Coming Soon -- OPAP, the Greek gaming monopolist, may this week award the contract for its IT unit to one of three bidders. "The evaluation committee has not submitted yet (to OPAP's board) the report on the bidders' technical offers," Basile Neiadas, CEO, OPAP, told Reuters on Monday. "The report might be submitted within this week." Intralot, Scientific Games and Gtech are vying for the contract.
South African Saga -- The South African lotto-license saga drags on. According to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, the Pretoria High Court has postponed an application by Igwija Gaming, one of four bidders for the lottery license, to obtain information from the National Lotteries Board (NLB) about its decision-making process. The court ruled that granting Igwija access to bid documents before the license was awarded was untenable. That is, Igwija could, via documents belonging to the other three bidders, make adjustments to its own, thereby securing an unfair advantage. IGN reported last week that the NLB is in the final stages of the bid evaluation process, with the new license expected to be awarded by Sept. 30. In the meantime, South African daily Business Day reported that "bungling" over the lottery license will cost the NLB an estimated $143.9 million in takings.
All is Well -- Gaming VC, the U.K.-based, Germany-facing operator, announced that all resolutions put to shareholders at the company's AGM today were passed.
Reporting -- bwin released first quarter results, which show core earnings up 57 percent. EBITDA for the quarter totaled $31.4 million, as the company cut marketing expenses by 40 percent. bwin said the marketing cuts would continue over the course of the year; as a result, it expects decreases in active and new customers to continue. "The decline in new active customers and less effective churn management by comparison were attributable mainly to a drastic reduction in the marketing budget," the company said. It did not comment on its March takeover talks with Sportingbet.
Where Are They Now -- Former PartyGaming CEO Richard Segal is part of an advisory team overseeing the flotation of Quoted Private Equity on the LSE.
M&A Chatter -- The Irish Independent carries a report on Betfair-Betdaq market chatter, specifically, Betfair's alleged interest in acquiring Betdaq. Betfair communications manager Eoin Ryan "categorically denied" that the company was positioning itself for the move, though industry sources cited by the Independent claimed exploratory talks have taken place. Betdaq neither confirmed nor denied any dealings with Betfair.
Appointed -- London Capital Group, the spread betting and financial services group, has named Richard Davey as non-executive chairman. In February, the company said Rob Loosemore would step down pending the outcome of investigations by the Serious Fraud Office, the Financial Services Authority and the LSE into Torex Retail, of which Loosemore was a former chairman.
Investing -- Cometa Wireless Gaming Systems, the Sheffield-based mobile phone and gaming company, in its first round of investment received £1 million ($1.98 million). In a prepared statement, Cometa named Mfusion as the principal investor. Other investors included a consortium led by Tony Marchington, founder and former CEO of Oxford Molecular Group.
More Prohibition -- Yogonet.com reports that the French government has submitted prohibitive I-gaming legislation to the European authorities. The draft legislation stipulates that ISPs will, compulsorily, establish "an easily accessible and visible device which will serve to bring their subscribers' attention to any online and public communication service considered as reprehensible by the relevant public authorities." IGN will report further on this development. Yogonet did not source the report.
Stock Watch -- In late-afternoon trading on the LSE, CryptoLogic is up 5p to 1,223, 888 is up 0.25p to 125.25 and Leisure & Gaming is up 1.75p to 20.25.