Author: Daniel Williams

A new piece of gaming legislation regarding video gaming terminals (VGTs) has been introduced in Pennsylvania by the State Representative Anthony DeLuca. The bill, called HB 469, is focused on authorising a limited number of video gaming terminals located in non-profit clubs on the territory of the state of Pennsylvania. When writing his co-sponsorhip memoranda in January, Representative DeLuca said that it was of paramount importance for the Commonwealth to be able to find the balance between making an acknowledgement for a mutual benefit of such an arrangement with the…

Although the official opening of Okada Manila was initially set on February 17th, but the company which was in charge of the complex – Tiger Resort Leisure & Entertainment Inc. – issued a special press release to announce that the grand opening is to be delayed to late March. There was a partial soft opening of the venue on December 21st 2016, which the company called “a preview period” and made sure it officially launched the casino operations at Okada Manila until the end of the year. It also announced…

After last week the Governor Tom Wolf announced a budget proposal related to the addition of extra $250 million for a “gaming expansion”, both analysts and media thought that was a hint that online gambling legalisation remain as part of Pennsylvania’s plans for the future. However, the scheduled hearing to discuss the gaming expansion in question was cancelled and various guesses were made on the matter. Still, despite the cancellation, most experts remain optimistic about the future of online gambling legalisation in the state of Pennsylvania. The hearing in front…

Last week, the Mississippi House reviewed two gambling bills. However, only one of them – the bill concerning the Daily Fantasy Sports – got an approval and won the vote to move forward to the Senate. The other bill, which was related to the state lottery failed to pass, so it would not proceed any further. What is interesting, is the fact that the Mississippi House has reversed its own decision in terms of the Daily Fantasy Sports bill – House Bill 967. First, the bill failed on Wednesday as…

This week, three new casinos proposals are planned to be considered by the City Council in Cedar Rapids in Iowa. According to some documents released last week, two of these proposals feature one new plan which referred to Cedar Crossing Central. The latter is set to replace the parking facility of the Five Seasons Ramp, together with a proposal which was announced under the name Cedar Crossing on the River. The proposal was initially turned down in 2014 after the results of an investigation held at the time showed that…

The Sports Betting Integrity Forum, also known under the abbreviation SBIF, published the 2017 edition of its Sport and Sport Betting Integrity Action Plan (SBI Action Plan) less than a week after it celebrated the successful delivery of the last year’s one. The aim of the SBIF is to now to use that progress as a base in order to build a continuous collaborative approach in terms of sports, betting operators, law enforcement and prevention of harmful effects of gambling. The Sports Betting Integrity Forum is also focused on reducing…

The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) published new evidence related to the Government’s review of gaming machines and social responsibility measures. The review issued by the UK Government covers several areas of primary importance, including the maximum stakes and prizes, as well as the measures that should be taken in order to reduce the risks inflicted by gambling activities and problem gambling behaviour. The key gambling regulatory authority revealed that in order to help its advice to be developed it has commissioned a special analysis of the co-relation between the gambling…

The last couple of days were crucial when it comes to the long-running debate on the legalisation of online casinos and daily fantasy sports in the state of Pennsylvania. The matter unexpectedly took a different direction after the state Governor Tom Wolf announced a budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year, which includes additional funds amounting to $250 million for what he called a “gaming expansion”. As revealed by Wolf himself, the budget address of the Governor to the General Assembly of Pennsylvania stated his plans to ensure a budget…

It seems that the State of New York is to seriously consider the legalisation of online poker with all pieces of the legislative puzzle now in place after Assemblyman Gary Pretlow introduced his Bill A5250. The Bill A5250, sponsored by Pretlow, is actually the same as the one called S3893 sponsored by Senator John Bonacic, which was officially introduced last month. The new Bill presented to the state’s competent authorities seeks permission of certain interactive poker games as games of skill rather than games of luck. It also presents definitions,…

Operating licences and licensing procedures are absolutely necessary in order for a gambling company to be allowed to run its operations in the UK. As mentioned in previous publications, it is the UK Gambling Commission which is the competent regulatory authority in the country, has the right and responsibility to issue the operating licences for gambling operators. Here are the types of casino operating licences that you can apply for: Casino Nowadays, casinos are special facilities which house and accommodate specific types of gambling activities. A great variety of casino…