Andre Wilsenach has gone out of his way to make the small island of Alderney one of the most sought after jurisdictions for online gaming operators.
His work as CEO of the Alderney Gambling Control Commission is paying off, as the British Channel Island today named Sky Bet its fourth I-gaming licensee. An official announcement is expected on Friday.
The license was officially awarded to Bonne Terre Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of BSkyB Group plc, while the I-gaming product will be an extension of Sky Bet brand.
Nick Rust, the Managing Director of Sky Bet, told IGN that he expects to see a site launched by February 2003. The short time frame, he said, is due in large part to the company choosing WagerWorks Inc. as the software supplier. WagerWorks is a pre-existing licensee in Alderney, he said, so many of the procedural steps toward approval have already been taken.
Rust said Sky Bet will leverage the BSkyB brand to target British punters.
"Sky Bet has access to 6.5 million homes and more than 10 million adults," he said. "The site will be used to leverage that brand awareness and strength in the U.K. market."
Sky Bet already operates an Internet-based sports betting site that is run out of the company's facilities in England. The Alderney site, he said, will feature casino-style games and will link to the company's sports betting services.
Wilsenach feels that adding Sky Bet to the already impressive list of Alderney licensees, which includes Littlewoods, Ritz Interactive/Hard Rock and Sportingbet, adds to the island's status as a leading offshore jurisdiction.
That only four interactive gaming licenses have been awarded in Alderney, he added, is not due to a lack of interest on the part of operators.
"We can afford to be very selective in who we choose," he said. "We aren't going to give a license to a company unless they can prove they are a formidable and legitimate company."
Wilsenach said the selection process has been made easier by the stringent nature of Alderney's regulations. Gaming codes, for example, prohibit the accepting of bets from jurisdictions where online gaming is prohibited, which means U.S. players are off limits.
"We are pretty clear on where we stand as far as accepting wagers from the U.S. goes," he said. "That helps us right off the bat in attracting the more legitimate and well established brands."
And it appears that Alderney isn't in a hurry to issue its next license. Wilsenach said the commission has a stack of pending applications, but won't issue any more this year.
"It isn't like we are going around saying, 'We have to have this many licensees,'" he said. "But we aren't going to stop issuing them when we reach a certain number either. We just aren't going to rush into the process at all. I think we have proven that already in our first wave of licensees and that has worked to our advantage."
Sky Bet plans to locate its gaming equipment in the Cable & Wireless (Guernsey) hosting facility on the island and to source its customer support staff from its Alderney base.
In February 1998, Bonne Terre Ltd. was issued an Electronic Betting Center license by the AGCC and successfully operated a fixed-odds betting service via telephone and the Internet under the name of Surrey Sports from its Alderney headquarters.
Following the abolition of the U.K. betting tax in October 2001, trading was transferred onshore to Surrey Sports' head office in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.
Sky Bet's finance director, Mark Wood, said the firm is excited to return some of its operations to the island.
"We believe that Alderney offers a robust regulatory environment that is consistent with our business philosophy of fair game play and protection of the customer," he said. "We are delighted to be returning to the island and we look forward to working with the people of Alderney once more."
Today's news was welcomed by the States of Alderney, which openly promotes the development of interactive gaming and electronic gambling operations.
Alderney States Member Col. Peter Walter feels that regulating Internet gambling has proven to be an economically smart decision. Having such tight regulations creates an appealing situation for "highly reputable" operators, he said.
Alderney, the third largest of the Channel Islands, has its own government, legislature and company laws and is an offshore center for investment, finance, e-commerce, and e-gaming services.
The island is 3.5 miles long and 1.5 miles wide and has a permanent population of 2,400 residents.