There was much excitement as Canada launched an online gambling site that was a government regulated online gambling website. However, on the first day it was in operation, it crashed. The British Columbian online gambling site, the first regulated gambling site in all of North America reached 100% capacity on the first day, and could not cope with the load.

However, it has now come out that not only did the site reach capacity, but there was some kind of a security breech along with it. According to Rich Coleman, the British Columbia Minister of Housing and Social Development, there may have been some personal information of some of the players that that leaked.

Rich Coleman said: “It does appear that some information – because of all the data hitting at once – might have been displayed on somebody’s computer, so we are dealing with that.”

Some are of the opinion that the site was hacked into, but at this time, there is no evidence of that taking place.

For those attempting to visit the PlayNow.com site, they will find the following, along with both an email address and a telephone number by which players can contact Customer Services: “PlayNow.com is Currently Unavailable. We are experiencing technical difficulties and are working to correct the matter. We regret any inconvenience this may cause you.”

Added to that is the line that many are looking for, in which the site admits that personal information has been compromised: “If you have not been contacted by BCLC, your account has not been impacted.”

It has been reported that more than 130 user accounts were compromised in the few hours that the site was up and running, and that $8,000 was wagered from accounts that were not used by their owners. There were yet other users that reported that they could see not only their own information, but also the information of other users.

This data crossover glitch has not inspired the confidence of Canadian online gamblers, who were expecting what they had been promised, “A safe, secure, and regulated site.” There are, of course, many that now feel that they would rather gamble at an offshore online casino, which has a good reputation and good certification, rather than at this government regulated site.

Hopefully, this glitch will be sorted out soon, and that it will be a lesson to other government regulated online gambling sites in the future.

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Real Time Gaming (RTG) has released a new slot game, Fruit Bowl XXV!!! This game shows American Football at its most exciting, and offers free games, and much much more.

To set the scene, players will see roaring crowds, with stands filled up with fans, and they can imagine themselves to be one of those excited fans. In order to ensure that the atmosphere is as authentic as possible, players should note that there are even hotdogs for sale during the game.

At the Fruit Bowl, players will find the Mighty Grapes, and other fruity opponents, such as the fierce pineapples. When playing this exciting slot game, and three or more scattered logos, the Fruit Bowl XXV logos, appear on the screen, an exciting mini-game comes up. The fun mini-game is quite amusing, and has the Mighty Grapes trying for the title, and their fierce pineapple opponents. The pineapples need to be dodged by the slot players as much as possible. The blueberry girls are on screen cheering on the fierce pineapples. If you score a touchdown, you can win as many as 25 free games, and a 5 x multiplier.

Fruit Bowl XXV has both a major jackpot, and a minor jackpot. The jackpots are both paid out randomly, and become worth more and more as every bet is placed, and growing in size until the jackpot is won. Both the major jackpot and the minor jackpot can be won without having any effect on the jackpot that has not yet been won.

Both smaller prizes and winner prizes can be turned into even better prizes when players use the Win-Win feature that is made available to them.

This game release comes just ahead of this year’s football season, and should help players to begin enjoying the football season a little earlier than usual. What an exciting way to begin the football season, with the first game kicking off at the Fruit Bowl!

There are many exciting Real Time Gaming online casinos, some of which have been chosen for review on Casino People. Some of these are Slots Oasis, One Club Casino, Club World Casino, and Silver Oak Casino.

All these Real Time Gaming online casinos offer exciting online casinos games from the suite of games offered by Real Time Gaming, with great choices of both table games, and a good range of slot games for fun and entertainment.

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Cryptologic, the online casino software company, has found a way to make it easier for online casinos to offer their games to players. Usually, it can take some time before an online casino software company is able to actually offer games to their players, however, this new system has shortened that time substantially that it will take before the games are released for players to enjoy. The online casino site must also ensure that the necessary licensing is obtained.

The new system is a software suite called Instant Click, and already, the first customer, Tain, has signed up to use it. Tain is an online gaming company that is licensed in Malta, and it provides online casino operators with gambling platforms. The Tain network has a number of online casinos connected to it, and it looks like as many as twelve online gambling sites that are on the Tain network will be using the new Instant Click platform from CryptoLogic.

In a press release, CryptoLogic’s CEO, Brian Hadfield, the Chief Executive Officer at CryptoLogic, said: “Instant Click has been designed in response to market need and is a solution for online operators who want CryptoLogic’s innovative gaming content but do not require its full hosting casino platform.”

Mr. Hadfield continued to explain: "Its launch not only boosts CryptoLogic’s addressable market but also complements our branded games licensing strategy."

Tain’s Chief Executive Officer, Christer Fahlstedt stated: “It (Instant Click) enables CryptoLogic’s highly sought-after games to be rolled out swiftly to the online player community by leveraging operators’ existing infrastructure at little additional cost.”

The current agreement between CryptoLogic and Tain is a three year agreement. Those who use the system will have access to more than three hundred online casino games, and can choose which they wish to use. The way that the system works is that CryptoLogic games will be played on the online casino sites, and CryptoLogic will receive a certain portion of the income that the games make for the site.

CryptoLogic did use a similar system last year in which existing online gambling sites were able to offer certain selected CryptoLogic games to their users, and CrytpLogic received a percentage of the income received from the games.

Online casino software companies are always looking for new ways to keep ahead of their competitors, and it seems that CryptoLogic has found yet another way to do so.

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Although John Pappas, the Executive Director of the PPA (Poker Players Alliance) said at the WSOP (World Series of Poker) that there might have been a mark up this week of the online gambling bill HR 2267, this does not seem to be the case. Pappas had said that Barney Frank, the sponsor and author of the bill, who holds the position of the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, had hinted that this would be the case.

While the bill is indeed going to have another hearing, it has not been scheduled for mark up on that date. The date for the hearing is Wednesday this week, July 21st, and it has been scheduled for a half day, beginning after lunch time. Last time there was a hearing for the same bill, it was allocated for a full day session. The agenda for this hearing has been left undisclosed at this time, and the witness list had also not yet been issued.

Although there does not yet seem to be much that has been affected by the UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act) implementation, it is still early days, and the online gambling industry and their players would like things to move forward with the HR 2267 online gambling bill.

John Pappas said: “We appreciate Chairman Frank calling another hearing on HR 2267. We hope this is the final step toward an eventual vote in his committee on this legislation before the August recess. The PPA and the poker community stand ready to secure its passage.”

Although it is certainly positive that the bill for Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection, and Enforcement Act is going to be back in the limelight, many would prefer that it would also move forward, and next month, because of the August recess that will be taking place, it is likely to mean further delays in the progress of the online gambling bill.

Joe Brennan, Jr., the Chairman of iMEGA (Interactive Media Entertainment and Gaming Association) said: “The i-gaming lobby has been working too hard for too long. It deserves more than a hearing." He continued to say: "But, we’ll wait and see who will appear as witnesses. I’d like to see John Pappas finally get the opportunity to appear before the House Financial Services Committee and make the case for the players.”

Mr. Brennan also noted: “Hearings are nice; they keep the ball in the air. What’s needed are votes: committee votes, floor votes.”

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The Ha’aretz newspaper in Israel has reported that Internet Service Providers (ISPs) have been ordered to block online gambling websites. Apart from certain forms of gambling, such as the state run lottery, and some sports betting, both land based gambling, and online gambling are illegal in Israel.

In the past week, Israeli police have been going around to Internet Service Providers, and have been instructing the managements of the ISPs to block all access to any overseas online gambling sites. The ISPs have been told to do this because it is illegal to gamble in Israel. This is the first time that Internet Service Providers in Israel have ever been ordered to block specific sites.

The police instructions showed the ISP management personnel that certain sites must be blocked because they “provide a place for illegal gaming for lotteries or gambling, as defined in Section 224 of the Penal Code.” The lists that were handed over to the ISPs showed a list of gambling sites that are operated from overseas, and it included their IP (Internet protocol) addresses, in order to ensure that the correct sites will be blocked.

The list includes a number of well known online gambling sites, as well as some that have been geared towards Israeli gamblers, which is especially obvious when the site is in Hebrew.

The order, which was signed by Major General Bentzi Sau, the Central District police commander noted: “It is my intention to order your company not to provide users with access to these sites.”

ISPs were told that they needed to conform to respond to these orders within 48 hours from the time they received their police visit, and were ordered to block the sites. Some of the ISPs have asked for extra time to respond since they need time to deal with technological issues, and also because they wish to seek legal advice.

Another reason that the ISPs are seeking a delay is that they are not all sure that the police have the legal authority to order this. The Ha’aretz newspaper has reported that the police are set on seeing that the orders are complied with, and have no plans to rescind them.

The ISPs have pointed out that even if they block the list of sites, it is not really a solution because blocks on IP addresses can be gotten around fairly easily, and also the sties can simply create new sites with new URLs.

News from Casino People

CryptoLogic has not yet announced their second quarter results, but the information that has been released is not so positive. The online casino software provider had hoped that revenue would pick up, yet they are currently showing an overall loss in revenue.

Since the losses at CryptoLogic continue, their management has chosen to bring in consultants to help them deal with the situation.

The company released a trading update that show that expected figures for the second quarter of 2010, show that costs are definitely higher than had been projected, and that their total revenue will have gone down slightly when comparing it with their first quarter financial results.

CryptoLogic has been showing declining figures for some time now, and had thought that they were on their way out of the slump. The optimism that was expressed when the quarter one results were announced has disappeared, and concern has taken its place.

In order to attempt to remedy the declining financial situation, management at CryptoLogic have made the wise decision to bring in an outside consulting company that brings with it much experience in the gaming industry. The consulting firm will review the current operations, in order to use this knowledge to help enhance company strategy.

In the financial update from CryptoLogic, the notes state: “The Board and the Company acknowledge that the return to profitability is still contingent upon revenue growth, additional cost savings and a tight control of cash.”

The notes continued: “In light of continuing losses and the difficulty in forecasting results, a major consulting firm experienced in the gaming and betting industry has been retained to undertake a review of current operations with a view to assisting the Board in enhancing its strategy in the interests of stakeholders.”

CryptoLogic had scheduled the release of a full suite of their games to Betsafe in the second quarter, however, that was delayed, and is likely to be released this month, in July.

While many areas of operation did not increase their revenue, the CryptoLogic branded games saw its revenue grow by about 20% when you compare it to the first quarter of 2010. These figures were up even though many online casinos experienced dips in their income during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Unfortunately, other revenue had significantly dropped.

CryptoLogic also noted that a non-executive director of their company, Geoffrey Finlay has resigned from the Board.

It is expected that the CryptoLogic second quarter results will be released on August 12th.

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Since 2007, Antigua and Barbuda has been in negotiations with the government of the United States regarding an online gambling dispute, with no positive results to show. The World Trade Organization already approved sanctions on the US some time ago, and since the negotiations between the two parties is almost non-existent, Antigua is considering following through with the World Trade Organization-endorsed sanctions.

The Antigua Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer spoke to told reporters that if the US did not work harder to find a negotiated solution, then his government would impose sanctions on the US. Although there have been some negotiations over the past three years, Prime Minister Spencer said that they had been fruitless, and that the situation for online gambling companies based in Antigua is somewhat worse, rather than better.

Prime Minister Spencer said: “Antigua and Barbuda is concerned that the negotiations are being protracted, with no potential end in sight.” Because of this, he intends to try and meet with US President Barack Obama as soon as possible in order to find an acceptable solution.

Spencer continued: “In light of the obvious unwillingness of the United States to reach a negotiated settlement that takes into account the contribution of the sector to the economic well-being of Antigua and Barbuda, we have brought the matter before the Conference of the Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community, which has supported Antigua and Barbuda’s position on this matter from the inception.”

Spencer is expecting to receive full support from the Caribbean Community since their role is to help protect the interests of their member nations, of which Antigua and Barbuda is one. He is expecting that the Caribbean Community will help put pressure on the United States regarding this issue, so that it can be settled once and for all, since the economy of his Caribbean island is suffering without any resolution on this issue.

The online gambling sector of the Antiguan economy has suffered greatly, causing unemployment, as many companies have moved away from Antigua because there has been no resolution with the United States regarding online gambling issues.

In conclusion, Prime Minister Spencer noted: “Given the debilitating impact of the fiscal and economic crisis (perpetrated) on our economy and the apparent disinterest of the United States in dealing decisively with this matter, Antigua and Barbuda may have no other alternative but to signal to the WTO that we wish to impose sanctions. We are fast running out of options.”

News from Casino People

One of the tips for online gambling that is found on this site, and on many others across the Internet is that those who are gambling should ensure that they gamble with money that they can afford to lose, and obviously money that is their own.

One United Kingdom bank manager from Oldham, UK did not take this advice, and ended up in a lot of trouble. In fact, Nicole Taylor, age 39 was brought in to work in a bank specially to help resolve certain minor cash discrepancies that needed clearing up at the bank.

She was unable to resolve a genuine shortfall in the books, which she then falsified in order to keep it covered up. In an interview, she said that that is how her dishonesty began. Once she realized how easy it was to take the money, and keep it hidden, she decided to use some of the bank’s funds in order to finance online gambling. It seems that she had had an online gambling problem for some time, but had managed to keep it hidden from her partner and the rest of her family.

The Oldham bank manager stole nearly £245,000, which she used for online gambling. The money was siphoned off the bank’s cash reserves over a time period of 11 months.

Nicole Taylor plead guilty to a number of specific counts of fraud, which only totaled £29,170, however, it seems that there were a number of other offences over the 11 month period, which totaled about another £215,200.

When Recorder Peter Cowan pronounced a jail sentence of two years, he said to Ms. Taylor: “You persistently abused the trust placed in you over a period of some 11 months, and I have been unable to conclude that anything but an immediate custodial sentence is appropriate.”

Taylor had been hoping that she would hit an online casino jackpot, and then would be able to repay the money she had stolen, although, perhaps she considered it “borrowed” before anyone would notice that it was missing.

When a number of large amounts were used on debit card transactions to online gambling sites nearly every day, suspicions were aroused, and therefore, an investigation took place. More than 40 payments into a savings account were made over four months, reaching a total of £82,000, and another £27,000 was made into another savings account.

Until this rather shocking incident, Ms. Taylor had been considered a valued member of staff, and had had an excellent record spanning her 10 years of employment at the Co-operative Bank based in Manchester.

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Five Filters featured article: “Peace Envoy” Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.

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Five Filters featured article: “Peace Envoy” Blair Gets an Easy Ride in the Independent. Available tools: PDF Newspaper, Full Text RSS, Term Extraction.