Letter From the Professor - July 10, 2008



As I reported last month, spring and summer definitely make working in doors all day a real drag.

After months of sitting here in front of my computer or on the phone for 12 hours a day I am ready to burst.

Nothing rejuvenates a person like a good summer holiday trip. It allows us to unwind and relax and spend a little quality time with our families; You remember those people we chase out of our office and apologize for being too busy to watch that movie with? We get to go fishing, visit a theme park or two with the kids, laze around on the beach or take that cruise we always dreamt of.

This year I am doing something a little different then the norm. Generally we do go on a cruise as that seems like the perfect combination of activities and pampering along with great food and a little duty free shopping. This summer though I have decided to risk my sanity and take the family on a two and a half week drive up the east coast of the US. Yep, we are going load up six people in the old family truckster and hit the road. Nirvana or Purgatory? I’ll let you know when I get back.

Here are some of the planned events on the trip:

1. First stop, Atlanta GA. We spend three days in the peach state and hit Six Flags over Georgia where we torment the kids by making them ride all the most terrifying roller coasters while we wave at them from below. Everyone comes back to the hotel beet red from the sun and nauseous from the greasy foods. Family fun at it’s best.

2. Stop 2 Myrtle Beach SC.. This is going to be great. Two condos on the ocean. Beautiful beaches and no schedule. Fishing, fresh seafood, cold drinks…. Ahhhhhhh.

3. “We’re off to see the Captain, the wonderful Captain that’s ours!” A weekend of drinking, barbecuing and hangovers at the Captains palatial estate in Virginia. My liver will never be the same, but what a way to go.
 
4. Hershey Park – Roller coasters, chocolate, hand crafted beer, beautiful countryside and mooning the Amish. What more could you ask for?

5. Manhattan Baby! – The Big Apple. Front row seats at a Broadway show. Steaks at Peter Lugers. A chartered yacht for a dinner on the Hudson River. What a wrap up!

Ok you heard my plans. Where are you going?

Join us here to discuss


Senior CAP Member Makes a Difference
Guys when I received the following press release from Slotland I was immediately impressed, but at the same time I was not surprised. Anyone who knows Antoine Tardif knows he has a heart of gold and that he regularly gets involved in worthwhile causes.

These include helping the needy, protecting wildlife and nature and resource conservation. It’s been our great pleasure having him as a family member at CAP since the beginning and he exemplifies what affiliates can do both in the industry and within the world community. Here is Antoine’s latest contribution:

Slotland Comments:

You may know Antoine since he’s such a prominent casino affiliate. But did you know how generous he is?!

Last spring, when Online-Gambling-Insider.com made a big donation to the cause and challenged others in the industry to follow suit, Antoine made a $3000 donation. Now he’s donated a whole year of Slotland commissions which, as the major affiliate operator that he is, will total over $10,000.

The Press Release and Cause:

CasinoRanking.com Donates a Year of Commissions to Slotland’s African Aid Project - Slotland concludes funding as Malawi community center now self-sustaining

July 8, 2008 (London, UK) -- Now that the school and community center that it built in Malawi is fully self-sustaining, online casino Slotland.com is concluding its funding. To date, the online slot machine and video poker site has donated more than $100,000 to construct the much needed facilities and train teachers and staff. As the local Project Team moves on to assist other villages another online gambling leader, CasinoRanking.com, has stepped forward to donate at least $10,000 toward ongoing projects.

For more than two years, the popular online slot machine and video poker web site, Slotland.com, provided all funding required to construct buildings and train local teachers in the remote and impoverished village of Juma, Malawi. The goal of the African aid project has always been that it should be self-sustaining and since the Project Team built a maize mill to generate ongoing revenue, the centre has required minimal outside funding.

But the work of the Project Team isn’t finished. The centre has become a teacher-training center for the region and continues to help other schools in the region get established and improve their teaching methods. The Team has also become involved in the construction of other self-sustaining community projects like a maize mill in Kantimbanye that now provides income for the school in Juma.

“We’ve learned that self-initiated projects are most likely to succeed,” said the Project Team Leader, David Leflar. “Where there’s a will, we will help them find a way!”

“The school that we’ve funded will have a long lasting benefit to the entire community. It provides opportunities and will help end the cycle of poverty in Malawi,” said Martin Smith of Slotland. “We’re very proud that one of our biggest affiliates, CasinoRanking.com, was impressed enough with the positive results of our project that they’re making a very substantial donation of their own.”

“The online casino business is a high profit industry,” said Antoine Tardif of CasinoRanking.com. “We should consider ourselves lucky to have the opportunity to help others who are not as fortunate.”

“I understand that the school is now completed,” said Tardif, “But Malawi is still one of the poorest nations on earth. If the money can go towards building wells or finding clean water that would be great too. Obviously we can trust this dedicated Project Team to decide how to best spend the money.”

The story of how the Project Team brought a whole village together to build the Umodzi-Mbame School is told on a fundraising website provided by Slotland: www.help-malawi-children-charity.org. The site also explains how donations will be used by the African charity to assist neighbouring villages that have started similar projects on their own. Donations toward current and new projects can be made on the site through secure PayPal payment processing.

Another CAP Money Award Winner!
Drum roll please … This week’s winner of an Amazon.com gift certificate or Paypal Cash for $125 is slotplayer for posting the following thread: "Rogued Casinos" . This is a very thought provoking thread where we ponder what to do when a casino or affiliate program is “rogued” by others. Why not join in and tell us what you do in this situation.

Well done slotplayer!

Don’t forget YOU can win CAP Money too. This is a weekly contest open to all CAP members see full details here: CAP Money.


CAP Special Events:

Paddy Power Casino Summer Giveaway
Affiliates who sign up to and bring in Casino players through the summer up until August 31st 2008 are eligible to be rewarded from the €5,000 prize pool. For full details on this and more check out our Affiliate News section.

Income Access Wants to Pick Your Brain
Comprised of 25 questions, the Income Access survey will launch July 2nd and run until the middle of the month. It will measure how affiliates market their portals, gather analytics, and keep up-to-date with best practices. The survey will address how affiliates interact with account managers and participate at conferences, and the degree to which they are interested in learning more about affiliate marketing.

You can take the survey by going to:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=i5IE_2fopsMGZgejFqnK03Eg_3d_3d