• Another Round for Kyl and Conyers Bills

U.S. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., today introduced a bill that would create a U.S. commission to study the legalization of online gambling. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., meanwhile, is planning to launch legislation either Thursday or Monday that would prohibit Internet gambling in the United States. The currently numberless Conyers bill, called the Internet Gambling Licensing and Regulation Act, is a reprisal of the legislation he introduced late in the last Congressional session. The Kyl bill, although not yet introduced, will be topic of a Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs hearing on March 18 at 10 a.m. EST. A spokesman for Kyl said the senator does not have to introduce his bill before the hearing takes place. Reps. Chris Cannon, R-Utah; Shelley Berkely, D-Nev.; and Joe Baca, D-Calif., are co-sponsoring the Conyers bill. When announcing his bill, Conyers compared the prohibition of Internet gambling with the U.S. prohibition of alcohol in the 1920s. "Today, Congress is rushing to pass a similar ill-conceived prohibition of Internet gambling," Conyers said. "Gaming prohibitionists believe they can stop the millions of Americans who gamble online by prohibiting the use of credit cards to gamble on the Internet. Just as outlawing alcohol did not work in the 1920s, current attempts to prohibit online gaming will not work, either." [...]

> Read the full story here Source : IGamingNews.com

• Everything to play for

Whether online or through your digital TV, gambling has never been so easy. As legislation races to catch up with the betting boom, Kate Bulkley looks at the tactics being employed to make the most of this lucrative new market. Gillian from Newbiggin by the Sea was the first to do it 100 times. In fact, she spends about £200 a week doing it. Many of her friends in this tiny Northumbrian village now do it as well. Judy and the Bump are also regulars - Judy is at home waiting for her baby, aka the Bump - and Tina of Trowbridge sent in a special game card so that everyone else could do it in the pattern of a giraffe. The "it" is TV bingo, and it has arrived in millions of digital-TV homes across Britain. They are tuning in to a TV channel called Avago, which offers bingo-hall regulars a way to play cards without moving from their sofas. These new armchair gamblers are winning over £400,000 a month playing interactive TV (i-TV) bingo using their remote control in the privacy of their lounge. Avago's bevy of young, chatty presenters talk enthusiastically on screen as thousands of viewers punch their TV remotes to place their 25p bets. Using technology that allows the studio presenters to see how each viewer's bingo card is filling up, Avago has created its own gambling community of Gillians, Judys and Tinas. All are liable to get a mention as the live gambling unfolds. [...]

> Read the full story here Source : MediaGuardian.co.uk

• Trump finds buyers for $490M. in bonds

Donald Trump's casino company priced its critical bond deal Thursday afternoon, meaning the sale of $490 million in notes is done. Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts had to sweeten the terms yet again, including unusually structured interest of 17.625 percent on $65 million in 71/2-year second-mortgage notes. The company sold $425 million of seven-year first-mortgage notes at a discount of 94.8 cents on the dollar and with an interest rate of 11.625 percent, giving investors an effective yield of 12.75 percent. Trump Hotels has been trying to get such a bond deal done since last spring because it doesn't have the cash available to pay off $312 million in Trump Marina debt due in November. "It feels terrific because the market is so brutal," Trump said. "I had to put in $30 million to show good faith. Without it, forget it - it couldn't have happened." [...]

> Read the full story here Source : PressOfAtlanticCity.com

• Harrah's Entertainment Chairman Satre Gets $3.8 Million Bonus

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--Harrah's Entertainment Inc. Chairman Philip G. Satre received a bonus of $3.8 million in 2002, compared with a bonus of $900, 000 in 2001, according to a definitive proxy filed Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission (News - Websites). The company also said it is seeking to elect three Class I directors to serve three-year terms on its board. Regarding Chairman Satre's compensation in 2002, Harrah's Entertainment said Satre received a salary of $1.2 million, unchanged from his 2001 salary. Satre served as the company's chief executive until Jan. 1, 2003. The company also said Satre received other annual compensation of $192,091, including $61,000 for company match on deferred compensation contributions, $37, 669 for aircraft usage, and $70,915 for retirement gift and related taxes. [...]

> Read the full story here Source : Yahoo.com

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