Livermore Regulatory News (LIV)

7 Jul 2005 07:00

Empire Online Limited07 July 2005 7th July 2005 Empire Online Ltd Trading Update Empire Online Limited (the "Company" or "Empire Online"), a leading provider ofmarketing services to the online gaming industry, today provides the followingtrading update for the second quarter of 2005. During the second quarter of 2005 the Company has continued its planned offlinemarketing scheme which has delivered positive results. The Company is planningto launch offline campaigns in four more countries during the next six months. Key highlights include: • Strong net gaming revenues estimated at US$25.3 million (Q2 2004: US$13.8 million; Q1 2005: US$24.4 million). • Estimated poker revenue of US$20.3 million (Q2 2004: US$ 8.3 million; Q1 2005: US$18.8 million). • Estimated casino revenue of US$ 5 million (Q2 2004: 5.5 million; Q1 2005: US$ 5.6 million). Decrease is explained by an extraordinary series of Jackpots won by the Company's players in excess of US$1 million. • Estimated net profit of US$13 million (Q2 2004: US$7.8 million; Q1 2005: US$ 12.4 million) • Number of New Real money players acquired by the Company during the second quarter (Poker and Casino) was 42,772 (Q2 2004: 22,545; Q1 2005: 49,423). The decrease is explained by seasonality in the business. • Number of active players (players who played for real money during the last 90 days) increased to 126,507 (Q2 2004: 51,367; Q1 2005: 121,642). • Number of Average active players per day (Average real money players playing during a day for poker and Casino) increased to 17,555 (Q2 2004: 12,992; Q1 2005: 16,685) CEO Noam Lanir commented; "We are pleased with our second quarter performancewhich overcame the natural seasonal market decrease in activity and was in linewith our expectations. We are confident that Empire Online will continue todeliver strong performance in line with our strategic goals." The Company expects to announce its interim results in early August 2005. For further information: Empire Online Limited +357 (2) 5 847 700 Noam Lanir, Chief Executive Officer Yossi Pereg, Chief Financial Officer Numis Securities +44 (0) 20 7776 1500 James Black Citigate Dewe Rogerson +44 (0) 20 7638 9571 Simon Rigby Sarah Gestetner Ged Brumby Notes to Editors Company overview Empire Online is a leading provider of marketing services to the online gamingindustry. Through online and offline advertising and other marketing techniques,the Group directs new players to online poker and online casino websitesoperated by third party gaming operators, principally empirepoker.com (a whitelabel website related to PartyPoker.com, one of the largest online poker rooms)and Casino-On-Net (part of 888.com, one of the most established online casinowebsites). The Company also has arrangements with a subsidiary of PartyGaming tomarket other online gaming websites, including AceClub.com andstarluckcasino.com. The Group's objective is to take advantage of the expected growth of the onlinegaming market by generating greater revenues in a cost-efficient manner throughthe acquisition of new players and by increasing the activity levels of theGroup's existing players. The Company aims to pay particular attention toexpanding its player base in certain European countries in the medium term, withthe intention of raising its profile and reducing the Group's reliance on theNorth American market. Empire Online will also continue to pursue its existingstrategies in relation to its primary markets of the United States and Canada tomaintain its strong position in these markets. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange