Monthly Archives: December 2009

Internet 1×2 Busted

Internet1x2.com, an online gambling site specializing in soccer betting, was the scene of several arrests this week. The company, which is based in Israel has been operating now for a decade. It was started by two brothers and former Israeli Basketball players. It gained popularity a few years ago when it was associated with Yahoops.com, which was almost sued by the search engine Yahoo!. On Tuesday, the police uncovered the illegal online gambling network, which was reputed for its slow pays, and arrested 5 people who were suspected of operating an online gambling network catering to Israeli gamblers. Other members of the Organization who were involved with providing technical support to the websites and managing finances and payments as well as several gamblers, were also detained.

According to the Israeli police, this is just a taste of what is in store for those persons who insist on operating illegal online gambling operations.

Mangas Gaming Acquires Everest Gaming Group

Everest Poker

Everest Gaming Group is now owned by Mangas Gaming, the same French company that owns Betclic. This moves puts Mangas Gaming at the forefront of online gaming, establishing itself as a leading Player in all key areas of online gaming, including Sportsbetting, Poker, and Casino. With the addition of Betclic Poker, Everest Poker will become the first Poker community in France. Mangas will hold 60% of Everest while GigaMedia, a company listed on NASDAQ, will hold the remaining 40%.

Everest was one of the few gaming companies that was still using a proprietary Poker product that was developed in-house. Its sites were so well-known in Europe because they were tailored especially for the local market. Said Arthur Wang, CEO of GigaMedia, “Our strategy is to participate in the growth of this innovative and dynamic industry in Europe. We are glad to do it alongside the French’s leading sports betting and online gaming group.” Everest Gaming Group has been in operation since 1997 and staffs about 250 persons.

Mangas Gaming is the leading French sports betting and online gaming group. It has a presence in more than 25 countries and a client-base of 4 Million users.

Gaming companies want freedom of movement

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Gambling operators eager to tap into the monopolized European market, will have an even longer wait as the two Dutch gaming cases involving Ladbrokes, Betfair, and the Dutch State monopoly De Lotto, continue at the European Court of Justice (ECJ).

According to law, the EU member states can legally grant a single Operator the right to run betting and gaming operations. However, the Operators have argued that this limits their mobility and is in breach of the core EU principles on “freedom of movement”. The ECJ is in favour of the restriction and sees it as a means of protecting the player from fraud.

Yves Bot, advocate-general, said that, in order to extend gaming licenses, a competitive tender procedure should be introduced, as long as it does not affect public order and other important matters. He went on to confirm that member states do not have to recognise gambling licences which operators have obtained in other EU countries.

European Lotteries said that it welcomed the confirmation of the court’s previous jurisprudence.