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vinism
Private Member
MEMBER ACTIVITY
Posts: 1209
Posts Per Day: 0.18
Last Activity: 18 Dec 2023
Join Date: 6 Oct 2006
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Birthday: 04 Dec 
Location: Imported from Detroit
Interests: Game Theory

BIOGRAPHY
I worked at the GPWA for a decade as both the managing editor and editor-in-chief. I now work for a Hong-Kong based startup in the iGaming industry. Prior to joining the online gaming industry, I worked for USAToday.com, CNN and the Capital New Service as an anchor, reporter, producer. My best game is blackjack, but I do love playing poker.

GPWA TIMES MAGAZINE
Evolve or perish
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 43, February 2019
Faced with marketing to a digitally savvy audience that doesn't remember a world before the internet, affiliates must adjust to the times or face the consequences.

Blockchain to the rescue?
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 41, July 2018
Vin Narayanan gazes into his crystal ball and envisions a world where blockchain technology cures many of the issues facing iGaming affiliates and operators. Is this just a fantasy, or can it be a short-term reality? The answer may surprise you.

A narrow window of opportunity
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 40, February 2018
With the U.S. on the brink of a massive iGaming expansion, affiliates should be on the alert and fully prepared to cash in.

The gaming app revolution
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 39, November 2017
The ongoing shift to mobile gaming — and more specifically, to gaming apps — presents a prime opportunity for affiliates and operators to adapt and cash in. But the time to act is now.

Farewell, GPWA Jim
By Jim Keith (GPWA Jim) , Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 38, July 2017
The GPWA family was stunned in May by the sudden death of Jim Keith. Former colleague Vin Narayanan fondly remembers "GPWA Jim" as a likable character in industry circles, a loyal friend and, most importantly, a devoted husband.

A call for transparency
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 37, February 2017
If the iGaming industry hopes to thrive moving forward, operators need to start providing hard data regarding player complaints and financials.

Putting a charge in payment processing
Interview with Shemer Katz
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 32, June 2015
Shemer Katz, the general manager of SafeCharge Israel, discusses the Pay.com card-issuing solution, risk management and payment processing on mobile platforms.

The future of iGaming in Malta
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 32, June 2015
Cybergaming Consultants CEO Tony Axisa discusses the evolution of Malta's place in the online gambling world, as well as current issues and the future of online gambling on the island.

Use it or lose it: California's first real-money online poker room has arrived
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 30, October 2014
Gaming attorney Martin Owens explains why the Santa Ysabel is within its legal rights to operate an online gambling site in California.

Adding sophistication to payment processing
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 30, October 2014
GPWA Editor-in-chief Vin Narayanan sits down with top executives from Optimal Payments, Skrill and InComm to discuss the payment processing environment.

Digitizing cash for online gaming
Interview with Bill Kuykendall, Karina Grotz, Tony Fontaine
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 30, October 2014
InComm executives discuss the company's Vanilla Reload card, a prepaid card used to digitize cash at retailers worldwide.

Reach out to players in the funnel at the right place and time
Interview with Joel Leonoff, Joseph Hall, Lorenzo Pellegrino, Neil Erlick, Neil Steinhardt
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 30, October 2014
Executives from Skrill and Optimal Payments discuss the early stumbling blocks in payment processing and the learning curve in the regulated New Jersey online gambling market.

When gray markets turn white: Payment processing in a regulated environment
Interview with Joel Leonoff
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 29, July 2014
Joel Leonoff, CEO of Optimal Payments, discusses the challenges of keeping up-to-date on regulatory changes and working with banks.

"Work on the theory that you will be breached" - an interview with MTI's David Hobson
Interview with David Hobson
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 29, July 2014
Hobson talks about what MTI has done to stay secure and what steps affiliates should take to stay secure.

Deconstructing Abboud - How Andy Abboud is working to expedite Sheldon Adelson's campaign to wipe online gaming off the American map
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 28, April 2014
The Las Vegas Sands Corp. executive's arguments against online gambling are the same moral panic arguments frequently leveled against the land-based casinos Las Vegas Sands has made billions from operating.

Online gaming in the USA: Less dawdle, more doodle
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 27, February 2014
State-by-state expansion of online gaming in the U.S. has shown some promising signs lately, but there are still several hurdles to overcome.

Creating a better back office -- the holistic approach
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 27, February 2014
Fredrik Kjell dishes about how Amaya Gaming develops and runs its player management platform.

U.S. legislative roundup
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 26, October 2013
Chances for passing sensible regulatory legislation on the federal level look dim, and only a little brighter at the state level.

Can mobile and social save online poker?
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 24, April 2013
Two Amaya execs discuss a range of current events in the online gaming industry.

We have a "situation" here
By Aaron Todd (GPWA Aaron) , Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 24, April 2013
PokerStars' application to purchase the Atlantic Club Casino in New Jersey in the wake of its DOJ indictment on Black Friday has sparked some heated debate.

Different strokes: Making sense of the PokerStars-Full Tilt settlement
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 22, October 2012
Full Tilt and PokerStars have both settled to pay massive fines to the U.S. DOJ — and PokerStars has purchased Full Tilt.

Where to now in the U.S. -- and who's driving?
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
Black Friday and the DOJ's reinterpretation of the Wire Act both shook up the legal landscape for online gaming.

A birthday to remember
Interview with John Pappas
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
John Pappas gives his predictions for the future of online gaming in the U.S.

The Full Tilt online fiasco impacted land-based gaming as well
Interview with Anshu Kalhan
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
The executive director of business development at Foxwoods Development Company discusses the effects of Black Friday on the brick-and-mortar casino industry.

States should tell the DOJ to mind its own business
Interview with Martin Owens
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
Gaming attorney Martin Owens weighs in on Black Friday and the futility of prohibiting online gaming.

Be neutral, be agnostic and be ready to act quickly
Interview with Louis Castle
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
Lou Castle of Shuffle Master thinks social gaming has a role to play in the real-money online gaming world.

What happens next? Keep your eye on the lotteries!
Interview with Kimberly Arnold
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 21, May 2012
Kimberly Arnold of the Innovation Group discusses the relationship between lotteries and casino gaming.

Regulated, widespread online gaming in the USA is coming -- but not right now
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 20, March 2012
The brick-and-mortar casino industry has put itself behind the push for online gaming, but the slow pace of legal change means it may be a while before it becomes widespread throughout the U.S.

Absolute Poker founder pleads guilty to bank fraud and money laundering
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 19, February 2012
Brent Beckley entered a guilty plea in the case the U.S. DOJ has brought against Absolute Poker, Full Tilt Poker and PokerStars.

The U.S. market: out of many, one -- or every state for itself?
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 19, February 2012
The DOJ's recent reinterpretation of the Wire Act may lead the U.S. online gaming market to fracture into 51 markets, similar to the situation for land-based gaming.

Regulators! Mount up!
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 18, October 2011
Full Tilt Poker's and Absolute Poker/UB's inability to pay their players in the wake of DOJ indictments raises questions about what regulation is for and what constitutes a useful, effective regulatory scheme.

More online gambling indictments issued in Maryland and New York
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 17, September 2011
Two businesses and three people were charged with money laundering and operating an illegal business; 10 domains were seized; and 11 bank accounts were frozen.

QuickTender's wallet slams shut
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 17, September 2011
The electronic wallet says it is stopping services after several bank accounts were frozen by court order following another round of DOJ indictments.

Online betting in France -- a taxing situation
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 17, September 2011
Online gaming operators in France are seeing declining revenue and having a tough time making a profit, due largely to a high tax rate that impedes their ability to offer decent returns to players.

Judgment Day delayed for Full Tilt
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 17, September 2011
Full Tilt Poker's loss of its Alderney gambling license is just the latest in a series of bad news for the company, but the AGCC did grant a request to delay the regulatory hearing until September.

Governor's veto kills online gambling legislation in New Jersey
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 16, May 2011
Gov. Chris Christie cited a number of issues he had with the bill, but insisted he was amenable to signing an online gambling bill if these issues were addressed.

Tweet Cred: Vin Narayanan tracks the DOJ indictment story as it unfolds on Twitter
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 16, May 2011
Vin reconstructs the events of Black Friday as seen from the Internet, including witness commentary and a timeline of press releases.

Efforts for federal regulation fall short in lame duck session
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 15, January 2011
With the Republican takeover of the House of Representatives, conditions for federal online gaming regulation do not look favorable.

Legalized online gambling moves one step closer to reality in U.S.
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 14, October 2010
The House Financial Services Committee, headed by Barney Frank, approved a bill to license and regulate online gambling.

Do you copy? Staying on the right side of content publishers
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 14, October 2010
With "copyright troll" firm Righthaven starting lawsuits against webmasters who repost content, affiliates need to make sure their use of other people's articles follows copyright laws and industry best practices.

France and the U.K. take a second look at their gambling laws
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 13, June 2010
The legal landscape for online gambling in Europe is changing quickly, and nowhere are the changes more dramatic than in two of Europe's largest markets -- France and the U.K.

Partying with the GPWA
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 12, April 2010
When Vin Narayanan visited London to attend the International Gaming Expo and the London Affiliate Conference, he brought his camera with him.

Online poker in California -- Can the golden state get it done?
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 12, April 2010
Online poker might be coming to California, but it's not going to get there without a fight.

Harrah's launches long-awaited online casino
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 11, January 2010
The new casino is named Caesars Casino Online and bears the unique black and gold Caesars branding.

Full Tilt circumvents Kentucky case
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 11, January 2010
The online poker company took pre-emptive action against the commonwealth to ensure that its domain could not be seized.

Online gaming stories of the decade
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 11, January 2010
In the online gambling industry, a decade is practically a lifetime. As the calendar turns from the aughts to the teens, we look back at the previous decade and see an era marked by rapid growth, market- and industry-altering earthquakes, arrests, trials, recession, and new and emerging growth areas.

Gambling without borders
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 11, January 2010
As the European online gambling market matures and moves away from a "one market" philosophy to a nation-by-nation jurisdictional approach, it's becoming clear that not all regulation is good regulation. An organization called Right2bet has been created to try to effect good regulation.

The VIP Experience
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 10, September 2009
Vin Narayanan took a little time off from covering the World Series of Poker to sample some high-end Las Vegas parties thrown by online poker rooms.

Minnesota orders block of online gambling sites
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 9, June 2009
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Alocohol and Gaming Division says the Wire Act of 1961 gives the state the authority to make this request.

Future of online gambling in Europe is vulnerable
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 9, June 2009
The European Union is against online gambling, and that spells trouble for the future of the industry in Europe.

Obama brings hope, but the UIGEA is here to stay for now
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 8, April 2009
President Barack Obama can halt pending anti-online gambling regulations from being implemented, but there's not much he can do about the UIGEA.

The GPWA sits down with Congressman Wexler and PPA chairman D'Amato
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 6, September 2008
Rep. Wexler and D'Amato are working together to get the UIGEA overturned.

Poker cleansing
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 6, September 2008
Catania Consulting dishes on the probe it conducted on behalf of the Kahnawake Gaming Commission to vet UltimateBet and Absolute Poker.

News analysis: Judge's ruling stacks odds against iMEGA
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 4, April 2008
U.S District Court Judge Mary Cooper dismissed iMEGA's First Amendment claims on the merits, rejecting the argument that gambling is a form a free speech.

Online gaming meets social networking
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 4, April 2008
As millions of users make Facebook, Bebo, MySpace, PerfSpot and Orkut their primary homes on the Web, portal webmasters need to consider how to reach this critical and growing audience.

Draft UIGEA regulations under fire
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 4, April 2008
The regulations proposed by the U.S. Treasury Department and Federal Reserve have generated so much public comment that no regulations have been implemented yet.

Making a difference: the GPWA's top five newsmakers of 2007
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 3, January 2008
While there were plenty of setbacks and some significant triumphs in 2007, there were five people who stood out from the crowd, led by European Commissioner Charlie McCreevy, the GPWA's Newsmaker of the Year.

Online gambling the only real loser in WTO case
By Vin Narayanan (vinism)  - Issue 3, January 2008
In the end, Antigua's WTO case against the U.S. over online gambling had nothing to do with gambling on the Internet. Instead, it became a proxy war pitting the policies of trade against fair trade.

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