• Casino Promotions Are Evolving

London, UK, June 21, 2004 – VIP Casino have redefined the standard for bonusing casino players online with their unique 1%/10% bonus structure. Under this structure, players receive either 1% of their winnings or 10% of their losses in a retrospective bonus on the 1st of each month. This promotional idea, called the Ultimate Cash Reward Program, is currently being run in conjunction with a generous 100% match deposit bonus and Players Club bonus and has already caused quite a stir in the industry. Casino Manager Kate Berkeley explained in a recent interview how this Cash Reward program allows VIP Casino to be more generous with their players, awarding them for their loyalty. "Online casinos have long had to set strict guidelines which players must follow to qualify for bonuses; however the Cash Reward program is a retrospective bonus which isn’t subject to abuse, so we can afford to be more generous with our rewards. This program is designed to benefit all players and ensure that everyone in VIP Casino is treated like a VIP! Cash Rewards have been part of the ‘high rollers’ packages at other casinos before, but VIP Casino is the first to bring high roller reward schemes to every member of the casino. The casino’s name is more than just a name and their unique Ultimate Cash Program proves it! The Cash Rewards program pays the full expected 1% on monthly net winnings and 10% on monthly net losses without having to impose restrictions which are seen with promotions such as match deposits. Admittedly, Ms Berkeley knows that there is still a lot of player education ahead of her to make people realize that their 1%/10% Cash Reward program is better value than bonus money up front, and she is committed to telling players that they deserve better value. According to a recent GamblingOnlineMagazine.com survey, 19% of online gamblers already prefer a Cash Rewards program to deposit bonuses, and it’s Berkeley’s mission to educate the rest.

> Read the full story here Source : VIPCasino.com

• Casinos May Stand To Gain In Cyberspace

WASHINGTON -- If casinos in Nevada and elsewhere in the United States plunged into the Internet gambling market, they would likely gain up to $190 billion annually in sports bets, said Koleman Strumpf, an assistant professor of economics at the University of North Carolina. Not only would brick-and-mortar casinos capture a large share of the wagers placed on offshore Web sites, estimated to be about $20 billion per year, but they would also take about half of the $80 billion to $380 billion market in illegal sports betting, Strumpf says. "The biggest advantage (the casinos) have is a known brand name," Strumpf said. "My guess is the big guys in Nevada could get 50 percent of this market if they went on the Internet." But Strumpf says one more thing: It's not going to happen anytime soon. As a visiting scholar at the Cato Institute, a nonprofit libertarian think tank in Washington, D.C., Strumpf is researching the economics of Internet gambling and online file sharing. "The question of how individuals make decisions when there is risk and uncertainty is a huge, outstanding topic in economics," Strumpf said. "There hasn't been a lot of empirical research about how people make decisions about gambling." Strumpf, 35, believes Internet gambling should be legalized and regulated because there is no way to stop it. [...]

> Read the full story here Source : ReviewJournal.com

• Microgaming Midyear Games Released

June 24, 2004, Isle of Man – Turnkey provider Microgaming (www.microgaming.com) kept up the competitive pressure with another quarterly set of new and upgraded casino games for all tastes and pockets this week. Spokesperson Mark Fredericks said that regular game upgrades and new releases based on the latest world gambling research was an integral part of the group's goal to offer online players a continual stream of fresh, exciting and appealing games at Microgaming-powered casinos. Leading the new releases is the romance themed Secret Admirer, a 5 reel, 9 payline, 10 coin video slot, with a Wild symbol, an adjacent reel Scatter symbol, Free Spin Super Hold bonus function and a double your money Gamble Screen. One look at the richly romantic graphics suggests that this game is particularly appealing to the important women gambler demographic, although the high action level and feature-rich character will make it attractive to a wider audience, too. The overall theme is one of romance, and the evocative icons include glittering diamond rings, rich red roses, colourful masks, hearts and just a whiff of expensive perfume. Secret Admirer boasts many new and unique features that set a fresh benchmark for video slots in the online gaming industry. [...] Best Microgaming casinos: Yukon Gold, Roxy Palace, Captain Cooks.

> Read the full story here Source : Microgaming.com

• Busted: Entire List of AOL Users Sold to Online Gambling Spammer

An online gambling operator is at the center of one of the largest spam controversies ever. Late Wednesday afternoon, Jason Smathers, an AOL software engineer, and Sean Dunaway, the online gambling operator, were taken into federal custody after an investigation revealed that Smathers used a stolen ID code to obtain screen names and user data for nearly 30 million AOL users. He then sold the data to Dunaway who used it to promote his online casino and then resold it. The two men face up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The charges, filed yesterday in the Southern District of New York, are the first major indictments under the recently passed federal CAN-SPAM bill. The law, enacted in January, is aimed at cutting back the amount of spam e-mail that is sent. Many ISPs claim that spam accounts for nearly 75 percent of all e-mail sent. Dunaway, 21, appeared in a Las Vegas court and was given 30 days to appear before a judge in New York. Smathers, 24, was ordered held by an Alexandria, Va., court until a hearing scheduled for today in Manhattan. Dunaway paid Smathers $152,000-–an initial payment of $52,000 and then a payment of $100,000--for an updated list. The two lists combined included 92 million AOL screen names. [...]

> Read the full story here Source : IGamingNews.com

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