Spordiennustus -- Finland-based digital gaming solutions provider EGET (European Game & Entertainment Technology) has delivered an Internet scratch-card game to Spordiennustus, the Estonian Olympic Committee's online gaming subsidiary. The basketball-themed game features two chances to win, plus a double-or-nothing option. Spordiennustus has been operating sports betting over the Internet for several months, and the launch of its first scratch-card game marks its first effort to broaden its offering of instant online games. Keno and other instant games will be available online in early 2005. The company claims that it's currently experiencing rapid growth in traffic at its Web site and that turnover has doubled in the last six months. Profit raised from Spordiennustus' gaming site supports Estonian sports.
EU Services Directive -- UNI-Europa, a trade union group for gambling industry workers, and European Lotteries, the European organization for national lotteries and gambling monopolies, have issued a joint statement to the European Commission, urging it to drop the goal of harmonizing cross-border online gambling laws from the forthcoming services directive. Instead, the two groups would prefer that gambling regulation be left to the states. They feel that the current monopoly and exclusive right policies in place in many European states guarantees a restrictive gambling policy and provides better control of the market, thereby reducing fraud and money laundering while limiting social problems like addiction. "Gambling is not a normal economic sector," Bernadette Ségol, a spokesperson for UNI-Europa, said. "The gambling sector is highly sensitive and has been long recognized as such. It is totally unacceptable that the commission should push for deregulation without producing any proof of the need or impact of such action."
EUFA's MOU? -- This is London reports that UEFA, the European football league, is believed to be in advanced negotiations with Betfair concerning the signing of a memorandum of understanding. Like other Betfair memorandums of understanding with sports bodies, an agreement with UEFA would allow the league to request and receive information that could identify illegal bettors if match fixing or other suspicious activities are believed to have taken place. Both UEFA and Greek prosecutors are investigating allegations of match fixing following a UEFA Cup Group D match involving Panionios and Dinamo Tbilisi two weeks ago. If UEFA had already signed a memorandum of understanding before the match, Betfair might have been able to share certain betting information gleaned from its transparent auditing system with the league to help its investigation.
E-Commerce Excellence -- Andrea Wilson, CEO of Bermuda-based e-commerce solutions provider First Atlantic Commerce, has received European CEO Magazines Award for Excellence in the category of e-commerce/IT. The award's selection panel sought to honor the company whose applications and services within e-commerce did the most to facilitate cross-border trade. The panel chose Wilson and First Atlantic Commerce because of their work in eliminating chargebacks and boosting confidence for both merchants and their customers.
Case Dismissed -- The U.S. court handling the case between Michael Rossides' BetPress.com and the U.S. Department of Justice has granted the Justice Department's motion to dismiss the case. Rossides had challenged the constitutionality of the Justice Department's use of the Wire Act to prohibit online gambling by arguing that certain bets are forms of speech that are protected by the First Amendment. The court has given Rossides until Jan. 8, 2005 to deliver an amended complaint to the case, which if filed, might require the Justice Department to declare a more specific position on the reach of the Wire Act.
New Sites -- Costa Rica-based Rio International Group Limited, operator of Skybook.com, has launched a poker site at skybookpoker.com. . . . PokerProfit.com has launched new site Island Poker Limited (www.poker.cn.st ), a partnership between British Virgin Isles-based investment firm eMoney Invest and publicly listed gaming provider ADLM Limited. Island Poker is licensed in Kahnawake and uses Las Vegas From Home software. . . . I-gaming development and management firm Full House Entertainment, which two weeks ago acquired Montreal-based software developer Clockmedia Inc., has launched a new Internet gaming site at AllStarPalace.com. The site is already up and running with sports book, horse racing and casino products, and a poker room is also expected to launch very soon.