A rendering of one portion of the proposed Resorts World Miami Genting casino resort project; the $3 billion project still has not received a sign that is high Florida lawmakers.
They do say money speaks, but in Genting Resorts World’s case, it’s maybe not been speaking as loudly as the ongoing company might like.
Antagonists Await
Two-Hour Tours
Maine Casinos Oppose Expanded Gambling in State
People consider Maine like this, but a small casino contingent is attempting to hold their own there because well. (Image: Katarina Neef/atpm.com)
We possibly may not agree we know there are plenty of reasons that people may oppose more gambling in their state, from moral objections to worries about problem gambling with them, but. However in Maine, gambling is finding an opponent that is unusual the gambling enterprises on their own.
Read Our Lips: No New Casinos
Officials from the 2 Maine casinos presently in operation spoke to lawmakers this and said that they shouldn’t approve any expansion of the casino industry in the state week. In cases like this, it would appear that the casinos think that the marketplace in the state is completely saturated already while others believe they’re simply afraid of a small competition.
The two properties in question the Hollywood and Oxford Casinos faced off while watching Joint Standing Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs against members of two native tribes that are american the state, plus the owner of the Scarborough Downs race track, over a number of bills that would serve to grow Maine’s gambling options.
The absolute most controversial of these is known as LD 1111. It might allow Scarborough Downs to become a ‘racino,’ operating slot machines with their horse that is current racing. That problem has already been brought to referendum in 2011, whenever it received only 45 percent of the vote statewide.
Factional Battles
According to track owner Sharon Terry, Scarborough Downs is struggling as a result of the competition it faces from the casinos in the state particularly Oxford Casino, which will be simply 45 minutes away and opened in June 2012. Even though Hollywood Casino may away be further, it features a companion racino, allowing it to offer everything Scarborough Downs can and more.
Terry says that revenues fell 21.8 per cent at her track since slots were allowed during the Bangor competition track, and that the situation is getting even worse since the opening of the Oxford Casino. Since Scarborough Downs accounts for 101 days of racing each year, the cut in revenue maybe not only threatens the track, but additionally Maine’s entire horse racing industry.
‘The Downs cannot survive under the laws that are current’ Terry said.
But, the general supervisors of both casinos along with several business people in the Oxford area disagreed, opposing slots that are allowing the Scarborough Downs facility. In basic, the gambling enterprises feel that any new gambling in their state threatens to ‘cannibalize the industry,’ as Maine is a relatively small state without enough gamblers to help more venues.
That helps explain why in addition they opposed three other bills being considered by their state. Those add a bill that would allow charities to run up to five slots at their headquarters in order to raise funds, as well as two bills that would allow Indian tribes to grow their gambling operations: one which would let the Houlton Band of Maliseets to operate slots and table games, and another that could let the Passamaquoddy Tribe apply to run table games and slots at a bingo facility that is existing.
‘Should further facilities available or expand, we would see further erosion of our consumer base,’ said John Osborne, general manager of the Hollywood Casino.
Big Banks Refuse to Process Legal Online Gambling Transactions
Major credit card issuers like Chase, Wells Fargo and United states Express will not process even legal online gambling transactions, they say. (Image: Jason Hindley/money.cnn.com)
Every thing seemed therefore hunky dory: Nevada, Delaware and New Jersey all got legal online gambling or at poker that is least, in Nevada’s case up and running in 2013, and with the exception of a few dilemmas with geo-location snafus, overall, the sites in all three states have been operating pretty smoothly. Except for just one fairly major bug that has nothing at all to do with the sites by themselves: major economic institutions like United states Express, Wells Fargo and J.P. Morgan Chase are refusing to process any money interactions on these sites, legal or perhaps not.
Your Transaction Is Denied
Whether credit or debit, several card that is heavy-hitter say they are not gambling in terms of honoring their cards on online gaming web sites. And demonstrably, that’s not sitting well with many players who say, just what offers? But the banks involved say they’ll not budge, not for online casinos, poker or also legal recreations betting in Nevada.
‘We do not allow credit card transactions for this task,’ said Steve O’Halloran, manager of advertising and public affairs for Chase Card and Merchant Services. And American Express spokeswoman Sanette Chao concurs, saying her business simply ‘prohibits the usage of the card for gambling services.’
While some may conclude that this might be some sort of moral imperative, it ends up that it is more of a simple bottom-line business choice than anything else.
‘Gambling services, historically, account for a high number of card user credit losses and customer service disputes,’ noted Chao.
UIGEA Still Directs Banks’ Positions
And some banking institutions do still hold onto the old UIGEA model (Unlawful Web Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006), because, after all, from a indian dreaming slots for iphone federal standpoint, it’s still murky exactly how it is to be interpreted following a 2012 reinterpretation of the initial 1961 Wire Act had been handed down from the Supreme Court that opened the door to at least state-by-state lawful Web gambling.
Wells Fargo spokeswoman Natalie Brown claims this is the thinking behind her company’s decision to decline gambling deposits.
‘In compliance with regulation GG (illegal Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006), we prohibit the application of consumer credit cards for Internet gambling,’ said Brown, who is vice president of consumer lending communications with Wells Fargo. ‘The systems (Visa, MasterCard and American Express) monitor the vendor category codes and block charges that do not comply with federal laws.’
While this may earn some sense from their views, it could prove a discouraging reality for online players in appropriate gambling states.
‘What the industry has done is take a conservative approach or reaction to the legalization of online gambling,’ said Tobin Prior, CEO of Ultimate Gaming, which is a subsidiary of Station Casinos, a land-gaming proprietor in Nevada and the first to ever go online with legal poker into the Silver State. ‘That can be frustrating, but we work with clients discover alternatives.’
Certainly one of the benefits of this brick-and-mortar/Internet symbiosis is that clients can both fund and cash out at any of their land video gaming properties, in either Southern Nevada or at Station’s land gaming partner the Taj Mahal in Atlantic City. Players can also use e-checks or wire transfers to make deposits, Prior noted.
While legal websites on the internet might wish that banks were more within their court right now, Caesars WSOP site’s spokesperson Seth Palansky claims its what it really is.