WSOB on AOL -- Internet Service Provider America Online (AOL) has partnered with the Game Show Network (GSN), to offer blackjack on AOL.com in conjunction with GSN's "World Series of Blackjack" TV show, airing in June. Launching in April, the new play-for-fun blackjack hub will offer free play, tips from the pros and--during the show's airing--exclusive behind-the-scenes video content from the "World Series of Blackjack" show. Beginning Jan. 19 fans can visit the site to enter for a chance to win a seat on the show and compete for the million dollar prize.
Management Services -- Internet gaming software provider Chartwell Technology Inc. has signed a deal to provide its online gambling platform to Inside Gaming Limited, which wishes to begin offering management services to potential licensees. Companies signed up to its service will have the benefit of a fully customized e-gaming product which is entirely managed and run for them on an end-to-end basis, freeing up personnel for other tasks. "To date the managed service sector has been about giving businesses the tools for an online gaming businesses but then not showing them how to use them," said Chris North, CEO of Inside Gaming. "We aim to partner with big brand businesses in diverse sectors such as retail, financial services and other sectors that have proven customer communication channels, and then by working in partnership we can maximize the gaming revenues whilst allowing our clients to concentrate on their core business."
Racing Post Sport -- In an effort to ensure healthy competition from forthcoming weekly sports paper the Sportsman, British publication The Racing Post, now 20 years old, is launching its own weekly sports paper, called RPSport. The supplement will appear in Saturday editions of the Racing Post beginning Jan. 14.and will cover a wide range of sports, including football, rugby and cricket from a betting perspective. "RPSport is the biggest single change we have made to the structure of the paper since we started 20 years ago this April," said Editorial Director Brough Scott.
888 Revamp -- Online casino 888 has begun the year by proclaiming itself the "Home of Online Gambling." The casino's revamped look will debut in the UK this month in the form of outdoor and print media before being rolled out across other media formats. 888 said the new look, which reflects the personality of the 888 brand, is a departure from traditional online gaming campaigns. Meanwhile, 888 has formed a 12-month partnership with UK men's magazine title Loaded that begins in February. The campaign entails a co-branded Las Vegas advertorial and the launch of the Loaded 888.com Casino and Poker Room.
32Red Poker Tourney -- The 32Red Poker Masters Grand Final took place Jan 8, bringing to a close a year-long series of tournaments. And much to the surprise of the other 160 players, the winner, 23 year-old Chris "NoflopsHomer" Hall, had joined 32Red Poker just hours before the Grand Final began. In just three hours of play Hall won the first place cash prize of $8,960 plus a week-long holiday for two in the home of gambling--Las Vegas. "I sat looking at the computer in shock for ten minutes," Hall said. "Then I woke my parents up, who thought that our car had been stolen! They didn't believe me when I told them how much I'd won." Hall plans to take his Las Vegas trip in June, so he can hopefully take part in the WSOP. Another top 10 finisher, David Hicks, who collected $1440 in the Grand Final, donated $500 of his prize money to a Gibraltar charity for disabled children. And when 32Red's CEO Ed Ware heard this he matched it, making the donation $1000.