Leonardo DiCaprio to Star in Online Poker Movie, by Dan Cypra - Poker News Daily - 16th June 2009
Move over, “Titanic,” there’s a new sheriff in town. Hollywood heartthrob Leonardo DiCaprio will star in an untitled film about internet gambling outfits in Costa Rica, according to the Hollywood Reporter and Entertainment Weekly.
The screenplay will be written by Brian Koppelman and David Levien, who both served in the same capacity in the 1998 film “Rounders,” which turned many of today’s poker prodigies onto the game. According to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB), “Rounders” marked the first official writing credits for Koppelman and Levien. The duo has also teamed up with DiCaprio to bring “Beat the Reaper” to the big screen. The film, which will be released next year, has the following plot according to IMDB: “ER doctor Peter Brown’s life is turned upside down when he crosses paths with a mobster who appears to know him from his former life as a hitman.”
No release date has been given for DiCaprio’s online poker movie. An article on MTV.com noted that DiCaprio’s plate is quite full: “DiCaprio has an enormous list of films in pre-production. For the time being, at least, he’ll be working on Christopher Nolan’s ‘Inception.’ Whenever he’s finished with that, he will probably have developed five more projects.” IMDB notes that DiCaprio has 21 films in development.
Whether the film will focus on online poker, casinos, or sports betting remains to be seen and various websites pitch the movie in several different ways. Tokwiro-owned online poker rooms Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker are both based in San Jose, the Central American country’s capital city. A report by CBS News program “60 Minutes” identified the offices of the sites as being located in a “strip mall.” Both Ultimate Bet and Absolute Poker comprise the CEREUS Network, which was formed in November.
Action Poker, the flagship site of the network of the same name, has offices in Costa Rica. Joining the site in the tropical nation is Doyle’s Room, which opened the 2009 calendar year by jumping to the USA-friendly Cake Poker Network. Ten-time World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Doyle Brunson, whose “Texas Dolly” moniker has made him one of the industry’s foremost faces, is the site’s namesake. Also holding a presence in Costa Rica is PokerStars, the world’s largest online poker site. According to PokerScout.com, which ranks online poker site traffic, PokerStars has a seven day running average of 22,000 cash game players. It happily accepts customers from the United States.
“Rounders” starred Edward Norton and Matt Damon. The movie was released five years before Chris Moneymaker became a household after the Tennessee accountant defeated Sammy Farha in the 2003 WSOP Main Event. Since then, Koppelman and Levien have kept their love for poker alive, teaming up for ESPN’s short-lived series “Tilt,” which starred Michael Madsen as Don “The Matador” Everest. “Tilt” premiered in 2005, ran for one season, and featured appearances by poker superstars including Phil Hellmuth, Daniel Negreanu, Erik Seidel, and T.J. Cloutier. Negreanu is fresh off a cameo in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine.”
Finally, Koppelman and Levien wrote “Oceans Thirteen,” which came out in 2007. It was the third installment of the franchise, which stars Damon, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Andy Garcia, and Julia Roberts. “Oceans Thirteen” returned to its roots in Las Vegas as the team sought revenge on casino owner Willy Blank (played by Al Pacino). The movie also stars Don Cheadle, who founded Ante Up for Africa along with Norman Epstein and “Celebrity Apprentice” runner-up Annie Duke.
We’ll have more information for you on DiCaprio’s online gambling movie as it becomes available right here on Poker News Daily. (Credit: Poker News Daily)
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Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Roman's ships are down, by Graeme Leech - The Australian - 7th May 2009
Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has lost one of his yachts in a game of poker. Poor form for a whale; he did not, as Kerry Packer would have, call double or nothing. Abramovich's yacht collection is worth hundreds of millions and has been dubbed the Roman Navy by the British press, which follows his every move because he owns the Chelsea soccer club. So he can afford one $US500,000 yacht. Strewth's Packer reference comes from an anecdote that could be a casino myth. Packer was playing blackjack in Las Vegas when another gambler began boasting about his ranch. To silence the man, Packer is reputed to have said: "Toss you for it." (Credit: The Australian)
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Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has lost one of his yachts in a game of poker. Poor form for a whale; he did not, as Kerry Packer would have, call double or nothing. Abramovich's yacht collection is worth hundreds of millions and has been dubbed the Roman Navy by the British press, which follows his every move because he owns the Chelsea soccer club. So he can afford one $US500,000 yacht. Strewth's Packer reference comes from an anecdote that could be a casino myth. Packer was playing blackjack in Las Vegas when another gambler began boasting about his ranch. To silence the man, Packer is reputed to have said: "Toss you for it." (Credit: The Australian)
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Monday, June 15, 2009
Daniel Tzvetkoff hit with $52m lawsuit, by Daryl Passmore - The Sunday Mail - 14th June 2009
Queensland's baby-faced internet tycoon Daniel Tzvetkoff is being targeted in a $52 million legal action by an online gambling firm.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of blows in recent months for the 25-year-old who first hit the headlines last year when he bought the state's most expensive home, spending $27 million for an unfinished beachfront mansion on the Gold Coast.
Mr Tzvetkoff is the brains behind an online billing, payments and fraud-detection system which helped him and partner Sam Sciacca, 38, build a business empire worth an estimated $120 million in last year's The Sunday Mail Top 100 Rich List.
Their firm, Intabill Inc, is now being sued by Kolyma Corporation AVV for payments which Kolyma says were not passed on.
The corporation, based in the former Dutch colony of Aruba in the southern Caribbean, operates Full Tilt Poker, one of the most popular and lucrative online gambling sites.
It was one of the biggest clients of Intabill, which is based in the Brisbane suburb of Milton.
Kolyma is seeking payment of an alleged debt of $US43 million ($A52.75 million) plus interest, which it claims has been increasing at $US13,532 a day (about A$16,590) since May 25.
The action, lodged in the Supreme Court in Brisbane on May 25, names as defendants Intabill, which is registered in the British Virgin Islands tax haven, and the Australian-registered holding company BT Projects. It also targets Mr Tzvetkoff and Mr Sciacca individually, saying they gave a guarantee to pay Kolyma money claimed to be owed.
Mr Tzvetkoff told The Sunday Mail they would defend the lawsuit "but I can't comment further".
Mr Sciacca could not be reached for comment.
Intabill had more than 5000 customers in 70 countries. It is understood that about half its revenue came from business linked to online gambling operations, with fees from just one operator topping more than $150,000 per day.
In April, Intabill laid off 96 employees - keeping about 20. Mr Tzvetkoff blamed market conditions and increased loan funding costs.
In May, Intabill withdrew a multimillion-dollar sponsorship of the Team IntaRacing V8 Supercar team, announced only months earlier.
Asked on Friday about the current state of his businesses, Mr Tzvetkoff said: "We are continuing to work to rebuild during these tough times."
Mr Tzvetkoff was raised in Brisbane's southern suburbs by a school teacher mum and a father who runs weekend markets.
Benefiting from the boom times of his business, he drove a black Lamborghini Gallardo with the number plate BALLER and owned a Ferrari 599, an Audi S6, Range Rover and a Ford GT40. He had a luxurious boat and used chartered private jets.
He is a part-owner of the Zuri Lounge celebrity nightclub in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley.
It is understood the boat and most of the cars have been sold.
A year ago, Mr Tzvetkoff emerged as the mystery buyer of the $27 million half-built mansion on "millionaire's row" at Hedges Ave, Mermaid Beach, which was formerly owned by tourism tycoon Tony Smith.
The property, spread over four waterfront lots, was to be a family home for Mr Tzvetkoff, his fiancee Nicole Crisp and their son Hugo, now aged two. They planned to marry last October and move in late last year. But the wedding was postponed because Mr Tzvetkoff said he was too busy with business commitments.
The Hedges Ave property is still unfinished and they have not moved in yet.
"At the moment we are on hold," Mr Tzvetkoff said yesterday.
Salvatore "Sam" Sciacca is a lawyer with a background in commercial and corporate work, including e-commerce.
He is a cousin of former federal minister for veterans' affairs Con Sciacca, and has kept a much lower profile than Mr Tzvetkoff. (Credit: The Sunday Mail)
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Queensland's baby-faced internet tycoon Daniel Tzvetkoff is being targeted in a $52 million legal action by an online gambling firm.
The lawsuit is the latest in a series of blows in recent months for the 25-year-old who first hit the headlines last year when he bought the state's most expensive home, spending $27 million for an unfinished beachfront mansion on the Gold Coast.
Mr Tzvetkoff is the brains behind an online billing, payments and fraud-detection system which helped him and partner Sam Sciacca, 38, build a business empire worth an estimated $120 million in last year's The Sunday Mail Top 100 Rich List.
Their firm, Intabill Inc, is now being sued by Kolyma Corporation AVV for payments which Kolyma says were not passed on.
The corporation, based in the former Dutch colony of Aruba in the southern Caribbean, operates Full Tilt Poker, one of the most popular and lucrative online gambling sites.
It was one of the biggest clients of Intabill, which is based in the Brisbane suburb of Milton.
Kolyma is seeking payment of an alleged debt of $US43 million ($A52.75 million) plus interest, which it claims has been increasing at $US13,532 a day (about A$16,590) since May 25.
The action, lodged in the Supreme Court in Brisbane on May 25, names as defendants Intabill, which is registered in the British Virgin Islands tax haven, and the Australian-registered holding company BT Projects. It also targets Mr Tzvetkoff and Mr Sciacca individually, saying they gave a guarantee to pay Kolyma money claimed to be owed.
Mr Tzvetkoff told The Sunday Mail they would defend the lawsuit "but I can't comment further".
Mr Sciacca could not be reached for comment.
Intabill had more than 5000 customers in 70 countries. It is understood that about half its revenue came from business linked to online gambling operations, with fees from just one operator topping more than $150,000 per day.
In April, Intabill laid off 96 employees - keeping about 20. Mr Tzvetkoff blamed market conditions and increased loan funding costs.
In May, Intabill withdrew a multimillion-dollar sponsorship of the Team IntaRacing V8 Supercar team, announced only months earlier.
Asked on Friday about the current state of his businesses, Mr Tzvetkoff said: "We are continuing to work to rebuild during these tough times."
Mr Tzvetkoff was raised in Brisbane's southern suburbs by a school teacher mum and a father who runs weekend markets.
Benefiting from the boom times of his business, he drove a black Lamborghini Gallardo with the number plate BALLER and owned a Ferrari 599, an Audi S6, Range Rover and a Ford GT40. He had a luxurious boat and used chartered private jets.
He is a part-owner of the Zuri Lounge celebrity nightclub in Brisbane's Fortitude Valley.
It is understood the boat and most of the cars have been sold.
A year ago, Mr Tzvetkoff emerged as the mystery buyer of the $27 million half-built mansion on "millionaire's row" at Hedges Ave, Mermaid Beach, which was formerly owned by tourism tycoon Tony Smith.
The property, spread over four waterfront lots, was to be a family home for Mr Tzvetkoff, his fiancee Nicole Crisp and their son Hugo, now aged two. They planned to marry last October and move in late last year. But the wedding was postponed because Mr Tzvetkoff said he was too busy with business commitments.
The Hedges Ave property is still unfinished and they have not moved in yet.
"At the moment we are on hold," Mr Tzvetkoff said yesterday.
Salvatore "Sam" Sciacca is a lawyer with a background in commercial and corporate work, including e-commerce.
He is a cousin of former federal minister for veterans' affairs Con Sciacca, and has kept a much lower profile than Mr Tzvetkoff. (Credit: The Sunday Mail)
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