Featured Articles Archive - Page 439

Slot giant IGT takes server-based gaming to Europe

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Slot machine giant International Game Technology has rolled out its first European launch of the company's sbX server-based gaming system. The system, which links a casino's slot machines to a central server that allows for better game management, is similar to the system installed last year at Aria and recently at the Monte Carlo, only on a much smaller scale. Reno-based IGT installed the system at the Casino d'Evian in France, which has 300 slot machines and is located on Lake Geneva in an area best known for its local spring water. "We are delighted to be the first casino in Europe to install sbX and plan to take advantage of all that it has to offer," said Eric Perrin, managing director of Casino d'Evian. In addition to Aria and Monte Carlo, IGT has placed the server-based gaming system Ameristar St...read more

European Council needs to look forward, not back

Our attention was caught last week by the outcome of an EU Council 'progress report', though ironically, 'progress' is not the word we'd use if asked to describe the output. Firstly, the report championed the use of financial transaction and ISP blocking in a government's attempts to block illegal gambling sites, which besides being unrealistic and difficult to enforce, ignores the fact that the more barriers you put up, the harder consumers will try to find a way around them. Furthermore, when the legal alternative is so inferior to what is being offered 'illegally', the temptation for consumers to stray into the realms of the black market grows ever greater, and this is exactly the case in Member States where the monopoly provider is so inferior to the banned alternatives. We find it difficult to comprehend that rather than focusing on progression and ways to work together with licensed private operators, certain Member States are ploughing more time and effort into devising ways of keeping them out. The modern EU has no place for protectionist practices...read more

Top-10 players to watch in the WSOP Poker Player's Championship

The 2010 World Series of Poker starts this Friday with the $500 Casino Employees No Limit Hold'em event, and the much anticipated $50,000 Poker Player's Championship.The first four days of the $50,000 event will be played in an eight-game format (Limit Hold'em, Omaha Hi-Low, Razz, Seven Card Stud, Stud Hi-Low, No Limit Hold'em, Pot Limit Omaha, and 2-7 Triple Draw), and on the fifth day for the final table, the format will switch to just No Limit Hold'em.Previously the $50,000 H.O.R.S.E...read more

Looney Rooney off base on gambling stance

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- After curmudgeon commentator Andy Rooney slammed the casino industry a week ago on the CBS show "60 Minutes," gaming lobbyists took a pass taking him to task for the remarks. I won't. Rooney, who sounded like the crazy uncle relegated to the family basement, reported on the American Gaming Association's annual "State of the States" survey...read more

Governor meets with Perini officials over MGM Mirage dispute

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- In the simmering rift between casino operator MGM Mirage and general contractor Perini Building Co. over a payment dispute for CityCenter, both sides agreed on one aspect.Officials from the feuding companies want the more than 600 subcontractors and vendors caught in the middle of the legal skirmish to be paid money they are owed for work on the massive $8.5 billion Strip development.Perini recorded a lien on CityCenter's property for $490 million and filed a lawsuit seeking payment...read more

Are alternate place bets at craps as different as they seem?

Craps offers a veritable smorgasbord of alternate bets. The wealth of wagers from which players can pick is both a strength and a weakness. Strength because of the ways bettors can tailor the action to suit their personal preferences. Weakness because the diversity of features can make comparisons confusing. For the majority of solid citizens, though, the essence of the game is remarkably consistent...read more

LV Sands closes $1.75 billion in financing for Macau

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Las Vegas Sands Corp. took a step toward restarting the company's Cotai Strip projects in Macau today, announcing it had closed $1.75 billion in project financing through its Chinese subsidiary. Sands China Ltd. will use the funds to complete construction on the combined Shangri-La, Traders, and Sheraton resort complex on Cotai, which will add 6,000 hotel rooms to the region. Company spokesman Ron Reese said preliminary work has already begun. Las Vegas Sands halted construction of its Cotai Strip developments in November 2008 when the company ran into financial difficulties and had restructure its long-term debt...read more

Deal Me In: I'd gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today

Dear Mark: This is not a new money management method, but it is relatively new for me to use at video poker. Now that the machines operate off currency and tickets instead of coins, it is pretty easy to set a winning limit, cash in, put the profits away in one pocket and continue play with the original bankroll...read more

Internet gambling deposit tax a bone of contention in Ways and Means hearing

This morning, the House Committee on Ways and Means held a hearing on the taxation of Internet gambling proposed by Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) in the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2010. McDermott introduced the bill as a companion to a bill sponsored by Rep...read more

Nevada Gaming Board member not opposed to online wagering

LAS VEGAS, Nevada -- Nevada Gaming Control Board Member Randall Sayre said he isn't opposed to online wagering. "I've got nothing against Internet gambling. I have no dog in the fight with regards to whether it's good or bad," Sayre told GamblingCompliance, an online publication based in the United Kingdom which covers the casino industry...read more