Following Up -- Following Monday's report regarding preliminary discussions between bwin and the All India Football Federation (AIFF), a bwin spokeswoman told IGN that the company "could not disclose any information on the matter as of yet." The AIFF has yet to respond.
Sportswinbet Turns Small Profit during H1 -- London-listed Sportswinbet managed to turn a small profit (£5,000) during H1 2007 after sustaining a £238,000 loss during the previous-year period. Sportswinbet, an investment company with I-gaming interests, said it generated revenues of £205,000 during the period via its branded sports book operated by Kolarmy Technology, which was terminated in July. The company said it remains in discussions regarding a potential re-launch of the sports book.
GVC Releases Positive H1 Results -- Germany-facing operator Gaming VC (GVC) has released first-half results, which show operating profits of 8.5 million euros, up 25 percent against figures from H1 2006. Like German operator Fluxx AG the company intends to diversify ahead of the government's adoption of the Interstate Lotteries Treaty in January 2008. In line with this strategy, the Malta-based operator said it has acquired two Italian bookmaking licenses for 1.75 million euros and has launched its Italy-facing sports book, betaland.com. "[The company's] new sports book . . . has seen a positive start with initial trading in the first few weeks of the Italian football season being encouraging," said Gaming VC Chief Executive Kenny Alexander. GVC also said it plans to diversify demographically and will launch a "female-oriented gaming site" during the fourth quarter.
Stepping Down -- William Hill announced this morning that its Chief Executive, David Harding, will step down effective Sept. 30. Chairman Charles Scott will become an executive director until Harding's replacement is appointed, the London-based company said, adding that the search for a successor is "well underway."
Partnering Up -- Coral has announced a two-year partnership agreement with Scottish Premier League side Hearts to become the club's official online gaming partner. "Coral are a well-recognized and higly respected gaming brand in the United Kingdom and this agreement sees us fulfil our 'less is more' strategy of sector sponsorship," said Hearts' Commercial Director Ali Russell.
Silent Partner -- PacificNet subsidiary PacificNet Games announced a recurring revenue share agreement with an unnamed Cambodia-based operator to deploy its gaming products across the Cambodian market. "We are very pleased to enter the Cambodian market, which we feel has much potential in terms of returns," said PacificNet President Tony Tong.
Get to Know the Chinese Gambler -- U.K.-based Global Betting and Gaming Consultants (GBGC) have released a new report covering the greater Chinese gambling market. The Chinese Gambler Report, released last week, suggests that the Chinese gambling market is set to grow by $19.4 billion, or 130 percent, by 2012, led by Macau, which represents the largest casino market in the world.
More from France -- In a report carried by Bloomberg today, the news source aggregates the responses of several EU Member States, notably the French, to Brussels' requests to liberalize their sports-betting markets. "We are open to discussion but so far we haven't seen other means, and convincing means, of reaching those public interest objectives and at the same time opening the market," said Stanislas Pottier, a special adviser to French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde. "It is a sector we think cannot be regulated as any other sector."
Codere Delays IPO -- Madrid-based gaming group Codere S.A., scheduled to proceed with its IPO this September, will reportedly delay the float and " . . . assess the appropriate timing of an IPO with our underwriters in light of current market conditions." Last week, the company's registry document received approval from Spain's market regulator, the Comisión Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV). In a prepared statement released Sept. 20, Codere also expressed confidence that its IPO would be approved by the CNMV but noted that its listing would depend largely on market conditions.
Quoteworthy -- "It's just part of my culture, having a gamble. So I don't have any moral hang-ups about this."
- From EU Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy in an interview with Bloomberg covering cross-border gambling issues across the European Union.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, Gaming VC was up 10p to 150, Sportswinbet was down 3p to 27 and William Hill was down 10.50p to 637.50.