Latest online casino news and the future of betting shops

Regular visitors to nlinecasino.ie will know that we try to update our readers with any relevant online casino news. This month two of our leading online casino operators are in the news for very different reasons. We have reported previously on the potential effects of the political attack on fixed odds casino games machines, so the announcement by William Hill that they propose to close 109 of their 2,430 betting shops should come as no surprise. The company has laid the blame firmly on the surprise hike in Tax on these machines announced recently in the UK budget, claiming that the move will cost them £22 million a year. Ralph Topping, chief executive of William Hill also expects other companies in the sector to face similar problems and is warning the British government to think seriously about the implications of any further moves against these casino games machines which may result from the review due to be published this week. One suggestion from campaigners has been to reduce the maximum stakes from £100 to as little as £2, which analysts Morgan Stanley estimate could lead to the closure of almost half Britain’s 9,000 betting shops and a significant loss of jobs in the industry. Meanwhile one of the other leading online casino operators, Bwin Party has launched a defence against attempts by a rebel shareholder Jason Ader to install four new non-executive directors on the board. They have urged other investors to reject the proposal stating that too little information relating to the four nominees has been provided to enable any judgement as to their suitability to be made, and arguing that this all male contingent would be contrary to their objective of boosting female representation on the board. Here at onlinecasino.ie we will be following both stories closely in the coming days.