M&A Scuttlebutt -- Just beyond the spotlight that shines on 888.com at the LSE, the latest acquisition rumor involving I-poker behemoth Partygaming is that the Gibraltar-based FTSE-bound group could be coveting P2P giant Betfair. The prospective buy has at least temporarily diverted the attention of Investors and analysts from weeks of speculation that Partygaming has an appetite for Internet poker group Empire Online. While Party is clearly the darling of the I-gaming world, Betfair is certainly no slouch. The U.K.-based company has a stronghold on the person-to-person betting market and is said to be eying an LSE float of its own.
Nine.com Gathers No Moss -- It appears that controversial supermodel Kate Moss has turned down a $5 million offer to be the spokeswoman for online gambling Web site Nine.com. The offer was presented as a means of bailing out Moss, whose recently publicized drug abuse has cost her several endorsement deals. "This story is absolute rubbish," a spokesperson for the reeling supermodel told the New York Daily News. "Kate will not be working with this company."
Bonnier and Boss -- The Bonnier Group's Bonnier Entertainment business says it has signed Boss Media to provide the technology for its new gaming site at www.bingolotto.se, a partnership between Bonnier and Folkspel. The service will be Bonnier's first venture in the real-money gaming space. Boss Media will supply its system for bingo gaming on the Internet with the possibility of expanding to include additional gaming products. Bonnier will also outsource its customer service for gaming to Boss Media.
Gu Going Away -- Xinhuanet reports that the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court has sentenced Beijing resident Gu Lianbao to two-and-a-half years in prison for organizing an illegal football gambling Web site. Gu, 43, was also fined 30,000 yuan (US$3,700) and avoided a harsher penalty by cooperating with prosecutors. According to court records, the Web site for which Gu acted as a banker handled 600 million yuan ($74 million) and is believed to have been the city's largest online betting operation. Police seized about 150,000 yuan ($18,500) in cash, a bank deposit book with a balance of 210,000 yuan ($25,900) and a bank card worth 60,000 yuan ($7,400). Gu was said to be searching gambling Web sites at his home in Beijing when police arrived.
Quebec Not Interested -- Canadian lottery corporations at upcoming meetings will address the possibility of regulated Internet gambling, but Loto-Quebec president Alain Cousinuau believes lottery authorities don't have a handle on I-gaming and all the issues surrounding it. Cousineau, therefore, has gone on record as saying that Quebec won't be leading the way in any race toward regulation. "People say that VLTs are bad, but imagine now (with Internet gambling), it's 24/7 in your own home," Cousineau told reports before a luncheon on Wednesday. "You have access to all the games." He added that studies conducted by Loto-Quebec indicate that Quebecers do not want a government agency hosting online gambling. The debate has been fueled by reports that I-gaming could bring Canadian provinces up to $700 million a year.
Jesus Christ -- In what could be considered gambling's most blasphemous promotional campaign since the world tour of Golden Palace's Virgin Mary sandwich, religious groups are lambasting Irish bookmaker Paddy Power for an ad depicting Christ and the apostles gambling at the Last Supper. The Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland has received numerous phone calls and at least 15 written complaints pertaining to the ad, which leads with the caption "There's a place for fun and games" and shows Christ gambling with a stack of chips in front of him and surrounded by the apostles, who are participating in various forms of gambling as well.