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Ill bet you we dont take more than 10 shots between us in the second half. Deal.
Tags: Fun
Over the past eight years, there has been a tremendous growth in popularity of poker as a form of sports entertainment. While the game itself is not a sport, its coverage on television and across the web has created a deep connection between poker and the sports world. However, as of Friday, the relationship between the sports world and poker took a dramatic turn.
For those that arent familiar with what happened, Ill try to summarize quickly. The FBI and Southern District of New York announced that they were arresting the top executives from the big-three online poker sites (PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker/UltimateBet) and they seized the related .com domain names. Those arrested are facing charges of bank fraud, money laundering, and violation of UIGEA (Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act).
Ever since the UIGEA was passed in 2006, there has been a question as to the legality of online poker in the US The language of the bill focused on financial transactions related to online gambling, but the big service providers mentioned above believed that poker is a game of skill, not gambling, and continued to operate very successfully in the US In fact, the poker industry continued to boom over the past 4-5 years, as you can see from the amount of media coverage it received and the sponsorships involved. Both Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars sponsored poker television coverage on ESPN (World Series of Poker and the North American Poker Tour), NBC (NBC Heads-Up and Poker After Dark) and Fox (PokerStars The Big Game). ESPN.com also had PokerStars sponsored coverage through a web-video show called the Inside Deal. PokerStars was even an NHL sponsor, with prominent exposure at their annual awards show.
Poker also created lots of new sports celebrities, people like Phil Ivey, Daniel Negreanu, Chris Jesus Ferguson, Phil Hellmuth and many more. Not only were these top players sponsored by online poker sites, they were popular enough to receive endorsements outside of poker. In looking at the sport, there were definitely similarity to NASCAR in terms of individual endorsement potential. You could often see these players wearing logos of their partner companies, and the better they performed at the table, the greater the partner exposure.
In the immediate aftermath of Black Friday, the following events have occurred:
- ESPN and ESPN.com have removed all associated with PokerStars, canceled their North American Poker Tour coverage and even stopped showing reruns of older WSOP broadcasts.
- The Big Game on Fox has been canceled, at least temporarily
- Wynn Entertainment and other US-based casinos have ended most of their relationships with online sites
- All three sites have stopped serving US players for real money games
- Top officials that have yet to be arrested could be extradited, depending on their current location (officials for these sites usually live outside the country)
- Funds for US players are temporarily frozen, and theres a chance this money could be lost altogether.
The big question is, what happens now? The World Series of Poker, which has become a top sports-related brand will probably see a significant drop in participation and television coverage. Top players that rely on online poker for their income may be forced to leave the country, or even worse, could be looking at criminal charges depending on their relationship with the online sites. Poker television as we know it could be over, along with any poker-related sponsorships of US teams or leagues. Meanwhile, the Poker Players Alliance, a lobbying group on behalf of poker players, is trying to rally players to push for legislation to legalize and regulate online poker. Bills on this topic have been discussed in Congress on and off for the past two years, and some people even feel that these recent events could speed up the process of US regulation.
Its too early to predict what the ultimate results from these charges will be, but theres little doubt that the landscape of the poker industry has been permanently changed by Black Friday. For more coverage of this story, check out Darren Rovells coverage or visit www.pokernews.com.
Tags: Sports Entertainment
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Presentable, producer of poker shows since 1999 has stopped filming a poker show after it did not receive the wire transfer from Ireland. Ireland is the home of Poker Kings, which is the operator of Full Tilt.
The game was played by celebrity players, which include boxer Audley Harrison and writer Victoria Coren as well as Full Tilt sponsored professionals.
Megan Stuart, Presentables Managing Director, said: The money hadnt come through for some of the players, basically the Full Tilt ones. We would have been staging the tournament under false pretences had we carried on.
Full Tilt was founded by Raymond Butar in the year 2004. There were other 2 poker firms which were closed down by US due to illegal bets in the country. All these 3 poker firms now get poker wagers from outside US.
Ms Stuart said that Presentable stopped the filming of the game after 3 games as it was clear that the firm does not have the full prize money. Full Tilt said that the plays will be given the funds in near future.
However, Full Tilt did not make any comment regarding this allegation.
Tags: Monetary
MONMOUTH Many of the toddlers in Monmouth stood behind a bungee held on either side by adults. On the other side of the bungee just out of reach of the children eggs dotted the grass. Some of the children tried to climb over the bungee. Others had to be picked up. Some cried. They wanted the candy.
The Monmouth Easter Egg Hunt was held Sunday. River of Life Pastor Robb Duffie said his church has been organizing the event for two months.
Its a fun way for kids to get involved with other kids, he said.
But it also gives children the ability to learn about Christianity.
Its a fun way to celebrate the resurrection, Duffie said.
Some of the eggs had prizes, donated by local businesses. Some of the prizes were toys and some of the prizes were copies of the new testament.
Near the bungee, cousins, two-year-old Caleb Porter and three-year-old Maxine Ross waited their turn. It was Porters first year and he was ready to run. In fact, he made his grandma chase him a while before the bungee drops. Ross went last year.
She wasnt a fan of picking them up, an adult relative said.
But they have showed her Easter Bunny videos since then, so she is better prepared.
As 11 am approached the radio man started counting down and then the adults let go of the bungees, setting the children loose. The children ran free grabbing every egg in sight, cheered on by their parents.
The whole event lasted less than two minutes. When its over some of the children wandered around looking for more eggs.
Lets go over there, one child said. There are more eggs.
No those are just daffodils, his mother said.
Caleb was just happy to have candy, but he cant open his egg.
He whined until someone opened it and then he sat there eating his candy. He appeared content while the adults around him opened the rest of his eggs to see if he had won a prize.
Tags: Fun
(Fixes graphic link)
* Wall Street wavers as growth fears offset strong results
* Bonds rise with eye on Fed meeting, economic growth
* Dollar edges higher vs euro with Fed meeting eyed
(Updates prices)
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, April 25 (Reuters) - A sell-off in silver on
Monday helped the US dollar to rebound and oil prices to fall
while Wall Street fell on discouraging corporate forecasts.
Trading in many markets was thin, with investors uncertain
whether the US Federal Reserve will signal a change in its
easy monetary policy after a two-day meeting of policymakers
that concludes on Wednesday.
Traders fear the dollar could test its all-time low against
a basket of currencies this week if the Fed keeps monetary
policy loose. The greenback turned higher after commodity
prices, led by silver, fell. For details see [ID:nN25202986]
Oil turned lower when silver curtailed a sharp rally and
when there was no follow-through after oil prices hit their
highest since September 2008. [ID:nL3E7FP099]
Silvers sell-off spilled over to crude markets and
traders took profits, said Dan Flynn, analyst at PFGBest
Research in Chicago.
Spot silver prices dropped nearly 2 percent, affected by
technical factors, after a failure to take out a record price
set in 1980 triggered a bout of heavy selling. [ID:nN25384793]
Spot silver XAG= fell 0.8 percent to $46.29 an ounce, off
a session high of $49.31. US silver futures SIK1 had jumped
more than 8 percent to a intraday high of $49.82 an ounce,
short of the all-time peak of $50.35 set Jan. 18, 1980.
Spot gold XAU= rose 0.3 percent to $1,511.40 per ounce it
hit a record high of $1,518.10 an ounce.
lt;^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^For a graphic on silver and gold
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^r.reuters.com/xup29r gt;
US stocks were flat to lower, just below three-year
highs, which had been reached after strong first-quarter
earnings.
Stocks were lower on signs some corporate outlooks were
being strained by concerns over higher raw material costs,
including consumer products maker Kimberly-Clark Corp.
[ID:nN25198634].
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was down 36.03
points, or 0.29 percent, at 12,469.96. The Standard amp; Poors
500 Index .SPX was down 3.01 points, or 0.23 percent, at
1,334.37. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was up 0.08 points
at 2,820.24.
Although oil prices turned lower in choppy trade, crudes
recent powerful surge has offset positive momentum from
earnings, said Kevin Kruszenski, head of listed trading at
KeyBanc Capital Markets in Cleveland.
US crude futures were down 41 cents at $111.88 per barrel
CLc1.
A more tempered view of economic growth was taking hold
across many markets, with higher US gasoline prices seen as a
damper for consumer spending.
(Theres a) fundamental bias that the data is indeed
slowing and higher gas prices will take their toll on the
consumer, said David Ader, senior government bond strategist
at CRT Capital Group in Stamford, Connecticut.
US government debt prices rose as traders banked on the
idea that even as the Federal Reserves second bond-buying
program nears an end, the Fed will hold on to its portfolio and
its current level of monetary accommodation for some time.
[ID:nN25334013]
The benchmark 10-year US Treasury note US10YT=RR was up
8/32 in price to yield 3.37 percent.
The dollar was up against a basket of major currencies,
with the US Dollar Index .DXY up 0.06 percent at 74.041,
while against the Japanese yen, the dollar JPY= was up 0.10
percent at 81.91.
(Reporting by Julie Haviv, Edward Krudy and Ellen Freilich in
New York, Barbara Lewis in Rabat, Morocco, Masayuki Kitano in
Singapore and Chikafumi Hodo and Ayai Tomisawa in Tokyo;
Writing by Herbert Lash; Editing by Kenneth Barry)
Tags: Monetary
Good has seen an increase in Android activations, but with the launch of the Verizon iPhone and the $49 ATT iPhone 3GS, iOS has been able to hold Android at bay, at least for now.
Dont expect for this to hold true though indefinitely. Android will ultimately surpass iOS and likely even Blackberry if RIM doesnt get its act together. ABI Research released a report back in November on what the enterprise market would look like in 2015. It still lists Symbian as a player, but in 2015, the only evidence of Symbian will be in old blog posts. While the report projects RIM will retain the top spot, Android will be close behind, very close behind.
I wont put a lot of stock in a report that is trying to predict something as volatile as the smartphone market four years out, but it isnt hard to imagine that more IT departments will embrace user devices, as long as there are basic security policies implemented, and the enterprise market will more closely resemble what is going on in the consumer market.
Tags: Enterprise
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* Fed expected to finish QE2, then hang on to its bonds
* FOMC meets mid-week; Bernanke to hold news conference
* Fed bought $7.4 bln maturing 10/2016 to 3/2018
* Auctions of 2-, 5-, 7-year notes set for this week
(Adds Fed purchase, updates prices)
By Ellen Freilich
NEW YORK, April 25 (Reuters) – US government debt prices
rose on Monday, helped by the view that even as Federal Reserve
approaches the end of its second phase of bond buying, it will
hold on to its portfolio — and thus its current level of
monetary accommodation — for some time.
The Fed is still in the second phase of quantitative
easing, known as QE2, a $600 billion bond purchase program
intended to help spur economic growth.
Bonds reached session highs after the Fed bought $7.24
billion in Treasuries maturing October 2016 to March 2018.
Stock market losses also made bonds look more appealing.
Markets expect the Fed to complete its QE2 purchases by
mid-year, and many analysts say the Fed will hold the size of
its balance sheet steady by reinvesting maturing assets after
June to avoid a passive tightening — an issue likely to be
discussed at its April 26-27 meeting. [ID:nN1941922]
Fed policy makers who favor accommodation seem to be in
the lead, which leads us to expect no substantial shift in the
(policy) statement, from the central banks two-day meeting
this week, said David Ader, senior government bond strategist
at CRT Capital Group in Stamford, Connecticut.
lt;^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Fed balance sheet: link.reuters.com/buf92k
Fed QE timelines: r.reuters.com/faq98r
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^gt;
The Fed policy meeting ends on Wednesday with a news
conference with Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke.
Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR rose 11/32 in price,
their yields easing to 3.37 percent from 3.41 percent on
Thursday. The market was closed on Friday for a holiday.
(Theres a) fundamental bias that the data is indeed
slowing and higher gas prices will take their toll on the
consumer, Ader said.
Data on Monday showed new US single-family home sales
increased more than expected in March, but there was little
immediate reaction in bond prices.
Other economic reports likely to evoke somewhat muted
market reaction this week include consumer confidence, durable
goods and the Chicago purchasing managers index.
The Treasurys three note auctions, further refinements of
monetary policy expectations, and a first report on US
first-quarter gross domestic product growth, however, could add
some volatility to the weeks trading.
Supply from Treasury note auctions totaling $99 billion –
$35 billion in two-year notes on Tuesday, $35 billion in
five-year notes on Wednesday, and $29 billion in seven-year
notes on Thursday — will be partially offset by $52.6 billion
in maturing debt, leaving $46.4 billion of net cash needs, Ader
said. Four Fed buybacks, month-end demand, and a persistent
short-base should also support prices, he said.
Bond prices even seem to reflect some of the longer-term
fiscal challenges the United States faces.
The market reaction to the Samp;P outlook revision suggested
that investors had already gone a good way toward pricing in
the fiscal difficulties in the United States, said Robert
Tipp, chief investment strategist for Prudential Fixed Income,
the latter with $240 billion in assets under management.
In that context, a move that pushes 10-year yields through
the recent 3.34 percent low toward the 3.25 percent
range-bottom is achievable, Ader said.
Still, analysts said the technical landscape was broadly
constructive with momentum favoring lower yields, albeit
nearing overbought levels.
The 10-year chart shows volume built near the 3.40 percent
level, which is also near the 3.41 percent 30-day moving
average and a focal point, Ader said.
(Editing by Padraic Cassidy)
Tags: Monetary
Good has seen an increase in Android activations, but with the launch of the Verizon iPhone and the $49 ATT iPhone 3GS, iOS has been able to hold Android at bay, at least for now.
Dont expect for this to hold true though indefinitely. Android will ultimately surpass iOS and likely even Blackberry if RIM doesnt get its act together. ABI Research released a report back in November on what the enterprise market would look like in 2015. It still lists Symbian as a player, but in 2015, the only evidence of Symbian will be in old blog posts. While the report projects RIM will retain the top spot, Android will be close behind, very close behind.
I wont put a lot of stock in a report that is trying to predict something as volatile as the smartphone market four years out, but it isnt hard to imagine that more IT departments will embrace user devices, as long as there are basic security policies implemented, and the enterprise market will more closely resemble what is going on in the consumer market.
Tags: Enterprise
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MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexicos peso may dip against the dollar once the United States starts tightening monetary policy but the overall impact on Mexico should be limited, Finance Minister Ernesto Cordero said on Sunday.
The peso has risen to near…
Tags: Monetary
HIGH transport, food and housing costs kept inflation at 5 per cent last month, compared to March last year.
Last months figure was in line with most economists expectations.
It also appeared to vindicate the decision by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) this month to allow the currency to appreciate, a move that will make imports cheaper.
For the whole of the first quarter, the consumer price index increased 5.2 per cent compared with the same period last year, said the Department of Statistics yesterday.
Prices in March rose just 0.1 per cent compared with the previous month.
Housing costs were up 0.6 per cent from February to March, thanks to higher accommodation costs.
joannel@sph.com.sg
Read the full story in Tuesdays edition of The Straits Times
Tags: Monetary
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