SPO.L Regulatory News (SPO)

28 Jun 2007 07:01

Sportech PLC28 June 2007 Sportech PLC (the "Company") AGM Statement At today's Annual General Meeting of Sportech PLC, the UK's leading footballgaming business, Piers Pottinger, Chairman, will make the following statement. "Good progress has been made in the first six months of the year. Trading is inline with internal and market expectations and the Board enters the second halfof the financial year with confidence. The Company's strategic review has been completed and implementation plans areprogressing well. Importantly, during the period, the company entered into anagreement with Ladbrokes plc to acquire its Vernons branded football poolsbusiness, a merger that will create a larger pools business with significantcustomer and operational benefits. The matter has been referred by the Office ofFair Trading to the Competition Commission and since April 2007, the Board hasbeen engaging with the Competition Commission and will continue to offer itsfull support and co-operation during its consultation process. Sportech willmake a further announcement on the proposed acquisition once the CompetitionCommission issues its decision, which is expected before the end of October2007. The Football Pools business continues to trade in line with expectations,building upon the improvements made last year. The E-gaming business, comprisingonline casino, poker, bingo and fixed odds games, is trading significantly aheadof last year. This gives the Board confidence for the launch of the onlinefootball business, commencing in August. The Company is making significant progress on the three key foundation areas ofthe business: product, technology and distribution. Good progress is being made on product development, as we look to expand ourrange of games to include content rich, football predictor and communityproducts. These developments are on budget and on time, with the initial launchof the first new product anticipated for the beginning of the 2007/2008 footballseason. Subsequent new products will be rolled out during the remaining ninemonths of the season. The recently signed technology and distribution partnerships with Orbis andScientific Games are maturing well and very real significant progress is beingmade on the updating of the technology. The introduction of new back-endtechnology to Sportech's operations is paramount to the success of the companyand the Board is delighted that the upgrade and integration is on time and onbudget. It is anticipated that the migration will initially commence in August,with subsequent releases thereafter, and is expected to be completed in theSpring of 2008. The Company continues to explore both domestic distribution, and internationalexpansion opportunities, and is making good progress identifying potentialtargets. Continued progress with product developments and technologicalimprovements remains key to facilitating many of the distribution opportunitiesin order to broaden the customer base. Sportech has successfully consolidated its operations into one building,realising operational and communication benefits, and cost savings as a result.The Company continues to make good progress in debt reduction and is committedto strengthening its Balance Sheet. We continue to make good progress following the completion of our strategicreview and look forward to the future with confidence." ENDS For further information: Sportech PLCIan Penrose, Chief Executive 0151 288 3561 Bell Pottinger Corporate & FinancialDavid Rydell / Emma Kent 0207 861 3232 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange