Betting on Casinos in Miami

Will Miami be the next American tourist city to have mega casinos? The short answer – not yet. Since 1978, various casino ventures have tried to promote casino tourism in Miami. So far, all efforts have fallen short.

Malaysian casino operator Genting Group purchased the downtown Miami Herald Building for $236 million last May. Including the Miami Herald purchase, Genting has invested nearly $500 million in Miami real estate in recent years.

Last week, the Miami casino bill was withdrawn in the Florida legislature. It won’t be taken up again until the 2013 session. Nick Iarossi, a lobbyist for Las Vegas Sands, says the bill would have failed in committee by one vote. Why did the Miami casino bill fail? First, Florida has a conservative legislature. Tallahassee is an 8 hour drive from Miami. Northern Florida (“the panhandle”) is culturally distant to South Florida’s liberal atmosphere. Genting will have to learn how to reach out to legislators from Florida’s more conservative central and northern regions.

The second reason is obvious – competing interests. Disney, Carnival Cruise Lines, Seminole tribes (who own the Hard Rock Cafe & Casino in Fort Lauderdale), horse and dog tracks, and not to mention Jai-alai don’t want additional competition. In fact, the only type of gambling currently not in South Florida is the mega casino. Genting owns 50% of Norwegian Cruise Lines, which operates out of the Port of Miami.

Genting’s spectacular promises didn't help their cause. Genting promised to invest $3.8 billion, create
45,000 new jobs in a city struggling with 10.2% unemployment, non-stop flights from Miami to Asia,
$1.7 billion in new state revenues, and the purchase of thousands of Disney World tickets. Perhaps next year, Genting will pare down estimates.

Miami’s economy is largely based on tourism and real estate. The real estate market will take years to recover and tourism just isn't enough. South Florida doesn't have a hi-tech hub like Boston or San Francisco. Miami’s multitude of sports franchises is nice, but an economy is not built on Heat, Dolphins, and Marlins. As long as Miami doesn't have a strong economic anchor, casino conglomerates will try and try again to bring casinos to the shores of South Florida.

There is one thing both proponents and opponents of casinos in Miami agree on – the current battle is not over. “This is round 1,” says Dan Gelber, chairman of the No Casino advocacy group that fought the bill. Jessica Hoppe, a senior vice president at Genting agrees. She said in a statement that the company remains “committed to the vision of world-class destination resorts in the South Florida community.”

Stay tuned next year for round two of the battle for Miami casinos.

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Gambling Our Way Out of the Recession

With unemployment hovering above 8% and a “new normal” which means expensive gas prices and less bank loans, will gambling be the lucky answer to our stumbling economy?

According to the American Gaming Association, the commercial casino industry supported $125 billion in spending and nearly 820,000 jobs in the US in 2010. Gambling accounted for 1% of the US economy. Gambling also translates into jobs – the average salary in the casino industry is higher than other recreation and retail segments.


Gaming is a growth segment. The industry is growing faster than any other recreation sector in the US economy. And then there are taxes. The industry paid $16 billion in taxes in 2010 – including an effective 32% tax rate (a lot higher than many of our politicians!).

With most US states cutting basic services – health, schools, police and even prisons, the growing gaming industry is filling holes in many states. Can anyone imagine Florida, Nevada or New Jersey without gambling? Besides gambling and gambling tourism, what other growth industry can help replenish state budgets?

Nevada and New Jersey have taken huge steps in October and November to move towards legalized online gambling. In both states, players can gamble online – but only within the confines of casino resorts. So you can’t do online gambling at home, but if you stay in a legitimate casino with online gambling, you can place bets from your hotel room, restaurant or even within the casino itself.

In New Jersey, the online gambling issue is heating up! Governor Christie wants to legalize online and offline sports betting. His legislature is split and state and federal judges are giving New Jersey mixed signals.


The case is expected to wind its way through the courts early next year. If it passes, New Jersey will be the first state in the union to legalize sports betting – and not just horse races. The NBA Commissioner and sports figures have come out against the move. Its bad for public relations – but they don’t have a billion dollar budget deficit to close.

When gambling comes to “your neighborhood”, the stakes are high. Online Casino Archives is aware of the complexity of the issue. We suggest that politicians from both sides get together with respected gaming business leaders to flesh out the issues state by state. Eventually, Miami and other tourist cities will have casinos.

The real question is, how do we implement responsible gambling? For that to happen, the adults need to sit down and work out adult policies.

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Boxer Andre Berto has a new look after his loss to Robert Guerrero

Those two gentlemen there appear to be different people, but here's the shocking truth: They're the same man!

That's Andre Berto, former 147-pound welterweight champ, after taking a merciless 12-round beating at the gloves of Robert Guerrero on Saturday night. Guerrero won on a unanimous decision, and is now 31-1-1 with 18 knockouts. Berto is now 28-2, and gave almost as good as he got, impressive for a guy who fought most of the fight with his right eye swollen shut.
"I did tell Andre I was going to beat him down, so I had to be a man of my word," Guerrero said afterward, and that photo above is evidence of that. "But he did defend himself like a true champ."

READ MORE OF THIS STORY..... http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/the-turnstile/andre-berto-look-loss-robert-guerrero-211825679.html

Gullit: Guardiola would struggle to repeat Barcelona feats

Former Chelsea star Ruud Gullit believes Pep Guardiola could struggle to repeat the successes he had at Barcelona if he were to take over at another club.

Blues owner Roman Abramovich is reportedly keen on acquiring the services of the highly-coveted Catalan when he ends his sabbatical from the game, but Rafa Benitez was recently given the role of taking over the Stamford Bridge side until the end of the season.

But Gullit, who now works as a football analyst for several media outlets, says Guardiola would not be able to achieve the same lofty heights as he did at Camp Nou, with his tried and tested formula not suiting the style of the Premier League.
"I think what Pep [Guardiola] did with Barcelona is difficult to repeat," he told reporters. "Also, he had the players there. You cannot do the same thing twice, especially not in another culture.
"I remember with other cultures, they try because they think they have a formula, and it doesn't apply everywhere."

READ MORE AT

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/gullit-guardiola-struggle-repeat-barcelona-021203303--sow.html 

Americans Abroad recap: Dempsey getting in a groove

Clint Dempsey didn’t score last week but had a big impact on Spurs’ success nonetheless. Deuce was active, aggressive, and precise in helping Tottenham pick up points abroad and domestically.

Tottenham inched one step closer to the Europa League knockout stages after drawing 0-0 with Lazio in Italy on Thursday. The Group J clash was a strange affair as Spurs failed to uncork any shots on goal and yet, the London club held possession well. Dempsey played 62 minutes and was involved in quite a few tackles.
On Sunday, Dempsey started once again versus West Ham and had a great showing. The Texan assisted on Tottenham’s second goal of the match when he found Gareth Bale in the 58th minute. Dempsey nearly put in one of his own earlier but his shot clanged off the woodwork. He was also involved in the build-up to his side's third goal. Despite not scoring, he tested the keeper on a few occasions and was a huge difference maker as Spurs grabbed the 3-1 win........ READ MORE AT  http://sports.yahoo.com/news/americans-abroad-recap-dempsey-getting-055900061--sow.html

Paris Hilton Hits The Blackjack Tables

Celebrity and heiress Paris Hilton takes to the felts in Vegas and bags 30 grand pocket change

Actress, socialite, heiress and celebrity…now it seems Paris Hilton can add card shark to her list of
talents after it emerged that a recent trip to a Las Vegas casino saw her net a cool $30,000 on the
Blackjack tables.

Paris was in town to celebrate her 31st Birthday, and headed to Wynn Hotel and Casino with a select
group of friends. Not long after, the heiress to the Hilton Hotel chain tweeted, “#BirthdayGirlsLuck. I
love gambling.”

Interestingly, the Wyn Hotel and Casino was the site of Paris’ arrest for cocaine procession. She was
sentenced to one year probation, 200 hours community service, $2,000 fine and ordered to complete a
drug abuse program, with the District Attorney warning that the next time she is arrested for anything
besides a traffic violation she will spend time in jail.

Paris famously spent time in prison back in June 2007, when she checked into Century Regional
Detention Facility, an all-female jail in Lynwood, California. This was despite petitions to high profile
politicians such as the then California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger for a pardon.

After her release she went on to visit South Africa as part of her “new beginning”. However it seems
the new Paris was soon up to her old habits, and was accused of smoking marijuana at the 2010 FIFA
World Cup game between Brazil and the Netherlands. She was escorted from the Nelson Mandela Bay
Stadium by local police, however the case was later dismissed for unknown reasons.

So, unlucky with the law, but certainly lucky in cards, which goes to show you can leave the troubles of
the world at the door and try the tables for yourself, by logging on to Sports Interaction’s online casino.

Paris Hilton sells everything under the sun. She has a line of fragrances – cologne and perfume – that
woman love to spray. She has watches (be on time with Paris!), T-Shirts, nails, lashes and tons of
woman’s beauty products.

You can buy Paris Hilton soaps, shampoos and everything else for your bathroom. Why not buy your
wife a Paris Hilton towel set?

Perhaps the only thing missing is the Paris Hilton slot game. It must be on the way! Imagine a Paris
Hilton jackpot? You can bet that the Hilton’s are working on it. Why not a Paris Hilton casino?!


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Popular IGT Game Transformed Into Online Slot

 Discover the awesome beauty of Fire Opals, the new online slot game from WagerWorks.

WagerWorks, the specialist gaming software development wing of International Game Technology (IGT) has announced the arrival of Fire Opals, the online slot game that is set to prove as popular as its land based counterpart.

Fire Opals is based in the popular casino slot machine game developed by IGT, and the online version is themed on a South Seas Paradise, with rich and detailed graphics depicting a lush and exotic scene. As well as Hula Girls and colourful blooms there are also symbols of volcanoes spewing molten lava and burnt red opals. The sound effects boast the same attention to detail as the visual graphics and serve to create a complete picture of an awesome landscape.

There is a staggering 720 ways to win thanks to the hexagonal reels set up, the combinations of reels pays out in both directions. Fire Opals has a fixed 50 coin bet and the coin denominations range from 1.00 credits to 100.00 credits, giving a huge maximum bet of 5,000 credits per spin.

The Bonus symbol triggers the free spins bonus round and if five bonus symbols appear anywhere on the reels the player will be awarded ten free spins. The free spins are played on richer reels and can be retriggered when five bonus symbols appear again. The retriggering can take place up to 260 free spins.

Another special symbol in the Fire Opals slots game is the wild symbol. It appears as Stacked Wilds and this can significantly boost payouts. Wild symbols can substitute for other symbols on the reels and thus create winning combinations.

Our favourite feature of Fire Opals is the free spins. Free spins are more profitable than bonuses games. Experienced players are always on the hunt for games with free spins. There’s no better way to increase your payouts than to earn 10, 20 or even 100 free spins.

Now if you add a wild symbol to free spins, you’re really in the money. Not only is the spin on the house, you’ve doubled your odds of winning something. That’s how you can win a lot of cash from online casinos.

The average return to the player on Fire Opals is 94.92%, so there’s no excuse to not head straight to a WagerWorks online casino and start your exotic adventure. Give Fire Opal a few spins now!

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The Popularity of the Online Casino Games

Gambling is probably something that most people are not in favor of doing. However, with the online casino games, the technology has given people an advantage in playing typical card games in the comfort of their homes.

The World Wide Web has been quite instrumental to the increase of popularity of these casino games, and with the strict policies these websites have installed on their programs; it goes to say that everyone is protected from becoming addicted to gambling.

The Pros against the Land-based Casinos Internet gambling via the Internet is certainly something that is convenient and comfortable. However, the fact remains that there are certainly other reasons to play online casino games other than being at home. A first notable reason, and is probably an advantage is the fact that casinos have a higher payout rate as compared to the traditional gambling centers.

Perhaps a major reason why this is so is the fact that with the land-based casinos, there are so many overhead costs that the casino owners have to pay. All the web page owner has to do is secure a license and purchase a software gaming program to create a really popular site that people will be drawn to play in. Unlike these software programs, the conventional casinos need to pay for salaries for their dealers, equipment costs, and other associated expenses.

Online casino games are also noted to have more secured systems as unlike the conventional casinos. Stricter audit rules and regulations have been placed in the industry to ensure that everyone who happens to enjoy the online games will be secured and protected from outsiders. In fact, the online casinos have created their own systems that regulate the fairness of their games. Authenticity of these automated programs is far fairer as compared to the human counterparts as there are lesser errors on these computerized games.

Ease of Payments and Online Banking Facilities. An increase in secure technologies has resulted to the popularity of these online games. With banks and payment centers fortifying their programs in accessing and connecting payments to these Internet casinos, it goes to say that every player gets easy banking on their hands.

Plus, with more financial institutions cropping up online and creating easy access to these payment methods, it seems practical to play these online casino games and have secured methods to pay or increase the credits to their profiles. Click to play online casino games in the comfort of your home.

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Online Casinos Welcome Four New Online Slots from Viaden Gaming

Software gaming provider Viaden has announced the arrival of four brand new slot games that are guaranteed to get pulses racing this month.

As the winter turns to spring, our thoughts are turning to our summer holidays and long lazy days on the beach. It seems like great minds think alike as Viaden have added Cubana Tropicana, the holiday- themed video slot that takes players to the relaxing atmosphere of a hot summer vacation. The game features 9 paylines and boasts 13 symbols that combine to offer great cash prizes as well as the chance of hitting up to 25 free spins with the scatter symbols. Even better, once three or more symbols appear on the reels a special bonus round starts called Invite a Lady for a Drink.


In celebration of Valentines Day, Jour de l’Amour, a romantic online video slot with atmospheric Parisian style music setting the scene. Players can spin the reels to activate up to 25 pay lines and there are three different bonus games, each providing the chance for players to considerably increase their payout with multiple free spins. The symbols are all based around the theme of love, and include scatter, wild, high-paid and low-paid symbols.

It’s not just about romance though, as the third new offering is Non-Stop Party HD, a video slot game that is themed around a disco party. Five reels of entertaining fun offer players the chance to hit a number of symbols including wild, scatter and bonus, which will provide up to 45 free spins.
 
Maya Pyramid completes the set of four, and is an advanced version of the already popular Maya Pyramid. 21 paylines are set in a Maya-themed backdrop and include the Mayan symbols as the scatter, wild and bonus. You can win a 10,000 coin jackpot! And that’s not all – there is a 5 level bonus game that takes you back to the Mayan era.

There are Temple Prizes, cash bonuses and more winnings. This game doesn’t have all of the flashy graphics that other slot games have, but it is packed with opportunities for winnings. Let’s face it – we’re here for the winnings. If you want good graphics, go buy yourself a kaleidoscope or see a movie. If you want winnings, play Maya Pyramid!

All games are available to play now at online casino sites by Viaden.

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Microgaming to Launch Batman The Dark Knight Slots

Excitement is building for Microgaming’s launch of Batman The Dark Knights slot game.

Microgaming has beaten their rivals to the rights to Warner Brother’s popular Batman The Dark
Knight film. The Dark Knight slot will be the first DC comics based game produced by Microgaming,
hopefully the first in a series of Batman themed slots.

The new game will include all the favourite characters from the film made even more exciting with
fantastic features such as cinematic spins. This exciting new 25 line slot game is expected to launch
on 28th June just before the release of the next Batman film this summer. A slot game of the new
film is planned for release next year.

The new Batman slot is arriving just in time to replace The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the
Ring slot game. The game was hugely successful for Microgaming and proved to be popular at all
Microgaming casinos. Microgaming has not stated why it is being withdrawn but it is likely to be
something to do with royalties.

The new game is packed with exciting features and is also connected to a random progressive which
offers four massive jackpot options. There are also loads of bonuses and random prizes which will be
awarded throughout the game. Many are seeing this release as Microgaming’s answer to Playtech’s
highly successful range of comic book themed games such as Superman and the Incredible Hulk.

Microgaming is almost guaranteed of success with this new game as it launches at many of their
casinos. Comic book slots are always popular and with the hype surrounding the Batman film this
slot is sure to be warmly received. Make sure you don’t miss out on this exciting launch, log on to
your favorite Microgaming casino on Thursday the 28th June and you can be amongst the first to
enjoy this fantastic looking new game.

The Dark Knights is the coolest slot game you’ll ever see. If you’re not a slot game player, you need
to see it – now!! It starts off with an intro clip from the movie. Then you have Cinematic Spins –
which lets you see views of Gotham City while you’re spinning the reels.

And then there are the jackpots – 4 amazing progressive jackpots!! Batman and The Joker pace
around the reels of the game – something we've never seen in a slot game. This game should be in a
museum, not just in casinos!

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The Social Gambling Long Term Bet

By now you’ve probably heard of social networking and social gaming. Facebook, the reigning king of social networking, is going public soon.

If you’ve been on Facebook, you’ve probably seen your friends play games like CityVille and CastleVille, two of the most popular social games made by social gaming publisher Zynga. Over 200 million people play Zynga’s (ZNGA, NASDAQ since December) Facebook games every month.

Zynga Poker is the world’s largest poker game with more than 7 million people playing every day and over 30 million each month. A Zynga spokesperson was recently quoted as saying, “We know from listening to our players that there’s an interest in the real money gambling market. We’re in active conversations with potential partners to better understand and explore this new opportunity.”

Social gambling could be the next big thing in online gambling. Players login and enter a themed casino lobby and can join tables or walk around and watch others play. A leaderboard shows players where the action is. Players socialize and build social networks while gambling. Good social gambling brands will be packed with real players (each with a customized avatar) with all of the excitement of a real life casino.

In the past few years, gaming and social networking have merged to create social gaming. Gambling is now poised to merge with social gaming. Who will end up with the royal flush of social gambling – a social gaming brand or an online gambling brand? Expect a lot of innovation and news this year. Social gambling is something to watch in 2012 and in the coming years.

Since this article was written, Facebook went public – to not so good results. In fact, it was the worst popular IPO in years and won’t be quickly forgotten. In the past month, Facebook is having somewhat of a comeback.

How did they do it? They reported excellent earnings – including a huge jump in mobile ad sales. The mobile ad sales increase is what excited Wall Street. Will it last? Who knows, but signs are good. Mobile ads are tough – it’s not easy to convince someone to click on an ad on a tiny screen. When’s the last time you reacted to a mobile ad? Perhaps never.

The worse the US and world economy gets, the more likely governments are to change and reform gambling laws. After US elections, expect more changes in the laws. Social gambling is more accepted than ever.

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