iGaming Business – Fears that the Greek government will extend OPAP’s gaming monopoly to online appear to have been calmed following the news that the European Commission is digging in its heels over what it sees as a state subsidy. The Greek rumour mill had previously suggested that, DG MARKT, the Internal Market and Services Directorate General of the Commission, had given the green light to the proposed Greek law that would grant OPAP an online monopoly and revoke the interim authorisations currently in use by a number of operators. The government’s Gaming Monitoring Committee had sent the proposals to…

Online gaming operator Unibet has agreed a deal to become a sponsor of the 2014 Stockholm Marathon in Sweden. Unibet will become of the race’s main sponsors and will benefit from various branding opportunities around the course. The operator will also conduct a number of activities on race day and will offer various betting opportunities for the event. Jonas Nilsson, a spokesman for Unibet Sweden, said: “The Stockholm Marathon is a strong brand and represents the values that we fully stand behind. “We would like to give something back to the sport and see this as a step towards a…

Online Poker – Despite having a small population of just 23 million people, Australia has the highest adult gambling rate in the world with more than 80% of Australians involved in some gambling activity. Each year the country generates $4.6 billion in gambling revenue, two thirds of which comes from slot machines, known as pokies. Despite a vibrant land-based casino industry, online gambling is controlled by the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001, which makes it an offense for gambling companies to offer ‘real-money’ internet gambling to Australian citizens. Like most other countries, however, Australia’s online gambling industry operates within a…

iGaming Business – Social casino gaming company Idle Gaming has announced that a “major refresh” to its Fresh Deck Poker social poker application is now available to download. ‘Fresh Deck Poker: Reloaded’ features a new layout, navigation system and soundtrack, as well as the ‘Rebuy Sit-N-Go’ game format that allows players to buy back into tournaments after they have been eliminated. The refreshed application is available to download for free from Apple’s App Store and Google Play, and can also be accessed via Facebook. Stuart Lewis-Smith, chief executive officer of Idle Gaming, said: “We’ve been blown away by the massive…

EU Observer – In the coming weeks, the European Commission is expected to unveil its recommendations on consumer protection and advertising for online gambling. These recommendations are foreseen in the European Commission’s Action Plan for online gambling which was published in October 2012. Later this year, another recommendation on betting-related match-fixing is expected. As it is generally the case in consumer goods and services sectors, the industry’s expectations regarding such recommendations are high. Member States share the common objective of protecting consumers. However, the many gambling reforms at national level have yielded different results. Through its recommendations, the European Commission…

Press of Atlantic City – Three of the five municipalities where people are spending the most time logged on to some Internet gambling websites are within an hour’s drive of Atlantic City, but operators say these gamblers are not the same clientele who frequent the resort’s casinos. As Internet gambling continues in New Jersey, operators are trying to learn more about where their gamblers are coming from and what can be done to access untapped markets. Caesars Interactive Entertainment, which has captured a 31 percent of the state’s online gambling market since its November launch, is seeing more log-in time…