Friday, Aug. 9
New Stuff -- British bookmaking behemoth Sportingbet launched its very own person-to-person betting site today, and in doing so entered a Betfair-dominated market where upstart challengers seem to sprout weekly. The site, Sportingbet121, is a joint venture with P2P veteran TradingSports.
Legal Stuff -- PayPal's ties to online gambling have not only attracted the attention of Eliot Spitzer, the attorney general for New York, but now the U.S. attorney general for the eastern district of Missouri is interested as well. On July 24, the company received two federal grand jury subpoenas from Missouri seeking documents related to the company's dealings with the Internet gambling industry. PayPal said in a regulatory statement that it intends to cooperate fully in both matters.
Norwegian Bit -- Residents of Norway may soon have to pay taxes on prizes they win in local lotteries. Norway allows awards from its domestic lotteries to go untaxed, a practice that European regulators say violates the European Free Trade Agreement because it gives the Norway lottery an advantage over foreign lotteries. The regulatory body has given Norway three months to change the rule or else face legal action.
Thursday, Aug. 8
UK Tidbit -- U.K. Customs and Excise is developing a new department to combat Internet-related legal problems, specifically the practice of offshore online wagering sites that advertise in the United Kingdom. It is illegal for offshore sites to advertise there. Jurek Pieliechaty, the new division's betting and gaming manager, said Customs has already dealt with a number of sites and is looking to impose more severe punishments for those who break the law.
Tidbit from Down Under -- Australian betting and gaming company eBet's U.S. wagering partner, Penn National Gaming, said Thursday that it has purchased land-based Hollywood Casino Corp. for US$780 million. Hollywood Casino will merge with a Penn subsidiary to form the seventh largest public gaming company in the United States.
Wednesday, Aug. 7
Makin' Deals -- Person-to-person betting site operator and software developer Feverpitch has joined forces with iNet, a wagering software company based in Costa Rica. New Zealand-based Feverpitch and iNet will combine their software and share revenues. The move will allow iNet's online casino customers to offer P2P betting.
Names and Faces -- Howard S. Cohen is resigning as chief executive, president and director of GTech Holdings Corp. for personal and business reasons. The company's chairman, W. Bruce Turner, will replace him as president and chief executive.
Tuesday, Aug. 6
New Stuff -- Technical Systems Testing has been approved as an accredited testing facility in the online gambling jurisdiction of Alderney. The group is also performing testing for both land-based and Internet gaming operators in Victoria, Australia.
A Tidbit from the Philippines -- A politician in the Philippines has asked the country's congress to investigate the use of mobile phones for gaming. Congressman "Chuck" Mathay III wants the law-making body to look into games including poker, blackjack and Indian poker. He told the Philippine News Agency that the practice promotes gambling among young people.
Legal Stuff -- Robert W. Robb, 24, of Orem, Utah, has pleaded guilty to charges of fraud in connection with a scheme in which he told potential investors that Las Vegas casinos, Microsoft and David Copperfield supported his online gaming company. Robb is charged with two counts on wire fraud; his case was heard by U.S. District Judge James Ware in San Jose. Prosecutors expect he will receive a 27-month prison term when he is sentenced on Oct. 28.
Monday, Aug. 5
From Down Under -- Australian banks' Internet gambling policies may start looking a lot like American banks' policies. After the country's federal government banned Internet gambling last year, the tide of Australians gambling with credit cards at offshore sites has not stemmed--Nielsen Netratings reports that 9 percent of Internet users in the country gambled online last year. Commonwealth Bank said it was part of an industry group studying the issue and considering the option of banning online gambling transactions. National Australia Bank said it has started consulting with the community about the matter.
Makin' Deals -- Last week, online gaming and sports content group ukbetting plc said it is selling its majority interest in Radio Tara to RTE for a nominal amount of money. RTE had formerly owned 20 percent of Radio Tara, which used be called Atlantic 252 and then was renamed TEAMtalk 252 this year. ukbetting bought its share in Radio Tara when it purchased TEAMtalk Media Group plc recently and said that Radio Tara was a "significant cash drain" on its resources. ... Sports handicapping company Global Sports & Entertainment (GWIN) is entering a strategic alliance with the Off Shore Gaming Association and Gamblers World.com. Wayne Allyn Root, chairman and CEO of GWIN, said that as more gamblers venture online, they will look to both the Off Shore Gaming Association and Gamblers World for handicapping information.
Wildlife Not Winning -- Charity gaming site WildlifeWins is crying foul over credit card transaction problems related to Internet gambling. The site donates a portion of its proceeds to help endangered species. "It's a shame that credit card firms are not utilizing the foresight in their gaming ban to separate legitimate online businesses that fund good causes from the sham operations that they are looking to stop" said Carl Pretorius, the site's co-founder. "If you take a look at our business you will see that we are online to help the animals. This year alone we have raised over $20,000 towards our goal of $945,000 to help save four species of animals including Mountain Gorillas and rare Sumatran Tigers. Unfortunately, through the credit card ban, Americans are increasingly less able to make a contribution."