Online Casino Gambling

It has been revealed that live online gaming using video streaming is becoming increasing popular. Traditional online gambling uses gaming software for users to sit at home and play in a virtual world. However, with video streaming offering the chance for full immersion into the casino environment, increasing numbers of people are using this latest technology for excitement and adrenalin fueled games without having to leave the house.

New Immersion For Players

Gamblers have long wanted a way in which to feel the atmosphere of a casino, even when playing at home. The latest technology allows players to experience live video streaming, bringing with it the sounds, sights and excitement that real world casino venues offer. Adding an entirely new dimension to online gambling, it allows far more immersion into the gambling environment than ever before. And with experienced gamblers able to use cues from the casino environment to help them, the newest technology is proving very popular.

Live Roulette and Baccarat Popular

Two of the most popular games are proving to be Live Roulette and Live Baccarat; two favorite gambling games for high rollers. In Baccarat, online players can enjoy face to face gaming with live dealers, giving them a personal experience. Meanwhile, Live Roulette offers the chance to see all players spinning the wheel, adding to the anticipation and excitement of the game.

William Hill Reveals Growing Trend

United Kingdom (UK) based William Hill revealed that live video streaming technology is allowing more people than ever to access the exciting world of live online gambling. With software provided by Playtech, one of the world’s most prestigious online infrastructure providers, William Hill has been able to supply gamers with Craps, Blackjack, Roulette, Baccarat and many more gambling options. With flashy graphics, big payouts, and a unique and personal experience with each play, many people may find that traditional online gambling is simply not that same after enjoying live video streaming. Enjoying such a surge in popularity, it seems that the online video gambling is not a flash in the pan, and is set to stay around indefinitely. Meanwhile, with the ever increasing presence of online gambling in modern day culture, the latest technological advances indicate that the industry is set for a profitable future.

The first of eight public consultations regarding the legalization of online gambling has occurred in Washington. Held in Ward 5, the overall opinion for online gambling was positive, though residents showed displeasure at the means with which the most recent bill was passed due to Michael A. Brown, an independent councilor, having pushed the legislation through as an attachment to a budget measure.

Slideshow Opening

The public consultation was opened by Buddy Roogow, executive director of the DC Lottery. Providing a 90 minute slideshow, Roogow explained that casino games would only be offered for online purposes within the District of Columbia. Initially, Texas Hold’em, lottery scratch cards, blackjack and bingo would be provided, with gamblers having to register a dedicated bank account for deposits of no more than $250 per week. He added that online gambling would not be allowed over mobile networks, whilst players would have to use their own computers to access casinos. Meanwhile, an annual cap of $13,000 for individual player losses would be set in place. Roogow also highlighted that the development of specific software to target player location would allow officials to ensure that only those within the District could access online casinos, whilst support would also be offered for gambling addicts.

Set Back for Intra State Online Gambling

Meanwhile, there has been a set back for the legislation of intra state online gambling. Massachusetts State Republican Representative Dan Winslow previously added an amendment to a bill which allowed land casinos to seek possibilities for online gambling; an amendment which was passed in the House during September. However, this week the Senate of Massachusetts passed the bill 24 to 14, but didn’t include the altered online gambling addition.

Committee Conference Decision

In such cases where the Senate and the House pass bills which may have discrepancies, a committee conference is normally called to discuss each issue before coming to a rational decision. Winslow continues to highlight that allowing online gambling to operate on an intra state level would create high tech software and regulatory jobs, provide a new revenue source and cater towards the strong demand for Massachusetts online gambling. However, expert opinion has suggested that any eventual committee will not address the online gambling amendment, putting the progression of internet gambling back by many months.

The nominations for the International Gaming Awards (IGA) have now closed, allowing the judging panel to start making their final decisions. The prestigious event had its nominations opened in September to allow land and online gambling establishments to make their bids for top awards. And with the accolade of wins offering vital media coverage for the lucky recipients, nominees will be hoping for the best when the ceremony takes place next year.

iGaming Software Supplier Notes Strong Competition

One particular category which noted a high degree of interest was the iGaming Software Supplier of the year. There are some familiar companies in the nominations which totaled over 25, including Net Entertainment, Playtech, Microgaming and Chartwell. Playtech’s win last year makes is a considerable contender again. However, Microgaming’s initiation of the QuickFire platform could see it push ahead.

Big Players for Online Casino Operator Nominees

As expected, the Online Casino Operator of the Year has noted a high number of very well known and big players in the online gambling industry. Almost all of the European companies such as Victor Chandler, Bodog, William Hill, 888 Casino and Ladbrokes are mentioned. However, Virgin Casino is being highlighted as a possible winner due to its range of excellent promotions and new gaming additions which have been noted throughout the year to date.

Additional Noteworthy Categories

Two additional noteworthy categories that many will also look to are the Online Slots Operator and Socially Responsible Online Operator. Whilst the former category has received nominations for William Hill, 888 Casino and 32Red Casino, the latter award includes Paddy Power, Betfair and Bwin.party.

Ceremony for January 2012

The IGA have now announced that ceremony will take place in London on January 23^rd, with the GREaT Foundation being the charitable beneficiary of the 2012 awards. An organization which supports the education and research of socially responsible gambling, GREaT Foundation will highlight the ongoing importance of ensuring that modern gambling is conducted in a socially safe and secure way.  And, with all eyes focused on the ultimate award winners, those who do well at the ceremony will be set to be held in high regard by consumer and the gambling industry alike.

A prestigious and renowned gambling software provider, Microgaming offers a number of tournaments at its casinos, providing players the chance to indulge in something a little different from the average online experience. Microgaming has recently added Weekend Whopper, Midweek Moolah and Monthly Monster to its roster, and it has been revealed that a number of freeroll smaller prize pools have also now been added, offering even greater choice for online gamblers.

Mad Hatters Good Times

The first new small prize pool tournament brought by Microgaming is the Good Times tournament on slot title Mad Hatters. This prize pool is worth $100 and is shared amongst five top players allowing winnings of $40, $25, $15, $12 and $8. Each event of Good Times has a maximum player number of 500 and runs for a five hour window, with each gambler getting an initial five minutes of wagering time. With a maximum bet of 300 coins and an initial coin stack of 25,000, players indulge in a one round tournament which includes Microgaming’s popular Rebuys and Continue Play options, with each choice having a maximum of ten and five purchases respectively.

Midnight Challenge

Structured in a similar way to Good Times, the Midnight Challenge is run on the Avalon slots title. The coin stack and maximum bets are smaller however, with an initial stack of 12,500 coins and the highest wager being 200 coins. Coin sums for Rebuy and Continue Play options are reduced appropriately.

Easy Money Tournament

Microgaming’s final new small prize pool tournament is Easy Money; a popular gambling option of up to 2,000 players which is played on the Hitman slots title. Whilst the top prize is still $100, the fund is shared between 10 players, giving more opportunities to win. However, winnings are reduced, with the highest payout being $30 and the lowest just $2. Like Microgaming’s other options, the tournament lasts five hours. However there are no Rebuys and up to 50 Continue Play choices, with a stack of 18,000 coins and a maximum wager of 300 coins.

Small Prize Pool Popularity

Microgaming’s new tournaments can be enjoyed at casinos such as Jackpot City, Platinum Play and Spin Palace, offering players the chance to enjoy an engaging experience even if their bankroll isn’t high. And whilst the prizes are small, for leisure gamers, the tournaments are the ideal option.

It has been revealed that European based operators are beginning to line up possible software providers as legalization of online gambling comes close to completion. Countries including Denmark, Greece and Spain all have online casinos readying themselves for approved licenses, with the world’s top software firms noting strong demand from establishments.

Microgaming Set for Spanish Market

Isle of Man based Microgaming released a statement revealing that it is to team up with leading Spanish online casino CIRSA. With Spain on the brink of legalizing a variety of online gambling practices, CIRSA is said to have opted for Microgaming as its software provider due to the innovative gaming content and high quality performance that titles provide. The leading programmer will provide bingo, poker and casino software to the Spanish venue in addition to administrative services, allowing CIRSA to provide a top quality and fully rounded gambling experience for online players.

Danish Acquisitions by Sportingbet Plc

Meanwhile, Sportingbet Plc has announced that is has made an agreement to acquire Scandic Bookmakers Limited and Danbook Limited. The online gaming and sports betting group made the conditional agreement for the acquisition of Danbook and Scandic to offer their customers a wider variety of casino, poker, gaming and online fixed odds spots betting.

OPAP Tenders for Contract

In Greece, ahead of the planned potential regulation for the online casino industry, the state owned gambling monopoly OPAP has revealed that it is opening its contract to software providers. Whilst they have held a contract with Intralot for some time, OPAP are keen to avoid criticism, and so when the current contract comes to an end in 2012, will be seeking bids from other groups. Whilst Intralot is expected to make a competitive bid in an attempt to gain renewal, both Scientific Games Crop and GTECH are thought to offer possible alternatives. The final supplier will be chosen within the upcoming two months, with OPAP’s future strategy and online expansion into online betting and video lotto crucial on the provider it chooses. And with the potential legalization of online gambling in Europe extensive, there is likely to be much media focus over the next few months.

Over the past few weeks the legislation process for allowing the legalization of online gambling in the U.S has had a lot of coverage. With high expectations that it is only a matter of time before online gambling will be allowed, a number of the big U.S casinos are readying themselves to open as soon as bills are passed.

Joint Venture by Avenue Capital and Trump Entertainment

It has been announced that Avenue Capital Group and Trump Entertainment Inc. have already started to prepare for legalization, with the companies filing to establish a joint online venture. Having filed for bankruptcy in 2009, Trump Entertainment was acquired by Avenue Capital Management who now holds a 22per cent stake, whilst 10per cent was retained by Donald Trump in an effort to keep the company name. Executive vice president for Trump Entertainment’s development and acquisitions, Ivanka Trump, revealed that the joint venture would allow the company to become one of America’s largest online gaming firms should legalization go ahead.

Bwin.party Digital Entertainment Making Moves

Meanwhile it has also been claimed that joint chief executive of bwin.party digital entertainment, Jim Ryan, has been sweet talking investors. Currently the world’s largest listed gambling firm for online operations, bwin.party holds two top brands, Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars, which are unlikely to be approved to operate due to their part in gambling fraud uncovered earlier this year. However, Mr Ryan has been pushing the PartyPoker brand; a brand with worldwide recognition which could do well should online poker be legalized.

Gambling Supplier Optimistic for Online Legislation

Finally, gambling supplier Bally Technologies has revealed that it is optimistic that online gaming legislation will go ahead. A new report has revealed that the land based firm has now launched a digital division in an attempt to corner social network, online and mobile platforms ahead of possible legalization. Spokesman for the firm, Mike Trask, said that some of the company’s games were already available for purchase via iTunes. And with many of the top American players placing themselves in an appropriate position to take full advantage of online gambling should it occur, legalization looks to be edging that little bit nearer.