Category: Announcement

Great Year Ahead for Atlantic City

Reading Time: 2 minutes

2018 begins on a rather high note with a lot of events and activities taking place – the remaining traces of Donald Trump’s erstwhile casino empire could finally evanesce, the former Revel casino may be finally bought and reopened and sports betting could be legalized nationwide by the U.S. Supreme Court thus allowing for radical expansion of the gambling industry. At the same time, as a much-execrated state acquisition of power is expected to come to an end, internet gambling continues to thrive.

Atlantic City, a southern New Jersey city, on the other hand, has a hopeful future in 2018 despite being years overdue for a big win.

“I’m extremely optimistic about Atlantic City and the industry in 2018,” said Mark Giannantonio, president of Resorts, which is the first U.S. casino to open outside Nevada and is celebrating its 40th anniversary in May this year. “We’re very excited about the renaissance of Atlantic City; we think it’s for real.”

Perhaps one of the biggest developments in the city will be the summer reopening of the former Trump Taj Mahal as a Hard Rock casino resort. According to Jim Allen, the Hard Rock chairman, the casino resort will be all about music and 24/7 entertainment. To this effect, Hard Rock has even enlisted the services of renowned guitar whiz and ‘Sopranos’ actor Steven Van Zandt. The entertainer will be part of advertising ventures that will include big-name concerts, small indoor performances as well as beach concerts.

Hard Rock acquired the Trump Taj Mahal from billionaire investor Carl Icahn in March 2017 after it had been shut down back in October 2016 because of a strike with Atlantic City’s main casino workers’ union. Icahn also has his sights set on an economic development project that is yet to be named and this will involve the demolition of the former Trump Plaza casino located on the boardwalk below the Atlantic City Expressway.

Also, former Revel casino could also finally be reopened in 2018. Already a group led by Colorado developer Bruce Deifik is seeking to purchase the property for $200 million then reopen it. While the sale seems to be on the verge of being closed, Glenn Straub, Revel’s current owner has denied the existence of any such deal. He insists that he intends to reopen the casino himself after the state appeals courts rules on whether or not he needs a casino license to do so.

19 PSPC Platinum Passes to Be Awarded All Through January

Reading Time: 2 minutes

A new year is finally here and looking back at the previous month, there are a lot of announcements that were made then that are going to make a huge impact in the near future. One of the biggest and most exciting developments in the world of poker was the unveiling of PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship which is better known as the PokerStars Players Championship (PSPC). Billed as one of the biggest tournaments in the history of poker, the championship is scheduled for January 2019 and will attract a huge number of poker enthusiasts from all parts of the world. There are so many great things to look forward to in regards to the championship with the biggest highlight being the first-place prize which amounts to a whopping $9 million after PokerStars adds in an extra $1 million to it – PokerStars will contribute the remaining $8 million gradually before the end of 2018.

Starting this month (January 2018) and all through the year PokerStars will be giving away over 300 PSPC Platinum Passes each being worth $30,000 and including the $25,000 buy-in, about $2,000 for travel expenses as well as accommodation at the Atlantis Resorts where the championship will be hosted. This month will see 19 Platinum Passes fall into the hands of lucky participants in a range of online and live events that the renowned poker powerhouse will be hosting. What better way to begin a new year than getting to win one of this Platinum Passes which also gives you an assurance of beginning the next year (2019) with a bang. Here is how you can get a hold of these Platinum Passes:

From Online Events

  • Winter Series Main Event winners (December 25, 2017 – January 7, 2018) – 4 Platinum Passes.
  • Winter Series All-in Shootout winner January 8, 2018 – 1 – Platinum Pass.
  • Monthly Sunday Cashers Final winner February 3, 2018 – 1 Platinum Pass.

From Live Tournament

  • Italian Poker Open January 3-8, 2018 – 1 Platinum Pass.
  • ACOP Platinum Series 20 January 5-14, 2018 – 1 Platinum Pass.
  • PCA Bahamas 2018 January 6-14, 2018 – 5 Platinum Passes.
  • PokerStars MEGASTACK Ulster January 12 -14, 2018 – 1 Platinum Pass.
  • PokerStars Festival London January 22-29, 2018 – 3 Platinum Passes.
  • BSOP SAO Paulo January 25 -30, 2018 – 2 Platinum Passes.

Good Luck!

Jennifer Lopez, Stan Kroenke, and Gillette Get into Esports

Reading Time: 2 minutes

It is now quite clear that competitive gaming is on the verge of blowing up and taking over the mainstream market – with backing from celebrities and mainstream brands it is only a matter of time before it hits big time. The most recent entrants into the eSports industry are superstar singer Jennifer Lopez and Arsenal’s majority shareholder Stan Kroenke both of whom have invested in eSports teams ahead of highly anticipated gaming competitions that will play a huge role in increasing the mainstream appeal of the already booming industry.

Jennifer Lopez bought into a team franchise that will participate in the world-renowned Overwatch League which will draw competing teams from cities like San Francisco, London, and Seoul among others. LA Gladiators, which is run by Kroenke will join in on the action once the global Overwatch League is launched in January 2018.

Kroenke and J-Lo join a host of stars who have seen the potential in eSports – they include Formula One driver Fernando Alonso as well as former basketball pro, Magic Johnson. According to Newzoo, a firm that offers market intelligence for eSports, the global eSports economy grew 34 percent year-on-year to about $660 million and is expected to hit a whopping $1.5 billion by 2020. Further estimates reveal that the current eSports audience count stands at about 385 million with a majority relying on streaming services like Twitch to watch the eSports broadcasts – Twitch currently boasts of over 400 million monthly views.

Gillette is one of the mainstream brands that have actively endorsed eSports – the company has shown deep interest in participating and integrating their brand with eSports brands. Aside from just investing in League of Legends, Gillette has gone further to add one of the game’s top players, Enrique “xPeke” Cedeno Martinez to its directory of sports stars which also happens to include Brazilian soccer star Neymar.

“If you look at the growth trajectory, the revenue, the viewing numbers, everything is going north,” says Gillette marketing executive, Adam Paris. “eSports is growing at a very rapid rate. Yes, it’s finding its feet, but it feels to me that we as an industry have been talking about investing in it for two to three years at trade show panel events, but I feel it’s time to move on from talking about it and make the jump.”

Blockchain Technology Hits Land-Based Casinos

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Very many online casinos have warmed up to the idea of integrating cryptocurrencies to their payment systems with nearly all of them investing millions in the rapidly developing crypto market. While the fact that casinos are embracing bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies should come as no surprise, the rate of its growth has been somewhat overwhelmingly good. TheBitcoinStrip, an international analytic resource, estimates that currently about 60% of transactions in the Bitcoin network can be attributed to bets. It also estimates that the number of transactions made by gamblers every second is now well over the 337 mark. The escalation in the popularity of cryptocurrency in the gambling world is inevitable since gamblers will certainly prefer the security, absence of additional commissions and the unlimited withdrawals that bitcoin offers.

According to SmartPlay.tech the appearance of bitcoin, as well as other cryptocurrencies, is enough to completely revolutionize the casino industry both in the online space and in brick-and-mortar casinos;

“In order to completely revolutionize the gambling industry, it is necessary to integrate new generation technologies such as Blockchain and Lightning Network, which will make casino activities more profitable for the operator and attractive to the player. We have a technical solution based on the ready-made software, which we can offer to big players in the offline market in the form of full-fledged equipment.”

SmartPlay.tech recently announced its intention to unveil to land-based casinos a full line of new SmartBox machines that will connect a variety of games such as bingo, online slots, poker, and blackjack.

Basically, a SmartBox configuration will consist of a touch screen gaming table, a QR scanner for connecting crypto wallets and a terminal that will allow users to deposit fiat money. The most significant highlight of the boxes is the gambling software that they use – it is based on the principles of blockchain technology and has been successfully tested on a wide range of SmartPlay.tech products. Casino operators are particularly very impressed with the model of operational efficiency that the SmartBox machines present, that is, it ensures that profits are always higher than the costs incurred by the casino by optimizing transaction commissions to minimum market prices of a few cents.

The first batch of test machines has already been deployed for closed testing in a land-based casino where the performance indicators of blockchain technology in a real-world gambling environment will be measured. The tests’ deliverables include actual data that will include average spending, game time, turnover, number of players as well as the conceptual portrait of the target customer. If the results are as promising as they seem to be, then full-fledged production of SmartBox machines will commence.

Molly’s Game: The Ultimate Christmas Treat for Poker Lovers

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Are you a poker enthusiast or an avid follower of the game? Well, Christmas is here and you can get in on a bit of poker fun while you enjoy the festivities. If you are into the idea of mixing fun and your poker hobbies, then an amazing poker movie might be in cards (pun intended). Molly’s Game, the latest attempt at a poker movie hit theatres for a limited release on December 22nd and it is so good that there is already Oscar buzz going around. The buzz, of course, does not matter if you have a fondness for poker because you will certainly love it anyway.

Molly’s Game stars Jessica Chastain as the titular lead of the film and Idris Elba as her attorney with screenwriter Aaron Sorkin taking the helm with this being his first directorial venture. If you are not familiar with Molly’s Game then the first thing you need to do is to get acquainted with Molly Bloom, the poker celebrity who authored the book of the same name which the movie is based on. Just in case you are wondering, especially if you still have no idea who Molly Bloom is, it is not the regular ‘underdog-beats-odds-and-triumphs’ stories. We will try to break this down without giving you any spoilers in the process.

Molly’s Game, the book that the movie is based on, was Bloom’s expose of the time she spent operating and running the biggest underground cash games in the United States.

The book details Bloom’s hustle that saw her cash in a good deal of money from the tips that she got from the players who ranged from Hollywood actors and directors to New York’s politicians, stockbrokers, and hedge fund managers. You can also expect a bit of action as the business was not a bed of roses for Bloom – she abused drugs, had a few nasty run-ins with the Russian mob and eventually was arrested by federal agents and charged with illegal gambling. The poker community has already dubbed the movie the ‘next big poker film.’ It is that good!

Just like her book, the movie does not mention any names – if you were expecting to see some high profile celebrity names get dropped you are going to be very disappointed by the turn of events. No dirt is revealed, at least not in the cinematic version of the tale. The book does, however, name-drop Tobey Maguire who comes off as some sort of douchebag – read the book if you want to find out how. Merry Christmas!

Fedor Holz Invests in eSports Company Envy Gaming Inc.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Legendary poker pro, Fedor Holz, becomes the most recent public figure to jump onto the eSports train. According to ESPN, the German poker player acquired a minority stake in popular gaming company Envy Gaming. Inc. in the second quarter of 2017’s fiscal year. Envy Gaming is the parent company of the Dallas Fuel and the renowned Team Envy both of which Holz will be a minority owner.

The venture into the eSports world is certainly a bold move for the poker Phenom who has won nearly $27 million in live tournaments with the most recent being in the World Series of Poker (WSOP) $111,111 High Roller for One Drop where he cashed in nearly $5 million. During this event, Holz’s had left a few Easter eggs that hinted his intention to be an eSports entrepreneur – he donned a Team EnvyUS jersey at the final table which he won and then proceeded to announce that he would be spending less time playing poker so as to focus more on his entrepreneurial ventures.

Holz’s relationship with Envy was initially set off by his friendship with Nathan “NBK” Schmitt, a former Envy Gaming Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player who introduced him to Envy Gaming’s CEO Mike “Hastr0” Rufail. Holz expressed that his interest in joining the company was motivated by a number of reasons.

“I like to invest in things that I’m emotionally connected to because I feel that I contribute the most but I also get the most out of it,” Holz said in an interview with an ESPN reporter. “I like Envy, I like to watch, I like the way they build their infrastructure and team, take care of their players. And it was just a corporation I wanted to be a part of in some way.”

Envy Gaming which was founded in 2007 as a competitive Call of Duty team has already proven its success in the eSports industry – Team Envy bagged the 2016 eSports Team of the Year award at the NowTV ESports Industry Awards. Holz is confident that his input will come in handy especially in regards to mindset issues that may disrupt the performance of young players at the higher and more competitive levels.

“Talking to these players and seeing them myself, a lot of them still struggle with their mindset because they’re really young and the pressure starts really early,” Holz added. “I feel that the mindset or the way you approach the game has very low importance so far compared to more seen sports. I think we can bring some of that into the game, and I’d love to tackle more of that in the next year.”

How the Sports Industry is Being Disrupted by eSports

Reading Time: 2 minutes

It has been quite clear for a while now that the sports industry has been plagued by a plethora of issues – these include the drastic decline in live viewership as well as the possibility of the legalization of sports betting in all states which the leagues are not yet prepared for. The drastically declining live viewership has its roots deeply entrenched in the distribution model that has by all means been outdated. The dominant companies are to blame for this since they are responsible for the slow rollout and implementation of technological innovation in the industry – for instance, the NFL is still not allowing teams to post replay content on social media and FIFA snailed its way to the implementation of goal-line technology.

The sports industry has quite a lot to put up with and with the entry of eSports, the atmosphere is about to get even more competitive. eSports has been on a roll for a while now and as is stands, even people who are not avid gamers acknowledge its popularity. With the tremendous annual increase in viewership over the past couple of years, the eSports industry has bloomed rapidly thanks to the constant experimentation as well as the innovative ways it allows viewers to engage with online content.

Now, platforms like Twitch and even YouTube are facilitating the streaming of hundreds of games including popular eSports titles like League of Legends and Dota 2 both of which generate over 60 million viewed hours monthly. These numbers are significantly large and thus it is impossible to downplay the importance of game streaming especially after putting into consideration the current media landscape. eSports is breaking new grounds for content delivery and interactivity through a number of outstanding service models and this can be partially attributed to the inherently digital nature of eSports which makes the integration of new technologies rather easy and natural. On the same note, this presents new ways to cash in on revenues from different aspects of the eSports business models that are apparently way more efficient than those of regular sports. But why is there such a huge divide between the two?

As it turns out, eSports is more open to innovation, is very engaging and has the potential to grow into something much bigger. This does not necessarily mean that traditional sports completely lacks similar qualities – there are just a number of issues that are holding the industry back. One of the most significant being the dependence of large sports corporations like UEFA and FIFA on revenue streams from cable companies who in most cases buy rights to be the sole broadcasters of matches. It is rather obvious that this leaves regular sports in the stone age in terms of delivery as viewers are now migrating to streaming services. This is where the changes need to be initiated and many of them have already acknowledged the huge market shift and are already taking necessary steps towards regaining the lost glory. Meanwhile, eSports has never shown as much promise as it has now.

Mississippi Optimistic About Legalization of Sports Betting

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Of all the petitions in the United States Supreme court at the moment, the one involving the legalization of sports betting seems to be commanding a lot of attention especially among various stakeholders on both opposing and supporting sides. As it stands, legal experts, attorneys as well as states’ rights activists are very optimistic about the possibility that the Supreme Court will abolish the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 that effectively forbade sports betting in all the states save for Nevada.

On December 4th, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments on whether sports betting should be legalized at New Jersey racetracks and casinos, and, Mississippi is one of the five states that officially backed New Jersey’s effort. In case the Supreme Court rules in favor of New Jersey Mississippi’s state officials and gaming operators are already prepared to offer sports betting services from the word go.

“Should the Supreme Court issue a favorable ruling, the Mississippi Gaming Commission will be ready to address sports gambling,” Allen Godfrey, executive director of the commission said. “The time would be determined more by how long it takes the operators to get ready to offer it as a regulated game.”

The ruling which is expected to come in the spring is already causing quite a stir in legal circles. While it is very difficult to accurately predict the outcome of the Supreme Court hearings, many court analysts have expressed their confidence in the ruling falling in favor of New Jersey.

State lawmakers in Mississippi have already tweaked the state’s laws pertaining to sports betting so as to create an opening for immediate implementation once a favorable ruling is made. In case this comes to pass, it will be the second big change in the state’s law after House Bill 967 that was passed by the Legislature in the 2017 session. Apparently, House Bill 967 holds the magic key to the immediate implementation of sports betting – the lawmakers managed to slip in some language that would effectively legalize sports betting in Mississippi once the ban is lifted. The lawmakers and legislative leaders, however, denied having prior knowledge of the loophole that they created when passing the fantasy sports gaming law.

“We did not see (House Bill 967) in the same light as sports betting. We knew there was a federal law that prohibited sports betting but allowed fantasy sports gaming,” Senator Sean Tindell said. “We weren’t concerned with sports betting then because we knew federal law would trump anything we could pass.”

A lot of people have been watching the Supreme Court case very closely and the results will have rather broad implications according to Jonathan Wood, an attorney at Pacific Legal Foundation, a Washington-based legal firm.

“If New Jersey wins, it means states have a lot of power to experiment on a lot of issues. If the leagues win, the federal government would effectively be telling states what laws their voters can or can’t pass,” he pointed out.

PokerStars Announces 2019 PokerStars Player’s Championship

Reading Time: 2 minutes

PokerStars live events are coming back with a bang after the site staggered through the past couple of years with their live tournament series. Stiff competition from rival sites that upped their game in the same period was bound to cause a bit of a stir in the industry and they have indeed given PokerStars a run for its money when it comes live poker festivals.

In response to the growing competition, Daniel Negreanu on behalf of PokerStars announced the PokerStars Players No-Limit Hold’em Championship (PSPC). The announcement that was made in Prague highlighted the juiciest $25,000 buy-in event that is set to be held in the Bahamas and is anticipated to be the best event come 2019.

There are, of course, a plethora of $25,000 buy-in events around, but PokerStars will be giving out 300 free Platinum Passes or PSPC packages each worth $30,000 in preparation for 2019 – this will be done all through 2018 and will also include hotel and travel expenses. As such, by the end of 2018, PokerStars will have pumped about $8 million into the championship’s prize pool with an additional $1 million to be added to the first-place prize as soon as the event kicks off on January 6th, 2019.

“We expect the PokerStars Players No Limit Hold’em Championship will set the new global standard for live poker tournaments,” said Rafi Ashkenazi, the Chief Executive Officer of The Stars Group. “We want to demonstrate and reinforce our commitment to the game, and give something back to the players by investing in our live events in a meaningful way. Our objective is to create an event that brings professionals and amateurs together, creating many winning moments and unforgettable stories.”

Thanks to this new initiative, 300 ordinary or upcoming poker players will have a shot at playing alongside poker bigwigs for the mind-boggling prize money without having to battle through fields of thousands of players before they get to the final table. The next batch of Platinum Passes are to be awarded in the online Winter Series event that will take place from December 25th to January 7th – so be sure to add that to your calendar especially if you are not within U.S borders. More Platinum passes will be handed to poker players during the PSL Macau, IPO in Italy, PokerStars Festival London and all through 2018 till all the 300 Platinum Passes are in the hands of the lucky poker dreamers. Also, look out for the Platinum Passes at the PokerStars signature online series WCOOP, SCOOP as well as Sunday Million and Sunday Storm events.

‘Entourage’ Star Jerry Ferrara to Scout Knicks eSports Team

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The New York Knicks has managed to recruit ‘Entourage’ actor Jerry Ferrara as the head scout for the entry into the upcoming NBA 2K eSports League.

“It came together naturally,” Ferrara said in an interview with ESPN on Thursday. “I’m an avid Knicks fan, and I love gaming. I currently have seven games that I love playing and following. But 2K is my Number 1.”

The 38-year-old actor also mentioned how his love for NBA started off after in the early 90s after he played some basketball video games such as the NBA Playoffs and Lakers versus Celtics on Sega Genesis. Ferrara, a Brooklyn native will be part of a team that will analyze games at a combine set to be held in February next year – the combine is intended to assist in team drafting in March in preparation for the new eSports league. Other than analyzing gamers, Ferrara will also serve as a creative consultant for the eSports team. He is very excited about analyzing the gamers at the combine to which he pointed out that he could not wait to “sit in the war room during the draft.” As far as his acting career is concerned, he says the Knicks will definitely understand that he may need to leave town every once in a while for an acting job – he, however, hopes that the current situation will allow him to spend at least a couple of days every week on the job.

“I’m hoping I can help with team chemistry,” Ferrara said. “And given my background, we’re going to do some cool things with digital so that fans can learn who our players are.”

“I’m convinced if I were born 10 years later, I’d be doing something in eSports. Maybe not a pro gamer but something in this industry.”

To qualify for the NBA eSports combine, the gamers will need to win 50 games in the pro-am mode of NBA 2K18 in January. Each of the 17 NBA teams that are expected to participate in the league will be required to draft a team in March before the 16-week season begins later in May.