Friday, Feb. 4
Super Bowl Ads -- Online poker site InterPoker.com has signed an advertising deal with Eye Candy, a company that places giant media screens at major sports and cultural events, that will put 147 30-second advertisements for InterPoker's play-for-fun site, InterPoker.tv, on a large video monitor outside Alltel Stadium in Jacksonville on Sunday while the Super Bowl is taking place. The deal also includes agreements to display the commercials outside other prominent sporting events throughout the year.
New Protestant -- Business Week has published an article that profiles Casino City President Michael Corfman and discusses his company's legal case against the U.S. Department of Justice. The article depicts Corfman as someone who has defied authority and stood up for what he believes is right throughout his life. While attending a Catholic high school, Corfman wrote for an underground newspaper called the New Protestant, and later as a student at MIT he drafted a petition to protest the Vietnam War and obtained thousands of signatures, including that of the school president. The article also mentions that Corfman "has solicited donations from online gambling companies and trade associations to help pay for the lawsuit. One of Corfman's financial supporters is Britain's Sportingbet PLC, BusinessWeek has learned. Sportingbet Chief Exec Nigel Payne confirms that his company has helped fund the case, but he says it has done so through a third party, which he declines to identify. Corfman, who won't specify how much money has been contributed, says he can't afford the lawsuit on his own, since Casino City makes a small profit on revenues of several million dollars." The article appears in the Feb. 14 issue of Business Week and is also posted on the Business Week Web site.
China -- The running totals in China after the first three weeks of an assault on gambling show that more than 4,000 people have been arrested for cross-border gambling violations that are estimated to cost the country US$94 billion each year. An additional 760 suspects have been arrested for alleged participation in 249 Internet gambling gangs. In the capital city of Beijing, police have broken up eight Internet gambling rings, one of which is thought to have made $28 million. In the northern Hebei province, police arrested three individuals who are alleged to have coordinated activities with many overseas gambling web sites that processed more than $1.2 million worth of transactions monthly. Meanwhile, legislators from the island province of Hainan have proposed studying the effects of legalizing gambling as a way to revive its economy. The idea has received much criticism in the press and is not likely to succeed.
Farewell -- Pontus Lesse has announced that he will resign as CEO of European sports book Unibet. He will remain with the company through the end of 2005, but will gradually shed his responsibilities over time.
MVP Webcam -- Online gambling group MVP is launching a second-generation version of the CasinoWebcam platform, a product that has brought huge growth to the company's online casino. Using streaming video to enable customers to bet on action taking place in real time at a land-based casino, the new version of the CasinoWebcam software promises sharper sound and graphics as well as quick and easy access to the Flash-based no download games. According to an MVP spokesperson, "Players are demanding the transparency and fairness that only a webcam casino can offer. When we saw CWC's new Flash software, with its fantastic new streaming video, we knew we had to implement it as soon as possible." The company is rumored to be planning live webcam blackjack tournaments.
Thursday, Feb. 3
MOU -- UEFA, the European football league, and betting exchange Betfair have signed a memorandum of understanding similar to agreements Betfair has in place with other sports' governing bodies in that it will allow UEFA to request information that could identify individuals behind any suspicious betting activity. The MOU would have been very useful to the league had it been in effect in early December when the Panionios vs. Dinamo Tbilisi match took place. Betfair, as well as several traditional bookmakers, reported suspicious betting patterns on the match that Dinamo Tbilisi was leading 1-0 at halftime but eventually lost 5-2. Britain's Data Protection Act prevented Betfair from providing specific customer betting data that could have helped the league's investigation, but now that the MOU is in place, the company can share specific information in the future if the league ever has reasonable suspicion that illegal betting has taken place.
Chinese Banks -- China's Banking Regulatory Commission has asked the country's banks and financial institutions to monitor accounts and fund exchanges more closely to crack down on gambling. The commission will soon set up special mechanisms to monitor abnormal transactions and blacklist accounts suspected to have funded gambling activity. Police in Beijing recently discovered 22 accounts at five different banks involved in eight Internet gambling cases.
Online Gambler -- Future Publishing will introduce a free monthly magazine next month called Online Gambler. The company plans to distribute 500,000 copies by packaging them in plastic bags with its other monthly publications: PC Format, PC Gamer,PC Zone and T3. Online Gambler will include site reviews, tips from established online gamblers, directories of gambling Web sites and more.
Offline Venture -- Online gaming software provider AngelCiti Entertainment has entered into a letter of intent to acquire Carib Gaming, the largest land-based casino company on the Turks and Caicos Islands. Carib Gaming owns and operates slot machines in several locations on the islands and recently acquired the islands' second-largest gaming operator. AngelCiti President George Gutierrez said Carib Gaming is profitable and will immediately add considerable revenue to his company's top line. AngelCiti also announced this week that it is doubling its marketing budget and launching a marketing campaign that will run in the United States in the next six months.
Russian Stats -- A new 250-page report by ATE called "Russia: Opportunities in Gaming," estimates that the Russian gaming market will double in size within three years and become the world's fastest growing slots market . The Russian State Sports Committee has awarded 4,200 licenses since July 2002, and the number of slot machines doubled to 35,000 from 2002 to 2003. Russia now has over 800 casinos; 77 of them are located in Moscow.
UBA Marketing -- UBA Technology, a company that has developed a turnkey betting exchange solution, says its market research has found that "a large percentage of potential bettors are overwhelmed at the thought of trying to navigate a large betting exchange site." To address this problem, the company is privately branding betting exchange sites that suit its licensees' requirements. UBA owns numerous URLs--including "UbetTennis.com," "UBetNBA.com," "UBetNFL.com," "UbetGOLF.com," "UBetCRICKET.com," "UBetFORMULA1.com," "UBetREALITYTV.com" and "UBetCURRENCIES"--that can be purchased and branded. The company also offers a white-label online poker solution through one of its affiliates, and both the betting exchange and poker products are supported by a UBA wireless solution.
Quoteworthy -- "We are calling on the German government to introduce suitable security standards with immediate effect in order to prevent such a situation. It is unacceptable for Oddset to persist in offering anonymous betting and cash payment of winnings simply in order to maximize its profits. This just opens the door to all manner of manipulation of bets."
-Manfred Bodner, Co-CEO of Austria-based bookmaker BETandWIN.com Interactive Entertainment, shortly after the revelation of a broad match-fixing scandal in Germany that so far involves at least 10 manipulated matches and 25 suspects, including 14 players and four referees. According to Bodner, the national German sports betting provider, Oddset, has not considered maximum security standards for its betting offices.
Wednesday, Feb. 2
Problem Gambling in Canada -- The Canadian province of Prince Edward Island has contracted gambling psychologist Jason Doiron to conduct a study to determine what sort of impact the Internet and other technological advancements are having on the number of problem gamblers in the area. Doiron will survey 1,000 residents about their level of participation in 12 to 15 types of activities, and the study will likely be finished by June. A similar study, completed in 1999, found that 89 percent of the province's citizens participated in some form of gambling and that 3 percent of them were addicted to gambling. . . . The Manitoba Lotteries Corporation is allocating $10 million toward problem gambling programs and research. Much of the research will attempt to discover what techniques are effective for different segments of the population.
New Battleground -- In China, where the state-run People's Daily has declared gambling "the new battleground in eradicating corruption," 46 employees of the Jilin Construction Bank have been charged with embezzling US$65.3 million and gambling $40.2 million of it away with illegal bookmakers or at casinos in Macau. The thefts occurred in 1999 and were discovered in 2001, but charges were not brought against the culprits until today. It was revealed earlier this month that the government is also investigating the theft of over $120.6 million from Bank of China accounts. Meanwhile, Beijing News reported today that Beijing police earlier this month arrested two suspects and seized more than $US28.4 million in a case that involved the use of an overseas gambling Web site.
In the US Courts -- Susan Bala, the founder of North Dakota-based Racing Services who faces 12 federal charges, including money laundering and illegal gambling, took to the witness stand this week to defend her case. Prosecutors allege that the gambling parlor Bala operated from October 2002 to April 2003 was illegal because it was not licensed through a charity and because taxes were not paid. Bala claims she was under the impression that her parlor was using the Internet to place bets with an offshore site in Costa Rica and that state taxes and fees were therefore not applicable. She says she later found out that Internet betting did not take place because there was a problem with the company's software.
Bowmans in Canada -- Bookmaker Bowmans has signed some sponsorship and marketing deals that will give it more exposure in Canada. The company recently signed marketing partnerships with three Canadian Football League clubs--the Edmonton Eskimos, the Hamilton Tiger Cats, and the Calgary Stampeders--that will provide on-field signage, jumbotron announcements, Web site links and exclusive online, interactive, free-to-enter contests. The partnerships will be in effect for the 2005 and 2006 regular seasons. The company had a similar agreement in place in '04 with the CFL Grey Cup Champion Toronto Argonauts as well as a post-season agreement with the league. Bowmans will also be the presenting sponsor of the Fan 590 Hockey Tournament in Toronto in late February. The tournament will feature 110 amateur teams competing for the inaugural Bowmans Cup.
Affiliate Tool -- Online gaming software provider Gambling Federation has announced a new campaign tracking tool that enables Gambling Federation affiliates to create individually tracked marketing campaigns within the same account. Affiliates can customize each campaign by selecting any creative from the list, and each creative is assigned its own link and statistics. By being able to set up and track several campaigns, affiliates receive detailed reports about which marketing strategies are working best for them, what types of players they are attracting, what amounts are being deposited globally, which languages have the highest conversion rates and more.
CNNText and Poker -- Internet poker room SunPoker.com has signed a deal to be featured on interactive cable channel CNNText, a text-based information station that reaches millions of homes throughout Europe and enables users to browse the latest news headlines. Users will be able to view SunPoker's latest promotions and tournament listings.
Tuesday, Feb. 1
p align="justify">UK Gambling Bill -- The London Assembly on Monday will launch an investigation into the potential benefits and detriments of proposed super casinos. Public hearings will play a major role in the process, and developers, councils and residents are welcome to provide evidence. At the end of next year, an independent panel will deliver its suggestions to Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell, who has scaled back the U.K. Gambling Bill's provisions to permit only eight super casinos in the United Kingdom. . . . A general election in the United Kingdom will likely take place on May 5, leaving little time to move the Gambling Bill.
GameWire -- Mobile gaming systems provider Spin3 has partnered with I-gaming software provider Microgaming to launch a new wireless casino. The Spin3 mobile casino system is comprised of the "GameWire" suite of mobile play-for-real casino games and the SpinFone suite of pay-per-download casino games. It also uses Microgaming's backend and casino management technology and provides customer relationship management capabilities, including player management, reporting, data analysis, promotion management and loyalty program tools. Player authentication, financial transactions and gaming activities are protected by Spin3's patent-pending SpinLoc technology. U.K.-based bookmaker Ladbrokes has already launched the Spin3 mobile casino system.
Boyle -- Irish bookmaker BoyleSports at the end of March will launch an Oracle software system that will enable BoyleSports customers to use one account across the company's retail, telephone and Internet betting channels.
More Busts in China -- China's eradication of gambling has progressed even further, with the China Daily reporting today that police in East China's Fujian province have discovered two illegal Internet gambling operations, one of which has a turnover of more than US$1.6 billion per month. Authorities have detained 70 suspects, some of whom are government officials. The Fujian Provincial Public Security Bureau on Dec. 20 began a province-wide sting operation involving 880 policemen to shut down 104 known Internet gambling dens. Police say the entire network was operated by two Taiwan-based gambling Web sites that were involved with mainland syndicates in several coastal cities. The sites offered online football lotteries.
Welcome Aboard -- Per Gustafsson has been appointed vice president of business development of Gaming VC, the German online casino operator that floated on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market in December. Gustafsson was previously sales executive manager for Boss Media, the Swedish company that supplies Gaming VC with online gaming software. Gustafsson will be responsible for Gaming VC's worldwide business development.
Alliance -- Intralot, the Greek lottery company, and Ladbrokes have formed a global strategic alliance that will incorporate lottery, betting, casino and gaming markets. The two juggernauts will cooperate on state lottery privatization projects and participate in state and private lottery tenders.
Totesport Casino -- Totesport, a new betting brand introduced by the U.K. Tote in early 2004, has launched an online casino using software by Playtech. The casino features over 60 games and slots plus 40 instant casino and arcade games. The Totesport.com betting site has also undergone a redesign that includes the introduction of a quick bet menu system.
Betfair Enhancement -- NetScaler, an application delivery systems company, says that it has cut Betfair's bandwidth costs by 33 percent and accelerated application performance by 20 percent since it deployed the NetScaler 9000 Series for Betfair. The NetScaler 9000 is designed to improve response times, server performance and security, and Betfair says it plans to deploy the product in other locations.
Monday, Jan. 31
More Busts in China -- Statistics emerging from China on Friday show that over 15,000 people have been apprehended in a massive crackdown on traditional and online gambling. The campaign a result of the revelation that government officials have spent large sums of money patronizing foreign gambling operations. More than half of the 230 cases that the government considers serious violations involve Internet gambling. Of the detained individuals, 53 are government or Communist Party officials. Two weeks ago the number of apprehended individuals was below 600.
Cantor's P2P -- Cantor Spreadfair has begun matching British horse racing bets on its spread betting exchange. When Spreadfair launched seven months ago, the company said it was not considering taking horse racing bets, but Managing Director Lewis Findlay stated recently that two of the company's main hesitations--funding problems and concerns about race fixing allegations in the press--have been alleviated. The company believes that the media are beginning to accept that betting exchanges, with their transparent auditing systems, actually do more to protect the integrity of horse racing rather than harm it. Spreadfair is negotiating with the U.K. Jockey Club to enter a memorandum of understanding similar to the one the club holds with Betfair. Spreadfair has also reached an agreement with the British Horseracing Board whereby it will obtain an interim license for pre-race data. In return, Spreadfair will pay the Levy Board 10 percent of its commission revenue from horseracing bets.
Name Change -- U.K.-based betting exchange and skill gaming software provider CES Software is changing its name to FUN Technologies. The company will also begin using a new logo that reflects the new name and the person-to-person nature of its products and services. A new Web site at www.funtechnologies.com is also planned. The company's shares will begin trading on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market on Feb. 2 under the new ticker symbol "FUN."
New Chartwell Software -- Chartwell Technology of Canada has launched Version 6.3 of its online gaming software system. The suite provides an expanded back-office management system called "CyberBoss" that offers new bonus structure capabilities, marketing features and enhanced security and auditing functionality. A new common wallet functionality feature enables players to access funds in different environments (such as poker rooms, bingo sites and casinos) without having to manually transfer funds from account to account.
Farewell -- Betfair's Asian managing director, Tim Levene, is leaving the group to become CEO of a company in Hong Kong. He will start with the new company (whose name wasn't disclosed) in late February.
eBay Activity -- Poker professional Dutch Boyd has begun using eBay to auction off percentages of his stakes at high-profile tournaments. Winning bidders will receive a percentage of his tournament winnings, and Boyd also promises to wear a hat or T-shirt promoting the winning bidder's business. . . Meanwhile Golden Palace continues to use eBay to fuel its marketing machine. The company's latest purchase is advertising space on the cleavage of a size 42GG-chested 27-year-old Scottish woman who promises to wear a temporary tattoo logo of Golden Palace for 15 days and to have pictures of herself taken in front of popular landmarks in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Golden Palace is renting the ad space for £422.00.
Poker App. -- Poker Tracker is the name of a new shareware program that the Las Vegas Advisor recommends to anyone who plays online poker. The program records stats and information about your opponents' as well as your own playing behavior. For example, it can show you how often a player sees the flop, fourth street and fifth street, as well as what percentage of the time he wins, how often he raises, etc.
Sponsorship Deal -- Austria-based online gaming group BetandWin has entered into an extensive sponsorship venture with France's two-time word championship team. BetandWin says it will have a special focus on handball between Jan. 23 and Feb. 6 while the world handball championship in underway in Tunisia. It will offer a wide spectrum of standard bets and live betting on all games played by France, Denmark, Sweden and Norway.
A New Malta Gaming Council -- Malta's Lotteries and Gaming Authority (LGA) will provide administrative services for a new Malta Gaming Council, which will be composed of all of the island nation's companies holding remote gaming licenses. Among the council's main functions will be simplifying the working relationship between the LGA and the licensees and providing a forum for responsible gaming and new technologies.