With your morning coffee or afternoon tea:
Sportech, the pools betting specialist, has done its second distribution deal in as many business days with The Daily Mail. Under the agreement, the paper will carry two games from Sportech's New Football Pools brand.
As close as we cover Playtech Ltd., Numis Securities of London has a research note out today suggesting the software developer is likely to acquire its marketing affiliate. The acquisition, the note says, may send share value up 20 percent.
IGN's Take: We are odds on that the acquisition announcement will come on the company's first-half report in early September, and that future deals with other of its affiliates could be in the works.
Last Thursday, Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc. revealed that given its tenuous financial position, it may delist from the over-the-counter bulletin board and cease operations.
IGN's Take: What impact the New Jersey software developer's demise may have on Ladbrokes, Sportingbet and other of its in-running licensees has yet to be determined -- representatives from Ladbrokes and Sportingbet did not return phone calls and e-mails seeking comment. All is still quiet on this front.
In this week's Top 10s from Hitwise, PokerStars.net (United States: 8.37 percent), SkyPoker.com (United Kingdom: 22.3 percent) and Pacific Poker (Australia: 11.59 percent) were atop the poker market-share leader board.
Atop the gambling market-share leader board were the Florida Lottery (United States: 5.77 percent), the National Lottery (United Kingdom: 12.97 percent), Singapore Pools (Singapore: 36 percent), HKJC Football Betting Ltd. (Hong Kong: 35.14 percent) and TAB Racing (12.09 percent).
Chris Krafcik is the editor of IGamingNews. He lives in St. Louis, Mo.