Daily Archives: April 12, 2017

Later this year Atlantic City gamblers will be able to boldly go where no gamer has gone before.

New York-headquartered GameCo has entered into a license agreement with CBS Consumer Products to produce skill-based gambling video games based on the Star Trek franchise.

As South Jersey tries to diversify its economy to escape the painful lessons of over-relianc

Set to debut in the fall, GameCos first game under the license agreement, Star Trek Deep Space Nine Adventure.

The first game will let players take the helm of the U.S.S. Defiant and fight others in ship-to-ship combat.

The gambling platform allows a players skill in video games to determine the payout and winnings, while maintaining the same casino economics as slot machines.

The company released the first video game-based gambling machines last year at Caesars three Atlantic City properties and at Tropicana Atlantic City.

The Star Trek game will feature 3D models of the spacecraft aimed to attract fans of both Star Trek and the space combat genre. Future games will be based on other Star Trek series including the Original Series, The Next Generation, Voyager and Enterprise.

GameCo, which is privately owned, says it will release at least 10 more titles in 2017, including games based on Paramounts Mission Impossible, Paranormal and Ferris Bueller, as well as Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

The industry has been trying to attract younger gamblers by offering them something outside the scope of traditional slot machines.

Read more here:

Star Trek gambling coming to Atlantic City - Press of Atlantic City

A new study shows that nearly 70 percent of people in Finland want the government to keep its monopoly on gambling, according to an Yle-commissioned poll.

Citizens still prefer the state having control over gambling, despite arguments made in recent years against that setup. The size of the gambling market in Finland is more than 2.5 billion, which includes lotteries and casino games, both live and online.

Gambling is big in the country, as it ranks within the top 10 gambling nations in the world.

The country has produced some of the most feared high-stakes players over the years, including all-time online poker money earner Patrik Antonius, online greats Sami Kelopuro, Jens Kyllnen and Ilari Sahamies, as well as tournament star Juha Helppi.

Online gaming is becoming big business there. According to Gaming Zion, the average Finn spends 14 per week gambling. According to recent studies, as many as 80 percent of adult Finns gamble at least once a year.

At the height of the poker boom, there were an estimated 125,000 online poker players in Finland. Online poker first became regulated in the country in 2010.

In 2017 the best Finnish online casinos are set to have a banner year. Same goes for other games available on mobile.

The Finnish company Next Games in March became the first Finnish gaming company to go public, according to a report from Reuters. Next Games is behind The Walking Dead mobile game. Additionally, the Finnish games-maker Rovio Entertainment is behind the hit Angry Birds.

See the article here:

Finns Want State To Keep Gambling Monopoly - CardPlayer.com

CHAMPAIGN The city council voted Tuesday to allow two newly licensed video-gambling establishments to set up terminals, while noting that the negative effects of video gambling should continue to be addressed.

The vote amends a moratorium prohibiting new liquor licensees, which aren't regulated separately from gambling providers, from having terminals. It also extends the moratorium's expiration date from June 7 to July 18 "to allow council sufficient time to conduct a study session to consider the options for a longer-term video-gaming moratorium," according to a city report.

Deputy city manager Matt Roeschley confirmed that the amendment is a one-time thing. The two establishments, as of Feb. 21, didn't have liquor-license applications on file but had submitted a building-permit application and had invested at least $25,000 into it.

"The moratorium detrimentally impacts new businesses that ... are not eligible to provide new gaming but had already made substantial financial investments toward the establishment of gaming," according to the city report.

All council members voted for this except council member Clarissa Nickerson Fourman. She said one of the applicants, the Lucky Diamond establishment at 920 W. Bradley Ave., is in a poorly lit area with a crime-ridden past. The other establishment is Libby's Lounge at 905 S. Neil St., Suite A.

"I don't want to deny the other (establishment), but I'm uncomfortable with this being in this location and I have very high concerns," Fourman said.

Other council members said they wanted to approve the amendment and address concerns like Fourman's in the future.

"I'd be remiss if we don't keep our eye on the fact that (gaming) is a definite issue in our community and I look to have spirited discussion on this when it comes back to study session in July," council member Greg Stock said.

There was no public comment before the council voted on the amendment, and council member Matt Gladney encouraged residents to make themselves heard, especially at the summer study session.

"Sometimes we don't hear from people until after we've voted," Gladney said. "If you have an opinion about this, feel free to contact us. I'm willing to hear from people who have opinions from the other side."

In other business, the council also unanimously approved an engineering agreement, not to exceed $1,237,540, with Champaign's Farnsworth Group Inc. for final design and floodplain remapping of Boneyard Creek's upper area. This is part of the Boneyard Creek North Branch improvements project.

Also, Champaign Township supervisor Andy Quarnstorm announced Tuesday that the township is now participating in the C-U Fresh Start program to curb gun violence. The program launched last fall and has been at work in Champaign and Urbana so far. Quarnstorm said the township has received some funding to help those in the program put down their guns and rebuild their lives.

Continued here:

Champaign council OKs video gambling at 2 more businesses - Champaign/Urbana News-Gazette

The most notorious outlaws of the Wild West were never without a firearm while gambling in a saloon. Everything from derringers to pocket pistols were concealed. Gambling and firearms soon became an infamous pair in the Old West. Cowboys loved the thrill of gambling so much that they even created traveling gambling boxes for when they were out on the trail. These cases carried cards, dice, chips and some even had a roulette wheel. These traveling gambling boxes are so rare now that they have become a high valued collectors item. American Legacy Firearms is proud to resurrect that concept and add some character with an exclusive engraved firearm.

With its leather covered corners and classic brass locks, the case can easily be mistaken for your everyday briefcase. Once you open the lid, the classic Western crushed red velvet interior will capture your eyes. The case is designed to hold the cards, poker chips and dice complete. Each compartment is snug so that it can be taken everywhere. Below all of the gambling accessories however lies the heart and soul of the case; A stainless steel Ruger Vaquero .45 Long Colt that is ornately engraved with the iconic symbols of gambling. Engravings of the Dead Mans Hand from the Wild Bill Hickock tale and the royal flush are some of the custom engravings on the gun.

The revolver comes with the birds head grips which were a concealed carry style in the Old West. Situated beside the revolver is a 5 oz flask that can be personalized with a phrase or sentence of your choice. The engravings capture the spirit of the game and make a unique addition to any gambler. This is the most unique gambling set available today! From your firearm to your flask, you have it all in one case! Whether youre looking to own a rare firearm set or wanting to add something exclusive to the man cave, this gambler case is for you!

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Sponsored Post Presented By

American Legacy Firearms opened its doors in 2004. Since then, we constantly strive to be the leaders in our corner of the gun industry. Our goal has always been to deliver quality engraved firearms at an affordable price. We believe in art with a bang- the idea that paper and canvas are not the only medium available for creating a piece of art that you can hang on your wall.

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The Gambler: An Ode to Gambling in the Wild West - duPont REGISTRY (blog)

The announcement the NFL Oakland Raiders will move to Las Vegas in two years looks to be a major step in eliminating the barriers between pro sport and gambling that have existed nearly a century since baseballs Black Sox scandal of 1919.

There were days not long ago when the National Football League feared its players even paying a visit to Las Vegas.

And they werent alone. The mere thought of Sin City intersecting with operations of any major sports league sent the billable hours of their public-relations machines spiraling out of control.

Not any more.

The announcement the Oakland Raiders will move to Las Vegas in two years looks to be a major step in eliminating the barriers between pro sports and gambling that have existed nearly a century since baseballs Black Sox scandal of 1919.

At least, thats how Geoff Freeman sees it. As president of the American Gaming Association, trade representative aka lobby group for the nations casino industry, he views the Raiders move as confirmation of sports betting having gone mainstream.

I think it speaks to the mainstream nature of the industry and why youre seeing greater comfort in working more closely with the industry, Freeman said. Already, in the case of the NFL, you have 28 of the 32 teams within an hour of an existing casino. And so, the omnipresence of the industry has changed the outlook on the industry.

And thats a big deal, especially when you consider Pete Rose remains ineligible for the National Baseball Hall of Fame because he bet on games nearly 30 years ago.

The 1992 federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) allows sports gaming only in Nevada, Delaware, Oregon and Montana. As a result, Freeman says, there is a thriving illegal market encompassing 97 percent of the $150 billion his group estimates is bet annually on sports.

Freeman says the integrity fears that accompany the idea of mixing sports and gambling can be better policed through regulation. The bigger threat, he adds, is an unregulated environment in which illicit entities control the market and are not easily tracked via online data.

He says states in the business of regulating other forms of gambling have proven to be effective regulators.

The NFL isnt the first league to put a team in Vegas, but definitely the most powerful. The Las Vegas 51s, a Class AAA affiliate of the New York Mets, have been around 34 years in various incarnations after moving from of all places Spokane. But the major pro teams didnt show up until last year, when the NHL awarded the expansion Golden Knights as its 31st franchise opening play this fall.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver had already raised eyebrows in 2014 when he declared he felt legalized sports betting was inevitable and leagues would benefit from a regulated version of it. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred upped the ante in 2015 by partnering with the daily fantasy sports site DraftKings, whose operations have been likened to gambling.

Through it all, the NFL seemed the lone holdout, even drawing the line at fantasy sports partnerships. Skeptics note the league has for years published weekly injury reports either to depending on your level of cynicism encourage gambling around games or discourage the providing of inside information by players.

But the league, even with daily fantasy ads splattered across its television broadcasts in 2015, had drawn a firm line in not partnering with those companies. Now, with an NFL team about to be smack dab in the hub of the nations legal gambling universe, the argument for separation between sport and bet becomes tougher.

A poll commissioned by the AGA of 1,334 Seahawks fans over a two-week period in December and January found nearly three times as many favored legalizing sports betting than opposed it.

The Morning Consult poll with a margin for error of 3 percent found 48 percent of Seahawks fans favored legalized sports gaming, 17 percent opposed it and 35 percent were undecided or had no opinion.

The AGA has long lobbied for the repeal of PASPA and was joined in October by former NBA commissioner David Stern, who reversed his stance on the issue and sided with successor Silver. A month later, the election of casino magnate Donald Trump as U.S. president further buoyed those arguing PASPA isnt in step with American views.

The reasons for leagues getting involved are obvious. Even a fraction of the overall sports-gaming pie could help leagues double annual revenues. And Freeman makes no bones about daily fantasy sports paving the way for leagues to partner directly with gaming interests.

Daily fantasy sports has been and will continue to be a gift for the introduction of regulated sports betting, he said. People recognize daily fantasy sports for what it is, first of all. But then secondly, it really awoke the leagues, owners, broadcasters and others as to the potential of generating more fan affinity for these games. And thats been remarkable.

We know people are engaged in the games. We know they are likely to consume more of the games. We know that people who fill out brackets are more likely to watch the NCAA tournament.

So, going from that to leagues actually allowing fans to place bets on their websites isnt much of a leap. Freeman feels the NFL doing due diligence and allowing a team into Las Vegas represents the most reticent of leagues slowly joining the rest.

He calls this a perfect storm of politicians, leagues and law enforcement coming together to demand a regulated betting environment and expects PASPA to be repealed during Trumps first term.

And once that happens, all bets are off as to how far leagues might take it.

Excerpt from:

Barriers between pro sports and gambling appear to be falling - The Seattle Times

Police arrested 20 people in an illegal gambling den in a cooked food center in an Aberdeen market late on Tuesday evening in the Southern District of Hong Kong Island.

At 11:10pm, 11 men and three women, aged between 20 and 60, were arrested on suspicion of gambling outside of registered venues at Yue Kwong Road Market Cooked Food Center, Apple Daily reported. In Hong Kong, gambling is only allowed in registered venues such as mahjong parlors and branches of the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

Six other men was arrested for allegedly operating the gambling den, which had been open for a month.

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After business hours, the food center became a gambling den, offering mainly Chinese poker and three kings, police said.

The gambling den was hidden behind canvas, while guards used walkie-talkies to communicate with the croupier at the table inside, Oriental Daily reported. Some of the people arrested had triad society backgrounds, the police said.

Officers from the special duties, anti-triad and crime units conducted the raid in a joint operation. A gambling table, HK$5,000 (US$643) in cash, a deck of cards and three sets of walkie-talkies were seized.

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20 arrested after raid on gambling den in Aberdeen - Asia Times