Haley Hintze

by Haley Hintze

FTP PAYMENT PROCESSOR  FTP PAYMENT PROCESSOR  ADMITS DECEIVING BANKS ADMITS DECEIVING BANKS

 Full Tilt Poker payment processing head, Nelson Burtnick,  has pled guilty to bank fraud in connection with Full Tilt’s  long-running services to US players. Burtnick, 41, a Canadian citizen, admitted deceiving banks as to the nature of deposits made by American players  in a hearing before US Magistrate Judge Gabriel Gorenstein. Burtnick is the  seventh Black Friday defendant to reach a deal with prosecutors, with Full Tilt  head Ray Bitar awaiting trial on charges similar to Burtnick. Burtnick faces a  sentence of up to 15 years when sentenced on December 19th, but is expected  to receive a shorter term.

WMS, ACEP RECEIVE NEVADA APPROVAL WMS, ACEP RECEIVE NEVADA APPROVAL

by Haley Hintze

Lederer Assets Listed in Amended DOJ Complaint

 The Department of Justice has filed an amended civil complaint against former Full Tilt executives, which lists 12 different possible claims for relief for asset seizure, and details expensive homes and cars for two of the execs, Howard Lederer and Ray Bitar, which the DOJ claims are directly traceable to funds received from Full Tilt. Lederer’s Hawk Ridge property on Las Vegas’ western edge, which cost $11 million to build, highlighted the list, along with five other Lederer properties and a handful of expensive autos, including a Maserati, a vintage 1965 Shelby, and several Audis. Three Bitar California properties, including a $3.5M Fontana, CA gas station complex, were also listed. The DOJ seeks civil forfeitures of at least $42.5 from Lederer, and $40.8 million from Bitar, plus at least $42 million from Chris Ferguson, and $11.7 million from Rafe Furst.

by Haley Hintze

SOUTH POINT RECEIVES FORMAL NGC APPROVAL

 South Point Poker, LLC, the online counterpart to Las Vegas’s South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa, received the first official Nevada online-poker operator’s license in late August, following its previous passing of a suitability hearing. With software development already entering the testing phase, South Point will likely be the first Nevada online poker site to debut, probably before year’s end. Reno’s Monarch casino received Nevada’s second interactive operator license only moments after South Point, but has not aggressively pursued a market-entry strategy.

POKER DECLARED GAME OF SKILL IN EDNY COURT DECISION

by Haley Hintze

SOUTH POINT ON FAST TRACK TO REALMONEY ROLLOUT

 Las Vegas’s South Point Hotel, Casino and Spa jumped ahead of the pack in the race to offer the first real-money online poker to Nevada residents when its multi-part application passed a Nevada Gaming Commission suitability in early August. The actual NGC approval is a virtual formality, and with services and software already in-house or under contract, South Point may be able to roll out its site before year’s end. Separately, Reno’s Monarch Casino also passed a suitability hearing, but has no software partner to date.

by Haley Hintze

SOUTH POINT AWAITS NGC SUITABILITY HEARING

 Las Vegas staple, South Point Hotel, Casino & Spa moved forward with its announced plans to offer real-money online poker to Nevadans by year’s end after being slotted for one of the Nevada Gaming Commission’s suitability-hearing slots in early August. South Point and its owner, Michael Gaughan, have filed multiple applications covering all aspects of a new Nevada online-poker enterprise, and continue the development and testing of a new South Point Poker platform, to be rolled out in the coming months.

FULL TILT’S BURTNICK SURRENDERS TO US AUTHORITIES

 Only weeks after a surrender and plea deal for Full Tilt CEO Raymond Bitar, the firm’s payment-processing director, Nelson Burtnick, surrendered to US authorities on related “Black Friday” charges. Bitar and Burtnick were the subjects of a DOJ-authored “superseding indictment” which restricted and enhanced the charges against the pair, which were largely banking-and wire-fraud in nature. Burtnick was arrested at Newark Liberty Airport after returning from Ireland to face the charges, and was subsequently released on $500,000 bail.

By Haley Hintze

FEDS CHALLENGE CONSTITUTIONALITY OF KENTUCKY DOMAIN SEIZURES

Department of Justice attorneys working on business matters connected to the “Black Friday” case (United States v. PokerStars, et. al.) recently filed a motion to strike Kentucky’s claim of ownership against several gambling-related internet domains involved in the case. Kentucky sought to seize 141 gambling domains in a notorious 2008 legal maneuver that brought protests from far beyond the gambling sector, including internet-freedom and business groups. The DOJ’s motion offers evidence that Kentucky never actually seized anything (despite the commonwealth’s claims) and that Kentucky’s motions to attach in connection with the “Black Friday” case be denied, because the commonwealth lacks standing to file, cannot claim certain defendants’ rights, and the claim interferes with national sovereignty matters. The DOJ brief also rejected Kentucky’s claims for costs, interest, and attorney’s fees.

by Haley Hintze

DELAWARE APPROVES  ONLINE POKER AMID  GAMBLING EXPANSION

 A broad-based expansion of gambling opportunities  was signed into law by Delaware Governor Jack Markell one day after  Delaware’s state Senate passed a House bill authorizing several forms  of online gambling, including online poker. Online casino games and  NFL parlay betting were also included in the bill, which will call for  residents to purchase deposit vouchers from authorized state sales  agents once various online network pieces are up and running.

THREE MONTHS FOR BLACK FRIDAY’S  THREE MONTHS FOR BLACK FRIDAY’S  CAMPOS CAMPOS

By Haley Hintze

 BALLY TECHNOLOGIES, IGT RECEIVE NEVADA ONLINE-POKER APPROVAL

 Nevada’s first licensees connected to the state’s upcoming intrastate online-poker offerings were issued in late June to in-state slot machine manufacturers, Bally Technologies, and International Game Technology (IGT). Both Bally and IGT have positioned themselves to provide infrastructure for online sites, and will partner with existing brick-and-mortar casinos. Bally has already inked a deal with the Golden Nugget, and ShuffleMaster, while IGT previously acquired the Euro-facing Entraction Network, giving the company a ready-made poker platform.

 PINNACLE ENTERTAINMENT ACQUIRES HPT IN EPIC POKER BANKRUPTCY AUCTION

Nevada Commission approves Bally’s for Online Licensing

 The first corporate entity to clear a questioning hearing before Nevada’s  State Gaming Control Board as it seeks licensure to do online-poker  business in Nevada is established gaming manufacturer, Bally’s. Bally’s,  which acquired online network, ChiliGaming, in April, has already rolled  out a free-play poker site for downtown Vegas’ Golden Nugget casino.  A real-money Golden Nugget online poker site is likely to be one of the  first offerings, provided to Nevada residents, several months down the  road.

Illinois Casino measure passes assembly, Faces Threatened Veto

by Haley Hintze
 
 Online Poker Hits Illinois Legislative Agenda
 
 An out-of-the-blue measure to create an intrastate online poker network serving Illinois residents garnered surprising strength after being attached to a much-debated casino expansion bill. A half dozen new casinos in locations including downtown Chicago and the state’s second-largest city, Rockford, garnered support from a bipartisan majority, clearing Illinois’ state Senate with ease, but facing negative comments from Democratic Governor Pat Quinn. Illinois faces massive budget shortfalls and the bill, backed by the state’s existing casinos and racetracks, is being pitched as a tool for jobs and revenue generation. State Senate officials claim having enough votes to possibly override a Quinn veto.

Acevedo Tops HPT Majestic Star