NSW Closer to Approving Betfair
New South Wales Parliament on Friday tabled amendments to the Racing Administration Act of 1998 endorsing Betfair in the state. Racing NSW will be the approving authority for the publication of race fields, and Betfair will be forced by the legislation to go through the same approval process as it went through in Victoria when it was approved in July. Betfair is not required to pay a fee to RVL; however, RVL accepted Betfair's proposal to contribute a product fee of A$1.1 million in back taxes for its coverage of Victorian racing from 2002 to 2005. The NSW legislation is only at the first reading stage.
Victorian Bookmakers Go Online
Punters in Victoria can now bet on Australian thoroughbred races and sporting events via the Internet thanks to the Victorian Bookmakers Association. Participating licensed bookmakers are offering online bets at terminals at metropolitan tracks and a select number of provincial meetings during the Spring Racing Carnival. No minimum bet is required and no commissions are paid. The initial phase of the online race betting will offer fixed odds, best fluctuation, bookmaker starting price, odds and tote odds.
NSW Racing Looks at New Ways to Compete
The Australian Jockey Club held a wagering forum on Sept. 25 attended by every major player in the New South Wales wagering industry except the state's governing body, Racing NSW, according to Thoroughbred News. Attendees, including Andrew Twaits, director of corporate and business affairs for Betfair, Michael Sullivan, managing director of Sportingbet and Elmer Funke Kupper, CEO of Tabcorp's Australian Business, discussed the state of NSW racing and the decline of recent wagering in the area, and operators called for the Victorian system of thoroughbred governance to be adopted in New South Wales. Twaits and Sullivan expressed their organizations' willingness to contribute to racing in NSW through formulas for product fees, just as they do in Victoria. Kupper said that despite Tabcorp's position as an industry leader, it must do better as a customer-focused organization, improve its Internet wagering business and face up to the fact that new media is blurring state boundaries from both a regulatory and business aspect. He also said that there would be a "'tremendous upside" to growth for Tabcorp in the NSW wagering market. "Both bookmakers and Betfair are here to stay and as a company and industry we have to deal with it and compete," he said. "Time is running out for us and it is not just good enough to be the biggest; we must be leaders."
Gala to Bid for Tote
British gaming group Gala, valued at more that £4 billion, says it will bid for state-owned bookmaker the Tote when it becomes available, but will not be targeting any of Britain's listed Internet gambling firms, according to CEO Neil Goulden. The British government is considering its options after last month rejecting an offer of around £320 million for the Tote from a consortium of U.K. horse racing industry players. The government values the Tote at £400 million and has invited the industry to bid. Meanwhile, Gala said it would not buy any of the Internet gambling firms currently suffering from historically low market shares brought on by the U.S. I-gambling prohibition.