Spin Cycle: Alberta’s Online Arrival Highlights Week In Gambling

Welcome to “Spin Cycle,” Casino Reports’ weekly Friday roundup of all things impactful, intriguing, impressive, or idiotic in the gambling industry. Pull up a chair, grab a stack of chips and a glass of your beverage of choice, and take a spin with us through this week’s news cycle …

Ontario officially has company

As of this week, there are two provinces in Canada with regulated online casino gaming. And the newer one has 18 online casino sites to start with.

Alberta officially launched its regulated market Monday, and of the approximately 50 potential iGaming skins that have applied to operate in the province, 22 were fully approved and ready to go live on opening day. Of those 22, four were online sportsbooks, leaving 18 new online casinos (many of which are dual sportsbooks/casinos) available to Albertans:

• Bet365
• BetMGM
• BetRivers
• Betty
• BetVictor
• Caesars Palace
• CasinoDays
• DAZNBet
• Delta
• DraftKings
• FanDuel
• Golden Nugget
• Hollywood
• Horseshoe
• LuckyDays
• Stardust
• TheScore
• Tonybet

And let’s not forget PlayAlberta, the government-owned site that was the only legal iCasino operational in the province prior to Monday.

More news to know …

• Big M&A news: Major European gaming company Merkur has agreed to acquire U.S. online slots supplier White Hat Studios (financial figures undisclosed), the parties announced jointly on Wednesday. Among the most recognizable assets in the White Hat portfolio are the 7s Fire Blitz series and the Jackpot Royale progressives. “Working alongside the hugely experienced Merkur team will open new possibilities for us across iGaming and enhance our ability to develop a world-class omni-channel proposition that will benefit both operators and players,” White Hat Studios President Andy Whitworth said in a release.
• A roundup of a few poker news items from the days after WSOP Main Event play paused on Monday night: Phil Hellmuth came thisclose to capturing his record-extending 18th bracelet, only to finish as the runner-up to Darren Rabinowitz in Event 99, a $5K no-limit hold’em tourney; poker pro Jared Griener shared an absolute horror story on social media, as he said he was ambushed at his Las Vegas AirBnB by two men who “tackled me to the ground and tied me up and took my backpack with my entire roll in it” — a claim seemingly substantiated by video shared on KSNV News3 Las Vegas; and SiriusXM announced Thursday that eight-time bracelet winner and Poker Hall of Famer Nick Schulman will host a new radio show, Poker Weekly with Nick Schulman, debuting this Saturday.

• The Arizona Department of Gaming sent five new cease-and-desist orders to unregulated gambling operators last Friday, the most notable among them being the ClubWPT online poker platform. The ClubWPT site has operated under a social/sweepstakes model since all the way back in 2008.
• In Germany, regulators raised the limit on the stakes for an online slot spin this week, from a mere €1 to as much as €5, provided the players meet certain criteria with regard to problem gambling histories. Operators are required to track players who raise their limits, allowing the regulator to assess how this change impacts gambling behaviors.

House Rules: Insights from around our network

NCLGS Panel: If States Want More Tax Dollars, Gambling Expansion Is Way To Go

Ruddock Report: The Odds Of Online Casino Expansion

Ex-NBA Player Davis Pleads Not Guilty In Wagering Probe

DraftKings’ Peer-To-Peer ‘Electric Poker’ Game Goes Interstate

Gambyt’s Gambit: New Michigan Lottery App Unveiled

While Atlantic City Land-Based Revenue Remains Flat, NJ Online Casino Up 17.5% In June

Sex-Themed Casino: Why Didn't I Think Of That?

Sports Betting Critics Should Focus Their Ire More On The Illegal Market

Amazon Reaches Settlement in $201 Million Social Casino Lawsuit

Small stakes and hot takes

This week on the Casino Reports podcast Low Rollers, presented in partnership with DraftKings Casino, I welcomed 2004 World Series of Poker Main Event champion Greg “Fossilman” Raymer for a conversation covering his deep run this year, next month's final table, the WSOP instituting a shot clock, the overall health of poker, and more.

I also examined the Alberta iGaming launch and the benefits of advertising restrictions, plus I offered quick comments on gambling topics related to Philadelphia Phillies stars Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber.

Full episode:

The Shuffle: Other news and views

Nevada To Revise Progressive Rates To Help Slot Manufacturers And Enable Casinos To Link Systems [CDC Gaming]

Massachusetts Just Advanced Slot-Lookalike Racing Machines, And Its Casinos Are Furious [Lower Bucks Times]

Bally’s Nears Funding Goal For Crucial Part Of A’s Ballpark Site, Chairman Says [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

National Harbor Sphere: Plans Call For $1B+ Attraction Towering Over MGM Casino [NBC4 Washington]

Two Individuals Sentenced In Illegal Gambling Case Tied To Flint's ‘The Vault’ [Michigan Gaming Control Board release]

Did Caesars Entertainment Find A Better Deal Than Golden Nugget Owner Fertitta’s? No One Is Saying [The Press of Atlantic City]

The Bonus Round

Completing the Spin Cycle with a few of our favorite social media posts of the week: