The Lakers, who called the Thomas & Mack Center their Las Vegas home for years, have moved down the street to the MGM Grand Garden. The arena, which is set up for just more than 13,000 seats, about 5,000 fewer for basketball than the Thomas & Mack, purchased its own floor a year ago and now has the ability to host an NBA game. It was a move the Los Angeles Lakers likely would have made years ago — had their new Las Vegas preseason home had a basketball court. But the relocation is more than just about basketball. It’s…

iGaming Business – Online gaming company Bet365 has agreed a long-term deal to become a new headline sponsor of the Hennessy Heritage Festival UK horseracing event. Although the length of the deal was not disclosed, Bet365 did confirm it would sponsor 13 races across the three-day programme – including the Grade Two Long Distance Hurdle. The news comes shortly after fellow sponsor Hennessy also extended its deal with the event by a further three years. This year’s event at Newbury will run from November 28-30. SOURCE

iGaming Business – Hungary’s Constitutional Court has rejected complaints over a ban on gambling machines in the country. According to the Politics.hu website, the state introduced a law last October that stated that gambling machines could only be operated in licensed casinos. Two companies and the watchdog for basic rights sought the opinion from the top court over the law, citing the loss of thousands of jobs and little time to adapt to the change. On Friday, the court ruled that the state had not violated any laws when it terminated the concessions of gambling machines operators. The court did…

QZ.com – Macau, the Portuguese-influenced region on the southern coast of China is famed for its money-spinning casinos and the UNESCO-listed ruins of a 17th century Catholic cathedral. It also appears to be a recent magnet for hackers. The area’s only internet provider, Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau, or CTM, said in a statement Monday it had “detected high volume of irregular overseas traffic flowing into its DNS Server,” on the evening of Oct. 6, activity generally associated with attempts to break into a server. This attack was repelled by the company’s firewall. CTM wasn’t as fortunate in July, when…

Business Spectator – Chinese billionaire Tony Fung is one step closer to building a $4.2 billion mega-resort and casino in far north Queensland. Queensland’s Coordinator-General Barry Broe released a report outlining what must be covered in the development’s Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). Public consultation on the draft report attracted about 56 submissions, with residents flagging flooding, water quality, drainage, water and sewerage utilities and road infrastructure as critical issues. If approved, the resort would be one of the largest tourism ventures in the state and pump $2.8 billion into the economy each year once completed. The 340-hectare resort and casino…

iGaming Business – Dutch gambling monopoly Holland Casino has been placed under direct supervision due to financial problems. According to Dutch newspaper Financieele Dagblad, the company’s debt currently stands at €60 million ($80.4 million) and could reach in excess of €100 million. The organisation is also set to cut a further 150 jobs and reduce staff perks. “The situation at Holland Casino requires vigorous action. Turnover has dropped by 30% over the past five years,” a Holland Casino spokesman said. Holland Casino operates 14 casinos across the Netherlands but has suffered in recent times due to lower visitor numbers and…