March 31, 2011

PokerStars.com alliance for Wynn Resorts

Land-based casino operator Wynn Resorts Limited has announced a strategic partnership with PokerStars.com that will see the two jointly run a regulated online poker domain for US-based players at PokerStarsWynn.com should Congress ratify federal legislation currently under consideration.

Isle of Man-licensed PokerStars.com is the world’s largest online poker site with more than 40 million members and also operates PokerStars.fr in France, PokerStars.it for Italian players and Estonia’s PokerStars.ee.

“The companies will first work to secure the passage of federal legislation that will finally and conclusively define illegal internet gambling, provide law enforcement with the tools necessary to stop illegal Internet gambling, protect consumers by establishing a robust regulatory environment for the safe operation of online poker by experienced operators and establish a regime for the assessment and collection of taxes,” read a statement from Las Vegas-based Wynn Resorts.

Wynn Resorts owns and operates Wynn Las Vegas Resort and Country Club and Wynn Macau Resort and is listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market. It recently revealed that its net revenues for 2010 had increased 37.4 percent year-on-year to $4.18 billion.

“After much study, we are convinced that the lack of regulation of Internet gaming within the US must change,” said Stephen A. Wynn, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer for Wynn Resorts.
“We must recognise that this activity is occurring and that law enforcement does not have the tools to stop it. As a company that has safely conducted gaming in the US for more than 40 years, we believe that the same can be done for poker on the Internet.

“Additionally, it is time that the thousands of jobs created by this business and the potentially significant tax dollars come home to the United States.”

Congressman John Campbell introduced his Internet Gambling Regulation, Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act to the House of Representatives in Washington, DC two weeks ago and this proposed legislation would, if passed, establish a Federal regulatory and enforcement framework under which online gambling operators would be able to obtain licenses authorising them to accept bets and wagers from individuals in the United States. The measure is being co-sponsored by fellow Congressmen Barney Frank, Peter King and Ed Perlmutter and calls for the ‘implementation of new technologies to prevent underage play and problem gambler abuse’ and would see the Federal government and states given the authority to ‘prevent consumer fraud and generate revenues through taxes that are currently being paid to competing countries’.

“We have long supported the enactment of local regulatory regimes that protect consumers and provide valuable tax revenues and jobs,” said Mark Scheinberg, Chairman for PokerStars.com.
“PokerStars.com is closely regulated in many European countries and it has been endorsing the adoption of the same approach in the United States for years with this alliance representing a critical step in that direction.

“We are excited about the opportunities that partnering with Wynn Resorts, a pioneering leader and innovator in gaming, will present for PokerStars.com in the United States. These opportunities include the rapid ramp-up in hiring of a large numbers of professionals in this growing global technology and services sector that will benefit from US talent to keep up with global demand.”

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