EDL.L Regulatory News (EDL)

18 Jul 2005 07:00

TV Commerce Holdings PLC18 July 2005 Launch of new mobile casino in a joint venture TV Commerce TV Commerce Holdings PLC, the owner and operator of specialist televisionchannels which joined the AIM market in February this year, announces that ithas launched the UK's first Mobile phone casino and slots games to be brandedand promoted by a television broadcaster. From today, millions of Sky television subscribers will be able to download andplay free versions of the games directly to their mobile phones. The games allcarry the station branding and related content, such as programme schedules andpromotions. Customers can opt to play the games for real money once they havedownloaded the free version to their handsets, and subject to rigorous ageverification procedures. TV Commerce has selected the popular Your Destiny channel (Sky 694) to be thefirst station to take advantage of this opportunity. Your Destiny TV is the UK'sfirst live psychic Television channel. The games on offer include "FortuneTeller", a mobile phone fruit machine which also provides players with a dailyhoroscope. The service has been developed and is managed by Probability Games Corporation,the leading operator of managed 'white label' mobile casino and slots. TVCommerce is offering viewers the full range of PGC games, including Blackjack,Slot machines, Hi-Low, Roulette and Poker directly on to their mobile phones andplay for stakes ranging from as little as 10p per game. The games are free and quick to download directly to the mobile handset. Allgames have been tested on over 150 different handsets and full customer supportis available. The companies are already working on creating branded servicesfor other channels operated by TV Commerce and expect to launch several moreover the summer period. TV Commerce have assigned an initial budget of up to £100,000 to market the newgames using predominantly television, database marketing, press and TVarrangements with other media owners. The games have been soft launched withimmediate effect and a major marketing campaign will start in September 05 andescalate into the Christmas period. These months are traditionally strong for TVviewing figures. TV Commerce envisages that the mobile casino venture will make a significantcontribution to revenues toward the end of 2005 and beyond. Commenting on the deal Vince Stanzione CEO of TV Commerce said, "We believe thatthis is our most significant joint venture since our floatation and I amexpecting massive growth in the mobile gaming markets. With our marketingexpertise, existing customer database and our ability to market to over 8million Sky customers cost effectively, this will allow us to generatesubstantial ongoing revenues in a fairly short space of time." John Scaife of Probability Games said "Television is a new frontier forlow-stakes gambling in the UK which we are ideally positioned to exploit throughthis partnership. PGC have processed nearly four million mobile bets since ourlaunch last year, and we understand that delivering a mass market entertainmentservice themed around low-stakes gaming is more than just putting a fruitmachine onto a phone. A good service the viewing public can trust requiresreliable and robust systems for preventing misuse and underage play, as well andan ability to support as many of the phones out there in the hands of ourcustomers with a fast and reliable user experience." For further information contact: Vince Stanzione, Chief Executive, TV Commerce Holdings plc: 01908 330 747 07712 651 777 Allan Piper, First City Financial Public Relations: 020 7436 7486 07736 064 982 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange