Results tagged “i-Gaming”

Macau was both the first and last European colony in China. Gambling in Macau was legalized in 1850, under Portuguese rule, and since that time it has been known as the "Monte Carlo of the Orient." In recent years Macau's economy has enjoyed strong growth on the back of its expanding tourism and gaming sectors. After opening up its locally-controlled casino industry to foreign competition in 2001, the territory attracted tens of billions of dollars in foreign investment, transforming Macao into the world's largest gaming center.

By 2006, Macau's gaming revenue surpassed that of the Las Vegas strip, and gaming-related taxes accounted for 75% of total government revenue. In 2008, government revenue from gaming was set to double 2006 collections. The expanding casino sector, and China's decision beginning in 2002 to relax travel restrictions, reenergized Macau's tourism industry. This city of just over 500,000 hosted more than 30 million visitors in 2008. Almost 60% came from mainland China despite increasing restrictions on travel the combined total brought $13.7 billion in gross gaming receipts. Macau's currency, the Pataca, is closely tied to the Hong Kong dollar, which is also freely accepted in the territory.

While all the hype about pending US regulation and acceptance of online poker has the industry excited, there is a negative side that nobody is talking about.

At a recent affiliate conference in Amsterdam the talk of pending US regulation was a hot topic of discussion. Every person I talked to was quivering with excitement about how great this was for the industry, and the fantastic opportunities that would arise.

I disagree completely.

The transparent bed-sharing of Harrah's and Party Poker, and the slightly more subtle relationship between MGM Mirage and Full Tilt clearly illustrate that the big boys are making sure that they are ready to not only play in this market, but own it. Add Harrah's disclosure that they have spent over $400,000 in cash during the first quarter of the year as a registered lobbyist to build support for Rep. Barney Frank's "Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act of 2009", and their position is clear.

It is no secret that Harrah's and the others are looking for a way out of their recession woes. Rumors of bankruptcies are rife on the Vegas scene, and the income that would be generated by entering the online poker market would provide much needed cash relief, and do so almost overnight.

But here's the thing; where will that leave everyone else? Do you really think that Harrah's and their brethren are throwing their considerable lobbying efforts behind bills that would legalize online poker out of the goodness of their hearts so that we can all play in their sandbox? Not a chance!

MGM's statement that they support the legalization, regulation and taxation of Internet gambling is very telling, as they are, like Harrah's, already legal, regulated, and taxed. It is a much shorter road to travel for these companies to find a legal status for providing online poker than it will be for a company that is not already holding a US gaming license.

The prevailing opinion is that online poker will become available in the state of California first, as their state legislature has reportedly already reached positive decisions in this regard. If that happens you can bet that Nevada will soon follow, and then New Jersey. Regardless of how they fall, or even if it is a federal legalization, it would make sense that currently licensed operations, (and their bed-fellows), will have the first crack at the market, and it seems equally reasonable to assume that those operations will then take steps to ensure that they have market protection.

Providing online gaming licenses to non-US gaming operators, regardless of their "white label" status in other jurisdictions, is something that could take years to implement, if ever. Even pressure from the generally ignored WTO is unlikely to make a difference. The US made their opinion of the WTO's rulings very clear when they stripped gambling from its WTO obligations several years ago. It is obvious that they are going to conveniently continue to ignore them.

So where will that leave the established, reputable gaming companies that are operating in legal, regulated environs? Without a passport to the US market for sure. And for those that continue to operate in the US without a US license you can be sure that on the bequest of the Harrah's of the world that they will be forced out by whatever means are necessary. The US government will finally be armed with laws to do so.

As for the players themselves, and the large number of prospective players that have not yet played online because of trust issues, it will also be an easier decision for them to play with a brand that they recognize from down the road.

There is still no specific law that prohibits online gambling in the United States, and for those operators that are currently accepting US player action, this is the scenario in which they will remain the most successful. Unfortunately, in my opinion, change is inevitable.

Gian Perroni is the President of CanAffco.com, a Vancouver based marketing and affiliate management group focused on the online gaming sector.

The Sunday Times published this years list of the 100 wealthiest people working or living in Britain and i-Gaming executives featured heavily in the list with four PartyGaming executives among the top ten richest online business people, including PartyGaming founders Russ De Leon and Ruth Parasol ranked second place on the internet list with £700m. Group operations director Anurag Dikshit and marketing director Vikrant Bhargava were in third and ninth place respectively, with fortunes of £559m and £230m.

Bet365 founders Peter Coates and daughter Denise are sixth on the list, with an estimated £400m each, while online betting exchange Betfair placed three executives in the top 20. Betfair founder Ed Wray is the 11th wealthiest with £190m; Andrew Black is the 12th with £185m; and equity investment manager Richard Koch is the 17th with a company stake worth £129m.

The man at the top of the list however, is Peter Cruddas, founder and owner of internet securities dealer CMC, with a fortune estimated at £1bn. The Sunday Times reported that the Rich List was hit hard by the recession this year. The world economic slowdown wiped £155bn from last year's list, the biggest fall since the group was first compiled 21 years ago.

Steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal has seen £16.9bn evaporate from his fortune due to the collapse of the world steel market this year, but remains the richest person in Britain with a fortune of £10.8bn. The Duke of Westminster is the richest Briton, and continues to occupy third position overall due to his real estate fortune of £6.5bn.

PriceWaterhouseCoopers updated an analysis of lost tax revenue from On-line Gambling (originally published in 2007) and released the updated findings yesterday through the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative, a Washington DC lobby group. The latest report indicates that the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 has done very little to slow the growth of i-Gaming in the U.S. More glaringly evident however, are the facts and figures related to the loss of potential tax revenue. The lost dollars are mounting to the point where, given the current economic situation, it's becoming irresponsible for Congress to not seriously consider regulating and taxing Internet Gambling.

Internet Gambling Regulation Provides Opportunity to Generate Tens of Billions for Government Programs - Projections Reflect Increased Gambling by Americans Despite Attempts to Prohibit the Activity

An updated analysis found that the U.S. could receive as much as $51.9 billion in federal revenue over the next decade if Internet gambling is regulated as proposed in legislation introduced by Representatives Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Jim McDermott (D-Wash.). The new revenue estimates are approximately 22 percent larger than those of an earlier analysis prepared by PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2007, reflecting the increased online gambling activities of Americans despite attempts to prohibit activity through passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006.

"This analysis further illustrates that the U.S. is missing the opportunity to collect billions of dollars in federal revenues," said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesman for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative. "We are optimistic that the Obama Administration and Congress will pay closer attention to this issue as they seek to find new revenues that can be generated without raising taxes for critical federal, state and local government programs. Regulation is also needed to ensure there are safeguards to protect against compulsive and underage gambling, money laundering, fraud and identity theft."

AiG as it's become known, is the Asian i-Gaming Conference and Expo, is hosting it's 7th annual event from February 24-26, 2009, at the Venetian Macau Resort-Hotel in Macau. OffshoreNet has associates attending this event, if you are planning to attend and require assistance with offshore banking, please enquire.

AiG has become the definitive conference in Asia focusing on i-gaming. The 2008 edition welcomed just under 400 attendees an increase of 230% on PCiG 2007 with just under 500 attendees enjoying three days of conferencing and a sold out exhibition.

The Asian i-gaming industry continues to grow at an exponential rate with more companies setting up operations there. This conference is perfectly placed for all parties interested in the region. The conference program will have something for everyone, whether you are already established in Asia or view the region as the next opportunity for your company, you will find the event gives you the information you need for your business to succeed.

AiG will consist of two full days of keynotes, plenary sessions and streams to ensure you can tailor the event to your needs. In addition, this year, there will again be two pre-conference strategy days with the first looking at Mobile Gaming and the second being an Asian Marketing Masterclass.

Visit the official Asian i-Gaming Congress website to learn more.

The Isle of Man Government and the private sector have worked very hard to ensure that the island has a world class infrastructure and full range of Support Services in place for the e-gaming industry. Recently a new survey of leading e-Gaming companies in the Isle of Man has estimated its online gaming sector grew by 30% in 2008, and has forecast growth to accelerate to 40% in 2009.

There are 14 license holders at the moment. Eight new licenses were issued in 2008 with two more to go live shortly and this past week Asian bookmaker SBOBet's subsidiary Celton Manx has become the first Isle of Man-licensed operator to be granted approval to launch a live dealer casino from the island.

This is an issue of the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative's Public Affairs Newsletter; an update on legislative and media activity about regulating Internet gambling.

Financial Times reports ("A better hand") that support is growing for the regulation of Internet gambling. "Industry experts think the new Congress will respond more favorably to renewed efforts by Democrats, notably Mr. Frank, to allow regulated online operations. The administration of President Obama, while unlikely to advocate that change, is expected to play the role of passive bystander." The article points out that the Bush administration, motivated by a desire "to appease the religious right," pushed through hastily written, burdensome and unrealistic prohibitions on Internet gambling that only serve a purpose of harming American consumers and burdening an already overloaded and struggling U.S. financial institutions tasked with enforcing the rules.

The business section of the Isle of Man Today newspaper reported this week that Internet gambling is the fastest growing sector of the Manx economy, bucking the economic slowdown trend with the prospect of new businesses and new jobs being created on the island over the next few years.

More than 360 jobs have been created in the past three years, the newspaper reports, with some of the biggest names in the online gambling industry including Microgaming, PokerStars and Playtech setting up head offices.

While attending an i-Gaming Conference in Montreal I had the good fortune to be invited to the head-office of Income Access for a tour and to meet with the CEO, Nicky Seynard. Established in 2002 this company is operated by a team of seasoned affiliate marketing professionals in online gaming.

Income Access will be re-launching its affiliate marketing software with an entirely new user-interface. The new version of our software will offer more analytics at a glance, and make it easier to navigate its other powerful features - like in-depth tracking reports. Gaming merchants and marketers need Income Access

EiG added a couple of new features for 2008, the Launchpad will enable up to five start-up operators to pitch their vision for 2009 to the audience, and an expert panel of leading gaming figures, in a "Dragons' Den' style session. The big question is - who has the best proposition for a new i-gaming business?

Affiliate Zone - for the first time ever, in association with the Gambling Portal Webmasters Association EiG will be bringing the affiliates and general gaming communities together to deliver an even more complete i-gaming event to the industry. To learn more click here.