The free ride for subscribers to the You Bet network, which offers online interactive wagering and past performance information, will end February 1.
The company has announced that it will begin charging subscribers $5.95 a month on that date, with additional charges of 75 cents a day for each track's races. The 4,000 subscribers who the company says have bet $1 million in the first six months of operation still will be able to download software free on the Internet, but will not be able to access the information without the monthly and daily payments. Daily Racing Form editor Matt Hegarty asked You Bet's chairman, Robert Fell, about reports that independent auditors had "substantial doubts about the company's ability to continue as a going concern," citing losses and liquidity problems.
Fell said the company plans to raise between $10 and $30 million in additional capital next year, and told Hegarty, "If the investment community was really concerned about the viability of this company, then our stock would be trading at $2 or $1.50." It currently is trading at 6 1/8, and You Bet has filed an application to be listed on the NASDAQ small cap market.