in the online poker world, some of them which have still not been resolved, such as the millions of dollars still owed to Full Tilt Poker players