iGaming News all over the world 17.04.2010

17.04.2010, Lithuania Declares Poker a Sport and Joins IFOP / Sportingbet Moves to the Official List on the London Exchange / France's New Online Gambling Regulations Flawed / Analysts boost prospects for three casino operators

Lithuania Declares Poker a Sport and Joins IFOP
Lithuania is a small county strategically located in the Baltic region next door to Poland and Latvia. After being part of Soviet Union for nearly 50 years this independent state has restored its sovereignty and continued to grow into an economically strong country since the early 1990's. This is a country with an independent spirit that has endured for centuries even though it has been occupied by other nations over that time. In a bold and interesting move the Lithuanian government has declared that poker is an actual sport. Eastern Europe is a ripe market for online gambling companies that are considering expansion with many Baltic region countries currently sorting out their regulations and licensing procedures.

The Department of Physical Education and Sports in Lithuanian issued an announcement in March of 2010 recognizing the Lithuanian Sports Poker Federation as an official sports federation. The ruling means the LSPF will be able to organize poker tournaments apart from casinos, allowing anyone who wishes to play the game. Andrius Tapinas, President, of the Lithuanian Sports Poker Federation, said the announcement is an "extremely important step in our work. We are receiving congratulations from many of our colleagues abroad and I know that we are breaking thick ice with our progress for similar international initiatives."

The LSPF will now move to create a tournament schedule and take the sport of poker to the next level of consumer recognition. Tapinas will use his status as a celebrity as host of Lithuania's most popular business television show to raise the profile of poker by his participation in the World Series of Poker and Unibet Open tournament. The new organization has recently been granted member status by the International Federation of Poker, based in Lausanne, Switzerland which was recently formed in 2009 as an umbrella organization for poker players based on the same legal criteria and principles as those of other mainstream sports.

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Sportingbet Moves to the Official List on the London Exchange
The worst thing to happen to online gambling operators in recent years was the invoked prohibition of the activity in the USA. During the big crack down companies that had been doing very well on the European stock exchanges were shredded by the stroke of a pen. Sportingbet was one such firm whose shares were decimated with the new rules banning online sports betting by offshore companies in the USA.

The companies share price was at little over 20p less than two years ago, and it rose 2¼p on Thursday to 76¼p, giving it a market capitalisation of £381m or $590m. This kind of rebounding growth is truly remarkable. To expand even further into a bigger financial realm Sportingbet has decided to leave the AIM market and join the main London exchange. Analysts agree that Sportingbet will do very well by going for the larger exchange, allowing the strength of the firm to be confirmed with a higher investment profile as well as the increased liquidity of it's shares. Sportingbet said that the move to the London's Main exchange was “the most appropriate platform for the continued growth of the group”. After two thirds of it's assets disappeared when America banned online gambling the company quickly restructured to get back on it's feet with the goal of reclaiming a large portion of the rapidly expanding sports betting industry in Europe.

Sportingbet now gets ninety percent of it's business from Europe and was able to re- establish dividend payments last October to it's share holders. Acceptance by the Official List on the London Stock Exchange is slated for May 14, 2010, just in time for the World Cup of soccer in South Africa in June. The strength of the company will continue to grow as the public in Europe continues to enjoy betting on sports.

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France's New Online Gambling Regulations Flawed
According to a recent article posted by Reuters news agency in Paris the state of affairs surrounding the new regulatory system is not going to be the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for online gambling operators. The new rules are the toughest yet in the European Union but still they favour the existing state run gambling operators. Operators are faced with high taxes and strict compliance rules that cripple profit margins leaving the state monopoly with the bigger cut of the cake.

Regulators are not permitting online casino versions of blackjack or roulette, leaving control of these popular games to the Francaise de Jeux monopoly. Sports betting, is to be allowed, and taxed at 8.8 percent, a percentage that bookmakers feel is impossible to contend with. Chief Executive Officer of bwin France, Antonio Costanzo, commented, "We're missing casino games, which is a shame, since they are important to overall financial stability," adding, "Let's just say the monopoly will do fine."Isabelle Parize, vice-chair at Mangas Gaming said, "We won't make any money at first. But first-mover is important in this market so we're there," She commented that the tax regime as "catastrophic". The Reuters article predicts with it's analysis that in 18 months the French parliament will review the law and could lower the tax rate.

Following Italy's lead when last year they lowered the tax rates when it was revealed gamblers stayed away from the new sites, finding them more costly. It is a risky business for investors right now in online activity in the French market with over fifty companies looking to acquire one of but a handful of licenses the French government will grant. "The question remains over what role the media companies - with more money, legitimacy and market power than the gaming companies - will play," notes the Reuters report, suggesting the media giants have been slow to commit to the industry.

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Analysts boost prospects for three casino operators
Maybe that 33 % increase in Strip gaming revenues during February impressed Wall Street. Analyst Steven Kent of Goldman Sachs and Joe Greff of JP Morgan increased their price target for MGM Mirage this week. Greff also upped his opinion of Wynn Resorts and Las Vegas Sands Corp.

Kent and Greff said that MGM Mirage would benefit from improving travel, a sign that room rates and occupancy are improving in Las Vegas. "We are raising our 12-month price target on MGM Mirage shares given improving business travel trends and our continued confidence that MGM Mirage will complete asset sales according to plan to deleverage the balance sheet," Kent told investors.

In February MGM Mirage reached a deal with lenders to extend the deadline for paying off about us$ 3.6 billion of its us$ 13 billion in debt to February 2014. Greff thought investors are under appreciating MGM Mirage's advance convention bookings. "We continue to believe that the group booking acceleration should drive improved blended Strip room rates based on positive mix shift," he said. Shares of MGM Mirage closed Tuesday at us$ 15.41 on the New York Stock Exchange, up 37 cents of 2.46 %.

Greff also praised Las Vegas Sands, saying the company will benefit an improving Las Vegas market and the opening of the us$ 5.5 billion Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, which has a soft opening in two weeks, followed by a grand opening in June.

Las Vegas Sands closed Tuesday at us$ 24.39 on the New York Stock Exchange, up 17 cents of 0.70 %. Greff said Wynn Resorts should continue to see strong results from Wynn Macau. The company opens a second Macau casino later this month.

Yogonet.com / Casino City Times

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