BloodHorse.com | Horse Racing News

Horsemen's Simulcast Rights Upheld in OH Case

The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion Jan. 24 that states the federal Interstate Horseracing Act trumps Ohio statute in regard to horsemen having a say in where races are transmitted.

Instant Racing Tied to Simulcast Handle Jump

Kentucky Downs said the launch of Instant Racing Sept. 1 led to year-over-year increases in pari-mutuel handle on simulcast races over Labor Day weekend.

Rosecroft Raceway Back in Business Under PNGI

Rosecroft Raceway, a Maryland harness track that has been closed for live racing since 2008, is expected to reopen for simulcasting Aug. 25 under ownership of a Penn National Gaming Inc. subsidiary.

Saratoga Diary: The British are Coming

UK simulcasting meets live racing fans in the a.m.

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NYRA Gets OK to Offer New York Harness Races

The New York State Racing and Wagering Board on Aug. 5 approved a plan for the New York Racing Association to offer full-card simulcasts of harness racing from New York tracks.

Deadline Looms for Simulcast Show Entries

The award honoring the racing industry's best simulcast production will again be presented at the International Simulcast Conference this year in Scottsdale, Ariz. The deadline for all entries is Aug. 15.

Month Versus Month, Charles Town Handle Grows

Average daily pari-mutuel handle on live racing at Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races was up again in July, allowing the West Virginia track to register 15 consecutive months of year-over-year handle gains.

Massachusetts House OKs Dates, Simulcast Bill

Massachusetts House approves bill to reduce racing days and extend simulcasting.

Mass. Senate OKs Simulcast Legislation

Massachusetts legislation allows simulcasting to continue.

NJ Senate Committee OKs Racing Legislation

A Senate committee in New Jersey moved legislation June 20 that would allow the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority to jointly operate Monmouth Park and Meadowlands pending licensing of lessees.

KTDF Revenue Decline of Concern to Panel

Members of an advisory committee that oversees the Kentucky Thoroughbred Development Fund expressed concern June 8 over diminishing revenue for the program as well as one racetrack's suspension of full-card simulcasts.

Rosecroft Seeks License; No Simulcast Deal

Penn National Gaming Inc. has submitted an application to the Maryland Racing Commission to resume operations at shuttered Rosecroft Raceway June 1.

Michigan Racetrack Surrenders 2011 License

Pinnacle Race Course has surrendered its license for 2011, meaning the Michigan track won't offer live Thoroughbred racing or full-card simulcasts this year.

Meadowlands Spared for at Least a Month

Meadowlands in New Jersey will remain open through May as negotiations continue on a long-term lease of the facility.

Simulcast Agreement Reached in Ohio

The Ohio Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association has reached an agreement with a Cleveland-area harness track that will avoid a potential blackout of Triple Crown simulcasts in the state.

Would-Be Lessee of Big M to Meet With Tellers

A group of mutuel tellers has agreed to meet April 20 with the would-be lessee of Meadowlands, offering some hope the New Jersey racetrack will remain open for live racing and full-card simulcasts.

Meadowlands Appears on Verge of Shutting Down

Barring a reversal by mutuel clerks that refused to vote on a proposal for wage concessions, it appears Meadowlands in New Jersey will not reopen for harness racing in May and the track's simulcast operation will shut down.

OH Horsemen Hope Deal Avoids Derby Blackout

The Ohio Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association is in negotiations with a Cleveland-area harness track to avoid a situation that could lead to a statewide simulcast blackout of the May 7 Kentucky Derby.

Simulcast Deal Required for Maryland Funding

The Maryland General Assembly April 11 sent a bill that provides millions of dollars to help horse racing to Gov. Martin O'Malley for his signature.

Gulfstream Using Fridays for Simulcast Test

Effective April 8 Gulfstream Park for the last three Fridays of its current meet is sending the simulcast signal of its full live card to two local facilities on an experimental basis.

Turfway Bucks Trend; Ontrack Handle Up 13.5%

Turfway Park reported across-the-board increases in pari-mutuel handle for its 2011 winter/spring meet in the face of national figures that show total handle on United States racing is down 8.5% for the same period.

Time Running Out for Suffolk Downs Agreement

There is a Feb. 25 deadline looming in the 2011 contract dispute between Suffolk Downs and the New England Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association.

Source: Suffolk Wants Signals, Could Close

Suffolk Downs has threatened to shut down in March if the New England Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association and other chapters across the country do not restore simulcast signals by Feb. 26, according to a source.

PNGI Purchase of Rosecroft in Maryland Upheld

A U.S. District Court judge in Maryland Feb. 2 upheld the purchase of shuttered Rosecroft Raceway by Penn National Gaming Inc., which operates a casino in the state and owns 49% of the Maryland Jockey Club.

'Militant' Horsemen Eye Suffolk Alternative

While the New England HBPA and Suffolk Downs remain at a bitter impasse over a contract for live racing in 2011, the attorney for the horsemen said Feb. 1 he is looking into options to race elsewhere.

No Live Racing at Aqueduct Feb. 2

Due to expected rain, sleet, and icy conditions, Aqueduct will not have live racing on Wednesday, Feb. 2. A decision on whether simulcasting will be available at Aqueduct will be made the morning of Feb. 2.

Racing-Related Bills Progress in New Jersey

Legislation geared toward the horse racing industry unanimously passed the New Jersey Assembly Regulatory Oversight and Gaming Committee Jan. 20.

International Sound Buys Teleview Racing

Teleview Racing Patrol Inc., a Florida-based company specializing in broadcast television production, photo-finish, and timing systems for horse and dog tracks, has been acquired by International Sound Corp.

Suffolk Obtains Dog Track Simulcast License

Suffolk Downs has been given approval to simulcast dog racing by the Massachusetts State Racing Commission, which recently issued a decision to allow the shuttered Wonderland Greyhound Park to transfer its license.

Distribution Plan Has Potential, Some Bumps

A transition of simulcast signals to the DISH Network offers long-term positives for the horse racing industry -- including the possibility of new revenue -- but in the short term, the road has been a bit bumpy.

Pinnacle to Suspend Simulcast Operations

Pinnacle Race Course officials shut down the Detroit, Mich.-area track following the end of its live meet Oct. 31 and announced that simulcast operations would be suspended until at least the spring 2011.

AmWest Again Handling Simulcasts From Dubai

AmWest Entertainment has again been chosen to distribute the signal for the Dubai Racing Club, which will offer an expanded season in 2010-11, in North and South America.

Issues Hinder International Simulcast Growth

Widespread international simulcasts may be a goal of the United States horse racing industry, but it could be a pipedream unless numerous obstacles are overcome and there is a mindset change.

Computer Bettors Survey Industry Landscape

Proponents of computer-assisted wagering sought Sept. 21 to dispel what they say are misconceptions -- and they also offered some advice to the struggling pari-mutuel industry.

CDI to Handle Oaklawn Park's Simulcasting

Churchill Downs Incorporated and the Oaklawn Jockey Club have entered into a simulcast services agreement whereby CDI would purchase and sell simulcast content on behalf of Oaklawn Park.

Judge Dismisses Suit Over Simulcasting

A federal judge has dismissed an anti-trust lawsuit filed by a Maryland harness track against Churchill Downs, TrackNet Media Group, and other parties over full-card simulcasting.

Total Saratoga Handle Close to 2009 Figure

Total wagering remained close to last year's comparable figure while attendance and ontrack handle inched upward despite two rainy days through the fourth full week of racing at Saratoga.

Belmont Forced to Cancel Racing, Simulcasts

Due to power outages in the neighboring Averill Park community, Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., canceled live racing and simulcasting July 16.

2010 Simulcast Conference Set for September

This year's International Simulcast Conference will be held Sept. 20-22 in Clearwater, Fla., the Thoroughbred Racing Associations announced Jan. 26.

Meydan Trials Held in Advance of Carnival

Trials held at the new Meydan racing facility in advance of the Dubai Racing Carnival received a thumbs-up, according to the Dubai Racing Club.

TrackNet/Cooperative Dispute Taking a Toll

A dispute over signal rates between TrackNet Media Group and 17 racetracks in the Mid-Atlantic region is a primary reason Gulfstream's interstate wagering handle was down about 15% through the first seven days of its meet.

NY OTBs Ordered to Pay Harness Track Millions

New York's rules governing racetrack and off-track revenue-sharing took another twist Dec. 15 as state racing regulators ordered four downstate off-track betting corporations to pay millions of dollars to Yonkers Raceway.

Ellis Park to Suspend Simulcast Operations

Ellis Park officials said Oct. 27 the racetrack will shut down after Nov. 8 and suspend simulcast operations until April 1, 2010. The move affects 75 full- and part- time employees at the Western Kentucky track.

Are the Voices of Horseplayers Being Heard?

Racing executives are listening to players, but not enough, according to a journalist and horseplayer. And one track executive who is willing to try some things believes the industry would balk and put up roadblocks. And so it goes in the pari-mutuel horseracing industry.

Keeneland Wins Simulcast Award

Keeneland was named the winner of the 2009 Simulcast Award Oct. 14 during the 17th annual International Simulcasting Conference in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. Keeneland also won the award, which honors the horse racing industry's best simulcast production, in 2003 and 2008. Keeneland's latest award was for its coverage of the Vinery Madison Stakes (gr. I) from April.

Panel: Racing Not Capitalizing on Advantages

In the opinion of a few of horse racing's customers, the sport has the best "video game" available but fails to capitalize on it.

Status Quo, 'Welfare' Mentality Big Threats

If the horseracing industry fails to make voluntary changes it has resisted for decades, the only things that may save it from doom are involuntary changes brought on by forces in the gambling and entertainment marketplace, officials said Oct. 13.

Perception, Not Integrity, Called Major Issue

Officials assembled for the International Simulcast Conference said Oct. 12 public perception, not integrity, is the primary problem for the industry's wagering systems.

Kentucky Derby Challenge Stakes Off for 2010

The Kentucky Derby Challenge Stakes at Kempton in Great Britain, inaugurated in 2009 to award a Europe-based horse a berth in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), won't be held next year. But officials said it could return.

Simulcast Conference Puts Focus on Patron

This year's International Simulcast Conference will include a panel devoted to patrons' perspective on horse racing and wagering.