This summer, Miccosukee Casino & Resort is preparing to unveil a new and exclusive smoking casino section. The venue, located in the northwest corner of the property, is tailored for casino-goers who prefer to smoke while playing their favorite slots in a comfortable and refined indoor ambiance featuring 20-foot-tall ceilings.

“At Miccosukee Casino & Resort, we value our customers’ feedback, and we strive to meet their needs. Many of our guests have requested a new, indoor, dedicated smoking section, and I am proud that we will be unveiling this unique attraction to them very soon. It’s a fusion of gaming, sophisticated design, and an upscale bar, all created to cater to our distinguished guests,” said General Manager Brad Rhines.

The new smoking venue is equipped with a state-of-the-art air filtration system to ensure the comfort of smoking guests while preserving the air quality in the casino’s non-smoking areas. Additionally, it offers new restrooms in the smoking section, as well as in the non-smoking corridor.

Featuring 117 slot machines, a contemporary full bar with four 75-inch high-definition TVs, and eight bar-top slot machines, this exclusive smoking area perfectly accommodates Miccosukee’s esteemed patrons.

BetMGM, a leading sports betting and iGaming operator, will celebrate Wheel of Fortune’s 8000th episode during the legendary game show’s “Big Money Week” scheduled to air May 20-24. For the first time in the history of the wildly successful syndicated game show, there will be a Nightly Progressive Jackpot sponsored by BetMGM that will be added to whatever a contestant wins if they solve the show’s Bonus Puzzle.

During game play, there will also be a BetMGM-branded “Double Jackpot” wedge on the famous Wheel giving contestants who earn the opportunity to add double the Nightly Progressive Jackpot to their total if they win the Bonus Round.

“BetMGM is honored to join Wheel of Fortune during this milestone week and be a part of a game show that has earned a place in American television history. ‘Big Money Week’ is a great collaboration, giving contestants and viewers at home the opportunity to experience the excitement of a progressive jackpot,” said BetMGM’s CEO Adam Greenblatt.

Sony Pictures Television and BetMGM have come together to integrate BetMGM branding into Wheel of Fortune’s “Big Money Week” featuring on-set placements including:

Co-branded graphics displayed in the center monitor
In-show displays of BetMGM’s logo on host Pat Sajak’s monitor
Two BetMGM Double Jackpot Wheel wedges
A BetMGM jackpot ticker appearing above the puzzle board during each episode.

Pennsylvania Skill, powered by Pace-O-Matic (POM), applauded the April revenue reports that show the gaming industry in the state made more than $504 million for the third time since April of last year. Pennsylvania gaming grossed nearly $1.7 billion in commercial revenue in just the first three months of 2024, second only to the casino capital of the United States, Nevada.

The funding comes from slot machines, table games, internet gaming, sports wagering, fantasy contests and video gaming terminals (VGTs).

As the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) celebrates yet another big financial month, however, casinos continue to falsely claim their revenue is impacted by skill games.

“We want to know what the revenue number is that casinos need to hit, or the next record they need to break before they stop claiming skill games are competition,” said Mike Barley, chief public affairs officer for POM. “Every month, we read about their incredible revenue gains, and then the casino industry turns around and claims they are losing money because of skill games. Their arguments don’t pass the smell test.”

Instead of battling skill games, Barley said casinos should support legislation sponsored by Sen. Gene Yaw and Rep. Danilo Burgos that will regulate and tax skill games. There is bipartisan backing for the legislation that will place guardrails around skill game operations and provide as much as $250 million in skill game state tax revenue in just the first year. Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to see skill game tax revenue as part of his 2024-25 state budget.

Given the casino industry revenue gains so far this year, it is hard to understand why they are crying wolf. “It’s difficult to see how skill games are causing hardship for a billion-dollar industry,” Barley said, adding that there is room for both gambling and skill games in the Commonwealth. Since skill games entered the marketplace, gambling revenue has increased and broken records.

Several courts have ruled Pennsylvania Skill games are legal, including a unanimous Commonwealth Court last year. In addition to providing supplemental income to small businesses, many Pennsylvania Skill games are manufactured in Williamsport, and over 90 percent of the income they generate stays within the local economy and the state.

The baseless accusations, Barley explained, are an assault on small businesses, veterans groups, volunteer fire companies and other fraternal clubs across the state that count on legal skill games to make ends meet. Small business owners with skill games in their establishments are saying the revenue has saved their businesses.

Many of these locations rely on income from skill games to offer competitive wages and benefits to their employees, who are often heads of households supporting their families. This is what struggling families need right now, not another roadblock, Barley explained.

The proposed legislation limits the number of skill games per establishment to no more than five in LCB and lottery-licensed locations and up to ten at fraternal clubs.

Skill game distributors, operators and locations will be licensed and regulated through the Department of Revenue. The Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control & Enforcement and local law enforcement in counties of the first class would be responsible for policing the skill game industry, helping to crack down on illegal games encroaching on communities across the Commonwealth.

“Backing this legislation means speaking up for the little guy – volunteer fire companies, VFW posts, mom-and-pop shops, fraternal clubs, small businesses and their employees. I believe Pennsylvanians can sleep comfortably knowing that the big internationally owned casinos will continue to survive on their record profits.” Barley said.