iGaming News all over the world 24.05.2010

24.05.2010, Scientific Games wins 12 year Norsk Tipping contract / Turkey Takes Sportingbet Online Gambling to Court / Atlantic City casino profits slide 25 % in first quarter / Olympic Sports Federation German Bundesliga Want Sports Betting / Next big step for Sands in Macau is ready / Italian Casino Betting and Gaming Laws

Scientific Games wins 12 year Norsk Tipping contract
Scientific Games Corporation has been awarded a twelve-year contract to implement a central lottery system for pari-mutuel and odds-based numbers games at Norway's state- owned gaming operator Norsk Tipping.


Under the terms of the contract, Scientific Games will deploy its Lottery Central System technology and provide ongoing service and maintenance support for the duration of the contract which is anticipated to begin in 2011 and have an expected term of twelve years.

“Norsk Tipping is a premier lottery that is at the forefront of delivering creative gaming through new technologies,” said Michael R Chambrello, President and CEO of Scientific Games. “This award, which was largely based on technological expertise and quality of service, solidifies our company's position as a leader in lottery systems development and as a provider of unparalleled customer support. Furthermore, it demonstrates our continued dedication to the Lottery Systems business."

Torbjorn Almlid, CEO of Norsk Tipping added: “Our objective was to select a long-term partner that could build and support a dynamic central system for the most important segment of our business. We are very excited about the implementation of Scientific Games' next-generation technology that will allow us to enhance our lottery customers' experience and grow our revenues.”

In seperate news, Scientific Games also announced that the Maryland Board of Public Works has approved the company’s five-year lottery system contract extension which begins in June 2011, as well as a three-year contract extension for its secondary printing contracts and as a supplier of video lottery terminals to the state lottery.

The company has also signed a one-year contract extension to provide instant tickets for the Missouri Lottery, which begins in July of this year and is a continuation of the current percentage of sales contract.

“The Maryland and Missouri contract extensions stand as further proof of our superior technology and service and we look forward to creating new and innovative ways to grow their respective lottery revenues and return more to beneficiaries,” added Chambrello.

Shares in Scientific Games Corporation (Co. Profile) (NASDAQ:SGMS) gained 2.48 per cent following the announcement Friday and will commence trading at $10.31 per share later today.

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Turkey Takes Sportingbet Online Gambling to Court
Turkey is part of the E.U. but has not adhered to E.U. rules regarding provisions for e commerce equity within the Union. Gambling is illegal in most Muslim countries, with Turkey as a notable exception. It was recently announced the Istanbul High Criminal Court will hold a fresh hearings in a case that dates back to May of 2008, when two Sportingbet employees were detained by Turkish police as part of a crackdown on online gambling. Details were contained in the prospectus released by Sportingbet in relation to its upgrade from Aim to the main market of the London Stock Exchange scheduled to happen this month. The Istanbul Criminal Court of First Instance, decided in 2009 that it did not have jurisdiction to hear charges against those arrested in the 2008 crackdown. The new hearing involves three of Sportingbet's current employees, including the pair detained in 2008 and it was added in the prospectus that they would not be attending court in Istanbul.

"The group has been advised that prosecution outside Turkey or extradition from the UK is highly unlikely," Online gambling in Turkey is currently prohibited, with the exception of the state-owned sports betting company, IDDAA, which is the only Turkish entity that is allowed to offer gambling services over the internet. There are now laws that prevent Turkish banks from authorizing transactions to online casino accounts, and laws that try to keep Turkish players from accessing foreign gambling websites.

The laws are not effective, however, and Turkish players continue to gamble online regularly. The current leadership, the Islamic Welfare Party, has vocalized its stance against gambling, and public opinion has turned to be now anti-gambling. Sportingbet derives 17 per cent of its gross gaming revenue from its Turkish language web sites.

Turkey is one of its top four markets, along with Greece, Spain and Australia. Turkey is currently trying to privatise its state-run lottery, Milli Piyango so far proving unsuccessful. Revealing the last legal problem for Sportingbet in Turkey wiped 7% from the company’s market value. The share price for Sportingbet is expected to be impacted by this latest legal news.

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Atlantic City casino profits slide 25 % in first quarter
Casino earnings plunged 25.2 % in the first quarter as severe weather, the sluggish economy and competition from surrounding states made it more difficult for Atlantic City’s gaming industry to make money.

Combined, the 11 casino hotels posted gross operating profits of us$ 111.2 million for the quarter, compared with us$ 148.7 million in the same period a year ago, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission reported this week.

The gaming industry, which was already struggling with the weak economy and tight consumer spending, also got hit in the first quarter by record snowfall and drenching rains that discouraged customers from traveling to Atlantic City. One analyst noted that the bad weather affected some key weekends for the casinos, including Super Bowl Sunday and the Presidents Day holiday.

“I think it was a huge impact,” said Harvey Perkins, senior vice president of the casino consulting firm Spectrum Gaming Group. “The competitive climate is tough enough, but when you add the weather on top of it, it made a tough situation even more difficult.” The first quarter is traditionally the slowest time for casinos because of the winter weather. Gaming revenue was down 8.5 % in January, 15.7 % in February and 5.6 % in March.

Even the top-grossing Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa could not escape winter’s wrath. Borgata’s gross operating profits fell 16 % to us$ 39.4 million. Boyd Gaming Corp., Borgata’s parent company, estimated that powerful snowstorms in February cost the casino between us$ 6 million and us$ 7 million in earnings.

“Severe winter weather took a heavy toll on Borgata’s first-quarter results,” Paul Chakmak, Boyd Gaming’s chief operating officer, said during a May 4 conference call with gaming analysts. Tropicana Casino and Resort was the only gaming hall to rake in higher profits for the quarter, up 6.2 % to us$ 5.1 million.

While seven casinos stayed profitable for the quarter, the Atlantic City Hilton Casino Resort, Resorts Atlantic City, Trump Marina Hotel Casino and Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino all posted losses. The Hilton suffered the biggest loss at us$ 8.2 million.

Gross operating profit represents earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and charges from affiliates. Also known as cash flow, it is widely considered the best measure of profitability in the gaming industry. After interest, taxes and the other charges, the casinos reported a net loss of us$ 19 million in the first quarter, compared to a net loss of us$ 91.6 million for the same period last year.

One highlight in the first quarter was an increase in the hotel occupancy rate, rising to 76.9 percent from 75.3 % a year ago. The number of occupied room nights increased to 1.18 million, up 22,000 room nights.

Atlantic City’s profit slump also reflects competition from slot parlors in Pennsylvania, New York and Delaware. Competition will grow even more intense in coming weeks, when Pennsylvania and Delaware add Atlantic City-style table games in a major expansion of their gambling attractions.

Pennsylvania’s casinos will also begin extending lines of credit to their customers for the first time, giving gamblers easier access to money. Atlantic City casinos have been allowed to extend credit since gaming began in 1978. “The additional feature that may be somewhat significant with table games in Pennsylvania is that they will come with credit. Now the playing field is going to be leveled off,” Perkins said of the impact on Atlantic City.

Yogonet.com / Press of Atlantic City

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Olympic Sports Federation German Bundesliga Want Sports Betting
The United Kingdom has come a long way in making online gambling safe, regulated and somewhat profitable. The U.K. has paved the way and created a standard of excellence for any country to follow, having proven that through proper regulations and by keeping a close eye on gambling activities sports have remained mostly untouched by scandal in the UK. Recently some headway is being made in Germany where the government for the most part forbids its citizens from betting online, unless they do so with the State monopoly provider. The Olympic Sports Federation has finally called upon the German government to legalise sports betting. Joining forces with the Bundesliga, the country's major football league the OSF wants to overturn the German Interstate Gambling Treaty (2006). Good news for the German consumer of wagering products.

The consolidation of these major sports organizations may prove to make a critical mass for change in Germany. Not only do sports clubs miss out on sponsorship money but the consumer is not given a choice of betting options which reduces the odds of winning and creates a stagnant playing pool. Sporting bodies and the betting industry share a common interest in making sure that all forms of sport are free from corruption and fraud. This shared ambition of unwavering integrity was highlighted recently in the U.K. when the Professional Players Foundation signed an historic agreement with several major betting operators to educate professional athletes on the dangers of making the wrong choices.

German betters with only Lotto Bayern as a choice would be subject to very low odds compared with those offered by other European gambling operators. Betting operators show a strong commitment to the integrity and transparency of their businesses, weeding out any unscrupulous operators immediately. German punters deserve a better shake and hopefully the sports organizations will make a difference.

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Next big step for Sands in Macau is ready
Sands China Ltd., a subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced the successful closing of a us$ 1.75 billion project financing which will be used to complete construction on the combined Shangri-La, Traders, and Sheraton resort complex (parcels 5 & 6) at the company's Cotai Strip development in Macau.

Adelson expects the first phase of the development to open in the 3Q of 2011

Next phase of Cotai Strip development on track with completion of us$ 1.75 billion project financing "The additional 6,000 hotel rooms are especially important in growing the meeting and convention business in Macau," said Adelson.

Macau | 05/21/2010

(Macau).- Sands China Ltd., a subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced the successful closing of a us$ 1.75 billion project financing which will be used to complete construction on the combined Shangri-La, Traders, and Sheraton resort complex (parcels 5 & 6) at the company's Cotai Strip development in Macau.

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"The completion of the Shangri-La, Traders, and Sheraton complex represents a critical next step in Macau's ability to both diversify its economy and further reach its potential as a full-scale leisure and business destination," said Sheldon G. Adelson, chairman of Las Vegas Sands and Sands China Ltd.

"The additional 6,000 hotel rooms are especially important in growing the meeting and convention business in Macau. The additional capacity will open up a new and larger base of potential customers who, because of the size of the events, were not previously able to bring their meetings or conventions to Macau," he added.

Adelson said he expects the first phase of the development, which will feature approximately 3,700 hotel rooms and suites from the Shangri-La, Traders and Sheraton hotel brands and additional retail, gaming and meeting/convention facilities, to open in the third quarter of 2011. Phase two includes a 2,300-room Sheraton hotel tower, as well as other non-gaming amenities, and is expected to open approximately six months later. Timing for the completion of a third phase, which includes plans for a St. Regis hotel and serviced-apartments, will be announced at a later date.

Yogonet.com / Yahoo Finance

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Italian Casino Betting and Gaming Laws a Review By Reno Rollins
Italian gambling has influenced the betting laws and betting customs in most of Western Europe and North America, which has in turn changed the way people gamble worldwide.

Importance of Italy to the Gambling World No other country has done more for the development of gambling than Italy. According to historical accounts, the Italians adopted the fortunetelling cards of the invading Saracens and first used them for gambling.

Baccarat was also invented in Italy, most likely in the latter stages of the 15th century, and the lottery appeared in 1530 and would later evolve into bingo. And the earliest examples of casinos appeared in Venice in 1726, as they were used by the Venetian nobility to discuss business and engage in all manner of debauchery.

Growth of Gambling in Italy Until the last few years, gambling was generally viewed in a very negative light by Italian citizens. With the mafia being directly tied to illegal gambling clubs, residents viewed the pastime as something to be avoided. In fact, Italian schools have been known to run programs against gambling and hold classroom lectures about the evils associated with the activity.

While casinos, horse racing and other gambling activities are legal, they have been slow to catch on in the country. This has changed over time, but the Italian government has seemingly fought it every step of the way.

In recent years, Italy also attempted to ban all IP addresses associated with online gambling sites. When this failed, the Italian government attempted to create an exclusive online poker room.

But as of January 1st, 2007, Italy has done an about-face and made it legal for any Italian citizen to gamble online. They also recently announced a willingness to issue over 17,000 gambling licenses which would cover casinos, online gambling companies and betting stations.

With these changes in attitude, Italy’s gaming market is expected to increase by 64% by 2010. The interactive gambling market in the country is also expected to achieve an increase of around 240% by 2010.

With a minimum gambling age of 18, the country’s gaming industry has also been bolstered by the youth culture. Bingo has become especially popular in recent years, with trendy youths rubbing elbows with elderly citizens at the local bingo hall.

Italian Casinos Casino de la Vallee (Via Italo Mus, Saint Vincent) The largest casino in the country, Casino de la Vallee features 95 table games and 512 slot and video poker machines. Games include 5 Card Stud, American Roulette, Blackjack, Caribbean Stud Poker, Chemin de Fer, Craps, English Roulette, French Roulette, Poker, Punto Banco and Trente Quarante. Queen Bingo Hall (Bologna, Italy) Seventy table games are featured within the casino’s 750 square foot gaming area. Casino Municipale di Campione d’Italia (Piazzale Milano 1, Campione d’Italia) Features baccarat, blackjack, craps, Punto Banco, roulette, European roulette and Chemin de Fer. 225 gaming machines are also available. All major currencies are accepted, and the minimum age to enter is 18. Casino Municipale di Sanremo (Corso degli Inglesi 18, San Remo) This casino features two restaurants and live entertainment. There are a total of 433 gaming machines and 38 table games. These games consist of American roulette, baccarat, blackjack, and French roulette. Casino Municipale di Venezia (Lungomare Marconi 4, Venice) This summer casino is closed from October through April. When open, its business hours are 4pm until 2:30 am during the week and 4pm until 3:30am on the weekends. Games include 30-40, baccarat, backgammon, blackjack, bridge, gin rummy and French roulette. International bridge, backgammon and gin rummy tournaments are also held. Minimum age to gamble is 18, and a jacket and tie are required to enter. Casino Municipale di Venezia (Palazzo Vendramin Calergi, Venice) This winter casino is closed from May through September. When it’s open, it operates from 3pm until 2:30 am on the weekdays and 3pm to 4:45am on the weekends. Games include 30-40, backgammon, blackjack, bridge tournaments, French roulette and gin rummy tournaments. Italian Horse Racing Horse racing is available throughout Italy, and it can also be wagered on through various legal sports books. The most famous race in the country is the Palio di Siena, which is held twice a year on July 2nd and August 16th in Siena. Dog racing was declared illegal by the Italian Green Party in May of 2002.

Notable horse tracks include:

Ippodromo Martini Corridonia (Corridonia) Ippodromo del Casalone (Grosseto) Ippodromo di Maia (Merano) Ippodromo Romanengo (Novi Ligure) Ippodromo Di San Rossore (Pisa) Tor di Valle Harness Raceway (Rome) Vinovo Ippodromi Di Torino (Vinovo - Torino) Online Gambling in Italy The government of Italy tried their best to keep online gambling out of their country. They even went so far as to prosecute those who accepted bets without first receiving authorization from the authorities. This did not hold up, however, and a European Union court ruled that Italy could not bar gambling companies from other European Union nations from conducting business with citizens of Italy.

Since online gambling was made legal in the country, numerous casinos and sports books have started serving the Internet needs of their Italian customers. And with the United States passing the UIGEA into law, more and more citizens have flocked to take advantage of the services.

Sports Betting in Italy Numerous sports betting services are available throughout the country. Two of the largest, William Hill and Ladbrokes have licenses to take wagers over the phone and the Internet. In addition, they have also established betting centers across Italy, usually located in gaming parlors, newsstands, coffee shops and bars.

Bingo in Italy Bingo was born in Italy around five centuries ago. It started as the lottery and was then adopted into its current form by an American looking for new ways to entertain the masses. While the game was illegal in Italy for many years, it has recently become a trendy (and allowable) pastime. Bingo salons dot the country, and their cash prizes and high-tech video screens have made the game popular with young and old alike.

The Italian Lottery The lottery was first launched in Italy after its unification in 1530. Since then, drawings have been held every Saturday, and the government rakes in billions of dollars every year.

Über iGaming News:

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