Market Briefs - February 6 - 10, 2006

Excapsa to AIM for £75 million this Week

The Times reports that Toronto-based online gambling company Excapsa Software plans to raise up to £75 million through a float on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange. Trading is expected to begin Thursday, and the company could receive a valuation of more than £150 million. The company is being advised by Cannacord Adams and could use the proceeds of the float to raise its profile internationally, provide capital for acquisitions and technology development and pay off a small amount of debt. Excapsa, the software firm behind UltimateBet and UltimatePoker, was founded by CEO and President Jim Ryan, who served as CFO of CryptoLogic Inc. (CRY.TO) from 2002 to 2004.

Chariot Lottery Nets £9.6 through AIM Float

Chariot (UK) Plc (CRT.L), a venture founded in 2003, has raised £9.6 million through a placement of 8.3 million new ordinary shares at 115p per share on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange. The company now has 16 million shares in issue and an approximate market capitalization of £18 million. Proceeds from the placement will be used to fund the company's working capital requirements as well as the marketing and promotion costs associated with the launch of the venture, which is expected to occur within the first half of 2006. Chariot's broker and advisor for the float was Noble & Company Limited.

Chariot's main game will cost £1, and it will allow only a maximum of £2 million ticket sales for each of five separate charity lotteries per week, which translates into a jackpot of £1 million per week for each of the five games. Rollovers are not permitted, so if no player correctly guesses all numbers a computer will declare the player who came closest the winner. A key area in which Chariotlottery is hoping to separate itself from the National Lottery is its donations to charity. Chariotlottery claims that its customers will be able to choose which charity receives the proceeds from each of their purchases. Each charity will receive 30 pence for each £1 ticket purchase, meaning each of the five charities per week will receive £600,000. Chariotlottery will keep 11 pence per each £1 sale as profit, while Camelot, the operator of the National Lottery, takes 0.5 pence of each £1 as profit.

WPT Exploring Sale and Merger Opportunities

WPT Enterprises (WPTE) announced that it has hired financial adviser Thomas Weisel Partners to assist in exploring strategic alternatives, including the sale or merger of the business with another entity offering strategic opportunities for growth. President and CEO Steve Lipscomb stated, "Since its launch in 2002, the World Poker Tour has established itself as the premiere televised poker series in the United States and in many international markets. Additionally, we are leveraging the World Poker Tour brand through our real-money gaming website, WPTonline.com, to take advantage of the growing market for online poker. We believe that in order to fully take advantage of the brand we have created in online gaming, we need to seek opportunities to increase our scale and reach. Accordingly, we have hired an advisor to assist us in exploring strategic alternatives with the goal of increasing our presence in online gaming and maximizing shareholder value."

32Red Moves Results Publication Date Forward

Online gaming operator 32Red Plc (TTR.L) announced last Monday that it had rescheduled the publication date of its 2005 preliminary results on March 2. The previously scheduled date was March 15. The company's share price has climbed 15p since the announcement to 165p, likely on investors' assumption that the rescheduling is due to results being ahead of forecast.

32Red also recently announced the appointment of Edward Andrewes as its development director; he will take responsibility for marketing, commercial partnerships and new product development. Andrewes' resume' boasts experience as managing director for Victor Chandler International in addition to four years of service on the executive board of Blue Square Limited as commercial director.

BoS Profit in Line with Expectations

BetonSports Plc (BSS.L) on Friday released a trading statement to the London Stock Exchange to report that its full year pretax pre-exceptional profits for the year ended February 5th would in line with market expectations. The company also stated that fourth-quarter sign-ups and deposits were ahead the comparative period last year. Although BetonSports received record betting volumes on last Sunday's Super Bowl, the margin was neutral because the favored team won.

ePLDT Purchase of Philweb Shares Delayed

Philweb Corp., the technology provider and marketing consultant to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor) for matters involving Internet gambling, said last week that the memorandum of understanding it had expected to sign with the ePLDT (the technology unit of Long Distance Telephone Co.) has not yet materialized due to unfinished valuation. ePLDT is negotiating to buy 24 billion shares of Philweb, which is equivalent to 20 percent of the company. PLDTs Chairman Manuel Pangilinan said his company would use Philweb's expertise to enable Smart Communications Inc. to offer mobile gaming once it launches third-generation mobile services.

Reporting

Skill gaming provider FUN Technologies Plc (FUN.L) has announced its preliminary results for the full year and fourth quarter of 2005. The company reported £13.7 million in revenue (compared to £12.7 million last year) for the full year, £9.4 million of which is attributable to acquisitions made throughout the year. FUN also recorded a positive pro forma EBITDA of £1.8 million for the year, driven primarily by fantasy games. The company also recorded a GAAP LASS of £7 million. Consolidated revenue for the fourth quarter reached £5.6 million. "I am pleased to report another strong quarter, capping off a very successful year for the company," CEO Lorne Abony stated. "We have exceeded our goals of rapid organic growth, strategic acquisitions and significant new distribution partnerships. Most importantly, we are confident that this year's accomplishments have laid the foundation for creating additional value in 2006 and beyond. We look forward to the future with great excitement."