Okay, this much we know about online gambling in South Africa. The North Gauteng High Court says that online casinos are illegal. The Gauteng Gambling Board agrees and plans to have any violators arrested. Many online casinos, such as Piggs Peak, disagree and are appealing the decision. The GGB says that the country’s laws about online gambling are crystal clear while Piggs Peak says that they will resume online gambling operations in the country once the confusion is resolved. So obviously somebody is wrong.

Here’s another interesting variable, though. Online betting is perfectly legal there. As if to confuse things further, today Powerbet Gaming spoke up and reminded the world that their enterprises are completely legal and sanctioned by the government.

Powerbet Gaming released a statement that said that “there is considerable confusion among members of the public, banking institutions and the media regarding the legal position of online gambling and betting in South Africa.” Okay, I definitely agree so far. They then went on to say that the online gambling that is banned is online casino games. However, sports betting and online bookmaking “has been offered legally in South Africa for several years, within a well-established legal framework, and administered by provincial and national boards.”

The reason Powerbet wants to make it clear that online betting is legal in South Africa is that they are the parent company of Voltbet.com, an online betting site that is based in South Africa and licensed by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board. According to Powerbet Gaming, there is no legal ban on placing a bet with Voltbet or similar companies.

If you’re confused then that would put you in the majority. To me, the only thing that seems clear is that nothing is really clear. Isn’t government regulation and bureaucracy great?

As a result of a legal decision, online casinos are now closing their doors to South African customers. Yesterday, Silver Sands Online Casino announced that they will not allow South African citizens to gamble on their website. In their statement, the online casino, which is based in South Africa, said that they have “made the decision to exclude South African players from participating in our games until there is more clarity regarding the legality of gaming in cyberspace for South African citizens.”

Silver Sands is the second South African online casino to make that move. After initially standing in defiance against the legal decision banning online gambling, Piggs Peak online casino, also based in South Africa, announced that they would temporarily stop online gambling in South Africa until their appeal is heard and a decision made.

Though South African customers can no longer play any games on Silver Sands Online Casino, management stresses that the players accounts “will remain accessible” and the players “may request a withdrawal” at any time. A similar statement was released by Piggs Peak, who is still legally operating their brick and mortar casino in the nation.

All of this stems from an August 20 ruling by the North Gauteng High Court that it is illegal to gamble online in the country, a decision that has been praised by the Gauteng Gambling Board but is being appealed by Piggs Peak.

By sheer coincidence, outlawing online gambling in South Africa would eliminate the only competition for the GGB, who runs all gambling operations in the nation. I’m sure that had nothing to do with the ruling, though.

Blackjack tournaments are a good way for players to combine the exciting tournament action you normally find for online slots and poker with the fun and strategy of online blackjack. Though many online casinos don’t hold them, Jackpot City Casino holds blackjack tournaments every day.

Jackpot City holds both scheduled tournaments and Sit & Go tournaments for their blackjack events. The Sit & Go tournaments are smaller events and they can begin at any time. Those tournaments start as soon as five people join the table. The Sit & Go blackjack tournaments vary in price and they have entry fees that can be $2, $5, $10 or $20. Likewise, the prize pools are small compared to the scheduled tournaments, but they usually range from $9 to $90.

The scheduled blackjack tournaments at Jackpot City Casino are more organized and start at a pre-determined time. Sine if those are freeroll tournaments, which have no entry fee. Those free blackjack tournaments have a $50 prize pool, with the first-place finisher winning $20. Winning a free blackjack tournament won’t exactly make you rich, but what do you want for nothing? It’s a good amount of money for the fun of playing a blackjack tournament while spending no money.

Some of the scheduled blackjack tournaments do have entry fees, though. Those entry fees can range from $3 to $10. Like with the Sit & Go tournaments, the larger the entry fee is, the larger the prize pool is. Prize pools for the paid blackjack tournaments range from $42 to $140. Those tournaments can have up to 250 players, so you may face tough competition.

To take part in the various blackjack tournaments available each day, visit Jackpot City Casino.

Visitors to online casinos and other online gambling sites increased during the month of July, according to comScore. The company, which measures all kinds of Internet statistics, stated that online gambling websites had 13.4 million unique visitors during the month of July. That is an 11 percent increase from June.

So what caused a sharp spike in interest in online gambling during the month of July? No online casino visitors were polled, but it’s a safe bet that it has something to do with a little event during July called the World Series of Poker.

According to Jeff Hackett, Senior Vice President of comScore Media Metrix, the World Series of Poker tournament prompted “millions to visit online gambling sites to test their card-playing skills.” It’s not hard to believe that the tournament, which is now thoroughly covered by the likes of ESPN, among other media sources, would lead to an increased interest in online poker.

Not surprisingly, online poker websites saw the largest gains during July. PokerStars saw an 8 percent increase, Full Tilt Poker saw a 14% increase and Ultimate Bet saw an incredible increase of 33 percent more unique visitors in the month of July.

It is not known how many of those online gambling visitors were from the United States, where the World Series of Poker is held (in Las Vegas). The U.S. federal government currently acts on a de facto online poker ban, thanks to UIGEA, even though no federal ban on online gambling exists.

comScore provides digital marketing intelligence by measuring a variety of statistics for websites, online advertising and online traffic. They use statistical research, analytics and survey tools for their research.

I swear that Grambling Review is not a Canadian website…not that there’s anything wrong with that. We have been covering Canada a lot lately and I am here with more Canadian news, this time about Prince Edward Island. To recap our Canuck coverage so far, British Columbia has launched North America’s first online casino, which was shut down for security purposes and then re-launched. Quebec plans to launch an online casino in the fall and Ontario wants one launched by 2012. Newfoundland and Labrador opposes online gambling and Nova Scotia is all for it, even though the Atlantic Lottery Corporation is against it and wants to protect their own gambling monopoly.

Prince Edward Island, a tiny Canadian island province with only a little over 140,000 residents, may be the next to rock the ALC’s boat. Though the province is also a member of the Atlantic Lottery Corporation, recent reports suggest that it is considering legalizing and regulating online gambling in order to grab an estimated $50 million in revenue.

Wes Sheridan, Finance Minister of Prince Edward Island, said that since many residents are already gambling on overseas online casinos – something he considers dangerous – the best thing he can do for the people is provide a safe, regulated online gambling industry. An added benefit would be that $50 million the market could generate.

At this point, it seems that Sheridan and the rest of the government are open to several options, which could include Prince Edward Island opening their own online casino or the Atlantic provinces sharing one. Since Nova Scotia also wants online gambling, that may be the best idea.

Sheridan told CBC News that he proposes that the government “go forward and put a site up there to compete with these offshore entities and play in a regulated, policed kind of fashion.” Of course, the idea that an online casino is safer if the government runs it seems a little silly when you consider British Columbia’s PlayNow.com debacle.

Another weekend, another weekend casino bonus promotion at Lucky Red. Are you getting sick of those? I hope not, because I’m here to tell you about it. Cherry Red Casino has a constant supply of changing promotions. Instead of offering the same things day after day, they like to change things up and offer one promotion for a few days, replace it with another, and keep a revolving door of promotions. This weekend, they are offering cash back bonuses.

If you play online slots, keno or scratch cards, the online casino is offering a choice. You can either go with a 75% match bonus on your deposit, which can be redeemed up to three times, or you can take an unlimited 60% deposit match bonus. Though it’s a lower percentage, if you’re going to make a lot of deposits over the weekend, that deal might be a better one. The coupon code for the 75% match bonus is WHOPPING75 and the coupon code for the 60% match bonus is HOTPOT60.

Both of those bonuses come with the same conditions. You must wager the bonuses at least 25 times before cashing out. Also, only wagers on online slots, keno and scratch cards count toward your wagering requirements.

If you would rather play online blackjack, video poker or some other table game, Cherry Red Casino is offering a 45% match bonus on your deposit. As usual, those games have a lower bonus because the games have a lower house edge. The coupon code for this bonus is CASHPOOL45. The bonus must be wagered at least 50 times before a cashout is allowed.

To take advantage of the weekend casino bonuses, visit Lucky Red Casino.

If you are a regular reader of Gambling Review, then I’m sure you know by now that weekends are a time when online casinos like to offer tournaments. If you’re not a regular reader, then welcome to Gambling Review! It’s great to have you here. Please feel free to leave a comment.

Anyway, this weekend is no exception and there is a variety of casino tournaments available at Millionaire Casino. The big tournament is the Slottery tournament, which began way back on August 1 but is played in four parts. The fourth part began on August 22 and ends this Sunday, August 29. Though it ends soon, there is still time to join and the entry fee is only $5. Players compete for a share of the pot, which is quite large now thanks to the large number of entries.

For blackjack fans, the Weekend Blackjack Classic tournament runs from Friday, August 27 to Sunday, August 29. It is played on the US Blackjack game. The entry fee is $10 and players compete for a share of a $5,000 prize pool.

Video poker players can take part in the Weekend Deuces Wild Face-Off, which runs from Friday, August 27 to Sunday, August 29. The video poker tournament has a $5 buy-in and players compete for a share of the pot.

Roulette fans aren’t left out, either. You might be thinking there are roulette tournaments? Yes, there are, and Millionaire Casino has one this weekend. It is the Wheel Deal tournament and it started today, August 26, and ends Thursday, September 2. The tournament is played on the American Roulette game. The entry fee is only $2 and players compete for a share of the pot.

To take part in any of the various casino tournaments for online slots, blackjack, video poker or roulette, visit Millionaire Casino.

It’s getting harder and harder to find people who aren’t mad at Harry Reid. The U.S. Senate Majority Leader, elected by Nevada, seems to be unpopular with everyone. People on the right hate him because of his radical leftist policies. People on the left feel that he hasn’t gotten enough done for them. People in the middle realize that he’s incompetent and possibly senile. After all, several times he has accidentally voted against his own bill and had to be reminded by a colleague that he wants to vote for it. “Hey, Harry, you sponsored and wrote this bill. I think you meant to vote yes.” And then there are the Las Vegas casinos.

A large part of Nevada’s economy is based on tourism and a large part of that is in Las Vegas. For that reason, Reid has always tried to keep the casinos happy. Therefore, when the topic of legalizing online gambling came up, Reid tried to walk the tightrope. Some of his colleagues in Congress have been trying to overturn UIGEA ever since it passed in 2006, but Reid held out as long as he could and avoided giving his opinion on the issue. The reason is simple. Some Las Vegas casinos are against online gambling and others want in on the market. There is also the issue of tribal casinos to deal with.

Earlier this year, Reid – whose approval rating has been listed as low as 8%  –  finally gave in and decided to support a federal legalization of online poker. As a compromise, he opposes any other form of online gambling and only wants to allow poker. It is a stance that was meant to give him more support but instead it guarantees that he will have none.

The Vegas casinos who oppose online gambling are furious, stating that legalizing online poker puts the foot in the door for a wider online gambling expansion that they believe will hurt their businesses. Eric Dale, general manager of Baldini’s Sports Casino, says that legalizing online poker will not only hurt the casinos in Nevada, but it will also hurt the rest of the tourism industry. He says that such legislation would “take money out of the hands of those who play online, money they won’t have to go out to a restaurant, to a movie, to gamble or eat. They won’t need to come out to a physical box (like a restaurant or casino) that employs people and that scares me.”

I suppose it’s the same problem that brick and mortar stores have had with the popularity of Amazon.com and other e-commerce websites. Like those stores, Nevada businesses will have to adapt to online poker. One such adaptation would be to get into the online gambling business themselves, something Harrah’s Entertainment is already doing.

While those who oppose online gambling are mad at Reid for supporting online poker, those who support it are mad that he wants to draw the line there. Barney Frank’s bill in the House, which passed the Financial Services Committee, would legalize all online gambling except sports betting. If Reid developed a Senate bill that only allows online poker, the two bills would be incompatible and no online gambling bill could be passed. In fact, it’s hard to find anyone who agrees with Reid that online poker is fine but all other games need to be banned. So who is he pleasing? Seemingly 8% of his voters. Good luck with that reelection campaign, Harry.

Titan Poker is one of the best online poker rooms in the business because of their customer service, quality software that offers protection and fun games and more. The casino bonuses are basically the icing on the cake, though it’s pretty good icing.

At Titan Poker, players normally earn points for all money wagered. Those points accumulate and when enough are accrued they can be redeemed for cash. Soon, though, Titan will launch the Big Cash Out promotion. During that promotion, which lasts throughout the month of September, all points earned by playing cash games and poker tournaments can be cashed out more generously. As soon as you reach 1,000 points during the month, you are able to redeem those points for cash. In normal circumstances, you need at least 2,000 points before you can cash out.

The amount of money you get for your points depends on your amount of points. Instead of having a set amount, such as you get a dollar for every 100 points, it varies depending on your point total, with the number of points needed for cash going down as your point total goes up.

For example, if you have 1,000 points you can redeem it for $5, a value of $1 for every 200 points. However, if you rack up 10,000 points you can redeem that for $80, a value of $1 for every 125 points. If you accumulate 80,000 points, you can trade that for $850, which is 94 points for every dollar. If you’re such a good poker player that you accumulate 300,000 points, Titan Casino will give you $4,250 in cash. That’s a value of only 71 points for every dollar.

A full listing of the cash rewards for your loyalty points can be found on the promotions page. To take advantage of the Big Cash Out casino bonus, visit Titan Poker and play some poker during the month of September.

In the worst decision in South Africa since allowing vuvuzelas in the stadium during the World Cup, online poker is now banned in the country. A ruling by the North Gauteng High Court on August 20 banned online poker and all forms of online gambling in South Africa. The decision protects the Gauteng Gambling Board’s monopoly on gambling in the nation by removing online gambling as competition.

The Gauteng Gambling Board (GGB) has been fighting for a ban on online gambling for a while to protect the interest of their brick and mortar casino industry, with us worth $2.2 billion. Last week, Judge NB Tuchten ruled in favor of the GGB and banned online gambling. As a result, anyone caught gambling online or playing online poker in South Africa can face a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a $1.36 million fine.

The new anti-online gambling ruling would punish not only players, but also online casinos, financial institutions and internet service providers involved in online gambling transactions. Advertising for online gambling in the country is also now illegal.

Though the GGB is excited by the ruling – warning that they will have any violators arrested – not everyone is ecstatic. Piggs Peak, for instance, intends to fight the ban and appeal to a higher court. Piggs Peak runs both a brick and mortar casino in Swaziland and an online casino website. Lew Saul Koor, Operations Director of Piggs Peak, stands in defiance of the GGB, stating that “until the appeal has been heard and the outcome determined, our business will continue as usual as agreed with the Gambling Boards.”

The most common sense solution to the dispute would be for the South African government to legalize online gambling but require the casinos to pay a fee or a tax for operation in the country. After all, South Africa needs more money and generally they are all for anything that generates an income for them. The online gambling ban seems to show that they think they lose more money to online casinos than they would earn by regulating them. Only time will tell.