Two influential American Indian tribes are publicly asking a politically powerful tribal coalition to ease its opposition to extending eligibility for online poker website licenses to California race tracks, but skepticism remains that a bill will make it out of the legislature this year. Council member Laurie E. Gonzalez of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians in a May 20 press release urged that tribes reach consensus on online poker legislation “rather than digging their heels into the ground,” an obvious reference to steadfast opposition against licensing race tracks by the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians and six other coalition…

It’s been one year since Econsult Solutions presented its gambling study to Pennslyvania’s Legislative Budget and Finance Committee. That study concluded that the PA market for regulated online gambling (casino and poker) was worth some $184 million in first year revenue, and $307 million in ongoing revenues. Since, two of Pennsylvania’s neighbors – New Jersey and Delaware – have wrapped up their first year in the industry, and are deep enough into their second that meaningful year-over-year comparisons can be drawn. What follows are updated revenue projections for Pennsylvania’s iGaming market, utilizing data from Econsult and other reputable sources, and…

New York State Senator John Bonacic (R-42) has introduced a bill that would bring regulated online poker to the Empire State. Full text of the bill (S 5302) is available here. You can track the bill’s progress here. This marks the second consecutive year that Bonacic has introduced online poker legislation. HIs attempt in 2014 – matched by companion legislation in the Assembly –  failed to move beyond committee. The bill is largely similar to the one introduced by Bonacic in 2014. One key difference: this version lacks a so-called “bad actor clause” that would preclude companies, individuals or assets involved in…

PokerStars is bringing the big guns to California. Two of the site’s most recognizable faces (at least for the American audience) will be in California’s capitol city this week, as Jason Somerville and Daniel Negreanu will host a live demo at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in Sacramento on May 21 from 10am – 12pm. The demonstration, which will include the chance to play against the pros (play-money, of course), will come just one day after a joint Senate / Assembly informational hearing for online poker. The demonstration will occur in parallel with the Capitol Weekly California Gaming Conference, which OPR will…

WSOP.com launched a support forum on its website. It is available for players interested in online poker at the WSOP.com regulated poker sites in Nevada and New Jersey. Live participants in the World Series of Poker tournaments may also post questions. The forum is moderated by WSOPBill. This is the same username used by WSOP.com poker room manager Bill Rini. Forum topics include questions about World Series of Poker scheduling, funding of World Series of Poker accounts, general support questions for the online poker sites, and promotional inquiries. There are also links provided to the site’s mobile, PC, and Mac…

iGaming Business – Online poker supporters in California are celebrating a step forward for legalisation in the US state. The Assembly Governmental Organisation Committee (GO) voted unanimously in favor of advancing AB 431, sponsored by Assemblymember Adam Gray. While this move does not make it law, it pushes it along to the next legislative step and is significant because it is a first legislative victory for poker in California and it was unclear that it would have enough support to progress. The vote was welcomed by the ‘Amaya Coalition’, which is a group of interested parties including PokerStars owner Amaya…