GPWA Times Magaine - Issue 23 - February 2013

“When we opened our doors in July of 1995, Native American casinos and riverboats really started taking off. Then it was racinos. It’s the perfect time for me to step down. We have a new president and a new Congress. I wanted to stay on through the election to work on Internet poker and other issues.” – Frank Fahrenkopf, who will retire as American Gaming Association President and Chief Executive on June 30. Fahrenkopf has held the position since the AGA was formed in 1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “It’s a real crapshoot. On one side are economic benefits to a state, yet on the other is the concern that online gaming will make it too easy for individuals to get caught up in gambling.” – Krista Jenkins, director of the Fairleigh Dickinson poll that found only 27 percent of Americans support state-sanctioned online gambling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “For states that were contemplating an intrastate plan, the failure of the Reid/Kyl bill will provide further impetus to get the lead out. Knowing that the feds were blatantly attempting to usurp states’ traditional authority over gambling will convince many fence- sitters that they need to move quickly to change the facts on the ground and thereby render any future federal push deader than a doornail.” – Bodog founder Calvin Ayre on the future of Internet gambling in the United States . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “My fear is that at some point a state doesn’t handle this well. Then, Washington is handling this reactively, rather than proactively.” – MGM Resorts International Senior Vice President Alan Feldman on the lack of progress on a federal online poker bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “We don’t expect to see the political environment changing to a point where a federal bill would be likely to get passed.” – Macquarie Securities gaming analyst Chad Beynon on the likelihood of a federal online poker bill in the United States WEBMASTER NEWS “It’s so gratifying to see that a project we’ve been so involved in has continued to be so successful. We’re happy to help boNGO spread the word about its work and to help them raise money to continue making such a difference to so many children in Malawi.” – Slotland Manager Michael Hilary on the online casino’s charitable efforts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “Operators who service sports bettors and casino players do not want their customers leaking money to non-depositing poker pros who are using sophisticated software in order to win. Our anonymous tables take this unfairness out of the equation, creating a much better experience for the leisure player.” – Jonas Odman, managing director of the Bodog Poker Network, on BPN’s recreational poker model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “I’ve only been a player on Butlers Bingo for a few days so I’m still in shock and I can’t believe my good fortune. And all from a 30p spin! I had planned to buy my daughter a new iPad for Christmas, but now I can buy her a new house instead.” – John O., who pocketed a £5,883,044.43 jackpot playing The Dark Knight at Butlers Bingo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “888 has always been on the forefront of online gaming with its innovative and entertaining content. We will continue to release new games into our Italian proposition in the upcoming months, keeping 888.it the destination of choice for Italian players.” – Hila Klein, 888 Holdings senior vice president, head of product technologies, on the launch of 888.it . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “As we’ve said previously, the broader U.S. market is an opportunity that’s further out on the horizon based on legislative developments, but we are preparing for a regulated market.” – Barry Cottle, Zynga’s chief revenue officer, on the social gaming company’s plans to offer real-money gambling to Americans if and when the industry is regulated in the U.S. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “The purpose of the trip is to just get our message out that gaming is a right that belongs to each individual state and it’s up to each state to determine not just the games they offer but the manner in which they are offered to their players.” – David Gale, executive director of the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, on a lobbying trip to Washington, D.C. taken by officials representing seven states “Quotables” Webmaster News