Melbourne Cup Roundup
Makybe Diva won her third consecutive Melbourne Cup on Nov. 1 as bookmakers recorded all-time high numbers on the betting action. ACCTAB outlets throughout Canberra received a total of AU$2.25 million in wagers on the feature race alone, surpassing the previous record of 1.96 million in 2003. Throughout the entire race day, ACTTAB collected $3.24 million, which was $10,000 more than the previous record. Meanwhile, punters wagered $2.5 million on British betting exchange Betfair, where up until only a few minutes before the final race, they were getting $5.10 to $5.20 on favored Makybe Diva while the TABs were only paying about $4.
Youbet Gains and Obtains
California-based Youbet.com has signed a two-year agreement with Beulah Park and River Downs race tracks in Ohio, allowing Youbet to once again simulcast and accept wagers on races at the two tracks. The company now has simulcasting agreements with 100 race tracks in the United States and 50 overseas.
The Oregon Racing Commission has approved the licensing of Youbet's Curacao-based rebate betting subsidiary International Racing Group (also known as Holiday Beach) to operate a multi-jurisdictional simulcast wagering hub. Youbet sought a domestic hub for IRG, which it acquired in June to relieve fears that the offshore firm was not regulated closely enough. IRG offers rebates on its telephone wagering services to high-volume customers, and it has simulcast and wagering agreements in place with more than 90 U.S. thoroughbred, harness and greyhound tracks.
British Horse Racing in the High Court
Britain's High Court on Oct. 20 began hearing a case that involved a complaint by horse racing channel At the Races against the British Horseracing Board for making excessive and discriminatory demands for the right to use racing information. At the Races claims that the BHB is abusing what is essentially a monopoly on pre-race data to overcharge At the Races for its use of information that is vital to its broadcast of British racing to overseas bookmakers. The company says it would lose half of its overseas revenue if it was to pay the BHB's demand of £1,800 per fixture, and its international business would consequently become unprofitable. At the Races alleges that the BHB's demands are discriminative because its competitor, Phumelela, receives a better rate and excessive because the asking price for the information is disproportionate to its economic value.
Another At the Races' complaint before the High Court against 31 racecourses that now belong to Racing UK was delayed on Tuesday when Judge David Steel stepped down because he has acquaintances in racing. At the Races is seeking £55 million in compensation for the 31 tracks' termination of their media rights contracts with the old At the Races channel in early 2004.
A High Court dispute between the British Horseracing Board and 59 Irish bookmakers led by former Irish government minister Ivan Yates ended Nov. 10 in an amicable settlement. The Irish bookmakers claimed that the BHB did not have the right to introduce in 2001 a new policy that required users of a database that included information on horses, owners, trainers and handicapping to enter a licensing agreement with the board. The bookmakers had sought to be repaid more than £20 million but have settled out of court for a once-off payment of £204,000. The license agreements have terminated and the bookmakers may continue to use the database through Jan. 9, 2006. Yates said the deal will allow the Irish bookmakers to provide its customers with lower costs.
Race-O Ready to Go
The launch of Race-O, the new "superbet" on British horseracing spearheaded by former Betdaq managing director Rob Hartnett, seems set for launch before the end of 2005 (after missing its original launch date of summer 2005). The Race-O product is designed for punters who want to wager a small amount with the ability to obtain a massive payout by predicting the winners of eight races each Saturday afternoon. Race-O's developers say their product is an improvement over the Tote's Scoop6 in that consolation prizes will still be awarded to punters who correctly picked all but one or two winners. Because the Tote holds an exclusive license for pool betting in the United Kingdom, Race-O's servers will be based in Canada under the control of the Kahnawake Gaming Commission. The technical development team will be based in New Zealand, and customer services will be based in Britain.
Hill Co-Mingles
British bookmaker William Hill has integrated a new technology solution, provided by Laverock von Schoultz, that will enable it to co-mingle its punters' bets into U.S. horseracing pools.
Savill Warns Lennon
Peter Savill, the former chairman of the British Horseracing Board, recently wrote a letter to Tasmanian Premier Paul Lennon warning that Betfair will damage the British and Australian horse racing industries. "I believe they will ultimately prove the ruination of the British racing industry and can see that they have the ability to damage Australian racing to an even greater extent," he stated in the letter. "We reckon in Great Britain it's cost us in terms of income to the industry about 25 million pounds a year, which is about AU$65 million and as I say, with you getting a much bigger percentage out of your totalisator systems obviously that loss could be even greater." Despite Savill's admonition and the heated opposition by many involved in Australian Racing, Lennon's government has declared that will allow Betfair a license to operate its betting exchange in the state.
Illegal Internet Betting Offers Best Options in Malaysia
The New Strait Times of Malaysia reports that illegal Internet betting on horse racing emerged in Singapore in mid 2004 and has become abundant in Malaysia as well. The newspaper estimates that state-licensed totalisators receive only about 10 percent of all bets on horse racing in Malaysia, while illegal bookmakers take the remaining 90 percent. Among the illegal operators, offline bookies are said to offer betting tickets that cost 4.20 ringgits (US$1.11), while Internet bookies are said to offer tickets that cost only 4.00 ringgits ($1.06). Another advantage the Internet operators offer is the provision of credit to customers they are familiar with and the option to "swallow" tickets for horses that have already had bets placed on them but whom the punter does not think can win.