Author: admin

One of the largest sports book operators in the world is facing a hefty fine over its business in the United Kingdom. The British Gambling Commission said in a news …

Casinos are popping up a frenetic pace across New England. Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut all have projects in the works. Last year, the Connecticut legislature authorized the state’s two gaming tribes, the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan Tribes, to build a joint satellite casino in East Windsor, Connecticut.

The East Windsor casino is a reaction to the MGM Resorts casino opening this fall just over the border in Springfield, Massachusetts.

When they’re complete, the two casinos will be about a 15-minute drive from one another and will be competing for the same customers.

The tribes revealed some general plans for their satellite casinos last week. While it’s scant on details, the plans for the East Windsor casino have some wondering if it will offer much in the way of competition to the Massachusetts casino.

Comparing the two casinos

MGM Springfield is a near-billion-dollar casino project.

When it opens its doors in September, the property will boast 3,000 slot machines and 100 table games. Other plans include:

• A 250-room four-star hotel
• Eight restaurants, dining options, and bars
• 26,000 square feet of retail space
• On-site entertainment, including a bowling alley and cinema

By comparison, the East Windsor casino project has a price tag of just $300 million. It will house 2,000 slot machines and around 100 table games on a single floor that is devoted almost entirely to gaming.

There are preliminary plans for dining and entertainment options. Nonetheless, at $300 million, don’t anticipate finding the same number or level of amenities as MGM Springfield. What you should expect is a basic food court, a couple sit-down restaurants or bars, and maybe some local live entertainment on the weekends.

The property won’t have a hotel. It won’t have any retail space of note. And it won’t have any celebrity chef restaurants.

Based on the plans put forth last week, the most impressive part of the East Windsor casino appears to be the five-story 1,800-space parking garage.

The East Windsor casino is going to better resemble Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville, Massachusetts than it will Foxwoods, Mohegan Sun, Wynn Boston Harbor, or MGM Springfield.

That makes the East Windsor casino what can best be categorized as a gambling joint. Customers are going to go to this establishment primarily to mash slot buttons and play low-limit table games.

Can East Windsor compete with Springfield?

The proximity of the two casinos doesn’t bode well for the East Windsor project. Even if they’re coming from the south, it’s only an extra 15-20 minute drive to reach MGM Springfield.

If customers have the choice, that extra 15 minutes isn’t going to sway them one way or the other. And when push comes to shove, MGM Springfield is simply going to have more to offer.

One advantage the tribal casino might have over MGM is its ability to draw people who also go to Foxwoods or Mohegan Sun. Reason being, it’s likely the satellite casino will link its rewards program with the other tribal properties.

But other than serious gamblers, I don’t think that will be enough to overcome MGM’s other advantages.

The post It Appears East Windsor Casino’s Biggest Selling Point Is A Parking Garage appeared first on Play MA.

Televised and live streaming coverage of the World Series of Poker will once again be in the expert hands of ESPN and PokerCentral in 2018. On Thursday, the two media companies announced the schedule for live television coverage of the series in Las Vegas, Nevada.

In the announcement, ESPN and Poker Central said they are bringing 170 hours of WSOP coverage to viewers straight from the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino, including 40 hours on ESPN and ESPN2.

Footage of the WSOP Main Event not found on ESPN will once again be broadcast exclusively on PokerGO. The complete PokerGO live streaming schedule will be released at a later date.

“We’re ecstatic that ESPN and Poker Central continue to raise the bar and deliver more live poker content to audiences across the globe,” said Ty Stewart, executive director of the World Series of Poker. “Fans today demand immediacy and wall-to-wall coverage and this year’s offering delivers on that in spades.”

ESPN/ESPN2 Live WSOP Broadcast Schedule

WSOP Main Event, Big One for One Drop coverage

Last year, ESPN broadcasted live, same-day coverage of the WSOP Main Event from start to finish for the first time. And by most accounts, it was a resounding success.

In an agreement with the WSOP that lasts through 2020, ESPN and PokerGO will bring similar extensive live coverage of the tournament to its airwaves this year and beyond.

The 2018 WSOP will include broadcast 40 hours of live coverage on ESPN and ESPN2. The coverage will consist of daily Main Event coverage from July 2 – July 14.

Additionally, ESPN will be providing live, same-day coverage of The Big One for One Drop on July 16-17.

The $1 million buy-in tournament returns to the WSOP schedule after a four-year hiatus. It is likely to attract the biggest names in poker, making it an excellent candidate for primetime audiences.

“ESPN has a long-running relationship with the World Series of Poker, and we are always looking for ways to bring viewers the most preeminent coverage,” said Doug White, ESPN senior director, Programming & Acquisitions. “By doubling down on our broadcast and digital platform coverage, we’re going to bring fans and viewers even closer to the sport’s biggest events from all aspects and angles.”

Bracelet event coverage on PokerGO

Outside of the ESPN coverage, Poker Central will produce 130 hours of coverage to be available through its subscription service, PokerGO.

“Last year, both ESPN viewership and PokerGO subscription numbers were very strong throughout the WSOP Main Event,” said JR McCabe, the chief digital officer of Poker Central, in a press release. “This year, we’re doubling down on live coverage of the World Series of Poker by adding the Big One for One Drop and bringing even more live poker to fans worldwide.”

The post ESPN, Poker Central Announce 170 Hours Of Live WSOP Coverage In 2018 appeared first on .

While East, Midwest Contemplate Online Poker And Casinos, Western States Lag Behind

The current US online poker and casino landscape is still sparse, while its future is fractured by geography.

The post While East, Midwest Contemplate Online Poker And Casinos, Western States Lag Behind appeared first on Online Poker Report.

Wynn Resorts is in full damage-control mode following allegations of sexual misconduct by Steve Wynn. Wall Street Journal broke the story. The subsequent fallout has been steep.

Wynn announced his resignation on Feb.6 but has denied the allegations.

In a statement, Wynn said, “As I have reflected upon the environment this has created — one in which a rush to judgment takes precedence over everything else, including the facts — I have reached the conclusion I cannot continue to be effective in my current roles.”

Wynn is the company’s namesake and now former CEO and Chairman of the Board. While his resignation has taken some of the heat of the company, it wasn’t enough to completely insulate the company from further scrutiny.

The company is being investigated in multiple jurisdictions. Moreover, in Massachusetts, its gaming license could even be on the line.

“There are still concerns whether Steve Wynn has control, stock ownership, and those types of things,” said Ed Bedrosian, executive director of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. “We’ll have to find out what the resignation actually means.”

That would be an unprecedented development, considering Wynn Resorts is in the process of building a $2.4 billion casino just outside Boston.

Massachusetts faces big test

Massachusetts is a new player in the casino industry. However, the Bay State already has a reputation as a serious regulatory regime. The state’s gaming board set the gold standard on several fronts, most notably for its transparency and responsible gaming policies.

Beyond that, the state has been lauded for its measured approach to casino expansion, including the awarding of licenses.

The Wynn project is shaping up to be the first major test for the state’s gaming commission. Major outlets like the Boston Globe are calling on the Massachusetts Gaming Commission to consider revoking Wynn Resorts’ license.

But doing so could wreak havoc on the state’s fledgling casino industry. The fallout could include lawsuits and injunctions that would stall the project indefinitely.

Even if the MGC is justified in revoking the Wynn license at this point in time, it might not want to. Construction is well underway. The MGC would not only have to find a new company to take over the license, it would have to find a company willing to take over the ambitious project.

Few casino corporations are in the habit of building multi-billion dollar casinos. The ones that are capable of tackling such a major building project aren’t in the market for reclamation projects. Any company interested in a multi-billion dollar Boston casino is going to want to design it from the ground up. Taking over a half-complete project would be a tough sell to stockholders.

Who knew what, and when?

How the MGC responds will depend on what its investigation turns up.

The MGC has been blindsided by the allegations against Wynn, particularly the $7.5 million settlement with a former employee that wasn’t disclosed to the MGC during the suitability investigation.

MGC Chairman Stephen Crosby made it clear, Wynn Resorts’ license will depend on what and when the Wynn board knew about the allegations and settlement. The board will also need to explain why it wasn’t disclosed to the MGC.

“A central question is what did the board of directors and central staff know, and when did they know it,” Crosby told local press.

The post Are Wynn’s Casino Days Numbered In Massachusetts? appeared first on Play MA.