EasyBetonSports -- Costa Rica-based BetonSports.com has acquired Easybets.com for an initial US$15 million in cash and shares. Easybets reportedly has about 100,000 customers, most of whom reside in Asia. Seventy percent of the Easybets' customers are from China, and 95 percent utilize the company's services over the Internet. BetonSports revealed that its pretax profit for the year ended Feb. 6 had fallen to $13.3 million from $27 million on turnover that had fallen to $1.1 billion from $1.3 billion, but company officials say the Easybets purchase should increase earnings immediately. BetonSports also appointed Chirs Galloway, a specialist small cap adviser, to its board.
Watchdog -- The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has begun investigating whether any of the major racing clubs or TABs in Australia have engaged in anti-competitive tactics in their efforts to assure that British betting exchange Betfair does not receive a license to operate in the country. Last month it was revealed that Betfair had hired Sydney-based law firm Gilbert and Tobin to pursue charges of restraint of trade against Australia's racing and betting industry. Tasmanian Premier Paul Lennon will allow the Legislative Council to decide within the next two or three weeks whether his state will grant the company a license to operate. The five Labour Party members on the Council are thought to favor licensing the company, but there is no certainty about how the council's 10 independents will vote.
Winnerland -- Malta-based I-gaming software and solutions company WorldMatch has supplied an online casino to Winnerland, the Italian-language online entertainment Web site of Digibrands. WinnerlandCasino.com offers the Winnerland community of 400,000 members a suite of casino games for fun or real-money wagering. WorldMatch prides itself on being the only company in the online gambling industry with a license issued by an E.U. member state.
Quoteworthy -- "Despite [the United States Trade Representative's] efforts, this [World Trade Organization] case highlights the continuing problem of inadequate consultation with state governments during the trade negotiation process. The legislative and regulatory authority over gambling varies extensively at the sub-federal level, but is solidly rooted in the constitutional jurisdiction of state governments. Accordingly, to comply with the WTO panel decision, if the anticipated appellate decision does not favor the United States, the U.S. federal government would not only have to change its own laws but would have to override state authority to regulate gambling. The threat of preemption is very real in this case and state governments should have been consulted before specific commitments to 'gambling and betting services' were originally made."
- an excerpt from a letter written to U.S. Trade Representative Peter Allgeier by Sheryl Allen, chair of the National Conference of State Legislatures' Standing Committee on Economic Development, Trade & Cultural Affairs. Allen also expressed in the letter her "concern about the effects of this case on states' abilities to regulate this industry" and asked Allgeier to commit to "meaningful consultation with the state legislators both in the resolution of the gambling dispute and in the future negotiations pertaining to international trade agreement."
Bingo.com -- Portal site Bingo.com has launched real-money gaming using software from Chartwell Technology. The Flash-based system provides 75- and 90-ball bingo games with chat features and a full suite of soft games available as side games or intermission entertainment. Bingo.com says the passage of the U.K. Gambling Act led to its decision to diversify its business model by entering the cash bingo market. The company claims to have a player base of over 1 million registered players, with 30,000 visitors and 800 new signups every day.
Gambling Ties -- With the commencement of spring meetings for officials of America's National Football League comes the request that Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner Malcolm Glazer answer a series of questions relating to his recent acquisition of British soccer club Manchester United. Glazer's purchase of the Manchester club does not violate the NFL's cross-ownership rules, but the club has recently revealed plans to build a resort and casino near its stadium in a joint venture effort with Las Vegas Sands Corp. NFL spokesperson Greg Aiello confirmed the league's natural hesitance about any connection to gambling when he said, "The only potential issue concerns that reported Man U venture with the Las Vegas casino, what that means, and does it have any implications regarding our policies."
Reality Poker -- Extreme Poker Ltd. has launched the marketing campaign for The Great Canadian Poker Tournament, a reality television series that will film episodes one through eleven at sponsored venues throughout North America. The series pilot has already been completed.