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2010-06-29T20:44:00.000-07:00

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Asia Pacific Casino, Gambling, Gaming, Sports Betting News Update, by Greg Tingle - 20th June 2010

2010-06-20T05:18:00.001-07:00

Gambling, gaming and sports betting news continues to show no signs of slowing down in the Asia Pacific region, including the land "down under" in Australia. Media Man and and Gambling911 continue to circumnavigate the globe in search on what's news, be it casino whale news, innovation, politics or good old fashioned gossip. Australia, New Zealand, Macau, Philippines...no where is safe from the blood hounds on their Asia Pacific voyage of discovery...

Crown Casino VS Star City Casino Wars Continues...

Adam Santarossa aka "Man In The Ball" continues to live in the giant ball located outside Crown Casino. Half way thru his ordeal he shows no sign of quitting. Not to be outdone, Sydney's Star City Casino saw soccer mad sisters Joanne and Alanah Argyrou watch 72 hours of soccer World Cup style non stop. They currently awaiting confirmation by Guinness World Records. Likely the most famous gambling related GWR is PokerStars having the most people playing in an online poker room at any one time.

Crown Casino Will Pursue Gambling Addict Harry Kakavas $50 Million...

As reported earlier in the week, Crown Limited legal eagles are going after the hide and shirt off the back of Harry. Crown, please also remember, you can't get blood out of a stone. We know he owes $50 mil, but getting it out of him will be a challenges, if not impossible, scuttlebutt says. Insiders reckon Harry might already be $50 mil in debt himself... ah, the house always wins... well, almost always.

Aussie Casino King James Packer And Wife Erica Holiday In Greece...

Australian gambling and entertainment royalty, the Packer's, has gone to Greece to spend the summer, escaping the often cold winds of Bondi Beach. They went by air to Mykonos to board the family icebreaker, the Arctic P, located off the coast of the stellar island Santorini. Spy's advised they were spotted strolling the streets of the island capital, Fira (not Fireass from 'Underbelly'). The Packer's have a friendship and positive history with the world famous Paspaley pearling family based in the region. The rumour mill says Tom Cruise could show up soon as his new movie Knight and Day is to premier downtown in about a month.

Gambling Linked To 1 In 5 Suicidal Patients Says Australia Hospital...

Triggered by a nurse's curiosity over what tipped patients into crisis. The 17% which includes patients referred by mental health crisis teams, is roughly 20 times the rate of problem gambling in the community. Professor Jayashri Kulkarni, director of the Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research Centre, said researchers made the discovery after screening 898 suicidal patients for gambling problems over 6 months last year. Dr Charles Livingstone, of Monash University's health science department, said the figure "appals me, but unfortunately I'm not surprised".

PartyCasino VS Virgin Casino VS Captain Cooks Casino...

PartyGaming's PartyCasino.com continues to be Australia's favorite destination for branded online games. This is partly due to Party getting the jump into Australia a couple of years ago when Mission: Impossible, Rambo and Sinatra came out, followed by Marvel heroes titles. Australia's can't currently play Virgin, but we reckon there's a secret way in, and Captain Cooks Tomb Raider and Mega Moolah remain big hits, but the captain desperately needs more new branded titles in they are to keep swimming, not drowning. Centrebet is now offering Aussie's Marvel titles, and Packers's Betfair is working on providing Australians with a online casino and poker product. PKR's strength remains 3D like poker, with sports betting recently being added to the portfolio. PartyCasino remains #1 and is heavily promoting their soccer world cup themed 'Safari Soccer', while Captain Cooks has a soccer themed streaming media promo running on their website.

PartyGaming’s Corporate Responsibility Credentials Receive Four Endorsements...

PartyGaming, the world’s leading listed online gaming company, is proud to announce that its corporate and social responsibility (CSR) credentials have been endorsed by four leading corporate, charitable and gaming industry bodies:

FTSE4Good Index, GREaT Foundation, eCOGRA and GamCare

GamCare:

For the sixth year in succession, PartyGaming has been certificated as a responsible operator by GamCare, a registered charity which is a leading authority on the provision of counselling, advice and practical help in addressing the social impact of gambling in the UK. Andy McLellan, Chief Executive of GamCare, said: “I am delighted to be able to renew PartyGaming’s GamCare Certification in public recognition of their longstanding commitment to player protection. Players who choose PartyGaming have the assurance from GamCare Certification that there are appropriate measures in place to help them gamble responsibly and that the right advice is there for anyone who wants to know more about staying in control.”

Martin Weigold, Group Finance Director who has executive responsibility for PartyGaming’s CSR matters, said: “These corporate responsibility endorsements are welcome recognition of our commitment to act responsibly, which remains one of the four pillars of our business strategy. Being recognised in this way is a source of genuine pride for all of PartyGaming’s 1,300 employees whose commitment to undertaking pro bono community projects in 2009 was also recognised as ‘placing the Company well ahead of its peers’ by the GoodCorporation that undertakes CSR reviews for a number of public companies around the world.”

Macau...

Macau SAR is looking at “a missed opportunity” if no direct flights to Australia are launched to replace the Viva Macau operation, the head of the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade) in Hong Kong, Phil Ingram advised. “Obviously people prefer to fly direct and they can’t do that now but it’s not going to stop them from coming”, Ingram says. In fact, the Austrade Senior Commissioner adds, “our biggest export to Macau is tourists. There is a surprisingly large number of Australians coming to visit.” A lot of them, he says, hear about the territory through “the Crown connection.” Crown, Australian billionaire James Packer’s company, partially owns Melco Crown Entertainment, which operates City of Dreams resort and Altira casino. But many more, Ingram believes, “come not just to gamble, but expecting to see something historical and interesting as well as Macau’s UNESCO [United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization] World Heritage.” Nonetheless, the Austrade executive emphasised, “we would prefer if there were a new replacement for the airline [Viva Macau].”

“You have a great international airport, so it’s a pity if it’s not used as much as it could be,” he said. The launch of a direct flight to Australia “would be beneficial for our exports too, food most of all,” Ingram acknowledged.

Last year the Macau market was worth MOP 500 million in trade and was “very important” for the Australian hospitality and tourism industry, the Austrade commissioner said. For example, he underlined, the local gaming sector is the third largest buyer of slot machines “made in Australia,” after USA and Japan.

American Academic Explains Asian Gaming And Casino Culture...

Gambling has strong traditions in the Chinese culture, and that has permeated to the surrounding counties, although to a lesser degree, said Vera Schwarcz, director of the Freeman Center for East Asian Studies at Wesleyan University.

“It hasn’t been frowned upon like in Christian cultures,” Schwarcz said. “Finding shortcuts in the dream of realizing wealth is something that’s more acceptable.” Chinese men go out to drink and gamble, and Chinese women stay home to gamble with friends, sometimes in large groups, she explained. The Chinese people believe strongly in luck, which coincides with their feelings toward fate and fortune. “It’s not like if you go out and gamble that you are a bad family man,” Schwarcz said. “If you gamble and win, it goes toward your social status of having more money.” Asia, especially China, has become the new hotspot for American casinos to drum up new business. For a long time Las Vegas casinos have sought out high rollers in Asia to fly into Nevada, Patrone said. Now casino companies build properties in the Far East, particularly Macau.

Global Gaming Asia Conference Bold Prediction...

Delegates to the Global Gaming Asia conference in Macau were told that the regions gambling market has a very good chance of overtaking that of the U.States within the next 3 to 5 years. Based on Packer's success with his City of Dreams Macau, and Steve Wynn's progress, we think the prediction will hold true.

Gambling on the island of Macau off the Chinese coast has already surpassed that of Las Vegas in terms of gaming revenue, recording record-breaking growth, delegates were told, and Singapore and other Southeast Asian nations are now building up their gambling sectors to cash in on its exploding popularity. "The growth of the market in Asia has been incredible," Frank Fahrenkopf, head of the American Gaming Association told the conference.

NRL Football State Of Origin...

Despite the Queenslanders Thrashing NSW once again, in a 34 to 6, sports betting agencies continue to bring home the bacon. The State Of Origin and various racism related incidents have overshadowed the NRL Melbourne Storm salary cap scandal, for now...

Club Sells $666K Winning Lotto Ticket: Mark Of The Beast...

The Millicent and District Community Club is celebrating after it sold one of two winning tickets in Saturday night's Cross Lotto draw. One of its customers is now set to collect $666,666 after matching all six numbers. The club's Adam Dredge say it is quite likely the winner is a local. "It's usually the same people that come in each week to get their lotteries. We do a reasonable amount each day - not hundreds of people - it might be 20 or 30 people each day at the most - but I'm not even sure what day it was sold," he said. The weekend winners join the ranks of 13 other rural players who have collected a division one prize in SA Lotteries' games this financial year. No, the winner didn't die or anything!

Pyramid Lottery Scheme Shut Down In Nothern Territory...

A pyramid scheme offering shares in lottery wins has been banned from operating in the Northern Territory, the Consumer Affairs Commissioner says. Gary Clements says the scheme, known as OzPower System and run by TSC 2000 Europe Ltd, attracts members by offering a share in wins and bonuses for signing new members. Mr Clements says pyramid selling schemes often cost members more than they bring benefits. He says the company has agreed to withdraw from the Territory to avoid court proceedings. "They will basically refuse to accept any further Northern Territory members," he said. "Any current members can withdraw from the scheme without any costs. "There is normally a cost to stop being a member from a lot of these sorts of schemes and they go into detail on their website that Northern Territory residents cannot go into the scheme."

Japan: Scandal Hits Sumo Wrestlers...

Wrestlers gambling on baseball with gangsters. As Sor Hol! The latest controversy slammed down this week when the top ranked wrestler Kotomitsuki outed himself for gambling on baseball with yakuza gangsters. The 34-year-old ozeki (the second-highest rank, below yokozuna) had little choice: after a run of winning wagers the yakuza told him that not only would he not be paid, but they desired "hush money" to keep his gambling out of the press. Didn't work that well says Media Man and Gambling911, with assist from Murdoch's News Limited and friends...Betting on all but a handful of sports is illegal in Japan, and Kotomitsuki has been suspended for at least the next tournament while a penalty is decided. Kotomitsuki is likely to be the tip of the iceberg, with a Japan Sumo Association investigation revealing that up to 65 wrestlers or coaches had admitted to gambling on baseball, golf, mahjong or cards. The police will also investigate the Kotomitsuki case because of the yakuza extortion element and the Ministry of Education and Culture, which regulates the sport, is demanding heads on a plate from the Japan Sumo Association. The controversy comes as the number of young Japanese willing to commit to the feudal and sequestered sumo lifestyle diminishes and the viewing audience is increasingly confined to the older generation. Media Man expects the PartyGaming 'Sumo' slot game to rise in popularity, with Sumo back in the mainstream news...

http://www.mediamanint.com/profiles/sumo.html

Ambush Marketing Stunts Gamble Planned By Australian Media And Coms Entrepreneurs...

Inspired by the now world famous Bavaria Beer ambush marketing stunt at the world cup, Perth Based Kym Illman, is interested to see if he can top it for worldwide exposure. As of this writing, ambush marketing is understood to contain elements of "grey area" on a legal front in Australia. Richard Branson's Virgin Games often refers to "grey area" in igaming and gaming regulation. Did we mention Illman once ambushed Branson! For the record Media Man has met and talked biz with both gents, albeit it on different occasions, as you might expect. Ambush marketing in Australia - expected the unexpected - Crown Casino, WWE, UFC, Bondi Beach or a combo whopper? Stay tuned to Media Man and Gambling911 as D Day approaches is the message.

http://www.mediamanint.com/profiles/ambush_marketing.html

World Cup Refereeing Decisions: History Shows Link Against Aussies!...

3 successive World Cup matches. 3 massive refereeing decisions. Every one against Australia. Conspiracy!!!

a. Fabio Grosso's infamous "dive" over Lucas Neill, which gave 10-man Italy a hotly disputed last-minute penalty to sink Australia's 2006 campaign.

b. The 2010 game opened with Australia's most influential player, Tim Cahill, sent off against Germany for a late but far from malicious challenge, which even the player on the receiving end, Bastian Schweinsteiger, said shouldn't have warranted a red card.

c. Australia's best man on the field, Harry Kewell, is dismissed and suspended for a match after a ball blasted from close range hit him on the upper arm on the goal line in the 1-1 draw against Ghana.

The resultant penalty meant the difference between victory and a draw. The guy has killed my World Cup," said Kewell. "He is the referee, he's the judge, jury and executioner. "Unless I detach my arm and put it somewhere else, there's no other way I can move my arm." Defender Craig Moore said: "I didn't think it was a red card and I didn't think it was a penalty." Captain Lucas Neill said: "When the ball goes 100 miles an hour at you and you're standing on the line, it's got to hit you somewhere, and it happened to hit Harry on the upper arm/shoulder."

Coach Pim Verbeek said: "It was a mistake. What can you do with your arm? You cannot cut it off. As far as I know in the rules it has to be intentional to send a player off." The Aussies are pissed that Kewell received a red card for an unintentional act while Serbian defender Nemanja Vidic got off with a yellow against Germany for a deliberate handball. "Serbia has conceded two hand-to-ball penalties," said Neill, "but this could only be interpreted as ball-to-hand." Kewell asked: "Why's is this one different?" "It's confusing because one minute they (the referees) are saying this and next minute they're saying that."

Neill said refereeing decisions usually evened out like "swings and roundabouts". Word on the streets down under is that Aussie's "smell a rat" (of the FIFA variety). A Media Man insider was heard at a cafe frequented by sports, entertainment and media types "Suspecion is one thing, proof is another. I think we know why human refs still remain and the video umpire meathod is not used. The human element is a way for rorting, rigging and the like to more easily exist in the environment... largely going undedicted". The cafe patrons largely agreed. Punters, what do you think? Tell us in the Gambling911 forums. Can't wait for Tony Clifton's submission.

Wrapt Up...

Punters er readers, there you go. One of the biggest sports betting and gaming news months in recent history.

May you enjoy good fortune with your passion, be it sports betting, slots, casino tables, poker or other. As always, know the odds, bet with your head, not over it, and have fun.

*Greg Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media Man http://www.mediamanint.com is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company

*The writer has conducted b2b with PartyGaming and Virgin Enterprises Limited

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Intralot Aussie Connection: My Big Fat Greek Profit Hole, by Greg Tingle - 16th June 2010

2010-06-16T05:56:00.001-07:00

Australia enjoys a largely positive history with our Greek friends. But, in recent years Intralot has impacted Australia's gaming sector in a less than stellar fashion. Media Man and Gambling911 investigate and probe seeking answers .....sounds like Greek or not...

Intralot Australia in quite a pickle, has borrowed multiple millions of dollars to attempt to care card of business down under in Australia.

It's still weathering the storm from its ill fated entry into the Australian instant lottery market circa 2008 with machines that "spoke" (read) in Greek tongue.

The roots go back in history to Athens... its birthplace. Maybe they should have stayed there, as much as we love the Greeks and their world famous cuisine, hospitality and goddess like sexy women.

It's now understood they lost $15 million in 2009. Their 2 year loss is in the region of $28.4 million. It's loans from what insiders call "related parties" were $21.5 million in 2009, compared with "only" $6.5 million circa 2008. Detractors who are choosing to remain nameless at present are starting to question if "loan sharks" or "dodgy deals" are part of the problem.

We understand that Intralot Australia had borrowed an additional $1.65 million from Intralot UK Finance.

The company GM, Leo Watling, is tight lipped about if more loans will be in order.

Before things soured with the Greek salad, going pear shaped, the outfit was hopeful of winning a New South Wales licence, recently awarded to Tatts. There was controversy over the inclusion element re unclaimed prizes. A number of other bidders state they were not given an opportunity to bid. Intralot has consulted with legal eagles and 'Do We Cheat Em & How' (just kidding) and is still considering suing the NSW government over it. Mama and Papa know the government has enough problems to deal with at the moment, without a legal situation mixing it up with convicts and Greek gods and goddesses.

For the uninitiated our learned friends Intralot entered the Victorian gambling sector in the middle of 2008. The company offers scratch cards in Tasmania and look after information technology support services for Western Australia's Lotterywest brand.

Its Victorian entry was not god or goddess like. Even "Osiris magic" tactics were not going to save it, never mind a resurrection.

Of course the "the blame game" started and newsagents claimed they lost 15% of their lotteries income through a range of issues including faulty technology, complex scratch games and piss poor sales, marketing, branding and the like. It was a bad comedy, being compared to 'My Big Fat Greek Wedding'. Punters, would you believe the machines installed to check tickets gave instructions in Greek tongue!

Intralot is arguing with passion that its sales have been hampered by Tatts' refusal to permit the firm to place their branded products (scratchies etc) on shop counters where Tatts scratchies were previously sold to the punting public.

"We continue to explain to the Victorian government that the existence of the Tattersall's dedicated area is not only unfair but anti-competitive," Mr Watling spoke.

Tatts remains unwilling to negotiation on this point. Intralot Australia's financial statement for 2009 shows its Victorian lottery sales: $56 million. Total revenue: $66 million, however it paid $31 million in prizes, good news for punters...almost $18.8 million in lottery tax and licence fees, and millions more on a fruit basket of miscellaneous expenses.

"We had always anticipated that the first few years would be loss-making due to the substantial investment required to develop this current licence and others opportunities in the region," Mr Watling explained.

"Sales are trending upwards and our relationships with our vendors … have never been better. They have appreciated the recent efforts we have made with the introduction of new scratch ticket dispensers and the relaunched Keno game."

The jury is out re Intralot soon to be ancient (Greek) history, or will they get the power of Isis with 'Assimilation of Mut'?

Greek Online Slot Games...

Call Of The Colosseum

Words Of Wisdom...With Public Thank You To Jimmy Wales Of Wikipedia...

"It is difficult not to wonder whether that combination of elements which produces a machine for labor does not create also a soul of sorts, a dull resentful metallic will, which can rebel at times." -Pearl S. Buck

"It is questionable if all the mechanical inventions yet made have lightened the day's toil of any human being." -John Stuart Mill

"The machine does not isolate man from the great problems of nature but plunges him more deeply into them." -Saint-Exupéry, Wind, Sand, and Stars, 1939

"Once upon a time we were just plain people. But that was before we began having relationships with mechanical systems. Get involved with a machine and sooner or later you are reduced to a factor." -Ellen Goodman, "The Human Factor," The Washington Post, January 1987

"One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine can do the work of one extraordinary man." -Elbert Hubbard, The Roycroft Dictionary and Book of Epigrams, 1923

"The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do." B.F. Skinner, Contingencies of Reinforcement, 1969

"Soon silence will have passed into legend. Man has turned his back on silence. Day after day he invents machines and devices that increase noise and distract humanity from the essence of life, contemplation, meditation...tooting, howling, screeching, booming, crashing, whistling, grinding, and trilling bolster his ego. His anxiety subsides. His inhuman void spreads monstrously like a gray vegetation." -Jean Arp

"We are becoming the servants in thought, as in action, of the machine we have created to serve us." -John Kenneth Galbraith

"When a machine begins to run without human aid, it is time to scrap it - whether it be a factory or a government." -Alexander Chase, Perspectives, 1966

"You cannot endow even the best machine with initiative; the jolliest steam-roller will not plant flowers." -Walter Lippmann

"The best machine is one you don't have to turn on." - Great quote, but whose is it?

Greek Trivia Fact...

Modern Greeks can still wholly or partly understand texts written in non-archaic forms of ancient Greek shows the affinity of modern Greek language to its ancestral predecessor!

Wrap Up (In English)...

Gods and goddesses, don your mask and spin to win, scratch to hatch, or whatever is your poison. Isis tells us that a number of online casino games are awaiting your custom, and yes, they come in multi currency, and some come both in English and Greek variations, with strong security protection like eCogra. As Aussie Greek cultural icon Con The Fruitier says, "Beautiful". Bet responsibly and watch out for hot headed Greeks, unless they are hot Greek chicks or for the ladies, Mr Cleopatra 'Bachelor of the Year' cum Underbelly Fireass!

*Greg Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media Man http://www.mediamanint.com is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company. Gaming is just one of a bakers dozen of sectors they cover.

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Aussie Pokie Pub Palace Kings Cash In Tax Cuts, by Greg Tingle - 10th June 2010

2010-06-10T02:06:00.001-07:00

Down under in Australia the Aussie pubs have more to say cheers to and celebrate, as the gaming industry remains under the spotlight. Media Man and Gambling911 probe the pokie bean counter inc...

Aussie hotels and pubs aka "pokie palaces" owned by some of Sydney's must cashed up pub tycoons won't have to pay tax or have their tax bill cut on poker machine profits following an overhaul of sorts to gambling taxes in the state budget, which the industry has celebrated as "a result of historic proportions.

The government is calling the changes as a "rescue package" for small country pubs, but Fairfax Media is stating that the upmarket Beresford Hotel in Sydney's Surry Hills, bought by the multimillionaire Justin Hemmes just two months ago for $14.6 million, is among 485 pubs that will no longer have to pay tax on gambling profits. Jackpot Bingo!

A tax-free threshold of $200,000 will apply to pokies profits for five years from July 1, mixed in with a new taxation scale. The changes mean 1100 NSW pubs - or 65% will either end up paying no tax or significantly less.

The Beresford's pokies profits are only about $50 grand... so its annual gambling tax bill will be trimmed to Nil... bonus. American and European clubs and casinos are following the Aussie gambling tax cuts with keen interest.

A spokesman for the Hemmes family company, Merivale Group, said "Merivale controls or owns eight venues with poker machines, one of which is the Beresford Hotel. The Beresford is the only venue of the eight not required to pay tax, leaving seven of the eight paying tax. As a group, Merivale is paying more tax as a result of the changes.".

Calculations passed to Fairfax Media, that Media Man got across demonstrate pubs with gambling profits of up to $700,000 will have annual savings of between $2473 and $27,543.

The Captain Cook Hotel located on Sydney's Flinders Street and owned by the developer Matthew Lepouris, has a pokies profit of about $400,000. The hotel's tax bill will be cut by about $11,000.

The Royal Hotel at Paddo, owned by the Kelly family, and the Bristol Arms on Sussex St, owned by New South Wales largest hotel owner, National Leisure and Gaming, will pay less tax.

The NSW president of the Australian Hotels Association, Scott Leach, celebrated the move in an email to members earlier this week.

"The AHA NSW has successfully lobbied the NSW government to guarantee future gaming tax rates and deliver an immediate tax cut to 65 per cent of NSW hotels," he wrote. "This is a result of historic proportions for the industry following speculation last year the government was seriously considering increasing hotel tax rates."

Insiders say the "deal" was brokered by John Whelan, a former chief-of-staff to the former minister for gaming and racing, Grant McBride, who these days works for the AHA. Ah, relationships, history and networking matters.

Whelan declined to discuss his role in securing the tax changes. The AHA did not return calls.

Media Man and Gambling911 think the situation shows that lobbying can still work with government, when done in a (Legal) "Casino Jack" fashion. Gambling911 and MM pass on our congrats to the pub barons and the NSW government on coming to business terms that suit both parties.

Punters, as always, know the odds, bet with your head, not over it, and have fun.

*Greg Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media Man http://www.mediamanint.com is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company. Gaming is just one of a bakers dozen of sectors they cover.

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