American conference women’s tourney at Mohegan Sun casino (AP) Pat Eaton-Robb, Associated Press · June 10, 2013 at 2:17 pm HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - The new American Athletic Conference will hold its first women's basketball tournament at the Mohegan Sun casino. The conference announced Monday that the 2014 tourney would be played at the resort in southeastern Connecticut, which includes a just-under 10,000-seat arena that is home to the WNBA's Connecticut Sun. The tournament will take place March 7-10. The deal … [Read more...]
Wheeling Island will renew table game license (AP) Associated Press · June 10, 2013 at 1:59 pm WHEELING, W.Va. (AP) - Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack announced Monday it will renew its table games license on July 1, reconsidering an earlier threat and saving 100 jobs for at least one year. But President and General Osi Imomoh said the Northern Panhandle casino and greyhound track is facing "drastic declines" in revenues and still needs a long-term solution from the Legislature to … [Read more...]
Nevada gambling revenue flat in April (AP – Updated) Hannah Dreier, Associated Press · June 10, 2013 at 11:52 am LAS VEGAS (AP) - Bad luck with craps and baccarat, plus a missing Sunday, kept Nevada casino revenue flat in April. Silver State casinos won $854.3 million in April, a 0.16 percent decline from the same time last year, the Nevada Gaming Control Board reported Monday. The state collected $47.2 million in taxes on that haul, a 2.8 percent drop from last April. The month's decline was driven by … [Read more...]
Nevada gaming revenues slip slightly in April; Reno outpaces Las Vegas (LVRJ) Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 10, 2013 at 10:42 am Nevada gaming revenues fell less than 1 percent in April as a jump in figures from the Reno market helped offset a loss on the Strip. The Gaming Control Board said Monday that gaming revenues collected by casinos statewide were $854.3 million, down 0.16 percent compared with $855.7 million collected in April 2012. On the Strip, gaming revenues fell 2.34 percent to $448.6 million, compared … [Read more...]
Seats open on new Neb. problem gambling commission (AP) Associated Press · June 10, 2013 at 9:56 am LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) - Seats are now open on a new Nebraska commission to help problem gamblers. The nine-member Nebraska Commission on Problem Gambling is scheduled to start its work on July 1. Gov. Dave Heineman will appoint its members. The commission must have one member with medical or mental health expertise, one expert in banking and finance, a legal expert, an education expert, and an … [Read more...]
Dutch player gets 6-month ban for betting (AP) Associated Press · June 10, 2013 at 7:27 am LONDON (AP) - Dutch tennis player Yannick Ebbinghaus has been suspended for six months and fined $10,000 for violating the sport's betting rules. The International Tennis Federation says the 23-year-old Ebbinghaus admitted to 67 violations between May 2012 and February 2013. Ebbinghaus is currently No. 1,158 in the ATP rankings. The ITF says three months of his suspension will be … [Read more...]
Mohegan Sun ups ante in Mass. resort casino bid (AP) Associated Press · June 9, 2013 at 3:16 pm PALMER, Mass. (AP) - Mohegan Sun has upped the ante in its drive to win a Massachusetts license to operate a resort casino. The Connecticut casino has announced new features in its proposal for Palmer that will increase the project to nearly $1 billion. The adventure-themed park and resort hotel will include an indoor and outdoor water park connected to a 250-room hotel separate from the … [Read more...]
Down on the Farmville, Zynga wrestles with multiple issues (LVRJ) Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 9, 2013 at 2:11 pm Things are not all peaceful down on the farm. Social gaming giant Zynga Inc., which has a grand vision of converting its platform into a real money pay-to-play online gambling format in Nevada, slashed 18 percent of its workforce and closed multiple offices to cut costs this past week. The San Francisco-based company, which developed free-play social games such as “FarmVille,” “Mafia Wars” … [Read more...]
Conn. casino cocktail waitresses fight shoe rules (AP) Michael Melia, Associated Press · June 9, 2013 at 11:12 am MASHANTUCKET, Conn. (AP) - Cheryl Haase has been serving cocktails for more than two decades, and the 52-year-old waitress says she has a list of foot ailments to prove it. The miles she has walked carrying trays of drinks through the Foxwoods Resort Casino in high heels have sent her over the years to chiropractors and podiatrists for injections to treat inflammation. Now she and a union … [Read more...]
Pinnacle, Ameristar merger may drag into next year (LVRJ) Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 9, 2013 at 10:43 am Federal antitrust regulators had few questions when a trifecta of casino industry mergers — just under $20 billion in combined value — created the Strip’s two largest corporate ownerships and a regional gaming giant nearly a decade ago. But last month, the Federal Trade Commission halted Pinnacle Entertainment’s $2.8 billion buyout of regional gaming rival Ameristar Casinos, the industry’s … [Read more...]
City Center trial date pushed back again (LVRJ) Tim O'Reiley, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 7, 2013 at 6:42 pm In what has become something of a routine, the jury trial over who bears responsibility for the construction defects of the unfinished Harmon at CityCenter has been pushed back. On Friday, Clark County District Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez established the new date of Feb. 10, 2014. The previous schedule called for Jan. 14. At one point, it had been set for Feb. 4, 2013. The latest delay gives … [Read more...]
Chinese taste for baccarat drives Macau boom (AP) Associated Press · June 7, 2013 at 3:18 am MACAU (AP) - In the nearly three dozen casinos in Macau, the world's biggest gambling market, there's only one game that matters: baccarat. Almost all of Macau's $38 billion in gambling revenue last year - six times more than the Las Vegas Strip - came from card game, much of it from Chinese high-rollers betting borrowed money and dwarfing the takings from slots, blackjack or roulette. Wherever … [Read more...]
Ohio casinos look to bounce back from revenue drop (AP) Associated Press · June 7, 2013 at 3:03 am CINCINNATI (AP) - Ohio regulators are set to release new revenue figures for the state's four casinos. The Ohio Casino Control Commission's report on Friday will show revenues for casinos in Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and Toledo for the month of May. All four casinos saw significant dips in April revenues compared to March. The state's newest casino in Cincinnati dropped from $21 … [Read more...]
Blame game: Fahrenkopf, Reid’s office point fingers for failure to legalize Internet poker (LVRJ) Howard Stutz & Steve Tetreault, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 6, 2013 at 10:16 pm Two of Nevada’s longtime political power players — gaming lobbyist Frank Fahrenkopf Jr. and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid — took turns blaming each other for the failure for Congress to legalize Internet poker last year. The dust-up surprised many because the longtime Nevadans had always been complimentary to each other. Fahrenkopf, chief executive of the Washington, D.C.-based American … [Read more...]
Culinary plans demonstration to draw attention to labor issues (LVRJ) Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 6, 2013 at 6:41 pm Local union leaders are stepping up efforts to keep ongoing contract talks in the public eye after labor agreements covering more than 40,000 Las Vegas hotel and restaurant workers expired late last week. Culinary Workers Local 226 said the union is planning to demonstrate on the Strip on front of The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on June 14 to bring attention to the labor issues. The Culinary … [Read more...]
Bill to legalize web poker introduced in Congress (AP) Hannah Dreier, Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 4:42 pm LAS VEGAS (AP) - Gamblers who prefer their laptops to blackjack tables could soon get a boost from Washington. Republican New York Congressman Peter King proposed federal regulations Thursday that would rescue online gambling from the legal gray zone where it currently languishes. The federal government cracked down on online poker in 2011. But the same year, the U.S. Justice Department … [Read more...]
Las Vegas Sands plans to repurchase $2 billion in shares (LVRJ) Howard Stutz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 6, 2013 at 4:34 pm Las Vegas Sands Corp. told investors the company plans to repurchase $2 billion on the company’s outstanding shares over a multi-year period, but analysts said investors might be disappointed by the figure. The company announced the buy-back program following its annual meeting in New York City late Wednesday. The authorization covers roughly 9 percent of the Las Vegas Sands outstanding shares … [Read more...]
Iowa Gaming board moves ahead with Cedar Rapids casino (AP – Updated) Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 2:45 pm OSCEOLA, Iowa (AP) - The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission will accept license applications for a proposed $100 million casino in Cedar Rapids through Sept. 3, it decided Thursday. Voters in Linn County approved a gambling referendum in March and a group of local businessmen have created the Cedar Rapids Development Group to apply for a gambling license. Other casino operators in eastern Iowa … [Read more...]
Federal legislation introduced to legalize Web wagering (LVRJ) Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 2:19 pm By HOWARD STUTZ LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL A New York congressman introduced federal legislation on Thursday to legalize Internet wagering by establishing a system of licensing and regulation at the federal level. The bill, dubbed the “Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act of 2013,” was introduced by Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y. and goes beyond online poker. The … [Read more...]
Gambling tycoon Stanley Ho buys stake in Qantas-China Eastern budget airline in Hong Kong (AP) Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 10:33 am HONG KONG – Asian casino tycoon Stanley Ho's transport company is buying a stake in a budget airline that Qantas and China Eastern Airlines are setting up in Hong Kong, the companies said Thursday. Ho's Shun Tak Holdings Ltd. said Thursday it's paying $66 million for a third of the new venture that will fly under the Jetstar brand. Australia's Qantas Airways and Shanghai-based China Eastern … [Read more...]
New Illinois Lottery game to support HIV treatment (AP) Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 10:24 am CHICAGO (AP) - A new Illinois Lottery game will benefit programs working to prevent the spread of HIV and help those living with HIV and AIDS. Since 2008, the lottery has contributed more than $4.7 million to such programs through various games. The new "Spread the Word" game is expected to raise another $1 million. All proceeds go toward prevention and treatment efforts. The Illinois … [Read more...]
Police: IPL team co-owner admits to betting (AP) Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 10:24 am NEW DELHI (AP) - Indian police say a co-owner of IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals has admitted to betting on his team in the tournament. "During questioning we found that Raj Kundra used to bet on his own team," Delhi Police chief Neeraj Kumar said. "We also found out that he lost a lot of money in the IPL through his business partner Umesh Goenka, who is also a bookie." Kundra was questioned … [Read more...]
Cuomo releases his 3-casino plan for upstate NY (AP) Michael Gormley, Associated Press · June 6, 2013 at 10:24 am ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed authorizing three Las Vegas-type casinos in upstate New York, two video slot machine centers in western New York and a moratorium on casinos in New York City. Prohibiting a casino in any of New York City's five boroughs is a new element. Cuomo had previously pushed for a five-year moratorium on a casino there, saying that casino operators would … [Read more...]
Nevada high court weighs Wynn tip-sharing policy (LVRJ) Tim O'Reiley, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 5, 2013 at 7:41 pm The legal team representing dealers fighting Wynn Resorts Ltd.’s tip-pooling policy ran into skeptical questioning as the long-running dispute came before the Nevada Supreme Court on Wednesday. The company and the employees that fall under the class action lawsuit have been clashing since the policy went into effect in September 2006 — just more than a year after Wynn Las Vegas opened — … [Read more...]
Nevada high court weighs Wynn tip-sharing policy (AP) Hannah Dreier, Associated Press · June 5, 2013 at 6:49 pm Most Las Vegas revelers assume that the chip they throw their blackjack dealer when they’re on a winning streak stays with that dealer. In fact, at the Wynn and Encore casinos in Las Vegas, that tip gets pooled and then split among a great number of employees, including supervisors. The mandatory tip-pooling policy is the subject of a fight that has waged for seven years, and may now finally … [Read more...]
