Betfair in Victoria -- Several Australian media outlets reported Monday that after a series of meetings with Racing Victoria's integrity department and senior management, betting exchange Betfair is set to be given approval to operate on Victorian race fields next month. Racing Victoria Chairman Graham Duff said today, however, that these are premature assumptions. The RVL board, he said, did not have the issue on the agenda for its next meeting scheduled for June 1. He added that the board has yet to formulate a position on the subject. Betfair is reportedly set to meet with RVL again on Wednesday.
A New Alternative -- Less than a month after the American Gaming Association (AGA) called for a study of Internet gambling, U.S. House Reps. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., and Jon Porter, R-Nev., plan to introduce a bill this week to create a federal commission that would study Internet gambling for one year and have another year to make recommendations. They will reportedly unveil the bill before the House Judiciary Committee votes on Rep. Bob Goodlatte's, R-Va., bill on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the AGA said the group remains neutral on the Goodlatte bill and that it is only consulting Berkley's office on the new legislation. Berkley said her office would not have proceeded with the bill without the consent of the casino industry. Other supporters of the bill include Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., and Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R- NJ.
Directors in and Out -- Online gaming company BetonSports plc announced Monday the appointment of two directors. Former commercial director Richard Creed, who joined the BoS board in April 2005, is now finance director, and former CTO Scott Waller is taking over as technology director. Waller has been with BoS since July 2005. . . . PartyGaming plc made two major announcements regarding changes in its board of directors. Anurag Dikshit, one of the company's founders, has stepped down as group operations director to focus on developing new products and platforms as head of research and special projects. Group Technology Director Bhagwan Dass Goel and Joel Leonoff, taking over the revised role of group operations director, will share Dikshit's existing responsibilities. Another founder, Group Marketing Director Vikrant Bhargava, has announced that he wishes to step down from the board and leave the company at the end of the year.
Kyl's Race -- U.S. Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., appears to be losing ground in the race to retain his seat. As of last week, he had a 40 percent to 33 percent lead over former state Democratic Chairman Jim Pederson, according to a survey of 631 registered voters conducted by Behavior Research Center. Twenty-seven percent are undecided. Kyl had a 42 percent to 31 percent lead in an Arizona State University/KAET-TV poll taken last month.
Tax Us Please -- Modeled after the Web's Population Clock, which estimates birth rates, death rates and other vital information, in real time, of people all over the world, the Poker Player's Alliance (PPA) presents the Tax-Online-Gambling register, which estimates the amount of online gambling tax revenue lost to offshore countries every second the government prohibits online gambling in the United States. The site's purpose is to motivate citizens to join the PPA's "Keep it Legal" lobby, which advocate's the legalization of online poker in the States.
Something to Chat About -- Online content and gaming business ukbetting plc announced Monday that its sports content provider, TEAMtalk Media, has signed a partnership agreement with mobile network operator O2 to launch Football365 Chat, which enables football fans to discuss the latest football action via their mobile phones just ahead of the World Cup. Football 365 Chat will also enable fans to win prizes and chat with football celebrities. Ukbetting this week additionally launched Football365 in Germany on mobile phone operator 3, where it will host and publish 3's tournament news coverage as well as offer its full range of downloads.
Improvisation -- A group of six protesters calling themselves "Fathers 4 Justice" invaded the live broadcast of the UK National Lottery draw Saturday night, temporarily delaying the £17 million draw. The director cut to a shot of the National Lottery logo, and BBC announcer Alan Dedicoat was forced to improvise a commentary while the protesters were removed from the studio. Fathers 4 Justice is a group that protests court-imposed separation of children from their fathers as a result of divorce. The incident is under investigation.