Amicably Dissolved -- Wednesday saw the amicable dissolution of negotiations between Sportingbet and bwin. The discussions, which date to March of this year, were terminated "mutually and amicably," Sportingbet said. Konrad Sveceny, head of investor relations at Vienna-based bwin, said the companies were not able to agree on conditions because of legal complexities and regulatory changes in the industry. Shares in Sportingbet fell as much as 11 percent following the announcement, though have since recovered, closing down .50p today at 58.00.
Trouble for OPAP's IT Tender -- OPAP, the Greek lottery operator, will reportedly call on Intralot to extend its IT support agreement an additional six months. Sources with news service Thomson Financial said that OPAP's "long-awaited" IT terminals tender is failing "because the evaluation committee cannot decide which is the best received bid." Scientific Games, Gtech and Intralot have submitted bids.
Betbrokers Acquires Winning Edge -- Betbrokers, the independent betting brokerage group, has acquired Las Vegas-based Winning Edge International, a sports information and tipping service, for $6.8 million. Betbrokers said it will fund the acquisition by issuing new shares to current Winning Edge shareholders, adding that the acquisition will allow it to provide detailed information on U.S. sports and offer longer trading hours.
Three Cheers for AAMS -- Leisure & Gaming (LNG) said Thursday that it believes that the regulation of "punti remoti" licenses by AAMS, the Italian betting regulator, will provide a more certain trading environment. The company, which owns the Betshop Italia chain, said that the new AAMS decree on punti remoti licenses would alter their commission structure and that transactions would be limited to credit cards only. LNG said the licenses run through 2011, and that additional regulations would be implemented on Jan. 1, 2008.
Down to Earth -- The Financial Times and other British media have brought Ladbrokes back to earth, after the company, in a trading update released Thursday, projected windfall operating profits from its phone-betting business--an estimated £45 million. The FT remarks that the company's profits, strengthened this go-around by increased high-roller traffic, are volatile, and that its more dependable retail business remains sluggish. As recently as May, the paper recalls, the company had prefigured softer profits from telephone betting, following a marked decline in high-roller activity during Q1. "But assuming the rich, like ordinary folk, pull in their horns after heavy losses, shareholders are right not to rely on regular pay-outs on this scale," the paper adds.
Hold on, GVC -- The Guardian carries a report on Thursday's update from Gaming VC, noting that Panmure Gordon has raised its target price from 130p to 150 and retained its "hold" recommendation.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, Ladbrokes was up 4.75p to 441.75, Playtech was down 7p to 377 and PartyGaming was up 1.75p to 34.