Tidbits from Europe -- British television station
Channel 4 is getting flack for its policy on airing French auto racing. The channel decided not to broadcast the contest between
Aidan O'Brien's unbeaten
Johannesburg and
Godolphin's
Meshaheer at Deauville on Sunday. Channel 4 acquired the rights to show French racing earlier this year from the
BBC. Since then
Group 1 races such as the
Prix du Jockey-Club and the
Prix de Diane-Hermes have been left off television schedules. The director-general of the
Betting Office Licensees' Association,
Tom Kelly, said the absence of high-profile French races is having a negative affect on betting turnover. "Good quality racing is always going to attract turnover," he told the Racing Post, "and the general thing is that we would rather see the races if that were possible."
David Kerr, the commissioning editor of sport for Channel 4, said that when the station bought the rights it announced that it would air Arc weekend but nothing else within the existing programming.
The Finnish Supreme Court has decided that the gambling law that was approved by Finland's parliament on June 20 is not in agreement with the Åland Islands Home Rule laws. The gambling law was meant to prevent PAF Online, which is run by the Åland Islands Slot Machine Association, from allowing mainland Finns to play because it conflicted with the Finnish gambling monopoly.
The leader of Alderney's Gambling Control Commission warned Internet gamblers last week to be mindful of the sites they use. In commenting to Newsbytes, Moran Chapman stressed that regulatory framework is highly important in keeping the gambling experience enjoyable and pain free. And it 's not just a matter of sites that don't pay out, he said. It's also important for the player that the online casino look out for its own business interests-something that Alderney, which is getting ready to hand out six Internet casino licenses, can help with. "Obviously, I'm not going to comment specifically on these other jurisdictions," Chapman said, "but I can say that our own approach is pro-active in protecting the best interests of the gamblers, as well as the commercial interests of the companies operating the sites." Alderney, the smallest of the three Channel Islands on the coast of France, already is home to two successful sports betting Web sites.
Makin' Deals -- Computer Support Associates, which is a subsidiary of CasinoBuilders.com, this week announced a marketing agreement with online back-up provider BackUpUSA. CSA supplies IT solutions to some of the United States' top Internet providers, including BellSouth and Adelphia. The New Orleans-based company will now be able to offer BackUpUSA's services to its consulting clients. Sportingbet USA recently choose InstantService, a provider of chat, e-mail and other computer relationship management services, to supply its online customer service. The betting and casino operator will be using InstantServices's chat technology for customer help.
Sports.com Limited's SCG Enterprises on Tuesday was named the official betting partner of both ITV's football Web site and the F1 site. Both these ITV sites will, as per the agreement, have a link to the new betting site.
Las Vegas' good name may soon be for sale: The city's mayor, Oscar Goodman, is revisiting his idea to sell the name of the city and its seal to an Internet casino. Goodman wanted to sell the name to the highest I-gaming bidder last year but failed. An Internet gambling site would bring millions of dollars to the city, which is dealing with a slowing economy and growing energy costs. The mayor is said to be in discussions with representatives from an offshore operator. Goodman told the Las Vegas Sun that he doesn't think use of the city's name on an Internet casino, a type of business that U.S federal law prohibits, will tarnish its reputation. "We have to be creative, we have to be fearless, and we have to think outside of the box," he said. "I would never allow the city's name to be harmed in any way. If we can use our status in the world to make money for our citizens, I think it should be explored."
A Tidbit from the Caribbean -- Antigua and Barbuda continued their fight against money laundering this week by offering to be the base for the proposed rapid response unit of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States. The offer came on the heels of the United States lifting its financial advisory against the islands. Calling the idea "visionary," the United States offered the country $250,000 to set up the program's administration. Acting U.S. Ambassador to the OECS, Ronald Bullen, hinted at a ceremony for the Office of National Drugs and Money Laundering Control Policy that continued funding could be offered in the future. At the same meeting, Lester Bird, the territory's prime minister, stressed his desire for the entire Caribbean community, which the nine-nation OECS is part of, to pool its resources for the rapid response unit. "Antigua and Barbuda is willing to work with any donor government or group of governments that are willing to make a start for the creation of a rapid response unit," he said.
Tidbits from the Far East -- Market statistics bode well for Korea's upcoming Internet lottery. The Korean Times reported this week that sports betting, lotteries and casinos are growing despite the economic slump. Gambling accounted for more than 40 percent of the money spent on leisure in Korea last year. By comparison, in 1995 gambling made up only 20 percent of the leisure market. The activity has increased by 16.6 percent each year for the last five years. In Japan, on the other hand, gambling amounts to only 10 percent of the leisure industry. Korean Internet lottery company YesIB announced this month that it will launch an online lottery in Korea in January.
Starting at 8 p.m. (Beijing time) on Sept. 14, Stanley Ho's online casino, DrHo.com, will embark on what it is calling the world's first live, online baccarat tournament. The event is scheduled to be a two-day affair, just like the casino's Blackjack World Championship in July.
New Stuff -- Millionaire businessman Dermot Desmond's peer-to-peer betting site is scheduled to go live next week. To promote itself, Betdaq.com will sponsor the Festival of Racing at Ascot from Sept. 28 to Sept. 30. The event includes the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, a one-mile championship event in European horse racing. Betdaq.com plans on initially sponsoring the event for three years. The site will cater to the upper end of the sports betting community. It launches on Sept. 7.
Aspinalls.com recently announced it is getting involved with English cricket. The online casino and betting operator will market its services at the England vs. Australia 5th Ashes contest from Aug. 23 to 27. It will be an official co-sponsor of the Surrey Lions vs.Yorkshire Phoenix floodlit National League game on Sept. 3.
Horse race wagering company Youbet.com debuted its new betting facility on Thursday. Youbet.com TotalAccess, an Oregon-based multi-jurisdictional wagering facility, allows subscribers to place off-track horse racing bets and pari-mutuel wagers on races on 81 domestic racetracks in 39 states. The new wagering hub will also provide live audio and video from a group of TVG-affiliated racetracks.
A Tidbit from Down Under -- Australian lawmakers recently patched a hole in the anti-gaming laws they passed two months ago. The government's new law prohibiting Australians from using local and offshore Internet casinos and preventing local online wagering sites from signing up Australian punters also included a ban on promoting Internet gambling. The ban on promotions was softened this week. Communications Minister Richard Alston said the ban could have unintended effects of preventing advertising of brick-and-mortar casinos that may have an online operation with a similar name.
Tidbits from the U.S. -- The press secretary for Nevada Governor Kerry Guinn told the Las Vegas Sun that Guinn could name the next chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission by the week of Sept. 10. Brian Sandoval left the position on Aug. 1 and is considering a bid for Nevada attorney general in 2002. Guinn had earlier told the Sun that he was considering John Bailey and Pete Bernhard, both lawyers, for the position. Bernhard is chairman of the state's ethics commission.
Racing news site The Daily Racing Form reported last week that the New York State Racing and Wagering Board is not happy about TVG allegedly taking bets from New York residents. TVG's site warns that its services are legal in 11 states, none of which are New York. The racing board has issued a warning to New York racetracks with TVG contracts that its approval for those contracts will be revoked if TVG accepts wagers from New York residents.