Amy Calistri

Poker, Casino and Gaming Biz Industry Beat

Posts by AmyCalistri:

  • Wall Street Isn’t Betting on Online Poker before 2013

    No expectation of Congressional quid pro quo in an election year
    20 Feb 2012

    Online poker may be a difficult issue to either defend or fight in an election year. At least one hedge fund manager and one analyst are betting Congress will fail to act on online poker this year. Rumors reached fever pitch last week that a bill to legalize and regulate online poker in the U.S. would be tacked on [...]

  • Casino Corporations Hooking Up at Epic Pace

    20 Feb 2012

    There’s a corporate rush like something that hasn’t been seen for a while in the casino industry — to secure and develop poker-related assets. After the Department of Justice’s quiet reinterpretation of the 1961 Wire Act, and subsequent political buzz it created , corporate gaming partners jumped into bed together faster than you can change a relationship status on [...]

  • Governor Calls for More Casinos ASAP!

    New York gaming landscape taking shape, ahead of laws to allow it
    27 Jan 2012

    New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo delivered his State of the State address on Jan 4 to say, “We have long flirted and dallied with another potential economic engine — casino gaming — and when it comes to gaming, we’ve been in a state of denial.” Instead of flirting, Cuomo recommended a constitutional amendment that would [...]

  • Zynga’s Semi-Bluff?

    26 Jan 2012

    Play-money poker giant Zynga hinted last week that it conceivably could enter the real money gaming world (i.e. gambling). The Facebook-facing poker site’s interest might seem reasonable in light of the Department of Justice’s recent re-interpretation of the 1961 Wire Act, limiting the scope of its prohibitions to sports betting. But there is also a [...]

  • Steve Wynn in Partner Spat over Asian Pursuits

    But who gets to keep the sushi restaurant?
    26 Jan 2012

    Shares of Wynn Resorts tumbled on January 12 when it came out that a Wynn director and major shareholder had filed a lawsuit against the casino company. Turns out Kazuo Okada, one of Steve Wynn’s original partners, is claiming the company made a questionable $135 million donation to the University of Macau and hasn’t been sharing its financial information with him. Reuters has a [...]