Talks Ongoing -- Sportinget, the London-listed operator, released third quarter results this morning, in which it said that takeover talks with bwin are ongoing. It specified, however, that the talks remain protracted due to complex legal, regulatory and operational issues. "Such discussions may or may not lead to a transaction between the two parties and the board will provide further updates in due course and when necessary," the company said. Meanwhile, sales for the quarter totaled $579.9 million, against $456.3 million in Q3 2006, though, with regard to trading, its overall margin in May had been below average due to less favorable results across European football.
Major Migration -- FUN Technologies has announced the completion of the migration of players from SkillJam.com and its partner sites--including AOL, MSN, GSN and MyPoints--to its WorldWinner.com platform.
Inked -- The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has announced that Ethoca will provide it with data sharing services in relation to e-commerce. Ethoca has similar agreements--both announced May 2006--with Bodog and the Excapsa Gaming Network.
WSOP Site Upgraded -- WorldSeriesofPoker.com, the tournament's official Web site, has added new features, including streaming video coverage of hole cards, expanded live updates from the floor, chip counts and player blogs.
Still in the Clear -- Standard & Poor's (S&P) Rating Services reportedly said that the ratings and outlook for Spanish gaming company Codere have not been affected by its announced plans to invest in CIE Las Americas, its Mexican joint-venture partner. Although the transaction is expected to be at least partly equity funded, Codere should remain within its existing rating guidelines, S&P said.
Add Paddy -- Newsratings.com reports that Eamonn Hughes, Analyst, Goodbody Stockbrokers, maintains his "add" rating on Paddy Power. In a research note published this morning, Hughes mentions that Sportingbet's third quarter results support the estimates for Paddy Power.
Predictions -- IG Group, the U.K.-based spread-betting firm, has said that "substantial" investment in staff and IT would impact full year margins despite strong trading and client growth. The company, which allows clients to to bet on financial and foreign exchange markets, said underlying margins for the year to May 31 would be "slightly below" compared to figures from the previous year. It is expecting a 35 percent jump in revenue, an estimated $239.1 million. The company also highlighted international growth with client recruitment rates in its Australian business running at more than double a year ago.
Stock Watch -- On the LSE, Sportingbet was down 2.25p to 53.50, Ladbrokes was down 8.25p to 405 and PartyGaming was up 0.75p to 41.25.