Lately a lot has been written about the regulated jurisdictions in the US (New Jersey, Delaware, Nevada) and the online gaming battle going on in Pennsylvania. Has everyone forgotten about California? For a while there, all signs pointed to California being one of the leaders in US online gaming legalization. Then the tribal interests and land based operators and lotteries and legislators all got involved and Read More
Does the NBA Know Something We Don’t?
Bleacher Report recently published a lengthy article suggesting that many might soon be wagering on NBA prop bets nightly "should sports betting become federally legalized throughout the U.S. and the NBA develops a wagering structure for fans in arenas and at home". What??? Sources involved with the situation stated that the NBA has been in recent negotiations with several global sports betting companies, which Read More
Resorts Gets It
Land-based casino owners (well, at least the ones who aren't dumb jerks) seem to have finally turned away from the "old" way of thinking (circa the mid to late 2000s) that online gaming is a threat to their business. Most of them have gradually been dragged (some kicking and screaming) into the 21st century way of thinking, which is that brick and mortar casinos can leverage online gaming to expand their business. Read More
Pennsylvania on the Front Lines
Pennsylvania State Representative John Payne (R - District 106) has introduced an online gaming expansion bill in the House of Representatives. Payne’s bill, (HB 649) would only legalize online poker in Pennsylvania - not all forms of online gambling - although the legislation seems to leave the door for a more comprehensive approach. The bill currently has 18 other cosponsors. Not to be outdone, days later a new Read More
An Ace That You Can Keep
Most people who are old like me are familiar with the Kenny Rogers song "The Gambler". The premise of the song generally is that life involves a series of decisions that require us to analyze risk and reward, much like gambling. Historically in the United States, opponents of gambling have cited reasons such as increased crime, gambling addition, religious prohibitions, regressive taxation, and the other usual Read More
The Split is (Not) Bananas
One of my favorite sources for internet gambling news, iGaming Business, is reporting that shares in bwin party have jumped 24% recently following rumors the group was thinking about splitting up into regulated- and unregulated-focused operating entities. I hope this is true and if it is I applaud whatever genius came up with this idea. Why would I use a term like "genius" to describe this idea? Because I thought Read More
The Hypocrisy of the United States Gambling Laws
Gambling is for the most part under the jurisdiction of state law in the US, and every state has laws that relate to gambling. Some form of legal gambling is permitted in 48 of our 50 states, however only one state (Nevada) has legalized most forms of gambling on a state-wide basis. Gambling has been a vital part of American society since the 18the century, and the general trend is that the availability of and Read More
What's the "Ultimate" Las Vegas Casino?
What's the "Ultimate" Las Vegas Casino? For some of you Las Vegas veterans (or residents), names like Bellagio or Caesar's might immediately leap to mind. Some might say Wynn or Rio, or relative newcomers like Cosmopolitan or Aria. All are fine properties of course, but thanks to the Nevada Gaming Control Board, all eyes should be focused right now on Station Casinos. Station Casinos owns Ultimate Gaming, which, Read More
Meet the New Barton Bill, Same as the Old Barton Bill
Two years ago to the day, I first shared my thoughts on the "Barton Bill" - a bill that was introduced to the US House of Representative by Texas Republican Joe Barton. The Barton Bill aimed to legalize online poker at the federal level in the US. In case you didn't read my post on the subject from two years ago, to be overly simple and brief, I had concerns. My concerns were irrelevant - the Barton Bill Read More
If At First You Don't Succeed …
If at first you don't succeed, even if it costs you over ten million dollars and forces you to file a lawsuit, try try again! That's PokerStars' motto when it comes to trying to obtain a New Jersey online gaming license. In round one, PokerStars teamed up with Atlantic Club Casino and Hotel. Without rehashing the details that led to the deal's demise, I will at least touch on the high points. Atlantic agreed to Read More
