Monday, January 28, 2008

Betting Exchange

betting exchange, football betting, football online, football live, online casino gambling, gambling, online betting, betting bonus, betting online, football score, sport betting, gambling online, poker online, gambling card, football online, betting, sports gambling, online bet, live score, casino online, internet gambling, big brother online, sports betting, sports news, football betting, live score football, casino gambling online, casino gambling, online bet, Tony Blair told MPs both Manchester and Blackpool should get super-casinos, if there was sufficient investment. In January Manchester was named the preferred site for such an attraction at the expense of Blackpool. Peers rejected plans for 17 casinos, including one super-casino, in March. But at prime minister’s questions, Blair said the government hoped to bring forward proposals "very shortly" to introduce regional casinos. When Manchester was recommended by the Casino Advisory Panel, it was much to the shock of two frontrunners - Blackpool and the site of the former Millennium Dome in London. Both houses of Parliament have already passed the Gambling Act - paving the way for the new casinos - into law with the plan for one trial super-casino. But peers rejected the Gambling Order backing the decision to build the super-casino in Manchester, by just three votes. On Wednesday, Labour MP Graham Stringer, who represents Manchester Blackley, urged the government to ensure the casinos were built. Blair said: "Personally I have never seen the reason why we should have Blackpool and Manchester pitted against each other," he said at question time. "If the investment is there and able to be done, let’s do both of them." Prime Minister said only Conservative intervention had jeopardised the Manchester casino, whereas Labour’s original plan would have allowed super-casinos at both Manchester and Blackpool. Initially the government had said there would be up to 40 regional casinos, but that was scaled down - first to eight, then to one - in the face of strong opposition and concerns about gambling addiction. Manchester’s backers remain confident they will get the UK’s first super-casino, but main rival Blackpool believes it has been given an opportunity to alter the decision on the attraction’s location. Some critics had argued that Blackpool was a more suitable venue, with greater need for a super-casino, while others said it could increase problem gambling in a deprived part of Manchester. But supporters of the Manchester bid said the chosen area in the east of the city was in need of the investment and renewal the project would bring. Totesport Casino, an internet arm of government-owned bookmaker the Tote, is switching its operations to the offshore tax haven of Alderney in a controversial move that will allow it to advertise freely in the UK while avoiding UK tax and regulation. The move will come as an embarrassment for ministers who have sought to present the UK's approach to online gaming regulation, set out in the Gambling Act 2005, as world-leading. In practice, the industry has boycotted the UK regime.At a conference of international regulators held at Ascot last year, Peter Dean, chairman of the government's new Gambling Commission, said: "Everybody who offers gambling in Britain will be required to be licensed by us [from September 2007]." But when the September deadline came, none of the leading poker and casino operators took up a UK licence. They said they had been forced to boycott the UK because Gordon Brown, in one of his final moves as chancellor, had set a prohibitively high 15% "remote gaming duty," the tax on online poker and casinos.One operator called the tax "a joke," insisting the industry would continue to target UK punters from offshore bases where they pay little or no tax. The UK is believed to be the biggest legal market for online poker and casinos in the world after ministers chose to try to regulate rather than restrict the new industry. In September, the Gambling Act greatly liberalised advertising restrictions on gambling groups, regardless of whether or not they held a UK licence.Other governments have moved to frustrate unlicensed internet groups and last year the US - then the largest online poker and casino market - drove most operators out of the country after passing tough legislation targeting payments for online gambling.A spokesman for the Tote, which is about to be privatised, said the decision to switch its online casino operations from Curacao to Alderney had been taken in order to allow Totesport Casino to advertise freely in the UK, in particular permitting it to sponsor horseracing events. Curacao-licensed operators do not qualify for UK advertising freedoms. Asked why the Tote had not sought a licence from the UK Gambling Commission, he confirmed Alderney offered lower costs, particularly when it came to tax.The spokesman said the decision to relocate to Alderney had been taken in full consultation with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. A spokesman for the DCMS said: "This is a business decision for the Tote. The Tote is run as a business."The government has been trying to privatise the Tote for about seven years but early efforts were blocked in Europe because they breached rules on state aid. Tote management, under chief executive Trevor Beaumont and backed by a consortium of race track and horse owners, is believed to be in the final stages of negotiating an alternative sell-off plan. online bet, betting exchange, football betting, football online, football live, online casino gambling, gambling, online betting, betting bonus, betting online, football score, sport betting, gambling online, poker online, gambling card, football online, betting, sports gambling, online bet, live score, casino online, internet gambling, big brother online, sports betting, sports news, football betting, live score football, casino gambling, casino gambling, The world’s largest gaming company, Harrah’s Entertainment, is looking to bust into the casino markets of the United Kingdom. It was recently revealed that the firm, valued at $11 billion, is looking to buy two British casino groups, Stanley Leisure and London Clubs International, which are currently waffling on the completion of a ₤634 million merger.According to sources in the American gaming community, the behemoth Las Vegas firm has made a detailed appraisal of both British companies. However, it appears that LCI have stalled on the talks with Stanley Leisure. Everything was set for the merger more than a month ago, when LCI suddenly announced they would be entertaining other offers. Clearly the interest of the American casino firms has caused a certain amount of turbulence in the market.Gary Loveman, the chief executive of Harrah’s, was reported to be waiting until this merger was complete before he moved in on the acquisition. But now that talks between the two British firms have stalled, Harrah’s is expected to choose its target very soon, and many believe it will be London Clubs International.Loveman, a former Harvard Business School professor and the son of a factory worker, is determined to expand his company’s overseas activities. Harrah’s share price has dropped from $80 to $60 in recent month, mainly due to the escalating costs of construction in Las Vegas. In order to combat this concern, Loveman is believed to be stepping up the pace of international expansion. Already they tried to acquire the rights to develop new casinos in Singapore and Macao, but were outbid. They appear now to be intent on cornering the European gaming market. Experts believe that the acquisition of LCI/Stanley Leisure would give Harrah’s a vital foothold in Europe and the ability to establish a strong presence throughout the continent.Harrah’s was best known for its riverboat casinos on Native American reservations until two years ago when it purchased Caesar’s Entertainment for a whopping $5.3 billion. That deal cemented Harrah’s position as the world’s largest gaming company, surpassing Kirk Kerkorian’s MGM Mirage.The founder of the American company, William Harrah, was seen as one of the architects of modern Las Vegas, along with Kerkorian. He lobbied for increase gambling regulations in order to stamp out corruption and the presence of the mafia. Now the company is in the hands of the newly-appointed Loveman, who is known to have immediately traded in his Honda Accord for a Ferrari F-355 Spider following the job offer.The invasion of American gaming giants has long been anticipated in the United Kingdom, but up until now most of the companies have either been too small to interest the Americans or the gaming giants had been too busy focusing on other parts of the globe. It will be interesting to see what becomes of the British firms, and particularly if foreign takeover will result in the purging of the existing management. An announcement is expected later this month.casino gambling, online bet, betting exchange, football betting, football online, football live, online casino gambling, gambling, online betting, betting bonus, betting online, football score, sport betting, gambling online, poker online, gambling card, football online, betting, sports gambling, online bet, live score, casino online, internet gambling, big brother online, sports betting, sports news, football betting, live score football, casino gambling online,
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