USA Today – Ask a mathematician or a casino owner if you can win gambling in a casino, and the truthful answer is yes, but almost always only in the short run. Unless you’re a professional player who only plays with the long-term edge on your side, the longer you play, the more certain it is that you will lose. People get funny ideas about the way gambling works. In casinos there are games of chance (roulette, craps, keno, bingo, slots, baccarat) and games of chance and skill (poker, blackjack, video poker). A game of chance is like flipping a…

Daily Finance – Japanese gaming is getting everyone excited. With a summer vote pending to legalize casino building in the country, casino CEOs are already fighting over bids and locations. Neil Bluhm, the Chicago man who has built a real estate empire with casinos around the U.S. and Canada, is preparing to place his bid on the southern city of Osaka. Las Vegas Sands CEO and gaming entrepreneur Sheldon Adelson is putting his bet, a very large bet, on the capital city of Tokyo. Other companies, such as Wynn Resorts and Melco Crown are preparing their bets as well. So…

Naples News – Like Lucy does with Charlie Brown, the Legislature keeps promising Floridians an overhaul of gambling in the state — then pulls the ball away. This year was no different, with a grand run-up starting months before the legislative session. Lawmakers spent nearly $400,000 on a 700-page study. The takeaway? Expanding gambling would offer “at least a mildly positive impact on the state.” Then a group of senators led by Naples Republican Garrett Richter took to the road, holding a series of public workshops around the state. One telling, early sign: The Orlando-based No Casinos in Florida group…

Ekathimerini – Greek gambling monopoly OPAP, one of Europe’s biggest betting firms, said it expected revenue to grow by a double-digit percentage this year, thanks to the planned launch of new games. The forecast was included in a presentation released on Wednesday, a day after the company announced higher-than-expected first-quarter profit due to cost cuts and the robust performance of its sports betting game Pame Stoichima. OPAP, whose sales reached 3.7 billion euros last year, launched a scratchcard game on May 1. Chief Executive Kamil Ziegler said on Wednesday that the company would also expand into online sports betting by…

Reuters – Japanese gaming company Konami Corp said it was planning to invest in casinos in anticipation of legislation to legalise gambling and help create an entertainment and resort market some estimate to be worth over $40 billion. Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers are trying to pass legislation allowing the development of casino resorts in Japan, although time is running out for a bill to be approved in the current parliamentary session ending next month. Konami said it would set up a subsidiary, once a casino bill is passed, through which it would take a minority stake in casinos in partnership…

Sacramento Bee –  California tribal casinos were deeply divided about how, or if, the state should legalize online poker. Now tribes are talking, but a deal remains elusive because of key disagreements. Robert Martin, chairman of the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, said he would have no problem with allowing racetracks and advanced-deposit wagering facilities to offer online poker. “I can’t answer for every tribe, but I can tell you that Agua Caliente would oppose that bill,” said Jeff Grubbe, chairman of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians. He noted that voters in 2004 rejected a measure to expand…

Miami Herald – Florida City could be home to Miami Dade’s next poker room and, with time, slot machines, under a loophole in the law affirmed Tuesday by a state appeals court. The decision by the First District Court of Appeal in Tallahassee overruled state regulators and said that Magic City Casino’s parent company, West Flagler Associates, is eligible to obtain a summer jai alai permit that could also open the door to expanded gambling. Because of a loophole in state law, West Flagler is required to obtain the jai alai permit and then operate just a single jai alai…

iGaming Business – Turkish regional services sector holding company Net Holding is reported to be preparing a bid for the country’s national lottery (Milli Piyango) in partnership with Hitay Yatirim Holdings and with games solutions firm Scientific Games as an operational services provider. According to the Bloomberg news agency, Net Holding will have a 90% stake in the group while Hitay will hold the other 10%. Net Holding confirmed in a public filing that Scientific Games will be signed as a service provider before the bid is tabled. Two people familiar with the bidding process have suggested that UK National…