While poker seems to like what tweeting from the field of play brings to the table, tennis people — specifically the Tennis Integrity Unit (wow) — do not want to see anything on twitter saying, “returning serve. whoa! that was close!” because of fears the communications will be misappropriated by gamblers.

From the New York Times:

The signs, written by the Tennis Integrity Unit, point out that Twitter messages could violate the sport’s corruption rules. Tennis appears to be the first sport openly concerned about Twitter’s possible effect on gambling.

The signs say tweeting is not allowed on court during matches. They also warn about using Twitter away from the court, saying sending “certain sensitive information” could be considered passing along inside information.

As Kevin pointed out … great story (like true narrative from a non-poker person who kinda gets poker) in the New York Times Magazine about a mother trying to come to grips with her son’s extensive online poker play … and the transition from successful scholar-athlete to internet poker pro.

(What’s a mom to do when cutting a 19-year-old kid off financially carries no weight — other than follow his chipstack online while he’s playing live in the EPT?)

Straight from the mainstream press, the gambling industry has fallen on hard times, following the trend of…well…just about every other industry there is. According to Bloomberg, Atlantic City has seen a significant drop in revenue for the second year in a row. New casino projects are on hold or canceled, and thousands of casino employees in AC have lost their jobs.

In the article, one expert predicts that Atlantic City will continue to sink:

James Hughes, dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University, said the casino industry is vital for the economy of southern New Jersey and for the tax revenue it generates.

“It’s possible Atlantic City is past its peak,” said Hughes, who predicted the situation may worsen next year. “It could never go back to its past glory. It’s a much tougher game now.”

But another analyst predicts a recovery in 2010:

The U.S. gaming industry will “remain under significant pressure in 2009, with a recovery unlikely until 2010,” Michael Paladino, a Fitch Ratings analyst in New York, said in a Dec. 16 report.

In other news, the Wall Street Journal reported that gambling in general is in a downward spiral that will never be the same. *Insert Debbie Downer sound here.* In fact, one survey specialist who clearly doesn’t follow poker trends at the University of Pennsylvania thinks that A) poker is a fad, and B) it has peaked.

Meanwhile, despite the fact that ESPN’s poker-tournament coverage has become ensconced in the culture, card-playing for money among college-age youth declined in 2007 for the first time, according to a survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. “The fad has peaked,” survey director Dan Romer said.

Ummm, Mr. Romer, please note that that ESPN card-playing thingie to which you referred enjoyed its most righteous numbers ever just last month. Methinks we need another survey.