iGaming Business – Dutch gambling regulator Kansspelautoriteit has issued Mansion Online Casino and ONISAC with a joint fine of €150,000 ($204,497) for operating an unlicensed gaming website that targeted gamblers in the Netherlands. The regulatory body monitored the Casino.com website from June 2012 to August 2013 and noted that a number of features on the site were geared towards Dutch users. These included as a Dutch language option illustrated with a Dutch flag. Offering online gaming in the county without a licence is prohibited, while new laws to regulate internet gambling are expected to come into force in 2015. The…

CNN – Right now, Bitcoin is a hard sell for people who are accustomed to old-fashioned cash or credit. The stateless, digital currency can’t shake off the image that it’s unstable, unproven and largely still an experiment. Recent news doesn’t help. Last week, Russia’s top prosecutor declared that Bitcoin and all anonymous payment systems are illegal. One of the largest Bitcoin exchanges in the world, Mt.Gox, prevented investors from pulling out their bitcoins, citing a technical glitch. Apple yanked the last remaining Bitcoin digital wallet from its app store. And earlier, a Bitcoin exchange CEO was arrested for money laundering….

iGaming Business – Gaming research company Commercial Intelligence (CI) has reported that the regulation of online gambling in New Jersey has led to a “marked improvement” of players from non-approved websites to those now approved in the US state. Speaking at the ICE Totally Gaming Exhibition, CI said that its research showed that of the 65% of New Jersey online players using non-approved websites, 35% have switched to one or more of the approved sites. Geoffrey Dixon, head of research at CI, said that the movement towards regulated websites would in turn help generate greater tax revenues for the state….

iGaming Business – Gaming and hospitality company MGM Resorts has thrown its support behind a campaign against a federal online gambling ban in the US. According to the Politico.com website, the new Coalition for Consumer and Online Protection group will launch with an initial three-week $250,000 (€184,257) online and print advertising campaign against the ban. The ad campaign will focus on the market in Washington DC, but will also have a presence in the online gambling-regulated state of Nevada. The group will oppose a counter-effort led by Sheldon Adelson, chairman of casino and resort company Las Vegas Sand Cooperation, who…

iGaming Business – Social gaming company Zynga has expanded its Zynga Casino franchise with the addition of new mobile social slots game, Riches of Olympus. The new title is now available for users around the world to download to their iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch device. Zynga said that the new title offers a “Las Vegas-style” authentic slots experience that players can enjoy with their friends whilst on the move. The game includes a number of slot features including sticky wilds, mega stack symbols, unique reel arrays, burst wilds, respins and expanding symbols. Players can also access mini games such…

iGaming Business – French regulator ARJEL has announced that the regulated online gambling market in France generated €325 million ($442 million) of tax revenue for the state in 2013. The total figure, which excluded VAT, represented a slight decrease on the 2012 total of €327 million. Sportsbetting generated €79 million of the total, with €86 million generated by online poker and €160 million by horse racing pari mutuel (tote). ARJEL said that the drop occurred despite a surge of sportsbetting activity in the fourth quarter of 2013. The total amount placed on sportsbetting increased year-on-year by a record 41% to…