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Greece to Meet with EC; Are Online Poker, Gambling Markets to Open?Sat, May 17th, 2008 @ 12:00am Reports in Greek media about a meeting scheduled for next week between European Commission (EC) enforcement chief Charlie McCreevy and Greek economic minister George Alogoskoufis has online poker players and Internet gamblers wondering if Greece might soon open its doors to other EU-based online gaming operators. The reports speculated that the discussions are being held to prevent European Court of Justice (ECJ) charges being brought against the Greeks concerning state gambling monopoly OPAP's status. Greek gaming company OPAP is an effective monopoly in its home market. It also competes with other operators in Cyprus. Sports betting, gambling and/or online gambling are state-owned monopolies in many EU countries, generating large amounts of revenue for governments. To protect that revenue, governments have created roadblocks to thwart attempts by private-sector rivals to enter or grab a share of the lucrative business. The EC, an executive arm of the European Union, has been targeting member nations whose national gaming regulations are contrary to higher level EU laws that permit companies licensed anywhere in the EU to freely move goods and services across EU state borders (Article 49 of the EC Treaty). France has indicated positive changes after talks it held with the EU in Brussels and Paris. Several other countries are reconsidering their positions in light of the alternative of having their cases being brought to the ECJ. McCreevy has repeatedly said that he intends to use his legal powers to stop unjustified restrictions on the free movement of services within the EU bloc. Recently, OPAP President Chatziemmanouil said that he has not ruled out the possibility that changes in OPAP's monopoly status could take place in the future. Government sources also dropped hints of changes to come, saying that changes to Greek gaming legislation to bring it closer in line with EU standards are possible, but warned that it would not open an "unregulated market". Read Related Articles:
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World Poker Tour Finds New Home on Fox Sports Net It was announced Thursday that World Poker Tour Enterprises has reached an agreement with Fox Sports Network (FSN) to broadcast Season VII of the WPT series. Tournaments are already underway for the new season, which will consist of 26 one-hour episodes.
EGBA Sets New Best Practice Standards for Responsible Gaming The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA), in support of their mission to promote fair competition for European-licensed operators and consumer choice in a regulated European online gaming market. has launched a new set of best practices to ensure consistent standards of player protection, fair gaming and responsible operator behavior in the European online poker, Internet gaming and betting environment.
World Poker Association Changes Membership Terms The new leadership under Founder and present Chairman of the World Poker Association (WPA), Jesse Jones, has taken immediate measures to address the needs of the over 1400 members who have joined the WPA to date, through several key membership changes. These changes include:
Stanley Ho's IPO Reveals Setbacks Since Macau Regulation, Competition Arrive The delayed listing of Stanley Ho's Sociedade de Jogos de Macau Holdings (SJM) group on Hong Kong's Stock Exchange until today, 16 July, is characteristic of the many challenges the firm has faced since 2002, when foreign operators were allowed to build casinos, and regulations increased. Since then, the 86-year old billionaire's four decade dominance of the Portuguese colony's gaming market, determining where and when you could play poker has waned.
'November Nine' Final Table of the World Series of Poker Is Set From 6,844 to nine, the players for the final table of the Main Event of the 39th World Series of Poker have now emerged after nearly two weeks at the tables. The so-called 'November Nine' will return on November 9 after a 117 day hiatus as the most well prepared final table in poker history, as well as being guinea pigs for this first-ever delayed final table experiment.
Poker Tournaments in Bars -- The New Prohibition? While the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) has devastated internet poker, separate, quiet battles are being fought, and won, to make poker legal in bars under state laws.
'November Nine' Emerge Today at World Series of Poker, Hellmuth Places 45th Today, July 14, is a big day at the World Series of Poker, when the three remaining tables of the Main Event will be trimmed to one, from the 27 players starting play today Day 7. That means that today we will learn the identities of the 'November Nine', the nine finalists who will return November 9 to play out the final table under the television spotlights.
Biggest $250,000 Guaranteed Poker Tournament in Bodog History Coming History will be made this summer at Bodog Poker, as the online poker powerhouse hosts its largest guaranteed prize pool tournament ever on Sunday, Aug. 10, at 4 p.m. EST, with a guaranteed $250,000 in total prize money to be awarded-- regardless of the number of registrants.
$5 Million Guaranteed Prize Pool for 2008 Borgata Poker Open in Sept. Details of the 6th annual Borgata Poker Open series have just been announced: the 16-day tournament begins Sept. 3rd and concludes with the $10,000 buy-In 5-day World Poker Tour (WPT) / Borgata Poker Open Championship event, September 14-18, at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa.
PKR Now 15th Largest Online Poker Site Online poker site PKR recently announced that is has overtaken industry stalwarts Cryptologic and Entraction to claim 15th place in Pokerscout's online poker rankings, attributing its continued growth to highly innovative marketing campaigns. |
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