Let your mouth speak archive

Whilst the landscape of the internet changes year on year, one thing that remains very high in demand, as well as in profit, is the online gambling industry. It has been around a decade since the online gambling boom and whilst it is perhaps not as visible as it was a few years back there is no denying that card games such as poker have expanded out of the casinos to become a more regular part of mainstream social activities.





New To VR: Go All In For A Taste Of Online Gambling In Casino VR: Poker - VRFocus

Online gambling technology provider Playtech and online gambling operator Gala Coral Group claim to have set a new record for the biggest mobile slots jackpot in the UK.

On Monday, Playtech announced that an unidentified librarian from Glasgow had won £4.5m playing the appropriately named Jackpot Giant slot on GalaBingo-com.

The company claims the prize is the biggest mobile slots prize ever handed out to a UK punter, the largest ever on a Playtech-powered bingo site and its second biggest progressive jackpot payout behind only a £6.2m prize in 2012.

The unknown librarian claimed to have picked up her mobile and begun spinning slots reels while at home watching TV, apparently because whatever was on the telly was insufficiently captivating. The winner, who spent just £4 on her lucky spin, claimed to still be in “a complete state of shock,” which probably explains why she went back to work the following day instead of immediately moving to Ibiza.

Playtech COO Shimon Akad celebrated setting a new UK mobile jackpot record while Gala Coral Interactive brand director Alison Digges called it the biggest jackpot Gala Bingo had handed out on either mobile or desktop.

Playtech recently extended its existing business relationship with Malta-licensed online betting operator NetBet, a deal that was announced just days before NetBet handed out a €4.3m prize to a progressive jackpot winner on Playtech’s Gold Rally slots. The six-year extension will see Playtech provide NetBet with casino and poker content until 2021, assuming too many NetBet punters don’t hit too many more jackpots before then.



Playtech, Gala Bingo Set UK Record for Mobile Slot Jackpot | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com

In 2012 Sweden's Christian Democrats, a minority party in the centre-right coalition government, stated that they would be open to making the overall gambling market more competitive. The new government said it would reform gambling legislation by 2014, opening the door to other international operators. Companies outside of the Swedish gambling monopoly Svenska Spel now hold a larger share of the online gambling market than the companies of the traditional monopoly. In response there were some changes to the existing laws but in October of 2014, the European Commission, noting that it did not consider the Swedish reactions to its requests satisfactory, referred Sweden to the Court of Justice of the EU for its lack of compliance with EU law; "The Commission considers that the way that the Swedish exclusive right system for sport betting is organised is inconsistent with the aim of achieving the public policy objectives of preventing problem gambling and criminal activities and lacks the necessary state control. Changes to the Swedish gambling law in order to make it compliant with EU law have long been envisaged but never implemented. "

Now in 2016 a leading Swedish Internet Service Provider, Bahnhof, has posted a statement explaining it had received correspondence from an investigator engaged by the government of Sweden to look at ways to “efficiently” prevent unauthorized online gambling operators from offering services to Swedish punters.

Real change to the online gambling environment in Sweden will not to be revealed to the public until March of 2017. Until that time the government is seeking to stop unauthorized offering from offshore operators. Bahnhof Chief Executive Officer Jon Karlung said his concern was the government’s attempt to censor the internet. .” Karlung maintains the Swedish government appears to “try again and again until different types of monitoring and filtering [are] run through.”

Online gambling legislation is a contentious issue in monopoly entrenched countries that are slow to change the unfair laws regarding free trade in the EU.




Sweden Attempting to Censor Online Gambling Sites | Online-Casinos-com

Online gambling website Unibet was named the new main sponsor of the Netherlands national cycling association KNWU. The company’s six green dot logo, without its name, has prime real estate on the association’s new cycling shirt concept, wedged in between the KNWU logo and the flag of the Netherlands.

The new deal kicks off in 2017, KNWU announced on Wednesday. The four-year agreement is worth seven million euros.

Unibet replaces Lotto as the head sponsor. Lotto had also signed on to rescue Team Belkin in 2014.

Now, the KNWU was looking for a sponsorship arrangement that could complement money provided by both the national government with a share in revenue from the new gambling legislation, when it comes into effect, broadcaster NOS reported.

The logo does not use the name “Unibet” for now, because the company is not yet a participant in the Dutch gambling market. “Unibet is the new sponsor of everything, associations and also top-level sports,” KNWU chair Marcel Wintels said, downplaying any controversy surrounding the new sponsor decision.

“Funding for sports is a complicated field of play. Sports must make the leap into the future; we cannot only continue with the current partners,” Wintels said, according to coverage of his press conference.

Back in December, Rabobank said it was ending its sponsorship of the cycling association after 20 years.



Online gambling site Unibet new Dutch cycling sponsor - NL Times

SPORT and online gambling are now so intrinsically linked that the integrity of sports is under extreme pressure and the human toll is rising.

This year will see the biggest gambling event in history: the Rio Olympic Games.

Research indicates problem gambling levels in online environments are even higher than for pokies — although pokies remain the greatest source of risky gambling in Australia.

Reducing harm from pokies has been extremely difficult: reducing harm from online gambling will be even harder.

The platform for online sports betting is the smart phone: 3.2 billion people are now connected to the internet.

Online betting companies have also worked very hard to significantly increase the number of “events” that can be gambled on during any sporting contest, so that it is possible to bet, in real-time, on just about every serve, ball bowled or goal attempt during a game.

It is estimated that about 90 per cent of online gambling is through illegal gambling providers, many operating on the dark web and black markets.

These illegal markets thrive on major international sporting events.

What can be done to reduce the many harms that can flow from online sports betting?

The first priority is to better understand what we are dealing with.

The Australian Government has recently received a report investigating illegal online gambling by a committee chaired by former NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell.

A critical action that the Government must take is to establish a national online gambling regulator to oversee and regulate online gambling provision in Australia to ensure that there are reasonable levels of consumer protection for those choosing to gamble online, and that taxes are paid by the online providers.

Our government also needs to discuss online gambling regulation with other nations and ensuring that protocols are in place to share information and to establish an international set of consumer protections.

The other critical area for action is that our sporting administrators must take the threat of online gambling very seriously and strengthen all aspects of game integrity, including ongoing external advice and review.

Sport administrators can no longer keep everything “in-house”.

Online gambling is a threat that can be dealt with if we act early. The immediate priority must be for the Commonwealth Government to establish a national online gambling regulator to reign in the threat of gambling harm to individuals, their families and our sporting codes.




No Cookies | The Advertiser

Online betting operator BetVictor is looking for a new creative team to manage its public image ahead of the Euro 2016 football tournament.

Campaign Live recently reported that BetVictor had sent out invitations for agencies to pitch ways to position the betting company ahead of this year’s UEFA European Football Championship, which is second only to the FIFA World Cup in terms of betting activity.

The pitch process is expected to take place by the end of February. VCCP, BetVictor’s creative team since 2012, intends to compete with the rest of the creative rabble to retain the job.

VCCP was behind BetVictor’s recent efforts to adopt a more serious tone than the jokey spots featuring comedian Paul Kaye that dominated the company’s previous brand identity. The new “no noise, no nonsense” spots that debuted in November featured two more refined, upscale ‘modern gents’ discussing the ease of wagering with BetVictor using a “simple as” theme.

Meanwhile, mobile gambling operator LeoVegas has rolled out a new TV campaign based on the theme ‘Gone to Vegas.’ The campaign, which was crafted by creative agency Toast and brought to life by production company Nic and Sune, will air on multiple UK channels, including Channel 4, SkySports, ITVB3 and the male-focused Dave.

The ads (sample below) feature a variety of characters evading life’s more mundane moments and leaving behind post-it notes saying they’ve “gone to Vegas,” which is later revealed to mean the person is playing LeoVegas on their mobile.

LeoVegas is running a promo that asks players to text the phrase to relatives and submit screenshots of their relatives’ responses. The most amusing reaction will win the player a chance to go to Vegas for real.

LeoVegas recently signed Swedish celebrity skier Jon Olsson to help promote the company in his native land. The three-year deal will feature Olsson participating in a number of stunts, including taking part in this summer’s Mongol Rally, a 30-day, 20k-kilometer drive from London to Mongolia.



LeoVegas Asks Players to Punk Their Relatives | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com

The Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) has waded into the Australian government’s contentious review of its online betting regime.

Last week, The Australian reported that the HKJC had made a secret submission to the Australian government, which is due to release a report this month on how best to deal with competition from international gambling sites not holding Australian licenses, as well as whether to lift the longstanding prohibition of online in-play sports betting.

The HKJC’s submission, not so subtly titled Illegal Betting Markets and Links with Organized Crime, claimed that the integrity of Aussie sports and racing was under threat by Asian-licensed online bookmakers and their alleged “links with transnational crime syndicates.”

The HKJC submission singles out several Asian betting giants by name, including SBOBET, IBCBET (since rebranded as Maxbet) and the CITIbet betting exchange. The HKJC’s filing claims SBOBET and CITIbet received 40k visits from Australian IP addresses in the six months to September 2015, and that CITIbet’s Australian racing turnover is around 8% of the sum wagered with Australian-licensed tote operators.

Australia’s racing industry has adamantly opposed the notion of relaxing the Interactive Gambling Act’s restriction of in-play wagers to phone betting or in-person with a domestic retail point of sale. Aussie-licensed online operators have retaliated by calling the online in-play ban antiquated and intended to benefit the entrenched interests of land-based operators.

For the record, this isn’t the first time the HKJC has gone off on CITIbet. In November 2014, the HKJC singled out CITIbet for cannibalizing the HKJC’s race betting turnover. CITIbet insiders rejected these claims, saying the Philippines-licensed exchange was actually responsible for driving much of HKJC’s turnover by informing punters as to which nags the sharps were backing.

The HKJC’s desire to enlist a foreign government’s help in beating back its international competitors may have more to do with the company’s financial outlook. Last month, the HKJC warned that the struggling Chinese economy was likely to cause the HKJC’s betting turnover to fall for the first time in the past decade.

HKJC CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said turnover during the current season’s first 40 meetings had been up slightly year-on-year but he expects China’s economic slump to result in a net decline of between 3% and 5% by the time the HKJC’s final numbers are counted.

The HKJC clearly doesn’t relish the end of its winning streak, which has seen annual turnover rise by 80% to HKD 105b (US $13.5b) over the past 10 years. The HKJC holds a monopoly on race and sporting betting in Hong Kong, just as Macau holds a monopoly on casinos, while mainland Chinese bettors must make do with the welfare and sports lotteries.





HKJC Wades Into Australian Online Gambling Review | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com

Is that good or bad 😟

Sweden’s regulated online gambling market grew faster than international Swedish-facing operators last year, according to the country’s gambling regulator.

Preliminary stats for 2015 released by Sweden’s Lotteriinspektionen gaming overseer said the regulated market boasted turnover of SEK 45.6b ($5.3b), up 1.5% from 2014’s total. Total gaming revenue was also up 1.5% to SEK 16.7b.

Total online gambling revenue last year came to around SEK 8b, up around 7% from 2014. Lotteriinspektionen estimates that international operators serving the market without a Swedish license – mainly because Sweden doesn’t currently issue licenses to bloody foreigners – claimed around SEK 4.4b of this sum.

The international operators’ share eclipsed the SEK 3.6b collected by the state-owned betting monopoly Svenska Spel, but the monopoly’s share was up 8% year-on-year while the international sites grew only 6%.

Gambling advertising expenditure came to around SEK 3.3b, with roughly 70% of this being spent by those pesky international operators, despite the government’s vocal protestations. The total advertising spend is actually down from 2014, which the regulator attributes to last year’s lack of a marquee football competition.

On average, Swedish households spent around 2.4% of their disposable income on regulated gambling products last year, a sum equal to about SEK5,822 ($685) per person. The average Swedish adult lost around SEK 2,133 to the regulated market, while the average loss to international online gambling operators was a mere SEK 447 per adult.

Sweden is in the process of revising its online gambling market, prompted by years of public scolding and threats of legal action by European Commission watchdogs. New draft legislation is expected early next year, followed by a period of stakeholder comment and a final draft presented to legislators for consideration by the end of 2017.

The new regime is expected to call for the privatization of Svenska Spel, the issuing of licenses to international operators and more aggressive steps to prevent online operators not holding a Swedish license from accessing the market. Last month, a leading Swedish internet service provider went public with government plans to compel ISPs to block Swedes from accessing unauthorized sites.



Sweden’s Regulated Online Gambling Market Closing The Gap | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com

How cares about Sweden!

Jorand you are from Sweden don't you love your country!! :acne

Australian wagering and lottery operator Tatts Group boosted its profits by over 5% in the first half of its fiscal year thanks to “exceptionally strong online traction.”

In the six months ending Dec. 31, Tatts revenue was up 6.5% to A$1.6b while net profit after tax gained 5.2% to $147m. Tatts credited the uptick to an online performance that was “nothing short of outstanding.”

Tatts’ mainstay lottery operations posted record revenue of $1.11b, up 9.6% year-on-year, thanks in part to 24 jackpots over the psychological $15m barrier, six more than the same period a year earlier. Online lottery sales were up nearly 35%, accounting for 13.2% of all lottery sales, compared to just 10.8% a year ago.

Tatts’ wagering division reported turnover up 3% to $2.14b but revenue fell 4% to $326m thanks to a string of favorites living up to their reputations. Here too, online wagering enjoyed significant gains, with turnover up 20.2% to an all-time high. Digital wagers accounted for 28.8% of overall turnover, up from 24.8% a year ago.

Tatts says its repositioned UBET wagering brand is performing above expectations. Tatts upgraded 54 wagering outlets to the new UBET format during H1, and these operations achieved double-digit turnover growth compared to their non-refurbished peers in surrounding locales.

Tatts’ three gaming operations all showed “pleasing momentum,” with the Maxgaming electronic gaming services division reporting revenue up 1.5% to $59.8m although earnings were flat at $32.5m. The UK-based Talarius slots business saw revenue rise 30% to $77.1m and earnings improve 31% to $11m, while the Bytecraft technical support services unit reported revenue up 1% to $51.8m and earnings more than doubled to $3m following the termination of some unprofitable contracts.

Tatts said trading in the first six weeks of H2 was “trending strongly,” with lotteries benefiting from still more large jackpots while UBET turnover was up 4%. Tatts plans to further bolster UBET with a cash-out feature for multi-bets, the rollout of next generation self-service betting terminals as well as new virtual sports and racing games.

Tatts CEO Robbie Cooke said the momentum the company was experiencing from its digital initiatives was “truly exciting.” The company’s websites are averaging 3.5m visits per month, while Tatts apps have been downloaded to over 1m mobile devices, double the sum from the previous year. Cooke claims the company will continue to unlock “significant value” from its digital connections in the years to come.




Tatts Enjoys “Exceptionally Strong Online Traction” | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com

The Portuguese online gambling market has resembled a spaghetti western for some time now.

The doors of the once vibrant online gambling halls are hanging from their rusted hinges; tumbleweed rolls down the dusty streets, the good guys have gone, and the undesirables have pitched up a few tents in the hope of grabbing the attention of those that are stuck.

It’s been more than six months since the likes of PokerStars, Full Tilt, and William Hill decided to shut up shop and leave the Portuguese market. It wasn’t a Bridges of Madison goodbye, more of a ‘see you soon’ sort of farewell.

The Portuguese had work to do. They needed to build a new online gambling regime. Those doing business at the time felt it would be sensible to leave and let them get on with it, vowing to return when all was shiny and new.

According to Pokerfuse, that might happen very soon – March in fact. The poker news site picked up this fresh green shoot of growth from a Portuguese website called PokerPT, where it was reported the Serviço de Regulação e Inspeção de Jogos (SRIJ) were busy putting their software through the final rounds of testing.

While it’s great news for some, there are others who won’t bat an eyelid. In Dec, Portugal’s SRIJ Director and Head of Online Gambling, Manuela Bandeira, brought tears to the eyes of every Portuguese online poker player, after announcing, out of the blue, that the new online poker regime would be a ring-fenced one.

A month later and the Associação Nacional de Apostadores Online (ANAon) – a group established to protect the interests of online gamblers in Portugal – announced that their members would boycott all new sites offered licenses under the new regime. The move was in protest of Bandeira’s decision to follow the blind mole rats leading the charge in France, Italy and Spain.

According to reports, at least, 11 operators applied for licenses back in November.



Portugal’s Online Gambling Market May See New Licensure in March : CalvinAyre-com

I think that a boycott is necessary.

New Jersey

New Jersey’s online gambling industry set a new record this year when January’s revenue reached $14.6 million, 26.5% more than the revenue from January 2015. This is the highest amount of earnings the industry has generated since it was legalized in November 2013.

New Jersey’s lofty numbers are even more impressive considering that their online poker market is not doing well. While online casino revenue grew by a total of 34.6%, online poker revenue decreased by 6.4%, reaching a total of only $2.15 million.

Breakdown of New Jersey Online Gambling Sites

Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa is leading the pack of New Jersey casinos. When compared with January 2015, Borgata’s online casino revenue saw a 36% increase, while their online poker revenue saw a decrease of 6%.

Caesars Interactive Entertainment also saw an increase in their casino revenue between January 2015 and January 2016, to the tune of 16%.

Tropicana saw a year-on-year increase, while the Golden Nugget’s revenue remained static and Resorts Digital Gaming, which didn’t exist in January 2015, saw a month-to-month increase between December 2015 and January 2016.

Delaware

While Delaware’s online gambling market has always lagged behind New Jersey, this month they too saw a rather large increase in revenue - 44%. But like New Jersey, while their online casino revenue rises, their poker revenue is falling.

California

Online gambling has been in the hot seat in California for years already; this week showed some progress as key tribal gaming groups met, while additionally, a new draft of legislation was released. The new draft made amendments to California Assemblyman Adam Gray’s proposed bill which would offer state racetracks up to $60 million in annual payments in exchange for not being part of California’s regulated online poker market.

The bill requires ⅔ of the vote in order to pass; as of now, it is difficult to tell whether the bill will have a real chance at being passed or not.



Weekly US Online Gambling News Round-Up | Online Casino Reports

Licens are great for players it means the site is approved of the government.

It looks good what i can see!!

Kansspelautoriteit once again warns operators that Dutch online gambling advertising jeopardizes license applications.
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Netherlands

The Dutch Gaming Regulator has published a guidance note that advises operators that advertising can only promote legal regulated gambling services to Dutch citizens.

As new laws that regulate online gambling in the Netherlands have yet to come into force, all online gambling is considered outside the law. Therefore, the note stipulates, advertising on all online gambling is currently prohibited.

The Netherlands’ Gaming Regulator Kansspelautoriteit (KSA) has published a guidance note that warns gambling operators that advertising can only promote regulated gambling services to Dutch residents.

And since the Dutch government’s plans to regulate the online gambling market are unlikely to come into effect until 2017, it means that ads on online gambling is illegal. For now, the rules would greatly benefit land-based operators, pending the opening of the online gambling market.

“Since advertising has to lead to legal offers, it is now illegal to advertise online gambling,” KSA said in the note. “Advertising that serves to generate a favorable impression of a particular online gaming business is also not permitted.”

The note reiterated the standards and practices for the internet betting industry in the Netherland, which was announced in June 2015. The standards, described to be critical to protecting Dutch Consumers ahead of the introduction of the Netherlands new online gambling bill, were implemented throughout all Dutch media channels including digital, print, radio and television.

The Dutch government have spent a great deal of effort blocking their citizens from betting on international sites. It even tried to block online gamblers by blacklisting a host of sites and insisted that the country’s banks shouldn’t deal with them at all, but the banks refused. At the moment, many online gambling operators treat the Netherlands as a grey market: one in which they still operate because Dutch gaming laws do not sufficiently address online gambling one way or another.

According to State Secretary for Security and Justice Klaas Dijkhoff, online gambling sites would be able to obtain five-year licenses. In most cases, licensees would have to be based within the European Union or the European Economic Area. More than 200 online gambling businesses have already inquired about the possibility of getting licensed, according to KSA.


[CENTER]Advertisement promoting unregulated gambling services in Netherland is prohibited.[/CENTER]




Dutch regulator bans all online gambling ads : CalvinAyre-com

Daily fantasy sports operators got a rare opportunity to celebrate on Wednesday as Virginia legislators approved a bill to regulate DFS.

On Wednesday, the Virginia General Assembly approved SB 646, aka the Fantasy Contests Act, which now requires only Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s signature to become law. The vote marks the first time a pro-DFS bill has progressed to this stage since the industry imploded last October.

SB 646 requires DFS operators to pay a $50k registration fee, while registered DFS sites must ensure that all their players are over 18 years of age and that player funds are segregated from operating capital. Operators must also submit to an annual audit by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

SB 646 exempts DFS from the state’s list of illegal gambling no-no’s, but the bill’s language arguably authorizes other types of ‘skill-based’ contests involving sporting events – such as prop bets – that could lead the federal government to conclude that the state is in violation of the 1992 PASPA sports betting prohibition. But for the moment, anyway, it’s progress.

NEW YORK DFS BILL SETS HIGH HURDLE FOR ENTRY
This week saw DFS operators DraftKings and FanDuel file their latest paperwork in their legal fight for survival with New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who ordered both companies to cease & desist operations in his state last November based on his belief that they’re illegal gambling operators under state law.

This week also saw New York state Sen. John Bonacic throw DFS a lifeline by introducing a new bill to regulate the activity. Bonacic’s S 6793 (read it here) would exempt DFS from the state’s definition of gambling activities and establish a Fantasy Sports Contests Division within the Financial Frauds and Consumer Protection Unit.

Unlike other DFS ‘consumer protection’ bills, S 6793 establishes a tax rate on DFS revenue. New York-approved operators would pay 15% of revenue derived from New York players and operators would need to submit a $500k deposit against future tax obligations, a hurdle that could preclude smaller DFS operators from horning in on DraftKings and FanDuel’s turf.

S 6793 would bar DFS operators from offering contests on college sports or horseracing events. Players would have to be 18 years of age or older to play, and operators would have to establish an undetermined maximum number of entries any DFS player could enter into a single contest.

Operators would have to segregate player funds from operating capital and shield player funds from being swallowed up by operator bankruptcy, financial risk and criminal or civil damage claims.

S 6793 stands a much better chance of progressing than the state’s other DFS bills, in part because Bonacic chairs the state Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee. Bonacic is also backing a new online poker bill that received a favorable vote from his committee earlier this month.




Virginia First State To Approve Daily Fantasy Sports Legislation | Online Gambling News : CalvinAyre-com