iGaming Business – The Premier Lotteries consortium has completed the purchase of the licence to run the Irish National Lottery in a deal worth a reported €405 million ($558.9 million). According to the Irish Times newspaper, the consortium involves An Post, a state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland, and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, the owner of UK National Lottery operator Camelot. The incoming operator will now begin a transition process, which will see it take control of the franchise in 12 months’ time. As reported by iGaming Business in October 2013, Premier Lotteries had been named as the preferred…

Global Post – The sign on the window promises “fun and games.” But inside the slot-machine arcade, it looks more like compulsion and mundane clerical work. Behind the colorfully painted plate-glass window, it’s impossible to tell if it’s 3 in the morning or the afternoon. Apart from the faint strains of light rock music and an overriding mechanical hum, it’s as silent as an intensive-care unit. The two shabby patrons are so intent on their screens that they may as well be wired them. Presiding over the fun is 28-year-old Ayesha, a bleached-blonde German of Turkish origin who declined to…

iGaming Business – US racetrack and casino owner Churchill Downs said that despite achieving record levels of revenue and adjusted EBITDA during the 12 months through to December 31, 2013, it had planned to do “even better”. The firm posted full-year revenue of $779.3 million (€564.8 million), a record amount that was 7% higher than the $731.3 million achieved previous year. Adjusted EBITDA also grew by 11% from $158.3 million in 2012 to a record $176.2 million in the past 12 months. The successful full-year figures were boosted by Churchill Downs’s performance in the three months through to December 31,…

Press of Atlantic City – Wednesday was a long day for Atlantic City resident Michelle Olson. With several hours to go before the Golden Nugget opened the doors for its emergency job fair, Olson claimed the first spot in line at 3 a.m. in the hope of landing a job as a front desk attendant. As she watched the crowd grow from dozens to hundreds and beyond, she remained hopeful that she would land a position, saying she believed God was on her side. The job fair kicked off at 10 a.m. Wednesday and drew 1,300 people to the Marina…

Philly.com – New Jersey casino regulators approved a multi-state slots system designed to result in larger jackpots. The state’s Division of Gaming Enforcement said Wednesday it has authorized a wide-area progressive slots jackpot system involving New Jersey and other jurisdictions. It said “several states” have indicated an interest in participating, but listed only one: South Dakota, which is still considering its own regulations for multi-state slots. The launch of the system depends on how quickly other states approve their own regulations, the division said. The goal is to create larger jackpots that will be more appealing to players – some…

iGaming Business – The Finland Cabinet Committee on Economic Policy has outlined new measures to help strengthen the country’s gambling monopoly. Under the new measures, the Cabinet Committee is to set up a digital monitoring group in order to analyse ways of preventing operations that violate the Finnish Lotteries Act. As part of this strategy, the Cabinet Committee examined the possibility of tackling illegal marketing through the criteria set of for radio and television licences, which are granted by the government. The Committee said that at this stage, financial transfers will not be proposed as a primary instrument and alternative…