The proposal of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to allow the development of Las Vegas-style casinos in New York has been passed by the state’s lawmakers.

The new agreement will amend the state’s constitution to legalize public casino gambling in four resort-style casinos that will be spread around the state.

Cuomo was delighted to announce the deal and believes the addition of these gambling facilities, which will be filled with slot machines, will be of major benefit to the New York economy.

“Today’s agreement with the legislature would establish world-class destination gaming resorts to attract tourists to upstate New York,” Cuomo said in a statement.

“This legislation is a major step forward in our efforts to both capitalize on this economic development and tourism potential and end the trend of letting neighboring states with legalized gaming take revenue that should be going to our schools.”

However, gaining the approval of the state’s lawmakers was only the first hurdle for Cuomo and his casino proposal – he now needs to convince the voters to pass the proposal when a referendum is held later in the year.

According to The Associated Press this is far from guaranteed as a Siena College poll indicates that New Yorkers are split on the proposal despite the positive effects the addition of slot machines is sure to have on the economy.

Cuomo has estimated that once all four casinos are up and running they would produce revenue of roughly $1 billion a year to the state government, the majority of which will be devoted to New York’s struggling public schools system.

The deal even has in place funding for gambling addiction programs but do-gooders from the Coalition Against Gambling in New York, such as Dr. Stephen Shafer, are still against the proposal.

“We feel there should be no amendment at all to legalize casinos in New York State because the social costs to the people of New York that go with adding the casinos will be much bigger than any payments to the state and to any so-called funding of education,” Shafer said.

More details about the proposal are expected to be released next week and the constitutional change will go to vote in November – at the same time as the vote for New York City Mayor.

Source: Yahoo News

Leading slot machine developer International Game Technology announced yesterday plans to release a slot machine based on the popular musical turned movie The Phantom of the Opera.

The Phantom of the Opera is considered the most popular musical of all time and its popularity has made it the longest running show on Broadway.

International Game Technology is attempting to tap into this popularity by releasing a slot machine with five reels and thirty pay lines of action.

The game features plenty of ways for players to win with four different game modes offering a completely different online slots experience.

These bonus rounds awards players with: free spins; massive multiplier bonuses; cash picks as well as the opportunity to win a massive progressive jackpot that is consistently growing!

The best part about these free game features is that they are very interactive and make you feel as though you are in control of your own destiny.

International Game Technology has really gone above and beyond in making The Phantom of the Opera come to life in this brand new game with videos from the 2004 movie adaption, which was directed by Joel Schumacher and starred Gerard Butler, Emmy Rossum and Patrick Wilson, inserted between different spins.

The game features all the characters from the award winning musical as pay symbols with the Phantom himself easily the toughest to find and awards players with a very large cash prize!

As an added bonus the soundtrack is the exact same as the one that features in the movie and rose to number on the Billboards soundtracks chart.

The Phantom of the Opera slot machine is expected to be released in casinos all around the United States of America by the end of summer 2013.

The battle for the one slot machine license being offered by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission has heated up with the former Raynham Park dog track, owned by Greenwood Racing, negotiating a deal that would see it pay the Town of Raynham $1.1 million a year for allowing a slot machine parlor to be opened at the track.

Raynham Park is currently fighting it out with Plainridge Racecourse for the one available slot machine license and with this negotiated offer Raynham Park now has the edge over their opposition.

Not only would Raynham Park pay the city the pricy annual fee but there are sure to be a great deal of jobs created during the construction of the entertainment venue that would feature betting facilities, retail stores and restaurants.

Greenwood Racing must now win the support of voters in a referendum that is set to be held in August.

Greenwood Racing CEO Tony Ricci said more details about the project will be released in the lead-up to the vote.

“Over the next 60 days, we will provide voters with extensive information about this exciting development, which will be a beautiful addition to the social landscape of the town and will provide a significant boost to the local economy,” Ricci said.

Their major competitor Plainridge Racecourse is currently negotiating their own deal with the Town of Plainville and town Selectmen Chairman Robert Fennessy believes Raynham may have wanted to lock their deal in place to score an advantage in the negotiations but is unsure how the deal will affect his towns own proposal.

“There is only one license and it is up for grabs and the competition is heating up a bit,” Fennessy said.

There are two other developers seeking the license but neither have been able to find a physical location in Massachusetts and it is believed that Raynham Park and Plainridge Racecourse have the clear advantage.

Source: The Boston Globe

British Player Dominates Jackpots

British online slots player David Hirsch has won an incredible six consecutive £1,000 prizes in just five weeks playing the £1 Million Mega Jackpots Power Prize Draw.

Hirsch has incredibly won £15,000 in just over a month playing the Mega Jackpots Monopoly game based on the popular board game.

The game, which is now powered by International Game Technology, is one of several that is eligible for the Mega Jackpot Prizes and the leading slot machine company is encouraging players to get involved in the action.

“We’ve been saying it since Mr Hirsch grabbed his second £1k Mega Jackpots payout in May – if he can win this cash every week, why can’t you,” a company spokesperson said.

“He is a very active player on our site and by playing these Megajackpots titles, he’s also now thousands of pounds better off.

“It’s great to see a couple of other winners alongside Mr Hirsch this week and hopefully, as the Draw gains more exposure, we’ll see a few more different winners as well.”

Other games that are included in the Mega Jackpots prize draws are: Siberian Storm, Treasure of Troy, Garden Party, Triple Fortune Dragon, Mega Jackpots Cleopatra, Mega Jackpots Monopoly and Mega Jackpots Cluedo.

Source: Market Wire

Governor Hoping Slot Machines Can Rejuvenate Economy

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is hoping to pass a bill that would allow casinos to operate upstate and introduce a number of video slot machine parlors in New York to help boost the states sagging economy.

Supporters of the proposal argue that the introduction of slot machines would bring in a much needed $20 million per year for each county in the state.

The proposal will be the subject of heavy debate in the next few weeks with Cuomo and his supporters hoping that a referendum to get the approval of New York voters can be organised for as early as November this year.

Source: Long Island News

Leading slot machine developer WMS Industries has followed the lead of competitor Bally Technologies and announced an agreement with global gaming powerhouse 888 Holdings that will see a number of their slot machines hosted at online casinos through their Dragonfish network.

The company announced that more than twenty of their most popular slot machines will be converted for play online including the award winning The Wizard of Oz.

Other games that will now be available for online slots players are: Bruce Lee, Kronos, Super Jackpot Party and Zeus.

While only these selected games will be ready for play immediately WMS Industries plans to regularly add new games to the  Dragonfish online casino platform.

WMS Industries President Orrin Edidin believes that the new deal will allow the company to spread their popular range of games worldwide.

“This expanded relationship significantly grows the global audience for our great gaming content, while also increasing the Williams Interactive presence in the iGaming real-money market,” Edidin said.

“With its broad and established offerings, 888 is one of the pioneers and innovative operators in the online gaming industry, and we are excited about the opportunities our relationship presents to grow our mutual businesses.”

Dragonfish Head Yaniv Schwartz said the new deal with WMS Industries was yet another way to improve the gaming experience for their players.

“Dragonfish continuously strives to provide our partners and players with the best gaming entertainment experience,” Schwartz said.

“Adding the authentic slot games from WMS, with their innovative gaming entertainment and features, we can offer our players best-in-class gaming experiences that are new and exciting.

“During the past year, we have enjoyed a close relationship with the Williams Interactive team, and we look forward to a long and successful relationship in the years to come.”

Source: Business Wire

Leading slot machine developer Bally Technologies has continued their move towards online slots by announcing that a number of their games are now available on the Mr. Green website.

Bally Technologies has been focusing on expanding their portfolio of online games extensively in the last six months but this agreement marks one of the first occasions that their games have been available for online casino players.

Mr Green Chief Product Officer Markus Aurala was delighted to announce the agreement.

“I’m very excited that Mr. Green can be one of the first ones to offer Bally’s games to its customers online,” Aurala said.

“Bally’s proven game concepts and innovative features have been successful in land-based casinos around the world, and I’m sure our customers will enjoy them.

“The games surely bring the feeling of Las Vegas everywhere.”

Bally Interactive General Manager and Managing Director Michael Probert said the agreement marked a significant step forward for the companies’ online division.

“This is a significant moment for Bally Technologies in the online market,” Probert said.

“Partnering with Mr. Green makes perfect sense as Bally continues to take steps into the global online casino business.

“We believe our popular games will be enjoyed by online players.”

It was a big weekend for Bally who also announced a massive boost in profit in their gaming systems business.

According to analyst Christopher Jones the development of back-end software and server hardware has become an important part of the company’s business operations.

“It’s allowed the company to position itself as a strong player vs. its competitors, who are not as active in that area,” Jones said.

“As a result, Bally has maintained its pricing power in other segments, while others have been reducing theirs in order to compete.”

Source: Investors.Com and 4-traders.com

A forty-six year-old man from the United Kingdom has become the latest online slots player to score a mammoth online slot jackpot after winning  £4.5 playing the Mega Fortune online slot on the weekend.

Sandro, a London native, started his online slot session with just £65 in his account but just seventeen minutes later he was a multi-millionaire and the winner of one of the biggest prizes in online casino history.

Sandro said he was delighted and overwhelmed when his £5 bet turned into such a huge prize.

“I can’t begin to describe what winning the jackpot feels like it’s such an adrenaline rush like being in a comet that flies you around the world in a second,” Sandro said.

“I only placed a £5 bet on the winning spin which proves you don’t have to bet high to win a large sum.”

Sandro didn’t know what he planned on spending the money on but said he was keen to help those that are close to him.

“I will be able to make my dreams come true, without forgetting my family and friends around me of course,” Sandro said.

Amazingly, Sandro was the only Londoner to pick up a stunning progressive jackpot this weekend.

Another lucky player won the Major Millions progressive slot jackpot of £413,490 with a bet of only £3.

The winner said he was killing time playing online slots in the early hours of Saturday morning and was looking forward to celebrating his win with a game of cricket before a big session in the pub.

Such a big run of online slot jackpots is unprecedented but there could be even more big wins in the coming days.

The Mid Life Crisis progressive jackpot at Bovada is currently well over $1.5 Million while Silver Oak and Win Palace have a number of different jackpots that have reached six figures.

Just like Sandro you can become a millionaire even if you are only betting a small amount per spin.

Source: Sac Bee

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Leading online slot developer Real Time Gaming has released a new video slot that is now available at Win Palace, Slots Jungle, Casino Titan and Silver Oak.

The game is simply known as Vulcan and is featured around the Ancient Roman god of fire with all the symbols and free game features relevant to this game.

While there are a wide range of symbols available in this real money slot Vulcan is the only wild symbol present in the game. This symbol jumps off the screen every time it appears on the reels and substitutes for all other symbols. Not only does the sight of this symbol leaping off the screen add to the excitement of the game but all prizes are tripled when it is involved in a winning combination.

Another symbol that you need to look out for is the Volcano. The Volcano acts as the scatter symbol in this game and is the key to unlocking the free game feature when three or more are found anywhere on the reels.  This free game feature is known as the Fire of the Gods and awards players with fifteen free spins. These free spins give players the opportunity to win big as all prizes are doubled! If these free games are retriggered the multiplier bonus increase three times in what is a new and unique feature.

Another addition to this online casino slot is the Feature Guarantee that insures that the Fire of the Gods feature will be triggered within a certain number of spins. This means there is always an end in sight and players are always less than 150 spins away from triggering the free game feature.

The Vulcan online slot continues the excellent tradition of Real Time Gaming producing games that are easy to play, exciting and give you the chance to win big!

Fast growing slot machine developer Konami has become well known for their Podum Cabinet games that offer slot machine players a unique visual experience.

Now they are taking it to the next level with their brand new Podium Goliath system.

Podium Goliath is over ninety-three feet tall and includes thirty-two feet high-definition LCD displays, 360 degree attract lighting an ergonomic button panel as well as an enhanced sound system.

Konami Chief Operating Officer Steve Sutherland believes Goliath was the next logical step for the Podium online slot system.

“Since its introduction, Podium has been a proven performer,” Sutherland said.

“Based on feedback from our customers, we have expanded our line of Podium products by creating the largest Podium yet.

“Goliath was designed to support our robust game library and provide a unique and fun gaming experience for slot players.”

Konami Vice President of Sales Ross O’Hanley said that the response to the Goliath system has been far greater than the company expected.

“The demand for Goliath has been extraordinary,” O’Hanley said.

“Many casinos are ordering three Goliath cabinets and displaying them on their casino floors in pods in high-traffic areas.

“The cabinet attracts quite a bit of attention, so we are not surprised that early performance indicators have been strong.”

Konami has always prided itself on its record of introducing new innovations and ideas to the slot machine industry that will enhance the experience of players and O’Hanley believes that Goliath continues this.

“Konami is Born From Fun and Goliath reflects that heritage,” O’Hanley said.

“We know that slot players go to casinos looking for a memorable entertainment experience, and Goliath is built to deliver.”

Source: Konami Gaming