Poker Business News From Europe

Irish Government Threatens Online Gambling Sites

Irish Minister for Sport Martin Cullen has threatened to ban online poker and gambling in Ireland if bookmakers do not pay more money to the Exchequer for the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund.

The most recent figure passed by the government to be made available to the Fund is €68.128m — slightly down from the original estimate of €69.7m.

However, the Minister said that government funding for the horse racing industry was drying up, and in the future, Irish bookmakers and offshore gamblers would have to foot the bill. He also suggested that more than €100 million could be created from a levy of 0.5 percent on Internet gambling.

This, of course, has caused a mixed reaction with bookmakers and online poker operators such as Paddy Power, afraid that it will only lead to more unemployment.

Everest Poker Revenue Slides

Everest Poker’s full year revenue for 2008 has fallen to $24 million, down 10 percent on year-end 2007.

CEO Arthur Wang said in parent company GigaMedia’s annual results statement that, “Poker and casino will face continued pressure from the tough European economy, but new marketing partnerships combined with the yields from our past investments and appropriate cost cutting will allow us to maintain our financial performance.”

In the fourth quarter of 2008, the company said poker software revenues were comparable with the third quarter and represented 69 percent of the business unit’s total fourth quarter 2008 revenues.

Around 184,000 active depositing real-money customers played poker at Everest between October and December 2008, an increase of 4 percent on the third quarter. The company also signed up 44,000 new depositing real-money poker players, a jump of 15 percent quarter-over-quarter.

Significantly, Everest Poker obtained a five-year remote gaming license from the European Union member Malta, which it said would support continued European growth into the future.

GigaMedia, which owns Everest Poker as well as sports book and casino brands, saw consolidated revenues increase 25 percent to a record US$190.4 million in 2008.

*Finland to Launch State-Run Poker *

Finland’s sport and culture minister Stefan Wallin says he is confident the country will have a state-run online poker site by the end of 2009.
Wallin said the Slot Machine Association (RAY), the government’s gaming monopoly, had already undertaken the necessary technical preparations ahead of launching the service.

However, the state monopoly would need an expansion of its mandate from government which currently only covers casinos, table games, and slot machines.

For the latest poker news in Finland, please visit www.CardPlayer.fi

888.com Launches New Poker Network as Pacific Poker Revenue Drops

888.com, the Israel-based online gaming operator, has announced the launch of its new business-to-business white-label enterprise, Dragonfish.

The company will offer software and back-end services such as customer support to online poker, casino, and bingo sites.

In a statement the company said, “The new branding is in recognition of Dragonfish’s separate function within 888 and to differentiate Dragonfish’s B2B offering which is distinct from, but complimentary to, 888’s traditional B2C products.”

One of the company’s first clients will be leading U.K. horse racing industry newspaper and website, the Racing Post. 888 will provide a comprehensive online poker and casino product for the company including back-end software, payments processing, and customer support.

Elsewhere the company reported that the drop in net gaming revenue from poker from 2008 to 2007 was two percent less than first predicted (4 percent instead of 6 percent). This was a decrease from US$80.8m in 2007 to $77.2m in 2008.
888.com, the publicly-quoted owner of Pacific Poker, saw revenue, numbers, and net revenue per poker player decline in 2008 with the slump most dramatic between October and December.

Figures for the fourth quarter to end December 2008 showed the most dramatic dips. Net gaming revenue for poker during this period fell 19 percent to $17 million from $21 million in the same period of 2007, while the number of active customers dropped 7 percent to 158,557.

Net gaming revenue per active poker customer fell 16 percent to $107 compared to the October to December period of 2007.

*Sweden to “Censor” Online Poker Sites *

A recent Swedish report which suggested censoring online gambling and poker sites has come in for significant criticism in the country.

State censorship of the Internet was the general theme of the government’s proposals in the report. The proposal to filter Internet access in order to prevent people living in Sweden from reaching foreign online gambling and poker sites, has been largely deemed by the consultative body as a form of censorship which would be one step too far.

This proposal, which is one of many in the report, means that foreign online gambling companies would be blocked by Internet Service Providers (ISP’s), and that a government agency would decide which sites would be banned and inform people trying to access those sites that they are illegal.

The majority of ISP’s and authorities totally disagree with these suggestions believing they would limit an individual’s freedom of speech, and also highlight the fact that it is not yet illegal to visit such sites, so people should not be prevented from doing so.

EU on Offensive Over U.S. Trade Obligations

The latest in the U.S. online gambling saga came recently when the European Commission stated in a report that the U.S. Justice Department’s stance against European online gambling businesses ignores World Trade Organisation commitments.

Rather than a complaint being filed however, the EU will attempt to negotiate a solution. This comes at a time where changes in the White House may lead to overall change for online poker sites and gambling companies.

It is not to be forgotten that when American banks and credit card companies were no longer allowed to make payments to online gambling sites, European companies were also greatly affected.

The many grey areas which come as a result of U.S. action against such companies are now becoming clear. Massachusetts Democrat Representative, Barney Frank recently said there are people who think that the WTO must be abided by religiously, but when it comes to banning gambling, it is ignored.

If negotiations make progress, this could be another stepping stone to progress for European sites re-entering the U.S. market.

Failed Online Poker Sites Owe Players AUS$5 Million

The liquidators of Tusk Investments, which owned 28 online poker rooms operating on the Microgaming network including Battlefield Poker, Poker.ie, Red Nines, Dave’s Poker Room, and Berserk Poker, have updated creditors of the failed Vanuatu-registered operation.

The report has been eagerly awaited by players who had money on the poker rooms frozen in 2008, though no substantive statement was forthcoming on any subsequent disbursement to the many poker players hoping to get at least some of their money back.

The liquidators said there was an estimated deficiency between assets and creditors of AUS$5,184,110 and found that there was AUS$1,790,215 cash at hand, made up of players money, while poker players, as creditors, were owed AUS$5,312,923

Dutch Want to Ban Poker TV Shows

Dutch justice minister Ernst Hirsch Ballin has warned three television broadcasters, including RTL and SBS, to stop making shows about poker.

Ballin, a long-time anti-poker advocate, said in response to calls from two Dutch MPs for a more liberal regime for poker, “The broadcasters have overstepped the mark. These programmes give people the idea that poker is completely legal and harmless.”

Poker in the Netherlands is heavily regulated and can only be played in state-run Holland Casinos, despite the fact that the Dutch poker association says 800,000 play the game in the country.