Trends, News & Interesting Reads

The Westgate Vegas Casino and Resort has always been regarded as a top Vegas venue for gambling entertainment and other forms of gaming activity. Westgate is known as a trendsetter in Vegas. The latest innovation, a drink monitoring system, is being touted as an amenity that will help casino-goers enjoy an easier drinking experience. Other casinos are bound to follow suit which isn't the best news for casino-goers. 

The newest innovation at Westgate involves a drink monitoring system that, from the casino's point of view, makes it easier and more convenient for guests to enjoy their complimentary drinks. The system, which is expected to be copied by other Vegas casinos, monitors the guests' drink orders so that guests don't need to place new orders every time that they want to freshen their drink.

Wynn Resorts, which was recently rocked by the resignation of its CEO due to allegations of sexual misconduct, is now facing more troubles that may lead to a takeover. 

Court Proceedings

A senior court in Macau has ruled that Wynn Macau Limited violated Macau's personal data protection rules. The brick-and-mortar and online games company surreptitiously revealed the identity of a Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation former employee. Wynn Macau believed that the former employee, a regulator, was tied to allegations of corruption.

iOS mobile users will now be able to open and play the popular Fortnight games on their tablet or smartphone device. The company sent out the first wave of invitations this week with additional invitations set to go out in the coming days and weeks. Fortnight can't be found at the online casino but may only be downloaded through an invitation.

The iOS version was released first with an Android version coming soon. The game is downloaded via invite from the Apple Store and is still being tested – users are asked to report problems to the developer. The new mobile version is compatible with the 3.3 Fortnight that features remote explosive weapons and supply llamas

Steve Wynn and his ex-wife Elaine Wynn have settled their fight over an estimated $4 billion stock fortune. Now, the question is whether the King of Las Vegas will sell out and retire.

On March 15^th the District Court in Clark County, Nevada, ordered that the shareholding agreement between Wynn and the former Mrs. Wynn be terminated. This followed a joint submission from the lawyers of both parties. The court's ruling rendered the agreement "invalid and unenforceable as a matter of law and that neither party shall have any further rights or obligations thereunder.

Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is promoting the idea that Europe should become the “bitcoin continent" and his country will help to facilitate that economic revolution.

Muscat spoke at the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) Ideas Lab conference which took place in Brussels in February 2017. After encouraging European countries to do more to promote the use of cybercurrency, Muscat promoted Malta as a "sandbox" where crypto-currencies and blockahsins would be tested.

President Trump has had a long and complex relationship with US casinos. He is one of the major casino owners in New Jersey's Atlantic City but that venture hasn't always been as profitable as he might have hoped. 

Now the industry waits and watches to see how Trump's presidency will impact on the casino industry. Will he take action to prop the industry up? Give casinos tax breaks? Support legislation that will allow the casinos to offer online games? Promote the development of casino centers in new areas of the country? 

Gambling has been taking place throughout the course of human history. Anthropologists have found evidence of gambling activities by early man in the form of prehistoric dice games. Archaeologists cite numerous relics that demonstrate that gambling existed in ancient civilizations including Greece, Rome, China, Africa, the Americas and Northern Europe.

There's probably never been a time in history when gambling has changed as dramatically as is seen in the last 20 years. The rise of the Internet has brought gambling to a new era. Bettors can now place their wagers online for games, sporting events and other gambling activities.  

The iGaming industry is experiencing phenomenal growth. In 2009 the online gaming market had an estimated revenue of $20.51 billion. That number has exploded to $41.77 billion in 2017 and is projected to reach $59.79 billion in 2020.   

Of the 2.97 billion people worldwide who have web access, it's estimated that 1.8 billion are gamers. The U.S leads all countries with a total spend of $20.5 billion on games – this includes both digital gaming activities and land-based gambling. Other countries with high numbers of gambling citizens include China, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, Korea, France, Canada, and Italy.  

Will America change its anti-gambling laws anytime soon? That's the question that many people are asking as the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 comes under fire for punishing people who engage in a voluntary act that can only adversely affect themselves.

Constitutional lawyers say that PASPA is unconstitutional. They point out that nothing in Article I, Section 8 of the constitution authorizes Congress to enact laws to prohibit what's viewed as "immoral conduct."  They note that delegitimizing alcohol (Prohibition) could only be effected with an amendment and that constitutionally, gambling stands on the same ground.

Gambling revenue in Macau rose only 5.7% in February, short of analysts' expectations. Despite the disappointment the gambling hub showed a gain for the 19th consecutive month, encouraging new casino building efforts and renovations of older casino sites.

February marks the lunar New Year holiday and it's a time when the Macau casino market typically sees a spike in gambling action. Visitors numbers rose 6.5% in February's national holiday week while revenues in February climbed to 24/3 billion patacas ($3.02 billion U.S.).

While expectations were for revenue growth to be between 7% and 12%, the casinos expressed satisfaction with the smaller-than-expected increase.