Binion's Sold to Four Queens

On June 11, I reported that rumors of Binion’s being sold were rampant all over Las Vegas, and were for months. Landry's, the restaurant chain that owns the Golden Nugget—located just across the Fremont Street Experience from Binion’s—was the leading suitor, but that deal never materialized.

Current owner MTR now plans to sell Binion's for $32 million to TLC Casino Enterprises Inc., which owns the Four Queens, located just down the street from Binion’s and the Golden Nugget.

Although MTR lost $1.3 million operating the casino in the first quarter of 2007 due to decreases in gambling revenue and broke even on the property last year, the sales price is $12 million more than MTR paid for Binion’s when they bought it from Harrah's Entertainment Inc. in 2004.

Earlier this year MTR sold the Speedway Casino in North Las Vegas. Binion’s and Speedway were its only Nevada properties. Before completion, this transaction must be approved by the City of Las Vegas and Nevada gambling regulators. The deal allows MTR to concentrate on properties in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, where they are headquartered.

During their tenure as owners, MTR began renovating Binion's, replacing wall coverings and tearing up the old carpeting, replacing it with new carpet and wood flooring. I hope the new owners are committed to an aggressive renovation schedule.

I have always loved Binion's, and replacing the old, the worn, and the frayed, but retaining the ambiance, the character, and the majority of the employees would be just a terrific rebirth for this historic property. That's not too much to ask for, is it?

Is the US Starting to Bend in its WTO Dispute?

Antigua, which won a World Trade Organization ruling last year when the US restricted their access to online gaming services, is asking for WTO authorization to target American trademarks and copyrights if the US refuses to change its legislation.

Last December the WTO ruled that US law unfairly targets offshore casinos. They told the US that restrictions against sport betting could be retained if they were also applied to American businesses, such as remote horse betting and fantasy sports leagues.

Sanctions would come into effect "shortly," Antigua said, unless the US requests a WTO arbitration panel on the level and scope of the sanctions.

"While we realize this is a significant step for Antigua and Barbuda to take, we feel we have no other choice in the matter," said Errol Cort, Antigua's Finance Minister.

Cort added, "Until such time as the United States is willing to work with us on achieving a reasonable solution to this trade dispute, we will continue to use every legitimate remedy available to protect the interests of our citizens."

Gretchen Hamel, the US. Trade Representative’s spokesperson said, "We will continue to work with Antigua and Barbuda to try to find a mutually satisfactory resolution to this dispute."

It may be a telling phrase. Reading between the lines, this appears to be the first time Hamel suggested that the US would be willing to negotiate a settlement with Antigua. A negotiated settlement would amount to compensation paid by the US to Antigua, to buy its way out of this situation.

But it may be too little, too late. Recently Costa Rica joined the European Union, India, and Japan in claiming the US's stance on online gaming violates treaty obligations under the WTO, and are seeking compensation in accordance with WTO procedures.

While buying off Antigua, a tiny nation with a population hovering around 70,000 doesn't appear all that difficult, buying off trade giants such as the EU is just prohibitively expensive. Some solution will have to be worked out, or else the US will find itself fighting the WTO, an organization that has provided them many more benefits than the current issue that’s dogging the US Trade Representative.

If the US is not willing to live up to its treaty obligations what will they do when Antigua, the European Union, Japan, India, and Costa Rica line up with Antigua at the WTO compensation window? At this juncture, I don't have a clue.

The Venetian's Deep Stack II: Poker's Little Engine that Could

Attendance comparisons between the World Series of Poker, the Bellagio Cup III, and the Venetian’s (pictured left) Deep Stack II event are quite interesting, to say the least.

For the first ten events on their schedule, the Bellagio Cup III has averaged 91 players per event. Their largest event was their first, which attracted 145 players. The low-water mark was 37. Half of their first ten events failed to attract even 100 players.

The Venetian’s Deep Stack II series is averaging 426 players per event for their first ten tournaments. Their low point was 270, while they reached their high-water mark of 590 the very next day.

To no one’s surprise, the World Series of Poker is still the Big Kahuna, averaging 881 players for ten events over the same time period as the first ten events at the Bellagio and the Venetian.

If someone had asked me to make attendance predictions before these events began, I would have said that the Bellagio event would have been in second place. In fact, I would have thought that the Venetian’s results and those of the Bellagio would be flip-flopped.

I never have guessed that Deep Stack II would be attracting nearly five players for every one showing up to play at the Bellagio Cup III.

This is obviously a marketing coup for the Venetian, which found a niche in the marketplace when they decided not to compete directly with the WSOP, and decided instead to complement their efforts by offering something different: very large starting stacks, low blinds, and a lot of play for the customer’s money.

World Cup III, which is all hold’em events, is just not offering anything unique. Despite the confusion during the first days of the WSOP and the player inconveniences that resulted from long lines, new-look cards that had to be pulled in favor of traditional pasteboards, the World Cup III has yet to gain any traction whatsoever in this marketing skirmish.

Perhaps their main event, which is a World Poker Tour tournament, will produce better results. But for now, the WSOP seems to be going strong—just as everyone would have expected— but the Venetian’s Deep Stack II tournament is this year’s edition of poker’s Little Engine that Could. It just keeps chugging, has gained a lot of ground, and seems bound and determined to rack up a major victory in Las Vegas’ summer poker wars.

Costa Rica joins nations seeking compensation from US in online gaming case

Costa Rica has joined a growing group of nations seeking compensation from the United States for economic hardships brought on by the US crackdown on online gambling. They join Antigua--which won its case against the US at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and was the first to seek compensation from the US under WTO rules--well as the European Union, India, and Japan. All of these nations claim the US's stance on online gaming violates treaty obligations under the WTO, and are seeking compensation in accordance with WTO procedures.

While we in the United States see the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act (UIGEA) as a product of the religious right, the rest of the world doesn't see it as a morality based law at all. They see it simply as a blatant act of protectionism, particulalry since the law contains exemptions for online wagering on horse racing and fantasy sports.

The Price of Poker Has Gone Up: Antigua demands $3.4 billion friom US

The Associated Press reported that Antigua is demanding commercial sanctions amounting to approximately $3.4 billion each year for its failure to comply with a World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling that American online gambling restrictions are illegal, and in violation of treaty obligations with the WTO.

Antigua, which won a WTO ruling against the US last year, is also asking for authorization to target American trademarks and copyrights if the U.S. refuses to change its legislation. This, of course, would allow software pirates safe haven in the Caribbean nation, and give them the right to ignore US copyright laws with the WTO's blessings.

Now that the European Union plans to line up with Antigua, this dispute, which has been raging for a couple of years, looks like it is heating up to a new level.

European Union Joins Antigua in WTO Case Against US

When tiny Antigua, population 70,000, won its battle at the World Trade Organization (WTO) against the United States, and won again when the US appealed that decision, it was no big deal to the world’s largest economy. After all, if Antigua applied trade sanctions as a legal response against the US, it would be the equivalent of a flea attacking an elephant.

In the case brought by Antigua and Barbuda against the United States, the WTO’s appeals panel judgment said that the United States "had an opportunity to remove the ambiguity between legal betting on horse racing across state borders and strictures and prohibitions on other types of gambling but instead, rather than take that opportunity, the US enacted legislation that confirmed that the ambiguity at the heart of this dispute remains.”

Instead of appealing its latest loss at the World Trade Organization, the United States decided to withdraw from its obligations regarding gambling and betting services. Under WTO treaty obligations, this leaves the US open to damage claims from any WTO member adversely affected by their withdrawal. Those claims must be resolved through a negotiated settlement or arbitrated before the US may withdraw their commitment.

The big question that remained was what would happen next. The usual kind of sanctions imposed in trade disputes would not be meaningful because Antigua is too small to have an impact on the United States.

But now Antigua has a bigger weapon in hand. The world's largest consumer market, the European Union, recently joined Antigua in seeking compensation. Compensation is sought because the effect of American protectionism on EU nations was to deny these nations a fair chance to compete for market share in the field of online gaming. The fact that the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act (UIGEA) provided cut-outs for online horse racing and fantasy sports leagues added insult to injury. UIGEA is viewed worldwide as an act of protectionism, and contrary to US treaty obligations under the WTO.

What began as a trade dispute between the US and Antigua now shows all the signs of blowing up into a bigger brouhaha, one involving the US, Antigua, and the entire European Union, with lots of money and economic leverage at stake--not to mention your freedom to play online poker in the privacy of your own home.

One and Done for Poker Dome

The party’s over. The plug’s been pulled on Poker Dome according to a report in last Friday’s Las Vegas Sun. Rick Kulis, who heads the firm that holds the Poker Dome's lease, confirmed the Dome’s demise, which was the result of both Mansion and Fox Sports seeing the handwriting on the wall:

With the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) and the Mansion’s pull-back from the US market, there was just no way for them to monetize their investment.

Even if UIGEA wasn’t a factor, the show never seemed able to compete in television’s overheated poker market.

Despite their short run, they’ll be remembered for players hooked up to heart monitors, and throbbing pulse beats rates displayed for all to see.

The Poker Dome will shut down August 1, with the actual set staying intact and the production booths converted back into the movie theaters they were prior to the Poker Dome.

What if You Gave a Party and Nobody Came?

What if you gave a party and nobody came? That’s what seems to be happening at the Bellagio Cup III.

With record totals at the World Series of Poker, and large fields at the Venetian’s Deep Stack II event as well as downtown for Binion’s Poker Classic, something seems to be going very wrong at the Bellagio.

The attendance for their World Cup III tournament series is sinking like a stone. Their first event, a $1,590 no-limit Texas hold’em tournament (the entire series is all Texas hold’em, every day) attracted just 145 entrants. Things ran straight down from there. At the second event, which had a $2,620 price tag, only 103 players showed up. For the third event, the total number of entries was down to 78.
This is probably a big enough problem to get the attention of those who make the decisions about that sort of thing. If their main event, which is a World Poker Tour tournament beginning on July 10 and running through July 15, lays an egg of similar proportions, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some heads roll as a result.

I don’t know why this has happened. I’ve no ax to grind with the Bellagio, nor am I intending to diss them, but they seem to have really missed the mark here.

The decided to go up against the big Kahuna, the World series of Poker, but did it with a tournament series that apparently didn’t do enough to separate itself in the minds of those who matter most, the poker players who pony up their money to play.

While the WSOP is the market leader, the Venetian’s Deep Stack II event carved out a unique position for itself in the market. They offered lots of play with lots of chips—just like their name suggests—and at a moderate price.

Binion’s offered many of the same events scheduled for the WSOP a day earlier, and at one-tenth the price, so that players who did well in the smaller buy in events at Binion’s could try to parlay their money by entering the same event the very next day at the WSOP.

Both the Venetian’s event and Binion’s tournament series complement the WSOP. But the Bellagio simply butted heads with them. They offered no-limit hold’em every day, did not find a way to work hand-in-glove with the offerings at the WSOP, and did not do enough to make their product unique in the marketplace. Or so it seems.

It’s still early in the game, but this is a development worth keeping an eye on. Stay tuned…

Man Against Machine at the Poker Table

Canada’s University of Alberta, which has been at the forefront of artificial intelligence announced that a poker-playing computer program they built, will play against a pair of poker experts in a $50,000 contest later this summer.

Polaris, their cyber poker star, is slated to play against Phil "The Unabomber" Laak and Ali Eslami at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence's annual conference, held this year on July 23 and 24 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Vancouver B.C.

University of Alberta scientist, Dr. Jonathan Schaeffer, believes the event will be an evolutionary step in a process that began with the 1997 match between IBM's "Deep Blue" chess program and then world chess champion Garry Kasparov.

"The difference is that chess is a game of perfect knowledge, meaning there is nothing hidden from the players. In poker you can't see your opponent's hand and you don't know what cards will be dealt. This makes poker a much harder challenge for computer scientists from an artificial intelligence perspective," Schaeffer said.

Four Texas hold’em matches between Polaris and the two poker players will consist of 500 hands each, dealt simultaneously in duplicate poker format. Polaris will receive the same cards in one room that the professional will receive in the other rooms, and vice-versa. The duplicate system will balance out the luck of the cards and emphasize the capabilities of the participants.

At each match’s conclusion, the human players will combine their chip totals and compare them with Polaris' total, and the human players will earn cash for each match they win.

Schaeffer admitted he’s not quite sure just how well Polaris plays, but hopes to learn a lot about his program in Vancouver this summer. "It's going to be a lot fun," he said.

Is Binion's About to be Sold?

Rumors of Binion's being sold are rampant all over Las Vegas, and have been for months. While there’s no indication of a deal in the works, Landry's, the restaurant chain that owns the Golden Nugget—located just across the Fremont Street Experience from Binion’s—may be interested in purchasing the property.

"We view it as an investment property rather than one of our strategic properties," said Edson Arneault, chief executive officer and chairman of the board for MTR Gaming Group of Chester, W.Va., which owns Binion’s.

Arneault’s statement suggests that MTR Gaming is looking to sell Binion's, especially since it showed a negative cash flow of $3.3 million last year.

Justin Sebastiano, a senior gaming analyst for Nollenberger Capital Partners who follows the company, said that Binion's has been a drag on MTR Gaming's stock since they bought it from Harrah's Entertainment in 2004 for about $20 million.

MTR has invested in the casino’s renovation, however, and changes include new carpeting and decor and 200 new slot machines. Plans are also underway to upgrade one floor of hotel rooms in an attempt attract higher-spending customers.

It’s no secret that the casino is struggling. Downtown Las Vegas continues to fight an uphill battle as gaming revenues decline. Downtown’s gaming win in March was $55.3 million, a 7 percent decrease compared with $59.5 million a year ago. It was the 10th consecutive month of decline for the market.

Jim McDermott (D-WA) Introduces Companion Legislation to Barney Frank's Bill

Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA), pictured right, introduced The Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act last week as a companion bill to the Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act (IGREA) that Barney Frank (D-MA) introduced last month.

McDermott’s bill provides a taxing mechanism for online gambling providers that would be licensed under Barney Frank’s IGREA (H.R. 2046). Frank’s bill establishes licensing and enforcement procedures to regulate online gaming in the US.

Online gaming operators licensed by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) would pay two percent of funds deposited on that site if McDermott’s bill becomes law. Online gaming providers would pay the fee; it would not be taken from customer deposits. Firms offering online gaming would also have to collect federal and state taxes from licensees and individual gamblers.

Congressman McDermott expects his legislation to raise between $6 billion and $25 billion in revenues for the US Treasury in the first five years of enactment.

2007 World Series of Poker Smashes Attendance Records!

June 9, 2007 is the busiest day in WSOP history
As the World Series of Poker enters it second week, it shows no signs of slowing down. Yesterday saw the largest number of poker players ever to enter a single day of events at the WSOP.

WSOP Communications maven Nolan Dalla, pictured left, reports that these two tournaments combined for a record 3,009 entries. The $1,500 buy-in no-limit hold’em event attracted 2,628 entries. The $2,500 buy-in HORSE championship attracted 381 players, making it the largest HORSE tournament in history. No single day in the 38-year history of the WSOP has been busier. In fact, the huge turnout is believed to be the biggest tournament day if any poker event held anywhere.

The record number of players beat the old mark by 11 participants. One week ago 2,998 tournament players registered for that day’s events.

The largest poker tournament in history remains the 2006 WSOP $10,000 buy-in championship event, with 8,773 players. However, that official “Day One” was divided across four separate dates, due to the enormous size of the field.

The Affiliate Poaching War Heats Up

Party Poker and “rakeback” aren’t words you want to utter in the same sentence any longer, as Party raised the stakes in their battle with certain affiliates they claim are poaching players from other affiliates over the past week.

As of June 1st, according to a Party ultimatum, any player closing an existing account with Party Poker and opening a new account predicated on some financial incentive will no longer count as affiliate earnings.

As part of their affiliate terms and conditions, Party can deduct earnings for traffic that is referred through "fraudulent means." Those affiliates who signed players by urging them to close old accounts and establish new ones underneath them, are looking at significant charge backs, and some may even have negative balances.

Party Poker hasn’t stated whether they will retain the money from charges against affiliate accounts, or if they plan to return part of that money to affiliates who lost players in this poaching scheme.

Wexler (D-FL) Introduces Bill to Carve Out Poker From UIGEA

Congressman Robert Wexler (D-FL), pictured right, introduced The Skill Game Protection Act (H.R. 2610) on Thursday. His bill seeks to carve out poker and other "skill games" such as bridge, chess and mahjong games from the Unlawful Internet Gaming Enforcement Act (UIGEA) passed by Congress in October, 2006.

According to Wexler’s spokesperson, Josh Rogin, "It allows Americans to play poker online as they should have every right to do.”

The Skill Game Protection Act would amend the 1961 Federal Wire Act to distinguish games based on skill from sports betting, which was the thrust of that law, as well as from games of chance. Wexler’s Skill Game Protection Act is the third House bill introduced in the last five weeks to address online gaming and UIGEA. Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) was first out of the box, introducing the Internet Gambling Regulation Enforcement Act (H.R. 2046) in April.

A month later, in May, Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-NV) introduced H.R. 2140 that would mandate a study of internet gaming by the National Academy of Sciences.

The Poker Players' Alliance announced its support of Wexler's bill. "Congressman Wexler's legislation is necessary to provide equitable treatment for true games of intellect and competitions among individuals," said the PPA’s Al D'Amato, who added, "This skill based competition is the true spirit of the game, and the reason for its popularity whether it is played at the World Series of Poker, over the internet or at your kitchen table."

Wexler's bill was introduced one day before the House Financial Services Committee, chaired by Barney Frank, held a hearing on Frank’s Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act of 2007, a bill that seeks exemption to the ban on online gambling for properly licensed operators.

"The real issue," said Wexler, "is adults that want to gamble on games of skill, in particular, like poker and mahjong -- why not? Why should we make it into an illegal behavior?"

How to Enter the WSOP Main Event for Only $50

A raffle conducted by the World Poker Association, the voice of professionalism and ethics in poker worldwide, together with the Corps of Compassion—an organization that feeds needy children in the Las Vegas community—have joined forces to offer a raffle drawing. The winner receives a seat in the main event of the 2007 World Series of Poker (beginning July 6, 2007), along with $1,000 cash toward airfare and lodging costs.

The raffle is open to any member of the World Poker Association. You can join the WPA and purchase a raffle ticket immediately at the WPA Exhibit Booth, located at the 2007 World Series of Poker.

“We are thrilled to announce our commitment to the Corps of Compassion in feeding children in the Nevada community in conjunction with the World Poker Association’s raffle drawing,” said charity chairperson Annie Van Bebber. “Everyone wins,” she added. “Children are fed, someone will win a seat in the main event of the 2007 World Series of Poker, and players will have an opportunity to learn more about how the World Poker Association helps tournament and cash-game poker all over the world.”

All net proceeds from the sale of raffle tickets will go to the Corps of Compassion. “WPA is proud to support Corps of Compassion in its programs of encouragement and the nourishment of needy children in the Clark County School District,” said WPA founder and chairman Jesse Jones.

Each raffle ticket is $50. There are no limits on the number of raffle tickets available for purchase by any one person. All of the net proceeds from ticket purchases go to the Corps of Compassion and will help feed needy children in the Las Vegas community.

Tickets can be purchased at the WPA booth, located 50 steps down the hall from the main entrance to the WSOP tournament. Each raffle ticket is $50. The drawing will be held July 4, 2007.

The drawing is open to persons 21 years of age or older who are members of the World Poker Association.

WSOP "Town Meeting" to Discuss Playing Cards of the Future

Today, the World Series of Poker and the United States Playing Card Company will host three “Town Hall” meetings – at 11 am, 1 pm, and 4 pm in the “Brasilia 5” ballroom.

USPC President and CEO Jason Lockwood and Brand Manager Rob Clendening will present their plans for the playing card of the future and will welcome player comments.

“I invite any poker player or any fan of poker to come and join us at one of our three meetings on Wednesday,” said Lockwood. “I know players want to have a say in the future of this great game and we value their input.” All media and poker players are invited to attend and provide feedback. All media and poker players are invited to attend and provide feedback.

Whatever shape the playing card of the future takes, I hope they will test the cards out to make sure they are suitable for game situations before foisting them on the poker-playing public, as was done with the "poker-peek" cards. I expect they will. After all, if they can't learn from the recent fiasco, they never will.

Bedlam, Confusion, and Incredibly Long Lines Mark First Days of the WSOP

Day One of the World Series of Poker was bedlam. It always is. But this day was more frazzled than most. It looked like about a three-hour line to sign up for tournaments, and I don’t know why.

Day Two was just as crowded, but at least there’s some excuse: They were busy setting a record for attendance. The $1,500 no-limit hold’em event was the largest non-WSOP main event poker tournament in history. The previous record was Event #17 at the 2006 WSOP, which attracted 2,891 entries. They broke the previous record by 107 players, with a field of 2,998 players. This ranks as the third-largest poker tournament of all-time, behind the 2005 and 2006 championship (main) events.

It seems as though the registration process is adequately conceptualized but poorly engineered. It would have made sense for the WSOP to take 50 dealers, and run them through a dummy registration process to develop a mean time to process a registration. With that information, it would have been duck soup to determine how many clerks it takes to staff the booth in order to maintain a waiting time of a given number of minute--not hour--to sign up.

The “poker-peek” cards that looked so cool in the photograph shown a few posts ago, right here in this blog, had a few flaws that became immediately apparent once they were employed in live games. For starters, the corner index on the card’s corner was quite small, and difficult to see. But the real problem was that the design of the rest of the card made it difficult to read the board. No one I spoke to or over heard¾and I mean no one¾had anything good to say about the poker-peek cards.

Get a few decks today and they’re likely to be a collector’s item in the future. My bet is you’ll never see them in a poker game again, but you will see them on e-Bay before long.

I’m betting the Rio spent the better part of yesterday and today buying as many decks of traditional poker cards as they could find. It’s another fiasco that could have easily been prevented by trying out the new cards before using them in tournament play. Had the WSOP’s management simply sat 10 experienced players down in a mock game, used those cards for 15 minutes or so, it would have become abundantly clear that the traditional cards were vastly superior and that the new ones should never have been introduced.

Once again, well conceptualized, poorly engineered. It’s beginning to sound like a mantra. A note to the WSOP management: Test before implementing. Only then can you close the loop between design and conceptualization on one hand, and user response on the other. That’s what systems integration is all about.

You need to test things before implementing them, and you need to inspect what you expect. It’s Management 101 and it’s that simple. Even a caveman can do it.

Neteller's Plan to Refund Customer Money Nearing Completion

Neteller’s plan to refund US customer money is somewhat closer to finalization. The US attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York (USAO) and Neteller agreed on a plan that is pretty much in keeping with the timing announced a few months ago to refund money belonging to Neteller’s US customers.

Though a date on which customers will be able to access their accounts has not been reached, here’s the gist of the agreement:

US customers will be permitted to access their Neteller accounts to request the entire balance of funds in their account.

No partial payments will be processed.

US customers will not be able to use their accounts for any transaction except to request return of their funds.

No interest will be paid on any account balances.

No processing fees will be charged.

Ron Martin, chief executive of Neteller, said that thye hope to announce further progress with the USAO by mid July.