BHB Loses in Court Again
Britain's High Court on Dec. 21 ruled in favor of Attheraces (ATR) in the company's claim that the British Horseracing Board (BHB) abused its dominant market position with regards to pre-race data. ATR pays the Press Association for supplying a pre-race data feed that is used by its overseas bookmakers, and the BHB has a separate agreement in place to provide pre-race data to the Press Association, but the BHB also requested that ATR pay a license fee to the BHB for database rights. The High Court ruled that the BHB's actions constitute an abuse of its dominant position in violation of Article 82 of the EC Treaty and Chapter II of the U.K. Competition Act.
Woodbine Denies Offshore Rebate Operations Access to Pools
Canada's Woodbine Entertainment Group has once again confirmed its stance on offshore rebate operations by denying International Racing Group--Youbet's Curacao-based rebate betting subsidiary (also known as Holiday Beach)--access to wagering pools hosted by Woodbine. David Wilmot, chairman and CEO of Woodbine, stated, "We, as an industry, cannot afford to continue to legitimize these non-racetrack rebate operations. Our long-term success depends on a significant reinvestment in the racing industry which is something that these organizations do not deliver."
American Companies Introduce Racing to Brazil
Las Vegas media company Carnegie Cooke and Kentucky-based technologies company Charlson Broadcast Technologies (CBT) have together brought North American horse racing to Brazil via the Campos Jockey Club and its off-track betting network. CBT is providing wagering technologies and simulcast delivery to horseplayers in Brazil, enabling them to place unlimited bets on international horse and greyhound races with all available host track wager types and track odds. "Over 100 million dollars was bet legally in Venezuela last year on domestic racing alone, not including the additional estimate of more then 900 million through accepted illegal wagers," said CBT President and CEO Gary Charlson. "This is with less than 60 races per week."
HK Jockey Club Wary of Betfair Down Under
British betting exchange Betfair, which will soon receive a license to begin operating in Tasmania, faces yet another opponent in Hong Kong's racing authorities, who have threatened to withdraw the rights of Australian TABs to bet on their events if Betfair Down Under attempts to operate on Hong Kong races. Hong Kong Jockey Club (HKJC) Executive Director Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said, "We are extremely concerned that if you give people the opportunity to profit directly from backing a horse to lose, you threaten the whole principle of this sport." He reiterated that the HKJC would only take action if Betfair broadened its operations into Hong Kong.
Anticipated Betting Site Finally Running
U.K. racing and sports betting newspaper, the Racing Post, and British horseracing channel Racing UK have finally co-launched their anticipated broadband betting site. thebettingsite.co.uk is a one-stop-shop that enables British racing enthusiasts to watch live racing via the Internet or 3G mobile phones. Punters can place a minimum £5 bet on the site with any of the five partnering bookmakers--Bet 365, Blue Square, Ladbrokes, The Tote and VCBet--and watch live racing on a bet-to-view basis (similar to pay-per-view) or watch live racing by subscribing to the site's online streaming service for a nominal monthly fee.