Greece sets scene for the next EU online gambling battleground

Greek authorities have reportedly arrested nine people for ‘illegally’ betting with an unnamed British bookmaker. Police arrested the owners of three internet cafes, which had installed gaming software offering foreign-based online betting on games, as well as customers.

OPAP’s president, Sotiris Kostakos, responded to the news by telling reporters: “The only company with the right to operate betting in Greece is OPAP.

“Some people are getting rich unlawfully while the Greek state hemorrhages.”

According to OPAP, the illegal betting market in Greece is equal in value to the state-monopoly, or roughly Euro 1.4 billion.

Meanwhile, British-licensed online gambling firm, William Hill, recently applied for a license in Greece to open betting shops in that country, which would place it in direct competition with OPAP, and did so knowing full well that Greece was likely to deny it.

As a member of the European Union, Greece is subject to the requirements of the union’s free passage for trade and services from other EU states policy.

William Hill’s chief executive, David Harding, is quoted as saying he believed that Greece was in violation of European law, and that if the application was rejected, William Hill would persue the matter through the European Court.

This could set the scene for the next EU online gambling battleground.

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Bingo Entertainment N.V. to Launch Bingo Cruise Competition

Bingo Entertainment N.V. one of the biggest online bingo operators is the proud official Platinum Sponsor of the 19 th Annual World Championship Bingo Tournament and Gaming Cruise which is to take place from November 10th – November 18th 2007.

The 19th Annual Bingo Cruise will be sailing to the Eastern Caribbean with stops to San Juan in Puerto Rico, St Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Isles, Antigua, Tortola in the British Virgin Islands and finally Nassau, the lively hub of The Bahamas.

Bingo Entertainment N.V. has just announced that it will be giving its players the opportunity to win 2 cabins on board the Carnival Liberty cruise ship, via its participating sites. One cabin is to be won through Bingo Gala and the other through Bingo Entertainment’s Network. Two lucky players and their spouse or a friend can join them for the experience of a lifetime. The Cruise will be onboard the extremely lavish Carnival Liberty for an 8 night cruise from the 10th until the 18th of November 2007.

The package will include the cabin, plus return airfare for the winner and spouse or friend plus many more surprises on board!

The competition to win a cabin will commence on May 1 st 2007 and will last through August 31 st 2007.

The participating bingo sites are:

www.bingogala.com

www.bingomega.com

www.premierbingo.com

www.bingoempire.com

www.glamourbingo.com

www.mainstreetbingo.com

www.bingosplash.com

www.imperialbingo.com

www.paramountbingo.com

www.bingoplex.com

www.starlightbingo.com

By playing on these sites, players will be able to collect cruise miles. Cruise Miles can be collected either by playing Bingo or by playing at any of the side games, namely Slots, Pull Tabs, Blackjack, Video Poker or KENO. At the end of the competition the person with the most Cruise Miles will get to go on the cruise!

Don’t miss this chance to go on a cruise!

Alderney grants 36th e-Gambling operators license

The Alderney gambling control website shows it has granted another license to operate online betting on the island to Arkin Sports Limited, which controls the Bet Arena online betting and gaming operation. This is the 36th e-gambling license to be granted on the tiny tranquil island.

Last year, the e-Gambling industry made the island more than £1m. It is regulated by Alderney Gambling Commission, which had an operating surplus of £1,325,000 for 2006.

All the money raised by the industry will go back into the island’s general revenue fund.

Meanwhile, their website shows that two more companies have applications pending. EnterGaming Ltd has applied for a full eGambling license, whilst TSE Holdings Ltd, who currently operate from Malta, has applied for a restricted eGambling license.

Many remote gambling operators have started looking at other licensing jurisdictions since the UK announced the unexpectedly high gambling tax rates.

Search engines get tough on Internet gambling

New Media Age recently reported that the search engine giant Google has refused to review its ban on gambling paid-search ads following new advertising that sidesteps the company’s strict legislation.

The statement comes on the heels of a smart but legitimate circumvention of the rules in the UK by Sky, which this week launched a search campaign that directs users to a Sky Poker-branded page streaming footage from the Sky Poker TV channel.

Although the ad complies with Google regulations, such as not linking to a site where a user can bet with actual money, the link does show real people gambling with real money.

Apparently taking the same restrictive route despite its own entry into the UK poker sector, Yahoo! Search Marketing has apparently told advertisers that it will no longer accept “advertisements that contain invitations to play, any mention of money (eg. 1,000 jackpot), or any offers or incentives to take part in gaming (eg. bonus or benefit).”

Advertisers were advised: “Existing advertisements are currently being reviewed for compliance and we expect this process to be complete by mid June. If your advertisement is found to be non-compliant you will be notified by email and it will be suspended until the necessary changes are made.”

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Big Jackpot winner on Premier Bingo

The excitement and anticipation had been growing, almost as fast as the progressive jackpot on Premier Bingo. Operated by Bingo Entertainment NV, Premier Bingo has a strong following of loyal players, as well as new players joining daily.

As with all the sites on the Bingo Entertainment network, the progressive online bingo jackpot starts at $1000. It has been attracting a lot of attention from excited players all with hopes of winning.

On the morning of 14th April, one lucky player in Ontario Canada was playing on the ‘stopwatch’ pattern, when her last number was called. She hit the progressive jackpot and won herself an amazing $8,516.20.

The player, known as tazzz_pr, who has been playing on Premier Bingo for more than 4 years, has not been available for comment. I expect she is out celebrating and spending all that lovely loot!

Bingo Entertainment offers her their congratulations. The jackpot at Premier Bingo was reset to $1000, and as at the time of writing, it has increased already to $1,279.05 Will you be the next big winner? To try your luck go to www.premierbingo.com

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