Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Online gambling firm, PartyGaming PLC, made an announcement yesterday
stating it would not allow customer from Turkey to access its website, after
legislation was passed prohibiting online gambling offered from domestic or
foreign companies. PartyGaming had already pulled its business away from the
US market after the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act was signed
into law by President George W. Bush. The company also stated that revenue
from customers in Turkey does not represent a significant amount its total
revenue. A spokesperson for PartyGaming said in a statement, "We have now
taken the reasonable steps to ensure that customers in Turkey are denied
access to any of our gaming sites." Since this decision, shares have gone up
4 percent to 58.5 pence ($1.15) on the London Stock Exchange. In March,
PartyGaming reported a 56 percent plunge in annual net profits following the
US governments decision to ban Internet Gambling. The future for the
company, however, is looking bright as it searches to find revenue in other
markets.