Best of PRO This Week: Delaware, DiCristina, French Plight and Mission Creep

Key Takeaways

Delaware’s Three Casinos Go Online for Real Money Poker, Casino Games.
Mission Creep: PokerStars, PartyPoker and Winamax Set Players Targets.
DiCristina Poker Case Referred to US Supreme Court.
French Regulator Optimistic New Poker Games, Shared Liquidity can Correct Poker’s Decline.

Lead Features

Delaware’s Three Casinos Go Online for Real Money Poker, Casino Games

Historic launch marks the first time non-poker games have been available online under US regulation. The three casinos of Delaware—Delaware Park, Dover Downs and Harrington Raceway—have opened up for real-money online gaming to US customers residing in the state. Along with online poker, games including blackjack, roulette and slots are available marking the first time casino games have been legally spread online in a state-regulated market in the US.

Mission Creep: PokerStars, PartyPoker and Winamax Set Players Targets

PokerStars November Mission Week promotion adds another mission format to the social gaming features being adopted by major poker rooms. Missions are a social gaming feature that has made its way into the promotional portfolio of some of the top online poker rooms. This month, PokerStars joins the club with November Mission Weeks.

DiCristina Poker Case Referred to US Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has been asked to review the DiCristina case on the basis of two important points of law. Bicycle shop owner Lawrence DiCristina, prosecuted for running an illegal poker game, has petitioned the US Supreme Court to rule on the case.

French Regulator Optimistic New Poker Games, Shared Liquidity can Correct Poker’s Decline

ARJEL president continues to push for legislative changes that should improve the poker ecology. Jean-François Vilotte, president of the French online gaming regulator ARJEL, has shared his optimism that legislative changes will be made that will permit more online poker variants to be spread and will allow for shared liquidity with other countries.

Exclusive News Articles

Japanese Casino Offering Online Access Raided by Police

Two employees and two customers were arrested at the Ocean Club which had generated 36m Yen in six months. Earlier this week Tokyo police raided an illegal casino in the Ueno district, arresting the manager Takashi Higa and an employee, Mariko Koito as well as two customers.

WSOP.com Overtakes Ultimate Poker as Nevada Traffic Reaches New High

It may still be just a fraction of the total US-facing online poker market, but Nevada’s nascent online poker industry continues to grow as latecomer WSOP.com overtakes competitor Ultimate Poker.

Amaya to Provide bwin.party with Online Casino Games in New Jersey, Europe

bwin.party will integrate Amaya Gaming Group’s casino games into its platform for Borgata’s online gaming plans in New Jersey, as well as into its primary European operations, Amaya announced Thursday.

Malta LGA Chairman and CEO Resign

Mario Galea and Reuben Portanier step down. Mario Galea, Chairman of the Board, and Reuben Portanier, CEO, have resigned from their posts at the Lotteries & Gaming Authority of Malta, it was announced Thursday.

UK Quarterly Survey Reports 15% Participation in Online Gambling

Total gambling participation 2% down on last year. The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) carries out a quarterly survey entitled: “Gambling participation: activities and mode of access.” As new laws and taxes are to be introduced next year, the survey provides a useful baseline from which the impact of the new laws can be measured.

Play Money Chips Purchase Comes to PokerStars Client

Following its introduction on Facebook, PokerStars runs a limited test that offers players the option to spend real money on play chips. PokerStars is testing selling play chips for real money through its dot-com download client. Play chips purchase has been available on PokerStars since it launched its Facebook app earlier this year.

Victoria Pokies Law Illuminates Australian Harm Minimization Philiosphy

Pokie machines must allow players to pre-commit to loss limits, but players’ involvement is voluntary. The Australian state of Victoria has introduced new legislation which gives an insight into how it is considering the national call to develop a coordinated harm minimization strategy for gambling.

World of Warcraft Bot Maker Ordered to Pay $7m, Cease Operations

The award has led to the closure of bot maker Ceiling Fan Software and established useful principles which could help poker operators facing the same problem. Owners of the online multi-player game World Of Warcraft (WoW), Blizzard Entertainment, have received a $7m judgment after the Central District Court of California ruled against Ceiling Fan Software.

Belgian Regulator Conference Concludes: “Don’t Throw the Baby Out with the Bathwater”

Overall, the meetings assessed the Belgian system to be working, but identified several areas for improvement. The two day conference held by the Belgian gaming regulator Kansspelautoriteit to discuss progress since the introduction of new regulations two years ago has concluded that a good start has been made, although many issues remain to be resolved.

California Based Pala Interactive Chooses CAMS for Verification in Regulated US Markets

Pala is building an all-star cast of staff and suppliers in its preparations to offer online gambling in the US. Pala Interactive, founded by the Pala Band of Mission Indians in California, continues its progress towards launching online gambling by appointing Central Account Management System (CAMS) to provide age and ID verification services.

New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement Lists Third Party Approvals

A total of 53 companies have received preliminary approval to transact business with New Jersey gaming license holders. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) has published lists of ancillary companies and related vendors approved to provide services to online gambling licensees.

Virgin Islands Rules 2001 Law Permitting Internet Gambling is Legal

With immediate effect, the Casino Control Commission has the authority to issue internet gambling licenses. The US Virgin Islands (USVI) has issued a legal determination that the 2001 “Virgin Islands Internet Gaming and Internet Gambling Act” is legal.

PokerStrategy Closes its Operation in Finland for Legal Reasons

Employees and players given two days notice before Finnish language site shut down. With just two days notice, PokerStrategy has closed down its Finnish language site, citing legal reasons.