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Media Man Network Blog: Build your network step by step

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Friday, October 21, 2011

Donald Trump says US should legalize Internet betting - 21st October 2011

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Donald Trump Trump Entertainment Resorts World Casino Directory Global Gaming Directory Games Casino Slots Casinos United States Las Vegas


Donald Trump has witnessed lots of money side slipping him, and he's hoping that situation changes soon.

The real estate, gaming and entertainment tsar, and founder of an Atlantic City casino company says the US should legalize internet gambling. The company that bears his name, Trump Entertainment Resorts, is moving forward with plans to establish an online betting venture... just as soon as it is legal to do so.

The company says it wants to get in on the ground floor of the internet gambling industry, and is close to selecting a joint venture partner to run an online gambling operation. The idea is to be well-placed and ready to go as soon as such activity is legalized in the United States.

"It should be approved here," Trump told news media. "An awful lot of money is leaving the U.S. that should and could stay in this country."

Trump Entertainment, which includes Donald Trump and daughter, Ivanka, and the Avenue Capital hedge fund, would own 10% of the new business venture.

Donald Trump advised the key to success in the online gambling market is having the best brand.

"We think we have the hottest brand there is, the Trump brand, my personal brand," he said. "We think it's going to do phenomenally well."

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Trump Entertainment said it has "determined that such a joint venture represents the most advantageous way for the company to participate in opportunities in online gaming at minimal cost to the company."

No cost estimates were given, and Robert Griffin, the company's CEO, declined to comment Thursday. But in March, after Gov. Chris Christie vetoed a bill passed by New Jersey lawmakers that would have allowed Internet betting solely within New Jersey's borders, Griffin said the money lost to offshore operators should benefit New Jersey.

The new law would seen New Jersey become the first state in the nation to allow Internet betting.

"Currently, millions of Americans engage in online gaming with illegal offshore operators, and do so with no oversight, no regulation or no consumer protections," Griffin said at the time. "It makes sense for the state of New Jersey to regulate this activity, enforce strict standards to ensure games are fair and safe, and in turn be able to collect tax revenue instead of having those dollars and the jobs they support leaving New Jersey and going illegally overseas."

Christie advised he vetoed the law fearing it was unconstitutional and could lead to an explosion of betting parlors throughout the state. By law, gambling in New Jersey is restricted to gaming hotspot Atlantic City.

But a New Jersey lawmaker is asserting that individual states in fact have the legal right to offer in-state Internet gambling within their own borders.

State Sen. Raymond Lesniak, D-Union, wrote in July to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder asserting that New Jersey and all other states can legally offer online betting within their borders.

Lesniak said he will introduce legislation in November to address the prime concerns expressed by Christie.

The filing said the company, Donald and Ivanka Trump, and Avenue Capital have signed an agreement authorizing the joint venture once it becomes legal, and that prohibits any of them from seeking other online gambling ventures through May 2012.

Atlantic City is in the midst of a nearly 5-year revenue slump brought on by increasing competition from casinos in neighboring states, and worsened by the continuing unsteady economy. It's also speculated that many AC businesses have not adapted well to the internet medium.

Just a few online gaming companies that are understood to be interested in coming to business terms with Trump include Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment, Richard Branson's Virgin Games and PKR. Most experts see Bwin.Party as the best bet, as they don't have any outstanding issues with the US Department of Justice, and have been playing by the rules (law) for many years, while other gambling companies continue to go after U.S players.

Internet gambling is legal in many countries, with the U.S being a glaring exception.

Media Man is following up.

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Thursday, October 20, 2011

Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment Betting On United States, by Greg Tingle - 20th October 2011

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Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment PartyCasino PartyPoker World Poker Tour Gibraltar Gaming


Jim Ryan, the co-chief executive of Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment is a very busy man.

In fact, he's invested three of the past five weeks in the United States pushing a presentation that advertised to investors the strengths of the world’s largest publicly-traded online gambling - gaming firm. Ryan’s presentation included a one-page chart that listed the top online poker brands in the U.S. market. The names of once fierce competitors PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, were crossed out in red. Is Party the only real game left in town? Time will tell.

“Where you see the red lines, those organizations have been indicted, so although one can’t predict the future, it’s unlikely you will see those brands back in the U.S.,” Ryan said during an interview. “The brand that has the most consumer awareness is in fact the PartyPoker brand.”

Ryan’s company happens to own both PartyPoker and the World Poker Tour, two of the top online poker brands that did not have their U.S. operations shut down by the U.S. Justice Department in April because they were not facilitating for-money online poker play in America—in the case of PartyPoker since 2006. They also own PartyCasino, a top online casino destination website. The fact that Ryan, who is based in Gibraltar, has recently been spending so much time in the U.S. demonstrates he is optimistic and hopeful for a U.S. comeback. “My focus is on the U.S.,” says Ryan, who is in the final stages of negotiating partnerships with two U.S. companies. “Even though there is no guarantee that online gaming will ever regulate in the U.S.”

For years Ryan and his staff at PartyGaming, which merged with Bwin earlier this year, had to sit on the sidelines, watching how much money PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker were snatching. It was a difficult thing to watch for the top brass and workers at PartyGaming, which was the biggest online gambling company in the world thanks to its domination of the U.S. online poker market until Congress passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006. PartyGaming exited the U.S. market and saw its stock price take a massive hit, while PokerStars and Full Tilt kept their U.S. facing .com websites on air. Party competitors enjoyed somewhat of an unfair advantage, with the rouges using the U.S. market to expand globally at PartyGaming’s expense. “We were beyond the point of frustration,” says Ryan.

Next PartyGaming struck a non-prosecution agreement with the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan, paying $105 million and admitting its U.S. operations had for years violated U.S. law. Meanwhile, PokerStars and Full Tilt continued to operate in the U.S. and claimed that their U.S. operations did not violate U.S. law, pointing to legal opinions the companies had received from top American legal eagles. To many, it appeared like PartyGaming had given a lucrative business away. Even at the company’s headquarters there were doubts until April 2011, when federal prosecutors in Manhattan closed down the U.S. operations of PokerStars and Full Tilt, naming them illegal gambling businesses, and indicted some of their key execs. "I think Party has been vindicated now in getting out when they did and in dealing with the Department of Justice," says Behnam Dayanim, a partner at Axinn Veltrop & Harkrider, who negotiated PartyGaming’s agreement with federal prosecutors in downtown Manhattan.

With all that said, Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment is not exactly holding a management party quite yet. It's so close, yet so far, from reclaiming online poker’s crown. Operating in highly-regulated and taxed European markets while competing against well-run companies like PokerStars is not for the faint-hearted. Bwin.Party’s stock, which trades on the prestigious London Stock Exchange, has dipped by 50% in 2011. Big corporate mergers can be problematic, but the outfit has also suffered a setback in Germany, where the nation’s top civil court recently decided to uphold an online gambling ban, and been dissed by higher gaming duties across Europe. When the company attempted to take advantage of the April U.S. shutdown of PokerStars and Full Tilt, Bwin.Party found that while some new European players were attracted to its poker brands, revenues remained flat-ish. It wasn’t until Full Tilt’s European regulator suspended Full Tilt’s license in late June that Bwin.Party’s increased advertising and promotional expenditures started to pay dividends. PartyPoker is now the second-biggest online poker room in the world, according to PokerScout, averaging 4,150 cash players during any given time. PokerStars has 22,800.

Ryan, who joined PartyGaming as CEO in 2008, has been waiting for this moment for what seems like forever. He long ago took Bwin’s Norbert Teufelberger to a McDonald’s in La Linea, Spain, and chatted to him at length about the pros of combining Bwin’s strong online sportsbook business with PartyGaming’s poker brands, resulting in the merger that was first announced in 2010. Ryan also fine-tuned his company’s business-to-business capabilities over the last few years with an eye toward finding a U.S. partner with whom he can re-conquer America. "We had to be realistic about where we sat in the food chain," says Ryan. "We figured if the U.S. regulated it would be unlikely that we would secure a license directly, that the laws of the land would be written to allow existing land operators and equipment manufacturers in the U.S. to secure the licenses." Ryan is optimistic about current efforts in Washington, driven by the American Gaming Association and powerful casino companies like Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts, to potentially get some sort of online gambling legislation through a divided Congress. Ryan notes he is also preparing for the possibility that online poker gets regulated first on a state-by-state basis.

"We have to be ready for both federal or state," he says. "It feels good to have American taxpaying companies finally driving this.".

If an offshore operator is to succeed in American, Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment looks like the firm to place bets with.

Bwin.Party has identified Australia and New Zealand as places to further expand their business, even sponsoring high profile poker players such as Tony G and Stewart Scott (a former Crown Casino 'Aussie Millions' champion.) PartyPoker is one of a number of rumoured brands set to take over the sponsorship spot at James Packer's Crown Casino that FTP once enjoyed. Party look to have as much chance as anyone, probably more so.

In the meantime, poker and casino game players in regions such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Italy, South America, South Africa and beyond can continue to enjoy their gaming.

Poker playing celebs such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Tobey McGuire are understood to be open to sponsorship approaches from Bwin.Party.

Governments of the world - you're throw of the dice.

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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Slots Spinning in the Grave at PartyCasino; Halloween Casino Games Promotion

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PartyCasino.com Full Moon Fever Graveyard Bash Monster Money Resident Evil Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment


PartyCasino's latest slots promotion is about Halloween. With the spooky event coming up at the end of the month, PartyCasino.com is providing players with plenty of awesome prizes.

To begin with players can win up to $500 cash simply by playing any of the four remotely Halloween themed slots. These slots are Full Moon Fever, Graveyard Bash, Monster Money and Resident Evil. All are well worth checking out.

Once playing these slots, you'll earn points and as soon as you earn five points you'll start winning prizes. The prizes range from 100 reward points to a $10 cash bonus up to $500 cash.

The promotion began earlier this month and will end on October 31 so be sure to play your way to as many points as you can before then.

PartyCasino is the world's largest and most established online casino brand. The brand is owned and operated by Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment, as listed on the London Stock Exchange.

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Friday, October 14, 2011

Pokie proposal a win-win, Greens say - 14th October 2011

Profiles

Gaming Clubs Clubs Australia Politics Politics Canberra Australia


Limiting poker machines to $1 bets and $500 jackpots is a win-win for all sectors of the gambling industry, Greens leader Bob Brown says.

The Greens have put forward an alternative gambling policy that eliminates the need for controversial mandatory pre-commitment on low-intensity poker machines.

Gambling clubs and operators, including James Packer's Crown Casino, have reportedly set up a $40 million war chest to fight mandatory pre-commitment.

Senator Brown described the Greens' policy as a "win, win win", as it would satisfy the pokie operators while dealing with the $5 billion scourge of problem gambling and satisfying anti-gambling campaigners.

Brown said in Melbourne national politicians felt a responsibility to tackle the problem.
"There's no doubt some clubs will, and potentially casinos and state governments will, see a loss in revenue," he said.

"But this is very well targeted, so that loss in revenue is not going to come from the 90 per cent of ordinary gamblers who put a few dollars through the machines each week, but the problem gamblers," he added.

Greens gambling spokesman Senator Richard Di Natale said he had sent the policy to anti-gambling campaigners Andrew Wilkie and Nick Xenophon, the other independents and the Federal Government.

"We think it's really important that in a very toxic debate, particularly with the clubs running a deceptive campaign in the way that they are doing, that we put another option on the table," he said.

"It gives us more chance of success.

He added it won't get rid of problem gambling altogether, but would have a significant impact and would reduce the risks for problem gamblers.

Mr Wilkie said he was pleased the Greens' policy dovetailed with his reforms, which included $1 bets and mandatory pre-commitment on high-intensity machines.

"I'm continuing to work with the Federal Government to implement our reforms, which have not changed in any way," he said.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard said she was committed to helping problem gambling but wanted venues which would allow people "a good night out".

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Monday, October 10, 2011

Marvel Entertainment News: Four Post-Avengers Movies In The Works, by Greg Tingle - 10th October 2011

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Thor X-Men Wolverine Spider-Man Iron-Man Marvel Entertainment Marvel Comics Marvel Studios Marvel Slots Paramount Pictures Hollywood Movies Media Man
Captain America The Avengers Spider-Man Fantastic Four The Hulk Comics Movies





Who doesn't like a good superhero movie (or game) from our friends at Marvel Entertainment? That's what we thought.

You have to hand it to Marvel Entertainment and their movie production partners - they have been on a roll for the past few years.

Thor was awesome, so was Iron-Man 1 and Iron-Man 2, Captain America: The First Avenger - fantastic, and upcoming The Avengers may prove to be Marvel's best flick ever.

The Avengers, coming in May we understand, has signed Robert Downey Jr and its directed by Joss Whedon, so that's an awesome start.

Marvel president of production Kevin Feige recently went on record with Entertainment Weekly that Adventures of Tintin co-writer Edgar Wright "developed an excellent draft recently" for the movie. Nathan Fillion is tipped to play Henry Pym/Ant-Man.

Iron Man 3, opening in the US May 2013, re-teams Downey with Shane Black (Lethal Weapon). The writer-director, who launched Downey’s comeback in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, has a gift for creating funny as stuff.

Thor 2 is also in the works, although without Shakespearean-actor-turned-action-director Kenneth Branagh at the helm. It's understood that Patty Jenkins, who helped propel Charlize Theron to an Oscar with Monster, will direct The Nine Worlds sequel.

Media Man readers, what's you're thoughts on the upcoming Marvel Entertainment movies? What Marvel Entertainment games have you played, or would like to play? Should Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment, Virgin Games, or another gaming brand get the next batch of Marvel Entertainment slot games? What other lines of Marvel merchandise would you like to see released?

The coming year sure looks to be as great for Marvel fans as the previous. As Marvel living legend Stan Lee would say, Excelsior!

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Sunday, October 09, 2011

Exciting News for Online Poker Site, PKR as USA Legalisation of Gambling Sites Edges Closer - 6th October 2011

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PKR PKR Poker PKR Casino PKR Slots Games Casino Slots World Casino Directory United States Australia


The popular UK 3D poker site, PKR could soon go transatlantic and launch in the US after the American Gaming Association's (AGA) contributed to the push for online poker regulation in the country.

Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., president and CEO of the AGA, commented: 'There are no longer any good reasons to put USA citizens at risk by continuing to outlaw online poker in the U.S.' The statement comes after the USA Justice Department tried to shut down illegal gambling sites but the number of Americans playing online poker unprotected continues to grow.

PKR has established itself as one of the most playable and secure online poker websites in the UK over the last five years. The campaign in the US for lawful online poker now has the backing of certain state reps from Massachusetts and the prospect of legalisation could open the gates for PKR to expand into a massive market.

The AGA had once condemned online gambling altogether and only changed their opinion due to reports of a threat of unregulated sites currently endangering American players. The prospect of US legalisation of online poker could be potentially huge for PKR as their fully regulated and licensed site already has the foundations to become a massive hit among gamers in the States.

Massachusetts state rep, Dan Winslow also added to the argument for legalisation by arguing the flailing US economy could benefit from the introduction of online poker because of the jobs it will create in game design and regulatory software upkeep - a notion America's 14 million unemployed will welcome.

Back in the UK, it's business as usual for PKR for the meantime but they are very excited by the suggestion of expanding their business across the pond. A spokesperson for the poker games site commented:

'It is still early days yet but it would be a massively exciting prospect to take PKR to the States. The whole regulation of online poker sites debate is unlikely to be resolved overnight however, but at PKR we will be watching closely as we are always keen to develop playing opportunities to improve the gaming experience for everyone'.

It is rumoured the AGA campaign may prompt online poker legislation on a state level first before the whole nation accepts it. However, the campaign certainly looks to have some weight behind it and as far as PKR is concerned, it is a matter of watch this space.

To find out more about PKR or to join in the fun, sign up today www.pkr.com


About PKR

PKR is a revolutionary new concept in online poker that has changed the way the game is played.

Featuring stunning real-time 3D graphics and a uniquely engaging and immersive gaming system, PKR brings an unparalleled and previously unseen level of realism to online poker.

Developed by some of the brightest stars in the video games and poker industries, PKR continues to be the most innovative poker room in the world.

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Tuesday, October 04, 2011

Virgin Gaming: Call of Duty Elite 'not a threat'

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The Battlefield 3 Worldwide Conquest Tournament helps EA compete with Call of Duty Elite, Activision’s social service which also includes a competitive gaming element with prizes up for grabs, according to Virgin Gaming.

“We don’t view Elite as a threat,” Virgin co-founder Zachary Zeldin told the press.

“We view it as one of the top industry leaders taking notice of what Virgin Gaming is doing and trying to implement it themselves. Which is great. We wish them nothing but success. I wouldn’t be surprised if Activision was a part of Virgin Gaming next year.

"We are very excited to see how Elite is going to do and how the community is going to receive it, are they going to view it as too hardcore? Or too expensive? It is going to be trial and error for Activision in the first year and I am excited to see it.”

The company says it has hit the jackpot with its official $1.6m Battlefield 3 gaming tournament.

The online competitive games specialist claims its EA deal has opened doors for them, helping the outfit score major clients such as 2K Games, THQ and Codemasters.

The company will give away some £2.6m in prizes to its members over the next 12 months. And it promised that its service can help sell DLC and keep developers’ games out of the pre-owned bins.

“When a company like EA trusts you with their $1bn IP, people see that and say ‘If EA is willing to do this then they must know something we don’t,’” said Virgin Gaming co-founder Zachary Zeldin.

“We have been teaching developers about how we can be beneficial to their game, how we are going to keep users engaged in their product more, how we can roll out DLC for them and help sell more of this extra content, or how we can keep their games out of the second-hand shelves for six months longer.

“If Battlefield has a map pack that EA wants to release, we can run a $50,000 or a $100,000 tournament specific to that map pack. So now they have to buy that map pack.

“We are helping that community evolve.”

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