• Harrah's Shuts Down U.K. Gambling Web Site After Losing Money

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Harrah's Entertainment Inc. has suspended the operations of an online gambling site based in the United Kingdom after posting losses of $9.3 million last year. The move marks the second time a major Las Vegas casino company has tried and failed to tap into the lucrative Internet gambling market. The former site, called LuckyMe, was introduced in November 2003 for British bettors and was suspended in October 2004, the company disclosed Tuesday in its annual report to shareholders. The site was discontinued because it was losing money, said Harrah's spokesman David Strow. Rather than the typical method of gambling for money, the Web site allowed players to access as many games as possible with a monthly subscription. Gamblers paid from about $17 to $84 per month for access to bingo and other games with cash prizes ranging from $8.50 to $1.7 million. LuckyMe featured an identification process that prohibited bets from U.S. residents as well as from other countries where Internet gambling is prohibited. The site was developed in partnership with Revahertz Networks, a Boston-based, privately held software game developer that founded Gamesville, a games-for-prizes site that was sold in 1999 to the Internet search engine Lycos. In 2003, MGM Mirage shut down its gambling Web site that catered to U.K. and European customers because of the uncertain legal and political climate regarding Internet gambling. The Justice Department considers Internet gambling illegal under the 1961 Wire Act, which was enacted to curb sports betting by telephone. In recent years, there have been various attempts in Congress to ban online betting.

> Read the full story here Source : LasVegasSun.com

• How Do Video Poker Options Differ From Each Other?

Video poker comes in a flood of flavors. The overwhelming majority of offerings fits one of three basic paradigms: jacks or better, deuces wild and joker wild. And this is generally a player’s primary choice. None of these fundamental options is inherently superior to any other. The usual standard of comparison, “return percentage,” depends on payoffs within games as opposed to contrasts among types. And a glance at a row of ostensibly similar games will show numerous nuances involving different payouts for winning hands and bonuses for special results. Further, the same paybacks, for instance, 95 and 97 percent, aren’t uncommon in all three implementations. So, assume there’s nothing about deuces or jokers that drives you particularly wild, or that your personal 1-900-PSYCHIC advisor has said to seek or shun. How do you decide what’s best for you? One criterion would involve the size of the jackpot you’re hoping to win. Another would be the versions of the game for which you’d learned optimum strategies. Given all possible starting hands, it’s no simple matter to know how to maximize either the return percentage or the chance at the big bucks. Having mastered the moves for one or more configurations, you’d be silly to squander your skill by playing by guess and by gosh at anything else. What are the other disparities, and how relevant are they to your gambling experience? [...]

> Read the full story here Source : PressOfAtlanticCity.com

• Philippines Approves Online Cockfight Betting System

PHILIPPINES – As reported by the Philippine Star: "The state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) has approved the implementation of the country's first Internet-based cockfight betting system. "Dubbed TeleSabong, it is the latest online betting game offered by Pagcor and listed Internet gaming company Philweb Corp. "The implementation of Telesabong, according to Pagcor vice-president Rene Figueroa, is intended to maximize the revenue generating potential of its Internet service operation with Philweb as technical and marketing consultant. "The online betting formats follow the traditional cockfighting formats such as Singles, Parlays, and Pick the Derby Champion. "….TeleSabong is an online betting system where the game results are based on an outcome or series of outcome of a four-cock-derby…"

> Read the full story here Source : CasinoCityTimes.com

• Poker Mama

ATLANTA, GA -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- Bluff Magazine, America's largest poker magazine, is gearing up for Mother's Day as a flood of orders are being received by husbands purchasing subscriptions for their wives. With poker at an almost omnipresent state throughout the nation, women are catching the Texas (Hold'em) flu in record numbers. What used to be exclusively a "Man's Game" playing poker has become an essential skill for both men and women. Women now make up 35% of the poker community, and that number is on the rise. Eventually, experts predict that the ratio of women to men playing poker will level out at 50/50 or may tip slightly towards women. Bluff publisher, Eric Morris, attributes the popularity of poker among women to the female stars on the World Poker Tour. "Poker players like Annie Duke, Clonie Gowen, Evelyn Ng and Jennifer Harmon have inspired women to get involved on the poker scene. They have also disproved the myth that poker is a man's domain by consistently beating many of the male professionals. Bluff Magazine's popularity at Mother's Day may have something to do with that, we feature the contributions of top female players like Annie Duke every issue." But is there a wolf in sheep's clothing here, are these magazines really being bought for Mothers on this special day? "It may be like the Simpson's episode where Homer buys a bowling ball for Marge - with his own name on it! On the other hand, we have strong support from women poker players, so it may be a gift that mothers are requesting their husbands to buy them. Either way, I'm pretty sure that both husband and wife will be flipping through the pages," said Bluff Editor, Michael Caselli. The popularity of poker among women has spawned all-female poker clubs, websites for female poker players, poker apparel for women and tournaments exclusively for women. Some players even argue that women have a natural advantage over men in poker because of their temperament. True or not, gender equality is evident in the game of poker.

> Read the full story here Source : Press Release

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