Market Briefs (May 5-9, 2003)

Wembley Buys Perry Barr Stadium

U.K. gaming company Wembley plc (WMY) announced last week that its wholly owned subsidiary, GRA Ltd., has made a deal to acquire all the issued share capital of Perry Barr Greyhound Racing Club Ltd., which operates the Perry Barr Greyhound Racing Stadium in Birmingham.

GRA Ltd. will acquire the track for £4.2 million. Wembley reports that irrevocable undertakings to accept the offer have been turned in by almost 92 percent of Parry Barr shareholders and that the offer for acceptance stands until May 27.

Wembley, in a press release, stated that the acquisition will bring the number of tracks it owns to seven and that the Perry Barr stadium's location will complement Wembley's Hall Green stadium in south Birmingham. The company plans to invest £2 million in the Perry Barr facility to improve its restaurant capacity.

"This acquisition is in line with Wembley's strategy of increasing our portfolio of tracks in the U.K.," said Nigel Potter, the chief executive of Wembley. "It also forms part of our longer-term strategy of positioning our U.K. gaming operations to take advantage of the gaming deregulation that is expected in the U.K. in the near future."

SureFire Commerce Conference Call May 15

SureFire Commerce Inc. (FIR) will hold a fourth-quarter conference call on May 15 at 10:30 a.m. EST. The phone number for the call is 1-877-407-9210 and the call will also be webcast on the company's Web site, www.surefirecommerce.com. A replay of the call will be available on SureFire's Web site for 90 days.

Youbet.com Conference Call May 15

Youbet.com Inc. (UBET) will hold its first-quarter conference call on May 15 at 5:00 p.m. EST. The call will be available through Youbet's Web site, www.youbet.com, as well as through the CCBN Web site. A replay of the call will be available for 90 days at Youbet's site. A recording of the call will be accessible via telephone until June 8. To hear the telephone recording, call 888-286-8010 or 617-801-6888 for international callers. The pass code is 57291369.

Reports

Toronto-based dot com Entertainment Group Inc. (DCEG) is reporting first-quarter results that show a growing customer base. The company had a 25 percent year-over-year increase in the number of its clients' sites that are powered with its software.