Friday, Oct. 22
Un-LuckyMe -- U.S.-based casino operator Harrah's Entertainment will close its Alderney-licensed online gaming site, LuckyMe.com, at the end of October due to low revenue levels. A subscription-based site targeted at female customers and featuring numbers and instant games, the site seemed like an experimental attempt since its launch in February 2004. The company might attempt another online gambling venture with a different business model in 2005.
Age Verification -- Trustmarque, a U.K.-based provider of payment processing solutions, has developed a new age verification product that should help British online casino and sports book operators do a better job of preventing minors from accessing their sites. Trustmarque will first offer the new product as a supplement to its Risk Guardian fraud screening system. The British online gaming industry came under heavy criticism in July of this year when GamCare, Citizencard and the Children's Charities' Coalition on Internet Safety (CHIS) tested 37 online gaming sites to see if a minor could set up an account and found that a 16-year old girl was able to gain access to 30 of the sites.
Shifting Gears -- Isle of Man-licensed sports book BetInternet.com is planning to offer its customers more tote-betting options on sports by providing direct links to pari-mutuel betting providers across the globe. The decision comes after the group experienced a 480 percent increase in tote betting turnover during the first four months of 2004. While increasing its tote betting offerings, BetInternet will also decrease its fixed-odds betting offerings. Managing director Paul Doona said that the success of bookmaking operations is dependent upon the results of sporting events, but with pari-mutuel wagering, the operator can use the critical mass to dictate its own margin. The company has announced plans to raise funds to implement the new business plan.
Hi-Lo on Avago -- I-gaming software developer Zone4Play's iTV Hi-Lo game is now available on BSkyB through the six channels operated by The Gaming Channel, including the popular number games channel Avago, which has over 125,000 registered users.
Keno.com -- Gaming Transactions Inc., a Canadian provider of online gaming portal management, has acquired Keno Limited, a U.K.-registered company that owns the www.Keno.com URL and a license to an Internet financial gaming transaction system from Red Ruth Ventures Inc.
Thursday, Oct. 21
Quoteworthy -- "The ABB has got some pretty strong views on certain aspects of the betting exchanges' operations, but the reality is that there are things happening which could well change the climate. The Gambling Bill, published yesterday, will lead to the establishment of a Gambling Commission and it may be in that process that some of the differences we have will be resolved. Equally, the review by Customs and Excise of the taxation issue could mean that issues we have over the way betting exchanges pay tax and levy could be resolved, or at the very least reduced."
- Tom Kelly, Chief Executive of the Association of British Bookmakers, speaking at the Betting Show in Birmingham on Wednesday.
In Malaysia -- The New Strait Times reports that The Malayan Racing Association has issued a formal reminder to jockeys and apprentices that they are not allowed to place wagers or give inside stable information to anyone in the Malaysia-Singapore circuit. . . . On Tuesday, the Malaysian government rejected Vincent Tan's Ascot Sports Sdn Bhd's request for a license to accept wagers on English premier league football. The proposal was supported by arguments claiming the license would help reduce illegal betting, which was estimated at a $1 billion market. But as expected, Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi refused to issue a license on the grounds that there is already too much gambling in the country. Malaysia has a casino, horse racing and lotteries, but no legal bookmakers.
Problem Gambling Survey -- A team of researchers at the University of Tasmania is performing a survey of 200 Tasmanians and their families to assess the effects of problem gambling on families. There is currently little information about the effects of gambling on children and even less on how adults deal with aging parents who are addicted to gambling. The researchers hope to obtain insight into these areas and more.
Stats -- Nielsen/NetRatings reports that 4.2 million Britons, or 16 percent of the online population in England, visited at least one gambling Web site in the month of September. The most popular site was the National Lottery, which logged 1.4 million visitors during the month. The other top 10 gambling sites in the United Kingdom for September were Casino Tropez, ChooseaPrize, Ladbrokes, Casino-and-games.com, Casino.co.uk, The Daily Draw, Vernons, Loopy Lotto and William Hill. Nielsen/NetRating's research also claims that companies that increased their advertising for September were consistently among the top traffic-generators, suggesting that ads help attract new audiences. The three top advertisers for the month were Jack Pot Joy (with 23 campaigns), William Hill Online (with 13 campaigns) and Get Minted (with 10 campaigns). The research also found that time spent on gambling sites varied depending on what type of gambling the site provided. Ladbrokes visitors, for example, remained logged on for an average of 35 minutes per session, while National Lottery visitors stayed for 17 minutes and Casino Tropez visitors stayed for one minute. Also, 70 percent of online gamblers are men, according to the report.
Apprentice Betting -- Betcom.com has decided to go against the grain by accepting wagers on the second series of reality TV show "The Apprentice." Most books suspended betting on the series after a large number of people from New Hampshire opened accounts and placed bets on either of two contestants winning the competition. Even though the series was filmed over the summer, the winner has not yet been decided because the season finale will be a live showdown between the final two competitors.
Wednesday, Oct. 20
Mobile For Fun -- I-gaming software developer Zone4Play has launched mobile play-for-fun casino applications for users of Sony-Ericsson, O2 and Orange IL's cellular networks in the United Kingdom. The casino games, developed in J2ME technology, can be downloaded and played either offline or online with WAP-enabled devices. Sony-Ericsson users can access the games through the Sony Fun Web site, while Orange IL users will use Java applications and O2 users will use WAP applications. Zone4Play plans to launch a networked skill-games solution that will enable players to compete head to head.
SportXction on VC -- The Victor Chandler Group's Gibraltar-based operating arm, Victor Chandler International, has successfully launched Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc.'s SportXction play-by-play betting platform at www.victorchandler.com and www.vcbet.com. In August, Victor Chandler UK Limited launched SportXction on its British site. The company will now begin an extensive online marketing campaign to promote the SportXction platform.
Boss Acquisition -- Boss Media, a Swedish I-gaming software provider, is acquiring an interest in Jadestone Group AB, another Swedish company that develops games and technology for mobile phones and various digital channels. Jadestone Group has created a unique 3D platform in Java for skill games in a Web-based environment. Boss is acquiring 20 percent of Jadestone's shares and will have the option of purchasing an additional 5 percent. Since both companies benefit by gaining access to each other's customers and products, both entered an agency agreement to increase their interest in promoting sales of each other's products. There is also a development agreement in place whereby Boss will assign mobile games development projects to Jadestone.
Tuesday, Oct. 19
Wild On -- Brooke Burke, the hostess of E! channel's Wild On series who was named one of the 10 sexiest women in the world by FHM magazine, has joined Sportsbook.com as a spokesperson. The homepage of Sportsbook.com now features a one-minute video clip of Burke displaying a radiant smile as she divulges the company's betting and gaming offerings.
Pro Poker Tour -- WPT Enterprises, the now publicly traded creator of the World Poker Tour, has announced the roster of players for the five-tournament inaugural 2004-2005 season of the Professional Poker Tour. While the World Poker Tour is open to anyone able to meet the entry fee, the Professional Poker Tour is an invitation-only tournament that "ensures that the television audience will have a chance to consistently see the most exciting, skilled poker played by the sport's All-Stars," according to WPT Enterprises President Steve Lipscomb. The first year of the tour will consist of five $500,000 free-roll tournaments. It will debut at Foxwoods in November and then travel to the Bellagio, Goldstrike Casino, Commerce Casino and the Mirage. Among the 200 stars of the Professional Poker Tour are Doyle Brunson, Howard Lederer, Phil Ivey, Johnny Chan, Annie Duke, Phil Hellmuth, Men "The Master" Nguyen, Chris Moneymaker, Daniel Negreanu, Chris "Jesus" Ferguson, Jennifer Harman and David "Devilfish" Ulliott.
Credit Card Block -- American Express and Citigroup have blocked the use of their credit cards in the United Kingdom to pay for online gambling, citing fears of fraud and growing gambling debts. While credit card companies in the United States have been blocking gambling transactions for years, this is believed to be the first such incidence in England. The British government, meanwhile, is making steady progress on legislating new rules to revolutionize the gambling industry--rules that include legalized Internet gambling.
Turnkey Exchange -- Software development company UBA Technology Inc. has released a wireless event-trading platform to be packaged with its proprietary betting exchange software. The wireless platform enables users of Java-enabled mobile devices to place bets on the UBA betting exchange at ubetanything.com. UBA, which provides a turn-key betting exchange solution, has decided that rather than compete directly with Betfair and the other large betting exchanges, it will adopt a miniature exchange model that will provide select event betting to licensees worldwide.
Monday, Oct. 18
Sportingbet Points the Finger -- Sportingbet Australia has stopped accepting bets on races in Brisbane because of worries that races in Queensland are commonly fixed. The company's chief executive officer, Michael Sullivan, told one television news program, "It is our belief that we can't trust the integrity of the prices coming out of southeast Queensland." Sportingbet Australia reportedly lost $1.47 million on Queensland racing wagers this year, and has closed the betting accounts of 12 individuals in Melbourne who have been quite successful in gambling on Brisbane races. Bob Bentley, chairman of Queensland Racing, and Robert Schwarten, minister of Queensland Racing, have both stated that Queensland Racing has never received any complaints about alleged race-fixing. Coincidentally, Des Gleeson, chief steward of Victorian Racing, arrived in Brisbane today to evaluate stewards' procedures and advise industry officials. . . . Meanwhile, London-based Sportingbet Plc has postponed the announcement of its financial results for the 16 months ended July 31 and a substantial fund-raising exercise because it is in advanced talks to acquire a new online poker business that already has a broad user base. The company says its financial results will be in line with expectations.
Rebranded -- Victor Chandler has completed a redesign of its Web sites to give its online products a single, clear identity. The new sites feature clean, polished graphics, and each online division--betting, casino, poker, games and mobile--is given a color-coded tab with the "VC" logo.
Game On -- BettingCorp UK Ltd. and Game On, a subsidiary of Littlewoods Gaming, have announced an agreement that will permit BettingCorp to offer its iTV games through the Littlewoods Game On portal. Visitors to Game On can press the red button to access the games, which will be re-skinned and deployed on BettingCorp's UltimateOne system, while Littlewoods' OLGA platform will handle accounts and payments.
iTV SportXction -- Interactive Systems Worldwide Inc. (ISWI) has completed the development of the interactive television version of its SportXction play-by-play betting system. The final product provides a seamless interface between SportXction and satellite television broadcasts.
Opposition -- Peter Hain, the British government's leader in the House of Commons, announced that the Gambling Bill will be introduced to Parliament sometime before Nov. 23. Statements printed in the Guardian, however, cast doubt on how smoothly the adoption of the new laws will go. Frank Field, the former welfare minister, stated, "I think the government is off its rocker thinking, even if it was the first year of a parliament, that it would actually get this through. And once they actually let this tide of big money from America come in this way, there will be no turning it back." Julie Kirkbride, the Tory former shadow culture minister also dissented, claiming, "The sheer access to it will create a lot of unhappiness and a lot of family distress, and whilst we might want to make it available in one or two places in the country, do we want it on our doorstep in every town and city across our country?". . . . With the passing of the Gambling Bill, the British Gaming Board is to evolve into the Gambling Commission, however, many officials and employees with the Gaming Board have threatened to quit if the organization is forced to move from its current location in London to Newcastle. The board argues that a move from its home in London would render the body ineffective, and the board members and 76 civil servants would prefer to leave their jobs rather than move.
SecurePlay -- IT GlobalSecure Inc has released a new version of its SecurePlay software package for Java the adds J2ME to support gaming via wireless devices. The SecurePlay system implements a suite of cryptographic protocols to combat cheating.