Betfair Revenues Way UpEven though Betfair has been prevented from entering the pivotal US betting market for the time being, that hasn't stopped the massive wagering firm from seeing increased revenues.
Betfair, which last month joined the Gambling911.com family (see Betfair Poker here) says its revenues jumped 30% after it benefited from "significant" investment in technology and new products.
The introduction of an online casino, re-launch of Betfair Poker and improved marketing helped to attract record numbers of users to the company's site.
Betfair's number of registered customers is now in excess of one million, with active users up to 443,300 at the end of April, up 57% on a year earlier.
Revenues of £182 million resulted in a 26% rise in underlying earnings to £48 million, but one-off investments of around £12 million contributed to a fall in pre-tax profits to £25.3 million in the year to April 30, from £36.5 million.
Betfair provides a marketplace that allows punters to bet against each other. It makes its money by taking a cut on winnings.
Because Betfair did not accept US customers prior to the passage of UIGEA last October, the firm was not affected in terms of revenue unlike its counterparts PartyGaming and 888.com.
Furthermore, Betfair has reduced its dependency on the United Kingdom. with overseas customers contributing 38% of total revenues, up from 32% in 2006. Betfair will shortly begin trading in Italy, in addition to existing licences in the UK, Malta, Germany, Austria and Australia.
The company said it continued to work with governments worldwide to push for a regulated approach to the future liberalisation of gambling markets.
----
Related Articles:
Online Gambling News
Internet Gambling: October Will Prove an Interesting Month
Online Gambling Ban Could Cost US Billions of Dollars
WTO Internet Gambling Ruling Could Require U.S. to Pay $100 Billion
Ladbrokes, PartyGaming, Paddy Power Monitor US Internet Gambling Situation
BetonSports Author Provides G911 With "Threat Letter"
BookMaker.com
hosts $10,000
BlackJack Bowl
Obama Should Support Online Poker Efforts
Online Poker Bots a Problem at Full Tilt Poker
----
Gambling911.com News Wire
Originally published October 1, 2007 4:23 am ET
