Chairman in on Fix? -- The chairman of Belgian first division soccer club La Louviere, Filippo Gaone, was arrested today in connection with the ongoing match-fixing investigation in Belgium. The Belgian Federal Prosecutor's office confirmed that Gaone's home and business were searched this morning, as well as those of the club's lawyer, Laurent Denis, and a player's agent Pietro Alatta, who is out of the country.
Broken Alliance -- James Packer's Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd. has severed ties with casino tycoon Stanley Ho, who announced yesterday that he is stepping down as chairman of PBL's Asian partner Melco International of which he owns 11 percent. The move is expected to expedite probity checks into the PBL-Melco venture, which have been underway since 2004 by the Victorian Commission for Gambling Regulation (VCGR). VCGR executive commissioner, Peter Cohen, would not say if it was troubled by the associations with Ho but confirmed he was part of the current investigation. Ho's son, Lawrence will step in as chairman.
Swedish PokerLoco -- Stefan Mahlstein, chairman of Homerun Gaming Ventures Ltd., has launched a version of online poker site PokerLoco in Sweden called PokerLoco Nordic S.A., which competes with Swedish gambling monopoly Svenska Spel by giving 15 percent of its net revenue to the football clubs in the Premier-Division through a sponsorship deal. Later this year sponsorship of other team sports will be included, including as ice hockey, bandy, handball and basketball.
New Alliance -- Wireless gaming products developer Diamond I, Inc. announced today that it has formed a strategic alliance with Silicon Valley-based technology company Real Video Gaming, Inc. (RVG), which provides live video feeds of gaming devices located in land-based casinos to mobile and online gaming patrons. RVG will utilize Diamond I's WifiCasino GS hand-held devices for use in delivering gaming content to RVG's customers.
Patent Suit -- According to the Israeli business daily Globes, Yaakov Rafaeli, CEO of Austrian company Lubar has filed a lawsuit in Tel Aviv's District Court against online gambling technology developer Playtech Cyprus Ltd. for patent infringement relating to its system and method for remote online gambling at actual casinos. Rafaeli claims Lubar's invention was the first to make online gambling possible through virtual gambling sites at an actual casino where the operator was a real person and the results were determined by where the roulette ball fell. Rafaeli said his company is acting to enforce its patent rights worldwide because it has parallel patents in the US and Australia and is applying for patents in European and other countries. Lubar has also named three other foreign online gambling companies including Empire Online Ltd., in the claim. The defense has not yet filed a statement.