Archive for the Others category.
November 22, 2007
Mansion Casino is continuing to add new additions to their already impressive roster of online casino games provided by the premier online casino software team at Playtech.
The two new Video Slot games added this week are Bonus Bears and What’s Cooking. Both games deliver high-level graphical animation and all the exciting bells and whistles you’ve come to expect from Playtech’s superb design team.
Bonus Bears is a 5-reel, 25-payline multi-coin Video Slot with an Alpine picnic flavor. Game symbols include picnic baskets, beehives and bees, park rangers, smelly skunks and, of course, bears.
Players will be excited by the opportunities presented by two Bonus Rounds: a Free Spins feature where winnings can be tripled and a cute Honey Feature game where winnings are accumulated as the Bonus Bear shimmies his way up a tree. The more honey pots the Bear collects, the more you win. However, players need to be careful as a swarm of angry bees will send the Bonus Bear crashing to the ground, ending the Bonus Round and limiting honey pot winnings.
What’s Cooking is a 5-reel, 30-payline multi-coin Video Slot for the homemakers as it has a decidedly kitchen theme.
What’s Cooking features include:
* Dollar Ball side game
* Bonus Round – grants players free spins with a win multiplier
* Scatter Bonus – three or more Chef symbols trigger the Scatter Bonus resulting in an instant win
* Free Spin Bonus Round – triggered when Cookbook symbols appear on reels 1 and 5. The player must then build a sandwich, where the different types of fillings and condiments determine the number of free spins and multipliers
Mansion Casino is now powered by the brilliant Playtech online casino software platform. With over 120 Download casino games and over 50 Instant Play games as well as a $500 Welcome Bonus, Mansion Casino is rapidly taking their rightful place at the top of the online casino entertainment industry.
November 01, 2007
KAHNAWAKE, Quebec — (PRESS RELEASE) — The Jackpot Factory, a leading online casino group known for first-rate customer support and a wealth of games, announced the introduction of Postepay to their list of preferred and trusted payment options to buy and withdraw casino credits for Italian players at All Slots Online Casino.
With more than 9 million users in Italy, Postepay is a prepaid rechargeable Visa Electron card, issued by Poste Italiane. The key to the success of this card is the simplicity of use and accessibility of purchase and funding the card in any post office in the country.
“This is a real breakthrough because it will truly enhance the overall player experience for our Italian players,” said David Brickman, Spokesperson for the Jackpot Factory. “We worked very hard to implement this new payment option for All Slots, and we are sure that Italian players are going to enjoy our efforts. This is a giant leap in making the Italian player feel confident about our online casinos.”
Since the launch of its Italian casino in May 2007, All Slots Casino has dedicated its efforts in providing Italian players with a complete Italian gaming experience, which includes 24/7 customer support, website, and casino software in Italian.
“The Jackpot Factory is committed to strengthening its Italian division and to investing more resources in this market, to truly give it an authentic Italian atmosphere. We are planning even greater things for the coming year,” added Brickman
October 23, 2007
LOS ANGELES, California — (PRESS RELEASE) — Supporting the company’s strategic growth and diversification of its management team, WPT Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ:WPTE) announced today that it will welcome two additions to the company. Former Vice President of Poker Software Development for CryptoLogic, Andy Goetsch joins WPT as Executive Vice President of Online Gaming, while Rohin Malhotra brings a vast knowledge of television networks, production, and distribution to his role as Managing Director - International Sales & Marketing.
Bringing extensive strategic planning and poker experience in the online gaming market, Goetsch joins WPT from a leader in online gaming software, CryptoLogic, where he served as Vice President of Poker Software Development and oversaw the launch of WPT’s real money gaming site, www.WorldPokerTour.com, on the CryptoLogic shared network. Goetsch is not only a senior executive with 21 years of experience in strategic planning, technology, finance and mergers and acquisitions, but also an avid poker player with gaming knowledge in both the online poker room environment and consulting for various Internet gaming sites. As the new Executive Vice President of Online Gaming at WPT, Goetsch will focus on utilizing the power of the WPT brand to develop WPT’s player base, liquidity and online gaming revenue on www.WorldPokerTour.com by creating innovative marketing platforms and unique WPT offerings that will attract and retain online players.
Malhotra is making the move from Fox Sports where he was an Executive Advisor. Prior to Fox Sports, Malhotra served as the International Marketing & Head of Global Programming for PartyGaming plc, where he focused on programming strategy and global distribution initiatives. He also provided operational and business strategy as Senior Director at MTV Networks. As WPT Managing Director - International Sales & Marketing, Malhotra will leverage his knowledge and experience to maximize the WPT content library across all television and multimedia platforms. His charge is to strategically distribute and utilize WPT content in traditional and non-traditional media platforms while building the brand and translating the exposure into traffic and players for WPT’s online gaming site, www.WorldPokerTour.com.
“Andy and Rohin’s incredible experience inside and outside of the poker industry are major assets that will complement the diverse professional background of the WPT Management team,” said Steve Lipscomb, WPT Founder, President and CEO. “We realize that a healthy and successful business works from the inside out, which is why we continually focus resources toward hiring the best in the business so that we can remain the best in the poker industry.”
October 23, 2007
STOCKHOLM, Sweden — (PRESS RELEASE) — Petter Nylander, CEO of online gaming company Unibet, was yesterday detained by Dutch authorities after checking in to a flight to get back to his home in the UK. The background for this detention is the proceedings filed in 2006 by the French lottery monopoly Française des Jeux and horse betting monopoly PMU against Unibet, alleging breach of the French national laws from 1836 and 1891 protecting those State-owned monopolies.
Unibet is outraged by France’s total disregard of European Community law aiming to protect a domestic commercial gambling monopoly, which is being challenged by the European Commission. However disturbing French authorities’ methods are, for Unibet it is business as usual.
While the company was aware of the possibility of this action by the French authorities, the timing of it is very surprising. In March 2007, the European Court of Justice ruled in the Placanica case, confirming that betting services are covered by the EU Treaty. The Court also confirmed that criminal proceedings brought against legitimate operators based in other EU member states are in contradiction with the EU Treaty. On 27 June, the EU Commission issued a reasoned opinion against France, in relation with the infringement proceedings concerning France’s restrictions on sports betting. Furthermore, on 10 July, the highest jurisdiction in France (Cour de cassation) has overturned a decision that banned a Maltese company from offering online betting on horse races in France. Finally, the French government has stated its will to open a discussion with the European Commission towards a regulated opening of the French online gaming market.
Unibet’s CFO and Deputy CEO Ragnar Hellenius has been appointed by the Board of Unibet as acting CEO until Mr. Nylander is released. He comments: “This situation is clearly unacceptable and extraordinary in ours and in any industry. It is our view that this use of the possibility for cross-border legal actions is a clear abuse of their true aim, and in all aspects, disproportionate. Unibet is licensed in the UK, Malta and Italy for gambling, listed on the OMX Nordic Stock Exchange and a company complying with European law. This is clearly a breach of the EU Treaty and the fundamental principles of the European Union. We are upset of this unlawful act and harassment against our company and a citizen of Europe and we will take every action possible to bring this matter to justice. This criminalisation of a specific individual is a tactic that we have seen French authorities using before and something we will not tolerate. We take for granted that Petter Nylander will be released immediately.”
October 12, 2007
Pressure appears to be building on the developer of the North Shore casino to make changes to mitigate the impact a massive parking garage will have on the city skyline.
Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato said yesterday he believes changes should be made so the garage “blends into the community” and doesn’t dominate the landscape.
“You don’t want to put up a concrete wall that’s ugly,” he said. “It’s got to fit into the landscape.”
Mr. Onorato is the second public official to voice concerns about the impact of the garage. Without commenting directly on the garage design, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said Tuesday the city will do “whatever we have to do to preserve” the scenic views from Mount Washington and the Fort Pitt Bridge.
Their comments came after the gaming implementation task force raised concerns about the size of the garage, with more than 3,800 spaces, and its impact on the skyline. The city’s Contextual Design Advisory Panel also has voiced objections, saying the garage’s height and an “untreated” facade facing the Ohio River combined to create an “awkward appearance.”
The garage at 119 feet high, will be almost twice as tall as the Majestic Star casino, which will sit on the bank of the river just west of the Carnegie Science Center. The garage became more of an issue in part because of design changes that reduced the height of the casino from 85 feet to 60 feet and a 110-foot drum atrium at the center of the building to 90 feet. As a result, the garage became “more visible than ever” from Mount Washington and the Fort Pitt Bridge, said Pat Ford, task force co-chair and the city’s top development official.
Mr. Onorato said there are examples of garages being done right, including one at Carnegie Mellon University where “you can’t even tell it’s a garage” to a new parking structure on the North Shore between Heinz Field and PNC Park.
He said the city and the county will be working closely with casino developer Don Barden and his company PITG Gaming LLC to “make sure the garage complements the area.”
“I don’t see this as a big negative. I think it can be resolved,” he said.
Mr. Onorato said he wanted to reserve comment on the actual design of the garage but added that from the renderings he has seen, “Let’s just say it’s large. But I also think, though, that it could be tweaked and it can fit in.”
“We’re not going to have an obnoxious building that hurts the skyline,” he said.
Bob Oltmanns, a spokesman for Mr. Barden, has said the casino is willing to work with city planners, the task force and others to try to address the concerns. But he stressed the project must stay within its $450 million budget.
“There is not a blank check with which to pay for everything that may be on the wish list of the various stakeholders,” he said.
Mr. Oltmanns added that the casino and garage site at the moment is a “13-acre parking lot with weeds growing up through the cracks, two abandoned industrial buildings that have had the windows broken out and [been] condemned, a rusty chain link fence, and weeds growing along the riverbank.
“I think we’re improving the landscape even with the addition of the garage,” he said.
The city planning commission will hold a public hearing on the design Tuesday, with a vote scheduled for Oct. 2