Tidbits from the Far East -- Providers of online games in Korea appear to be crossing the line into gambling, and authorities won't stand for it. The Korea
Media Rating Board (KMRB) has suspended five online games services for running "casino-like operations." The operators have been hit with 60-day suspensions and are required to revise the content of 15 online games in which, according to the KMRB, cash is at stake. The games, which include mahjong and poker, must be approved by the board before they can be republished. The games in violation of KMRB guidelines are pay-to-play games in which accounts are funded directly through players' bank accounts. Winners are paid in kind or in Internet or lottery vouchers. Games of chance can be played online in Korea only for "cyber" money. . . . According to a new study by Ipsos-Reid, Web users in Hong Kong spend more time online than users in any other country. The firm, which interviewed 10,000 people between the ages of 12 and 24 in 16 countries, reported that Web surfers in Hong Kong spend an average of nine hours and 43 minutes online per month. The group attributes this number to the growing popularity of online games in Asia. The survey also showed that online games are more popular in China, South Korea and Taiwan than anywhere else in the world. Casino gambling is most popular in South Korea, where a reported 65 percent of Internet users have visited casino sites.
Horse Bit -- Youbet.com Inc. today reported a significant spike in business for Breeders' Cup 2002. The interactive race wagering service
said that on the day of the event, handle increased by 83 percent and the number of simultaneous users was 28 percent higher than the previous record set during the 2002 Preakness. Breeders' Cup week (Oct. 21-27)
raised the weekly handle record to $4.9 million. (The previous record, for the week of July 1-7, was $4.1 million.) CEO Chuck Champion said the company's overall numbers have been solid in
recent months. "In the weeks since the 2002 Kentucky Derby, our handle, revenue and market share continue to rise, and we have repeatedly set new weekly and monthly records," Champion said. "In fact, our July and August monthly totals blew away the Triple Crown months. Our handle is up and our margins are as well."
Tidbits from Oz -- Hutchison Telecommunications out of Australia may consider carrying mobile betting and pornography services when it launches its $3 billion 3G mobile data network in early 2003, the Australian reported
today. Steve Wright, the company's stakeholder relations manager, said the company acknowledges the success of interactive adult entertainment services, adding that "it is being looked at." Wright emphasized, though, that "adult services" doesn't necessarily translate to "pornography." The company is rumored to be in talks with Playboy as well as with online sex shop Adultshop.com. On the gambling side, Wright said 3G could present a lot of opportunities in terms of delivering information. . . . Northern Territory-based online casino operator Lasseters is switching its backend software from a Microsoft-based
system to a Linux-based system. The move came as a result of Microsoft raising its licensing costs.
Legal Stuff -- Verizon subsidiary Verizon Online announced Monday that it has settled an anti-spam lawsuit against a commercial e-mail firm out of Detroit. The company, Additional Benefits, along with its owner, Alan Ralsky, was accused of flooding inboxes with ads for numerous products and services, including online gambling services. Ralsky and Additional Benefits will pay unspecified damages to Verizon.