From Press of Atlantic City – After months of fighting in court, the parent company of online global gambling giant PokerStars has abandoned its attempts to buy the Atlantic Club Casino Hotel. A lawyer representing the Rational Group has sent a letter notifying New Jersey casino regulators that the company is withdrawing its petition to take over the Atlantic Club. A copy of the July 17 letter was released Friday by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement to The Press of Atlantic City. “We are no longer pursuing an acquisition of the Atlantic Club,” Rational Group spokesman Eric Hollreiser…

Ultimate Poker has announced a 19-event live tournament series that will take place this summer at the Red Rock Casino Resort in Las Vegas. The Ultimate Poker Challenge kicks off Aug. 30 and runs through Sep. 8, featuring buy-ins from $120 to $550, with a $1,100 main event starting Sep. 6. The main event, which boasts four starting days, will guarantee at least $200,000 to the prize pool. The event launched on April 30 as Nevada’s first licensed and regulated online poker room. It then spent the next two and a half months following a trial period of strict guidelines…

From Online Poker report – After months of silence, an update – with what appears to be very good news – from the company charged with handling the return of Full Tilt Poker bankrolls to the room’s former U.S. customers. The Garden City Group (GCG) issued the update today via the official website for the FTP claims process. The two key points for those who have money stuck on Full Tilt (excerpted from the statement): “The claims process will begin shortly.” “It has been determined that the calculation formula to be used for the Petition for Remission process will be…

Press Release – Poker at bet365’s Premium Money Ladder is in full swing but there is still time to move up the rungs and earn cash! You can be rewarded for play on cash tables or in Sit & Gos and there’s up to $1,000 on offer in each Premium Money Ladder week. You climb the Premium Money Ladder by earning Coins on No Limit Hold’em cash tables (stakes up to $2/$4, £2/£4 or €2/€4) and in No Limit Hold’em Sit & Gos (buy-ins up to $50). Play in Poker at bet365’s Premium Table cash games to be awarded double…

Could virtual currency save web poker? The wild world of online poker that can see millions of dollars spent on the game has been under attack in the USA and some other jurisdictions on the planet. One of the most effective methods of controlling the online poker industry has been the control of the financial transactions. Most of the concern in America has been based on the taxes that the government hasn’t been collecting when the game is played. Then came Bitcoin the virtual online money that has taken the internet by a storm came into online gambling’s focus. Bitcoins…

From Lawyers.com – When Nevada unveiled a trial run of legalized online poker this spring, it became the first and — so far — only state to allow the Internet version of the game since the federal government shut down a number of sites two years ago. Ultimate Poker offers an opportunity for anyone in the state to join in a poker game while sitting in their living room, with no need to make the trek to a casino. While Nevada is unique in this respect to date, it could soon be joined by other states with their own online…

From Card Player – The Poker Players Alliance is asking those with Full Tilt Poker money still locked up, which is every former customer in the United States, to fill out a brief survey to help with efforts to put pressure on those with enough political clout to speed up the remission process. Card Player was told recently that repayment would take at least another year. Former U.S. customers have been without access to their funds since April of 2011, when the site’s then owner Ray Bitar was indicted by the federal government. FULL STORY

From iGaming Business – Poker and betting operators licensed in France are still operating at a loss but managed to cut their operational losses by 50% to €85m during 2012, the French igaming regulator ARJEL announced on Wednesday 31 July. France’s regulatory body said operating results for the whole sector remained negative but losses had been cut by 50% and represented 12% of operators’ gross gaming revenues in 2012 against 27% in 2011. Most of the cost cutting had been done through significant reductions in marketing and sponsorship spend by the operators, in particular the online poker and sports betting…