Gaming Industry News Weekly Recap – Stories You Might Have Missed

THE AMERICAS

Jim Ryan said Pala Interactive won’t launch online poker in New Jersey out of fear of PokerStars; a Pennsylvania online gambling bill insisted it wasn’t poker-only but this one is; Caesars Entertainment lost another $1b but Caesars Interactive revenue rose nearly two-thirds; Darren Phua reached a plea deal over his online sports betting charges; GTECH announced it would rebrand as IGT; Quebec’s investigation of suspicious trading in Amaya Gaming’s pre-PokerStars stock is looking at a friend of CEO David Baazov; a Florida legislator introduced sweeping gambling overhaul legislation; Wynn Resorts attempted to remove Elaine Wynn from their board and Steve Wynn’s defamation suit against Jim Chanos was dismissed with prejudice; the World Series of Poker Circuit announced plans to go global; Poker Players Alliance director John Pappas talked legislative lessons learned from the G2E iGaming Conference and Zach Kay explained how Twitch streaming will impact the poker industry.

EUROPE

Betfair shares topped £21 after a stellar Q3 report and Paddy Power posted record profits in 2014; Greece’s new government announced it would issue new online gambling licenses; Ireland’s long-delayed online betting tax cleared its final hurdle; WebIs Holdings closed its BetInternet fixed-odds division and BetVictor closed its in-house live dealer studio; PokerStars launched its live dealer casino product and experienced a two-hour global glitch; Sweden convinced Apple to pull online gambling apps; Pinnacle Sports’ new owners unveiled their regulated market strategy; Gala Coral’s online operations kept kicking ass; Fortuna Entertainment’s shares tumbled after a new dividend policy; Adjarabet migrated its poker product to Microgaming; a poker player pled guilty to ‘card marking’ at UK casinos; Robbie Davies offered his top three SEO tips for 2015. Sportech’s Nick Mounteer said content is key to customer engagement; NU Entertainment revealed its plans to shake up poker; Rafi Farber explained why 888 Holdings is the gaming industry’s top defensive stock and Michael Craig exposed the goings-on at the annual Secret Blackjack Ball.

ASIA

Macau’s February casino revenue fell to its lowest point in four years and Wynn Macau asked staff to take unpaid leave; Las Vegas Sands won a trademark infringement judgment against the Philippines’ First Cagayan Leisure & Resort Corp but was fined $250k for withholding Sands China documents from its former CEO; a South Korean illegal online gambling operator launched DDOS attacks against a competitor; PAGCOR profits rose despite revenue falling; Imperial Pacific got the okay to open a temporary casino on Saipan; Genting Hong Kong paid $550m for Crystal Cruises; Russia’s Primorye casino zone faced further delays and a new study said younger Australians are giving up the gamble.