Review-Journal columnist John L Smith has resigned from the Las Vegas newspaper in protest at a ban on writing about its new owner, Sheldon Adelson. Until this week, Smith, who Adelson once attempted to sue for defamation, wrote a popular column in the paper on issues facing Las Vegas, from human interest stories to politics. Adelson sued Smith in 2005 over his book Sharks in the Desert. The lawsuit stated that “Smith deceptively manipulates language, quotations, and sources in order to concoct the smear that Adelson had dealings with the Boston Mob when Adelson was in the vending machine business.” The…

Exchange wagering, a fixed-odds, peer-to-peer form of parimutuel betting popular in other parts of the world, will be offered to residents of New Jersey on horse racing beginning May 10th, Betfair US, the operator of the world’s most popular platform, and Darby Development, the operator of Monmouth Park, announced today. Unlike traditional “tote” wagering, where the odds fluctuate, are not determined until the start of each race and are the same for each customer, exchange wagering utilizes cutting-edge technology to allow players to take fixed odds by proposing or matching anonymous trades with each other via the exchange platform. Exchange…

The California horse racing industry has come out in official support of online poker bill AB 2863 in advance of next week’s hearing in the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee. PokerNews.com has obtained a copy of the letter that nine industry leaders sent to Assemblyman Adam Gray, chair of the committee and co-lead sponsor of the bill. In the letter, the industry expressed support for the bill with a few reasonable caveats: The $60 million annual payment to horse racing is not changed. Assemblyman Gray told PokerNews last month that the figure was not up for negotiation. Tax rate and licensing…

The state of affairs in Atlantic City continues to get more tense. The city’s mayor Don Guardian has threatened to shut down City Hall this Friday and said he will cease all non-essential government services unless he can get a bail out from the state. However, Governor Chris Christie is having no part of the threats: “I tell you what we’re not going to do. We’re not write a blank check to the government,” Christie said to a local radio host in an interview. Christie continued, “They should not play chicken with me or test me. I will not change…

Atlantic City casinos could soon offer skill gaming through new regulations issued by New Jersey’s Division of Gaming Enforcement. The rules for the devices include provision over the percentage of bets collected and prohibit casinos from making the games harder or easier to win while a game is in progress, based on the perceived skill of the player. Monitoring programs are to be introduced to guard against collusion or money laundering in multi-player peer-to-peer games. The rules are similar to those put in place in Nevada last year, with New Jersey stating that any device approved there would be allowed…

GSN Games has linked up with the makers of Tetris to launch a real money and social version of the classic video game. Tetris Burst is the first official Tetris game that allows players to enter skill-based Tetris tournaments against other players for a chance to win real cash prizes. GSN said that Tetris Burst brings a “fresh, fun experience” to the iconic puzzle game. Maya Rogers, president and chief executive of Blue Planet Software, sole agent for The Tetris Company, said: “We are continuously working to bring new Tetris experiences to fans. “The introduction of Tetris Burst, which gives…