Nambling Notes - Dec. 6, 1999

On the Racing Front -- New York Racing and Wagering Board chairman Mike Hoblock has called a Dec. 20 public hearing in Albany to air the proposal of Television Games Network to operate in New York state. Hoblock said the state's OTBs, which oppose TVG's entry into the New York market, will have an opportunity to air their concerns, and the legality of TVG to take bets in New York and have them processed elsewhere will be reviewed.

The Racing Network has announced that it will carry daily on-site news reports from next week's Symposium on Racing in Tucson. The Symposium, annually the largest gathering of racing leaders in the United States, is presented by the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program. TRN's Mike Curci will interview key racing leaders and provide coverage of the panel discussions, comments and opinions of racing executives in attendance. The Symposium news segments will be shown daily on TRN's channel one.

TrackPower, whose subscribers are able to see and bet on harness and thoroughbred races through Telebet, operated by Penn National Gaming, has added four more tracks. With HTA's Dover Downs in Delaware, Delta Downs in Louisiana, Remington Park in Oklahoma, and Fairmount Park in Illinois on board, TrackPower now has 33 tracks in its network.

Legal Stuff -- Las Vegas Sporting News recently reported that online sportsbook Worldwide Tele-Sports and insurer Lloyd's of London have been exchanging some rather angry words. According to LVSN, it seems that Lloyd's of London has contacted the site requiring all references to Lloyd's insuring betting accounts to be removed. WWTS couldn't be reached for comment. The insurance company has also neglected to respond to IGN. This is the second time Lloyd's has refuted insuring an online sportsbook, the first being Nasa Sports International.

The class action lawyers are having quite a feeding frenzy on gambling software provider Starnet Communications International and the recent plunge of its stock following the RCMP raid in August. For those keeping score and stuggling to keep up, IGN has compiled a list of class action suits pending. In no particular order, the following firms have shown up to the party:

Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach ("Milberg Weiss"); Steven G. Schulman or Samuel H. Rudman (New York)

Tzivia Brody, Esq; Stull, Stull, & Brody (New York)

Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz LLP (New York)

The Law Office of Leo W. Desmond (New York)

Chimicles & Tikellis

Keller Rohrback L.L.P (Seattle)

Rosenthal, Monhait, Gross & Goddess, P.A. (Wilmington, DE)

Berger & Montague, P.C. (Philadelphia)

Levy & Levy (New York)

Meanwhile, amid the muck, Starnet announced last week the appointment of Ed Starrs as vice president of corporate development. Starrs brings to Starnet 16 years of sales and management experience, including four years at McCaw Communications, Inc., a Fortune 100 company, where he was a top sales producer.

Investors' Corner -- The redundantly redundantly-named GIC Global Intertainment Corporation announced Thursday intentions to be listed on a major international stock exchange. The company, operator of Cyberbetz.com, Y2klotter.com and additional sites, didn't disclose which exchange it has its sites on or when it will make the move.

New Stuff -- Global Entertainment Holdings/Equities Inc. announced last week that its wholly owned subsidiary, Interactive Gaming and Wagering N.V. (IGW), has launched the "New Millennium Series" online casino games to its software licensees. The "New Millennium Series" games optimize the Java engine for both the website interface and the operator's back office. "Our clients can now offer the end user the ability to choose whether they want an immediate-load Java game or a more graphic intense experience," said Bryan Abboud, president of IGW.

The Merge Continues -- Look for U.K betting shop and casino operator Stanley Leisure to enter the online gambling biz in 2000. Chairman Leonard Steinberg, while speaking last week in London at the International Symposium on Internet Gambling Law and Management, made it clear that the company intends to enter the Net betting business in coming months. The group recently acquired Crockford's, London's oldest private gaming club, through the purchase of Capital Corporation, and plans to operate an internet betting service under the Crockford's name.