Absolute Poker has admitted that the perpetrator of the so-called ‘pot-ripper’ scandal won US$800,000 during a “known period of unfair playing” amounting to 40 days. According to an interim statement released while the Kahnawake Gaming Commission is still completing its enquiry into the ‘pot-ripper’ scandal, the company said it has paid back players known to have been adversely affected by what it calls the “security breach” to the tune of US$1.6m.
In the statement, Absolute adds that it is cooperating fully with the KGC in its enquiry. It adds: “We would like to assure our players, once again, that the security breach, which resulted in unfair play, was resolved immediately after it was discovered and confirmed, and Absolute’s sites are absolutely secure.” (sic)
It said the “known perpetrator... no longer has access to Absolute”. “The system breach was the result of a recent internal software release impacting internal reporting. The breach was exploitable only by an authorised AP person that manipulated the internal reporting software, together with the AP gaming software. The security breach was not, therefore, the result of an external action, and no individual outside AP could exploit the breach.”
The statement added that there is no evidence of the past or current existence of a “super-user” account with the ability to see other players’ hole cards.
The statement concludes: “AP regrets the damage that has been done to its players and to its own reputation by this incident. We are absolutely focused on doing the right thing for our loyal customers, employees, consultants and business partners and we will continue to work with the KGC and Gaming Associates to bring this incident into the full light of day and to right any wrongs done to innocent victims of this unfair play.”
November 09, 2007
Diwali betting a boon for punters
Bookies and gamblers are likely to engage in hectic activity during the second one-day international match between India and Pakistan on Thursday. The fact that it is being held during Diwali when betting activities form part of traditional festivity in the country is only adding to it.
Some local bookies, according to sources, have already thrown offers open accepting bets on favourite India, which is pegged at around 75 paise against the visitors arch-rival Pakistan’s 80 paise. "Initially, India would be a favourite but fluctuations are likely to take place as the match progresses," said an insider. "The toss would be crucial and lot of bets would follow the toss decision in the morning," added the source.
Though most of the bookies have preferred to remain underground or shift outside the city limits, the gambling season has thrown them an opportunity of making big business prior to Diwali.
"Lots of gambling enthusiasts have already started preparing as a part of the traditional festivity. The match between India and Pakistan has only enhanced the mood before Diwali," said a source.
Apart from cricket betting, sources claimed that gambling would be a major activity in the city over the Diwali weekend. "Several enthusiasts are booking hotel rooms, resorts and also organising parties at private premises to gamble. An astronomical amount of cash is likely to change hands," said an insider.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Diwali_betting_a_boon_for_punters/articleshow/2527099.cms
Some local bookies, according to sources, have already thrown offers open accepting bets on favourite India, which is pegged at around 75 paise against the visitors arch-rival Pakistan’s 80 paise. "Initially, India would be a favourite but fluctuations are likely to take place as the match progresses," said an insider. "The toss would be crucial and lot of bets would follow the toss decision in the morning," added the source.
Though most of the bookies have preferred to remain underground or shift outside the city limits, the gambling season has thrown them an opportunity of making big business prior to Diwali.
"Lots of gambling enthusiasts have already started preparing as a part of the traditional festivity. The match between India and Pakistan has only enhanced the mood before Diwali," said a source.
Apart from cricket betting, sources claimed that gambling would be a major activity in the city over the Diwali weekend. "Several enthusiasts are booking hotel rooms, resorts and also organising parties at private premises to gamble. An astronomical amount of cash is likely to change hands," said an insider.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Diwali_betting_a_boon_for_punters/articleshow/2527099.cms
November 08, 2007
PartyBets doubles up with Sporting Index
PartyGaming, the world’s leading listed online gaming company, has launched a comprehensive fixed odds horse racing service on its PartyBets.com platform through an alliance with Sporting Index. The new service features full coverage of UK, Irish and premier international race meetings including unique early prices, ante post markets and specials.
All horse racing odds compilation and associated trading advisory services for PartyBets.com are being provided by Spin Services, a newly created wholesale division within Sporting Index. The PartyBets racing service launch is also being supported with an innovative promotion where winnings are doubled on the first and fifth bet for all new customers.
A spokesman for PartyGaming said: “The traders at Sporting Index are well known for being amongst the very best in the industry and have made the company the recognised world leader in spread betting. Teaming up with Sporting Index to expand our fixed odds betting services is a winning combination.”
Richard Glynn, CEO of Sporting Index, said: “Spin Services has been designed to assist the wider gambling and gaming industry with all its trading needs. We are delighted to be enabling PartyBets to offer its customers a first-class comprehensive horse racing service.”
http://www.partygaming.com/images/docs/070811_Sporting_Index.pdf
All horse racing odds compilation and associated trading advisory services for PartyBets.com are being provided by Spin Services, a newly created wholesale division within Sporting Index. The PartyBets racing service launch is also being supported with an innovative promotion where winnings are doubled on the first and fifth bet for all new customers.
A spokesman for PartyGaming said: “The traders at Sporting Index are well known for being amongst the very best in the industry and have made the company the recognised world leader in spread betting. Teaming up with Sporting Index to expand our fixed odds betting services is a winning combination.”
Richard Glynn, CEO of Sporting Index, said: “Spin Services has been designed to assist the wider gambling and gaming industry with all its trading needs. We are delighted to be enabling PartyBets to offer its customers a first-class comprehensive horse racing service.”
http://www.partygaming.com/images/docs/070811_Sporting_Index.pdf
November 07, 2007
Party in German TV deal
PartyGaming has entered into an exclusive arrangement with German media giant RTL to provide an German-language dotnet poker site.
The move represents a significant step in one of PartyGaming’s major markets.
The deal with RTL Interactive will see the launch of a new RTLpoker.de website containing advertorial links to PartyPoker.net, Party’s free-to-play website. The RTL.de website has over six million users per month.
This is the second media-related deal signed with the past few months following on from the deal signed with UK broadcaster ITV in September.
RTL Interactive will also promote its poker offering and poker school via TV spots on the leading German TV channel RTL TV.
A PartyGaming spokesperson emphasised this was “more than a white label”.
PartyGaming chief executive Mitch Garber said: “We are thrilled to have been chosen by RTL Interactive to provide an online poker school to their users. This is a hugely exciting opportunity for us to work with the German internet division of Europe’s leading broadcaster.”
The move represents a significant step in one of PartyGaming’s major markets.
The deal with RTL Interactive will see the launch of a new RTLpoker.de website containing advertorial links to PartyPoker.net, Party’s free-to-play website. The RTL.de website has over six million users per month.
This is the second media-related deal signed with the past few months following on from the deal signed with UK broadcaster ITV in September.
RTL Interactive will also promote its poker offering and poker school via TV spots on the leading German TV channel RTL TV.
A PartyGaming spokesperson emphasised this was “more than a white label”.
PartyGaming chief executive Mitch Garber said: “We are thrilled to have been chosen by RTL Interactive to provide an online poker school to their users. This is a hugely exciting opportunity for us to work with the German internet division of Europe’s leading broadcaster.”
November 05, 2007
Las Vegas Sands Falls
Shares of Las Vegas Sands Corp. dropped Friday as investors reacted to the casino operator's weak third-quarter results.
On Thursday, Las Vegas Sands reported a loss of $48.5 million, or 14 cents per share, compared with a profit of $97.3 million, or 27 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue climbed 19.5 percent to $661 million.
Adjusted net income fell to $41.8 million, or 12 cents per share, from $117.6 million, or 33 cents per share.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected earnings of 31 cents per share on revenue of $783 million.
Las Vegas Sands, which is run by billionaire Sheldon Adelson, blamed the loss on high costs related to the opening of the Venetian Macao in August and an unlucky run in its casinos.
While investors were spooked by the results, analysts remain confident in the company's operations.
Steven Kent, an analyst with Goldman Sachs, said investors should capitalize on the buying opportunity.
"Few casino openings go smoothly and management has already put a plan in place to boost results. October looks to be off to a good start," he wrote in a client note.
However, Kent lowered some earnings estimates based on the third-quarter report. He cut his 2007 profit estimate to $1.05 from $1.45 per share and trimmed his 2008 forecast to $4 from $4.45 per share. Kent also reduced his 2008 earnings estimate to $6.25 from $6.75 per share.
Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst Steven Wieczynski said investors need to remember that Macau is a work in progress.
"We think a lot of investors are going to lose sight of the fact that the Venetian Macao was only open for 34 days during the third quarter and is still not operating with all its amenities. In our opinion, these results are meaningless and tell us nothing so far," he said in a client note.
Wieczynski lowered his full-year earnings estimate to $1 from $1.38 per share and cut his 2008 forecast to $2.07 from $2.64 per share.
Shares of Las Vegas Sands fell $8.53, or 6.8 percent, to close at $116.77 Friday. Over the past year, the stock has traded between $71.15 and $148.76.
On Thursday, Las Vegas Sands reported a loss of $48.5 million, or 14 cents per share, compared with a profit of $97.3 million, or 27 cents per share, a year ago. Revenue climbed 19.5 percent to $661 million.
Adjusted net income fell to $41.8 million, or 12 cents per share, from $117.6 million, or 33 cents per share.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial expected earnings of 31 cents per share on revenue of $783 million.
Las Vegas Sands, which is run by billionaire Sheldon Adelson, blamed the loss on high costs related to the opening of the Venetian Macao in August and an unlucky run in its casinos.
While investors were spooked by the results, analysts remain confident in the company's operations.
Steven Kent, an analyst with Goldman Sachs, said investors should capitalize on the buying opportunity.
"Few casino openings go smoothly and management has already put a plan in place to boost results. October looks to be off to a good start," he wrote in a client note.
However, Kent lowered some earnings estimates based on the third-quarter report. He cut his 2007 profit estimate to $1.05 from $1.45 per share and trimmed his 2008 forecast to $4 from $4.45 per share. Kent also reduced his 2008 earnings estimate to $6.25 from $6.75 per share.
Stifel Nicolaus & Co. analyst Steven Wieczynski said investors need to remember that Macau is a work in progress.
"We think a lot of investors are going to lose sight of the fact that the Venetian Macao was only open for 34 days during the third quarter and is still not operating with all its amenities. In our opinion, these results are meaningless and tell us nothing so far," he said in a client note.
Wieczynski lowered his full-year earnings estimate to $1 from $1.38 per share and cut his 2008 forecast to $2.07 from $2.64 per share.
Shares of Las Vegas Sands fell $8.53, or 6.8 percent, to close at $116.77 Friday. Over the past year, the stock has traded between $71.15 and $148.76.
888 announces Blue Square sportsbook deal
Casino and poker giant 888 has announced a tie-up with Blue Square for a sportsbook offering.
The deal will see the pair develop a multi-national offering to be launched across Europe in the first quarter of next year. The details of the revenue-share agreement between the two have not been disclosed.
Martin Belsham, managing director at Blue Square, said the deal “strengthens both parties”. “We will benefit from 888’s international experience and liquidity as we extend our reach beyond the UK; and 888 will complete their customer offer by adding Blue Square’s innovative range of betting products.”
The two companies will work closely to tailor the content for each European territory. 888 will now provide Blue Square with a payment processing platform as the latter looks to expand further into Europe.
Gabi Campos, senior vice-president, at 888 said the company’s research had shown that a significant proportion of its players bet on sports events occasionally. “The inclusion of sports betting in our offering is in line with our focus to aid customer acquisition and reinforce 888 as the entertainment destination of choice.”
Last month, 888 announced its first sportsbook offering in Italy.
Blue Square parent group Rank said the deal would not have a material affect on group earnings in the coming financial year.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2241/23/5/3
The deal will see the pair develop a multi-national offering to be launched across Europe in the first quarter of next year. The details of the revenue-share agreement between the two have not been disclosed.
Martin Belsham, managing director at Blue Square, said the deal “strengthens both parties”. “We will benefit from 888’s international experience and liquidity as we extend our reach beyond the UK; and 888 will complete their customer offer by adding Blue Square’s innovative range of betting products.”
The two companies will work closely to tailor the content for each European territory. 888 will now provide Blue Square with a payment processing platform as the latter looks to expand further into Europe.
Gabi Campos, senior vice-president, at 888 said the company’s research had shown that a significant proportion of its players bet on sports events occasionally. “The inclusion of sports betting in our offering is in line with our focus to aid customer acquisition and reinforce 888 as the entertainment destination of choice.”
Last month, 888 announced its first sportsbook offering in Italy.
Blue Square parent group Rank said the deal would not have a material affect on group earnings in the coming financial year.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2241/23/5/3
November 01, 2007
Unibet chief released on bail by French
Unibet chief executive Petter Nylander was released by the French authorities yesterday evening following his hearing in Nanterre just outside Paris. Nylander was transferred from Holland to France during the course of the day and set free on bail of €200,000 following the hearing.
In a statement, Nylander said: “The fact that there are numerous legal proceedings ongoing against responsible operators such as Unibet doesn't make sense at a time when the French government has publicly referred to the opening of its online gaming market. Such proceedings serve only one purpose - the commercial interests of France's two State-owned monopolies.”
Nylander said Unibet had always abided by the law and acted in a transparent way and pointed to the “urgent need for reform of this market where these monopoly operators' actions are in complete disregard of EU Treaties and the interests of French players”.
He added: “It is Unibet's strong belief that the French consumer should have a choice regarding online betting and gaming, with specific regulation. France has everything to gain from the controlled opening of its market, and La Française des Jeux, the PMU and French casino operators alike have an opportunity to be co-leaders together with private operators in the European online gaming market.”
Nylander was detained by the Dutch authorities at Schipol airport last week under a French arrest warrant and held for two nights. He has spent the rest of his time in a hotel in Amsterdam. Yesterday, Unibet released interim figures that showed third quarter pre-tax profits sliding year-on-year to £6.9m from £7.5m the year previously.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2234
In a statement, Nylander said: “The fact that there are numerous legal proceedings ongoing against responsible operators such as Unibet doesn't make sense at a time when the French government has publicly referred to the opening of its online gaming market. Such proceedings serve only one purpose - the commercial interests of France's two State-owned monopolies.”
Nylander said Unibet had always abided by the law and acted in a transparent way and pointed to the “urgent need for reform of this market where these monopoly operators' actions are in complete disregard of EU Treaties and the interests of French players”.
He added: “It is Unibet's strong belief that the French consumer should have a choice regarding online betting and gaming, with specific regulation. France has everything to gain from the controlled opening of its market, and La Française des Jeux, the PMU and French casino operators alike have an opportunity to be co-leaders together with private operators in the European online gaming market.”
Nylander was detained by the Dutch authorities at Schipol airport last week under a French arrest warrant and held for two nights. He has spent the rest of his time in a hotel in Amsterdam. Yesterday, Unibet released interim figures that showed third quarter pre-tax profits sliding year-on-year to £6.9m from £7.5m the year previously.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2234
October 31, 2007
In Brief
All Bets Are Off For NFL’s London Debut
In a move that further highlights the National Football League’s vehement and influential opposition to gambling, organisers of Sunday evening’s game between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants consented to the NFL’s request that all Betfred’s betting facilities inside Wembley Stadium were closed for the event.
Ruling Party Votes To End Swedish Gambling Monopoly
Moderate Party members voted at their congress last weekend in favour of a proposal to liberalise the country’s gambling market but the Swedish Government still advocates taking a more cautious approach towards regulation.
In a move that further highlights the National Football League’s vehement and influential opposition to gambling, organisers of Sunday evening’s game between the Miami Dolphins and the New York Giants consented to the NFL’s request that all Betfred’s betting facilities inside Wembley Stadium were closed for the event.
Ruling Party Votes To End Swedish Gambling Monopoly
Moderate Party members voted at their congress last weekend in favour of a proposal to liberalise the country’s gambling market but the Swedish Government still advocates taking a more cautious approach towards regulation.
October 30, 2007
Clement 'asked to throw a match'
Former top 10 tennis player Arnaud Clement said today that he had been offered money to throw a match.
"It happened to me but I will not tell you where or how," Clement, the 2001 Australian Open runner up, said after his first-round defeat by Mikhail Youzhny at the BNP Paribas Masters Paris.
"I didn't hesitate for a second, I said no.
"It may be different for a guy who's not that high up in the rankings and who has financial problems.
"It's very serious.
"I can't imagine that a top 10 player could accept that, but it's hard to imagine as well that guys go to tournaments to make such offers.
"I haven't heard many players say it happened to them."
Clement, who is now ranked No.53 in the world, believes he is unlikely to be approached again, but he believes that authorities have to hit hard to stamp out corruption.
"They should throw (the perpetrators) off the circuit," he said.
"It's a really preoccupying situation.
"It can happen to eveyone to get fed up with (playing) a match. But I've already seen matches where players have thrown good points away."
The threat of possible match-fixing was being taken very seriously at the Paris tournament, French Tennis Federation (FFT) president Christian Bimes said earlier today.
"We consider this a serious problem," Bimes said.
"It is a dreadful disease which is a threat for tennis worldwide.
"We have to act straight away and be as severe with this as we are with doping."
Bimes said that information on the volume of betting involved in the game was being collected through the professional players association (ATP) and the European lotteries network.
The French national betting operator, Francais des Jeux, will monitor betting activity during the Paris Masters tournament.
FDJ will monitor the betting patterns on four national lottery companies from Sweden, Denmark, Slovenia and Switzerland, and it will inform FFT should irregular betting patterns be discovered.
The move follows irregular betting on a match in which world No.4 Nikolay Davydenko lost to unheralded Martin Vassallo Arguello at Sopot in August, despite Davydenko taking the first set.
Davydenko, who strenuously denies any wrong-doing, came under the spotlight again early last week when he was fined $US2000 for not trying hard enough during his shock defeat to Croatian qualifier Marin Cilic at St Petersburg.
Bimes said all matches were being recorded at the Masters, where Davydenko is the defending champion, and information would be provided to police when match and betting analyses indicate suspect performances.
"(Police) are the only ones who can undertake certain types of investigation," he said.
The measures will be evaluated at the end of the Paris Masters before being implemented at the French Open at Roland-Garros next year.
"We aren't naive enough to think that we are going to fix this problem by waving a magic wand," FFT director Jean-Francois Vilotte said.
"But in any case, we want it clearly understood that betting on (Paris Masters) matches on banned sites is from now on a risky activity."
The ATP is also cracking down on possible match-fixing, with president Etienne De Villiers vowing the possibility of a life ban for any person found guilty of involvement in match-fixing.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,22671615-23216,00.html
"It happened to me but I will not tell you where or how," Clement, the 2001 Australian Open runner up, said after his first-round defeat by Mikhail Youzhny at the BNP Paribas Masters Paris.
"I didn't hesitate for a second, I said no.
"It may be different for a guy who's not that high up in the rankings and who has financial problems.
"It's very serious.
"I can't imagine that a top 10 player could accept that, but it's hard to imagine as well that guys go to tournaments to make such offers.
"I haven't heard many players say it happened to them."
Clement, who is now ranked No.53 in the world, believes he is unlikely to be approached again, but he believes that authorities have to hit hard to stamp out corruption.
"They should throw (the perpetrators) off the circuit," he said.
"It's a really preoccupying situation.
"It can happen to eveyone to get fed up with (playing) a match. But I've already seen matches where players have thrown good points away."
The threat of possible match-fixing was being taken very seriously at the Paris tournament, French Tennis Federation (FFT) president Christian Bimes said earlier today.
"We consider this a serious problem," Bimes said.
"It is a dreadful disease which is a threat for tennis worldwide.
"We have to act straight away and be as severe with this as we are with doping."
Bimes said that information on the volume of betting involved in the game was being collected through the professional players association (ATP) and the European lotteries network.
The French national betting operator, Francais des Jeux, will monitor betting activity during the Paris Masters tournament.
FDJ will monitor the betting patterns on four national lottery companies from Sweden, Denmark, Slovenia and Switzerland, and it will inform FFT should irregular betting patterns be discovered.
The move follows irregular betting on a match in which world No.4 Nikolay Davydenko lost to unheralded Martin Vassallo Arguello at Sopot in August, despite Davydenko taking the first set.
Davydenko, who strenuously denies any wrong-doing, came under the spotlight again early last week when he was fined $US2000 for not trying hard enough during his shock defeat to Croatian qualifier Marin Cilic at St Petersburg.
Bimes said all matches were being recorded at the Masters, where Davydenko is the defending champion, and information would be provided to police when match and betting analyses indicate suspect performances.
"(Police) are the only ones who can undertake certain types of investigation," he said.
The measures will be evaluated at the end of the Paris Masters before being implemented at the French Open at Roland-Garros next year.
"We aren't naive enough to think that we are going to fix this problem by waving a magic wand," FFT director Jean-Francois Vilotte said.
"But in any case, we want it clearly understood that betting on (Paris Masters) matches on banned sites is from now on a risky activity."
The ATP is also cracking down on possible match-fixing, with president Etienne De Villiers vowing the possibility of a life ban for any person found guilty of involvement in match-fixing.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,22671615-23216,00.html
32Red sells Bet Direct to Stan James
32Red has sold its Bet Direct sportsbook to Stan James for £5.75m, as revealed by eGaming Review at the end of September.
The news came with the publicaiton of the firm’s results for the first half of the year which showed total revenues increasing of 47.2% to £9.2m. However, casino revenues were almost static and poker revenues fell nearly 4% over the period.
32Red bought Bet Direct in June 2006 from Sportech for £12.5m. The company said it will use proceeds from the sale to increase the profile of its casino, poker and sportsbetting products and expansion into new territories. Bookmakers Stan James and Boylesports were reportedly in the running to buy Bet Direct, but Boylesports chief executive Daniel O’Mahoney counted his company out of the race late last week.
In its statement, 32Red said that further to a strategic review of both brands and a review of the potential business development opportunities for the company, it had accepted the offer of £5.75m for the intellectual property and “certain assets” of the Betdirect business. Chief executive Ed Ware said: “The sale of the Bet Direct brand allows us to channel our marketing and management focus on the core 32Red brand.”
Ware added that mobile gaming services and an integrated bingo offering will be added to the product range in the final quarter of this year.
32Red reported casino revenues of £4.6m for the six month period to the end of June, a 1.7% increase on the same period in 2006, and a drop in poker revenues of 3.8% over the six month period in 2007, compared to revenues of £0.6m in 2006.
The number of active customers grew to 75,911, compared with 44,539 in 2006.
Chief executive Ed Ware said: “Whilst the recent UK legislative changes effective from 1 September 2007 allow greater access to the UK market, we have identified a number of new territories into which we intend to market the 32Red brand.”
http://www.egrmagazine.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=2226&d=pg_dtl_art_news&h=0&f=0
The news came with the publicaiton of the firm’s results for the first half of the year which showed total revenues increasing of 47.2% to £9.2m. However, casino revenues were almost static and poker revenues fell nearly 4% over the period.
32Red bought Bet Direct in June 2006 from Sportech for £12.5m. The company said it will use proceeds from the sale to increase the profile of its casino, poker and sportsbetting products and expansion into new territories. Bookmakers Stan James and Boylesports were reportedly in the running to buy Bet Direct, but Boylesports chief executive Daniel O’Mahoney counted his company out of the race late last week.
In its statement, 32Red said that further to a strategic review of both brands and a review of the potential business development opportunities for the company, it had accepted the offer of £5.75m for the intellectual property and “certain assets” of the Betdirect business. Chief executive Ed Ware said: “The sale of the Bet Direct brand allows us to channel our marketing and management focus on the core 32Red brand.”
Ware added that mobile gaming services and an integrated bingo offering will be added to the product range in the final quarter of this year.
32Red reported casino revenues of £4.6m for the six month period to the end of June, a 1.7% increase on the same period in 2006, and a drop in poker revenues of 3.8% over the six month period in 2007, compared to revenues of £0.6m in 2006.
The number of active customers grew to 75,911, compared with 44,539 in 2006.
Chief executive Ed Ware said: “Whilst the recent UK legislative changes effective from 1 September 2007 allow greater access to the UK market, we have identified a number of new territories into which we intend to market the 32Red brand.”
http://www.egrmagazine.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=2226&d=pg_dtl_art_news&h=0&f=0
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