Since the appearance of the first number, I’ve received thousand of suggestions, appreciations, critics and different observations from the ones involved in the gambling industry and not only from them. All this time I’ve been discussing with real passionate people, who experienced this kind of business, but also with passionate players or people who have the real pleasure of spending their time into casinos. This way I’ve discovered a virtually, inexhaustible world, where the energy, passion, pleasure and adrenalin are combined for an unique result: the need of feeling a winner. We are going to continue now what we have promissed in the first number. The opinions of the people directely involved in the casinos field, exclusive interwievs with the personalities of the moment and feature reports from places where we all want to go, the emotion and the madness that players have or about the ones are leading the casinos, you can read all these in this edition of Casino. Our materials are readed now in Las Vegas, Macao and London and what we are planning to realize is to be permanently connected to everything is happening in the casinos’ world, to offer you the image of this business but also the life of the ones who are playing inside casinos. Do you think our start is similary with a casino game? If it is so, let’s say : “Place your bets!”.

THE NUMBERS OF THE LIVE CASINOS IN ROMANIA ARE DIVIDED EQUALY, 10 IN BUCHAREST AND THE OTHER 10 IN THE COUNTRY. THE REAL PLAYING ROOMS ARE ABOUT 100 IN BUCHAREST AND 300 IN THE COUNTRY, EXISTING A TOTAL OF 35.000 MACHINES LICENCED BY THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE.

The foreigner players either have business here and they are cormorants or are coming to play because the casino games are forbbiden in their countries. In the foreign countries there are specialized offices for this kind of tourism, which collect players from outside in accordance with the amount to be played, offering them certain packages. There are also players invited directly by the casinos,less of course, this kind of people being the ones who are playing big and very big amounts.

MORE ROMANIAN PLAYERS THAN FOREIGN PLAYERS IN THE CASINOS

In the last 10 years, the biggest prize obtained in Bu-carest was of 700 000 euro, at the roulette. The casino tables are generally restricted with respect to the gain, in accordance with the cash that casino could pay to the players. Regarding the playing manner, the foreigners are very cautious,they are planning to play 500 Euro in weekend, they are playing, they are having fun, and no matter if they win or loose they leave after a while. If the Romanian loses, he becomes ambitious, he borrows and he does everything to win. There are also Romanian people who have a lot of money and who don’t have the idea what they have to do with and they come to the casino to lose three, four hours no matter will be the cost at the final. Others, are coming with the wife, they are spending two-three millions, they have food and beverage into the casino and for them all this is like a going out trip. There are also players looking intimacy, who want special conditions, silence.
These are business or political people who are not willing to be seen by other clients.

30,000 PEOPLE ON THE BLACK LIST

The law obliges all the casinos to registrate the people entering into casinos,with the personal information and photos. There is also an international connection between casinos from all over the world and all the casinos from Romania are connected to a common basis, called the black list. This list includes the tricksters, the ones making problems. There are more than 30,000 people on this black list in Romania since 1994 when the list was founded.

THE LUCK OF 666?

There is truly the beginner’s luck and there is a mystery for all those are working in this field, because all or almost all the people are playing for the first time win. Maybe because the total amount of the roulette number is 666?

From the all 10 big jackpots given by the slot machines in the past years in a Bucarest casino, 7 have been won by people playing for the first time who were having no idea to play.

SUPERSTITIONS AND OBSESSIONS

Both the players and the casino managers have their own superstitions. There are casino managers who dropped salt under the table game after seeing how much money could someone win on a table, lest to win and others who are reversing in the office their socks to call back the luck. And the players are even worse. Some of them have their own place at the table and are staying even an hour to wait if the chairs are not free. There have been players who asked the staff to open the roulette rack and see if there are magnets inside, they have problems if the croupier is moving the leg, they want to move the tables because the light disturb them, things there are not allowed. There is a hall plan approved by the Ministry of Finance for every casino where you are not allowed to move not a meter.

The casino staff are not allowed to sympathize with any people from outside, according to the international statistics more than 70% from the casinos thefts being done with the help of someone from inside.

THE CASINO CAN MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE A WINNER”

WHEN DID YOU START WORKING IN THIS FIELD?

I founded Max Bet in 2002 and I started the business in Bucharest in March 2003. I was born in Georgia and I studied the Faculty of Law in London, where I became a lawyer. Travelling, I had contact with the casinos world from Las Vegas, Monte Carlo, Russia and many other places. I began to ask questions about who and how is being done and I observed carefully the activity.

HOW MANY HALLS DO YOU HAVE IN ROMANIA?

We have 27 halls, 19 in Bucharest and 8 outside of Bucharest. Now, we prospect to open other 8 locations, having by the end of the year 35 locations and by the end of 2008 I appreciate to have 80 opened locations.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE ROMANIAN PLAYERS?

They know what is a good game and you can’t cheat them. If you want to test a machine and you put it on our halls, the best verdict will come from a hall in Romania. The Romanian players are very responsive to everything and you can see easily from their faces if the product is good or not.

A LOT OF FOREIGN PEOPLE SAID THAT ROMANIA BECAME THEIR SECOND COUNTRY.

You could not realize, maybe only by living here and being critical, that the people are very friendly, that Romania is not a hostile country and everybody speaks English. I know a lot of people who have come in Romania, invested and remained here. But you should keep in your mind that you are always a visitor. You come to invest, to make a business and not to become someone’s master.

WHICH COUNTRY IS THE BEST MARKET IN THIS FIELD?

Romania grows up with accelerated velocity. The biggest market in the area is certainly Russia, having slots for 17 years comparatively with Romania where they exist only for 4 years. The second one is Ukrain and the third Romania.

WHEN YOU BEGAN YOU HAD SOME EXPECTATIONS, HOW ARE THEY NOW?

I overtook them time ago, the business has grown up very quickly. We are going to quote it on the London Exchange and certainly on the one in Romania.

HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE MANAGEMENT?

They should work very hard, to have vision and develop the business. We have, for example, a Romanian 25 years young man, who began 4 years ago in Max Bet and now will develop and lead the operations in Serbia. The top management level in Romania is the best from all the countries where we operated. Because of that, I believe in 2, 3 years will have over 15 Romanian managers to lead operations in Europe.

DO YOU PLAY?

Yes, on the slots, let’s say once a month. To play in the casino is not a question of money or amusement. It’s about losing or winning. Winning at the casino is like the feeling of a man when is conquering a beautiful woman. Generally, people have a monotonous life and they are coming to the casino to try to fell winners, to feel the moment of losing or winning, they want some special moments.

WHY AREN’T CASINOS MORE ADVERTISED?

Here it is a mistake, I mean the way in which the casinos are perceived by the majority of the people. The casinos are not killing people, there are a lot of other things that are destroying people in this world. The Casino is like the life itself, we all want to feel winners.
It is true, there are not so many ways of comunication in the field and for that we should be oriented more to the Romanian people not only to foreigner ones.

WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE CASINO MAGAZINE?

I have read the first number and I can tell that is a very good one. There are a lot of things you can do and write about and the start is quite good. Is an inexhaustible domain. I suggest you to have always serious articles, about everything this field means.This is not only because we are speaking about a real business but because it produces billions of dollars all over the world.

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ARLAN ENTERPRISES LIMITED IS THE PARENT COMPANY FOR THE MAXBET GROUP. THE HEAD HOLDING COMPANY IS INCORPORATED AT NICOSIA, CYPRUS WITH HEADQUARTERS IN LIMASSOL AND MANAGED BY AVI BAREL.

The Group is one of the offering the pecuniary gain. The leading providers of gaming and entertainment Betting market. The Group in Eastern Europe with geting by the end of 2007 a mar-operations in Ukraine, Russia, Romania, Belarus and tal of 138 gaming halls, operating Georgia with recently almost 7500 slots under the most ed expansion process of popular brands of gaming equip-forming a company for this ment, as IGT, Novomatic-AGI, purpose in Hungary, Serbia, Croatia.

The Company

The business in Romania was operates electronic founded in 2002. Today the Company operates 950 slots and 28 chines, equipped with roulettes in 25 halls mostly in petitive gaming software, Bucharest and by the end of 2007 they plan to open additional locations, up to 10-15 slot casinos more around the country. The Company has just signed a major deal, contemplating opening of new gaming businesses in the biggest shopping malls, which will be opened all over Romania and will serve as qualitative entertainment surrounding. The company has also been in the process of developing sports betting for opening of 15 spot betting bars in Romania by 2008. Starting from September 2007, MAXBET will be the first to bring the “nationwide jackpot” system to Romania. The system will basically encompass all MAXBET slot machines without geographical limitations to one “SUPER JACKPOT” system giving every client of MAXBET, regardless how small or big, to win a monthly price that will start at 20.000 euro and at some stage expected to reach 1 mil euro.

The Company enhances the customers’ loyalty by organizing a bonus club with constantly activated rewards system, by using special magnetic cards to accumulate bonus points for the machines. Successful locations are situated in high traffic areas such as subway or shopping malls. The typical gaming hall has approximately 40 slots while the size of a hall is generally about 270 sq. meters. There is a steady growth in the number of clients entering MAXBET gaming halls. The average number of visitors is increasing per year by 15%, but the real growth of the market is around 35%. MAXBET had in 2006 375,000 visitors in 15 gaming halls, and by end of 2007, 1 mil. visitors in total of 35 gaming halls.

HOW DO YOU FELL AS A PUBLIC WOMAN?

Who wants to enter showbiz have to assume the public person role from the beginning, having the surety that her life will be completely under control. When you have success, this fact will contribute to a bigger publicity. The time you want to stay in the front of the lights depends only on you.

HOW WAS THE TRANSITION TO A SEX TALK-SHOW PRESENTATION?

The sex talk-show is an instructive transmission, destitute of vulgarity, which opens the Romanian minds and resolves their couple problems. For me, this stage of my career made up the proof of my maturation in an extremely competitive field, as it is television.

WOULD YOU BE TEMPTED FOR A TRIP TO LAS VEGAS TOGETHER WITH YOUR HUSBAND?

I like United States and I would like to visit as many places i wanted. Yes, I wish to go to Las Vegas ‘with my husband but not neces-sarely for the casinos rather to visit this fantastic town, built by Bugsy Siegel.

WHAT NEEDS A COUPLE TO HAVE THE POWER TO RESIST AGAINST THE MEDIA PRESSURE AND THE SHORT TIME THEY HAVE TO SPEND
TOGETHER?

I believe the secret of a lasting married life or long time relation is the need of intimacy which everyone has the right to have. You should respect the intimate space, the other’s small pleasures, his desires and wishes. You need to fight against the time if you want to accomplish all your dreams and your partner should be next to you for helping and upholding you.

WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT “PLAYING GAMES” WORLD? HAVE YOU EVER PLAYED?

You should be careful with your image and I think the playing games are not the best example for doing this. I’ve played once only by curiosity and I went out defrauded of having lost my time and money. It was enough for me.

WHICH IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL EXPERIENCE YOU HAD WITH YOUR HUSBAND?

I live with a man who has always known how to harbor my imaginations. I could not say which was the best experience I had because there have been a lot . This is also the answer of the fact that we have been together for 18 years.

WHAT IS THAT COULD OFFER YOU THE SAME ADRENALIN AND SATISFACTION AS THE PLAYERS FEEL ON THE MOMENT OF WINNING A HUGE AMOUNT OF MONEY?

I did sport and I know what it means to win. It’s an overwhelming sentiment, which should be experienced by everyone because it is a good energizing of internal energies and self-confidence.

A REAL PARADISE OF GAMBLING, IS ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS CASI-
NOS IN THE WORLD WHERE THE STAFF IS AS QUALIFIED AS VERY FRIENDLY.

The MGM Mirage group includes the most impressive casinos from Las Vegas, but it has also other casinos in Reno (Sylver Legacy et Circus-Circus Reno) or Detroit, in United States and also in Darwin, Australia. The properties of MGM Mirage continues with: Bellagio, Circus Circus, Excalibur, Luxor, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand Las Vegas, The Mirage, Monte-Carlo, New York – New York, Railroad Pass and Treasure Island.

A STANDARD OF LUXURY AND QUALITY

Since the beginning, it should be known that all the people coming to The Mirage need to have a Players Club card which can be obtained from the reception and which offers his owner many facilities. Thus, the owner has access in the all twelve casinos belonging to the MGM network, with over hundred casinos and eleven fitness clubs. He could participate on 15 concerts, 3 golf competitions and all special events, he could benefit of accomodation and meals at the highest level. The Mirage offers a big variety of excellent comfort playing table as Hight Limit

Lounge, having also a seria of private areas for rest and recovery. Besides the traditional games played in all over the World, at the MGM could find other games as “Pai Gow Poker” with 52 cards, a combination between Pai Gow and Poker or “Let it Ride Stud Poker”.
The Casino offers the guests many playing tables, 2245 game machines, a special poker room, a sport bets room with ten huge screens which are connected to 25 tv programs. The Mirage offers all the posibilities, from games with one penny stake to 500 dollars but also the convenience to win even 100.000 dollars at Quick Silver, game which is available only at the MGM Mirage casinos.

THE MOST DISCREET CASINOS OWNER

Kirk Kerkorian, one of the billionaire American investor, gave the big shut three years ago when bought the Mandalay Bay Resorts Company and his company of playing games, MGM Mirage, bought more than half of the hotel rooms in Las Vegas.

In 1993, Kerkorian founded the MGM Grand company and after that he sold his movie studios with the record amount of five billion dollars.
On November last year, Tra-cinda (the Kerkorian investments company) bought 15 million of the MGM Mirage shares company, so the participation share of the billionaire raised up from 56.3%, to 61.7%. One of the richest person in the World lives an extremely retired life and he almost never appears in public. Even when his own foundation offers important amounts of money on charitable purposes (200 million dollars since present) he doesn’t give interviews and doesn’t want to make a case about his name when makes donations. According to Forbes publication, in 2007 his fortune was estimated at 15 billion dollars.

THE LEGEND SAYS THAT CHINESE PEOPLE INVENTED THEM AS WELL AS THE CHESS, GO OR DOMINO GAME.

IN 1397 YEAR, IN PARIS, IT WAS GIVEN A DECREE WHICH “FORBADE THE WORKERS to play tennis, football and the playing cards game and being allowed to do it only during the hollidays”.

THEY WERE CALLED “NAIB”

Some other people risk to designate nominally the inventor, so this could have been Wu, a famous character from the Kieh Kwei emperor epoch (cca 1800 B.C), the one who was supposed to be also the inventor of GO game.

In Europe, the playing cards arrived around 1360 year, brought by the Arabian people (or armenian) first of all in Italy and after in France. The first documentary attestation of the playing cards in Europe belongs to the Italian chronicler Nicolas de Cov-elluzo: “In Viterbe (Vierbo), on 1379 year show up a cards game native of Sinai peninsula which is also called “naib” by Arabian people. The “Naib” term was used in India to designate the circular game cards but it was known also in Spain where was called “naipes”. In France, one of the first mentions about playing cards is from the 1392 year when the king Carol the sixth bought three sets of playing cards painted by Jacquemin Gringonneur.

SMALL WORKS OF ART

If on the begining the playing cards were designed or hand made painted for the aristocracy from the north of Italy or France, after they were reproduced as woodcut, on copper or by moulds, bee-ing small works of art. Even if there are enough to declare that Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg (1400-1468) has printed the first playing cards packet, there are also other sources who affirm that the first mould had been realized between 1430 and 1450 year by a German or Swiss engraver. On that time the packet was composed of 78 cards, being formed through the combination of that 56 obtained cards, known by name of “The small lassos”, with the 22 cards including the ezoteric simbolism of Tarot and called The Big Lassos”.

OVER ONE BILLION PLAYERS. OVER 2000 PROFILE FEDERATIONS AND ASSOCIATIONS. POKER, THE MOST POPULAR GAME IN THE WORLD, IS PLAYED IN HUNDRED OF WAYS, WITH THE MOST VARIATE RULES AND STAKES.

CONTENDED BETWEEN FRENCH AND AMERICANS

Poker, in its actual form, says the historians, has been played for over 300 years. But the first game references appeared only
in 1834. Jonathan H. Green wrote that time about the “cheating game”, an extremely popular cards game and practiced on the Mississippi ships. The game had a lot of names from Pok-head, to Cards, to Triks but also to Poker. The “Wild West” fever brought in the next years a spectacular development of this game and number of probationers. In America but also in Europe, the game became the favourite of all people. The passions around the poker game became to be so huge as in 1894 it broke out a real diplomatic conflict between Americans and French people regarding the game paternity. The French people declared that time that the game was invented in the Paris suburbs, in the XVIII century, with the name of “poque”. The Americans sustained in change that the game was invented in the old Texas by the legendary gold seekers.

FROM DRAW, TO SEVEN-CARD AND HOLDEM

The poker has passed over the history through many versions in fashion. Draw, for example, was very popular until the XX century, when Seven Card entered very strong into the players preferences, the fashion seven card being in the first place since 1980 year. Between 1960 and 1970, Holdem was on fashion, but also Seven-Card Stud, declared the best way of bets. Also the number of players performed evolutions in the last two centuries. According to Bet News, between 1910 and 1970 year, the number of the casinos players in Las Vegas was for over 10 millions from whom more than a half came in Vegas to play poker, says the specialist.

POKER LAWS

Poker, as many of other games has folded over the years on the society specific and has respected the cultural particularities from every world corner.

If in 1910 year, for example, in Nevada, to bet on poker was considered a fraud, 30 years later, the casinos entered in legality, the poker game was recognized as official game and the bets legal. Today there are more world poker championship, the number of the professional players overtakes one million, and the most popular game in the world became a real star in show-bizz area, the competitions being transmited live from thousands of televisions from all over the world.

A 39 YEARS OLD PSYCHOLOGIST FROM TEMECULA, CALIFORNIA, HAS REALIZED THE PERFORMANCE OF WINNING THE WORLD POKER CHAMPIONSHIP (WORLD SERIES OF POKER), TITLE WHICH BROUGHT HIM A 8,25 MILLION DOLLARS REWARD.

In the Las Vegas tournament have participated no less then 6.358 players.

The shy player, delicate, only 1,62 metres high, extremely polite, considered by everyone the secure victim, has passed easily from one stage to the other and he shows up his real value on the seven final.

With an aggressive strategy, an incredible tonus and with an insolence mark of distinction, Yang has realized to win the title even many times he has played on bluff.

HE INVESTED ONLY 255 DOLLARS AND HE WON A FORTUNE
The Yang performance is as more amaizing as he got on WSP from a qualification tournament, unfolded in Vegas, where he paid only the matriculation charge of 255 dollars. “The only way you could win such a campi-onship is to be aggressive since the beginning. This is how I did and I won”, has declared the psychologist who has promissed before the final that he will donate 10% from his winnings to some charity foundations. Thus, from the 8,25 million dollars, 10% will go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Feed The Children, Ronald McDonald House and to the Loma Linda University. “I am shocked on the way the Yang has played. He made me withdraw even in the final I could realize that I had better cards then him”, has declared Lee Childs, a software programmer from Reston. Native of Vietnam, Lam, his partner from the final, has left home with an almost 5 million dollars reward.
THE RECORDS CHAMPIONSHIP Beyond the Yang amazing success the edition of the world poker campionship of this year has registrated some others records. The total number of the participants on the tournament was of 55.288, and the total reward founds passed beyond 159 million dollars. The WSP participation charge was of 10.000 dollars, and almost over 600 participants won more than 20.000 dollars. On the rewards top, Yang was followed by the Canadian Tuam Lam, 41 years old, with 4,8 million dollars, by Raymond Rahme, 62 years old, from South Africa, with 3 million dollars, by the Russian Alex Kravchenko, 36 years old, with 1.852.000 dollars and by the British Jon Kalmar, 34 years old, with 1.255.000 dollars.