Anna Nicole Smith's former lover-and-lawyer Howard K. Stern is facing previously dropped charges on conspiracy.
The stunning star passed away in Florida under bizarre circumstances in 2007.
Following her death, Howard and the Playboy Playmate's psychiatrist Dr. Khristine Eroshevich were convicted in 2010 of conspiring to provide prescription drugs to Anna.
Initially Howard was charged with 11 felonies, but many were dropped when the case was finalised. Although the jury convicted Howard of two counts of felony conspiracy, the judge dismissed those verdicts.
TMZ reports that the case has been reopened and a California appeals court has reinstated two of the 11 charges that were thrown out by the original trial judge.
The reexamination board found that the judge was wrong to dismiss the convictions due to insufficient evidence.
The two charges are being sent back to the magistrate that presided over the first court case so that the judge can decide whether or not to send Howard to jail for the offences.
Howard can face up to two years in prison, be sentenced to probation, the felonies can be reduced to misdemeanours or the charges can potentially be dismissed on grounds other than insufficient evidence.
Read more: Anna Nicole Smith's lover: Acquittals overturned - News, Entertainment - Belfasttelegraph.co.uk
This may be the last weekend to “bet” at Internet sweepstakes parlors in Mercer County.
Mercer County District Attorney Robert G. Kochems has put the operators of these establishments in the county on notice that come next week, they will need to close up shop to abide by the law.
“I will direct law enforcement authorities to begin prosecuting violations of the law beginning Oct. 22,” Kochems wrote in a letter he sent to operators. “This gives you time to give notice to your employees and to see if a new stay of the law is agreed to.”
The businesses have been operating for about a year in Pennsylvania.
They’re either a potentially profitable “game” that offers a prize like the popular Monopoly game at McDonald’s or they’re an attempt to skirt the state’s gambling laws.
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania sided with the latter argument when Judge Robert D. Mariani denied a motion for a restraining order and preliminary injunction filed by an operator of the machines in Luzerne County.
That ruling lets stand a law Gov. Tom Corbett signed June 30 to close the “legal loophole” by which the parlors operated, state Rep. Mark Longietti of Hermitage said at the time.
“It was a loophole that needed closing,” Longietti said in July.
The sweepstakes operate by selling customers phone cards which enter them into a finite sweepstakes pool. People either can redeem the cards immediately to find out if they’ve “won” or “lost,” or use the cards to purchase Internet time and play casino-like games to eventually reveal if they’ve “won” or “lost.”
They’re popular here, said Miracle Petrino, who managers one parlor in Sharon and another in Hermitage.
“It’s a shame, because people love it,” Petrino said. “I’m hoping that another appeal will be filed and they’ll accept it and we’ll stay open.”
Otherwise, they’ll be closed by this time next week, she said, indicating she won’t fight it by testing local police enforcement of the law.
Online gambling parlors must close by Monday » Updates » New Castle News
Laws governing the internet are strict in Belgium and there are laws in place requiring Internet Service Providers to censor online gambling companies that do not hold a valid license to operate in Belgium.
The Belgian Gaming Commission recently announced that it has blacklisted five more online gambling operators that are non compliant. One big name that has surfaced is Gamebookers-com a subsidiary of bwin.party digital entertainment. The firm has responded by saying they think the laws governing online gambling in Belgium are contrary to the European Union rules of free e-commerce among members. Bwin.party digital entertainment refuses to even apply for a license to operate there on principle. Now they have no business in Belgium because most of their offerings have been blocked by the ISPs.
The government gaming commission feels that internet blocking is the most effective way to control unlicensed gambling web sites. ISPs are to receive hefty fines if they do not comply with the laws. The company has launched a number of legal challenges to the existing Belgium legislation. It is also seeking the European Commission’s help by putting proper and consistent guidelines in place that adhere to E.U. basic e-commerce rules, and demand that Belgium rescind its biased laws by lifting the ban on unlicensed online gambling operators. The other blacklisted web locations are SpinPalace-com and GamingClub-com which are Microgaming clients and SupremePlay-com and Agrandtopeudice-com. which are Rival Gaming platform powered.
The fifty web locations now blocked in Belgium are a list of the who’s who of online gambling operators in Europe, among them William Hill Casino, Titan Poker and others. The European Union must deal with this issue eventually after all the E.U. got the Noble Peace prize recently but can’t seem to resolve this legal issue. Operators do have the means to subvert the ISP blocking but Belgium in it oppressive wisdom decided to fine players who were on these illegal sites with charges of as much as €25,000 if caught playing at an unlicensed internet punting location.
Now Fifty Unlicensed Online Gambling Sites Blocked In Belgium
At the recent G2E conference in Las Vegas a colleague and I talked to the taxi driver on the way back to our hotel. We asked the cab driver if he liked to gamble to which he replied "I play Zynga poker." Asked whether he purchases virtual chips he answered, "Yes and yesterday I got 250,000 chips for $5". He said it with such pride and a sense of accomplishment that we expected him to reach back to give us a high five. With social media poker, players are given a few thousand chips to play with and if they lose them all they must either wait 24 hours to have them replenished or pay real money for virtual chips. What was most surprising about the cabbie's response is that he lives in Las Vegas, a city where he can go into a vast array of casinos and find games with buy-ins as little or as much as he feels comfortable. Thus, it seems odd to most gamblers, including myself, why anyone would want to play for fun when they have the opportunity to play for real cash. But the cab driver isn't alone. It is estimated that Zynga poker averages 120,000 players on any given day (mostly Americans) which is almost 2.5 times the amount of all other real money poker sites currently operating combined and is actually close to what PokerStars used to get prior to Black Friday. But if Americans truly want to play for free there are other options. Most poker rooms that accept American players like Bovada and the Revolution Gaming network of online poker sites have play for free poker areas where Americans can play for fun with virtual chips and unlike social media poker there are often small prizes for a few of the play for fun tournaments. More importantly, the sites will happily give more chips if the player busts out so there's no need to pay a penny for additional "virtual chips."
Read More: The Curious Popularity of Social Media Gambling
SYLVIA Kristel, arguably the first adult film star, has died at the age of 60 after a long battle with cancer.
"She died during the night during her sleep," her agent told the AFP. She was admitted to a hospital in July after suffering a stroke, though she was first diagnosed with throat and lung cancer roughly 10 years ago.
The Dutch actress, born in Utrecht, Holland, made waves around the world as the star of 1974 erotic French film "Emmanuelle."
Read more: First porn star dead - Entertainment - JamaicaObserver-com
While Illinois officials remain mired in debate over all forms of gambling, WMS Industries is predicting that casinos will soon become ubiquitous — via your computer and cellphone, at least.
The Waukegan-based slot machine maker last month received one of the first licenses to operate online poker games in Nevada, the only state other than Delaware to legalize some form of Internet gambling. WMS plans to operate online poker for existing, land-based casinos in Nevada.
Online sites in Nevada are expected to go live in early 2013, but only people physically within that state's borders will be able to play. For everyone else, WMS in July launched a free Facebook app, called "Jackpot Party Social Casino," which doesn't pay out winnings. (You play it "for fun" and spend money to stay in the game longer.)
Read More: Waukegan-based WMS Industries places a bet on online gambling - chicagotribune-com
A 73-year-old Joplin man who pleaded guilty in May to running a sports gambling operation over the Internet has been ordered confined to his home for six months.
The Joplin Globe reports Kenneth Lovett was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Springfield to two years of probation, including the home confinement period. He also is forbidden to gamble or enter any gambling establishments for the length of his probation.
Lovett and Joplin resident William Lisle were charged in a 16-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in February.
Lisle pleaded guilty July 5 to transmitting wagering information online and money laundering. He is awaiting sentencing.
The betting operation reportedly flourished in its final five years of operation, with one local gambler wagering as much as $35,000 a weekend.
The bosses of Britain’s leading betting chains could be forgiven for thinking that Christmas has come early.
First, both William Hill and Ladbrokes last week revealed that revenues across all parts of their business were continuing to soar – from betting machines, sports betting, online casinos and smartphone apps.
Then a potentially damning TV documentary claiming to show the ‘darker side’ of the industry scheduled for tomorrow evening was postponed at the last minute by the BBC for a programme on Jimmy Savile.
And finally it emerged that the Government’s long-awaited response to the Culture, Media and Sport select committee’s report on the Gambling Act 2005 will not, as expected, be published this week, taking the spotlight away from issues such as how many of the controversial fixed-odds betting terminals should be allowed in High Street bookmakers.
These machines are in nearly every bookies, though there is a limit of four per shop. They offer slot machine and roulette-style games, allowing punters to stake up to £100 a spin on roulette and win up to £500 on just a 50p stake on the ‘slots’.
Read more: All bets are on as MPs duck ruling on betting machines | This is Money
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British soul sensation Adele has given birth to a baby boy, according to U.K. reports.
The Rolling in the Deep hitmaker and her boyfriend, Simon Konecki, welcomed a son on Friday night, reports the Daily Mail.
A source tells the newspaper, "Adele and Simon are ecstatic at their new arrival. She was over the moon that they were expecting their first child together."
A spokesperson for the singer has refused to confirm or deny the claims, insisting, "We are not releasing a statement at this time. No comment."
Adele, 24, began dating charity boss Konecki, 38, late last year and she announced she was pregnant in a post on her website in June.
Konecki is also dad to a five-year-old daughter with his ex-wife Clary Fisher.
Touching on a sensitive issue close to the heart of Malta’s new economy, the European Commission is set to unveil its action plan for the online gaming sector at an event on Tuesday.
Although the date is still to be confirmed, Internal Market and Services Commissioner Michel Barnier is expected to announce a series of initiatives and actions that the EC plans to carry out in the area of online gambling, with the overall aim of building a better framework for online gambling services in the EU, as a follow up to last year’s Green Paper consultation on the thorny subject.
One of the main aims of this consultation was to get a facts-based picture of the existing situation in the EU online gambling market and of the different national regulatory models. The consultation revealed that member states essentially have the same objectives: protecting consumers, ensuring fairness and transparency, preventing fraud and protecting the integrity of sports.
The consultation also showed that in an online environment it is virtually impossible for member states to address these objectives individually.
More and more member states are reviewing their national gambling legislation. Consequently, it is possible to capitalise on the existing good practices in the EU primarily by fostering administrative cooperation. In a rapidly developing market, it is essential for regulators to understand the business and the technology, as well as having up-to-date information.
Better cooperation between member states is also needed to tackle the international dimension of online gambling more effectively. The European Parliament and member states have called for cooperation among national regulatory bodies.
On-line gambling is a fast developing business in Europe, with almost 15,000 websites already identified and total annual revenues exceeding €6 billion in 2008 and expected to double by 2013.
Malta is a key player in the area, and accounts for at least an estimated 10 per cent of the global online gaming business, a patch the country is determined to protect.
But national legal frameworks vary enormously across the EU, with different rules applying to licensing, related on-line services, payments, public interest objectives and the fight against fraud.
In order to ensure legal certainty and effective protection of EU citizens in this fast-growing, cross-border activity, it is important to evaluate how possibly differing models can co-exist within the Internal Market. The primary aim of the Green Paper consultation, launched today, is therefore to obtain a facts-based picture of the existing situation in the EU on-line gambling market and of the different national regulatory models.
The Commission has sought the views of stakeholders and wishes to collect detailed information and data on key policy issues such as organisation of on-line gambling services and enforcement of applicable laws; consumer protection and other relevant public policy challenges as well as commercial communications and payment services. The result of such contributions will determine the need for – and form of – any EU follow-up action in this field.
Commissioner Barnier had said at the Green Paper’s launch: “With this Green Paper, we have launched an ambitious consultation with no pre-determined views on its possible follow-up. The on-line gambling market in the EU continues to grow rapidly and generates important revenues that are sometimes channelled into good causes. Its expansion must go hand-in-hand with a determination to protect our citizens, especially minors, and to ensure that offers of these types of services within the EU are sound and well regulated. It responds to calls from the European Parliament and member states for us to address these questions jointly. This consultation is not about the liberalisation of the market, but about ensuring that the market for on-line gambling services within the EU is well-regulated for everyone.”
William Hill Online has been making headway in the internet betting world but has been struggling with its joint venture partner software developer Playtech for a long time now.
William Hill wants to divest itself of Playtech and has started the process by ascertaining the actual value of its Playtech stake. The well known firm has until next month to activate a call option for the 29 per cent William Hill Online stake that Playtech owns. Analysts have made estimates ranging from £300m to £493m which seem like a rough estimate. The decision to activate the option by William Hill Online will depend on the price that Playtech settles on. Richard Carter, an analyst at Deutsche Bank, said the company may have to issue additional equity in order to facilitate the buyout of Playtech.
Announcing the departure of the William Hill Online CEO Henry Birch immediately will leave the helm to Andrew Lee, the current managing director. The Deutsche Bank’s Carter commented, “I think it’s likely William Hill would issue some equity to raise money as I don’t think they want to take on more debt in order to acquire lots more online earnings, which carry more risk than earnings from their retail stores,”
The relationship between Playtech and William Hill Online has been less than stellar with the issues surfacing regarding the veto efforts by Playtech to restrict William Hill’s acquisition program and the internet division’s growth. Playtech was the subject of a court interim injunction to prevent Playtech from selling its stake in William Hill Online.
William Hill shares saw a rise in value after the company reported a 26 per cent year-on-year increase in operating profit in the 13 week period to September 25, reportedly helped by a summer of sport that included the London Olympics and the Euro 2012 football championships. Ralph Topping, William Hill’s chief executive officer commented, “The Olympics and Paralympics captured the public’s attention but appear to have reduced customer visits in retail,”
William Hill Online Gambling Looking to Cut Ties With Playtech
The European Union has been dealing with the issue of legal online gambling for a long time now with a unified framework for online gambling regulations among union members not yet complete. This difficult task of creating a set of rules that all the nations can agree on has been fragmented by non compliance with the basic rule of barrier free e-commerce trading within the Union.
Since the 2011 Green paper on online gambling which asked stakeholders their opinions about regulating the industry the European Commission has been saddled with a number of serious contraventions of the policies currently in place.
The Member States essentially have the same objectives when it comes to a regulatory framework such as protecting consumers including under age restrictions, ensuring a fair and transparent offer, preventing fraud and protecting the integrity of sports. It has been announced that very soon, the date is yet to be confirmed, the European Commission will be revealing a series of initiatives and actions with the plan it intends to initiate, the overall aim being a more efficient framework for online gambling services in the European Union. Internet wagering has grown very fast in Europe with as many as 15,000 web locations identified as providing online gambling services of one sort or another. A monetary evaluation of the industry is estimated at €6 billion in 2008 numbers and that amount, it has been suggested, will double by 2013.
When the European Commission does come up with a framework regulating the activities of online gambling operators enforcement of the rules is still a concern for the member nations. The large illegal market for internet wagering services in the E.U. does pose a threat to any benefits a unified framework may have. Existing blocking systems, such as payment blocking or domain name filtering by ISP’s are being evaluated for their effectiveness and universality.
Action Plan For Online Gambling Due From European Commission
The fourth episode in the seventh season of Dexter, which aired Sunday night on The Movie Network and Movie Central in Canada and on Showtime in the United States, certainly had a lot at stake.
SPOILER ALERT: This is a review of the Dexter episode titled Run, and is meant for people who saw it. If you don’t want to know what happened, now’s the time to bail.
So Dexter Morgan, played by Michael C. Hall, has made some big changes. His compulsion to kill? Still there. But the way he does it?
When Dexter finally trapped the super-evil Ray Speltzer, played by Matt Gerald, Dexter killed his victim with a stake to the heart. That's right, a wooden stake. I half expected Speltzer to turn to ash, but then I thought, oh wait, wrong show.
Even more significantly, Dexter then burned his blood slides along with Speltzer. The blood slides were a far more meaningful loss.
Documenting all his past killings, the blood slides were Dexter's trophies, as his foster sister Deb (Jennifer Carpenter) had pointed out disapprovingly in the previous episode.
"It's time for everyone to move on," Dexter said before saying goodbye to his "friends."
The only reason Speltzer, a serial killer of young women, was free was that he got off on a technicality after confessing to murder. Turns out he had not verbally confirmed that he understood his Miranda rights when he was arrested, and that was enough to set him loose.
Okay, I'm naive, I admit it. I don't understand the laws from state to state or province to province. But my God, would that really happen? Could a man who confessed to murder be set free, immediately, on such a small technicality? And no one even thought to give the police a heads-up on that? Maybe it does happen, I don't know, but I sure as hell hope not.
Read More: Some bloody changes on 'Dexter' | Television | Entertainment | St. Catharines Standard
Online gambling is very popular with people across the globe. It is of no surprise that games like Blackjack, Roulette and Poker are played by many people. With the advancement of technology, the quality of online gambling has improved. The internet is full of online casinos operated by reputed names in the world of gambling. Most of the gambling sites, which are based in Europe, do not accept players from Canada. As online gambling is legal in Canada, there are many Canadian online casinos and poker sites as well. Here are a few factors that will you in choosing the best online casinos and poker sites in the country:
Software - the site that you opt for should use a licensed and trustworthy software for its casino platform. Only a licensed software will ensure fair play. The information about the software can be obtained from the website itself. You can also read reviews about the site to understand if the online casino or poker site uses a legitimate casino platform. You can read Canadian online casino reviews on this site.
Website design - the poker site should provide you with realistic experience of playing this game of cards in a live casino. This is only possible when the site is designed to support high quality 3D graphics and other advanced features. Good sound effects and graphics can provide you with a wonderful online gambling experience. These sites make a lot of money and should be able to provide you with the best features possible.
Payments - the online casinos should also offer multiple options for easy withdrawal of the prize money. Apart from wire transfers, they should offer options like transfer to PayPal, Moneybookers, Click2Pay and eChecks etc. They should also provide you with secure options for making payments. If you have a variety of making methods to choose from, you will not have to waste time in transferring funds to your online casino account.
Customer Service - the poker sites or the online casinos should offer round the clock (24X7X365) customer service. You should be able to contact them through chat support and email for any queries or questions. Besides, they should also offer toll free numbers for Canadian Players, so that they can get faster resolutions. You should learn more about these sites, before you decide to opt for any one of them.
User Reviews - there are a few blogs and forums where you can read real reviews of these sites, posted by the users and gambling experts. These reviews will give you a fair idea of the online casinos. Based on the information obtained from the reviews, you can choose the Canadian online casino or poker site that will be best suited to meet your requirements.
Always make sure that you only.
How to choose the best Canadian online casinos and poker sites- The Canadian Lifestyle Magazine
Nova Scotia Canada is the Atlantic province that has considered online gambling but rejected the idea along with Newfoundland and Labrador. The province was looking into the activity after other provinces in Canada such as British Columbia, Quebec and Ontario decided they would offer internet casinos to their punters and reap the financial benefits of the growing trend.
The province of Nova Scotia has however realized that the internet is a persistent companion to many of the provinces youth and they are subject to the influence of offshore gaming operators which provide online gambling services. To stem the influence the government of Nova Scotia through its gambling agency and the Nova Scotia Community College are conducting educational workshops on the subject.
The Responsible Gaming Council has created an interactive program that was sponsored by the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation called, Know the Score or kts2, that uses staff maintained displays to engage the students. The workshop to be held at the Truro campus of the NSCC October 22nd,and 23rd is designed to teach students about gambling risks. There are 32,000 post-secondary students in the system in Nova Scotia and many of those will have to come to terms with the available gambling options that present themselves while these students experience life at university or college.
Barry Koen-Butt, Director, Awareness Programs and Communications at the Responsible Gambling Council commented on the proactive approach, “In general, the rate of gambling participation among people between the ages of 18 to 24 continues to grow,” adding, “and this same demographic is at a higher risk of developing a gambling problem than the general population.” Koen-Butt continued to explain, “The myth of easy money is a draw for this age group who are often away from home and managing their own money for the first time,” continuing he added, “These young people – who may have a tendency to be risk takers – are often influenced by their social circle. That’s why kts2, with its innovative peer-to-peer format is so key to reaching students both on campus and online.”
Live dealer casino games are coming to mobile! Let’s get something straight – whether you are a gambler or not, live dealer online casino games are amazing.
After a few clicks, you find yourself looking at a real blackjack dealer standing inside a casino where everything is filmed. You can type to the dealer and she (they’re usually blonde females due to the male audience) talks back to you. You’re able to chat with her in between hands.
Earlier this year, we wrote about the growing trend. You can read that article here.
Thanks to tech advances by Evolution Gaming, live dealer games are playable on smartphones and tablets.
The gaming developer has just released Live Casino Hold ‘Em for iOS. One assumes an Android version is in the works, along with the usual selection of live dealer games (blackjack, roulette and baccarat).
Why wait until you get home to play live dealer games when you can play at the bus station, doctor’s office or even while in a stadium!
The technology isn’t limited to gambling. Doctors, consultants and online universities will benefit from non-gambling applications of this technology.
For better or worse, it is often the gambling and adult entertainment industry that pioneers these new technologies. What will live dealer mobile games evolve into and who else will they help?
Get Ready For Live Dealer Mobile Casino Games - Online Casino Archives
High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Microsoft rebrands entertainment as Xbox - FT-com
Microsoft has unveiled its entertainment services offering for the launch of Windows 8 on Friday, rebranding its content as Xbox Music, Xbox Video and Xbox Games.
The US software group will also tie content together with an Xbox SmartGlass app, available from Friday in its Windows store. It can link a tablet, laptop or phone to an Xbox game console, allowing video to be controlled on a connected TV, with extra information about the programming made available on the mobile device. High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Microsoft rebrands entertainment as Xbox - FT-com
“Games, movies and music are in the very top class of things that consumers do on these devices,” Yusuf Mehdi, head of marketing and strategy at Microsoft’s interactive entertainment business, told the Financial Times.
“I think we’re bringing a first-class entertainment service that makes Windows 8 devices that much more attractive.”
Microsoft is only expected to have about 5,000 apps available at the launch of Windows 8, far fewer than the 250,000 available for the iPad. This increases the importance of its services if consumers are to be attracted to consumption devices like Microsoft’s own Surface tablet, which is also launched on Friday.
Extending what was already available for its Xbox Live service on its console, Microsoft is offering more than 200,000 TV shows and movies, as well as 30m songs, previously offered under the Zune music service that supported the now defunct MP3 player.
“In a perverse way, their failure with Zune has set them up to succeed here, because expectations are incredibly low,” says Michael Pachter, Wedbush Securities analyst.
“Integrated with everything else, this is really not a bad solution.”
The SmartGlass app, first demonstrated at the E3 video game show in June, will not be available for Android and iOS tablets until next year, giving Windows 8 devices some exclusivity. High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email [email]ftsales-support@ft-com[/email] to buy additional rights. Microsoft rebrands entertainment as Xbox - FT-com
The app will offer “second-screen” tablet features, such as details on casts and filmographies while watching movies and TV shows and it can provide sports statistics on games being seen on the bigger screen.
Video can be paused on a tablet and resumed on the TV and the Xbox interface can be controlled with a remote-control feature.
Microsoft is also making available an update for its 67m game consoles on Tuesday that adds the Internet Explorer web browser for the first time and improves the voice-command search feature of its Kinect motion controller.
The Xbox entertainment services are being extended from 35 countries to 222 and Microsoft now has 62 TV and entertainment partners globally.
Its current Xbox Live service, offering online games and entertainment, currently has more than 40m subscribers worldwide, with minutes spent enjoying entertainment surpassing those playing games in a US survey this year.
“This [console update] maybe allows us to get to a point now where we can actually start to market the Xbox as an entertainment device first, to people who maybe haven’t thought about buying one,” said Mr Mehdi.
The European Commission has launched an action plan for the online gambling market across the region and warned that if it does not achieve its objective, the EU will consider binding legislation.
"The commission is not proposing EU-wide legislation on online gambling, it is proposing a comprehensive set of actions and common principles on protection."
Under the new framework, member states will be free to set the objectives of their policies on online gambling, "[but] ensuring compliance of national law with the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU is a prerequisite of a successful EU policy on online gambling."
An expert group will be formed by December which will liaise with member states on regulation. The aim is to have coherent EU-wide policies in place over the next two years that will protect consumers.
The commission estimates that online gambling will have revenues of €13bn by 2015. The sector is seeing growth rates of 15% per annum.
There are roughly €6.8m online customers of sports betting, poker, casino and lottery as well as other types of betting. But there are numerous unregulated betting portals, which pose significant risks, including money laundering.
The aim of the EU’s initiative on online gambling is to protect children and other vulnerable groups, including gamblers with previous histories of addition.
Another objective is to prevent and deter money-laundering.
Commissioner Michel Barnier said that he wanted to ban any betting on youth events, and a ban on anyone involved in such youth sports prevented from betting on them also.
His services are also examining 20 complaints from various countries about unfair practices in gambling and Mr Barnier said he would hope to take some of them to the Court of Justice shortly, thanks to new powers given to the EU.
The commission will also look at ways of tackling match fixing through the promotion of faster information exchange, whistle-blowing mechanisms and more national and international co-operation among regulators, operators and stakeholders.
"In concrete terms, the commission will adopt three recommendations addressed to the member states, namely on i) common protection of consumers, ii) responsible gambling advertising and iii) the prevention and fight against betting-related match-fixing.
"Other measures foresee, inter alia, support to the benchmarking and testing of parental control tools; the extension of the scope of the anti-money laundering directive; the promotion of international co-operation for the prevention of match-fixing."
EU launches action plan on online gambling | Irish Examiner
To say that the internet has changed the way we approach almost everything would be a gross understatement. One of the biggest online success stories has been internet gaming. There are literally thousands of options available, with games to suit the tastes of any player.
The most popular are bingo sites or 'cyber casinos', all of which try to out-muscle their competitors by offering promotions and bonuses in order to draw in potential customers.
Online bingo has erupted in the UK with more sites dedicated to the game than ever before. Their success shouldn't be too surprising, given that bingo is a very popular game in the U.K. It is played both for fun and for money, and is enjoyed by all ages.
But popularity is only half the reason why such sites have become successful.
Before the internet and online gaming, bingo enthusiasts would have have to attend bingo halls. Some would even play with their family and friends at home; an environment that was never, ever going to re-create the same excitement that comes from competing with hundreds of other players.
Yet with online bingo sites, this problem is eliminated as you can play wherever you are at whatever time you want.
The promotions and bonuses that many sites offer, mean that many customers believe it to be more acceptable than other, more traditional forms of online gambling. An introductory promotion of £30 to play with, makes it almost seem like a freebie. This tactic has been employed by many in the business for a number of years now, and in terms of attracting gamers, it seems to work.
Along with the attractive introductory offers, most sites are very easy to use, thus appealing to the younger, computer-literate players as well as the older-generation of gaming enthusiasts.
Many websites, such as Ladbrokes-com will also allow the option of playing just for fun, so that gamers can get used to the system and decide whether they are comfortable in using it to gamble real money.
But gaming has started to spread its wings even further. One of the most significant recent trends is the way in which bingo and casino sites have embraced social media. Indeed many sites feel the same as a social media site, giving gamers the chance to chat with each other and send private messages. This re-creates the sense of community one feels when they visit the bingo hall, with some sites even giving you the option of keeping a list of friends, allowing you to chat with each other regardless of whether you're in the same game or not.
Many players have also made new friends through these features on such sites, interacting in a way that is very similar to that of a social network site.
Up until now, this has been the trend, but some experts believe that it is only a matter of time before gaming starts to take a lead on sites dedicated to social networking. The popularity of gaming sites containing social networking elements within them, suggests that this analysis may be correct.
News & Star | News | Recent trends in internet gaming
Two important online casino licensing jurisdictions - Malta and the Isle of Man - have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the purpose of bilateral cooperation in areas relating to remote gambling.
The Isle of Man's Gambling Supervision Commission and the Lotteries and Gaming Authority of Malta said that the MoU will recognise the common values underlying their regulation of online gambling, with a large emphasis on consumer protection, as well as the protection of society and public order.
The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Chief Executive of the Isle of Man Gambling Supervision Commission, Steven Brennan, and the Chief Executive of the Lotteries and Gaming Authority, Reuben Portanier.
It is the seventh such MoU in a series of agreements which the Malta authorities have signed over the past six months with other jurisdictions. These include the Ontario Alcohol and Gambling Commission, FIFA's Early Warning System, the International Olympic Committee's Early Warning System, the Danish Gambling Authority, the Jersey Gambling Commission and the European Sports Security Association (ESSA).
Read More: Malta And The Isle Of Man Sign MoU - Gamblingkingz-com
The stunning star passed away in Florida under bizarre circumstances in 2007.
Following her death, Howard and the Playboy Playmate's psychiatrist Dr. Khristine Eroshevich were convicted in 2010 of conspiring to provide prescription drugs to Anna.
Initially Howard was charged with 11 felonies, but many were dropped when the case was finalised. Although the jury convicted Howard of two counts of felony conspiracy, the judge dismissed those verdicts.
TMZ reports that the case has been reopened and a California appeals court has reinstated two of the 11 charges that were thrown out by the original trial judge.
The reexamination board found that the judge was wrong to dismiss the convictions due to insufficient evidence.
The two charges are being sent back to the magistrate that presided over the first court case so that the judge can decide whether or not to send Howard to jail for the offences.
Howard can face up to two years in prison, be sentenced to probation, the felonies can be reduced to misdemeanours or the charges can potentially be dismissed on grounds other than insufficient evidence.
Read more: Anna Nicole Smith's lover: Acquittals overturned - News, Entertainment - Belfasttelegraph.co.uk