Clubs and Bars


Clubs and Bars

Profiles

Maroubra Bay Hotel Australian Jockey Club Ruby Rabbit Parramatta Eels Hugos

Ravesi's The Basement The Basement 34b Burlesque Bondi Icebergs Sharkies

Star City South Sydney Rabbitohs AJC Souths Juniors

News

Aussie Gambling Firms Push Via Sports Broadcasts, by Greg Tingle - 2nd April 2011

G'day punters, casino and gambling millionaires and billionaires, sports nuts, politicians, legal eagles, one and all. Australia remains red hot territory for gambling news. We've got Aussie sports media commentators plugging gambling, the pro club gambling campaign driving forward, NRL sports betting probe developments with a link to Tasmanian "devils" and Aussie pokies manufacture Aristocrat making a comeback, with the pokies boss hitting his own jackpot. All that and more. Media Man http://www.CasinoNewsMedia.com and Gambling911 with your gambling, sports betting and pokies news mix from the land of kangaroos and koalas, with a rabid Tasmanian devil on the loose...

Gambling Companies Push Via TV Broadcasts And News Media...

Gambling giants have the big push on via promoting sports betting with a volatile and quite effective array of sweet deals with clubs, sporting codes, television stations and a big spread of traditional and new media outlets.

Sports commentators are at the front line with frequent betting odds updates, and mid-match updates are a field day, if you will. It's all part of the strategy in place with bookies and big name gambling operators.

"If you like to have a punt on rugby league, and why wouldn't ya, the Broncos are $1.50 on TAB Sportsbet," former Queensland Origin great Paul Vautin told NRL viewers in Friday's opening-round match against the Cowboys.

"Please bet responsibly - we have to say that. If you race down to the TAB at half-time, or ring TAB Sportsbet, they are the prices at the moment."

Next up was Network Nine broadcaster Wally Lewis just after the first half of the game with "TAB Sportsbet right now, Broncos first to score in the second half, $1.75."

Plenty of other sports are in on the action too, with Network Nine sports getting the nod on the most gambling and sports betting plugs. Cricket has broadcasting Richie Benaud discussing the odds, with a bit of help from his fellow commentators, as part of a cool deal with James Packer's 50% owned Betfair.

Nine head of sport Steve Crawley said the broadcaster's promotion was no different from newspapers providing odds on sports and horse races.

"We're electronic media, so when we do that it's in-game. I realise some people have awful problems with gambling, but the reality is that it's getting bigger and bigger."

It's hot fodder in the NRL, which is sponsored by TAB Sportsbet, has deals with "approved betting providers" and permits clubs to have their own gambling sponsors.

The footy still has a scandal on the go from alleged illegal betting surrounding last year's infamous Canterbury Bulldogs VS North Queensland Cowboys game.

NRL chief exec David Gallop said corruption was one of the biggest concerns for sporting administrators.

"The risks in terms of penalties have to be severe," said Gallop, who is pushing for a specific match-fixing offence and has warned of offenders facing life bans.

The AFL is also sponsored by TAB Sportsbet and betting firms support individual clubs, including Centrebet's deal with 2010 runner-up St Kilda for a reported $1 million a year.

TAB Sportsbet has deals with Seven and Fox Sports.

Overseas operators such at PartyGaming and PKR have also leaked that they are interested in getting into big media deals in Australia, with an already strong internet presence.

Cricket Australia allows Betfair on grounds, and the National Basketball League has a deal with Centrebet that includes court promotions.

UFC, boxing, horse racing, tennis, soccer and even surfing enjoy strong sports betting action in Australia, with a number of other sports like snooker looking to plug into the gambling deals in Australia.

Aussie Media and Racing King John Singleton Drives Forward Pro Pokies Ad Push...

John "Singo" Singleton, who happens to love a punt himself, in the man and the brains behind the $20 million advertising campaign by the Aussie clubs against the Julia Gillard government's slot machine reforms.

The Gillard government is hell bent so it seems to implement the "problem gambling" reforms to retain whatever support might remain from Tasmanian "devil" (satire) "independent" Andrew Wilkie.

Singo's ad firm Banjo has developed a media and public relations campaign to focus on recreational gamblers' fears of having any government 'Big Brother' spying on their betting habits. Yep, we kid you not. Australia's are being spied on, and pokie palaces may turn into one of the ultimate evil "eyes in the sky", that may end up making Google Earth and Google Maps look like child's play.

The Banjo deal for a cool $20 mil, running for 2 years, started with online video and newspaper adverts. It will then pick up even more stream via radio, television, billboards and even pub coasters. Australian newspapers have already been giving the news story strong mileage and its taking on a life of its own, with most gamblers hating what they hear of government 'Big Brother'.

The clubs is dead against a mandatory scheme for players to register before playing poker machines, using so called smartcards (not so smart say European trials) and self-selected gambling limits (which can be manipulated).

A leak said "Clubs Australia said that gambling revenue will drop considerably as recreational gamblers get pissed with the government and clubs, and will take more to online gambling "like a duck to water". This is right on the money and cards. The 'Big Brother' approach is a false solution - actually, its no solution. It's a smokescreen and spin. The public are not that stupid, they are actually quite smart, and Labor has underestimated Australians intelligence once again. No wonder Labor lost the NSW state election".

Singo and a consortium of investors, including the investment banker Mark Carnegie, the retail king Gerry Harvey and ex Qantas chief executive Geoff Dixon, have purchased high-profile Sydney pubs including Kinselas, the Bellevue Hotel and Peakhurst Inn. Singleton also jointly owns the Hotel Steyne in Manly.

He had a strong association with the Labor government under Bob Hawke during the '80s and early '90s, but last year developed ads attacking Labor on health during the election campaign, and earlier joined the mega push against the mining tax with a campaign for a Perth client, tipped to be Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest.

"The government's belated decision to perform a cost benefit analysis on mandatory pre-commitment is back to front,'' a spokesman for Clubs NSW said.

''This sort of analysis should have been done before the government announced it was introducing the technology.

''If that had been done then almost certainly the Prime Minister would never have been conned by Andrew Wilkie into making a commitment that will devastate the club industry.''

The Families Minister, Jenny Macklin, said ''The government's position is clear and has not changed.''

Police Seek Woman Punter Re NRL Cowboys - Bulldogs Betting Scandal...

Police have released CCTV images of yet another punter they want to speak to about an alleged NRL betting scam. The images were captured at a Browns Bay betting outlet in Auckland, New Zealand, between 4.50pm and 5.15pm on August 20 last year - the day before the game between the Bulldogs and North Queensland Cowboys, police advised. The woman was described as being aged in her 20s, with a slim build, shoulder-length hair and of Caucasian appearance. She was wearing a dark-coloured zippered hooded jacket, blue jeans and carrying a red handbag and was seen pushing a young boy in a pram, police said. She returned to the betting facility about 5.35pm on August 21. Police said in a statement that they were not alleging she had done anything illegal, but said investigators wanted to find out who she was so they could speak to her. Player agent Sam Ayoub and ex-player John Elias have been charged in direct relation to the betting inquiry, while now ex-Bulldogs prop Ryan Tandy has been charged with four counts of giving false or misleading evidence to a NSW Crime Commission hearing. Among the charges Tandy faces is one of giving false evidence about having placed a bet on a game between the Bulldogs and Gold Coast, also last year. The charges against Ayoub and Elias followed an unusual plunge on a betting option that the first points of that game would come from a penalty goal. Tandy was penalised two minutes into the game for impeding Cowboys playmaker Grant Rovelli in front of the posts. The Cowboys were awarded a penalty, but took a tap kick instead of kicking for goal. Tandy, 29, pleaded not guilty to all charges during his appearance in Sydney's Downing Centre Local Court on March 3. Meanwhile, St George Illawarra can finally get down to concentrating on their 2011 following Wayne Bennett's decision to leave the club at the end of the season. The coach's announcement has removed the largest cloud hanging over the Dragons' premiership defence, with the constant innuendo and rumour having played a part in the side's sluggish start to the year. While the issue won't be fully resolved until Bennett reveals where he will coach next season, back-rower Ben Creagh said news of the coach's impending departure would at least focus the players' efforts on getting the most out of the time he had left. While the appointment of Bennett's right-hand man, Steve Price, and the retention of much of the same squad for 2012 should ensure a smooth transition to the new era, the Dragons' best chance to win another premiership in the near future would surely be while Bennett is the man.

Aristocrat Boss Hits The Jackpot...

Jamie Odell, chief exec of Aussie pokie manufacturer Aristocrat, has hit the jackpot on an 'one armed bandit', if you follow the lingo. Odell snatched 24% jump in total pay to $2.5 million last year, despite Aristocrat putting out another very average result. The chief executive's base pay in the period increased 19% to $1.25 million. Aristocrat's normalised profit after tax dropped 53% in 2010. One of the resolutions at the upcoming June AGM in Sydney to be voted on by shareholders is a grant to Odell of 1.02 million performance share rights as part of his long-term incentive package. The rights, which would be granted over a 3-year period, are performance based. If Aristocrat happens to outperform the ASX 100 by more than 10% cent each year, Odell will snatch 30% of the shares. He will get 70% of the shares if he hits certain earnings targets. Will he meet his targets and hit the Gold Mega Jackpot? Stay tuned to find out. Aristocrat is also currently working on a number of b2b deal with online casino operators which are also tipped to return a healthy jackpot to the company, as well as hours of fun for online gamblers.

Greg Tingle runs the CasinoNewsMedia.com website, he is a Special Contributor for Gambling911.com

News

Crown Casino Teams Up With NRL's Melbourne Storm...

Melbourne are expecting a cyclone size backlash as the latest National Rugby League club to link with a gambling establishment after confirming Crown Casino as their new major sponsor. In a massive deal snatcher for a club which last year was disgraced after being stripped of all points and two premierships during the salary cap scandal, the Storm unveiled Crown as their front jersey sponsor on Friday. Melbourne chief executive Ron Gauci agreed there would be criticism of the club's link with gambling. However he defended the arrangement and said Crown offered a home for Storm supporters, which the club had not had since it joined the competition in 1998. All Storm after-match and mid-season functions for members will be held at Crown. The casino believes the sponsorship will boost their exposure interstate. "I think you'll have those that wish to comment but I think we need to emphasise what it is that we wanted out of the relationship and that is a home for our supporter base," Gauci said. "If you think about what Crown has to offer as an entertainment complex ... this is a great place to consolidate those activities." The Storm lost major sponsors Host Plus and ME Bank in the wake of last season's scandal. Gauci said the new sponsorship delivered a message of confidence in the Storm ahead of the 2011 season. "I think it does deliver us a substantial message to the marketplace, and for the club it's very important to have an organisation as big a Melbourne icon as Crown is to support the club. It delivers a magnificent message about the confidence the corporate world has in Melbourne Storm and our future direction." The Storm joined South Sydney as the second NRL club to have a gambling establishment as their major sponsor, while Penrith have renamed their home ground Centrebet Stadium and Manly will also have the Centrebet logo on the back of their jumper. Yes, NRL ramped up links to gambling are all the rage. A rumour has started that igaming kings PartyGaming want into Australia and would accept an NRL jersey, shorts or even stadium deal. The firm is known for its well known and respected PartyCasino, PartyPoker and World Poker Tour brands, which have a strong following in Australia, other parts of the Asia Pacific, such as New Zealand. Party is also looking to ramp up sports betting services in the Asia Pacific region. Melbourne's announcement also comes in the same week as Ryan Tandy, who left the Storm midway through last season to join Canterbury, was arrested and charged as a result of an ongoing police investigation into "irregular betting" on a match between the Canterbury Bulldogs and North Queensland Cowboys last August. Dennis Watt, rugby league general manager with News Limited, who own the Storm, defended the arrangement between a gambling establishment and a sport sold as a family game. "I can speak for Crown as an integrated entertainment, retail complex. It is very much reflective of the heart and soul of Melbourne and it's a great relationship for us to have and I don't see a conflict for the relationship the Storm have sought here." He echoed the views recently expressed by NRL chief executive David Gallop that the association between sport and gambling "is as old as sport itself". "Gambling's a part of the Australian way of life, part of our character and our history," he said. "We advocate moderation, we know that problem gambling affects less than half a per cent of the population. "You've got two million problem drinkers, four million smokers, over nine million Australians suffering levels of obesity which are also big social issues."

A Media Man spokesperson said "The Crown Casino - Melbourne Storm sponsorship deal looks to be a match made in heaven. Crown has world class facilities and entertainment is the name of the game. Entertainment takes many forms, be it football, burlesque, television, rock bands or slot machines aka one armed bandits. Crown Casino can do it all. Already this deal has generated national and international headlines, and yes, we are helping spread the word to our friends in the U.S and Canada. Gambling911, CAP, GWPA and Poker News Daily are just a few outlets that we expect to run the story. It's balanced and positive coverage all the way, instead of the agenda driven gaming hater stuff you read from time to time. Chalk up more browny points for Crown's James Packer and his world class team at Crown, and good on the NRL and The Storm for seeing the golden opportunity and moving it into high gear. I never thought I would say this again after last season's scandals, but Go The Storm!"

Australian Betting Limited 'Bullet Proof' NOT! Says Maker Aristocrat...

A card-based system forcing pokie players to set betting limits isn't a "bullet proof" solution to problem gambling, poker machine maker Aristocrat Leisure Ltd says. Aristocrat, representing over 60% of the Australian pokies market, is instead proposing a machine-based system that lets gamblers set time and/or betting limits. But the proposal was met with some opposition when Aristocrat executives appeared before a joint federal parliamentary committee hearing in Sydney on Friday. The committee is investigating the idea of a pre-commitment scheme using smart card or other technology to force pokie players to set limits on their gambling. It follows a controversial commitment from Prime Minister Julia Gillard to Tasmanian "independent" (so to speak - has seen to be bias and preduduce against those liking a punt) MP Andrew Wilkie to introduce such a scheme across the country in return for his support of her Labor government. "As a company, we acknowledge that there is a problem out there," Aristocrat general manager of corporate affairs Kristene Reynolds told the hearing. "For us, coming here today is to come to the table and be part of that solution." The company's managing director in Australia and New Zealand, Trevor Croker, said card-based systems, which have been used in other countries, can be manipulated by problem gamblers. "It is not a bullet proof solution. People do swap cards and have been able to use multiple cards," he said. "I think finding the complete solution is going to be a very difficult outcome. "It should not be something we don't aspire to, but it will be very difficult, from what we see in those (other) markets." Aristocrat will soon trial a new slot machine that features opt-in pre-commitments, allowing users the option to set themselves spending or time limits. These machines could be ready for mass production from the end of 2012, and phased in as part of the normal machine replacement cycle, Croker said. But with the average cost of a pokie at $25,000, Labor MP Stephen Jones questioned the Aristocrat executives on the cost effectiveness of such a solution. "It would be good for Aristocrat, I can see that. But it's a very expensive solution to the problem, isn't it?", he asked. Aristocrat general manager of design and development Justin Brown said smaller venues could be given longer to replace their machines, while newer models may only require a software upgrade, at a cost of about $3,000. Mr Wilkie, the committee's chairman, also questioned the motives of Aristocrat's proposal. "I can't help feeling an element of commercial self interest in your advice to the committee here," he said. Further questioning resulted in the Aristocrat executives conceding their machine-based proposal would not prevent problem gamblers from simply switching machines or venues once they had reached a pre-committed loss or time limit. The hearings continue in Canberra and Hobart later this month. In Australia the machines are often known as pokies or poker machines, in the U.S - slots, and much of Europe - Fruit Machines or Fruities!

Queensland's Sunshine Coast A Big Winner For Lottery Sector; Punters To Win Homes Via BoysTown Gambling...

It's steal from the rich to give to the poor! Ok, not exactly, but read on and you will get the drift soon enough. The Sunshine Coast has long been regarded as a prize location by local residents, but now a range of national and state lottery organisations are taking notice. BoysTown Lotteries recently unveiled a million-dollar home in Buderim as its latest prize home offering. Located at 22 Orme Rd, the home is part of a prize package worth more than $1.5 million. It is arguably one of Buderim’s most beautiful homes, according to BoysTown’s general manager fundraising Keith Coventry. "Our previous lottery prize home was in Nerang (Gold Coast) and the one before that was in Rainbow Bay (Coolangatta). Now we find ourselves in Buderim on the Sunshine Coast. When deciding on a prize home, we look at the property itself and then the desirability of the location and the features of the area," Coventry said. "I think the thing about Buderim is that you are close to the beach, but you also have those great views over the ocean and the coastline. I guess you get the best of both worlds. "The Buderim home has been particularly popular and the retail sales have been very strong." Yet another contender in the Coast’s prize pool is a home in Mount Coolum, raising funds for the Mater Foundation as part of the Mater Prize Home Lottery. Also sporting a million-dollar price tag, the home is located at 47 Boardwalk Blvd in Coolum’s Boardwalk Estate. Twin Waters is the site of Surf Life Saving Lottery’s prize home, which is valued at more than $750,000. The three-bedroom home at Lot 4 Ameen Cct comes with $41,832 in furniture and electrical, along with 12 months paid council rates. Coventry said funds raised from the BoysTown lottery would assist the Kids Helpline service, which was in particular demand since the recent floods. "Kids Helpline is certainly taking a lot more calls from kids who are worried about the impacts of the floods, or who have been affected by the floods. A lot of people are seeking assistance with the mental health aspects of this natural disaster, so I think that is certainly going to be the focus of much of our fundraising over the coming months." The money raised from Mater lotteries help funds medical research teams and the purchase of life-saving medical equipment, as well as supporting patients and families. Surf Life Saving lotteries assist Surf Life Saving clubs around the country. Aussies, feeling lucky. Go on, give them a go, and you know the money is going to a good place, if you don't happen to win. Mind you, feel welcome to check out the slots, poker, bingo and other casino games showcased on the portal also. BoysTown Lottery will set you back a bit, while at Media Man partners like PartyGaming, many games can be played for free or for money. The choice if yours. Hours of entertainment for young and old - just kidding, check legalities but most counties insist you are at least 18 years old to gamble, and that includes from lottery to poker to slots, ok crew!

Clubs Australia VS Productivity Watchdog: Dog Fight; Bark Worse Than Bite?...

Clubs Australia will today accuse the nation's productivity watchdog of making a mathematical error in its claim that problem gamblers are responsible for 40% of poker machine revenue. Media Man spokespersons and investigators have been disputing the "problem gambling" numbers for almost 2 years! The figure of 40% is being used by anti-gambling politicians aka "gaming haters" to try to justify new limits on gambling the Gillard government has pledged to introduce to maintain the support of independent MP Andrew Wilkie in the hung parliament. Clubs Australia is fighting a mandatory precommitment scheme that would force pokies players to set a limit on how much they intend to spend before they start gambling. It claims the scheme will cost clubs and pubs $2.5 billion nationally and cost thousands of jobs if it turns off casual gamblers from having a punt, throwing a couple of bucks down the throat of an "one armed bandit", whilst often sinking a cold Aussie beer at the same time (not that we endorse it). Beer can change ones thinking, but you likely knew that already Jack! Politicians backing the reform have seized on a claim in the Productivity Commission report that problem gamblers contribute 40% of pokie revenue to justify the crackdown. Clubs Australia president Anthony 'On The Ball' Ball will tell a parliamentary inquiry in Sydney today the figure is "highly contentious" and "inaccurate". In his opening address to the inquiry he will say that the Productivity Commission claims there are 95,000 problem gamblers who play the pokies and spend on average $21,000 each year on the machines. When multiplied together, this comes to a total of $1.995bn, and this figure represents just 16.8% of the $11.9bn total expenditure on poker machines. "These are not our numbers. These are the figures from the commission," Ball will say. "Therefore the vast majority of gambling revenue comes from recreational gamblers." The Productivity Commission used a range of different methods to calculate the amount spent by problem gamblers and found both problem and recreational gamblers underestimated how much they spent on gambling each year. The 40 per cent figure was not derived from multiplying the number of problem gamblers by the amount they said they spent each year but was derived from a range of surveys that looked at what gamblers actually spent. Clubs Australia will tell the parliamentary committee the proposed mandatory precommitment scheme is a "massive infringement of people's individual rights". "There's a vast difference between making the pre-commitment available to any player who wants to use it, and forcing anybody who wants to play a gaming machine to register, obtain a device and provide personal details or fingerprints in order to be able to play," Mr Ball plans to tell the inquiry.

Australian Gambling Enquiry: Traditional Gamblers Heading Online For Slots, Poker, Roulette Et Al; Problem Gamblers VS Problem Child Government Policy?...

Using hi-tech to force pokies players to set betting limits would drive gambling addicts online in the masses and divert resources away from helping problem punters, a Senate inquiry has heard. The inquiry, chaired by Tasmanian federal independent MP Andrew Wilkie, is investigating the concept of a pre-commitment scheme using smart card or other technology to force all pokies players to set limits on their gambling. Clubs Australia, the peak body for registered clubs in the nation, on Friday told the joint parliamentary committee inquiring into the issue it had reservations about the proposal in its current form. Clubs Australia executive director Anthony Ball said more research was needed on how effective it would be. "There is very little good research out there about whether this proposal or any others are going to work," he told the inquiry in Sydney. "There are a multitude of gambling opportunities. The strategy must not be to drive (problem gamblers) online ... The strategy must be to find these people, get them the right treatment and turn their lives around." He said state regulations on gambling were sufficient and that a 'one-size-fits-all' policy should not be applied across all states. Clubs Australia president Peter Newell said the three main issues regarding the scheme were cost, whether it would reduce problem gambling and the consequences of implementing it. He said the system failed to work in Norway, and instead drove problem gamblers to the internet. Five million Australians would play the pokies in any given 12-month period and the system would only drive away recreational players, who represented the "vast majority" of gambling revenue, he said. "As a recreational gambler myself, I am disturbed that there are people who think I need assistance in determining how I spend my money," he said. "Mandatory pre-commitment fails to provide what problem gamblers need most and that is treatment, and in doing so, diverts attention and resources away from treatment. Problem gamblers will still gamble in the mandatory pre-commitment system. They are addicted. But recreational gamblers will walk away from pokie machines." Newell said the system would be expensive and difficult to implement across 197,000 machines nationwide, taking years and billions of dollars to do - forcing clubs to close and costing thousands of jobs - with no indication as to how effective it will be. It's man VS machine; The People VS The Government, and The Government VS The Gaming Industry. News media and website portals just keep lapping up the action resulting in a readership jackpot bonanza.

 

Australian Gambling On Pre-Commitment Pokies: Lovers VS Haters, by Greg Tingle - 21st January 2011

Gambling On Pub Pokies Gambling Pre Commitment?...

It's one of Australia's hottest political stories at the moment. At least, that's the vibe, and its getting a good run on Aussie talk back radio and inches dedicated to Australian newspaper print, not to mention the strong coverage on leading news and entertainment website portals such as Gambling911, Media Man, Crikey and 'The Shout'.

Gaming - pokie giant ALH (Australian Leisure and Hospitality Group).... you've got to love the "leisure" reference, has punished and kicked the head in (figure of speech: there were no pub fight ok punters) of the Aussie government plan requiring all gamblers to nominate how much they are prepared to lose down the throats of slots - fruit machines aka "one armed bandits" before trying their luck, starting it would have a "seriously" negative impact on most who enjoy getting on the punt pokies style.

The ALH, 75% cent owned by Woolworths, who we affectionately call 'The Fast Cash People' (satire ok guys) advised the gambling policy was "deeply politicised" and club and pub owners were being unfairly targeted while online gaming escaped regulation.

Clubs and pubs are of course land based premises on Australian soil, while online gaming and online gambling no very few boundaries, with many of the world's largest media companies, including some in Australia, covering the sector in both a media, PR, affiliate, B2B and holistic campaign capacity.

In recent years Australia's Fairfax Media, publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and a number of online news and entertainment website portals like Brisbane Times, along with The Daily Telegraph online and other Murdoch Australian online news entities have developed dedicated sections on gambling, gaming, sports betting et al, with punters and readers lapping it up. Australia's AdNews website is has also taken on ads, and James Packer's Betfair has promos on a swag of websites, and on many mainstream TV broadcasts. Yep, gambling is everywhere, and NRL team, the Penrith Panthers is tipped to soon have their footy ground renamed Centrebet Stadium, or something to that effect.

Website portals like IGN, Virgin and Media Man Int, are expanding out in a wide variety of domain name extensions, building brands and reach, some targeting specific geographic regions. Example: Media Man now has Media Man Canada.com and well as Media Man Asia and Media Man Network, which Virgin has .ca and over 100 variations of its Virgin name, including Virgin Games, Virgin Casino and Virgin Unite. For the record Virgin is not currently accepting Australian online players from what we can gather. PartyGaming, PartyCasino, PKR, Captain Cooks, Winner, Centrebet and James Packer's Betfair appear to be some of the strongest online brands that can accept Australians (and New Zealanders), and online portals like Media Man list them for educational purposes, putting the information out to the world via the global medium - the internet. In many cases casino games are reviewed listing currency and language options, as well as play for free or play for money scenarios.

To their credit, many of the media and entertainment companies featuring some gaming and igaming coverage do support a number of worthy causes, be it The Salvation Army, Virgin Unite, The Red Cross and GenerationOne, and some even making cash donations to struggling charities on the quite, not seeking fame of thanks for their good deeds.

Crown Casino, home to the Aussie Millions has an online presence, and has conducted B2B with the likes of PartyGaming, where the current champion is an Australian who learned how to play online with Party's online poker brand. Crown over the past few years have got into bed somewhat with online poker firms, accepting "online poker satellite qualifiers", where players play on online websites, with the some of the best players winning seats to the land based poker tournaments.

Back to the politics of pub pokies, much of the fuss relates to the Australian government broken promise to the Australian clubs and pubs sector, while pandering to the wish list of a certain well known Australian senator. Many media commentators in Australia said the senators demands (for securing his vote), accounted to a version of blackmail! Strong allegations, and these were carried in about a dozen different media outlets down under in Australia. The policy itself was a mammoth clash with the Productivity Commission's view - policy on the run...a deal struck between the independent... get read for the name... MP Andrew Wilkie and the federal government. In exchange for Wilkie's support, the government promised a "full pre-commitment scheme" for poker machines by 2014, igniting a war of words and public backlash from the powerful pubs and clubs sector, with Wilkie being shouted out of a few meetings with regional clubs, with Australian pensioners being some of the most upset, distressed and basically, pissed off, wanting the Aussie Labor Government thrown out of office.

The ALH Group outlined in its submission to a parliamentary inquiry, the government's policy would probably be ineffective and would basically force substantially higher costs on pub owners, clients, associates and suppliers.

A lengthy Productivity Commission inquiry recommended "full pre-commitment" by 2016, and the ALH and others pushed for more research.

The ALH is the proud operation of in excess of 12,000 pokies aka "one armed bandits" and 286 pubs. They are king! Pushing for a voluntary pre-commitment, ALH advised problem gamblers would still find a way to bet online where the internet has few boundaries, where less regulations applied. Online brands such as PartyGaming, PartyCasino, Captain Cooks, Centrebet and Betfair are well known, trusted, ethical and popular with Australians and New Zealanders, with punters not so keen to try out other lesser known brands.

Senator Nick Xenophon, an anti-poker machine "hater" (not lover), pointed the finger at Woolworths 'The Fast Cash People' (satire) of trying to defend the indefensible.

The submission ignored "overwhelming evidence" that a pre-commitment scheme would help reduce problem gambling, Senator Xenophon said, likening its stance to big tobacco firms denying the dangers of smoking. The question and claim is being investigated with some journalists not so sure it was "overwhelming evidence" with some saying it was clever spin, backed by "junk science" coming out of some Australian universities known for their dislike of the gaming and gambling sector.

'Mr X' (satire) added "The irony is there are people who cannot afford to buy food from a Woolworths supermarket because they are blowing their money on a Woolworths poker machine".

Senator Xenophon and other anti-pokies groups convinced Woolworths last year to keep children away from its poker machines. Woolworths made $176.7 million in pre-tax profits from its hotels division last financial year. The pub baron Bruce Mathieson owns the remaining 25 per cent of ALH.

The parliamentary inquiry will hold public hearings in capital cities next month.

Many Aussie based legal eagles such as Jamie Nettleton from Addisons are expecting strong business this year, as the legal complexities of online vs offline, website portals vs casinos, affiliate programs, PR VS news and campaigns et al, continue to get looked at. Our friend Nettleton has already gone on record that many Australian laws are outdated and do not basically cover or apply to the global medium that is the world wide web. Nettleton is recommending more regulations, which in turn will help better protect consumers, and well as help with taxation laws and other business functions, resulting in a win - win - win.

Australian Land Based Casinos VS Land Based Pokie Palaces: Australian Casinos List...

Punters, we know your just begging to get your current Australian land based casino hotspots back on file, many of which are massive tourist attractions, so here it is...

New South Wales
Star City Casino (Sydney)

Victoria
Crown Casino (Melbourne)

Queensland
Conrad Treasury Casino (Brisbane)
Jupiters Hotel & Casino (Gold Coast)
Jupiters Townsville Casino (Townsville)
The Reef Hotel Casino (Cairns)

South Australia
Skycity Adelaide (Adelaide)

Western Australia
Burswood Entertainment Complex aka Burswood Casino (Perth)

Tasmania
Wrest Point Hotel Casino (Hobart)
Country Club Casino (Launceston)

Australian Capital Territory
Casino Canberra (Canberra)

Northern Territory
Lasseters Hotel Casino (Alice Springs)
Skycity Darwin (formerly MGM Grand Casino) (Darwin)


Tobacco Industry VS Government Wars: Australian Sinners Key Target...

The tobacco industry has launched a fresh and "backdoor" type attack on legislation to make plain packaging of cigarettes compulsory, using a regional FTO (free trade agreement) to which Australia is expected to sign up to.

Tobacco giant Philip Morris has used Australia's plain-packaging laws, set to come into effect next year, to debate the need for "investor state" provisions in the upcoming Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. This would basically facilitate companies to sue member governments if they pass legislation curtailing business activities!

Thomas Faunce, an Australian Research Council future fellow at the Australian National University, called on the federal government to resist the inclusion of investor state provisions in the agreement. He said the provisions duplicated ground that had already been covered in the 2005 Australia-US free trade pact.

"Australia can rebut such attempts on the basis that they reopen the (free trade agreement) negotiations where an investor-state clause was expressly excluded," Associate Professor Faunce wrote in a critique published today in the Medical Journal of Australia.

Negotiations on the trade agreement - between the US, Australia, New Zealand and six South American and south-east Asian countries - intensified last year and are expected to be completed in September.

In a submission on the proposed trade agreement to the US trade representative, Philip Morris cited Australia's plain-packaging laws among "initiatives of concern".

The company said it supported laws to reduce any harm caused by tobacco, but opposed "extreme and disproportionate regulation … which has the effect of violating international law and expropriating intellectual property rights".

Simon Chapman, a professor of public health at the University of Sydney, said the company's stance was consistent with the tobacco industry's history of attempting to use trade agreements to defeat individual countries' health laws.

"It's yet another sign of the degree to which the industry will go to to defeat and delay any measure that will actually work (to cut smoking rates)" he said.

The World Trade Organisation's Uruguay Round had established the right of countries "to put health considerations above international trade considerations".

Patricia Ranald, of the Australian Fair Trade and Investment Network, which advises on human rights, and the environment, said Australia would receive little export benefit from the treaty because the free trade agreement was already in place.

"What we want to say to our government is that we should negotiate about trade issues but not about social policies," Dr Ranald said.

Craig Emerson, the Minister for Trade, would not commit on excluding investor-state provisions from the trade pact, saying he was not prepared to make policy on the run.

But he said Philip Morris would be "whistling in the wind" if it tried to undermine national anti-tobacco laws.

The tobacco industry ie: smoking, has long been linked to other industries such as gambling (where punters often chase land based pokies where smoking is allowed), the sex and fetish industry, fashion (models smoke instead of eat correctly, not to put on weight) and motorsport (especially F1), but exposure of tobacco products on cars has been massively reduced - more than halved, over the past 5 years, with energy drinks like Red Bull picking up some of the slack.

Media Man, Casino News Media and Gambling911 are website portals. Not casinos as such, however are recognised as world leading websites that cover the sector and act as central points to games, news, reviews and more.

Readers... er, punters, how did you like our report? Tell us in the forum.

If you have a bet, please bet with your head, not over it, and for God's sake, have fun.

*Greg Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911

*Media Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal development company. Gaming is just one of a dozen sectors covered

Aspinalls Online Poker website Aspers profile Aspinalls Online Casino profile

British Gaming UK United Kingdom World Casino Directory World Gaming

Cleopatra MegaJackpots Cleopatra Cleopatra II Da Vinci Diamonds

NRL AFL NFL North Bondi RSL Betezy PartyBets

Virtually Vegas Hotels Accommodation

Casino Club

PartyCasino.com PartyCasino.com Slots

Saturday Night Fever slot profile

Saturday Night Fever official website

PKR Casino PKR Poker PKR PKR Casino News

Virgin Casino

PartyCasino.com PartyCasino.com News PartyPoker.com News

Saturday Night Live profile

PartyCasino.com Slots

Virgin Casino Las Vegas

Profiles

Maroubra Bay Hotel Australian Jockey Club Ruby Rabbit Parramatta Eels Hugos

Ravesi's The Basement The Basement 34b Burlesque Bondi Icebergs Sharkies

Star City South Sydney Rabbitohs AJC Souths Juniors

Promos

Poker Babes Casino Babes

Night Life

Night Clubs

Ruby Rabbit

Bondi Icebergs

Bondi Hotel

Hilton Zeta Bar

Hugos

Maroubra Bay Hotel

Ravesi's

Sharks International (Cronulla Sharks)

Star City

The Basement

Profiles

Bingo

Bessie Bardot

Australian Jockey Club

Maxines

Energy Drinks

Drinks

 

Photographers

Media Man has collaborated with photographers such as:

Bill Ranken

Louise Whelan

Jamie Fawcett

Music

Events

Sports Betting

Kings Cross

Australia

World Directory

Australian Casinos

Casino News

Elvis, now at Virgin Casino