Griffiths joined Doyles in April 2009 and his new responsibilities will see him running the day-to-day overall management of the two popular sites with microgaming casino bonuses.

“In 2009, Will has done some outstanding things for the Brunson brand,” said owner Doyle Brunson. “He’s built a great team, he’s helped me develop The Brunson 10, and he’s been a big force in upping the ante by giving online poker players everything they expect out of a poker site. I know that having him in the driver’s seat will mean some really great stuff in 2010.”

Griffiths has been involved in the industry over the past decade, growing several top brands. Prior to moving to Doyles he was chief marketing officer for Absolute Poker.

“We’ve done some great work in 2009 that players all over the globe have really responded positively to and I’m really keen to continue that role in a new capacity for DoylesRoom.com and DoylesCasino.com,” Griffiths said on his appointment.

The Guardian newspaper carried a long article on the issue this week, reporting that the UK government could soon act to regulate the increasing number of online gambling bookmakers based offshore.

Apparently the government is planning to recommend a new licensing regime for offshore bookmakers, justifying it as a move to ensure they provide information about suspicious betting patterns and online roulette strategy.

In April 2009 the government commissioned a study on how regulatory control could be established, notably including how it could ensure that ‘fair contributions’ towards the cost of such a secondary regulation could be made by UK companies operating offshore. It is known that the subject of contributions to British horseracing and other sports is also a goal of non-government sports bodies in the UK.

The results of the study are to be released early 2010 by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and the UK Gambling Commission, and are said to contain recommendations for a ’secondary licensing’ initiative, although it is believed that the proposal does not go so far as compelling offshore operators to pay horseracing levies.

“Senior racing industry insiders say they have been reassured by the sports minister, Gerry Sutcliffe, that the move will not close off the debate about the future of the levy,” the Guardian report discloses. “When he launched the review he said “getting a fairer deal for UK operators” was one of his “top priorities”.

The Guardian claims that the move offshore by the online operations of William Hill and Ladbrokes this year has cost racing an estimated GBP 4.2 million, and the overall take from the levy on bookmakers’ gross profits was GBP 93 million in 2008-09, down 20 percent on the previous year.

Under the new system, overseas-based bookmakers would additionally have to be licensed in Britain. That would bring them under the aegis of the Gambling Act, and force them to share information on illicit gambling.

“The mechanism could be a requirement to have a co.uk website address, or a head office based in the UK and to pay a licensing fee to the Gambling Commission. A failure to comply could lead to a ban from advertising in Britain,” the newspaper reports.

Foreign-based bookmakers interviewed by the Guardian said that such measures would be unnecessary and unworkable, potentially cutting off a valuable flow of advertising revenue into Britain and starving sports of sponsorship. They say they are happy to share information on suspect betting patterns and most claim to do so already.

The Remote Gambling Association, which represents the biggest players in the area, appeared to take a more flexible approach, saying it was ready to support the concept of dual licensing, providing a workable solution could be found and it was not seen as a precursor to the government trying to claw back tax revenues or for sports to progress their arguments for a “betting right”.

Clive Hawkswood, chief executive of the RGA, said a formal consultation would be required on any new licensing measures but indicated his members would be prepared to listen to the proposals. The likely six-figure licensing fee, to cover administration costs, would be unlikely to prove a stumbling block, he said.

“The reason our companies are offshore is not because of the Gambling Commission, but because of tax. If they wanted to go for this dual licensing approach, we’d have to sit down and work through the detail. But none of that is undo-able,” he said.

The top online casinos and internet betting companies have to be particularly watchful this time of year as the develop odds and bets offered on their sites. While the NFL teams duke it out on the field to make it to the Super Bowl playoffs, internet bookies are cranking out the statistics, reading up on professional analysis, and offering up some exciting odds and bets. The game takes place in February, which means there is still quite a bit of time to go before it’s down to the final two football teams.

So what’s the assessment right now? The online casino bookies are laying their money and their odds on the Saints. The Saints are the only undefeated team in the running right now and they are a favorite among football fans and analysts. This year the bets are running a bit differently than different years because there is a very real expectation that the “old regulars” may not make it to this ultimate Championship game. Right now, odds are on the Saints and there is a lot of hope and desperation as the handful of teams left put forth their best games in hopes of making it to Miami in February for the game.

As the promotion and excitement builds for this new online casino bingo gambling site, 888 Bingo has announced some of the site’s more appealing features: both 75 and 90 ball bingo, instant win bingo games, and several key branded games featuring themes slot as the X-Factor. Additionally, because the industry is so much about integration, the bingo site will have some features popular at the online casinos, such as roulette and slots. The site is planned to be fun and innovative with a hint of the more luxurious side of bingo in there too.

All of the news in the online casino gambling industry right now is the pre-launch excitement ramping up. And what would a good pre-launch marketing party be without a plug for another popular and fun 888 product, the 888Ladies gambling site. The prep time is almost over and the industry anticipates that the new 888 Bingo site will lie right in lie with the other stellar sites operating under the 888 name.

One of the surest ways to know that it’s about the money is to just look at the US market. The US currently has a ban on offshore online casinos from accessing US players and the processing of financial transactions. The ban is in place not only as a way to protect land gambling interests in the country, but for morality reasons (the religious right in the US is responsible for pushing through the US’ currently controversial policy). And as the online casino gambling supporters try to push through alternative legislation that regulates and licenses the industry, a key argument is the amount of money that the federal government can generate to offset the costs of other social programs.

This is a really popular tactic that is in use outside of the US – it simply exists. The online casinos generate significant revenue and during hard economic times this is an easy path for governments to take when they need a quick boost to funds and budgets.

This new online caisno poker information portal is looking to take on a much more interactive approach to providing value to the poker industry. In addition to all of the traditional aspects that you would expect from the site, site reviews, player recommendations, warnings, strategies and tips, and more, the site has a huge interactive aspect to everything. Visitors are drawn into the experience and encouraged to come back frequently.

The site’s innovative approach just might mean that it will have some staying power in the competitive online casino poker gambling marketplace. In a time where poker information portals are a dime a dozen, this site offers up a unique experience that really can’t be found at so many of the other options on the market. Ace Hoyle offers up a unique and fresh approach to collaborative poker information and sharing sites.

Sheldon Adelson’s casino gambling company is willing to contribute additional equity on its project on the Cotai Strip. Bloomberg reports that Sands has already spent $1.6 billion on the hotel and online casino complex.

Adelson stopped construction on the Macau project last year after the economy took a nosedive south.

“We expect Macau gaming revenues will increase by 20 percent in 2010,” Deutsche Bank AG analyst Karen Tang, who covers Hong Kong-listed Macau casino operators, said in a note to clients today. “The dominating growth driver is the ability by junket operators to lend. Junket operators told us that higher real estate prices are speeding up the velocity of money, and will likely strengthen their ability to lend.”

That was the message Thursday from executives with Harrah’s Entertainment and Station Casinos, who sought to place a different spin on the current wave of critical commentary coming from rival casino operators about efforts by the Obama administration and Congress to prop up the sagging economy.

Harrah’s Senior Vice President Jan Jones and Station Casinos Executive Vice President Scott Nielson added that parts of the bill that helped Nevada’s gaming industry wouldn’t have happened without the work of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.

“So many of the jobs existing today are the result of the vision and leadership of the government and our majority leader,” said Jones, a former two-term mayor of Las Vegas who twice ran for Nevada governor.

Jones and Nielson were so effusive in their support of Reid that a reporter from The Associated Press asked on the conference call if the briefing was an event for the Reid re-election campaign.

In response, Jones said positive aspects of the federal stimulus package — the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act — had been overlooked in recent news accounts of the state’s 13.3 percent unemployment rate and in comments made on cable television news programs by Wynn Resorts Chairman Steve Wynn, who was critical of President Obama and his handling of the economy.

“There has been some very vocal criticism of the administration,” Jones said. “But what has gotten lost and what people have forgotten are some of the ways the stimulus bill has helped the state and its largest industry.”

Jones said stimulus dollars that came into Nevada helped close a budget deficit and allowed the state to continue operating.

Reid spokesman Jon Summers, who did not participate in the conference call with reporters, said the stimulus dollars that came into the state saved 6,134 jobs. He said when the 31,000 workers employed by Harrah’s Entertainment are included, the overall jobs created or saved by the stimulus package is well above the 34,000 that had been estimated.

A provision in the stimulus bill that allowed companies to cancel capital gains tax payments for up to five years when they swap or restructure debt has helped Harrah’s, Jones said. Harrah’s has reduced its multibillion-dollar debt load by $3 billion and the company wants to sell up to $750 million of new term loans under its current credit agreement.

Harrah’s has nearly $501.8 million in debt maturing next year and $168.9 million due in 2011, an August filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission showed. Harrah’s has $6.3 billion in term loans maturing by 2015 and a $1.1 billion credit facility that matures a year earlier, SEC filings show.

“I think we would have been under much more pressure to be able to meet all the covenants in a continuing declining market without that provision,” Jones said.

Station Casinos, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August, could still use the debt cancellation provision once it emerges with a plan of reorganization and if a debt swap is part of the process.

Nielson said a debt swap had been proposed to the company’s bond holders when Station Casinos was negotiating a prepackaged bankruptcy plan. The company would have been able to defer paying capital gains taxes.

“These unintended cash gains on paper have huge cash requirements, and we need the cash to operate our businesses,” Nielson said.

Jones also used the conference call to push for a broad based business tax to be enacted during the 2011 legislative session with the state facing a $2.4 billion budget shortfall.

House Financial Services Committee chairman and legalised online gambling champion Barney Frank applauded Friday’s announcement.

“The Department of the Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board of Governor’s deserve a great deal of credit for suspending these midnight regulations promulgated by the Bush administration which would curtail the freedom of Americans to use the internet as they choose and which would pose unrealistic burdens on the entire financial community,” said Frank.

“This will give us a chance to act in an unhurried manner on my legislation to undo this regulatory excess by the Bush administration and to undo this ill-advised law.”

Poker Players Alliance chairman Alfonse D’Amato said he believes the delay is also the first step towards legal and regulated online poker in America.

“This is a great victory for poker, but an even greater victory for advocates of good and fair public policy,” said D’Amato. “These additional months are critical to provide legislators time to clarify UIGEA and pass legislation to licence and regulate poker early next year.”

PPA’s executive director John Pappas said: “I think we’ve had a lot of smaller victories that led to a change in how Congress views our issue…but I think this might be our biggest single, changing moment. This really puts it squarely on the shoulders of Congress to do something during this period of delay, and we’re hoping we can get some quick action. That’s why I think the timing of Frank’s hearing next week couldn’t be better.”

John Kennedy FitzGerald, chief executive of the Interactive Gaming Council (IGC) commented: “IGC hopes that the U.S. Congress will use the intervening time to move U.S. law away from the ambiguous attempts at prohibition contained in UIGEA, and toward a rational policy of licensing and regulation, which respects individual freedom, protects players, and raises needed revenue for federal and state governments.
“We thank Chairman Frank for his efforts toward that goal, and we look forward to working with him in any way possible to achieve it.”

The announcement that Barclays just took a step into the online casino gambling industry is a testament to the huge potential profits that are available within the European market. Barclays Capital announced several choice picks of internet gambling companies that are now covered. Bwin is one of the largest betting groups in the European market and operates out of Austria, this company can now do business through Barclays. Additionally, the Partygaming and 888 online casinos are also covered by Barclays as is the Sportingbet international internet betting site.

The announcement generated a stir of excitement among the online casino industry and each of the companies now covered by Barclays saw a small bit of share growth on the London Stock Market. Barclay’s announcement has boosted the confidence of many Europeans that the internet gambling industry is here to stay throughout Europe.