Featured Articles Archive - Page 144

California Assemblyman amends DFS bill

California State Assemblyman Adam Gray has amended legislation to regulate the daily fantasy sports (DFS) industry. The amended version of AB 1437, now titled the Fantasy Sports Game Protection Act, would require DFS sites to be licensed and regulated in the state.Oversight of the DFS industry would be handled by the California Department of Justice.Read and track the progress of AB 1437 here.The bill would require DFS businesses to pay a licensing fee to the state that would be credited against quarterly payments based on a percentage of the operator's gross revenue, though those fees are currently not specified.“We are still reviewing the bill, but we look forward to working with Chairman Gray in 2016 to educate him on fantasy sports and the benefits that our innovative technology provides to sports-loving residents and the California economy,” Paul Charchian, president of the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, told Legal Sports Report.California is now the 12th state in 2015 to consider daily fantasy sports legislation, according to Legal Sports Report...read more

Analyst: Potential MGM REIT not a good idea

One gaming analyst isn't waiting for MGM Resorts International to decide if it's a good idea to split off all or a portion of the casino company into a real estate investment trust.Susquehanna Financial Group's Rachael Rothman told investors there are better ways for MGM to grow profits."An MGM REIT would not garner the same valuation as its hotel REIT or regional gaming REIT peers," Rothman wrote in a research report last week.She cited MGM's geographic concentration — the company operates 10 resorts along the Strip — its $12.5 billion in long term debt, and the gaming industry's greater degree of volatility and cyclical nature as reasons against a REIT."MGM has significant upside," Rothman said, citing the company's resorts under development in Maryland and Massachusetts...read more

Caesars to pay $1.5 million fine for multiple errors

Caesars Palace maintained "highly deficient internal controls" inside the Strip resort's private gaming salons, had numerous lapses in its anti-money laundering program and didn't file suspicious transaction activity reports over a three-month period in 2012, according to a stipulated settlement the casino's management entered into with Nevada gaming regulators last week.Caesars Entertainment Corp...read more

Affinity Gaming selects Reganato as chairman

Casino operator Affinity Gaming said Tuesday David Reganato has been elected chairman of the company's board replacing Richard Parisi.No reason was given for the change.Both Reganato and Parisi are senior investment analysts for Connecticut-based Silver Point Capital, which is Affinity's second largest shareholder with 25.1 percent of the Las Vegas-based company...read more

Woolf, Salerno, Valbuena head Gaming Hall of Fame inductees

A long-time casino operator, a sports gambling pioneer, and a principal behind the growth of Indian casinos will be inducted into the Gaming Hall of Fame later this month as part of the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas.The American Gaming Association announced Monday that Navegante Group founder Larry Woolf, William Hill US Chairman Victor Salerno, and Lynn Valbuena of the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians in California will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on Sept...read more

Wynn: Troubled junket operator doesn't owe us money

Wynn Resorts, which has seen its stock price tumble more than 65 percent in the last few months over troubles plaguing the Macau gaming market, said Monday that funds stolen from a high-end Chinese junket operator had nothing to do with the company's casino operations.Bloomberg News first reported last week that Dore Group, which acts as a middleman in bringing big-spending gamblers to Macau casinos, was the victim of employee embezzlement and may have lost as much as much $258 million.In a statement released to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, where shares of Wynn's Chinese subsidiary are publicly traded, Wynn Resorts said Dore "owes no money to the company and continues to operate at Wynn Macau."Junket operators came under fire in the past year after the mainland Chinese government cracked down on corruption and ensnared several high-end businesses...read more

Top 10 takeaways from betting Week 1 of the NFL

Golden Nugget - Las Vegas Director of Race and Sports Tony Miller was, for all intents and purposes, speaking for his entire booking brethren late Sunday night when he posted on Twitter: "Walking out of the Nugget with my ass handed to me."Yes, it was that kind of an NFL Opening Sunday for bookmakers as the majority of public sides and totals cashed in...read more

The D majority owner part showman and successful casino operator

Derek Stevens could never pull off his antics if the privately held The D Las Vegas were publicly traded.The D's majority owner would have given the Securities and Exchange Commission fits with an in-house-produced video of a pseudo board of directors meeting posted to YouTube on Aug...read more

Casino Openings & Expansions: Cherokee Nation to open a second venue in North Carolina

The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina is doubling down on its hold in the Southeast.On Sept. 28, the Cherokees will unveil Harrah's Cherokee Valley River Casino & Hotel near Murphy, N.C., about one hour from the tribe’s other resort casino, Harrah's Cherokee Casino Resort...read more

Deal Me In: Toilets don't flush themselves

Dear Mark: It seems everywhere you go in the casino one is expected to tip. You seem to encourage it, stating in a column, “Consider it a contribution to Lady Luck.” I would like to think of myself as generous; twenty percent for food servers, slot attendants on payoffs get their share, and of course, dealers always get a piece of my winnings...read more