The Telegraph – Wynn Macau Ltd. reported first-quarter profit that beat analyst estimates as billionaire Steve Wynn’s casino drew more premium mass-market customers in the world’s largest gambling hub. The stock climbed. The company rose 4.1 percent to HK$31.80 (£2.436), the biggest gain since April 1, at the close in Hong Kong trading. The city’s benchmark Hang Seng Index rose 0.6 percent. Wynn Macau, which is building the $4 billion Wynn Palace resort to add to its sole casino in the city, has been reallocating gambling tables to serve the so-called premium mass gamblers who bet in cash. They provide…

KHON – Hundreds of criminal charges were filed after a huge crackdown on sweepstakes machines, and authorities warn customers could be next. Last Thursday, a grand jury returned a 414-count indictment against nine people — three establishment owners and six employees. The list of criminal charges includes promoting gambling and money laundering. Several were arrested Friday and two more, Quentin Canencia and Desiree Haina, were booked late Monday afternoon. The last two people, Mike Miller and Mike Madali, are on the mainland and will be arrested when they return to Hawaii, according to Kaneshiro. Monday afternoon, the city prosecutor and…

Card Player – The state of Massachusetts could award its first Las Vegas-style casino license by mid-June, according to a report from CBS Springfield. The Gaming Commission said at a meeting on Friday morning that the plan is to award the license June 13, as long as there aren’t any setbacks. MGM is the only casino firm left standing in the race for Region B (the western part of the state). Other firms are competing elsewhere, including a Wynn Resorts plan near Boston, but it appears the state needs more time sorting through those situations. MGM is eyeing a $800…

Poker News – According to a note published by Sweden’s monopolistic company Svenska Spel, the package of “responsible gambling measures” implemented only six months ago resulted in a 6.2 percent profit loss. According to a report on 2014 Q1, “net gaming revenues decreased by SEK 186 million compared with the same period last year, moving from SEK 2.480 million to 2.293 million” and brought the Swedish gambling group an operating profit of SEK 1.243 million — SEK 83 million smaller than in 2013. “The decrease in revenues was expected,” commented Svenska Spel CEO Lennart Käll, who also added that the…

Las Vegas Review Journal – Somehow, “What happens in Crimea, stays in Crimea,” doesn’t seem like an appropriate catchphrase. In April, a month after Russia forcibly annexed the Black Sea peninsula away from Ukraine, President Valdimir Putin said he wants to turn the territory into his own version of Las Vegas. He wasn’t talking about replacing “Thunder From Down Under” with the “Shirtless Putin Dancers.” Putin crusaded against gambling in 2006, leading to the closure of most Russian casinos and slot machine parlors. He called gambling a “dangerous addiction and a magnet for organized crime.” Now, he wants to create…

Reuters – Macau, the world’s casino capital, raked in 31.3 billion patacas ($3.92 billion) in gambling revenue in April thanks to strong spending by Chinese visitors keen to place their bets in the country’s only legal casino hub. Gambling revenue growth in Macau, a special administrative region like neighbouring Hong Kong, was up 10.6 percent in April, beating analyst estimates of 6-8 percent growth. A Portuguese colony until 1999, Macau earns the equivalent of Las Vegas’ annual haul in less than two months. Annual revenues reached a record $45 billion in 2013, elevating the tiny territory high above rival gaming…