Gaming group 888 has had a difficult 2010 and it seems things are only going to get worse. After releasing a profit warning showing that poker turnover had decreased by 18% between January and May, 888 now anticipates losing even more business during the 2010 World Cup this summer. While 888 blames an industry-wide decline, currency fluctuation and even illegal casino operators for their woes, some financial experts wonder if 888 is ripe for a takeover.

The Guardian: Gaming group 888 could attract predators after profit warning

After a gloomy warning from 888 spokespeople regarding revenue between January and May, the company has left itself vulnerable to takeover. Following up on a similar negative forecast released in April, 888 showed that the number of players at its poker website dropped by about 18% in the first five months of 2010.

Though 888 believes the downward trend to be industry-wide and that its own program of cost-cutting must be adhered to, spokesmen maintained that 888 would continue its strategy of acquisition – a plan 888 seems to be incapable of at present.

Rumors that bigger companies Party Gaming and/or Ladbrokes might make a bid at a takeover of 888 emerged while 888 stocks lost 21% of value on the day of the announcement to finish trading at 53.25p. Greg Johnson of investment banking services provider Shore Capital stated that Ladbrokes “needs greater scale in its online operation, in our view,” making 888 operation a perfect match.

This is London: 888 will spend World Cup behind the sofa as it predicts strain on profits

Internet casino 888 warned that the upcoming World Cup would actually be bad for its business, as its staple poker players are expected to be spending less time and money at the online poker tables and instead devote more energy to football. “Online gaming trading during the period of the World Cup will be difficult,” said 888 CEO Gigi Levy as he announced the profit warning.

Levy also stated that profits for 888 in year 2010 would be “significantly lower than previous market expectations” of $45.5 million.

As for the current drop in poker business at 888, illegal online operators in America were blamed for eating into profits, though the numbers show that high-rollers visit the site less frequently than ever. Levy also blamed currency fluctuation for its financial woes, stating that $5 million in revenue had been lost in 2010 so far because of exchange rates: Though 888 does most business in euros and pounds sterling, revenue is reported in terms of U.S. dollars.

The (London) Express: 888’s World Cup Fears

Online gaming company 888 Holdings issued a warning on profits yesterday in anticipation of casino gamers deserting the site to turn attention to the 2010 World Cup tournament: “Instead of staying in and using 888,” said one 888 spokesman, “people are more likely to go down the pub and watch the football.”

A pair of financial analysts offered harsh assessments of 888’s current financial state. One unnamed analyst stated that “The potential for 888 to be acquired has diminished,” while James Hollins of corporate advisory firm Daniel Stewart & Co. said that “888’s weak poker offering and lack of significant sports offering has worked against it.”

Paddy Power has been pulling all of the stops and stunts when it comes to advertising lately and the stunts seem to be garnering more and more attention. The latest opportunity has presented itself and Paddy Power took it – the company has sponsored the “Sin Bin” a confessional booth in a Catholic Church.

The Telegraph: Paddy Power betting firm sponsors church confession box

Paddy Power has paid £10,000 and sponsored a new confessional booth in Our Lady & St Etheldreda church in the racing town of Newmarket, Suffolk. Jockey Frankie Dettori, who was married in the church, performed the official opening ceremony yesterday.

The Dublin-based bookmaker has 200 offices in Ireland, 100 in Britain and a turnover of £2 billion. The betting company hopes that confessing your sins in a Paddy Power confession box will become a tradition for race-goers.

Sicilian-born Dettori, who is riding the Guineas meeting in Newmarket this weekend, said: “I was married in this church 13 years ago and all five of my children were baptised here.
Fr Michael Griffin, the priest, said: “It was suggested by a parishoner that we should ask Paddy Power for help because of its horse-racing connections. We were very pleased when they generously agreed.”

The Guardian: Church bets on power of sponsorship

St Etheldreda Church in Newmarket decided to turn the sin of gambling at this weekend’s Guineas Festival to its favour. The Catholic Church has taken £10,000 from bookie Paddy Power in return for sponsorship rights to the confession box.

“Our church has felt for a long time that we should have closer ties with the horse racing industry in Newmarket,” said Fr. Griffin. “Through the generosity of Paddy Power this is now starting to happen.”

Generosity indeed, but how difficult will it be for some penitent punters to drop a coin in the “sin box” if they happen to have already lost their shirt on a bet placed with Paddy Power? God only knows.

BBC News: Bookmaker Paddy Power sponsors confessional box

An Irish bookmaker has paid £10,000 for a new confessional box at a Catholic church in Newmarket after he was approached for a donation.

Father Griffin said everyone “liked a flutter” and gambling was only a sin if it left a wife and family without food. The priest said that the person who made the call knew Paddy Power was the name of a betting shop chain but was surprised when Paddy Power himself answered the phone.

Father Griffin said that the church had been trying to raise a total of £65,000 for renovations, which also included a new altar and font. The rest of the money raised has come from legacies.

Yesterday, entry to Ascot was free. Over 19,000 people showed up. It was a record-breaking day for bookmakers, but not in a good way. Many bet shops were experimenting with decimal prices instead of the usual fractional notation. The change confused punters, leaving some bookies barley able to cover expenses despite the impressive turnout.

Guardian: Decimal experiment fails to make its point

UK racing’s experiment with decimal odds only lasted a single day. The five major bookmakers agreed to show their odds as decimals rather than the traditional fractions all reported slumps in business, even though free entry to Ascot brought a huge crowd.

“We’ve had a number of queries today and they’ve all been about how we convert the decimal prices into the odds that are shown on other boards,” one worker said.

“So I’m now £160 up on the day and that just about covers the expenses. Which, considering the number of bets we’ve taken, is remarkable.”

Bookmakers feel that punters were confused by the unfamiliar decimals, and decided to place their wagers with other bookies who were not taking part in the trial.

“The feedback we’re getting from the customers is that they’re struggling to understand what our prices represent,” said Geoff Banks, betting on the rails.

“In the second race, for example, the favourite was 13-8 everywhere. I went 1.75 [a better price, the equivalent of 7-4] and I kept that for six or seven minutes – no particular interest.

“So then I said to my colleague next door, you go 7-4 with the fractionals and see what happens. He took six bets immediately and I took one.”

It is to be hoped that this brief change to decimal odds has not put bettors off.

Mirror: 5 out of 10 for decimal prices

Decimalisation began at Ascot yesterday as British racecourses tried out decimal odds instead traditional fractions.

The move is being heralded by Racing For Change, which is trying to bring racing to a wider audience. Their plan also includes free entry at nine fixtures this week to bring in new clients.

The decimal odds trial didn’t go over well. First-time racegoer Paul Rostron said: “The Tote odds include the stake but the decimalised odds don’t, so it’s quite confusing.”

Times Online: Bets are off as Ascot takes an unlucky punt on decimal odds

Yesterday at Ascot, a handful of course-side bookmakers offered their prices in decimal odds, a model that some believe is the future of betting. Instead, confusion took lead as punters juggled with the two types of odds.

Biike Wharton Slaney was not optimistic. “It’s just a fad. If you don’t know the odds you’re not going to be betting in the first place,” he mused.

Bettor John Denyer, 75, was dumbfounded by his decimal betting slip. “It’s hard for me being an old fellow,” he said. “If this takes over, that’s me out the window.”

Entry to Ascot was free yesterday, and more than 19,000 people showed up. There were a few takers for the new decimal system, but most punters were not happy with the change.

By midday, one bookmaker decided he’d had enough. His takings were 35 per cent down on last year. “The customers are confused,” he said.

New legislation is being passed through the British parlament at record speed, among them a bill that has the power to bring much of the internet down to its knees within the United Kingdom. Whether or not the bill will affect the online gambling industry is unknown, but nevertheless, a possibility.

Cnet UK: Digital Economy Bill: Nine things you can’t do any more

The Digital Economy Bill has clauses that could lead to some pretty horrible outcomes. The bill sprinted from Commons to Lords almost without a pause for breath before getting the nod from Her Maj. Until Ofcom hammers out the details outlined in the bill, it’s impossible to say how we’ll be affected. Possibilities:

Watch copyrighted content
The bill aims to make it more difficult to access copyrighted content by blocking Web sites built around sharing such material. Sanctions can be applied to users if they use them.

Download from us
The bill states that download websites can be blocked if they providing copyright infringing tools.

Use WikiLeaks
According to the bill, the government can block sites deemed ‘likely to’ infringe copyright. How ‘likely to’ will be defined will determined which sites can be blocked.

Use free open Wi-Fi
Locations that provide Wi-Fi may think twice about doing so as they will be held accountable for internet traffic from their servers.

Watch YouTube
YouTube may come under fire as copyrighted material can be found on the site.

Google stuff
As Google is often used to find downloads, it too may be threatened.

The New York Times: U.K. Approves Crackdown on Internet Pirates

The British Parliament has approved plans to crack down on digital media piracy by authorizing the suspension of repeat offenders’ Internet connections.

Both the House of Commons and the House of Lords approved the bill after heavy lobbying from the music and movie industries. The anti-piracy plan is part of a broader bill aimed at stimulating the digital economy in Britain.

The government’s anti-piracy plans were modified in the final rounds of negotiations over the bill. Under previous proposals, the content industries could have gone to court to seek injunctions requiring Internet service providers to block access to Web sites that foster piracy. Similar clauses were included elsewhere in the bill.

The Guardian: Digital economy bill rushed through wash-up in late night session

The UK government forced the Digital Economy Bill through parliament with the aid of the Conservative party, attaining a crucial third reading – which means it will get royal assent and become law – after just 2 hours of debate in the Commons.

Despite opposition from the Liberal Democrats and a group of Labour MPs who spoke against measures contained in the bill, the government easily won 2 votes to determine the content of the bill and its passage through the committee stage. The vote was in the government’s favour, which it won by 189 votes to 47.

Earlier the government removed its proposed clause 18, which could have given it sweeping powers to block sites, but replaced it with an amendment to clause 8 of the bill.

Liberal Democrat MP, John Hemming, protested that this could mean the blocking of whistleblower sites. Stephen Timms for the government said that it would not want to see the clause used to restrict freedom of speech.

Masked Robbers charged the Grand Casino, located in Basle, Switzerland, just 200 meters from the French border. The bandits made off with hundreds of thousands of franks and escaped across the border. Swiss and French police are working in a joint effort to bring the situation to justice.

BBC News: Switzerland casino is robbed by armed gang

According to prosecutors, masked men stormed a casino near the Swiss border city of Basle, and made off with hundreds of thousands of francs. About 10 raiders showed up in two cars and smashed their way in, brandishing machine-guns and pistols.

The gang spoke French and ordered the 600 guests and employees to the floor while they emptied registers. Reports say they couldn’t get into the strong room despite firing on the door. The gang escaped in their cars, silver Audis with French license plates, headed towards France. Basle lies on the Swiss border, with French territory just 200m from the casino.

According to the Basle prosecutor’s office, no-one was injured though several shots were fired. Managing director Michael Favrod said it was the first robbery at the casino.

The Guardian: Basle’s Grand Royal casino raided by armed gang

French and Swiss police have launched a cross-border manhunt for an armed gang which recently stormed a Swiss Casino and made off with hundreds of thousands of Euros. According to prosecutors, the raid was professionally executed at 4am in the Basle’s Grand Casino by about 10 masked raiders armed with machine guns and pistols.

One man burst through the door with a sledgehammer, and his partners ran inside and ordered guests to the floor while firing into the air. Some of the gang tried to break into the safe room but failed, despite firing bullets into the door.

The gang sped across the border in 2 silver Audis. The Grand Casino is just 200 meters from the French border. Witnesses said the gang members spoke in French.

The Wall Street Journal: Armed Gang Raids Swiss Casino

A gang of masked men raided a large casino in Basel and stole hundreds of thousands of Swiss francs just 1 week after the Swiss government approved the expansion of gaming.

The 10 men pulled off a daring heist at the Grand Casino of Basel. They pulled up to the casino in a pair of gray Audis bearing French license plates. Once inside, they brandished machine guns and pistols, and ordered the 600 guests and employees to drop to the ground. Investigators said the men spoke French.

Some of the men emptied registers, while others unsuccessfully attempted to break open a safe in the basement by shooting the door. A few guests and casino guards were lightly injured in a scuffle.

The theft happened just a week after the Swiss government gave the green light for regions that don’t currently have casinos to seek a license this spring. At the moment, there are 19 casinos in Switzerland.