From today's R-J:

Control board supports Virtgame

A San Diego-based company developing a new gaming device for use in casino sports books was recommended for approval for a license Wednesday by Nevada gaming regulators.

The recommendation for a limited 18-month license for Virtgame Corp. will go to the Nevada Gaming Commission for review.

In addition to the company approvals, Bruce Merati, president and chief financial officer of the company, was also recommended for individual licensing approval by the three-member control board.

The company started as an Internet gaming operator by taking bets through a casino licensed in Antigua. The company did not take bets from U.S. citizens.

But the company has since shifted focus to becoming a technology provider to the gaming industry.

Merati said the company's immediate plans in Nevada are to develop and license a new type of game for use by the public in race and sports books in Nevada casinos.

The device would include two or three monitors. One would show the live sporting events offered by the sports book that the bettor could wager on directly from the machine. Other monitors would offer sports-related wagering games of chance that bettors could play while watching the live sporting events they had wagered on.

"What you're doing is bringing in a new product to augment the existing product they provide in the race and sports book," said Las Vegas attorney Tony Cabot, representing the company. "It's a way to utilize space that is often empty during large parts of the day."

Virtgame was also involved in discussions with Las Vegas Major Oscar Goodman and the City Council last year regarding the use of the city's name and official seal for an Internet gaming venture. The proposal never went anywhere.