While the Daily Telegraph revealed details of documents proving that the current chief of staff of Labor Leader Kevin Rudd lobbied the State Government to allow Betfair to operate in New South Wales, the Chief Executive of Australia's largest betting operator asked Victorian premier John Brumby and NSW Premier Morris Iemma to ban betting exchanges and to introduce a 2% turnover fee for all corporate bookmakers.

According to PA Sport, the British Horseracing Authority asked UK bookmakers to contribute 15% of their gross profits on racing, up from the current 10% contribution, and betting exchanges to pay 1.25% of their net profits, with a total request for the 2008-9 season of between £135 million and £153 million.

Everest Poker owner GigaMedia reported a 76% increase to $43.0 million in third quarter revenues, with a net income of $9.7 million, up 49% year-over-year. "Third-quarter results were strong, with no decline in our poker business despite the seasonal downturn," stated GigaMedia President Thomas Hui. "Over the next few quarters, we plan to add several top-tier games to our platforms and expand our strategic partnerships – key steps to driving even stronger growth," added GigaMedia CEO Arthur Wang.

The internet bookmaker owned by Modern Times Group launched an online bingo product using Parlay Entertainment's bingo technology.

The Chief Executive of the online gaming and betting group does not intend to dispose of any further shares in 2007. Garber exercised today share options on 3,500,000 shares and as a result currently holds a total of 8,750,000 shares.

Luiz Carlos Hauly, member of the Chamber of Deputies, recently submitted a bill that would prohibit internet sports books from taking bets in Brazil and require financial institutions to block online betting transactions.

In-Forum reports the plan of a Kentucky businessman to open a central betting exchange for the North American horse racing industry in North Dakota.

Parent company Marginbet announced today that it will change its focus to the mining sector with the acquisition of an interest in the Christmas Bore Project. The company appointed an independent consultant to report on the viability of Portlandbet and provide recommendation to improve the profitability of the online betting business.

The online bookmaker named today investment bank Öhman Fondkommission to explore the possibilities of raising capital in the bond market. Unibet also said to be in discussions with a number of parties regarding strategic acquisitions.

The Times reports that England’s failure to qualify for the Euro 2008 soccer championship will cost UK high street businesses as much as £650 million. "A successful run to the 2008 final would have led to a £2 billion bonanza for the economy," commented Simon Chadwick, Professor at the Coventry Business School.

While the Guardian revealed that Coral and Turf TV were close to reach an agreement after few weeks of talks, Gala Coral CEO Neil Goulden told the Racing Post that the terms offered are not attractive and the cost remains too high for the UK bookmaker to show Turf TV in its betting shops.

The study commissioned by the state Gaming Control Board to the International Gaming Institute of the University of Nevada Las Vegas will try to quantify how many Nevadans gamble online and to identify the pros and cons of regulating internet gambling.

The Telegraph reported that Jennings acquired the business from Interactive Gaming Holdings for an undisclosed sum.

Following a six months investigation into illegal soccer gambling across Asia, over 400 persons were arrested by Interpol in collaboration with local law-enforcement agencies in China, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

While UK Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe stated that if the Tote will be sold on the open market, 50 per cent of the sale price will go to the horseracing industry, and just as the British Horseracing Authority called on UK bookmakers to make a bigger contribution to the racing industry, Chris Bell, CEO of Ladbrokes, said the bookmaker no longer supports the levy system. "Our view is that it is an outdated mechanism that has to go," Bell said.

The betting exchange will allow its users to bet on climate indices such as the HSBC Investable Climate Change Index and the ECX CFI Futures Contract as well as on the highest and lowest UK temperatures. "Whilst these climate markets are experimental, they demonstrate a commitment to use our assets to innovate and make a difference," said Betfair's MD Mark Davies, who also revealed the company's committment to reduce its own carbon footprint by 30% by the end of 2010.

The UK bookmaker joins the likes of Bwin, 888 and Stan James in the collaborative fraud management service that allows companies to benefit from the fraud experiences of other companies.

The Directors of the company requested a trading halt in view of an impending announcement of a significant business event.

The Swedish-registered online poker and sports betting operator reported net sales for SEK 56.9m and a profit after tax of SEK 0.2m during the third quarter of 2007, with 80,000 new registered customers and over 64,000 active customers, on par with the previous quarter. Sports betting, which is handled from Estonia, delivered revenues for only SEK 1.9m during the quarter and for SEK 4.8m from the beginning of the year.

The Norwegian Government submitted a proposal that would make illegal for financial institutions to process transactions to and from online gambling sites. A spokesperson for the government said existing laws already prohibit companies to engage in marketing or mediating for internet gambling services and the new legislation simply clarifies that the term 'mediating' applies to payment processing.