Автор: bingo

A Florida slots player struck it big last week at Bellagio, hitting a $1,094,560.56 jackpot on a “Wheel of Fortune” progressive slot.

IGT, which produces the MegaJackpots games, announced the jackpot in a news release today.

The winner, identified only as a Florida resident, was visiting Las Vegas with family on June 7 when she was hit the jackpot on a “Wheel of Fortune” MegaJackpots game at Bellagio. Winning the jackpot prompted her to extend her stay in Las Vegas a few more days, according to IGT.

IGT has paid out more than 1,500 jackpots, totaling nearly $6 billion since it launched the MegaJackpots progressive product line in 1986, the company said.

Oak Lawn is no Las Vegas.

But something straight out of Southern Nevada recently invaded the sleepy Illinois suburb: slot machines.

I found them when I traveled home to Chicago in May and visited my father’s favorite watering hole. There in the back corner were four video slots. Though they represent a tiny fraction of the 800,000 slot machines that dot the country, their presence disturbed m e.

In front of those glowing machines sat people I knew from the neighborhood — people who rarely gambled before the government legalized slots in bars. It was disheartening to watch the wide-eyed players zone out in a boozy buzz, mindlessly tapping the “spin” button and waiting for a big win.

In one four-hour catch-up session with Pops, at least two patrons ran their winnings past $100. But most people lost, including my dad, who slipped in a $20 bill, then another, and then another before calling it quits.

Then I watched a guy in his 20s use his grandfather’s ATM card to withdraw cash to play. While his grandson played, the old-timer sat the bar, sipping his beer alone.

It’s no surprise governments have latched onto legalized gambling like leeches; it draws a ton of cash. In the 1980s, legalized gambling drew about $10 billion annually nationwide. It now draws $119 billion annually.

But experts say the proliferation of slot machines in other parts of the country could create a crushing societal problem in a short time, particularly when it comes to problem gambling.

“New problem gamblers have been created because of local governments buying into this without considering the heavy costs associated with the spread of legalized gambling,” said Sam Skolnik, a former Las Vegas Sun reporter, gambling addict and author of the book “High Stakes: The Rising Cost of America’s Gambling Addiction.” “I view that as problematic and a cause for real concern.”

My Midwestern peers once had to save up cash to travel to Las Vegas or a riverboat or an Indian casino to gamble. If they didn’t have the cash to travel? They didn’t gamble.

Now it’s as easy as walking to the local tavern. That carries costs I’m not sure most cities are ready for.

Consider that Las Vegas has more than 100,000 problem gamblers and 100 Gamblers Anonymous chapters that meet every week. And we are the gold standard when it comes to gambling and addiction.

RENO — A chain of casinos in northern Nevada is getting into the online gambling business.

Peppermill Resorts launched the new online poker partnership on Tuesday with Las Vegas-based Ultimate Poker.

Peppermill officials say players can make deposits at their flagship casino in Reno at the Western Village in Sparks, and three hotel-casinos in Wendover on Interstate 80 along the Utah line.

The Peppermill says gamblers must sign up online at PeppermillReno.com/Ultimate to open an account and then visit any of the casinos to make a secured deposit before playing.

The 2013 Nevada Legislature approved legal online poker within state borders. Ultimate Gaming, owned by Las Vegas-based Station Casinos, is one of three operating websites alongside World Series of Poker, owned by Caesars Entertainment, and Real Gaming, owned by the South Point.

As news of LeBron James opting out of his contract with the Miami Heat on Tuesday morning spread, some insiders in the gambling world took the ultimate measure to minimize their risk. They pulled all future odds on all NBA teams to win next year's title.

Several sports books in Las Vegas, including the Wynn, took the drastic measure.

ATLANTIC CITY — New Jersey casino regulators have begun their review of a Canadian company that's buying the PokerStars online gambling website and hoping to get it licensed in Atlantic City by this fall.

The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement says Amaya Gaming Group has begun submitting documents required for a determination on whether PokerStars can be licensed in New Jersey.

PokerStars is the world's largest online poker site. Amaya met last week with division officials, who voiced optimism that Amaya could get approval for PokerStars to join New Jersey's Internet gambling market by this fall.

The division told the Associated Press on Tuesday that it will review Amaya's proposed corporate structure for the acquisition, a list of executive and management personnel, and the technical aspects of the PokerStars platform to make sure it meets regulatory standards.

PokerStars tried twice last year to get licensed in New Jersey. But the division suspended the company for up to two years, citing legal problems involving some company executives, including an unresolved indictment against its founder.

Executives who were involved in PokerStars' acceptance of bets in the United States after the U.S. government made it illegal to take payments in connection with illegal gambling through the Internet will step down as part of the sale to Amaya.

The website, which stopped doing business in the U.S. in 2011, paid a $547 million fine to the Justice Department, but didn't admit wrongdoing.

PokerStars tried to buy the Atlantic Club Casino in Atlantic City but that deal fell apart and the casino shut down in January.

PokerStars then partnered with Resorts Casino Hotel, which has been unable to offer Internet gambling while PokerStars was under suspension in New Jersey. Resorts announced partnerships last week with two European firms to complement PokerStars and FullTilt Poker, and plans to have all four offerings up and running by this fall.

CAMDEN, N.J.— Atlantic City's Revel Casino Hotel is "a melting ice cube" that needs immediate help to stay open until a buyer can be found, its lawyer told a bankruptcy court judge Friday.

The $2.4 billion casino is back in bankruptcy court for the second time in little over a year. It says it will shut down and fire its 3,170 employees if a buyer can't be found.

Revel lawyer John Cunningham told Judge Gloria Burns on Friday that Revel is losing $2 million a week, and has already lost $75 million this year.

"Simply put, Revel is not profitable," he said. "It has over $400 million of first-and-second-lien debt. It has steep operating costs, including $3 million a month under a burdensome contract with the energy company that runs its power plant.

"This is a melting ice cube," Cunningham said.

That energy company, ACR Energy Partners, is the largest creditor listed in the casino's bankruptcy filing, with a claim of nearly $10 million.

The casino wants a sale as quickly as possible. In a proposed funding plan that Judge Gloria Burns gave temporary approval to, Revel anticipates having bids submitted by Aug. 3 and a sale hearing conducted on or about Aug. 25, though those dates could change.

"Quite frankly, your honor: It's time," Cunningham said. "It's time for bidders to put their money where their mouth is and participate in this process. Revel is for sale for the highest and best price."

He said there had been "substantial buyer interest" before Thursday's bankruptcy filing, but none that ended in a commitment to buy the casino.

The judge granted temporary permission Friday for the casino to pay employees and vendors, pay taxes and insurance costs and some utility bills, subject to further review by the U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee's office. She also gave interim approval Friday afternoon on the heart of the plan: a $125 million loan Revel received from one of its lenders to keep operating during bankruptcy court protection.

She said she is sensitive to the casino's plight.

"It's a pretty dire situation," she said.

Cunningham urged the judge to approve the financing.

"Everybody is watching what is happening here today, and we want to send the message that Revel is open for business."

It could not be determined how much Revel might sell for in a bankruptcy auction, but it is sure to be a steep discount. Wall Street analysts and some casino executives said last month that $300 million was too high a price. A union that has been at odds with Revel since before it opened pegged its value in April at $25 million to $73 million, based on public filings.