SPORTINGBET ARRESTS IN TURKEY

30 May 2008

Online betting associate Superbahis employees questioned


Internet gambling group Sportingbet.com has announced that people related to its Turkish facing business, Superbahis, have been detained in Turkey.

In a statement, the company reported that individuals associated with Maslin Properties Ltd., the group's ex-marketing partner in the region, along with a number of their associates have been detained. Thus far, there has been no formal clarification of events from the authorities.

The detainees include two unnamed UK-based Sportingbet employees - both Turkish nationals - who had been in the country on vacation. They are not directors of the company, a spokesman confirmed.

Sportingbet said it continues to trade in the Turkish market and remains confident of meeting market expectations for the fourth quarter and the year ending July 31. The group generated 26 percent of its last second-quarter gaming revenues and 14 percent of third-quarter 2008 gaming revenues in Turkey as it reduced its dependence on the Turkish market.

Reporting on the incident, Reuters said that some forms of gambling are legal in Turkey, such as betting on sports games, but casino gambling is illegal.

The online gambling group PartyGaming exited the Turkish market in 2008 due to concerns about the legal problems surrounding online gambling.

Sportingbet's chief executive Andrew McIver told The Telegraph newspaper that the group's interpretation of the new laws was that it could continue taking bets as long as it had no assets or operations in Turkey. The group's computer processing is in Guernsey and customer support in Dublin.

''Turkish law seeks to make it illegal to be based anywhere in the world. Our interpretation is that Turkish law ends at the Turkish border," McIver said.
Sportingbet acquired Superbahis in February 2007 to offer online gaming services to the Turkish market.

Online Casino News courtesy of InfoPowa