Betfair to Ireland -- Online betting exchange Betfair today announced that it has agreed to pay 10 percent of its gross profit on Irish horseracing directly to Horse Racing Ireland (HRI). The agreement guarantees revenues to HRI in excess of 1 million euros per year for the first three years. In addition, Betfair will make a backdated payment covering the period of 2003-06. The agreement will operate along the same lines as the levy payments Betfair makes in Britain. In addition, the Irish Turf Club, the body responsible for regulating Irish racing, has agreed to enter into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Betfair which will allow the regulatory body access to data from Betfair to address any integrity concerns over the betting activity on any events under its jurisdiction.
Fun Fantasy -- Toronto-based online casual games provider Fun Technologies Inc. has acquired St. Louis-based fantasy sports group CDM Fantasy Sports, making Fun the largest pay-to-play fantasy sports operator in North America. Through the acquisition, Fun is adding a catalog of 44 games in eight sports and a customer base of approximately 200,000. Total consideration for the acquisition was the payment to the sellers of US$4.25 million in cash and $0.75 million worth of FUN common shares, plus a contingent earn-out obligation of up to $5 million based on revenue and EBITDA performance targets for the business payable in Fun common shares.
Not Licensed in Malta -- The Lotteries and Gaming Authority of Malta released a statement on Monday warning people of an online gambling site claiming to be licensed and regulated by the Malta Gaming Commission Ltd. when, in fact, it is not. It is not known where or if the Turkish-language site in question, Pokerzade.com, is licensed at all.
New Boss Technology Boss -- Swedish gaming and software company Boss Media announced today the appointment of Roger Laudon as CTO. He succeeds Hans Österberg, who is assuming new duties within the company. Laudon, 35, comes to Boss from Flow Systems, where he was a consultant specializing in efficient software development. He has also held a number of executive positions at Intentia Research & Development AB.