GPWA Times - Issue 20 - March 2012

WEBMASTER NEWS Bally Technologies acquires Chiligaming “It’s not easy, not because it’s a complicated issue. It’s becoming a clearer issue. It’s because Washington is becoming more complicated.We’ll be one of the first horses out of the gate when it’s approved.” – MGM Resorts International CEO Jim Murren on the prospects of regulated online poker in the U.S. “What this simply does is state if a federal law is enacted that legalizes Internet gambling, the state of Utah shall opt out.” – Rep. Stephen Sandstrom, R-Orem, a sponsor of legislation that would prohibit online gambling in Utah “The size of the U.S. market and potential for positive regulatory change in the coming years makes it a sensible place to establish a presence.” – Ladbrokes CEO Richard Glynn after his company purchased a stake in Stadium Technology Group “We have lots of potential customers that approached us or that we approached that would like to have us as their suppliers of online gaming products when the market opens up.” – Playtech CEO Mor Weizer on talks with potential partners in the U.S. “The next tidal wave of problem gamblers will come from online gambling unless we take urgent action now.” – South Australian independent senator Nick Xenophon “PokerStars announced today that Gabi Campos has decided to step down from his position as Chief Executive Officer, effective Feb. 1, 2012, to pursue other opportunities. The company thanks Gabi for his hard work and commitment and wishes him the best in all his future endeavors. A search for Gabi’s replacement is under way.” – PokerStars official statement on departure of CEO Gabi Campos Quotables By Dan Igo Major slot machine manufacturer Bally Technologies has entered the online gam- bling industry by acquiring European on- line gambling platform Chiligaming. The company said it made the purchase to help its casino customers enter the on- line gaming world. Chiligaming, which has offices in Malta, France and the United Kingdom, previ- ously reached an agreement with Golden Nugget casinos to launch a free-play on- line gaming site this year. “This acquisition provides an open, cloud- based platform for Bally Technologies to offer an integrated traditional and on- line casino solution to operators world- wide,” said John Connelly, Vice President of Business Development at Bally Technologies. “Equally as important, Bally Technologies has also obtained an experienced team of industry veterans from within the online gaming industry, which will help our customers optimize their use of this platform.” “I’m very proud of this agreement be- tween our two companies,” added Chiligaming CEO Alexandre Dreyfus. “We are excited to develop our technol- ogy, knowledge and experience with Bally to bring the best value for land- based casinos.” “Governor Romney’s statement seems to be based on a misperception of regulation and the status quo.We hope to educate him that regulation will mean strong enforcement and meaningful consumer protections, while doing nothing will only exacerbate any perceived problems he has with gaming.” – PPA Executive Director John Pappas in response to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s stance that he won’t support regulated online poker in the U.S. “If it moves forward, and it’s clearly going to move forward, it’s going to be available in Connecticut. Now we have to decide, in the state of Connecticut, what is our approach to that.” – Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on regulated online gambling in his state Webmaster News