From Cyprun-Mail – PAPHOS plans to lobby the government to change its recent decision to create one casino resort rather than give out licences to each district. Andreas Soteriades, Secretary of SEKO Paphos – the Coordinating Committee of Parties and Organisations – told the Cyprus Mail that a special meeting has been called for this coming Saturday to discuss the matter in more depth. “Representatives of local hotels, shops and other organisations, as well as the mayors from the district will discuss what we can do to ensure Paphos is able to have a casino,” he said. “It will be…

From Travel Daily Media – Vietnam’s first integrated casino resort has opened its doors on the country’s southeast coast. The Grand Ho Tram Strip features a 541-room hotel, plus a casino with 90 table games and more than 600 slot machines, meeting and convention space, 13 F&B outlets, a spa, three swimming pools and retail outlets. Work on a second tower is ongoing, and will eventually add another 559 hotel rooms along with additional entertainment facilities. “This has been a monumental effort, and we stand here today not just launching a hotel, not just launching a casino – we stand…

From Maricopa Monitor – The U.S. House is making another bid to block the Tohono O’odham Nation from building a casino on land it owns near the Arizona Cardinals stadium on the edge of Glendale. On a 35-5 vote, the Natural Resources Committee approved legislation this week that would let the tribe keep the land it purchased in 2003, a year after Arizona voters approved a measure giving tribes the exclusive right to operate casinos in exchange for a share of the profits. And it would not block the Tohono from  having the land made part of the reservation. But…

From Proactive Investors – Donaco International (ASX: DNA) is poised to increase its 75% stake in the joint venture company operating the Lao Cai International Hotel, after reaching a non-binding agreement in principle. The Lao Cai International Hotel, a casino in northern Vietnam, is located on the border with Yunnan Province in China – and has been operated by Donaco since 2002. The hotel is the first fully licensed table gaming business in Vietnam, and the property is currently being expanded from a 3-star 34 room hotel, to a brand new resort complex with 428 hotel rooms. Donaco operates the…

The New Macau Association wants the Public Prosecutions’ Office (MP) to investigate government officials in relation to the granting of casino sub-concessions. In a press conference held yesterday, the president of the association, Jason Chao, stated: “We have long heard that there are only three casino concessionaires in Macau and another three sub-concessions. But in reality these are not sub-concessions at all; we have six autonomous and independent concessionaires.” Chao mentioned a news article published last May in the newspaper Macau Business Daily. The article claimed that the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Francis Tam, had issued a letter addressed…

From Daily News – The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department recently raided several illegal Internet gambling operations in the city of Carson that have created blight in the community and a public safety hazard for its residents. These unlawful enterprises are proliferating communities across the state. “Internet Sweepstakes Cafés” are criminal gambling operations that run computer casino games like video slots and video poker, which can only be legally played in California with a state license. Customers can win cash prizes and redeem their winnings at each facility. However, despite the fact the state has declared these organizations “illegal gambling…

From Business Week – Sands China Ltd. (1928), the Macau casino operator controlled by billionaire Sheldon Adelson, said second-quarter profit more than tripled as it added gambling tables and hotel rooms to draw more visitors. Net income for the Hong Kong-listed unit of Las Vegas Sands Corp. increased to $487.6 million from $160.5 million a year earlier, according to its parent’s filing in U.S. GAAP standard today. Revenue climbed 40 percent to $2.07 billion from $1.48 billion. Sands China, Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd. (27) and Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (MPEL:US) have been expanding on the Cotai Strip, a piece of…

The towering SlotZilla zipline project in downtown Las Vegas has been pushed back to a fall opening. According to Fremont Street Experience spokesperson Thomas Bruny, the project is taking longer to build than anticipated. SlotZilla was slated for a summer opening. An exact date for the opening was not yet determined. Plans for the zipline project calls for a 12-story, slot-machine-themed, two level thrill ride situated near Las Vegas Boulevard and Fremont Street. Riders on the upper Zoomline will take off 110 feet above the ground and, lying flat on a harness, zoom 1,700 feet through and under the Fremont…