21 Theatrical Trailer

The new movie about a group of MIT Students who took Las Vegas for millions is coming out in theaters. Here is the first trailer for the new movie called ‘21′. The movie stars Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Laurence Fishburne and Jim Sturgess.

Popularity: 27% [?]

Casino Games Boost Party Gaming Profit

Party Gaming has recently announced their 3rd quarter revenue and they have shown strong growth in casino games. The companies revenue grew 24% and was boosted by party casino doubling in revenue and generating a return of $36.7 million dollars. Players were playing less blackjack and focusing on more profitable games offered by the online casino including roulette and slots.

Party Gaming did however report that their poker revenue dropped by 3%. This was once a very lucrative market for party gaming but has since struggled due to the site not offering poker for US players. Even with poker slowing down Party Gaming reported a stellar 115.7 million dollars in net gaming revenue.

Source: Press Association

Popularity: 17% [?]

Casinos for Celebrity Gamblers by Forbes

Forbes has just released a list of the top casinos for celebrity gamblers. This is a list of prestigious casinos that cater to the needs of Hollywood A listers. They have a slide show with pictures and description of each casino and what celebrity stars have been seen there. The article also talks about how most celebrities go to casinos that have more then just gambling and are relatively close to home. Las Vegas is a hot spot because of the short flight from LA (1 hour) and the luxury gambling, shopping and entertainment that it offers.

Some casinos cater to celebrities by giving them their own private rooms to play blackjack and other casino games so they don’t get bombarded by the public. Celebrities that are frequent gamblers: Alex Rodriguez, Warren Buffet, Jessica Biel, Shannon Elizabeth, Ben Affleck , Pamela Anderson, Bruce Willis, Drew Barrymore and Jon Bon Jovi

Top Celebrity Casinos

Bellagio, Las Vegas
The Borgata, Atlantic City, N.J.
The Palms, Las Vegas
The Wynn, Las Vegas
The Venetian, Las Vegas
The Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahama
Crown Casino, Melbourne, Australia
Foxwoods Resort Casino, Mashantucket, Conn.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Blackjack Odds

We have just added a basic strategy blackjack odds chart. This will help players looking to learn basic blackjack strategy. I encourage players to print this out and either memorize it or play along with it while playing online or offline. Pretty soon you will know this chart like the back of your hand and you will become a much better blackjack player because of it.

Popularity: 13% [?]

Gambling Deal in Florida is Nearing

The Governor of Florida is close to a deal with the Seminole Tribe to allow them to open casinos in Florida. The representatives from the state said that they may need legislature approval before anything can be concrete but a lawyer for the Seminole Tribe said this is not the case. It is not clear at this time who is right but it does look like Casinos in Florida is likely to happen.

The Seminole Tribe is currently working out the details on what casino games they will be allowed to offer their visitors. They would like to offer Vegas style slot machines, blackjack and other card games. They have agreed that they will not try to seek approval of roulette and craps. This deal will be very lucrative for Florida as they will receive $50 million right away and potentially $100 million dollars a year after that.

Source: Chron

Popularity: 36% [?]

Virtual Blackjack in Rhode Island

The next state to get virtual blackjack may be Rhode Island. The Rhode Island lottery commission is currently looking into adding the machines to the Twin River slot parlor in Lincoln.

Officials for the Rhode Island lottery said this would not be expanding the gambling in the state so they would not need a voter approval. Virtual blackjack does not use a dealer or real cards. It is played by players sitting around a computer and a screen where it simulates live blackjack. This game has become a hot topic as many states have been looking into adding this to casinos to increase tax revenue.

The Governor of Rhode Island who is not particularly a fan of gambling says this would be an extension to the states lottery and would be legal to implement. There is currently more then one slot parlor in Rhode Island but others have not applied for permission to offer virtual blackjack to their customers.

Source: WPRI

Popularity: 16% [?]

US Online Gambling vs Antigua

The New York Times has an article about how the tiny country of Antigua has taken the United States to court (World Trade Organization) over online gambling restrictions. They won a court battle in 2004 and two more appeals after that. They are currently in an arbitration case where an arbitrator is currently deciding on the damage the US will have to pay.

When the court decision was made in the WTO the US did not comply. They appealed the ruling and also made it harder for online gamblers to gamble by passing the UIGEA banning credit cards from being used to fund accounts. The US has an argument that they are protecting their citizens but the major problem with this is they allow some forms of gambling including horse racing and lotto while setting restrictions on others.

Antigua is home to many online casinos and with the current stats of the US laws it feels the US is not in compliance with the WTO. The decision from the WTO court agree’s with Antigua and it looks like they are looking for compensation of $3.4 billion dollars. They have also asked to be able to dismiss the US intellectual property laws and be able to pirate movies, music and software. This would be a solution Hollywood and many of the biggest companies in the US would be unhappy with and would push congress to make amends with the country and strike a deal.

The two solutions for the US is to completely ban online gambling which would include horse racing and state run lotteries. Or legalize all forms of online gambling. Both of these seem rather unlikely as the US has not show they are willing to do something so drastic. It will be interesting to see what the arbitrator comes up with and if the small country of Antigua will take the US for billions of dollars and the right to pirate music, software and games.

Popularity: 20% [?]

Brian Soper Local Blackjack Celebrity

Brian Soper who is a resident of Ypsilanti has become a local celebrity after winning his way onto a blackjack show on CBS. He won his seat after winning a free online blackjack tournament and will now play in the Ultimate Blackjack Tour final table. He usually helped run the local Heritage Festival casino tent but this time he will be a “celebrity” dealer for the festivities. The competitive blackjack show will air this fall on CBS coming back for its second season.

Not to be outdone, his girlfriend, Deb Opalewski, won a seat to another televised blackjack tournament. Where she will play for a large cash prize. Sounds like they are a competitive couple…and it will be interesting to see how they do when the shows air this fall.

Source: mlive

Popularity: 16% [?]

No More Online Blackjack in Second Life

The popular virtual world, Second Life has recently banned online gambling from being played inside the world. It said the company did this in order to comply with a complaint from the FBI. Last year, the FBI investigated Second Life and told the creators that this activity was not allowed under US online gambling laws.

There was no formal ruling on the matter but the creators did not want to take a chance. They have recently banned blackjack along with other games including Slot machines, Poker and Roulette. Second Life has also said if they find instances where gambling is still being played in the virtual world they will removed.

Source: TechTree

Popularity: 12% [?]

Jenny McCarthy the Newest Blackjack Dealer

At the new Playboy Club in the Palms casino, Jenny McCarthy will be dealing blackjack games. Part of the new celebrity Bunny Dealer where celebrities wear the classic Playboy uniform and run a casino game. This is the first celebrity that the casino has been able to recruit and George Maloof (owner of the Palms) can’t be happier. She will undergo training to become a licensed blackjack dealer and will be working from 9 pm to 12 am.

There was no mention of the contract that Jenny McCarthy received for this gig but there must be one because I doubt she would work for a blackjack dealers salary. Jenny McCarthy was in the Playboy magazine in 1993 and became the Playmate of the year in 1994. She was made famous by the MTV show “Singled Out”.

Source: ShowBuzz

Popularity: 12% [?]