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Bodog Shifts American Action To New Outlet, Bovada.lv - 15th December 2011

After originally announcing that they would depart the American market earlier this year, the online gaming outlet Bodog has instead opened up a new operation that exclusively services their customers in the United States.

American players who now log into the Bodog.com or Bodog.eu URLs are being transferred to the new site “Bovada.lv,” which looks to be a twin of the other Bodog sites. For those who go to Bodog.com, the transfer is immediate; there is a statement on the Bodog.eu (the functioning site for Bodog) that says, “Access to this site is not available from your current location…If you previously held an account at this website, your account and funds are still accessible at the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group’s new website, Bovada.lv.” Within seconds, the player finds themselves at the new site, which proclaims, “Welcome to Bovada. Same Operator. New Name and Look.”

For many, the reasons for the changeover can be puzzling but, through an analysis of the past year’s legal and political activities, they become clear.

After the indictments of “Black Friday” were revealed back in April, many players on sites that still accepted American action have been waiting for the proverbial other “shoe” to drop – in the form of further indictments – on the multitude of sites still taking American play. With this in mind, Bodog took the preemptive move to take their site off of a “dotcom” and to the “doteu” in May; this would prevent the American law enforcement agencies (and presumably other nations’ agents) from having the ability to seize their “dotcom” domain name and the assets tied to it.

Bodog made the announcement in July that they would “pull out” of the U. S. online gaming market, apparently acquiescing to the U. S. Department of Justice’s push to end American access to online poker and gaming. With the current political push to legalize and regulate online poker over the past six months, however, Bodog seems to have changed their stance.

Also in July, Governor Brian Sandoval of Nevada signed a bill that gave the Nevada Gaming Commission the power to set up regulations for internet poker. Over the months that followed, the NGC has painstakingly put together plans for a regulated industry and, as of early this month, five companies have submitted their applications for licenses in such a regulated online poker industry.

Furthermore, the federal push to legalize and regulate online poker has gathered steam. Two hearings in California representative Mary Bono-Mack’s subcommittee in the House of Representatives, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, have been seemingly in favor of a federal solution to the online gaming question, with Texas representative Joe Barton’s online poker bill garnering the most attention. Although there have been hearings on the subject, the push has yet to result in any actual voting record on the issue.

Looking at the name of the new, American-only outlet, it is easy to see the tie to these actions over the past six months. “Bovada” is a play on the Bodog name that incorporates Nevada, while the “lv” tag, normally reserved for the nation of Latvia, can also be viewed as standing for “Las Vegas.”

The Morris Mohawk Gaming Group could also be looking at other reasons for the change. Although taking their American players out might be tough on their international operations, they could also be looking to protect themselves against any action that the American government may take against them. The MMGG owns both the international Bodog operation and the Bovada.lv site.

Bovada.lv still offers many of the same gaming outlets that the normal Bodog site does (sports and horse betting, casino games and poker). It also looks that there will be a $100,000 Guaranteed Tournament on the site as well as the opportunity to “Party With Bovada.”

At this point, the effect on Bodog has been minimal and the new Bovada site has yet to register. According to PokerScout.com, the peak number of cash game players yesterday (when the new Bovada site was activated) was 1980, slightly down from 2024 on Tuesday and 2142 on Monday. Bodog is currently ranked as the fourteenth largest poker site in the industry, while Bovada.lv has yet to register any statistics and enter the rankings.

Whether this proves to be a method of operation that other companies follow will be determined over time. In the end, what will decide the success or failure of this move is, of course, the players and their actions. (Credit: Poker News Daily)

Profile

Bodog Entertainment is an online gambling, music and entertainment company headquartered in Antigua and licensed in Kahnawake, Antigua and Barbuda, San José, Costa Rica and the United Kingdom. Bodog maintains an online sportsbook and racebook, an online casino and an online poker room. The company was founded in 1994 by Calvin Ayre.

Company

Bodog also owns Bodog.net (the play money version of their regular gaming site), as well as an international music label called Bodog Music, and a television production division which produces shows such as Calvin Ayre Wild Card Poker that appeared on Fox Sports Net.

In May of 2007 Bodog garnered media attention with an entertainment bet that asked if Heather Mills [the ex-wife of former Beatle Paul McCartney] would lose her prosthetic leg during taping of "Dancing with the Stars". "The Sopranos" season finale in June of 2007 was another popular prop bet for Bodog, as was the June 27, 2007 Paris Hilton-Larry King interview, in which the gambling Web site accepted wagers on what the hotel heiress would say and wear during her first televised interview following her release from a Los Angeles jail.

In 2006, Bodog launched a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion called BodogFight. It airs on the Outdoor Life Network and The Fight Network (in Canada), as well as being broadcast online. BodogFight also has a distribution deal with ION Media Networks.

The game Scarface: The World Is Yours features a Bodog Stampede, a large, fast vehicle with an automatic machine gun attached on the top. The in-game car was designed by Bodog. The game also features various billboard advertisements featuring Bodog logos.

In 2008, Bodog announced the signing of hip hop legend DMX and will release two albums on the same day both titled Walk with Me Now and You'll Fly with Me Later later this year, making it his debut on the label.

Bodog Music

Bodog Music is a record company owned by Bodog Entertainment. The roster of the record label includes:

* Bif Naked
* Bishop Brigante
* Britt Black
* Fall from Grace (the winners of the Fuse TV reality show Bodog Music Battle of the Bands)
* The Heck
* Overkill
* Nazanin Afshin-Jam
* Neurosonic
* The Vincent Black Shadow
* Fear Nuttin Band
* DMX
* Wu-Tang Clan

Legal

The ABC newsmagazine show Nightline highlighted the website and its legal ambiguities in an episode that originally aired on July 7, 2006.

In August 2006, a lawsuit was filed and later withdrawn by Bluemoon Entertainment. The lawsuit was withdrawn because Bodog had very few assets based in the United States.

In October 2006, the U.S. government passed the Unlawful Internet Gambling and Enforcement Act which prohibits banks from processing transactions for online gambling operators. Though the act did not make online gambling itself illegal per se, many online casinos and poker rooms abandoned the U.S. market, though Bodog chose to continue to serve U.S. players.

On August 1, 2007 a judge for the Superior Court of King County, Washington issued a default judgment in the amount of $ 48,937,456.00 in the case of 1st Technology LLC v. Bodog Entertainment Group S.A. for 1st Technology's patent infringement claim. Bodog's founder claims that the company was not served and that the company has an insufficient presence in the United States to infringe any US patents.

Due to the judgment, Bodog "temporarily" lost control of the Bodog.com URL. That day they moved operations to a new URL, newbodog.com. On September 19, 2007, Bodog transferred their domain from NewBodog.com to BodogLife.com.

Poker

Professional poker players David Williams, Josh Arieh, Justin Bonomo, and Evelyn Ng are members of Team Bodog and play regularly in the Bodog poker room. At the time of his victory, 2006 World Series of Poker Main Event winner Jamie Gold was also a member of Team Bodog, but that business relationship ended on January 25, 2007. Team Bodog poker player Matt McCullough finished third at the 2007 World Series of Poker Europe Main Event taking home £381,910 ($766,674 US). (Credit: Wikipedia).

Websites

Calvin Ayre official website

Calvin Ayre Foundation

Calvin Ayre MySpace

Lingerie Bowl

Profiles

Morris Mohawk Gaming Group

Calvin Ayre (Bodog Entertainment Group)

Bodog – Play Hard in the Sportsbook

Whatever game is your passion, Bodog takes you front and center in the Bodog Sportsbook. Bet on fast–paced, high–octane sports from around the world. From NFL football to the madness of NCAA basketball – and everything in–between – Bodog is the one–click source for sports enthusiasts.

The Bodog Sportsbook is a highly respected, customer–friendly operation that has earned top ratings by all major sportsbook review sites. It boasts the industry’s most reliable, easy–to–navigate sports betting experience, making it the perfect option for casual and seasoned bettors alike. All spreads, moneylines and totals are right at the bettor’s fingertips.

With the introduction of BodogLIVE, the Bodog Sportsbook springs into the future of betting in a big way, allowing players to wager on sports action as it happens. BodogLIVE players can wager on every play in football, basketball and baseball – a feature that provides a new level of excitement in sports entertainment.

The Bodog Sportsbook offers speedy and efficient parlay and teaser payouts, giving players unparalleled value when wagering on more than one game at a time. On call 24/7, customer support staff adheres to a strict policy that demands e–mail inquiries are replied to in 15 minutes or less, and that telephone calls are answered on the first ring.

Bodog, a digital entertainment giant, offers its sportsbook and racebook players the chance to compete in a variety of free contests and draws, offering a series of cash and non-monetary prizes.

The Bodog Sportsbook doesn’t simply offer up lines, futures and props – it also provides a wealth of information for bettors, including free statistical analysis within its matchup and preview sections. Bettors are provided with up–to–date injury reports, against–the–spread and straight–up trends, and entertaining and insightful sports betting articles from Bodog Nation, Bodog’s popular sports and entertainment online magazine. As a result, Bodog has become a recognized source of information by ESPN, USA Today, Yahoo and other media outlets.

Founded in 1994, Bodog Entertainment, with its head office in the lovely island country of Antigua in the Caribbean, is one of the world’s fastest growing media and digital entertainment companies and has offices world wide. Bodog offers a host of entertainment services, including
online gaming, an international record label, a publishing division and, and an international television production division.

Bodog Gaming is operated in North America under License by Morris Mohawk Gaming Group.

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