DeSIA – Deutsche Spielbanken Interessen - und Arbeitsgemeinschaft - Der 8.Februar ist nicht nur für Sie ein wichtiger Tag – daher unser allerherzlichsten Glückwunsch zu Ihrem Zehn-Jährigen – sondern auch für die deutschsprachige Glücksspielbranche, der Sie mit Ihrem Online-News-Portal (wie es auf neudeutsch heißt) eine heute nicht mehr wegzudenkende Informationsplattform geschenkt haben.

President Vladimir Putin last week signed a law that will close casinos and slot-machine halls in major cities in Russia and force them to relocate into four gambling zones throughout the country. Putin’s signature on the bill was expected following almost unanimous passage through both houses of Parliament of a measure he introduced. The bill calls for the creation of four zones for legal gambling in the Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad...

Las Vegas Sands informed that the company has entered into a credit agreement which provides financing of up to USD 3.7 billion for the development of the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. Borrowings under the credit agreement will bear interest at a spread of 2.25% above the Singapore Dollar SWAP Offer Rate for a selected maturity of one, two, three or six months. The current Singapore Dollar Swap Offer Rate for a maturity of three months is approximately 2.16%.

Genting Highlands Resort defeated many a familiar name in the casino business to win the prestigious International Travel Award - The 2007 World Travel Award for the World’s Leading Casino Resort at the 14th Annual World Travel Awards Gala ceremony. The local resort was nominated along with world renowned Ceasars Palace Las Vegas (USA), D’Oreale Grande, Emperor Palace (South Africa), MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, Vegas (USA), Park Hyatt Mendoza (Argentina), Star City Hotel & Casino, Sydney (Australia) and The Venetian (Macau).

Last week, Montevideo council started receiving offers from private businessmen interested in the tender of Hotel Casino Carrasco, according to the Director of Supplying of the Council, Néstor Fernández. Last Wednesday 26th, the government passed the law which authorizes the council to put to tender the operation of Casino Carrasco to casino or hotel companies.

Councillor of Partido Acciona Nacional (PAN), Armando Amaral Macías, mentioned that, after the problem aroused due to the approval of a casino in Monterrey, a regulation to control the ways in which betting centers are approved. Last December 21st, the Council approved the installation of a casino in a session which was abandoned by more than ten legislators from PAN party, in disagreement with such approval because they could not count with the corresponding file, in order to issue their vote.

According to a leading authority on gaming law, aboriginal tribes in California have been spending more money than ever before in the run up to a vote next month on whether to allow casino expansion. Professor Nelson Rose stated that voters will decide on new compacts that would see four of California’s tribes able to offer players up to 5,500 additional slot machines in return for sharing up to one-quarter of gaming revenues with the state.

The ruling Liberal Democratic Party plans to propose legislation to legalize casinos in Japan under strict supervision, Jiji Press learned this week. Under the lawmaker-initiated bill, an LDP panel on casinos plans to call for the establishment of an independent watchdog with strong investigative authority in order to prevent crimes. Inspectors of the envisioned organization would be empowered to screen casino business license applications from the private sector, conduct on-site inspections of casino operators, etc.

Las Vegas (AP) - The casino industry lobby has filed legal challenges against two petitions that propose a tripling of the state's gaming tax. The Nevada Resort Association claims that the petitions amount to taxation without representation because they would allow other states' tax rates to influence Nevada's. Under the petitions, the gaming tax rate in Nevada would be set at the average maximum rate applied in the 11 other states with casino gambling.

Washington - The federal government has turned down plans for two Indian casinos in the Catskills, saying the gambling sites aimed at drawing high rollers from New York City might leave their faraway tribes worse off. The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe had sought to build a USD 600 million casino in Monticello in Sullivan County, about 90 miles from New York City. The Stockbridge Munsee of Wisconsin had also sought to build a casino in Sullivan County.

The new casino tender process in Chile will allow the authorization of three licenses that are still pending from the previous contest, after the Chilean House of Representatives rejected the postponement of the tender until the year 2011, in opposition to the initiative that the government introduced to the Parliament. This way, the Casino Superintendence should be the one to decide the granting of licenses.

Vietnam is considering the possibility of legalizing different forms of gambling to better manage the activities and get bigger funds, its news agency VNA reported quoting a local newspaper as saying. The ministries of Finance and Planning and Investment are drafting legal documents to submit to the government for consideration, under which special regulations can be issued to ensure the sound operation of gambling services providers...