news about gambling

Gambling study makes provocative claim

A psychological study unveiled at the convention of the American Psychological Association makes a bold claim: that 2 percent of all gamblers account for nearly 25 percent of all casino wins and losses. From Science Daily: In another study, psychologist Arch G. Woodside, PhD, of Boston College, and Ralph Perfetto, PhD, of the University of […]

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Lottery records falling

I’ve been meaning to sit down and do a comparative analysis of casino and lotteries revenues over the past year, to see whether the economic downturn (ED) is causing people to gamble less, or just forcing them to curtail trips to Las Vegas and other gaming destinations (and even local venues). Lo and behold, someone’s

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Online gaming study

There’s a new study on online gambling, and the authors think that playing online should be regulated. From the LV Sun: Gamblers in the UNLV study weren’t asked about gambling addiction, but rather what gambling meant to them and what motivated them to gamble online versus in bricks-and-mortar casinos. Researchers asked gamblers, 20 of whom

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Wynn hates bloggers

Steve Wynn doesn’t think much of the blogosphere. And I agree with him on this point. In many cases, would-be pundits’ reach exceeds their comprehension. From the LVRJ: Wynn, who controls 24 million shares of the company’s 111.8 million outstanding shares, is bullish on the future, not only for Wynn Resorts but the gaming industry

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news about gambling

A story you’ll never hear in Vegas

I assume that Rainawari is somewhere in the Kashmir, but from this story, I imagine that it’s quite different from Las Vegas. From Greater Kashmir Online Edition: The residents of Mirzabagh, Mughal Mohalla, Rainawari and other adjoining areas Tuesday alleged that the areas have become hub of gamblers. A delegation from the areas told Greater

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Fake Vegas explored

My latest Business Press column is out, in which I turn an offhand comment by an LA Times movie reviewer into grist for 550 words about Fake Vegas. From the LVBP: Casinos, certainly, have taken their place as legitimate businesses, and a former Harvard business professor runs the world’s biggest gaming company. So it’s not

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life in vegas, news about gambling

‘Lifestyle celebs’ in AC

In a story that has only one obvious typo–nice work, editors!–we learn that, if you give people something besides warmed-over singers and comics in your showrooms, you can actually attract new people to Atlantic City casinos. Outstanding! From the AC Press: Casino shows used to feature aging crooners and old comics like Henny Youngman, who

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atlantic city, news about gambling

The Economist on Vegas

Most everyone knows that gaming revenues have dipped a bit, but it’s not every day that the Economist covers Las Vegas, so here it is: THE media had a field day recently when Charles Barkley, a retired basketball player, was forced to pay a gambling debt of $400,000 owed to Wynn Resorts, a Las Vegas

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The economy and room rates

Hey, they’ve finally posted my latest piece in the Las Vegas Business Press. Here’s a taste: The economy, as the blurb that crawls across your television screen says, is bad. Really bad. And don’t you forget it. For those dealing in luxury goods and services, the perception of an economic decline is just as ruinous

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news about gambling

They took the leads?

And the phones? What kind of office is this? Ah, it’s OK. Shelly Levine just closed a big deal. None of that will make anything approaching sense if you’ve never seen Glengary Glen Ross, but trust me, it does. All of this is my lead-in to what is surely the casino caper of the decade:

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atlantic city, news about gambling

Monsoon wagering

I and pretty much anyone else who’s ever seriously studied gambling have often said that people will bet on anything. Some proof to support that contention? I offer into evidence the $1.2 billion Indians reportedly bet on monsoons each year. From Online Casino Advisory: Itinerant traders spread the tradition of monsoon betting in the 1800s;

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Ontario problems

That could mean that you’re driving up to Vegas from LA and ran out of gas before you got too far. But in this case, it’s about a group of thousands of admitted problem gamblers who’ve filed a class action lawsuit against the government corporation that owns Ontario (Canada) casinos. From the CBC: A $3.5-billion

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Aria alternatives

If you haven’t heard it, here’s the press release, more or less verbatim: MGM Mirage is naming the big casino resort at its in-development City Center project on the Strip the “Aria Resort and Casino.” I don’t have an inside line on the creative process that led to the choice, but from what I’ve read

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news about gambling

Wastin’ Away on Huron Ave

Unless something derails the deal (and how often has that happened with the Trumpster’s Atlantic City casinos?) the Trump Marina will soon become the Margaritaville casino resort. From the AC Press: Trump Marina Hotel Casino is being sold in a $316 million deal that will transform the poorest-performing property in Donald Trump’s gaming empire into

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atlantic city, news about gambling

VT takes on casino logos

I’m fooling around with using ScribeFire to create posts, so this might not work. Hopefully it does, because I really think people should check out this neat feature at Vegas Tripping, a detailed rumination on the evolution of Las Vegas casino logos: But what is it that makes for a successful logo in Las Vegas?

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news about gambling

Psychics amid the slots

Las Vegas entertainment is usually pretty predictable. You might see a comic, a singer, a revue show, a big production extravaganza, or a headline entertainer, which could mix any of these. But as the Las Vegas Sun reports, a new, seemingly anomalous presence is taking over Strip showrooms: psychics bent on exploiting grief. It seems

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Responsible gaming monitors redux

I’ve got a more in-depth look at the Canadian responsible gaming monitors in the LVBP. Here’s a snippet: Recently, the British Columbia government announced plans to hire nine “responsible gambling information officers.” These new deputies of safe gaming will spend their working hours hanging out in casinos throughout the Canadian province, looking for “distressed gamblers”

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news about gambling

Trek beaming out of Vegas?

It looks like Star Trek: The Experience might be leaving the Las Vegas Hilton. From the LVRJ: The lease on the biggest nerd magnet since the International Consumer Electronics Show expires at the end of the year, and a spokesperson for owners Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. told the Web site TrekMovie.com “there are currently no

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