The Atlantic City casino company that bears Donald Trump’s name said today it has hired an investment firm to help it explore its strategic alternatives, which could include a possible sale.

Trump Entertainment Resorts Inc., which lists Donald Trump as chairman, said it retained Merrill Lynch to assist in identifying and evaluating capital structure, financing and other options.

Trump Entertainment properties include Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort and Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, located on the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, and Trump Marina Hotel Casino, located in Atlantic City’s Marina District.

On Friday, Trump shares rose nearly 8 percent on speculation that the casinos are up for sale amid several media reports that it had hired Merrill Lynch to help assess its options — including selling all or some of the company’s casinos.

Prudential Equity Group analyst Joel Simkins said in a client note on Friday that Trump Entertainment could make a good fit for Ameristar Casinos Inc., Pinnacle Entertainment Inc., Penn National Gaming Inc. or a private buyer.

He sees Trump Entertainment having a difficult time in 2007 and 2008 due to new Pennsylvania slot parlors, Atlantic City smoking restrictions and failed bid for a Philadelphia slot license. But Simkins still views the company as an attractive target for a buyer interested in the Atlantic City market.

Posted by http://www.app.com/
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By Jon Rhodes
ONE of the world’s leading experts on gambling will this week question the decision to award the UK’s first supercasino licence to Manchester.
Professor Peter Collins, who helped draw up the Government’s gambling legislation in 2003, will tell peers the conclusions reached by the Casino Advisory Panel (CAP) were “often arbitrary, highly disputable, and based on reasoning which is frequently inconsistent, superficial and ill-informed”.

A House of Lords committee will tomorrow question a number of key people about the controversial choice of Manchester.

Sports Minister Richard Caborn and Prof Stephen Crow – the CAP chairman – have been called to answer questions.

Prof Collins, the Director of the Study of Gambling at Salford University, will claim the five CAP members, who were appointed by the Government, lacked sufficient expertise to realise that much of the evidence presented to them by the bid teams was based on “dishonest” research.

He will suggest the panel was blinded by the “presentational brilliance” of the Manchester bid, which included a “highly professional assault” on the application from Blackpool.

In an interview with one national newspaper, Prof Collins says: “The CAP was composed of intelligent, honest and diligent people who could not be expected to possess the complex and detailed knowledge of how the casino business works or under what circumstances casinos can be regulated as to minimise social costs and maximise public benefits.”

Prof Collins, who supports the concept of supercasinos and is a trustee of GamCare, an industry-funded charity, initially welcomed Manchester’s victory. He now believes that January’s decision failed to take into account overwhelming evidence that the licence should be given to a resort rather than a city.

Wrong

He also claims that the panel wrongly allowed the Manchester team to include an attack on Blackpool, which had emerged as the late favourite to win the licence.

The committee of peers is scrutinising an “order” submitted by Tessa Jowell, the Culture Secretary, to allow the decision to be rubber-stamped. It will also hear submissions from several of the unsuccessful bidders.

Opposition to a supercasino in Manchester is growing.

Two Early Day Motions condemning the choice have been signed by 120 MPs. The Houses of Commons is expected to vote before Easter on whether to accept the decision.

The decision will then transfer to the Lords where it will be ratified or thrown out.

n THE UNIVERSITY of Central Lancashire is the latest organisation to back The Gazette’s Sign Up for Blackpool Campaign.

The university, which has more than 20,000 pupils, has circulated the petition through its email system via an online newsletter.

The Gazette hopes staff and students at the Preston-based university will sign up to boost the campaign.

Source http://www.blackpoolonline.co.uk

EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS
Associated Press

JACKSON, Miss. - The state Senate on Wednesday stripped casinos out of a bill that would give tax incentives to companies developing tourism attractions such as theme parks, race tracks and golf courses.

The original version of the bill would not have allowed tax breaks for the casinos’ poker tables, slot machines or other gambling equipment or buildings that house the equipment - only for extra, recreational activities that are used to lure tourists to extend their stay.

Religious groups, including the Mississippi Baptist Convention, lobbied to get casino companies removed from the bill, which still has several steps to move through the legislative process.

Sen. Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, wrote the amendment removing casinos, and the amendment passed 26-17. He said companies with state gaming licenses already will build golf courses and other attractions.

“Do we really need to give these people millions and millions and millions of dollars in tax breaks in order to subsidize what they’re doing? I say no,” Fillingane said.

Sen. Billy Hewes III, R-Gulfport, argued against Fillingane’s amendment. Hewes said casino companies are helping spur south Mississippi’s economic recovery from Hurricane Katrina, which destroyed thousands of homes and businesses 18 months ago.

“The dignity of a job is critical, and the casinos have played a high, high role in that particular investment,” he said.

Hewes said allowing tax incentives for extras such as golf courses will push casinos “to do more than they have ever considered in that particular realm.”

A slightly different version of the bill passed the House on Feb. 7. The two chambers will have to resolve their differences before a bill can go to Gov. Haley Barbour.

Sen. Hob Bryan, D-Amory, supported for Fillingane’s amendment. Bryan alluded to Barbour’s argument on another issue - a bill that would increase the tax on cigarettes and decrease the tax on groceries. The governor often says that he opposes a grocery tax cut because Mississippi still faces too much economic uncertainty because of Katrina.

Bryan said: “You can’t get a tax break on your groceries, but if you are a casino, you can get a tax break? It doesn’t make any sense.”

Jimmy Porter, executive director and treasurer of the Mississippi Baptist Convention’s Christian Action Commission, told The Associated Press that his group does not oppose tax incentives for all tourism developments, only for those built by casino companies.

“The casinos are going to diversify, anyway,” Porter said Wednesday. “The more people they can bring to the Gulf Coast, the more people will visit their facilities. If they’re going to do this, anyway, then why should Mississippi taxpayers supplement their practices?”

The Mississippi Baptist Convention’s membership rolls include a quarter of the state’s population. When lawmakers met in special session a few weeks after Katrina struck in 2005, the convention opposed plans to let casinos move off water and go a short distance on shore. At the urging of Barbour, legislators changed the law to allow the developments 800 feet on shore - just under the length of three football fields.

By http://www.sunherald.com

MALAWI – (PRESS RELEASE) — Classes have begun at the rural African school built by popular online casino and mobile slot machine site, Slotland.com. It’s not only changing the lives of the children of Juma, Malawi - the project is now reaching out to bring new hope to surrounding villages as well.

“In Europe and America and everywhere Slotland.com games are played, we take basics like education and food and water for granted,” said Hannah Morante of Slotland.com. “Slotland feels obliged to share our bounty.”

A little more than a year ago, Slotland.com began collaborating with local villages in Malawi to build and operate the elementary school. Classes have now begun and hundreds of villagers are involved in maintaining the school and the demonstration gardens that feed its 116 students.

“These people don’t know what an online slot machine is and they’ve never seen a mobile phone, never mind played video poker on one,” said Slotland’s local project coordinator. “But they do understand generosity and are all forever grateful to Slotland.com.”

Opening a school takes more than construction of a building. The popular online and mobile slots machine site provided all funding for building the school as well as training volunteers and recruiting teaching staff. They’ve also provided skilled project coordinators to teach villagers to run the school when they eventually leave.

The school, known as Umodzi-Mbame, provides meals to all students and even grows the food it serves. Its gardens have been used to demonstrate new farming methods to local farmers - ways to conserve soil and water and produce more food with less work.

“We got the village elders on side from the start,” explains the project coordinator. “Our project depends on the involvement of the whole community so their support was critical. It’s amazing what a positive difference Slotland has made here.”

With nine unique slot machines and video poker games on their web site and now five also available on mobile phones and PDAs, Slotland.com is one of the world’s most popular and trusted online and mobile casinos.

By http://www.casinocitytimes.com