Football hijacks PartyGaming's punters

Published on Tuesday 8 July 2008 21:50

ONLINE betting company PartyGaming said revenues tailed off during the past two months as punters turned to the European football championships for entertainment.

The Gibraltar-based, London-listed company said that, "as expected", seasonal trends and a competition for players' leisure time had hit gross revenues since the end of April, naming the Euro championships as a particular driver.

While the company does offer its customers online sports betting, the vast majority of its revenue comes from online poker competitions and casino games.

Shares dropped 10 per cent to 223.5p despite claims margins will be improved due to operational efficiencies and lower marketing costs.

PartyGaming claimed revenue at its casino business had been boosted by cross-selling from its poker clients. It was also helped by two popular branded slot-machine games, Mission: Impossible and Saturday Night Fever, while its bingo offering had been lifted since the launch of ITV show Bingo Night Live.

The FTSE-250 firm also revealed that it faced a one-off charge of $4 million (2m) relating to the departure of chief executive Mitch Garber, who quit in May. Garber cited family reasons for leaving, amid rumours of tension among the board over how to settle legal disputes in the US. The costs cover releasing him from his contract a year early and buying out of his employee share options.