- Bodog
Bodog Entertainment is an online gambling, music and entertainment company headquartered in
Antigua and licensed in Kahnawake,Antigua and Barbuda ,San José, Costa Rica and theUnited Kingdom . Bodog maintains an online sportsbook and racebook, anonline casino and anonline poker room. The company was founded in1994 byCalvin Ayre .Company
Bodog also owns Bodog.net (the play money version of their regular gaming site), as well as an international music label called Bodog Music, and a television production division which produces shows such as "Calvin Ayre Wild Card Poker" that appeared on
Fox Sports Net .In May 2007 Bodog garnered media attention with an entertainment bet that asked if
Heather Mills [the ex-wife of former BeatlePaul McCartney ] would lose her prosthetic leg during taping of "Dancing with the Stars ". [ [http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2007-03-18-dancing-stars-cover_N.htm "Heather Mills adds a spark to 'Stars'"] , USA Today March 18, 2007] "The Sopranos " season finale in June of 2007 was another popular prop bet for Bodog, [ [http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/story?id=3260755&page=1 "Tony Soprano Lives -- or Dies: Place Your Bets"] , abc NEWS June 8, 2007] as was the June 27, 2007Paris Hilton -Larry King interview, in which the gambling Web site accepted wagers on what the hotel heiress would say and wear during her first televised interview following her release from a Los Angeles jail. [ [http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/27/paris.hilton.ap/index.html "Gambling Web Site Taking Bets on What Hilton Will Say"] , CNN June 27, 2007] In 2006, Bodog launched amixed martial arts (MMA) promotion calledBodogFight . It aired on the Outdoor Life Network andThe Fight Network (inCanada ), as well as being broadcast online. BodogFight also had a distribution deal withION Media Networks .The game features a Bodog Stampede, a large, fast vehicle with an automatic machine gun attached on the top. The in-game car was designed by Bodog. Several minigames in Scarface bear the Bodog name, including video poker machines, slot machines, and games of blackjack. In-game billboards also include the names of several Bodog Music bands. The Bodog founder (and recent Forbes billionaire) Calvin Ayre will appear as a nonplayable character in the game.
In 2008, Bodog announced the signing of hip hop legend DMX and will release two albums on the same day both titled
Walk with Me Now andYou'll Fly with Me Later later this year, making it his debut on the label.Bodog Music
Bodog Music is a record company owned by Bodog Entertainment. The roster of the record label includes:
*Bif Naked
* Bishop Brigante
*Britt Black
* Fall from Grace (the winners of theFuse TV reality show "Bodog Music Battle of the Bands")
* Overkill
*Nazanin Afshin-Jam
*Neurosonic
*The Vincent Black Shadow
* DMX
*Wu-Tang Clan
*Dead Celebrity Status Legal
The ABC news magazine show "Nightline" highlighted the website and its legal ambiguities in an episode that originally aired on
July 7 ,2006 . [ [http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/print?id=2108601 "Online Gambling Mogul Living it Up"] , ABCNews July 7, 2006]In August 2006, a lawsuit was filed and later withdrawn by
Bluemoon Entertainment . The lawsuit was withdrawn because Bodog had very few assets based in the United States. [ [http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/060809/0152511.html Bluemoon Entertainment Press Release: "Bodog Uses Offshore Status to Evade U.S. Lawsuit"] , (Aug 9, 2006)]In October 2006, the U.S. government passed the
Unlawful Internet Gambling and Enforcement Act which prohibits banks from processing transactions for online gambling operators. Though the act did not make online gambling itself illegal per se, many online casinos and poker rooms abandoned the U.S. market, though Bodog chose to continue to serve U.S. players.On
August 1 ,2007 a judge for theSuperior Court ofKing County, Washington issued adefault judgment in the amount of $ 48,937,456.00 in the case of "1st Technology LLC v. Bodog Entertainment Group S.A." for 1st Technology'spatent infringement claim. [ [http://www.metrokc.gov/kcscc/daily%20reports/080707judgments.txt 1st Technology LLC vs. Bodog Entertainment] ] Bodog's founder claims that the company was not served and that the company has an insufficient presence in the United States to infringe any US patents. [ [http://www.calvinayrelife.com/bodog-and-1st-tech-set-to-take-domain-dispute-to-court.html Bodog and 1st Tech Set to Take Domain Dispute to Court] ]Due to the judgment, Bodog "temporarily" lost control of the Bodog.com URL. That day they moved operations to a new URL, newbodog.com. On
September 19 ,2007 , Bodog transferred their domain from NewBodog.com to BodogLife.com.On
July 30 ,2008 "Forbes " magazine released news [http://www.forbes.com/2008/07/30/calvin-ayre-bodog-biz-beltway-cx_jn_wb_0730ayre.html] of an IRS affidavit [http://www.forbes.com/media/pdfs/2008/bodog/bodog1.pdf IRS affidavit] ] from forfeiture lawsuit inBaltimore, Maryland reporting an investigation conducted by IRS Special agent Randall S. Carrow in the matter of the seizure of over $24M in assets from bank accounts inside the United States that are said to involved in what appears to bemoney laundering ] activities in order to process payments to users of the Bodog online gambling casino. The filings are said to involve an elaborate international structure of bank accounts at numerous institutions such asWachovia , Sun Trust Banks,Bank of America ,Regions Bank , Nevada State Bank, a division ofZions Bancorporation in the name of Zaftig Instantly Processed Payments, doing business as ZipPayments.com and business' said to be linked directly toCalvin Ayre . The filings list dozens of businesses involved in processing Bodog transactions. Bodog replied that the Forbes article created "several misimpressions" and offered a "misleading picture." [ [http://www.pokernews.com/news/2008/07/forbes-bodog-funds-seized.htm Pokernews.com: $24 Million in Bodog Funds Seized - Bodog Responds] ]Poker
Professional poker players David Williams,
Justin Bonomo ,Jean-Robert Bellande andEvelyn Ng are members of Team Bodog and play regularly in the Bodogpoker room. At the time of his victory,2006 World Series of Poker Main Event winnerJamie Gold was also a member of Team Bodog, but that business relationship ended onJanuary 25 ,2007 . [ [http://cardplayer.com/poker_news/article/8173 Bodog Cuts Jamie Gold from its Poker Team] , CardPlayer, (Jan 25, 2007)] Team Bodog poker player Matt McCullough finished third at the 2007World Series of Poker Europe Main Event taking home £381,910 ($766,674 US). [ [http://www.worldseriesofpoker.com/wsoptv/index.asp?vd=1846&fid=7&aff=1&v=Matthew%20McCullough%20%203rd%20place%20Int.wmv&txtQueryDate= WSOP Interview with Matt McCullough] ]References
External links
* [http://www.bodoglife.com/ Official site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/bodog Official MySpace page]
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