While the United States is waiting for the official word to remove the ban on online casino gaming, therefore making it legal, many land-based casinos are trying to prepare themselves in order to be ready to shift into the online casino market.

According to gaming experts, land-based casinos that already have a big draw to do their established name we used this brand power to try to overtake the smaller markets and foreign online casinos. This is especially true with brands that have opened new resorts in attempt to draw in more casino gamblers. Online casinos would help supplement income that could potentially be lost by opening a new business.

Since the major Nevada and New Jersey casino operators are run through the American Gaming Association, they have begun to shift the focus in order to be on the right side when the ban is overturned.

The American Gaming Association initially held strong opposition to the induction of online casino gambling, however now with it’s growing popularity they are beginning to creep back into supporting the licensing and regulation of online casino gambling in the United States.

Many former opponents are beginning to get on board as the changing of the tides have seen legislators leaning more towards approving online casino gambling to the fact that it generates more revenue for the government in an already depressed economy. Plus a big profits and revenue, large land-based casinos are leaning heavily on legislature.

TableMAX Gaming, Inc., a division of the TableMax Corp. has recently signed a deal to put Progressive Blackjack(R) at the spotlight 29 Casino in Coachella, California. TableMAX is known for the development of electronic games, as well as designing, engineering , and distributing these electric casino games throughout the world. This deal is one of many that recently been negotiated in the area including the addition of two ePits(TM) at Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio and a Progressive Blackjack System at Red Earth Casino in Salton Sea Beach.

In attempt to keep the spotlight 29 Casino flourishing, director of slot operations Tom Sedlock said, “There is always something fun and new happening at Spotlight 29 Casino, and Progressive Blackjack is definitely fun and new. We liked the game as soon as we saw it at the Global Gaming Expo, and we are excited to have it up and running for our players.”

TableMAX has already made a name for itself by owning the rights to games such as Progressive Blackjack, Caribbean Stud Poker, Caribbean Draw Poker, Texas Hold ‘Em Bonus(R) Poker and Bonus Blackjack(R).

“Casinos across North America, particularly Tribal casinos, have caught the exciting TableMAX vision. We are thrilled with the response and look forward to presenting our games to Tribal operators at next month’s NIGA trade show,” stated Stephen Crystal, chief executive officer for TableMAX.

Crystal also stated on the TableMax website,” “We are very pleased with the quick progress we are

making in Oklahoma and in other jurisdictions across the country, such as California. What we

are most happy with is the positive response operators are getting from their players. Operators

tell us their players love the games, and we believe that is the reason for the rapid expansion we are experiencing.”

Magna Entertainment Corp. (“MEC”), based out of Canada, has grown to be the largest racetrack owner in North America. Although it has reached this stature it has not become immune to decreasing economy and the woes faced by many casino owners.

Recently this simulcast race track owner and operator has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. In order to protect themselves they are also withdrawing from their shares being traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange in New York.

Currently an MEC owns and manages seven thoroughbred racetracks. They include Santa Anita Park, Gulfstream Park, Pimlico Race Course, Laurel Park, Golden Gate Fields, Thistledown, and Portland Meadows. Complete the 10 venues they also own to racetracks which run thoroughbred and standardbred meets. These are the Lone Star Park at Grand Prairie and Remington Park. Lastly, they have one standardbred harness racing track: the Meadows.

Aside from these venues are also offer one of the largest simulcast wagering venues, as well as three casinos operated within three of the racetracks.

Magna also has a large off-track betting facility as well its own wagering business XpressBet™. This system allows customers to place phone bets in online bets throughout the 100 North American racetracks, and the world. To reach expands throughout the world including Australia, South Africa and Dubai. With the growing European market, have also created a wagering account called Magnabet™. By expanding throughout the world this has made them one of the largest owner operators for horse racing.

The progressive jackpot Slotland.com was conquered earlier this month, resulting in a record-breaking $200,111. The jackpot was won at a video poker site who goes by the name “FORGOMO.” The player whose total value was over €150,00 this sum at the heavy-metal slot machine.

“I never dreamed I’d pay off my mortgage with an online slots win,” stated the winner. “I just make small bets and win a few dollars once in awhile. Now, let’s just say I’m not going to lose any sleep over my credit card balance!”

FORGOMO had been away from the slot machines after being a consistent casino player years prior. Recently he decided to return to the slots to once again try his luck. Clearly Lady luck was on his side this time.

The former casino record for this jackpot was a Canadian player who, almost a year to the day, won $195,083 which is roughly equivalent to €126,910. This record was set on the treasure box game and now has been bested by the heavy-metal slot machine.

Slotland has seen many large jackpots in the recent past. Last December I jackpot was hit with a payout of $110,125 roughly equivalent to €87,728. The player known as ZONARIZ achieve this goal by playing the video poker game Striking 7s.

Last year the Slotland jackpot was won approximately once every six weeks. Due to this consistent streak many casino players anxiously awaited this current jackpot. The anticipation built up by the lack of winning in the past two months only cause a greater stir as the jackpot continued to rise thus creating the largest record-breaking jackpot payout.

Slotland jackpots are not the largest online casino jackpots on the Internet, however due to the frequency of their winning many players are drawn into the excitement and anticipation.

Las Vegas is a city of lights that is always beaming. On Earth Hour 2009, they decided to participate and conserve energy for that one specific hour.

Visitors to the city were amazed at seeing the city without lights. “It was odd to see it dark,” Rob Kilo said. “The whole concept as a visitor is seeing the lights. … Here everything is lights.”

Earth Hour is a very important event especially in this day and age when people are concerned about the Earth and the platform for “Going Green.”

“Earth Hour is about what you do at home, it’s about those small changes you can make. It is making sure your lights are turned off, making sure the power strip to your computer goes down,” said Las Vegas resident Corrine Hall. “It’s just small things, it’s taking five minutes to change something small.”

People around the world are noticing the importance of conserving energy and are making a more concerted effort to keep it that way.

“I use the CFL light bulbs, turning TVs and lights off when we’re not in the room, we unplug all of our appliances when we aren’t using them, phone chargers, and everything like that because those use energy even if they’re not turned on,” said Tommi Willingham, a UNLV student.

The crowds in the city of Las Vegas were filled with “oohs” and “Ahhs” as the lights began to turn off all the way down the strip, ending with the fading of the beam of light at the luxor, which can be seen from outer space.

“One of the fascinating things about the Springs Preserve is the fact that they’re using solar power outside here in the parking lot and a town like this it seems ridiculous that we don’t,” said Earth Hour viewer Dale Gilbert.

“This is something that is going to have to happen. It’s not even at a point whether or not it will — it’s going to happen one way or another,” stated Gilbert.

You never know what to expect when you’re dealing with sin city. The Las Vegas Sands Corp. may possibly be ready to fold or might just be playing the biggest bluff of all time

Executive Vice President Brad Stone recently relieved himself of the duties as head of the company’s construction division. So makes it the second high-level person to leave the company behind this month alone. The first high-level officer to leave was President Bill Weidner, who was asked to resign on March 8.

Currently the Las Vegas Sands is under construction on the $5 billion for Rena Bay Sands in Singapore. This structure, which is hoping to open by December this year is a pivotal factor in increasing the future of tourism in Singapore.

Joe Greff, a gaming analyst for J.P. Morgan, told investors at: “Losing Brad is a big deal.” According to Greff, stone was a major player in construction of a casino.

Justice Stone is finding his way out the door, he has been revealed that the Las Vegas Sands Casino has been in talks considering an $800 million debt. Sheldon Adelson, current chairman and chief executive officer said that he was still evaluating the idea, according to the Associated Press.

The opposite polarity of these two decisions has caused great confusion in the casino market. Clearly the loss of Stone, is a huge blow, especially when considering Singapore’s position, however the idea that they could buy back their $800 million debt appears to show they are moving in a positive direction.

Once this information was revealed shares of the Las Vegas Sands shot up causing analysts to question if there really is a more positive direction they’re going in. An investment analyst from KDP, Barbara Cappaert mentioned, “It is a prudent move, and one, depending on price, that could be fairly successful.”

One way or the other, the and the Sands is keeping people on their toes about the decision-making process which will likely keep them protected throughout the coming months.

Currently the Seminole tribe that owns and operates the hard rock casinos in Florida mostly consist of slot machines. Although these casinos are still drawing in large numbers, there could be a much larger draw it the variety of casino games could be expanded to allow for a more Vegas style of casinos.

According to the Miami Herald “Florida would give the Seminole Tribe roulette wheels, crap tables and full-fledged Las Vegas style casinos while its competitors get blackjack or electronic bingo machines within their facilities.”

The bills that were recently introduced could break open the variety of games allowed in this land-based casino. Since this facility is one of the few gambling establishments in Florida, the expansion of casino games could draw more attention to the southeast. This could potentially draw in larger revenues and profits to the state of Florida, as well as build a larger base for gamblers in this region.

“The two bills, sponsored by Senate Regulated Industries Chairman Dennis Jones, lay the groundwork for the Senate position on the Seminole Indian gambling compact against a more anti-gambling House. Lawmakers are writing their only guidelines for the compact after a court invalidated the one signed by the tribe and Gov. Charlie Crist because he didn’t have the authority to give the tribes banked card games,” quoted the article in the Miami Herald.

A constant struggle to draw money into drowning economy this proposal to open a wider variety of casino games, “not only authorizes Florida’s ailing parimutuel industry to sweep up more casino games to compete with the tribe’s Hard Rock casinos, it capitalizes on existing facilities by giving them more games in return for more cash. Senate analysts project it will produce $1 billion a year in annual revenue that would be dedicated to education.”

As education continues to suffer throughout the United States, it appears that lotteries which were initially intended for this purpose are clearly not doing their jobs, therefore hopefully casino gambling will benefit the education system.

With the influx of online casino gambling, many sports are now having to deal with the issue of online sports betting. One company in particular The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) has put into production a system to help preserve and protect soccer integrity.

Early Warning System (EWS) GmbH was put into place in 2007 with the hopes of tracking suspicious gambling patterns in soccer. Another aspect of protection was included to prevent the fixing of a match.

Now the Lithuanian Football Federation has completed a deal that will incorporate the Early Warning System. The deal came at a crucial time for the Lithuanians because they begin the eight-team A Lyga next month. For this league Lithuanian is working hard to improve their expertise in track betting.

“In Lithuania they think there may be a danger in their own league and wanted to know more about sportsbetting,” said Wolfgang Feldner, Head of Strategy for Zurich-based EWS.

Feldner continued to show support to Lithuania in order to help ease their concerns by saying, “Maybe they have had some rumours in the country but there was never any evidence. A lot of associations don’t know how to handle sportsbetting. In Lithuania they asked us for help and we’ve given them support coaching people.”

The current fear is provided by the fact that although this sport generated $20 billion last year in legal online betting, there is no way to track transactions that transpired online with illegal bookmakers.

Eastern Europe appears to be a prime target for fixing results of matches even though these games are often not highly publicized. With the increasing number of online bookmakers is becoming more difficult to monitor these types of activities.

The Lithuanian A Lyga league begins on April 5 in continues through the month of November. It is predicted that 200 operators will offer online betting wages each week. It is suspected that this is where gamblers will look as the European leagues are on hiatus.

Gambling continues to be a growing concern in the United States, as well as the rest of the world. The reputation that follows this type of activity is usually not one that carries with it a positive experience.

In a time where lawmakers are trying to decide whether or not they should legalize land-based and online casino gambling, any negative stories that enter into the fold could cause great harm towards overturning the ban to prevent this type of gambling.

According to Gloucester County Times, in Atlantic City, “The NJ and Philadelphia Divisions of the FBI announced today the Atlantic City arrest of a 39-year-old New York man in connection to 17 bank robberies throughout the region.”

Although the arrest did not have a direct tie to land-based or casino gambling, “Assisted by New Jersey State troopers form the Division of Gaming Enforcement, the FBI arrested Anthony Boyd, of Jamaica, Queens, on a United States Marshals Service warrant as he came out of the elevator of the Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa, where he’d checked in earlier that night.”

Even better was that he can sometimes still be better to keep companies in the limelight. With any luck the casinos will not be associated with criminal activities.

According to the Times, “Boyd stands accused of escaping from a halfway house in December and returning to a life of crime, allegedly robbing a Citizens Bank located on 1701 JFK Boulevard on February 26, 2009 and another at 2001 Market Street on March 14, 2009 in the Philadelphia area, a Metropolitan National Bank on 40th Street in Manhattan on March 11, 2009 and Metropolitan National Bank on 46th Street in Manhattan on March 24, 2009.”

Weysan Dun, a special agent on the case, threw in his own jabs at Boyd: “I guess you could say Mr. Boyd rolled the dice and lost.” He continued by saying, “The odds are always in favor of the house, and in this case, the house is the justice system…”

Out with the old and in with the new. As time and technology change, one of the quickest ways to see the March of progress is via the closing of one company and opening of another.

That is exactly what happening in Tulsa Oklahoma the state. On Tuesday, March 31, Creek Nation Casino will close its doors for the last time, and become reinvented by the River Spirit Casino.

Jennifer Cross, director of marketing stated: “We are excited to bring this one-of-kind gaming, entertainment and dining experience to Tulsa and the surrounding areas. River Spirit Casino truly rivals many of the casinos on the strip in Vegas.”

The unveiling of this event has caused local dignitaries to emerge creating a spectacular opening complete with a blessing by Amos McNac and sounds of the flute played by Scott Harjo.

Mayor Kathy Taylor will send a representative out to declare that March 31 will be known as “River Spirit Day,” in Tulsa Oklahoma.
At 10:00 AM on March 31 the River Spirit Casino and welcome new patrons with a cutting of the ribbon. In anticipation of this event, parking will be open as of 8 AM, with additional parking and free shuttles available based on the need. As of 11:00 AM valet parking will be made available to the public as well.

River Spirit Casino will begin its incentives by offering the first 1000 patrons enrolled in their Infinity Players Club an opening-day commemorative poker chip as a special souvenier.

March 31 will be the soft opening for the casino, with the official grand opening scheduled for the weekend of May 1, 2009. The official grand opening ceremonies will continue for three days and see the likes of Star entertainment such as Blues Traveler. If that wasn’t incentive enough there’ll also be 2010 Chevrolet Camaro prize to be won at the grand opening giveaway.