Gambling TV Backers Hopeful

Anyone who has watched any television over the past year has likely stumbled upon a program or series related to casino gambling. The Travel Channel's "World Poker Tour," ESPN's "World Series of Poker," NBC's "Las Vegas" and the Discovery Channel's "American Casino" are among a few of the programs that transport viewers to a Las Vegas that is part fantasy, part reality. For people who can't get enough, several groups of investors are vying to be the first to market with an all-gambling television network.

Several factors -- the most important of which is the booming popularity of poker on television -- has brought the gambling channel concept closer than ever to reality, experts say. Some say up to eight groups of investors are hunting for partners and distributors. Most of them are startup enterprises with contacts that gear toward the cable industry rather than companies affiliated with casinos or gaming companies. Read more from the Las Vegas Sun.