Slotsguy Blog

A member of the Massachusetts legislature has filed a bill that would allow for internet poker to be played in the state. It came in an amendment to a bill that is currently under consideration that is related to the expansion of land-based casinos in the state.

Dan Winslow, a Republican, isn’t necessarily trying to open up full-scale online gambling in the state, but is indeed proposing that Massachusetts permits players from outside of its own borders to participate, which is different than some of the proposals in other states concerning games that are played over the internet.

Winslow believes that what he has proposed is consistent with what is in the bill, but that doesn’t mean everybody agrees with that. The treasurer of the state, for example, has called it a violation of federal law. No doubt that won’t be the end of the resistance. People could attack it on two fronts: (1) the interstate aspect, and (2) the fact that it is online.

If Winslow is successful in getting his proposal attached, and the bill passes, there could be internet poker in the state as early as next July.

It’s something of a new day in German online gambling, now that one of its states has approved legislation that would regulate the industry, and it is seen to have a stabilizing effect, as well as one that will help the competitive atmosphere.

To this point, there had been no form of regulation, so companies who were pulling in German customers were not paying any tax. However, the state of Schleswig-Holstein will permit any company to enter the market and pay a 20% tax.

There are fifteen other German states, though, and they want more. The European Commission is looking at those proposals as they have been identified (by those within the industry) as being rather oppressive.

That is why the Schleswig-Holstein action has been welcomed. The state had been willing to go along with the other states and have one unified piece of legislation, but as it turns out, that was not possible.

The games of blackjack, baccarat and roulette would not be allowed under the new legislation. Everything else, including sportsbooks, poker, and betting exchanges (like Betfair, for example) are permitted.

People in the industry are waiting to see what the effect of the maverick action of this single German state is going to be. It is quite possible that the other states will go along with the model established by Schleswig-Holstein in order to be competitive, and the EU’s influence should have a bearing on it as well.

In advance of legalization of online gambling, which they expect could happen in the near future, a couple of publicly-traded overseas gaming companies are in the process of partnering up with gaming interests that have operated in the U.S.

Two of the most notable are Bwin and William Hill, who have pointed primarily toward Europeans. The U.S. market is obviously very coveted, and the companies see a little “softening” in the attitude on the regulatory front, even in the wake of the shutdown of a number of gaming websites earlier in the year, which included the seizure of domains by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Bwin is reportedly in deep conversations with a companies that operate in three states – New Jersey, California and Florida – that they hope will soon pave the way for legal online gambling. William Hill has already bought a couple of small land-based operations. One must assume that Bwin is talking to land-based casino companies as well, since any campaigns in individual states to legalize online business would likely requite the companies to be licensed specifically in that state.

This also reaffirms the suspicion that any legislation that would be passed by Congress would likely lean favorably toward companies that already exist in the U.S. and conduct so-called “physical” gaming operations, over brands who have operated online and have pointed toward the U.S. Those companies, even those that have suffered from domain seizures, still have something valuable to deal, as they already have existing customer lists and active accounts with U.S. players.

With the tremendous explosion of gaming that can be done straight from your laptop, there is also an appreciation for playing free online slots, which arguably constitute the most popular destination for casino players, once they access the software. It’s fast, exciting, and offers great live payouts.

This has always been a popular pursuit in Las Vegas, and for good reason: it’s a game where you don’t have to contend with and dealers or distracting you on the “field of play.” It amounts to what you are able to do against the house. And when you log on to a casino to play free online slots, you can get them in a number of different varieties. That is yet another part of the appeal. You can play the so-called “traditional” version of the game, which has a single payline, and that might be the kind of machine you grew up playing and being familiar with. Then, you can also play the more advanced virtual machines, which allow for a lot of paylines – up to 50 in some cases.

As you may have guessed, having more paylines in free online slots offers more ways to win. And setting it all up is very, very easy. All you do is access the controls at the bottom of the interface, and pick the number of lines that you want to be “active.” Then, click the “Spin” button and simply go for it! You’re going to find that you’ve got action all over the place. What is so intriguing about sitting and playing what we term the “multi-line” slot game is that your spin could be over, and it doesn’t look like you have anything, but then, Boom! You are a winner in ways you might never have imagined. Free online slots players experience this all the time. Don’t you think it’s time you gave it a try?

International Game Technology (IGT) announced today that they are releasing a Dirty Dancing Slots game. This slot machine game is designed to bring back all of the memories of the 1987 blockbuster movie, Dirty Dancing. Players will be transported back in time to experience, again the magic of first love as Baby and Johnny return to dance all of your favorite dance numbers. Of course, all of the songs from the motion picture’s hit soundtrack will be playing in the background during regular play and also thru the bonus rounds. Jennifer Gray, the actress who portrayed Baby in the movie, returns to provide custom voiceovers throughout the game.

Dirty Dancing Slots are slated to be released immediately to casinos worldwide. I know that my wife is looking forward to playing this game. A review of the game will be posted as soon as we have had a chance to play it.

Hal went up to Choctaw last night. He told me he did not even go into the main casino, but, instead went to the little casino across the highway next to the gas station and Burger King. I have never been in there. However, I might consider it as this has to be the third or fourth time he has hit it big over there.

From what Hal tells me, the machines do not have a slot for your players card. That does not seem to bother him as long as he is winning – yeah no kidding! He hit $2,500 on a Mr. Money Bag machine and then got Red Ruby, Red Ruby, triple bar on a Red Hot Ruby slots game. So, two IRS tickets and the rest he built up the balance over the two hours he was there. A total of $6,400.00 won in a little over two hours. Great evening for Hal!

There really isn’t a multitude of major slot manufacturers out there, but one of them has been recognized as “Slot Provider of the Year” as one of the industry’s leading magazines had its awards ceremony at the Chelsea Football Club.

At the eGaming Review B2B Awards in London, International Game Technology won the honor for the second straight year. Essentially, the “competition,” if you will, is for companies that provide business-to-business solutions, which means that they are sold to either land-based or online casinos, and IGT’s WagerWorks division, which went through some re-branding, was incredibly successful. That much was reflected with the laurels from eGaming review last year.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that the online purveyors of slot games were left out in the cold. Microgaming, a major company in the industry, was recognized for their innovation in slots, and Playtech was named the “best casino supplier.”

Slot games are often connected to celebrities or well-known brands, and now Caesars Entertainment has come up with a new slot game that tries to capitalize on one of the great movie successes of last year.

This summer, Caesars will introduce “The Hangover” slot game, branded with what it says is the #1 R-rated comedy of all-time. And with the sequel coming out in theaters (and who knows – possibly more to come), the franchise promises to be as hot as ever.

The lead characters in the movie will all be featured in different themes of progressive bonuses. All the licensing was done through Warner Brothers, which distributed the picture and will do the sequel as well. There are various bonuses that reflect the more iconic moments in the movie, including the stun gun scene and the encounter with “Mr. Chow.” In fact, Mr. Chow will appear on the screen and convert the regular game symbols into wilds instantly and randomly.

Let’s not forget that in the movie, the characters stayed at Caesars Palace for the night, and the hotel-casino figured very prominently into the film. The company will be rolling the game out starting in June, and through the summer it will appear at all 37 properties.

Can you imagine a better present for a mother on Mother’s Day than to hit a monster slot jackpot?

That’s what one woman experienced at one online casino recently. She was certainly no high roller, but she took advantage of one of the many massive progressive jackpots that can be found when playing online slot games.

Her precise identity is not known, but then, that is not something that is uncommon when it comes to people playing online slots. There is a screen name she is known by, which is “Cameeeq8,” and if you can believe it, she started out her slots adventure by depositing just $50.

It wasn’t actually that long before she hit one small jackpot to bring her bankroll to $4500, and that would normally be enough to satisfy someone. But she didn’t stop there, not by a long shot.

When she hit the second jackpot, it was a much bigger one – in fact, a progressive, which compiles monies that are gathered among many online slots along a network, and that, when all was said and done, brought her total winnings up to $1,986,161, which is not bad for a day’s work and especially gratifying as a Mother’s Day present.

Saturday night my wife and I headed up to Choctaw again, this time to see Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. My wife received the tickets for free from Choctaw as one of the benefits of joining the players club and sticking that club card in the slot machines when she plays. The seats were fantastic! And they were free! Third row center, right in front of the stage. Sweet! This is a good example of why you must join the players club at every casino you play at, the perks. Continue reading →