Video Poker Forum 

Greek Language Poker Site Debuts

If the trends continue, it won’t be long before every language on Earth has a poker room designed and hosted specifically for it. Hurrying that day along is CryptoLogic’s wholly owned subsidiary WagerLogic Limited who, in tandem with William Hill Poker, has launched a Greek Language poker site. "William Hill's Greek-language launch points to the global potential of Internet poker, and that CryptoLogic software enables leading gaming brands to localize their online offerings for worldwide appeal," said CryptoLogic's President and CEO, Lewis Rose,. "CryptoLogic's decade of experience in delivering multi-language, multi-currency software has long been a strategic advantage in the Internet casino market, and it's exciting to bring the same strategy for success to the world of Internet poker." William Hill is one of the largest sports bookmakers in the United Kingdom and a well known gambling brand. The new site can be found at www.williamhillpoker.gr.

North Dakota Poker A Possibility

Earlier this year North Dakota State Representative Jim Kasper won half the battle in getting legislation passed to legalize online poker in the state, as well as setting up some form of quality control. His proposal passed in the state’s House, but was opposed in the state Senate by an overwhelming majority. Kasper has not given up, and is ready to go to bat for legislation he believes will bring a windfall in tax revenue to North Dakota. While he has played his cards close to the vest concerning his next steps when speaking with the press, he has been more forthcoming with industry officials. He has approached the gambling industry in search of funding to launch a full scale assault, seeking the needed petitions to get the legislation to pass. The petition is required because in order to pass any laws legalizing online gaming, the state’s constitution would also have to change. Just to get the amendment on the ballet would require 25,688 North Dakota voters to sign a related petition.

U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Hear New York Gambling Case

ALBANY, New York -- As reported by the Associated Press: "The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday refused to hear a case filed by a group of antigambling organizations seeking to overturn a 2001 New York state law that authorized the broad expansion of legal gambling in New York. "The move by the nation's highest court was the final nail in the coffin for the suit to prevent more Indian tribes from opening casinos in New York. "...The 2001 gambling bill was approved as the state sought new revenues in the wake of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. The law was the largest expansion of state-sanctioned gambling in New York's history..."

Underground Gambling Gauges Taiwan Elections

TAIWAN – As reported by the China Post: "Underground election gambling is emerging as an important channel for gauging the popularity of candidates of various political parties in the upcoming Dec. 3 elections, as it is increasingly difficult for residents to respond to public opinion polls, according to market sources.

"The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), for instance, is collecting the latest information concerning election gambling in various counties and cities, so as to assess the chances for its candidates of winning the upcoming three-in-one elections, including county magistrates and city chiefs, members of county or city councils, and local township chiefs.

"As the ratios are high for people in Taichung and Changhua counties who decline to answer public opinion polls, the popularity rates for candidates of the DPP and the opposition Kuomintang for the magistrateship of both counties have fluctuated drastically in recent days.

"'Accordingly, we don't believe in the outcomes of public polls conducted in central Taiwan, but underground election gambling can really relay some valuable messages we can take for reference,' a ranking party official of the DPP…"

Taiwan Casino Plans Revealed

TAIWAN – As reported by the Scotsman: "Three Scots businessmen and a Las Vegas gambling guru have revealed plans to build a £350m casino resort in a tropical paradise off the Taiwanese coast.

"Former Magnum Power finance director Ian Irvin and Taiwan-based expat Tim Potter are behind Amazing Holdings, which has secured rights on a 27-acre plot of beachfront land in the Penghu islands.

"The company intends to construct an upmarket hotel and entertainment complex that would attract high-rolling gambling tourists from Taiwan and mainland China - while also luring punters from Asia's current casino mecca, Macau.

"Irvin and Potter have brought fellow Scotsman David Mathewson, chairman of TV betting firm Sportech, on to the board as chairman.

"They have also attracted Larry Woolf, a former chief executive of the MGM Grand hotel in Las Vegas - the largest betting complex in the world - to be its chief executive…"

New Hotels Turning to Internet for Hiring

By Liz Benston

By Our Partners at the Las Vegas Sun

For the first time, Las Vegas' two biggest operators of locals casinos will be using the Internet to hire for a grand opening -- a method that is expected to draw a wider range of interested applicants and process them more quickly and efficiently.

That will help Station Casinos and Coast Casinos as they seek up to 5,000 workers to staff their respective Red Rock and South Coast properties, which are expected to open within three months of each other amid an exceptionally tight job market.

"The Internet gives us an advantage because it allows more people to apply," Station's Vice President of Human Resources Valerie Murzl said.

Station Casinos began accepting online applications for Red Rock last week, a process that will start with applications for three specific departments including the kitchen, internal maintenance and housekeeping.

Jobs in different departments will become available each week.

While the company had previously opened an employment center to process applications, the process will largely be automated for Red Rock, Murzl said.

Station expects to process the vast majority of applicants through its Web site, www.stationcasinos.com. Job seekers without computer access can apply over the phone by calling a hotline, 221-6789, where they can follow a series of voice prompts.

After completing an application, job seekers will receive an appointment for an interview that will take place at an employment center that opens Monday at the Red Rock site.

Coast Casinos is nearly finished hiring the roughly 2,400 people it will need to staff South Coast. More than 25,000 people have so far applied for jobs at the South Strip property.

About 90 percent of the property's applications were processed online -- a dramatic shift from the paper-based world of previous openings, South Coast Human Resources Director Kathy Caudell said.

"It's been really helpful," Caudell said. "It's saved us a lot of time" on the front end and has given managers more time for interviewing the most qualified candidates, she said.

The online process also resulted in a surprising number of applications from beyond Las Vegas, including some people displaced by hurricanes Katrina and Rita, she said.

"We're getting some from Atlantic City but also New York City and Chicago," Caudell said. "There's been more of that than I would have expected. If we only had paper applications, that wouldn't have really been possible."

Coast is also processing paper applications and has held at least five job fairs over the past several weeks. The company has attended job fairs at the Westward Ho casino and will participate in another at the Boardwalk next week. The Westward Ho closed last week and the Boardwalk, just down the Strip, is expected to close Jan. 9.

Nevada's unemployment rate was 3.9 percent in October, down from 4.2 percent in September and 4 percent in October 2004. The rate in Las Vegas was also 3.9 percent, down from 4 percent a year earlier.

"At 3.9 percent, you're not leaving a lot of people on the streets who are blatantly employable," said Jim Shabi, an economist with the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation. "The people who are educated and have some job skills probably have jobs, leaving the marginal workers behind. It could be difficult to find people."

Employment in the gaming industry finally surpassed pre-Sept. 11 levels in April with the opening of Wynn Las Vegas. The gaming industry in Las Vegas employed about 177,500 people in October, up from 170,300 in September 2001.

Since October 2004, the gaming industry added 10,500 jobs in Las Vegas, a 6.3 percent increase.

The closures of the Westward Ho and Boardwalk, both to make way for new development, are leaving hundreds of potential job seekers.

Station expects a whopping 100,000 people to apply for 2,600 jobs at Red Rock. That's not much less than the more than 110,000 people who applied for jobs at Wynn Las Vegas.

The company is in a unique position when it comes to hiring locals, Murzl said.

"We have a tremendous amount of name recognition in the community," she said. "Our players, our workers and our guests are eating in our restaurants or going to our theaters. Word seems to spread easily and rapidly for our company."

Some people also prefer to work for a locals property rather than a tourist resort because they can develop long-term friendships with repeat customers, Murzl said.

The company's recent recognition in Fortune magazine as one of the "100 best companies to work for" has yielded more interest from applicants nationwide, she added.

About half of Red Rock openings -- roughly 1,300 jobs -- will be made available to Station employees.

"We have a priority to help our work force advance," Station spokeswoman Lori Nelson said.

Some of those applicants are likely to be Station employees who live in the northwest part of the Las Vegas Valley and, for the first time, want to work close to where they live, Nelson said.

Up to 600 employees of Coast Casinos and parent company Boyd Gaming -- some 25 percent of the South Coast work force -- have so far been offered jobs at the new Coast property, Caudell said.

Nevada Gold Appoints New Board of Directors Member

HOUSTON – (PRESS RELEASE) -- Nevada Gold & Casinos, Inc. (AMEX:UWN) today announced that John M. Gallaway has been appointed to the Company's Board of Directors.

Mr. Gallaway has more than 40 years' experience as a corporate executive in the gaming and hospitality industries. He served in the Office of the Chairman of Isle of Capri Casinos from 2003-2005 and as President and Chief Operating Officer from 1995-2003. Prior to Isle of Capri, Mr. Gallaway held such positions as Deputy Managing Director of Gaming at Sun International, President and General Manager of Trop World Casino and Entertainment Resort in Atlantic City, President and General Manager of the Tropicana Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Senior Vice President of Caesars Tahoe and Vice President of Hotel Operations at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Mr. Gallaway is a past board member of the National Center for Responsible Gaming and the American Gaming Association, and he also chairs several charitable organizations.

``John's significant experience is a true asset, and we are delighted to have him join our Board,' said H. Thomas Winn, Chairman and CEO. ``We look forward to his contributions to our continued growth, especially as we focus on building our operational expertise.'

Columnist Jeff Simpson: On More Use of Private Gaming Areas

by Jeff Simpson

By Our Partners at the Las Vegas Sun

For the past couple of years the only news that was made in the handful of Strip private gaming areas was about how they were almost never used.

Approved by the Legislature in 2001, with enabling rules passed by state gaming regulators shortly thereafter, the so-called "international gaming salons" require minimum bets of $500 and half-million-dollar credit lines.

The state's traditional "wide-open" gaming rules were changed to allow the betting to take place in private (with strict regulatory oversight) in order to allow the Strip's top resorts to compete with tribal and foreign casinos that already allowed publicity-shy gamblers a way to gamble outside the view of the general public.

One year ago, state regulators and casino executives said less than a dozen big-betting gamblers had taken advantage of the new rules and gambled in one of the private betting areas at Caesars Palace, MGM Grand or Mandalay Bay.

But the tide may have turned.

Salon usage is up "five times" the rate of use before this year, a top regulatory official said.

Although the official couldn't say why, industry insiders believe the improvement stems from three primary changes.

One, the Venetian opened its own private room.

Two, Wynn Las Vegas opened its room in April.

And three, casinos are finally learning how to market the existing salons against California and Connecticut tribal casinos and against Australian and other international venues that don't have the same scrutiny required in Nevada.

•••

State Gaming Control Board Chairman Dennis Neilander declined to say whether the board is investigating a Nevada connection to a nationwide Harrah's Entertainment promotion that culminated in a $1 million giveaway at Paris Las Vegas in October.

According to a Kansas City Star story, Missouri Gaming Commission officials believe that Harrah's North Kansas City marketing employees colluded to give winning promotional pieces to friends or family members, but the state officials couldn't prove their suspicions.

Gaming reporter Rick Alm's story noted that Missouri regulators said winning game pieces could be identified by gently squeezing them and that one customer complained that an employee handing out game pieces "would dig through the box they were in and look at several different ones before picking one to give me."

The contest also took place at Harrah's casinos in Nevada. Harrah's spokesman David Strow said the company was unaware of any irregularity in the game outside Missouri.

"If we become aware of a problem, we'll find out exactly what happened," Strow said. "Our integrity is absolutely vital."

•••

Although it's doubtful the Control Board will take any action regarding the risque Hardwood Suite invitations sent out last month by the Palms, the state's gaming police have decided to take a closer look at the invitations to the Oct. 27 party introducing the $50,000 per night digs to the Las Vegas media, a get-together that featured members of the Sacramento Kings.

The National Basketball Association and the Kings distanced themselves from the invitation that included tongue-in-cheek advice on how to be a "baller." One piece of wisdom: If you don't like a referee's call (optional refs and cheerleaders can be arranged for those renting the suite that includes a partial basketball court), knock him the (expletive) out.

After I reported the over-the-top invitations last month and Sports Illustrated followed with a critical note, Control Board officials requested a copy of the invitation, and are now looking it over, an informed source said.

•••

Buttoned-down Las Vegas law firm Lionel Sawyer & Collins is apparently loosening up. One of the state's top gaming law outfits, Lionel Sawyer recently placed an advertisement in Sun sister publication In Business Las Vegas touting the firm's new associates.

One new lawyer, Jennifer DiMarzio, a gaming regulatory specialist, was the only one with this amusing title: Firm's Retreat Poker Champion."

Way to go, Jennifer.

Harrah's Names New VP

LAS VEGAS -- (PRESS RELEASE) -- Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE:HET) today announced that Mary Thomas will be named senior vice president of human resources upon receipt of all required regulatory approvals. She is expected to join the company January 1.

In her new role with the company, Thomas will develop and implement business plans and strategies for all companywide human resources functions, as well as day-to-day human resources operations.

"Our service-oriented strategy depends on a dedicated, satisfied work force, making human resources a critically important function at Harrah's," said Gary Loveman, chairman, chief executive officer and president of Harrah's. "Mary will spearhead efforts to engage and motivate our more than 90,000 employees in new and innovative ways. Her priorities will include strengthening and expanding our educational, talent development and health-care resources. We're pleased to welcome an executive of her talents to the Harrah's team."

Thomas joins Harrah's from Allied Domecq Spirits & Wines North America, where she served in a variety of leadership roles over the last 17 years, most recently as senior vice president of human resources - North America. She holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Central England.

Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. is the world's largest provider of branded casino entertainment. Since its beginning in Reno, Nevada 68 years ago, Harrah's has grown through development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions. Harrah's Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value with its customers through a unique combination of great service, excellent products, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology leadership.

Tabcorp Warns of Slow Start

AUSTRALIA – As reported by the Australia 7 News: "Tabcorp Holdings Ltd has experienced a slow start to 2005/06 amid weaker consumer sentiment linked to higher fuel prices, a dispute over thoroughbred racing coverage and new smoking bans.

"The news and a resulting change to its profit guidance sent shares in Australia's largest gambling company tumbling five per cent lower.

"Tabcorp managing director Matthew Slatter said the company's revenue position so far in 2005/06 had deteriorated slightly from last financial year.

"…Within the wagering division, Tabcorp's broadcasting dispute with the Victorian and Sydney racing clubs was a further contributor to the 'relatively weak' performance, Mr Slatter said.

"…Mr Slatter forecast that Tabcorp would deliver earnings per share (EPS) growth of around five per cent in 2005/06…"