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Copyright 2004 EXPRESS NEWSPAPERS
The Express
October 29, 2004
HEADLINE: SPORTINGBET PLAYS CARDS RIGHT IN NET
POKER COUP; CITY AND BUSINESS EDITED BY STEPHEN KAHN
BODY:
UK online
gaming group Sportingbet yesterday strengthened its hand in
the Internet poker stakes by buying Costa Rica-registered Paradise
Poker for £169.1million, writes David Shand.
Chief executive Nigel Payne described the
cashand-shares acquisition as a "transformational deal",
doubling the size of the company and making it the world's No3
online poker group.
About half Sportingbet's 1.2million registered
customers had shown an interest in poker but wanted to use a more
popular site, said Payne.
Paradise had a 10 per cent market share, against
Sportingbet's 2 per cent, generated strong profits and provided
cross-selling opportunities between the two companies.
The deal also substantially reduces Sportingbet's
earnings exposure to the results of sports events. "This
is not about cost savings but critical mass, "
said Payne "It puts us in a different league.
"We have a real opportunity to leverage
Paradise Poker's critical mass and provide customers of the combined
group with leading sports betting and casino, bingo, gaming and
poker products under one roof.
Customers will have a single account."
The increasing popularity of televised poker
tournaments has sparked a surge in industry turnover from $ 400million
(£218.5million) last year to an estimated $ 1.5billion this
year.
Sportingbet's shares rose 18p to 134p.
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