As you will learn from Poker News and such other news platforms, betting has become an occupation for a significant part of the world population. Only the magnitude of the activity varies from one region to another. Of course, whether a country has a big proportion of its population playing poker or engaged in online gambling may just be a factor of its state laws. All in all, the fact of the matter is that gambling and betting in general is a thriving occupation and many governments that have traditionally wanted nothing to do with it are taking notice and wanting to have a piece of the pie.
The Hottest Betting Topic Today Is Not Poker
So what is the hottest betting topic today if not the all-popular poker? Well, it is Rugby World Cup, 2015. That may be surprising to some people considering that many countries do not even have a professional rugby team. Still, there are many countries where rugby is still alien being seen as elitist or foreign, but these ones also have rugby enthusiasts especially among the youth. These ones would not mind taking a bet on the performance of various rugby teams if their state laws are not a hindrance.
Where Will The Next Rugby World Cup Tournament Be Held?
Well, 2015 World Rugby Tournament is set to be held in cities that do not have as many casinos as Las Vegas, but within a country whose state laws have been conducive to betting. The country is England and the cities set to host the series of games include Birmingham; Brighton & Hove; Cardiff; Exeter; Gloucester; Leeds; Leicester; London – within Brent, Newham and Richmond; Manchester; Milton Keynes; Newcastle and Rugby.
What Are The Teams Likely To Rake In High Revenues In Bets?
For rugby enthusiasts who are already familiar with online gambling, they are likely to make numerous bets even if they may not necessarily be high stakes. But that counts for something considering that betting is spread even in areas of low income earners. And considering that the host country is usually seen as having some added advantage, and that the English rugby team has always been formidable against world giants, the team is likely to attract many bets and bring in massive revenues particularly through online gambling.
Other teams that rugby fans are likely to stake their money on include Australia and New Zealand. Of course, anyone who is not just keen on gambling but is also keen on sports will know they cannot afford to ignore Ireland while doing their sports betting. Whether through online gambling or otherwise, the probability of one team beating another is usually based on recent performances and Ireland has done well in the recent past within Europe.
The Convenience of Online Sport Betting
Betting in sports has joined mainstream online gambling in taking advantage of credible payment methods. PayPal; Skrill; Visa; MasterCard and others have partnered with sites facilitating online poker, sports betting and other forms of online gambling, to make it convenient for fans to pay to have fun and professional gamblers to try and make an income.
In fact, some of these betting sites are so user friendly that even fans new to web transactions but would like to bet on a sport like this year’s rugby world cup tournament would not find it difficult. Once you log onto the site, there is a button to show you where to click and register for online gambling; another one to show you where to click and make your betting deposit; and another one to click and place your bet.
An intelligence company in Hamburg has reported that online gambling has been on the rise in recent years, and that some companies involved in the online gambling business are finding it worthwhile to merge and consolidate their business. State laws for a long time remained silent on the position of online poker and other similar games, but that is gradually changing. With online gambling being so much easily accessible, more so through mobile devices, the need to have state laws dealing with poker and other forms of online gambling is becoming all the more pertinent.
Forecast Growth Rate of Online Gambling
At a global level, analysts predict a continued growth of online gambling, albeit in single digits. However, the prediction is that this growth could get to double digits within a period of four years, bringing in revenues in billions of dollars. What observers note is that the number of gamblers logging in from their mobile phones as well as tablets is on a rapid rise. In fact, particular gambling sites reckon that a good part of their revenue increase is a share from people gambling from mobile devices.
Has Poker News or anyone else reported on acquisitions?
Well, just as in other businesses, some investors do well in certain seasons even as others experience difficult times. Online poker or any other form of gambling is no exception. In the recent past and particularly in the last two years, some gaming companies have done exemplary well while others have been struggling. Avid readers of Poker News and other outlets that keep gaming enthusiasts informed were able to see that last year had William Hill and Paddy Power revelling in business success, with its online revenues increasing by around 20% in net. In the same period, nevertheless, Betfair’s growth was just moderate while Bwin.Party, another online gambling site, had dismal performance having its annual net revenues slipping downwards.
Upheavals like these are one reason some gambling companies have decided to merge as businesses, consolidating their financial power and business acumen while stifling competition within the online gambling arena. For instance, 2014 saw Amaya Gaming Group acquire Poker Stars and Full Tilt Power. Amaya is based in Canada. Poker Stars, on the other hand, had its origins in Costa Rica and had associations with an Israeli family. At some point the company shifted its base to Isle of Man but continued to acquire gaming licenses in various European countries. That goes to show how flexible online gambling companies are when it comes to choosing their base.
How is regulation of online poker and other online gambling activities developing?
Traditionally, most countries did not think well of gambling, whether online or within a brick and mortar environment. That has, however, changed over the years, and particularly now that various state laws are loosening up to allow for an expanded economy. The law in Netherlands today, for instance, is geared towards helping the country reap high revenues from taxation of income acquired from online gambling. Countries like the UK; France; Spain and others have set the field legally conducive to sports betting. When it comes to Italy, the atmosphere, legal and otherwise, is increasingly conducive to casino based betting games.
Of course there are a few countries whose state laws do not give any room to gambling, be it online gambling, online poker or any of those other betting games. These countries include Singapore, China and also South Korea. When it comes to Russia, state laws have been stringent, but it seems like things might soon change. There is already talk of how online poker can be allowed by the law and have some organization conduct self-regulation.
Have you heard of this new gambling game that is the key to soaring casino profits in Las Vegas? Poker has been the in-thing around here, but this new game, though not for just any betting Joe has stamped its presence in this city of casinos. As would be expected, when casinos benefit, it is usually at the expense of someone – the gambler. This time round, the game causing havoc is not online poker or poker played over real tables – it is baccarat.
What, exactly, is baccarat?
Well, call it a betting game that requires no wit or tact. It is nothing like poker in execution. You basically have the banker to deal with as the player, and all you do is play a guessing game. Of course, there is something known as standoff that you invoke once in a while, but otherwise all you need is your lady luck. And what is the form of guessing involved? Simple – indicate the banker’s hand with the highest value of money. The banker could win and you lose; you could win; or you could tie with the banker. And you play with numbered cards just like in a normal cards game.
Any other names for Baccarat…?
Yes – the game has variations and in North America it sometimes goes by the name, Punto Banco. Sometimes, too, players talk of playing chemmy, which in full is, baccarat chemin de fer. Other times when you hear of playing à deux tableaux, the players are referring to the variation, baccarat banque.
How much different is baccarat from poker?
Apart from the obvious difference that poker calls for tact in playing unlike baccarat, the participants are also significantly different. Poker is a game for anyone irrespective of their financial muscle but baccarat tends to attract only people with huge monies. The fact that they conduct their betting game in VIP rooms and not in an open hall like other betting games speaks volumes as to what caliber of players belongs to the clique.
What is the figure reported by Poker News as baccarat gamblers’ losses?
Well, it is September now and for the span of twelve months just passed, without any state laws being broken, baccarat players have lost a whopping $1.3 billion! That is a huge figure even if the loss had emanated from online gambling or betting from a brick and mortar casino. Yet this game could go on for quite some time before the number of players withdrawing in caution become noticeably big.
Compare the $1.3 billion baccarat players lost in one year with betting losses made by general gamblers in the recent past and it is easy to see the impact of baccarat in the gambling arena. This 2015 June, casinos in Nevada in entirety were able to retain just $831 million from betting activities. It is important to note that baccarat takes up relatively few casino tables.
What else is known about baccarat?
Well, baccarat is most popular with gamblers from the Asian community. Note that US poker laws and other gambling laws are not discriminatory. Anyone can participate in the betting and you can even play baccarat online just like any other form of online gambling. It is also evident that casinos are prepared to put up huge stakes for baccarat, a single bet sometimes being as huge as $250,000. However, just like in other betting activities conducted under respective state laws, casino revenues from baccarat have been on a decline in Las Vegas, with the big stake players causing a decline of 23% and the lower stake players – what they call, mini-baccarat players – causing a 34% drop.
