DDoS Finds New Target -- Columbus, Ohio-based 2CheckOut.com, an online firm that processes credit card transactions for online merchants, came under a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack on April 9. The attack resulted in intermittent service outages until April 16, when the company announced that the ongoing attack had been brought under control. The company was originally hosted by Time Warner Telecom, but after the attack began 2CheckOut.com switched to a dedicated server with SBCHost. 2CheckOut.com refused to pay the extortion demands.
Women's Poker Club -- Victor Chandler Poker estimates that one out of every six new players joining its network is female, while just two years ago the statistic was negligible. The company also estimates that the typical female player is between 24 and 25 years old, is Internet savvy, shops online and has a professional business career. Just last month the Women's Poker Club (www.womenspokerclub.com) was launched to encourage women to be better players by competing against other women in a more comfortable and friendly environment. The club is free to join and welcomes players of all experience levels, from amateur to professional. For now the club's tournaments are played online, but it plans to hold land-based events later in the year. The club has already logged 400 members in its one month of existence.
Channel 4 -- The Guardian reports that Channel 4 is completing a deal with an unnamed betting company that will create a new interactive betting service. Channel 4 is also close to announcing a renewed 18-month broadcasting deal with British racetracks. The company's attheraces venture cost it £10.5 million in losses last year, but commercial director Rob Woodward says his division aims to make all of its parts profitable this year.
Rugby Betting Scandal -- Two British rugby players from St. Helens face investigation by the Rugby Football League and St. Helens officials for allegedly placing wagers on their team to lose. The Daily Mail reported last week that Sean Long and Martin Gleeson won £909 each by placing bets at 6 p.m. on Easter Sunday with Gibraltar-based bookmaker Stan James, which sponsors Sky TV's coverage of the Super League. The men allegedly wagered £1,000 each that the Saints would lose by more than 9 points, and the eventual score was 54-8. St. Helens chief executive Sean McGuire announced that he would lead an inquiry into the allegations. Stan James said it would cooperate with the company, but could not confirm whether Long and Gleeson were customers.
Sportingbet to Operate IGH Site -- Sportingbet will begin operating one of Interactive Gaming Holdings' Internet sites, oneworldsportsbook.com in exchange for a monthly payment based on net revenue. IGH, a British company, does not take bets on its Web sites but instead earns income through advertising revenue and by running back-end operations
iTV Bingo -- Zone4Play, Inc, which provides interactive gaming on a variety of different platforms, has created a new North American multi-player interactive TV Bingo game. The game allows an unlimited number of players from different locations to participate, and new games begin every 6 minutes. Users can either play for free or sign up for a subscription plan. The game will soon be released on various cable and satellite TV systems.