Friday, Sep. 24
Racing MOU -- Betfair has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Horseracing Authority of South Africa similar to the one the betting exchange has signed with the UK Jockey Club, the International Cricket Council, the English Football Association, the Association of Tennis Professionals, the Darts Regulation Authority and Cricket Australia. Like all the other memorandums, this one states that Betfair will provide betting-related information to the Horseracing Authority in instances where corrupt betting is reasonably suspected.
U.S. Exchange? -- Chris Scherf, vice president of the Thoroughbred Racing Associations, on Wednesday suggested to the International Simulcast Conference that racetracks in North America consider the possibility of uniting to create their own betting exchange as an extension of pari-mutuel wagering in order to ward supply more revenue and to ward off overseas exchange operators. Scherf's main concern is that if offshore-based exchanges were to become very popular with American punters they could end up offering only little, if any, revenue back to racing. Rather that attempting likely futile attempts to bar exchange wagering, Sherf said, "I would suggest we stop and look at it and figure out how to make a win-win situation for us all," he said.
GP Skill Games -- Golden Palace has signed a deal with CES Software Plc to offer online pay-per-play and subscription-based skill games through CES' subsidiary SkillJam Technologies. Lorne Abony, CEO of CES says that skill gaming and casino sectors are highly complementary, while Golden Palace's CEO Richard Rowe explains that it chose CES as its skill gaming partner because of its "tournament closing time, number of tournaments served, payout size, and jackpot size."
No P2P Commission -- A new Gibraltar-based betting site launched this week, MANSION.com, promises punter absolutely free person-to-person betting on the MANSION betting exchange. In addition to offering a betting exchange free from fees and commissions on bets, MANSION also provides a sportsbook that boasts some of the highest betting limits in the industry, including up to $36,000 bets on Premiership football and the NFL. MANSION's management team is lead by Managing Director David Dent, Head of Marketing Ashley Lange, (both of whom were partners at I-gaming consulting company Green Room Media), and Head of Betting Operations Michael Tomeny, formerly managing director of Canbet Sportsbook.
Gambling Charts -- A new website at www.online-gambling-charts.com provides casino ratings that give visitors the opportunity to cast votes for or against an online casino or poker operation. The site is project undertaken by Online Gambling Forums (www.online-gambling-forums).
Thursday, Sep. 23
Live Action -- Kenilworth Systems, which in June 2003 obtained a patent on a digital game broadcast system that transmits live in-progress casino games for viewing via interactive TV, has formed a partnership with CenterStaging Musical Productions Inc to provide entertainment content for its Roulabette project. Still in the pipeline, Roulabette would feature roulette, baccarat, dice, and other casino games accompanied by commentators, floor reporters and variety of entertainment segments intermixed with the gambling action. Players would be able to make wager deposits and redeem winnings at local lottery agents. Kenilworth's chairman and president Herbert Lindo says his company is close to completing an arrangement in South Korea.
TGC With Z4P -- Multi-platform gaming software developer Zone4Play has signed an agreement to provide UK-based The Gaming Channel (TGC) with expanded fixed-odds casino gaming on TGC's subsidiary Avago TV. Z4P will implement solutions allowing Avago customers to play interactive games across different media, including mobile devices. Z4P will also supply the betting systems for a new channel TGC is helping to launch later this fall in conjunction with a sportsbook operator in the UK.
Mobile Poker -- Wireless entertainment provider Chasma Inc is preparing to launch a mobile version of the Poker Superstar Invitational Tournament (PSIT) on BREW and J2ME platforms. The PSIT features professional poker players every Sunday evening on FSN, and a grand finale episode is scheduled to air on NBC on Super Bowl Sunday. Chasma's mobile game will offer tutorials, an address book import, intelligent player matching, buddy lists, and other features.
DDoS Attack -- Although DDoS attacks have been off the visible radar since July when three Russian men were arrested for attacking online gambling sites and attempting to extort money from them, credit card processing firm Authorize.Net stated yesterday that it "continues to experience intermittent distributed denial of service attacks. As was typical of most assaults on Internet gambling operators, the attacks on Authorize.Net were preceded by an e-mail ransom demand.
Redline for Speed -- Financial and sports markets spread betting company IG Index has chosen Redline Networks' E|X 3200 enterprise application processor to help increase the performance of its website, reduce bandwidth consumption, and collapse the web tier in its data center. IG Index tested alternative solutions offered by rival companies but inevitably chose Redline's product because it delivers an increase in website performance without requiring more web servers or bandwidth.
Wednesday, Sep. 22
Satellite Logic -- Canadian software developer CryptoLogic Inc., has released its Poker Version 3.4 software, which introduces an infrastructure that enables licensees to host large-scale satellite tournaments and other multi-level, multi-table tournaments to generate increased traffic and larger cash prizes. Licensed through CyrptoLogic's subsidiary, WagerLogic, Poker Version 3.4 enables licensees to offer major poker events, such as the cross-licensee Caribbean Poker Classic being held in December with a prize pool estimated at $1 million. Players can qualify for the land-based tournament in St. Maarten by qualifying in daily online satellites, multi-tiered tournaments and single-table tournaments at any WagerLogic-powered poker room.
CryptoLogic also announced that it has recruited Steve Morrow as a consultant to assist its future plans in the online poker sector. Morrow has 15 years of poker experience and directed the 2002 World Series of Poker and the 2002-2003 World Championship of Online Poker.
Mobile in India -- India-based mobile content and applications firm Coruscant Tec has teamed up with ADLM Limited of the United Kingdom to develop and distribute mobile casino games in India and internationally. ADLM is the holding company of online casinos windowscasino.com, goldkeycasino.com, blackjackchamp.com and magicoasis.com. The venture's first game, "BlackJack World Championship, should become available to cellular operators in mid October.
Pokermeister -- Casinomeister, an online casino watchdog, has created Casinomeister-poker.com, a site whose mission is to present players with online poker operations that are at the top of the online poker world. The site features poker tips, poker do's and don'ts, a poker forum and poker news. Site manager Bryan Bailey also offers his assistance to poker players who have difficulties with poker rooms.
Bicycle Online -- The Bicycle Casino, a land-based casino in Los Angeles has created a play-for-fun Web site at www.thebike.com. The site offers a variety of games, including poker, in which visitors accumulate points that can be redeemed for cash and prizes.
Bot Rumors -- Rumors are circulating in newsgroups, forums and elsewhere that poker bots have begun playing in Internet poker rooms. Some players are growing concerned that highly skilled card-playing programs have been designed to play in online poker rooms to win money by out-strategizing human players. The claims are thought to be hype, and there is much doubt as to whether a bot can run undetected by poker room operators or whether even a very advanced bot could perform well in a multiplayer game of poker.
Tuesday, Sep. 21
Quoteworthy -- "The Wire Act is an antiquated statute that the government is using to intimidate companies from accepting advertising for Internet gambling sites. This is a law that was developed to stop racketeering over the phone more than 50 years ago. They are manipulating the law to cover a technology that was not even invented when the Act was written.
--William Heberer, an attorney with the law firm Manatt, Phelps and Philips LLP, speaking at the BetOnSports.com summit in Washington, D.C. last Thursday. Heberer also stated that a prohibition of online gambling could never be effective. "There will be no way to enforce it with consumers," he said. "From a consumer point of view it's better for government to bring online gambling into the light of day."
Home Team Advantage -- Costa Rica-based sports book Betmaker.com has initiated a "Home Team Advantage" program that lets punters receive a 15 percent bonus every time they place a bet on their favorite teams and win. Customers can select their favorite team from each league (MLB, NBA, NCAA, etc.), but should choose wisely because once chosen, the team cannot be changed until the end of the season. Betmaker's marketing director, Sean Jameson, recently told Reveille Online, the Internet site for Louisiana State University's student newspaper, that Betmaker this year began targeting college bettors.
Go Gaming Go -- U.K.-based mobile content company Mobile Streams has launched a new fully licensed pay-to-play mobile betting service that will feature slot reels and scratch cards and will operate under the "Go Gaming Go" brand. Mobile Streams is making the service available to mobile carriers, white-label partners, and its own consumer base. Players can download the games onto their mobile devices by sending an SMS to 89944. Mobile Streams CEO Simon Buckingham said the games are aimed at "people seeking an occasional flutter rather than serious gamblers." He added, "A significant proportion of these people will be attracted to games that require no learning curve or experience and offer immediate gratification through winning real money."
Low Levy -- The New Zealand Gambling Commission today released its "Report on the Proposed Problem Gambling Levy," which makes recommendations on the total annual amount of the proposed problem gambling levy for a three-year period and the proposed levy rate for each gambling sector. The report takes the view that the proposed levy is probably too low to fully address problem gambling in New Zealand and some problem gambling services may have to be discontinued as a result. The report also suggested that the Lotteries Commission increase its contribution because it is responsible for introducing many people to gambling and found that funding for Asian, Maori and youth communities is inadequate. Green MP Sue Bradford has rallied around the report, stating "This report is a wake-up call to the government to seriously reconsider its commitment to addressing problem gambling in New Zealand. The levy must be raised immediately to fund the services that are urgently needed by people affected by gambling addictions."
Outsourcing -- Sweden-based I-gaming software provider Boss Media has enlisted global outsourcing company Accenture to help it respond more quickly to the online gaming industry's rapid changing market conditions. Accenture's global delivery center network will provide application development, management and maintenance services to Boss and assist it in maintaining its current games system platform and developing its next-generation gaming platform that will support gaming over the Internet, mobile devices and interactive video terminals.
Monday, Sep. 20
AmericaTab Replays -- AmericaTab, a race wagering and content provider licensed by the Oregon Racing Commission, has added free race replays to its Web service. The instant race replay service is free to registered AmericaTab customers and offers playback of races dating as early as Dec. 1, 2003, with more archives likely to be added soon. Customers can also view the playbacks from three different camera angles. Other additions to the AmericaTab Web site include cancellation tracking, will-pays and new scheduling features.
In The Spotlight -- TV production company Fremantle Media, which owns branding rights to the popular shows "The Price is Right," "Baywatch," "Benny Hill," "Pop Idol" and Simon Cowell's new talent search program, "The X Factor," is engaged in a number of business ventures and negotiations that could propel it into a position to reap large rewards from the growing popularity of iTV and mobile betting. This month the company launched a project with Blue Square that enables X Factor viewers to bet on the outcome of the 15-week series. The deal marks the first time Fremantle has allowed betting on one of its shows in the United Kingdom, and the company's interactive division intends to make online betting a permanent part of its business plan. A Fremantle arrangement with Littlewoods has created an iTV gaming service that offers a variety of games (including a multiple-choice competition played via SMS, telephony and iTV red button) that were developed specifically for X Factor viewers. The firm recently announced a deal with mobile operator 3 to create an X Factor mobile video service offering highlights and off-air content at a cost of 50p per clip, or £10 monthly for unlimited downloads. Last week NewMediaAge reported that Fremantle was hoping to discuss with U.K. National Lottery operator Camelot the possibility of launching mobile phone-based scratch-cards branded with some of its properties.
Problem Gambling Study -- A study by professor Max Abbot and his colleagues at Auckland University of Technology's Gambling Research Center in New Zealand followed 77 problem gamblers and 66 regular non-problem gamblers over a seven-year period, marking the first project to follow a community sample of problem gamblers over an extended period. The results, published in the international journal Substance Use and Misuse, convey a different portrait than most views on problem gambling, suggesting a more positive outlook for problem gamblers and suggesting a different approach to policies and services to assist them. Abott claims that on one hand his study reveals that there "are probably more people throughout the world who have experienced gambling problems than was previously thought," but on the other hand, "for most of them their problems don't last as long as clinicians and researchers generally believe." Abbot says that the majority of problem gamblers no longer reported problems when re-examined seven years later, even without having undergone treatment. And contrary to the popular assumption that problem gamblers cannot return to moderate or social gambling, Abott's study showed that most people who overcame their problems still gambled once a week or more.
Spam Bounty -- The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has proposed laws that would allow insiders who have worked with spammers or can provide insightful information about spammers to collect bounties of between $100,000 and $200,000 for turning the spammers in to the proper authorities. The FTC believes that such a system would make it easier to identify and locate spammers and also to gather sufficient evidence on the spammer to obtain a conviction.
Short-Term Betting -- VirtGame Corp., a Nevada-based provider of server-based software solutions, has entered into an exclusive agreement with private software firm STB Holdings to implement STB's short-term events software into VirtGame's Primeline and Sports Bet Express products. The STB (Short Term Betting) turnkey betting system lets bettors place wagers in real time on varied and constantly updated betting options that run throughout an entire sporting event. STB offers betting on football, basketball, baseball and hockey, and could offer betting on more sports if demand rises. The STB platform can run on kiosks, mobile devices and interactive TV, and VirtGame is likely to soon integrate the software into its kiosks in bars and taverns across Nevada.