Poker in Sweden -- The Swedish government has given state-owned gambling monopoly Svenska Spel and its software provider, Boss Media, the go-ahead to start an Internet poker service, but not without a number of stipulations. Deputy Prime Minister Bosse Ringholm, who is also the gaming minister, said the duo can run a poker site but not an Internet casino or betting exchange because the government wants to channel Internet gambling to Swedish-run organizations. The government also attached conditions stipulating that no one under 18 is allowed to play, and that all players must set loss limits. Svenska Spel says it will launch an online poker room as soon as possible.
Victory for Betfair -- The Gaming Control Amendment Bill passed the Upper House of the Tasmanian Parliament Wednesday, which means that the world's leading betting exchange, Betfair, is finally going to get what it wanted from Australia: a license. The site could be taking bets from Australian punters as early as Jan. 1. Premier Paul Lennon approved an amendment requiring independent socioeconomic impact assessments every three years--a measure he consistently denied during Betfair's bidding process. "Punters fund the racing industry," said Betfair director Andrew Twaits. "A lot of people tend to forget that. What this does is provide competition with existing wagering operators, which can only give punters a better deal at the end of the day." Lennon congratulated Upper House MPs for refusing to succumb to what he referred to as scaremongering from those who opposed the bill. "This is a triumph for Tasmania," he said.
Greek to William Hill -- Internet gaming software developer CryptoLogic Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary, Wagerlogic Limited, has launched a new Greek-language Internet poker site for U.K.-based William Hill Poker. The new site, williamhillpoker.gr, is the first European language offering from CryptoLogic and it supports multi-currency transactions (in euros, U.S. dollars and U.K. sterling).
BoS East -- Philippines-based Internet firm Philweb Corporation's contract with U.K. betting company BETonSPORTS PLC to offer North American sports betting online in the Philippines has been approved by the state-run Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.. The deal, which covers betting on all sports except soccer, took effect Thursday.
Finnish Denial -- The Finnish government on Thursday again denied an operating license application by U.K.-based Ladbrokes. According to the Finnish Lotteries Act, only one entity at a time may hold a license for each of the three categories of gambling--lottery and betting; horse racing and gaming [slot] machines; and casinos--which are held by national lottery company Veikkaus, bookmaker Fintoto and the Slot Machine Association respectively.
Tommy -- Tommy Telecom, a new mobile virtual network operator (a mobile phone operator that piggybacks on another telecommunications company's network) that offers subscriptions exclusively to members of associated charity organizations, has launched its services in the Netherlands using the Netherlands' Telfort's network. The Dutch lottery, Nationale Postcode Loterij, which has an estimated 4 million members, is the first organization to sign on with Tommy Telecom to offer mobile services to its members. Tommy Telecom enables customers to set their own call monthly calling limit. A subscription to Tommy Telecom costs 5 euro per month and calling costs are 0.15 euro per minute. Tommy Telecom is owned by Dijk Producties, which also owns Annie Connect, an in-and-outbound call center that only works for charity organizations.
GIG and Sky -- Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc. (ISWI) announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, Global Interactive Gaming Limited (GIG), and SkyBet have agreed to develop and offer a fully integrated betting solution for all of SkyBet's delivery platforms, including interactive television (iTV), Internet and telephone/mobile. The two companies agreed to conduct a feasibility study--to be initiated within 20 days of the announcement--to evaluate the most seamless way to integrate solution. The partnership's ultimate goal is to enable punters to place all types of bets from one interactive platform. "We are thrilled to be afforded with such an exciting opportunity," said Bernard Albanese, President of ISWI. "As a result of additional market research during the past year, we have also recognized that offering the customer the ability to make any kind of wager from the same screen, without having to leave our partners' application, would greatly enhance the player's experience, and therefore, we expect would generate more traffic in those markets offered and managed by GIG."
Compliance -- Online gaming independent standards authority eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA) announced today that a significant number of online casinos and poker rooms will soon be authorized to display the eCOGRA "Play It Safe" seal, indicating that they adhere to eCOGRA's quality assurance standards. "Over the past few months we have experienced unprecedented interest in eCOGRA from several important online casinos and poker rooms," said eCOGRA CEO Andrew Beveridge. "Judging by the level of firm applications now under review I anticipate very significant increases in the number of seal holders within the next six months."