Nambling Notes - June 2, 2008

California: I-Poker Study Bill Moves to State Senate for Consideration

A bill to study an intrastate Internet poker offering in California has moved from the State Assembly to the State Senate.

The bill, AB 2026, was introduced to the Legislature by Assemblyman Lloyd E. Levine, Democrat of Van Nuys, on Feb. 15, 2008.

The Poker Voters of America, a non-profit group supporting the bill, said that the Senate Rules Committee will this week assign the bill to the appropriate committee in the upper house for consideration.

888 Holdings (London: 145p / - 2p / - 1.36%)

888 has agreed to integrate games from Dynamite Idea, a recent acquisition of Boss Media, into its integration platform.

"We are expanding our internal activities to build brand loyalty by the provision of best of breed games to complement our core offering," said Gabi Campos, head of offering at 888, in a prepared statement Monday.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, nor were the specific Dynamite Idea titles 888 will integrate.

Rank Group (London: 88.25p / + 0.50p / + 0.57%)

Guoco Pty Ltd., the investment arm of Hong Leong Group Malaysia, on Monday upped its stake in Rank Group from 11.24 percent to 12.02 percent, or 46.95 million shares.

Since its September 2007 profit warning, Rank has remained a steady subject of takeover speculation.

In late March, Genting Berhad, the Malaysia-based investment arm of Genting Group, denied rumors that it would make a $959 million offer for the land-based and Internet gambling operator.

A London analyst covering the I-gaming sector told Interactive Gaming News Monday the prospect of a Genting takeover was unlikely.

Meanwhile, the Richardson family, U.K-based private property investors worth an estimated $993.1 million, has also been quietly building a stake in Rank.

For purposes of reference, the Richardson family holds at least 11 percent in Rank, Genting, 11.3 percent, and Guoco, 12.02 percent.

Play'n Go: Launches New Bingo Network

Play'n Go, the Sweden-based software developer, has launched its proprietary bingo network, the Play'n Go Bingo Network.

The network will feature both 90-ball and 75-ball bingo games in single- and multiplayer versions, as well as multilingual chat rooms to facilitate community growth.

"The games themselves are important, but just as important is granting the players the ability to chat and enjoy each other's company," said Johan Törnqvist, chief executive of Play'n Go. "It takes players to make players in online bingo."