UK-based online betting site Sportingbet has experienced considerable growth since acquiring Paradise Poker in October for 298m pounds. The online poker site was largely responsible for this growth, enhancing turnover by 12.5m pounds. Sportingbet shares have also tripled in the past five months and profits for the second quarter soared 84%. Additionally, of Sportingbet's total 26m pounds earned in operating profits, 8m pounds was due to Paradise Poker's contribution.

The number of registered Sportingbet customers jumped 85.1%. Excluding new Paradise Poker customers, that figure would be a meager 17.1%. Moreover, strong performance by Sportingbet allegedly inspired financial analysts to modify their previous predictions for the coming fiscal year, upping profits forecasts from 49m pounds to between 52m pounds and 54m pounds.

By acquiring Paradise Poker, the No. 3 poker operator on the net, Sportingbet effectively doubled in size. The acquisition also helped relieve the company's reliance on the occasional major sporting event. A representative for Sportingbet was quoted as saying that the company is currently searching for additional potential acquisitions.

Source: OP-News Staff

WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW -- Web hosting provider C I Host (cihost.com) announced last week that it would sponsor professional poker player Dutch Boyd during his competition on the poker circuit.

Boyd, who will wear C I Host's orange logo on his attire, will make his first sponsorship appearance at a tournament held at Harrah's Rincon Casino in San Diego, California from February 27 to March 2. The coverage is expected to draw over a million viewers, C I host said. C I Host has developed a reputation for its unusual marketing tactics.

In April 2003, the company contracted Jim Nelson to tattoo the C I Host logo on the back of his head. And last year, C I Host offered to pay $10,000 to any player or fan captured in the television news coverage of the fight between fans and players at an NBA game in Detroit, if they tattooed the company's logo on their fist. The company also offered to pay $10,000 to any professional athlete that tattooed the company's logo on their bicep and tested steroid-free.

"C I Host invented the tattoo advertisement craze, and naturally, some folks thought we weren't playing with a full deck. However, the guerilla medium is everywhere - all over the news. Now, we'll try our hand in poker," says Faulkner.