Category Archives: Gambling

Despite strict limits on the number of patrons allowed on gaming floors, Marylands casinos reported combined gaming revenue in September that was slightly higher than a year ago. It's the first time that's happened since February.

Despite strict limits on the number of patrons allowed on gaming floors, Marylands casinos reported combined gaming revenue in September that was slightly higher than a year ago. Its the first time thats happened since February.

Marylands six casinos generated $143.7 million in gaming revenue in September, up 1% compared to September 2019. Maryland will collect $59.7 million of that for various state programs, up about 1%. The states Education Trust Fund gets $43.4 million of that.

Gaming revenue at MGM National Harbor, the states largest casino, was $57.5 million in September, down .4% from last September.

Live! Casino & Hotel had $49.2 million in gaming revenue last month, up 3% from a year ago.

Baltimores Horseshoe Casino had $17.6 million in September gaming revenue, down 5.1%.

The states three smaller casinos all had year-over-year gains:

Marylands casinos are operating at a maximum 50% capacity, and not all on-property bars, restaurants and retail stores have reopened.

MGM National Harbor slashed its workforce by 25%, or almost 780 jobs, in August.

Maryland Lottery and Gaming posts monthly and year-to-date gaming revenue distributions online.

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Pandemic first for Maryland casinos: More gambling than a year ago - WTOP

You knew fromMonday's bizarre session, when everything couldn't go up, that you couldn't have the Biden stocks-- the stocks of companies that want business in China -- and the Trump stocks -- the opening of America trade -- both work at the same time.

You knew that one had to be wrong.

But both?

That was surprising and disappointing to all of those people who have lost their jobs or are about to lose their jobs, because the enterprises they are working for don't have enough money to pay for them. The airlines? They are like milk with a past due date for their employees. You have to wonder where the 14 million people involved in the hospitality industry are going to go with their pink slips.

Maybe all of the newly unemployed can learn how to swing a hammer and hit some nails into Lennar (LEN) bought two-by-fours to take advantage of the red hot housing market.

I know there were plenty of people who just wanted to surge the wave of new money coming from Washington. This is a market that thrives on liquidity and the president just pulled the plug on the ocean of cash that seemed to be headed to peoples' pockets.

What drives this decision, one that seemed to be unthinkable as long as Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi seemed to chat daily about numbers? They seemed to be getting closer, not further away, until President Donald Trump arrived back in the White House from Walter Reed Hospital.

Plus, speaking of surprise factor, not that long before the Twitter-announced pull, Fed Chief Jay Powellsaid that he favored doing more, not less, because the possibilities of downside were worth avoiding pretty much at all costs.

I think it's a calculated risk taken by President Trump that the economy is stronger than most in Washington and Wall Street think. He's a huge believer that we have a "V"-shaped recovery and he touts it every chance he can get, includingTuesday when he said that "the stock market is at record levels," which they were nearing before he pulled the plugged on the talks.

A president who tweets, "We are leading the world in Economic Recovery and THE BEST IS YET to come" is not one who will be trifling with negotiators trying to beat the election with a deal. Plus, the president made it clear that after the election, "we will pass a major stimulus bill that focuses on hardworking Americans and Small Business."

Can the small businesses hold out until after the election? Can the airlines make it with their cascading losses? How about the hotels that are in arrears? How about the renters who won't pay and the landlords about to go into default? How about the states that are bleeding from their eyeballs because of the pandemic?

Once again, at the risk of sounding heartless -- as someone who just closed his restaurant, because how long can you afford to be a restaurant without any customers? --itwon't matter to the stock market. That's because the stock market is reflecting a triumph of big business over small business and when the smoke clears that will be evident.

Why isn't the president much more worried than he is, and why is he more confident than Jay Powell about the economy?

I think it's because his aides are conscious that there are lots of areas of the economy that are red-hot and will stay red hot regardless of the stimulus. Let's just call them the non-stimulus-needing portions of the economy that rely on people who has jobs, not the ones who don't.

First among these are homes. As long as pandemic rages, there is going to be an exodus from cities to the suburbs and those people need homes. Of course, if you are out of work these low interest rates mean nothing to you. But if you have a job, you can use those low rates to buy a home and furnish it to your heart's content. This bull market could get crushed, if rates were going higher, but rates are sinking on the last of stimulus, so there's not much that's going to undermine this one. I like the housing stocks and I like the stocks of companies that are in the aisles of Home Depot (HD) and Lowe's (LOW) .

Speaking of Home Depot and Lowe's, they are real winners of a lack of stimulus, because many small businesses that were hoping for stimulus have now seen their hopes dashed and they can shut their doors. Target (TGT) , Walmart (WMT) and Costco (COST) are huge beneficiaries of a lack of stimulus. You can't get stronger than these guys, nowthat the remaining competition has to fold.

I absolutely love these stocks, because the lack of competition, and the share donating by loser department stores and small business people trying to make it to Christmas will continue with reckless abandon. This is also a huge win for the dollar stores, because that's where those who struggle to make ends meet do their shopping.

How about the autos? Did you see Group 1 Automotive (GPI) on Tuesday? I mean that thing was on fire, because sales were that strong, as strong as those of Carvana (CVNA) , AutoNation (AN) , Lithia Motors (LAD) and CarMax (KMX) . These are mostly used-car outfits -- precisely what you need if you aren't commuting to the office anymore, lest you have to go on public transit or carpool. The president may have little fear of Covid, but if you car pool or take public transit, you aren't going back to the office. You are buying a used car. You want to stretch the field? Buy the stock of Ford (F) , which is at the beginning of a nascent turnaround.

Needless to say, if you have enough money and you have a job you are back on your Peloton (PTON) , which is a boring, but worthwhile theme. You are still making use of the internet for shopping and you are getting a chance to buy some Amazon (AMZN) , right ahead of Amazon Prime on Oct. 13 and 14. You wouldn't see Federal Express (FDX) and United Parcel (UPS) up if that theme had gone bad.

And don't forget Yum! Brands (YUM) , Darden (DRI) and Chipotle (CMG) , the first two of which were down Monday as they are anti-stimulus stocks. That's because stimulus keeps the little restaurant alive until the vaccinearrives,and the latter is the last man standing.

Now, I don't want to be too glib here. Numbers will have to come down for a bunch of companies, but not much when it comes to technology, because technology supports the enterprise not individuals. You can watch until those sink a little lower and then pick some up. There will be people who say we will go into a recession, which I disagree with, but your buy list is shorter: Pepsico (PEP) , which just reported a great quarter, Conagra (CAG) , the same and Campbells (CPB) , too cheap to ignore. I like Bristol-Myers (BMY) and Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and Regeneron (REGN) when it comes to the recession-proof drug companies.

But don't out think it. This is a stock market that's filled with, and caters to, people who have jobs and work at solvent or growing businesses. There is a V-shaped recovery in homes. There is a U -recovery in autos. There was never even a downturn in Walmart, Amazon, Costco, Target, Home Depot and Lowe's.

They all work. As do the food and drugs and the stay-at-home, work-at-home Cramer Covid-19 stocks, because as much as it looked good that the president ripped of his mask, most of us will be putting them on extra tight this fall.

The rest of the companies? What can I say? You don't buy stocks in the small- and medium-sized businesses and you were never going to invest in Bar San Miguel, anyway.

(COST, UPS, AMZN, PEP, BMY, JNJare holdings in Jim Cramer's Action Alerts PLUS member club. Want to be alerted before Jim Cramer buys or sells these stocks? Learn more now.)

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Jim Cramer: Here's Why the President Is Gambling With Stimulus - RealMoney

Top 3 Online Gambling Countries: Which Markets are the Biggest?Online gambling is a massive industry that spans the globe and employs hundreds of thousands of people. While the industry is global, there are certainly some markets that are bigger and more valuable than others, while others restrict online gambling to a point where it cant be considered as a legitimate industry at all.

We set out to find out which online gambling markets are the biggest and most valuable and which countries offer online casino operators the biggest opportunity for success. We included two of the current best markets for online gambling as well as the biggest up and coming market, which is the USA.

United States of America: The Great Up and Comer

The USA is not only one of the most populous countries in the world but also one of the richest. Besides that, the high percentage of people using the internet and mobile devices means that access to online gambling is available to nearly every adult American, provided online gambling operators are allowed to offer their services.

United Kingdom: Highly Regulated Online Gambling

United Kingdom has long been an absolute paradise for online gambling operators, considered British bookies above all else. All these major online gambling operators have been offering their services for year in the UK and the market has been growing steadily over the years.

The UK online gambling market raked in over 13 Billion GBP between April 2016 and May 2017 in gross yield and the numbers have continued to grow even further. With over 100,000 people working in the gambling sector in the UK, the country can easily be considered as the number one market for online gambling in the world.

One of the great reasons for the success of the online gambling industry in the UK is certainly the high spending capacity of the Brits, who dont mind chucking a portion of their hard earned salary to have some fun playing online gambling games. The tradition of sports betting in the UK is a long and powerful one, while online casino games have also caught on quite a bit. The UKGC remains the worlds number one licensing body for online gambling and some recent regulations may have a negative impact on the operators bottom line in the long run.

Europe: A Continent That Loves to Gamble

While some may associate Asia with gambling because of clichs, online gambling statistics are showing that Europe is in fact the continent most obsessed with this hobby. Of course, every country in Europe is a different story, but the wealthier Western nations all come quite high on the list of the countries that gamble online the most.

Scandinavians are at the top of the list with Sweden, Norway and Finland all falling in love with online slots and leading the way in European spend in these games. Germany, France, Netherlands and others also feature a high number of players and a reasonably high average bet size. Some of the European countries such as Sweden have set certain limits on online gambling during the coronavirus pandemic, but these are likely to be lifted at a later date.

Players from European countries tend to gamble at MGA licensed operators and while some countries now issue licenses of their own, many players continue to gamble at international operators with licenses in Curacao, Kahnawake and others.

Europe has been and remains one of the worlds premier markets for online gambling and the worlds seat of power for online gambling is situated in Malta, which is a part of the European Union. As such, all EU citizens are more or less able to gamble at MGA casinos and sportsbooks and are heavily targeted with ads from worlds leading gambling operators.

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Online Gambling: The Top 3 Markets Around the World - The Jerusalem Post

Most large sports events came to an abrupt halt during the pandemic, but one category was not only unaffected but enjoyed accelerated growth: esports. Esports is the competitive playing of video games such as League of Legends, Fortnite and Fifa Football.

The audiences for the biggest titles are now enormous. Fortnite alone has around 78 million monthly players and professional tournaments draw in many millions of online spectators. League of Legends World Championship attracted over 100 million viewers in 2019 with a peak of 44 million. In comparison, the Wimbledon mens final 2019 peaked at around 9 million viewers.

Its not just the size of the audience thats different, its also their age. The average tennis spectator is 61, whereas esports spectators are on average 26.

Major bookmakers such as PaddyPower, Bet365 and Betway, along with many niche operators, are now offering bets on esports tournaments. Monthly esports betting revenues for UK operators rose 30-fold between March 2019 and March 2020, and by June they had more than doubled again.

The global esports betting market is expected to be worth up to $15 billion (12 billion) this year, compared with less than US$6 billion in 2016. This explosive growth has been fuelled by online advertising, which almost tripled during lockdown.

Esports Counter Strike global event in Moscow, September 2019. Roman Kosolapov

The danger is that younger people are being drawn to gamble on esports. In 2019, 17% of esports gamblers were aged 18-24. In general, more and more UK 16-34-year-olds are gambling, and the average age of gamblers is decreasing. The number of problem gamblers aged 11-16 has also quadrupled to more than 50,000 in just two years. This comes at a time when93% of UK children play video games, averaging three hours a day and a growing number also follow professional esports teams.

There is scant research into whether esports gaming leads to gambling, but our study in 2019 found children heavily engaged with tweets from esports bookmakers and their affiliates. And regulators cant keep up. During the recent House of Lords inquiry into gambling, Guy Parker, chief executive of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), admitted he finds it almost impossible to track and regulate online gambling advertising.

Our research, sponsored by GambleAware and in collaboration with Ipsos MORI, the thinktank Demos and the University of Sussex, analysed 880,000 tweets from 417 UK-based accounts related to gambling operators. We looked at data from their 621,000 UK-based followers, and the 166,969 UK-based individuals who engaged with these tweets by commenting, liking or sharing them. We analyzed tweets related to both traditional sports and esports betting, with the latter making up about a tenth of the accounts studied.

We identified three particular concerns. First, people following esport gambling accounts are very young. We found that 17% of followers were under 16, and another 69% were aged 16-23. In other words, 85% of esports betting-account followers are under 24. The same is true for those commenting on, liking or sharing these tweets: 28% were under 16, and 66% were aged 16-23.

Second, the advertising techniques used by gambling operators are somewhat different from those used for traditional sports (with an older audience). Rather than getting people to sign up or make impulsive gambles by offering free bets, matched bets or sign-up bonuses, esports betting appears to concentrate much more on tweets that are funny, using gifs, memes and esports insider-knowledge.

This content doesnt look like a hard sell or an incitement to gamble. Children might not even realise it is commercial content designed to make them part with their money, and might do little to resist.

Funny stuff is also highly shareable. As these posts are circulated on social media, more children who may have previously had no interest in gambling are inadvertently looped in. So while gambling is illegal for many engaging with these adverts, with a minimum age of 18 in the UK, a positive image is slowly and implicitly building in the back of their minds.

Third, when our researchers analyzed a sample of all the tweets in depth, many appeared to contravene the UKs CAP gambling advertising code. We found esports gambling tweets that used cartoons and animated characters, associated themselves with youth culture or featured esports stars under 25 years old. All of this activity breaches the code.

Other research has highlighted issues with gambling advertising potentially appealing to children, but our focus on esports highlights a worrying trend that has been under the radar of researchers and policymakers.

With the pandemic unlikely to disappear soon, esports playing, following and betting will continue to grow. We need to act now to stop social-media advertising turning childrens gaming into gambling.

After reading our research, the Gambling Commission and ASA sent all UK esports betting operators a reminder of the advertising rules, and published a response to the findings pointing out that many tweets were from non-UK operators and therefore beyond the remit of the CAP code.

However, we found that it is possible in many cases for children to click through to non-UK sites and open accounts by saying they are 18, highlighting a major effectiveness issue with a UK-focused code in a world of international social media. We also believe that the ASA needs to call more UK transgressors to account with sanctions for those who fail to comply.

In our view, the rules do not adequately address the peculiarities of social-media marketing, where funny content can quickly and effectively make esports betting more appealing to children and normalise the link between popular games and gambling. An awareness campaign for parents is also needed. Many parents might know that their children are playing esports in their bedrooms or following professional tournaments, but most are probably unaware of the strong link with betting. Last but not least, we also need a lot more research.

Asked to comment, a spokesperson for the Betting and Gaming Council, which represents most operators in the UK betting industry, said:

We are committed to driving up standards in the betting and gaming industry. It is illegal for anyone under 18 to bet with any of our members and we operate strict age and identification measures to prevent anyone underage accessing these products.

We have also taken further steps to prevent young people from seeing betting adverts. From October 1, the updated industry code for socially responsible advertising means that all sponsored or paid-for adverts on search engines must make clear the products are only for those aged over 18, while YouTube users will need to have age-verified accounts before they can view betting adverts. BGC members will also have to frequently post responsible betting messages on their Twitter accounts.

We look forward to the governments forthcoming gambling review, which we hope will lead to a crackdown on black market operators who have no interest in safer gambling or protecting their customers and do not work to the same responsible standards as BGC members.

This article is republished from The ConversationbyRaffaello Rossi, Doctoral Researcher in Marketing, University of Bristol and Agnes Nairn, Professor of Marketing, University of Bristolunder a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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How esports is quietly spawning a whole new generation of problem gamblers - The Next Web

BeGambleAware is a charity that aims to keep people safe from gambling harms by offering tools and tips to help recognise the risks associated with it

Betting on sports is a popular activity around the world but it is all too easy to find yourself becoming addicted to gambling and betting impulsively, which can lead to Bet Regret.

Bet Regret is that sinking feeling you get the minute you make an impulsive bet, often when drunk, bored or chasing losses.

BeGambleAware is a charity that provides information to help people gamble safely and keep people safe from gambling harms, and they have ten top tips to help you gamble safely.

Gambling should be seen as a form of entertainment, much like going to the cinema. The venue, whether it be a casino or a cinema, is designed to take your money in exchange for you enjoying yourself for a couple of hours. They are not there for you to take money from them.

Only ever gamble with disposable income and never use money that needs to be saved to pay bills or rent. It is also worth allocating a portion of that disposable income for entertainment purposes, and then use a portion of that for gambling.

Allocating a part of your disposable income for gambling allows you to have a set total. It is vitally important that when that money is gone, it is time to stop, and if you happen to win then you should not push your luck with the winnings.

It is easy to get wrapped up in gambling and lose track of time, so the best away around this is simply to set an alarm and when the alarm goes off, stop gambling.

It is no secret that casinos all around the world are free of clocks and windows, making it even easier to gamble for a long time without even realising it.

Chasing losses is one of biggest mistakes that any gambler can make as it almost invariably results in further losses. If you are chasing losses, you should be stricter with your money limit otherwise you may experience Bet Regret.

Making decisions is typically more difficult when you're stressed, upset, or otherwise emotional, and gambling is an activity that requires a clear head to ensure you remain focused and sensible.

As stated above, gambling is a form of entertainment and as with everything, a healthy balance with other activities is good to have. If gambling starts to become your only form of entertainment it can quickly take the enjoyment out of it, and that is when a problem can develop.

If you go to a casino or sportsbook, then leave your cards at home and only take cash. This enables you to be strict with your money limits as there is then no way for you to chase any losses.

Taking breaks when gambling can help you avoid Bet Regret. If you have been gambling for an extended period, it is very easy to become wrapped up in gambling and simply by tapping out of the app, you can assess whether it is worth continuing to gamble.

Drugs and alcohol cloud judgment, and they both make it incredibly difficult to make informed decisions.

BeGambleAware also provides a host of other suggestions about how to gamble safely as well as a variety of resources to help you if you or someone you know has a gambling problem.

For further information, as well as access to support and advice, visit BeGambleAware.org .

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Ten tips for gambling safely and to help avoid Bet Regret - Goal.com

Recent incidents have shown that there is a greater need to regulate the gambling industry within eSports and the remedial steps must come in the form of a collective effort from the entire eSports and gaming community.

In the last few days, a famous professional Dota 2 player has revealed that he received some borderline death threats. The player is convinced that the death threats have been made to him by people who lost money betting.

Threats being made to famous eSports professional is not very new and there have been a few incidents related to it over the years. As the industry is becoming more established and proving the fact that it is a mainstay for the future, threats being made against players by people who lose money while betting is a cause for concern.

On 2 October, Jonas 'SabeRLight' Volek revealed on Twitter that he received some unsavoury messages that could be considered as borderline death threats. He also made the claim that the messages he received are nothing compared to the messages received by some of his friends. The messages were received on the back of a defeat that his team faced in a recent online tournament.

Following this incident, another Dota 2 player, Rasmus Johan 'Chessie' Blomdin, has also come out revealing that he received threats. He stated that he has been receiving threats after every alternate defeat his team suffers in tournaments.

In the past, there have been some other incidents that left most of the community quite ashamed of the behaviour displayed by a few. Way back in 2015, team Vici Gaming received ISIS videos in their inbox along with death threats. That same year, Peter 'PPD' Dager, who is now retired, had made an appeal for people to stop betting and making death threats to players. He felt betting always brought out the worse from people.

These incidents bring up the question, is betting a problem for the eSports industry?

Betting apps have been gaining popularity in recent years. They allow fans and enthusiasts alike to place bets on not just eSports, but even traditional sports matches. The system offers odds against various predictions and allow betting on more than just the final outcome of the matches. There are many other similar apps as well as apps that feature their own private games for betting. Online Poker is one such option that has gained some favour with the masses.

The cause for concern related to betting comes into the picture when people give in to the urge and decide to place bets involving large amounts of money. The online apps do little to limit such behaviour.

The other major concern is that of gambling/betting organisations fixing matches. In 2018, there was a major scandal involving an admin from VPGame, an organisation that specialises in skin gambling (a form of gambling that uses virtual goods, which are most commonly cosmetic goods and have no impact on gameplay as a currency for gambling).

VPGame are the sister organisation of the well-known LGD-Gaming club. The perpetrator was caught attempting to rig matches by persuading a well-known South East Asian eSports team to throw matches for benefits. The incident was revealed through screenshots of the conversation.

When trying to decide whether betting is good or bad, it is rather easy to look at the situation in an overly simplistic manner and conclude it to be one of these two possibilities. In this writer's opinion, the issue is a lot more complex. Many factors need to be looked at. There are several benefits to betting and gambling operations, including the increase in popularity in brings to the eSport due to the increase in involvement for the fans.

While gambling remains legal in most countries, there are still a number of countries that have decided to do away with it altogether. A few countries who have taken steps to ban it include UAE, Japan, Cambodia, Brunei, Singapore, Qatar, Poland, Cyprus, Lebanon and North Korea.

Representational photo. Image credit: Twitter/@ESL

The issue is not as much about gambling as it is about the lack of regulations and restraint shown by some parties involved. Going forward, it is important to find methods to reduce the damage caused by these individuals. The first and most important issue that should be addressed is the need to ensure safety and peace of mind for players. This includes prompt action against those threatening the players or teams as well as the need to reduce the temptation for players to play outside the spirit of the game.

The first step in this direction would be to educate players as well as the support staff about the downsides of taking part in activities that defile the spirit of the game. Other measures could include making it necessary for people to identify themselves even for online betting and limiting the maximum amount of money and number of bets allowed.

Recent incidents have shown that there is a greater need to regulate the gambling industry within eSports and the remedial steps must come in the form of a collective effort from the entire eSports and gaming community.

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Need for collective will as eSports industry grapples with unregulated gambling - Firstpost

How would college football experts bet this weekends Miami vs. Clemson game?

The Cover 3 crew from CBS Sports shared their best bets surrounding the Miami-Clemson game on CBS HQ on Tuesday.

The Cover 3 was operating under the following lines: Clemson as a 14 point favorite and the over/under point total at 63.5 points.

How would the Cover 3 bet the game?

Here are their picks

EMORY HUNT: Two things that can help win in football is a run game and defense. That has been the tried and true formula since 1869. When you look at what Miami brings to the table is a run game and defense. They have two tremendous defensive ends and they have a quarterback that is a plus in the run game in DEriq King. I think that is enough to keep this game close. You look at what Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong did last week against this Clemson defense and I think DEriq King is that plus ten-times more. I would say take Miami and the points.

Best Bet: Miami +14

DANNY KANNELL: All outstanding points, Emory. You know who else has an incredible run game with Travis Etienne? Clemson. You know who has a great quarterback, maybe the best in the country? Clemson. You know who else has a really good defense? Clemson. I think they are 14 points better too. I am going to lay the points. I am slightly nervous about the X-factor of DEriq King. I do think he is the type of player that can bail you out of bad situations if you are getting pressured at the quarterback position. I think he can be the great neutralizer in the game. Miami has done it against UAB, Louisville, and Florida StateUAB might be the best defense they have played and they struggled the most against them. That is nowhere near the test they will see against Clemson. We have seen this story before. When Miami is back and everybody is talking about them, that is when they fall flat on their face. Until they change that trend, I am going the other way. I am going Clemson and laying to two touchdowns.

Best Bet: Clemson -14

TOM FORNELLI: Look at that total, man. That is way too many points for a Clemson and Miami game. You have nailed my thought process for taking the under. These are two teams that are good at running the ball and these are two teams that are really good on defense. I think we will see a lot of running, a lot of defense, and a lot of punts based on the total. Another thing to consider is the weather on Saturday night, it is forecasted to have a lot of wind and a lot of rain. I think this is going to be a sloppy game and played in mud. Miami wants to play at a fast tempo and keep it moving and it is harder to do that on a field of mud. I am taking the under. I think this could be a game of 40 points, not 60.

Best Bet: Under 63.5 total points.

CHIP PATTERSON: Say it with me now, Big Game DaboSince the start of 2015, Clemson has played in 11 regular season games against ranked opponents. The average number of points allowed in those games has been 18.5 points. Hes tight. He gets a little bit conservative. He doesnt really want to put Clemson in a position to lose these games. 24-10 against Texas A&M. 14-6 against Auburn. 27-7 against a Boston College team that was charging late in the year. He is not going to put Clemsons offense in a position to make any game breaking mistakes because he knows you just have to win by one point in these regular season games. In the playoffs and in conference championship games, they open it up a little bit more and have been a little more aggressive offensively. Dabo is going to run the ball, play defense, and take field goals. He is going to be all about field position and he is going to be about Brent Venables leading them to success. That is going to take us to under-town in Death Valley.

Best Bet: Under 63.5 points.

How would you bet this weekends Miami vs. Clemson game?

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CBS Sports experts share their Miami vs. Clemson gambling picks - 247Sports

Financial products based on the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are to be banned from sale to retail consumers by the City watchdog.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said consumers were at risk of "sudden and unexpected losses" from the investments, and that the ban would save them about 53m a year.

It said the crypto derivative products, popular with male investors aged 20 to 44, were "primarily used for speculative purposes akin to gambling".

The ban will apply from 6 January and applies to trading in derivatives - effectively bets on cryptocurrency prices - rather than the assets themselves.

It could lead to about 75m in fees and charges being lost to UK firms, the FCA said.

Shares in trading platforms Plus 500, CMC and IG fell by between 2% and 3% on the announcement. IG said the products formed "a very small part" of its business.

The FCA said the products were "ill-suited to retail consumers due to the harm they pose".

It pointed to a prevalence of market abuse and financial crime as well as "extreme volatility" in the crypto asset prices on which the derivatives are based.

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Sheldon Mills, interim executive director of strategy and competition at the FCA, said: "Significant price volatility, combined with the inherent difficulties of valuing crypto assets reliably, places retail consumers at a high risk of suffering losses from trading crypto derivatives.

"We have evidence of this happening on a significant scale."

The FCA had set out initial plans for a ban in a consultation launched last year.

Opponents argued against the watchdog's claim that the cryptocurrencies on which the derivatives are based have no intrinsic value.

They pointed out that Bitcoin was accepted by companies including Starbucks and Microsoft as a form of payment.

But the FCA said evidence showed cryptocurrency prices were driven by speculation.

Derivatives linked to commodities, currencies and other assets are commonly traded on financial markets, often as useful tools for businesses to hedge their bets against big price movements.

But the FCA argued that crypto derivatives did not serve a legitimate investment need.

It said that while some consumers could use them to hedge their exposure to the crypto asset market, this was not common.

"Feedback from retail investors suggest that crypto derivatives are primarily used for speculative purposes akin to gambling," the watchdog said.

Laith Khalaf, financial analyst at investment platform AJ Bell, said the watchdog had "delivered a blow to the crypto world".

He added: "On balance, given how new these markets are, how instinctively appealing they can be to the younger generation and the potential for fraudsters and cowboys to muscle in on the act, it's understandable the FCA wants to play it cautiously."

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Cryptocurrencies: Watchdog bans type of investment described as being 'akin to gambling' - Sky News

11 Gateway casinos will open between tomorrow, October 8, and October 10. Playtime Hanover, Gateway Casinos Woodstock, Gateway Casinos Clinton and Cascades Casino Chatham will open tomorrow, while Starlight Point Edward, Gateway Casinos Sarnia, Gateway Casinos London, Gateway Casinos Sudbury, Gateway Casinos Sault Ste. Marie, Gateway Casinos Thunder Bay and Gateway Casinos Innisfil will welcome gamblers back starting Saturday. Casino Rama Resort, however, is still going to remain closed for now.

Gateway CEO Tony Santo says of the relaunch, We are excited to be able to re-open our Ontario properties and welcome back some of our team members and customers. The health and well-being of our employees and guests is our top priority. We look forward to fully re-opening and welcoming more of our guests back in the future as capacities are increased and restrictions are lifted.

Despite the announcement, gamblers in and around Ontario shouldnt get too excited. According to Gateway, patrons are going to have to reserve their play time online in advance, and only My Club Rewards members will be able to make a reservation. Even then, the casino will have to first send an invitation to the member in order for him or her to be able to place the reservation no invite, no reservation, no casino visit.

Those fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to head to a casino will deal with restrictions similar to those found elsewhere in the global casino industry. In accordance with government-mandated guidelines, only slot machines will be operational, and casinos cant permit more than 50 people on the gaming floor at one time. There wont be any table games offered, and the amount of non-gaming amenities provided will be kept to a minimum.

The temporary operating procedures, apart from those implemented by the government, are expected to help control COVID-19, while allowing Gateway to get back on its feet. Santo adds, This system will allow our staff to properly prepare the gaming floor for our guests, and ensure there is no congestion at the entrance as they wait to enter. Things may look and feel a little different around the property, but we remain committed to making your visit enjoyable.

Originally posted here:

Gateway ready to wade back into the gambling waters in Canada - CalvinAyre.com

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Betsson extends Yggdrasil partnership to YG Masters program

The operatingpartner joinsMasters program to accessGATI technologyand to develop & distribute games

Leading global operator Betsson has extended its long-standing relationship with Yggdrasil to join its rapidly growing YG Masters program. Joining Masters will enable Betssonto access, create and distributegamingcontent usingYggdrasilsrevolutionary GATI technology.

Thenewagreement is a significant milestone for Yggdrasils YG Masters initiativeas itmarks the first timean existing operating partner has joined the program. For Betsson, the opportunity is to create new content, based on its experience as a successful operator, and have that content distributed via the extensive Yggdrasil network. GATI is the technology facilitator for the enhanced partnership and willaccelerate value creation and global distribution.

GATI isa preconfigured, regulation-ready development toolkitthat enablesstudios and game developers toapplystandardised technology to develop and distribute games anywhere in the world. This means YG Masters partners can source, build, and distribute contenton a global basis to maximizerevenue. Yggdrasil provides the singlestandardised interfaceand significant reach.

Masters partnersintegrated to GATI get access to thelong-establishedYggdrasil operator networkplusthefast-growingYG Franchise network.Masters in tandem with GATI is a brand new approach to game aggregation. Development and distribution of new games is much quicker and far less complicated than traditional models. It is truly a revolution and Yggdrasil are very proud to add Betsson to their Masters roster.

Betsson is one of Europes leading sports betting and gaming brands with more than five decades in the gaming industryand multiple brands across a range of markets.

Cricket or Rummy: Its time to Win and Enjoy: Rummyculture unfolds its Mega Indian Rummy League around the same time as IPL

Cash Prizes worth Rs. 6 crore to be awarded to the winners of the tournament

This month will be a thrilling one for all the game lovers, be it cricket or rummy, all thanks to IPL and the Indian Rummy League. With the much-awaited IPL now in full swing, Rummyculture, Indias fastest growing online gaming platform has also organized the most rewarding Indian Rummy Tournament for the rummy players around Diwali. This traditional game that is most evidently played during Diwali with friends and family has gained much online traction in recent years through online gaming platforms like Rummyculture itself. In this 56-day rummy tournament, which started on 19thSeptember, the players will have mega opportunities to grab the highest cash rewards. The event will close on 13th November, rewarding the winners with Cash prizes worth Rs. 6 crore.

Game Payment Technology smash forecasts with average value of electronic funds ahead by more than 400%

Feedback from the Game Payment Technology (GPT) early adopter programme has exceeded pre-launch forecasts and challenged conventional thinking surrounding the take-up and acceptance of technology by players in older demographic groups.

With the roll-out of the first 350 GPT enabled AWPs continuing, despite the new Covid restrictions, initial data has shown the average monthly value of electronic funds per machine to be in excess of 108. This is more than five times the forecast that GPT included as part of the business plan that was set in partnership with bactas Cashless Committee. Significantly, the profile of players has confounded some of the stereotypes and accepted views surrounding age and the use of technology. Data has shown that the majority (62 percent) of those using the GPT cashless app were aged 40-years and older, a characteristic that underlines both the widespread acceptance of apps in general as well as GPTs simple and user-friendly navigation.

Pronet Gaming enlists Mark Schmidt to spearhead African expansion

Local industry heavyweight appointed as Director of Sales for Africa

Pronet Gaming has recruited Mark Schmidt as Director of Sales for Africa as it looks to accelerate growth across the region with its fully-customisable sportsbook, casino and omni channel platform.

Schmidt, who has more than 11 years experience in the continents sports betting industry having held senior roles with leading regional B2C and B2B brands, will spearhead business development in the African region as Pronet Gaming look to accelerate their expansion into emerging markets.

Bringing a thorough understanding of the local market requirements and operating conditions, Schmidt joins Pronet Gaming from IMG Arena. In his role as Business Development Manager for MEA there he signed some of the regions top tier names over the last three and a half years.

His CV also includes a stint as Sportsbook Manager for Hollywood Bets, which he held for four years. He was then appointed as Sales Manager for Betradar, playing an incremental role in the companys regional growth.

NetEnts live casino portfolio launched with Svenska Spel Sport & Casino

After a completed technical integration, NetEnts live casino games are now available to players with Svenska Spel Sport & Casino.

NetEnts Blitz Blackjack, Auto Roulette Studio and Perfect Blackjack games have gone live with state owned Svenska Spel Sport & Casino, one of the biggest operators in Sweden, increasing the suppliers footprint in the live casino market.

Over the last year NetEnts live casino portfolio has undergone a major facelift with a number of product enhancements and new games being launched, including Perfect Blackjack and Auto Roulette Studio. NetEnt has also shown its dedication to optimising the player experience by continuously improving the UIs, graphics and usability.

The partnership with Svenska Spel Sport & Casino also includes great marketing tools with tailored campaigns for both acquisition and retention that will benefit Svenska Spel Sport & Casino and help the operator grow its live casino business.

Income Access Honoured with Two Bronze Stevie Awards for Women in Business

Paysafe company recognized in categories for Women-Run Workplace and Female Executive of the Year

Income Access, Paysafes marketing technology and services provider, has been recognized twice by the 17th annual Stevie Awards for Women in Business, the winners of which were announced earlier today. The company won Bronze Stevie Awards in categories for Women-Run Workplace of the Year and Female Executive of the Year (Canada), awarded to SVP and General Manager Tara Wilson.

The Stevie Awards, which honour female employees, entrepreneurs and executives across the globe, has now handed Income Access four awards in the last three years, reinforcing its status as a company dedicated to diversity and inclusion at all levels. In 2019, Income Access took home bronze for Women-Run Workplace, while Wilson won silver for Female Executive of the Year (Canada) in 2018.

Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) Director of Global Technical Compliance Peter Wolff Named to theELG 40 Under 40 Class of 2020-2021

Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) Director of Global Technical Compliance Peter Wolff, has been named an Emerging Leader of Gaming (ELG). Wolff joins an elite class of professionals from across the industry spectrum in the 2020-2021 ELG 40 Under 40 presented byGlobal Gaming Businessand the Innovation Group.

Skrill partners with Betfred USA Sports

Paysafe digital wallet continues 2020 U.S. expansion by extending global Betfred Group partnership to American sportsbook subsidiary

Paysafe, a leading specialized payments platform, today announced a new partnership for its Skrill digital wallet with Betfred USA Sports, the wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary of U.K.-based bookmaker Betfred Group. Building on Skrills long-standing payments support for Betfred internationally, the digital wallet has been added as a payment method to Betfred USA Sports recently launched mobile and online sportsbook for the Iowa market.

Midnite integrates HooYu to deliver esports betting customer sign-up KYC journey

HooYu selected to power customer sign-up and KYC journey for young & global esports customer demographic

Leading KYC and customer onboarding specialist, HooYu, today announced a partnership with esports betting operator, Midnite, to power their customer sign-up and KYC processes.

Midnite is a UK Gambling Commission regulated esports betting operator that enables customers to watch and bet on the latest CSGO, Dota 2, and LOL matches and tournaments.

Whilst esports betting has enjoyed a meteoric 2,922% rise in GGY from March 2019 to March 2020, its younger and more geographically diverse customer base brings with it challenges to be able to quickly and smoothly check customer age and identity before gambling can take place.

As a new gaming operator designing its platform from the ground up, Midnite selected HooYu to provide a range of database check, ID document validation, facial biometric and identity confidence scoring technology. As well as orchestrating the KYC technology behind the scenes, HooYu also embeds UI and UX tools in the Midnite sign-up process to guide users through the sign-up process and maximise customer acquisition success rates.

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Gambling Industry Announcement and Partnership Roundup October 6, 2020 - CalvinAyre.com