It's taken a while, but Starnet Communications International appears to be getting much closer to offering its own interactive wagering system. The company announced Wednesday the retention of AmTote International, Inc. as a tote service provider for its wholly-owned subsidiary, World Gaming Services, Inc.
"This agreement secures the final, key element for our simulcasting operations as we position ourselves to benefit from the strong growth and attractive margins in the online pari-mutuel industry," Starnet CEO Meldon Ellis said. "With an impressive array of track simulcasting agreements and a high-caliber tote provider in place, we look forward to launching operations quickly and are excited about the additional revenue streams our simulcasting operations will generate for Starnet."
The company plans to rollout the product in two stages that will enable customers to comment before the actual launch on the interactive wagering interface. The company says the first stage will begin within
two months, and anticipates the second stage--actual wagering--to commence by spring.
According to plans Starnet and licensee websites will initially offer live audio/video coverage, handicapping information, chat functionality, and news and weather for racing events. Then, the company hopes to fully implement the interactive wagering module by spring 2000.
The company is also developing an exclusion system designed to prevent wagers from customers in the host country. "Our strategy is to sign the same industry standard agreements used to allow tracks and OTB facilities to exchange products/signals and introduce them to our massive online gaming distribution channel. This results in a win-win situation for racing," Paul Nyzuk, Starnet's director of pari-mutuel operations, explained.
"By not accepting wagers from U.S. or Canadian residents on U.S. and Canadian tracks (unless appropriate regulatory approval is granted), we are enabling international penetration and incremental revenue without any risk of cannibalizing the tracks' existing markets," Nyzuk added. "As we expand into international markets we will follow this same model, allowing the track the choice of blocking wagers from customers in the host's country or surrounding area."
How the exclusion system will work, for now, is a mystery. A spokesperson for Starnet said he thought it would work by blocking IP addresses, but he wasn't sure.