This page contains a Flash digital edition of a book.
CR79-p20-south_central_america:SJC-Casino Review 19/4/09 00:19 Page 1
internationalcasinoreview
Paraguay may revoke licence
The Paraguayan regulator has threatened to revoke the
licence of one of the highest profile operators in the country,
Casino Entertainment, for failing to keep up with payments on
a statutory state insurance scheme. The National Gambling
Commission (Conajzar) has
News
said the company owed a
total of 4bn guarani
(E595,700) relating to a
casino in the Central
Department. If it fails to
pay, its flagship venue, the
SOUTH & CENTRAL AMERICA
Yacht y Golf Club Casino in
the Asuncíon, could be
closed down.
Uruguay to
More than
5,500
offer joint
illegal
venture
slots
scrapped
licences
squeezingout
MEXICO
to private
The Government Secre-
tariat in Mexico has said it
has decommissioned
companies
5,563 slot machines in 37
separate operations since
the start of 2009.
The deputy director of
licensing for the General
In a bid to encourage investment in its
Directorate of Gaming and
casino operations, Casinos del Estado
Lotteries, Cristian Pérez,
said that in the raids to
is to enter partnerships with private combat illegal gambling,
companies to refurbish casino premises
19 establishments were
and their surroundings. The move extends
closed and eight people
imprisoned. Another 13
to previous similar deals in the whole estate. operations resulted in over
3,300 more machines
venturedgained enter into a joint venture part- However, under the terms head of Casinos del Estado in being impounded, the
URUGUAY nership with hotel operator of the partnership, the gaming October last year, it was fol- closure of three arcades
Vidaplan to invest in Casino itself will continue to be oper- lowing a number of scandals, and 33 arrests.
The overseer of casinos in Nogaró in the fashionable ated by the state-owned body, including corruption by the Gambling in all forms
Uruguay, Fernando Nopitsch, coastal city of Punta del Este. while the private company former head Victor Hugo has been undergoing a
has announced that the gov- Vidaplan plans to sink $18m will take on other responsibil- Ozano, in which the state is crackdown recently,
ernment intends to issue (E13.6m) into the project, ities, such as maintenance, said to have lost out to the tune including betting on cock-
licences that will allow which includes a $3m acquisitions and tourism pro- of many millions of dollars. fighting, horse racing and
private companies to partici- (E2.3m) hotel, two restau- motion. The state will pay the Nopitsch promised a far card tournaments, includ-
pate in all 29 state-owned rants, a nightclub, cinema and private company for the lease more transparent operation ing five illegal Texas
gaming operations. theatre. An additional 250 slot of the gaming rooms. of Casinos del Estado, includ- Hold’em tournaments.
Several casinos in the machines are also envisaged The Nogaró deal was not ing far more private involve- Proposals for an
country already operate on for the casino. without its controversy: ment. It has been reported entirely new gambling law
this model, including one in Nopitsch commented: “We another developer, the Cipri- that at least 14 firms are inter- for Mexico are still under
the Rivera region, which have agreed to a joint venture ani group, wanted its chance ested in entering joint discussion. The Gaming
attracted a US$20m (E15m) in Nogaró. It is a positive devel- to take part in the project, venture partnerships at other and Lotteries Subcommit-
investment that involved also opment both for Casinos del offering, it says, almost twice venues, along similar lines to tee, which put the meas-
the construction of a hotel. Estado and for the country: in as much investment as Vida- Casino Nogaró. ures forward last
In March a contract was a market during an interna- plan. They say their approach
Fernando Nopitsch, carrying
“We are just now finalising December, wants full
signed by President Vázquez tional crisis, this investment was entirely ignored.
out his promise to bring in
the documents and the modi- gaming operations to be
that authorises the state-oper- is very welcome and will gen- When Nopitsch was new investment to the fications to the necessary set up to include meas-
ator Casinos del Estado to erate jobs.” appointed to his position as Uruguay casino industry decrees,” said Nopitsch. ures to prevent money
laundering and improve
player protection. The pro-
posal calls for slot par-
Brazilian government set to legalise gaming
lours to be prohibited near
schools, family entertain-
ment centre and churches.
Casinos would be regu-
notnuts well as Finance and Tax as 200,000 new jobs could lated by a new commis-
BRAZIL before it can be voted on in be created both directly and sion that would oversee
the Chamber of Deputies. indirectly, while the Brazil- not only anti money-laun-
Having been illegal for more The Bill, which was first ian Bingo Association dering provisions but also
than 60 years, gambling presented in 2003, would believes there could be as other financial aspects of
could once again move on allow bingo halls to be many as 220,000. gaming and anti-addiction
to the right side of the law licensed all over the country, Revenues for the state measures. Casino taxation
in South America’s biggest which would also see a from a 15 per cent tax on would be heavy with addi-
and most populous maximum of 12 casinos per- gross gaming revenues are tional requirements on
country, Brazil. mitted, two each in six des- expected to be in the region licence holders to fund
A Bill to legalise casinos, ignated areas in the North, of US$2.5bn (E1.9bn) per local social projects.
bingo halls and video lotter- North-East and Central-West year. The money would be Fines for infringement
ies has been approved by the regions of Brazil. Licence ring-fenced for projects of any gambling legislation
Commission of Economic, requests for additional related to health. would be particularly
Industrial and Commercial casinos would be considered Under the terms of the Bill, severe, ranging from
Brasilia is in one of the three regions
Development and must now on a case-by-case basis. the Ministry of the Economy MP$200,000 (E11,000) to
that could soon allow casino gaming pass before the Constitution Trade unions are behind will be the regulator of the MP$3m (E165,000) or
and Justice Commissions, as the move, saying that as many gaming industry. complete closure.
20 May 2009 • south&centralamericanews
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56
Produced with Yudu - www.yudu.com