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iGaming recruitment consultants Pentasia have launched their stunning new website at www.pentasia.com. One of the key driving forces behind the new eye-catching creation was to build a site that truly reflected the unique consultative approach Pentasia adopts with regard to their client and candidate relationships. As Pentasia’s Group Marketing Manager John Doyle explained:

”The site truly reflects how we take clients and candidates beyond what they expect from recruitment companies and genuinely sets the standard in internet gambling recruitment websites.

”It has taken months of painstaking development and attention to detail to complete and is full of content all geared to reflect Pentasia’s position as an authority in recruitment and a window on the iGaming Sector’”

The extensive Client Services section highlights both the exhaustive consultative process the company adopts when sourcing the finest talent and the supplementary advisory services that Pentasia had to offer. The Candidate Services section introduces a number of new features such as advice on specific jurisdictions, industry articles and insight and RSS feeds to keep up to date with the latest jobs.

Doyle said: ”We´ve revised all of the successful features of the previous Pentasia site and have built on those. However, this is not the end of the story as we will continue to add features and tools over the coming months. ”

Visitors to www.pentasia.com will experience improved navigation, new search engines to find exactly what they are looking for as well as new ways to register and to stay informed. And with fully incorporated offices across Europe, Latin America and SE Asia the site will shortly feature a localised multilingual function where users will be able to interact in languages including English, Chinese, Spanish and Italian.

”When planning the site one of our key aims was to make sure our global presence was properly reflected and the multilingual function is a vital part of that,” explained Doyle.

Using the latest cutting edge web-based technology the new site has a clean, crisp graphical interface that features Flash and DHTML. The browser-based content management system will allow the site to be updated on a minute-by-minute basis with the latest job alerts and industry news and other information useful to both clients and candidates alike.

Pentasia are widely recognised as the global iGaming sector’s leading recruitment and careers consultancy. Pentasia is a fully accredited member of the UK's Recruitment & Employers' Confederation (REC) and as such, is subject to their Code of Professional Practice. Founded in 2001 and with regional offices in the UK, Malta, Costa Rica, Sweden and Singapore, Pentasia are able to offer clients and candidates a truly international network combined with a tailored local service. Visit the new site at www.pentasia.com.

Good news for the internet gambling industry today.  Democratic Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee Barney Frank of Massachusetts introducted a bill to congress to help clarify and define a "internet gambling" financial transaction and help regulate the industry.  The GOP vows in their 2008 Republican Platform to work hard to keep the ban on internet gambling enforced.  Page 47 of the 2008 GOP Platform states "We support the law prohibiting gambling over the internet".  Point-Spreads.com urges its readers to vote for Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama or a third party candidate in the 2008 Presidential Election. Over the course of the next few weeks, we will be profiling several candidates running for Congress that support legalizing and regulating internet gambling and are trying to help Barney Frank and Texas Congressman Ron Paul overturn UIGEA.

Here is a press release from The Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative about the Payments System Protecton Act of 2008:

House Committee on Financial Services Chairman Barney Frank (D-Mass.) today introduced the Payments System Protection Act of 2008, which would direct the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System, in consultation with the Attorney General, to create a formal process to define what types of online gambling are unlawful to make it possible for the U.S. financial services industry to comply with the current ban on Internet gambling, as required by the Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006, or UIGEA.  In response to concerns raised by the financial services industry about the burden and ambiguity in the proposed rules to implement UIGEA, the bill would require federal regulators to appoint a special Administrative Law Judge to define unlawful Internet gambling activities and conduct an economic impact study on the costs for compliance.  
 
“Chairman Frank is doing the right thing by saying it is unfair to burden U.S. financial service companies with the job of the Internet gambling police at a time when their undivided attention ought to be on the economy,” said Jeffrey Sandman, spokesperson for the Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative.  “The reality is that UIGEA is dangerous to the payments system and unlikely to stop anyone from using the Internet to play poker, bet on horses, or engage in other types of wagering.”
 
Earlier this year, Reps. Frank and Ron Paul (R-Tex.) introduced the first version of the Payments System Protection Act (H.R. 5767), which attempted to stop the U.S. government from taking any further steps in developing regulations to implement UIGEA.  Ultimately, the bill, along with an amendment offered by Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), was defeated in the House Committee on Financial Services.
 
During the vote on the Payment System Protection Act on June 25, 2008, Rep. Frank told his colleagues that Congress is putting the U.S. financial services industry at risk by not clarifying the regulations to enforce UIGEA and defining unlawful Internet gambling activities.  “Hijacking the financial payment system at a time when it is under major stress and giving them the job of carrying out an unclear mandate doesn’t make sense,” he said.
 
Representatives of the U.S. financial services industry, including the Chamber of Commerce, The Financial Services Roundtable, Credit Union National Association, and National Association of Federal Credit Unions, pledged their support of the original version of the Payments System Protection Act and King amendment in letters to Rep. Frank and members of the Financial Services Committee.  
 
“I wish to be clear that we do not support the notion that financial services companies should be ‘deputized’ to police gambling activity in any form or function,” wrote Mr. Steve Barlett, president and CEO of The Financial Services Roundtable on June 23, 2008. “While we would support the passage of H.R. 5767 as introduced, I agree that the King Amendment makes essential improvements to a deeply flawed law and therefore support its inclusion.”
 
Concerns about the impact of UIGEA were also raised by the Americans for Tax Reform and Competitive Enterprise Institute in a letter to members of the Committee on Financial Services dated June 23, 2008, which said that “if implemented as proposed in current regulations, UIGEA would have a number of serious, negative consequences for the nation’s economy.”
 
Concerns about the proposed rules to implement UIGEA were previously raised at a congressional hearing on April 2, 2008 (“Proposed UIGEA Regulations: Burden without Benefit?”) and in hundreds of comments submitted to the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System.  At the hearing, representatives of the Department of the Treasury and Federal Reserve System acknowledged the challenges U.S. financial institutions will face in attempting to comply with UIGEA.  
 
The Internet Gambling Regulation and Enforcement Act of 2007 (H.R. 2046), introduced by Rep. Frank, would establish an enforcement framework for licensed gambling operators to accept bets and wagers from individuals in the U.S.  It includes a number of built-in consumer protections, including safeguards against compulsive and underage gambling, money laundering, fraud and identity theft.  A companion piece of legislation that would ensure the collection of taxes on regulated Internet gambling activities, the Internet Gambling Regulation and Tax Enforcement Act of 2008 (H.R. 5523) was introduced by Congressman Jim McDermott (D-WA).  
 
Additionally, Rep. McDermott introduced, the Investing in our Human Resources Act (H.R.6051), which would direct new revenue generated by regulated Internet gambling activities to be spent on job training for those in the declining sectors of the economy and educational assistance for foster care youth.  The bill also includes provisions to encourage responsible Internet gambling behavior and an awareness of unsafe practices, something which has been praised by problem gambling advocates.   
 
The Safe and Secure Internet Gambling Initiative promotes the freedom of individuals to gamble online with the proper safeguards to protect consumers and ensure the integrity of financial transactions.  For more information on the Initiative, please visit www.safeandsecureig.org.  The Web site provides a means by which individuals can register support for regulated Internet gambling with their elected representatives.

Leading Online Casino Website Announces Final Stage of Awards Process, Leading up to January’s Gala Reception and Awards Ceremony during CAP Euro: London 2009. 

CasinoAffiliatePrograms.com, commonly referred to as “CAP”, a leading online marketing resource and community website for Internet casino affiliates, announced today the kickoff of the voting stage in its highly anticipated Second Annual CAP Awards.
 
Scheduled to take place in January 2009 during CAP Euro: London, the CAP Awards is a yearly event held by CasinoAffiliatePrograms.com in collaboration with its sister site, PokerAffiliatePrograms.com “PAP”, to recognize and honor the most successful and innovative members of the worldwide Internet gaming affiliate marketing community.
 
The CAP Awards recognize superior achievement for Best Affiliate, Best Affiliate Program, and Best Affiliate Manager in the categories of Casino, Poker, Bingo, Sports Betting, Skill Gaming, and Lottery. There are also awards for Best iGaming Software in the categories of Casino, Poker, and Bingo. Rounding out the awards are Best Overall Affiliate, Best Overall Affiliate Manager, Best iGaming Affiliate Network, and Best Payment System.
 
Now entering its second year, the CAP Awards are already an important annual tradition for this industry. CAP has made it clear that this year’s ceremony will top last year’s, an extravagant black tie gala event that drew more than 500 guests from all corners of the gaming industry during CAP’s 2008 London conference.
 
“We were overwhelmed with positive responses to last year’s CAP Awards, which was our first ever,” commented Lou Fabiano, founder and president of CasinoAffiliatePrograms.com (CAP). “And this year, the ceremony will be even bigger and better. We want to encourage everybody in the CAP and PAP communities to visit www.capawards.com and start voting today.”  
 
Representing the largest and longest-running community of its type, with the most popular and highly trafficked user forums in the industry, CAP and PAP are uniquely qualified to empower online gaming’s affiliates and affiliate managers with the decision of naming who has made the year’s greatest achievements among them — and therefore who deserves to take home a coveted CAPPY award.
 
“This ceremony is unique in that the nominations process is peer-led,” states the official CAP Awards website, which allows CAP and PAP members to nominate and vote in each category. Nominations submitted from members of the CAP and PAP communities via the site account for about 75 percent of the final result. Overseeing the process is an independent judiciary panel made up of ten respected operators, affiliates, and vendors. In addition to providing important industry insight and expertise, these individuals help ensure that the nominations are well-placed and the awards operate in a fair and non-biased manner.
 
The democratic nature of the process is designed to ensure that the awards represent a consensus of the online gaming affiliate community as a whole, and are not just the decision of the CAP administrators.
 
“We are delighted to win this award, especially since we know that this has come directly from the whole affiliate community at large,” stated Roger Raatgever, CEO for Microgaming, 2008’s winner for Best iGaming Software for Affiliates. “As one of the founders of this industry, we feel we have a responsibility to drive it forward, both in terms of games and technology development. To receive recognition for our work from the people that draw the players to the sites in the first place is personally very rewarding and we would like to thank all those that voted for us.”
 
“This award is a great achievement for us AND our affiliates as they were the people who saw the potential in our product and were instrumental in building us up to the company we are today,” added 2008’s winner for Best Poker Affiliate Program, Margaret Burke, Affiliate Manager for PKR.
 
“I am truly honored for this distinction ‘Best Casino Affiliate’,” commented Bryan Bailey, Owner and Founder of Casinomeister, 2008’s Best Casino Affiliate. “In the past, I have received awards from players, magazine editors, and industry folk, but to be awarded by my peers is a significant event for me. I am very appreciative for this.”
 
The voting stage runs through December, leading up to January’s CAP Awards ceremony. For more information please visit www.capawards.com or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
 
The Cap Awards are brought to you by iGaming Business and CAP who also organize the leading iGaming affiliate event CAP Euro. The awards are voted for by affiliates and operators throughout the industry over a 6 month period and truly reflect the opinion of our industry which is exactly why they are so important. iGaming Business is the number one trade publication for the online gambling industry. Its comprehensive editorial covers existing and emergent technologies, events and progressions in the iGaming industry. Read by more than 7,000 iGaming professionals, iGaming Business is the most widely read publication in the sector.   

CasinoAffiliatePrograms.com is the largest and longest-running online gaming affiliate resource, featuring an active community forum, chat rooms, affiliate marketing tools, industry news/articles, scam alerts and a rigorous and distinguished certification process for casino affiliate programs. CAP Certified Partners are held in the highest regard and expected to protect the integrity of their affiliates and the industry as a whole. For more information, please visit http://www.casinoaffiliateprograms.com.
 
The world's largest poker affiliate community and resource website, PokerAffiliatePrograms.com was established to provide webmasters interested in promoting online poker a place to research, discuss, and gain insight into the business. The company's mission is to provide the best community forum of its kind online, as well as a list of quality affiliate programs and a comprehensive collection of articles, resources, tips, and program alerts to help assist affiliate marketing webmasters. For more information, please visit http://www.pokeraffiliateprograms.com.