AskMen.com, the largest men’s portal on the Web, reaches over 5 million unique readers a month. That audience will now have access to Bluff Magazine’s collection of celebrity interviews and tips from professional players and poker experts. AskMen.com’s hookup with Bluff is the latest in a long line of deals with market-leading brands such as MSN, AOL and Google.
Bluff Co-founder and Publisher Eric Morris says: “We’re very excited about this deal and it illustrates just how popular poker is right now. We wanted to showcase our content to an audience who have yet to be exposed to Bluff Magazine and are interested in learning more about the game.”
James Bassil, an editor at AskMen.com, shared Morris’ enthusiasm: “Bluff Magazine has established itself as the go-to publication for poker players, just as AskMen.com has established itself as the number one source for male lifestyle content. It makes our partnership a logical one.”
The AskMen.com poker channel is live and currently featuring an interview with poker pro Daniel Negreanu
SPORTINGBET - EMPIRE ONLINE TALKS OFF
Takeover discussions halted "by mutual agreement"
Sportingbet Plc, a U.K. online betting company, said this week that it has ended negotiations to buy Empire Online Ltd. Shares of Empire Online fell as much as 16 percent.
Discussions were halted by ``mutual agreement,'' London-based Sportingbet said today in a statement. The companies disclosed Sept. 5 they were in talks, three days after Empire said it had received an approach worth GBP 790.5 million ($1.4 billion) See previous InfoPowa reports.
``Talks were only ever at an early stage and were not able to move to completion,'' Empire spokesman Ged Brumby said. Chief Executive Officer Noam Lanir was ``very impressed'' with Sportingbet management, led by CEO Nigel Payne, ``and now better understands the leadership positions they've achieved,'' he said. No due-diligence information was exchanged, according to Brumby.
Sportingbet spokesman George Hudson declined to comment on the reason why talks between the companies had broken down.
Shares of Empire Online dropped 40.5 pence to 213.5 pence, the day's lowest price, at 1:39 p.m. in London. The drop cut the company's market value to 625 million pounds ($1.1 billion). Sportingbet stock fell 4 pence, or 1.2 percent, to 339.5 pence.
Empire Online, which helps gaming Web sites such as EmpirePoker.com gain customers, said Sept. 2 it had received an approach which involved the suitor combining its business with Empire for 270 pence a share in cash and stock. Sportingbet identified itself as the suitor three days later.
PartyGaming, the world's biggest Internet gambling company, also may make an offer for Empire Online as it is the company's biggest Web site marketing customer, the British media has previously speculated.
EO - A MARKETING COMPANY WITH NO CLIENTS?
Sportingbet customers had their doubts....
Sportingbet's reverse out of the takeover talks with Empire Online may have had it's genesis in customer fears that EO does not actually have any customers - and the end of talks led to a share price plunge of 20 percent.
Sportingbet ended discussions to buy Empire Online for GBP 790 million amid concern in the City that the targeted company does not actually have any customers. And Sportingbet execs failed to deny speculation that the poker websites Empire Online runs under the aegis of PartyGaming and 888 Holdings meant it was essentially a marketing team without a customer base.
Fears that Empire Online could be much less valuable than previously thought after the emergence of the “customer issue” sent the company’s shares plunging 20 per cent.
Paul Leyland, an analyst at Seymour Pierce, said: “All that was being offered was about 16 personnel and a marketing war with Party and Cassava (now known as 888). Empire offers an excellent marketing team, but it does not control its own customers.”
An analyst at Daniel Stewart & Co, the UK broker, said that the lack of customers meant that Sportingbet would have been buying a revenue stream that was largely controlled by other gambling companies.
One of Empire’s main lines of revenue is empirepoker.com, a website that is technically a subsidiary of PartyGaming. PartyGaming actually runs the website for Empire, which does not have a gaming platform. It takes a percentage of the poker “pot” — known as a “rake” and typically between 1 per cent and 5 per cent of the amount wagered — passing a portion of this on to Empire.
Although “ownership” of the customers is a grey area, analysts agree that they belong more to PartyGaming and 888 than to Empire. At the same time, because PartyGaming holds all the customer information relating to the empirepoker.com website, any potential purchaser of the operation would probably need to talk to both companies.
Analysts expect PartyGaming itself eventually to buy Empire Online, for a much lower price than Sportingbet was considering. PartyGaming would not comment on the potential acquisition yesterday.
Sportingbet said: “On September 5, the board of Sportingbet confirmed that it was in discussions with Empire which might or might not have led to an offer and that discussions were at a very preliminary stage. Sportingbet can now confirm that, by mutual agreement, it has ceased discussions with Empire in respect of the potential offer.”
Sportingbet’s shares fell 17p to 326.5p, while Empire stock lost 52p to close at 202p.
NEWS BYTES
British gambling group Victor Chandler, a Gibraltar-licensed egaming operator, has signed a deal with software firm Orbis to use its OpenBet gaming platform. Orbis will provide software for the firm’s VC Games soft gaming site, which will be integrated into its existing software. “We want to quickly expand the range of games we offer and with Orbis’ input, we will be in a position to do this,” Andy Harris, Head of Product Development, Victor Chandler said.
Following on fromur earlier InfoPowa reports, we can now advise that WPT Enterprises, the company behind the World Poker Tour (WPT), has launched WPTonline.com, the WPT-branded real-money poker and casino site. Complementing its TV coverage, WPT aims to spread its message throughout the UK’s online poker community with professional training, educational sessions and merchandise. Steve Lipscomb, president and chief executivr of WPT Enterprises, said: "We want to give our players every opportunity to participate in the entire WPT experience, which is why online players will be given opportunities to enter WPT land-based tournaments as well as WPT Invitational events."
G2E served as the launchpad for skill gaming provider GameAccount's new Tournament Blackjack, a person-to-person (P2P) skill-based version of the blackjack casino game. The game launched at the 2005 Global Gaming Expo (G2E) in Las Vegas. Players can take part in ‘Heads-Up!’ play against each other, rather than against the house, and start out with an imaginary chip stack of US$10,000. Andy Bell, casino and gaming manager for GameAccount licensee BetCORP, said: “Tournament Blackjack represents a compelling opportunity for operators to generate incremental revenues from existing customers and re-activate lapsed customers.”
777betz.com, the online sportsbook, casino and poker operator, has launched a multi-table poker Texas Hold’em platform. James Po Ho Cheung, president of 777, said: "Our poker enthusiastic members will find the final version of multi-table poker worth the wait. The table options and the number of players will make our multi-table poker an exciting addition to our website."
RESULTS FROM GAMING CORPORATION SHOULD BE GOOD
Mobile gaming will do especially well
A trading statement from Gaming Corporation, the publicly listed portal owner, has reported year-end profits will be much higher than predicted partly as a result of strong performance in its mobile gaming business.
The firm launched its casino.co.uk mobile service on UK network Orange earlier this year, and plans to supplement this with the launch of mobile poker in the next few weeks.
But it said the popularity of mgaming had taken it by surprise and will have a significant impact on results for the year ending September 2005.
"The mgaming business continues to outperform our initial revenue forecasts, having signed 2,500 registered customers during the initial soft launch phase,” the firm said.
"As Orange intensifies its marketing effort we would anticipate further rapid growth in our mobile gaming operation," it added.
The firm said the additional strong performance of the recently acquired gambling.com site meant operating profit for the year would be “materially higher” than expected.
Gaming Corp said it was also benefiting from a “significant reduction in its costs” following a migration from the Boss Media software platform. And the current surge in costs pre-acquisition was also playing in its favour by boosting revenues from its portal sites.
"Operators are paying up to 50% more to acquire customers from our gaming portals,” the firm said.
The firm’s poker site is set to launch in the next few weeks, and Justin Drummond, chief executive of Gaming Corp, said it was expected to be a major source of new revenue.
"The mgaming division is going from strength to strength and we believe the new poker site will provide a considerable new revenue stream to the group,” Drummond said.
HIGH FLYING GAMBLERS
New service for airlines
Bored on those airline flights? A U.S. company has come up with the answer - gambler while you fly.
eFlyte announced this week the introduction of their latest product for the airline industry – inflight gambling. At the conclusion of a two year development program, the company is ready to launch gambling on the world's international airlines.
"We believe that the time is right for inflight gambling to be introduced." David Morgan, CEO of eFlyte commented. "A combination of factors influenced our decision to launch now. eFlyte's software architecture is proven, the new generation of IFE platforms are totally compatible with our software, while financial back office support has been validated to ensure the efficiency and reliability of the transaction processing. In addition, a number of international airlines have expressed interest in being updated on the feasibility of inflight gambling after all the excitement of nearly a decade ago."
eFlyte intends to provide airline passengers with a fun, challenging way to pass time on long flights, with the added bonus of accumulating winnings while relaxing at 35,000 feet.
The system will have strict player controls, with access by the swipe of a credit card which will be credited or debited in the same way as any other credit card transaction.
"The idea is to provide airline passengers with a low-stakes gambling environment that will co-exist with movies, audio tracks and even our own casual games," Morgan concluded.
BETONSPORTS REPORTS SOLID HALF YEARLY
Management shake up seems to have worked
BetonSports has posted solid figures for the first half of 2005, showing a 23 percent increase in gross profits, up to $28.6 million from $23.3 million in the last half of 2004. The figures also showed a big rise in the gross margin percentage of an extra 36 percent, increasing to 7.9 percent and gross operating profit had also risen 21 percent to $5.1 million.
BetonSports has seen an increase in the amount of new customers, over 6,000 up 5 percent on last year. The company’s acquisition of Easybets in May 2005, a large Internet bookmaker and casino serving Asia, will no doubt have had some impact on the firm’s impressive performance.
The company has had a good year with a shake-up in the management team, website overhauls and new poker software being rolled out.
WOMEN TURN TO ONLINE GAMBLING TO BEAT THE BLUES
University of Dundee study
The Scotsman reports that ncreasing numbers of women in Scotland are turning to online gambling as a "coping mechanism" to block out failed personal relationships and depression, a new study claims.
The study, by an academic at the University of Dundee, also says easy access to gambling is likely to be a hidden cause of homelessness. Women are being tempted online to enjoy the thrill of casino-type games such as roulette and blackjack by off-shore internet firms offering free practice sessions and personal chatrooms.
The on-line gambling market - worth £15 million in Britain last year - has tripled since 1997. In the UK it is currently legal to gamble in an online casino, but illegal to run such companies from Britain. The Gambling Act 2005, which takes effect in two years' time, will allow a new Gambling Regulator to impose indefinite fines on socially irresponsible operators who encourage promotions such as "happy hours" and "cash back when you lose your first bet".
Lesley McMahon, a research fellow in the school of town and regional planning at the University of Dundee, said women are keeping the problem secret because they believe they will be refused help from social services if the root cause of mortgage arrears or debts is revealed.
"With men, gambling is much more an 'ego thing' about status, and they like going into casinos where they can be seen playing. "With women it tends to be hidden, and a shame issue. With online gambling women don't need to leave the house to gamble and this, coupled with the ease of getting credit cards, is leading to massive problems," Ms McMahon said.
"It is such a quick and easy thing to do - you just download the software, put in your credit card number and get your log-in and password. From then you can place bets, play the machines or take part in casino games."
Last month, a couple from Dundee were jailed for three months at Arbroath Sheriff Court after severely neglecting their four young children after becoming addicted to online gambling. One of the children aged seven, had to have all her teeth removed. Sheriff Norrie Stein described the conditions the children were living as "as bad as could be imagined".
Ms McMahon, a former casino croupier, said the problem was hidden in Scotland and not recorded in statistics because it was still a "no-go" area. She is calling for the government to launch a health education programme on gambling similar to that for domestic violence.
A spokesman from Gamblers Anonymous in Scotland said it was receiving an increasing number of calls from women in Scotland concerning the issue. Chris Campbell, the depute director of the Scottish Council for Single Homeless, said: "As an umbrella organisation for homelessness, our members are well aware of the financial links to homelessness and clearly technological advances such as the internet and gambling can exacerbate this.
"We have invited Ms McMahon to our National Homelessness Conference in Scotland to be held in November." A spokesman for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, said: "The government recognises that a small number of people can develop problems through gambling and with technological advances this now includes online gambling."
LATEST ON EMPIRE ONLINE OFFERS
Acquisition of Club Dice et al completed
Empire Online has announced that,following its satisfactory due diligence, it has completed the Acquisition of Club Dice from Crown Solutions Gaming Limited and Uniplay International Limited.
Established in 2001, Club Dice comprises three casino brands and one bingo brand: Club Dice Casino, MonacoGold Casino, Carnival Casino and YouBingo. The Club Dice database currently comprises over 75,000 registered real money customers.
The Acquisition comprises, inter alia, the player database, certain intellectual property, and a license to operate Playtech Limited software across the four platforms. Club Dice has seen substantial recent growth in revenues, profits and new sign ups.
The consideration for the acquisition, payable in cash, is the aggregate of (i) US$5 million which was paid on 22 August 2005; (ii) US$22 million payable on completion of the Acquisition; and (iii) the balance which will be deferred consideration payable based on the profitability of the business between 1 August and 31 December 2005. This final amount is currently expected to be approximately US$13 million.
In the year ended 31 December 2004, the assets the subject of the transaction would have contributed net profit of approximately US$2.7 million to Empire Online and, in the six months ended 30 June 2005, would have contributed net profit of approximately US$2.4 million to the Company. The Directors are intending to invest in the re-launch of Club Dice in order to increase its revenue in the future.
MORE GOOD NEWS FROM CHARTWELL TECH
Growth continues in latest financial reports
Chartwell Technology Inc. has announced good unaudited financial results for the three and nine months ended July 31, 2005. Highlights of the quarter included revenue growth of 25.3%, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) of $1,180K and an eleventh consecutive quarter of profitability.
Don Gleason, Chief Financial Officer, said: “I am pleased to announce another solid quarter of results. Despite increased operating expenses associated with the acquisition of Micropower Corporation and a weakening in foreign currency markets resulting in a foreign exchange loss, we were able to deliver another quarter of profitable growth. For the remainder of the year we will maintain our focus on profitability, diversifying our revenue and investing in key areas of our business.”
Compared to the same nine month period of 2004, total revenue increased by 51.5%, software license fees increased by 52.9%, EBITDA increased by 72.0%, operating margins increased to 37.9%, net income increased by 23.0% and earnings per share diluted remained constant at $0.16.
Chartwell’s Board of Directors also authorized the Company to make a normal course issuer bid. Purchases under the bid may commence following receipt of regulatory approvals and will terminate within one year after commencement.
BEATING CRIME
ICE tips will be on fighting cybercrime
‘Combating Cyber Crime in the Betting and Gaming Business’, the conference launched in February 2005, will this year run at Earls Court Conference Centre, alongside ICE, the International Casino Exhibition, which opens on 24th January 2006.
“I am delighted to be working in association with Clarion ATE on the second Cyber Crime Conference. The decision to run it on the first day of the globally acclaimed ICE event, with its ever growing iGaming component ICEi, will only add to its prestige and significance in the i-gaming event calendar“, Paul Webster, the organiser of the launch event, said.
At the first conference many important issues discussed included DDoS attacks and blackmail; card fraud; identity fraud; mobile phone security; age verification; staff screening and money laundering. Developing the fight to combat these issues will continue to be a major concern for on-line bookmakers, betting exchanges, iGaming operators, regulatory authorities and suppliers. Many of these subjects can be expected to be included in the 2006 program.
CONFERENCE CORNER
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