The gambling industry is abuzz with rumors that Sands Casinos plans to complete the construction of their shopping mall and events center that they planned to erect before the recession and pessimistic economic outlook took over. While there is no clear confirmation from the company, it seems very likely that the encouraging earnings from the casino and the upward-looking forecast of the business community has made the company hopeful of retailers being interested in renting space in the malls. The mall (80% complete) is much closer to completion than the events center (20% complete).
Just recently Sands’ Bethlehem casino reported earnings of $6.83 m in December 2010 – a jump of 64% from the previous month. This is the highest a casino has earned in the recent past. The table games – poker, craps and roulette certainly earned the casino a giant’s share of the profits.
Macau Billionaire Takes Family To Court
Stanley Ho, owner of 20 of the 33 casinos operating in the new gambling capital of the world, Macau is a billionaire with an itch. A part of his family consisting of 3 living wives and their children has claimed a major stake of the Macau casinos; Ho, almost a nonagenarian, will be dragging them to court.
Hailing from a society known for its close-knit family ties, this cannot be an easy move for Ho. The feud between various members of the family came about because of Ho’s attempt to offload his shares in SJM Holdings amounting to over $3 billion to his family.
Florida Trying To Legalize Online Poker
In a long ongoing debate regarding legalization of online gambling in a bid to earn additional revenues for the State in these hard recovery times, the State of Florida is thinking of legalizing online poker. The State will get a cut of 10% as they do with land-based casinos.
Opposing parties include the existing illegal online poker sites and those that want a Federal law for online gambling rather than a State-wise divided law.
Atlantic City’s Casino Woes To Continue
Reports suggest that Atlantic City will continue to show declining growth in 2011 even as nearby States such as New York and Pennsylvania are likely to post positive growth trends. This has been attributed to the lack of plans to launch new casino ventures in this New Jersey city. Atlantic City has been losing business ever since the beginning of the recession. It has lost 13% of its revenues in the last one year. Competition from neighboring states has definitely been a leading factor. In the meanwhile, Atlantic City’s casino operators are trying to perk up interest by offering other modes of entertainment from spas and golf courses to restaurants and shopping complexes.
American Idol Makes It To Betus.Com
BetUS.com, a 12 year old sports betting company has made it possible for gamblers to place their bets on the hit singing talent search show American Idol by placing odds of certain events occurring. Now you can place your bets on whether you think Paula Abdul or Simon will make an appearance in this season’s show. You can also bet on whether you think this will be the last season for the show.
BetUS.com also hosts poker tournaments with up to $100,000 in cash prizes.