GAMBLING INDUSTRY – AUSTRALIA

Judges slam Victorian govt on gambling reform

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Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 5-Dec-14

Tabcorp and Tatts were in 1994 granted licences for 18 years by the then Victorian government to operate poker machines in the state. However, the rights were then transferred to pubs and clubs in 2008. Tatts launched a compensation suit for $A540m over the loss of its licence and Tabcorp sought $A687m. The Court of Appeal has now ruled in favour of the former but against the latter. Tatts won as its claim was based on a contractual rather than statutory argument

CORPORATES
TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, COURT OF APPEAL (VICTORIA), AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, VICTORIA. DEPT OF PREMIER AND CABINET, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA, STANDARD AND POOR’S ASX 200 INDEX

Favourite’s death overshadows Cup

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Original article by John Stensholt, Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 5-Nov-14

The owners of German horse "Protectionist" on 4 November 2014 received $A3.6m in prize money for winning the Emirates Melbourne Cup, in the fastest time for a dozen years. "Red Cadeaux" came second and gained the owners $A1.08m. The event overall was marred by two deaths, with pre-race favourite "Admire Rakti" collapsing after finishing last and "Araldo" needing to be destroyed after kicking a fence and breaking a leg. Bets placed with gaming groups Tabcorp, Tatts Group and Sportsbet were worth a combined $A166m

CORPORATES
THE EMIRATES MELBOURNE CUP, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, SPORTSBET AUSTRALIA, RACING VICTORIA LIMITED, VICTORIA RACING CLUB LIMITED

Labor to honour Crown’s new deal

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Original article by Richard Willingham, Jason Dowling
The Age – Page: 1 : 17-Sep-14

The Australian Labor Party will not oppose the Victorian Government’s new deal with Crown Resorts. The deal will extend the casino’s licence to 2050 and bring the government an extra $A910 million in tax. Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews said that the party would not be able to rewrite the commercial arrangement. It has negotiated a four-year package for the retraining of 500 retrenched workers

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, LIBERAL PARTY OF VICTORIA, VICTORIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE

Pokies levy drags down Tatts profit

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Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 22-Aug-14

Tatts Group has posted a 2013-14 net profit of $A200.4m, which is 19 per cent lower than previously. The result was marred by factors such as a $A42.6m poker machine levy, while its 2012-13 result had been boosted by a one-off tax benefit. The wagering division’s revenue was down two per cent at $A642.3m, while the lotteries division’s revenue was 4.3 per cent lower at $A1.9bn. CEO Robbie Cooke says Tatts will launch a new website and a new wagering brand

CORPORATES
TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, PENGANA CAPITAL LIMITED

Money on Echo as it shows a good hand

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Original article by Jessica Gardner
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 19 & 24 : 14-Aug-14

The stock of gaming group Echo Entertainment on 13 August 2014 closed 3.1% higher at $A3.30. It had posted a 2013-14 full-year net profit increase of 27.3% to $A106.3m, or 24.6% to $A158.2m excluding abnormal gains from "high rollers". Revenue from its New South Wales and Queensland casino operations also grew 3.9% to reach $A1.8bn. A distribution of $A0.04 has been declared. CEO Matt Bekier noted that strong earnings growth for Echo should now be seen as a given

CORPORATES
ECHO ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LIMITED – ASX EGP, CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, THE STAR, CITIGROUP PTY LTD

Approval ‘one of the fastest in history’

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Original article by Sean Nicholls
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 3 : 12-Aug-14

Micheil Brodie, CEO of the Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority (ILGA) in New South Wales, has commented on the probity check recently carried out on Crown Resorts. The listed gaming group has gained permission to operate a new luxury casino at Barangaroo in Sydney, and Brodie noted that the three months the process took was the fastest assessment yet by the ILGA. He dismissed speculation that the granting of a licence under the Casino Control Act may have been jeopardised by Crown chair James Packer’s public brawl with Nine Entertainment CEO David Gyngell

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, ECHO ENTERTAINMENT GROUP LIMITED – ASX EGP, THE STAR, NEW SOUTH WALES. INDEPENDENT LIQUOR AND GAMING AUTHORITY

Packer rolls the dice on Vegas strip

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Original article by Jessica Gardner, James Thomson
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 5-Aug-14

Australian-listed Crown Resorts has paid $US280m ($A301m) for a development site in Las Vegas. The group will build a casino on the 14-hectare site, which was previously the site of the New Frontier casino. Crown now has some $A6bn worth of casino projects in development, while it is also looking at $A7bn worth of projects in Australia, Japan and Sri Lanka. The new Las Vegas casino is slated for completion in 2018

CORPORATES
CROWN RESORTS LIMITED – ASX CWN, NEW FRONTIER HOTEL AND CASINO, OAKTREE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC, WYNN RESORTS LIMITED, MELCO CROWN ENTERTAINMENT LIMITED, GREENLAND HOLDING GROUP COMPANY LIMITED, ABOVE THE INDEX ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Tatts wins over Tabcorp

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Original article by Lucille Keen, Scott Parker
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 27-Jun-14

Gaming company Tatts has succeeded in its claim for compensation from the Victorian Government. Tatts and Tabcorp had taken legal action over the loss of gaming licences. On 26 June 2014, the Supreme Court of Victoria found that Tatts was entitled to $A451 million in compensation plus interest. However, Tabcorp’s claim for compensation of $A687 million was dismissed

CORPORATES
TATTS GROUP LIMITED – ASX TTS, TABCORP HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX TAH, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA, VICTORIA. DEPT OF TREASURY AND FINANCE, CIMB SECURITIES INTERNATIONAL (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD