Tote Sale on Knife's Edge -- Scotsman.com reports that the £400 million ($789.1 million) sale of the U.K. Tote "stands on the brink of collapse," though the news source quotes Treasury sources as saying that it "remains committed to selling the Tote and getting the best outcome for the racing industry." Another source with knowledge of the deal told Scotsman.com that the deal would likely be shelved until after the May elections but said the sale remained "on the table." In February, The Sunday Times reported that concerns were being raised regarding the level of debt to be taken on by the racing consortium trying to buy the Tote. With debt finance from Lloyds TSB, the consortium--comprised of Tote management, racecourse operators and racehorse owners--submitted its formal offer on Jan. 26, 2007. The British government has been reviewing the bid and has said only that it will announce its response "in due course." A large part of the debt will be provided by a "payment in kind," an expensive form of debt, carrying an interest charge of 28 percent, the paper said. An estimated £350 million ($690.4 million) of the £400 million asking price is being financed with debt.
Le Boot -- Various news sources have reported that Tour de France organizer Amaury Sport Organization (ASO) has prohibited Unibet's cycling team from participating in the Pro Tour Classics La Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège in Belgium this month. The ASO said its decision was justified under Belgian law, which bars online operators from promoting their services in the country, though Unibet's team on Sunday participated in the Tour of Flanders, also a Pro Tour event in Belgium.
Speaking Out -- The Los Angeles Times on Sunday ran an editorial examining whether U.S. restrictions on online gambling constitute "arbitrary and unjustifiable discrimination" against foreign operators. "Antigua and Barbuda argue that they do--and the World Trade Organization agrees," it said. "So do we." The paper went on to say that U.S. I-gaming policy has done little more than irritate many of its trading partners, and calls the U.S. stance on both horse betting and interstate lottery ticket sales "hypocritical."
The Sound of Silence -- The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) has said the U.K. Department for Culture, Media and Sport is remaining "tight-lipped" regarding the actual number of white list applicants. The RGA expects initial figures to be released in June 2007.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE today, CryptoLogic is up 27.50p to 1,283, PartyGaming is up 3.25 to 56 and Playtech is up 8p to 366.