SIS (Sports Information Services) has announced it is closing down all non-essential services and furloughing a “significant number” of staff, effective immediately.

The company says it is taking the action to protect its long term future, after virtually all live racing worldwide has ceased, and a significant number of betting retail outlets have been closed, by the ongoing COVID-19 crisis.

SIS will continue to supply online operators with information for as long as the content is live, and says it will resume normal service for customers and partners when conditions are appropriate.

Announcing the extraordinary move CEO of SIS, Richard Ames, said:

“SIS is moving into an interim period of hibernation in these extraordinary times. I am pleased to be able to confirm that our intention is to come back just as strongly as before and to be back up and running to serve the needs of our customers as soon as live racing content returns to action.

“We are taking this action to protect the business and to preserve the jobs of our hard-working team. I thank each of them for their fantastic commitment to continuing to service our content partners and customers throughout the last challenging weeks and look forward to welcoming them back into the business as soon as possible.”

AYO.NEWS says:

With the COVID-19 crisis looking set to continue for at least a few months, we expect to see more sports related companies take similar action over the coming days and weeks. The exposure of SIS to horse and greyhound racing especially, has proved to be a significant liability in this crisis, though its esports operations should at least allow the company to continue generating revenue.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

The embattled Italian gambling industry has been given some relief by the government, which has temporarily suspended tax duties.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte announced a €25 billion rescue package to help companies, including those in the lottery and betting sectors, with payroll, mortgage and commercial rents costs during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Additional help includes:

• Gambling operators can defer duty payments for slots and VLTs until 29 May
• Gambling venues can postpone concession fee payments until end of trading year, and payments can be made in instalments
• Betting shop and bingo concessions extended by six months
• Concessions extension for slots and VLT tenders expected to be announced
• Bingo hall operators won’t have to pay license fees for duration of crisis
• Lottery, betting and gaming machine suppliers able to temporarily suspend payments to PAYE program

Prime Minister Conte has also urged the EU to allow Italy access to a €900 billion credit fund, ensured by the Union under its ‘European Stability Mechanism’ to provide for longer-term relief measures.

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Adrian Marsh will no longer be joining sports betting giant William Hill as new CFO, after deciding to stay in his role at DS Smith, due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

Last month William Hill announced Marsh would be replacing Ruth Prior as CFO, but the unprecedented uncertainty ushered in by the virus crisis has caused him to change his mind and stay on as Group Finance Director for packaging company DS Smith.

William Hill has said Prior will now continue as CFO until a new replacement has been found.

Commenting on the situation William Hill chairman, Roger Devlin, said:

“While we note the reasons for Adrian’s decision, William Hill is focused on taking the necessary steps required in these unprecedented times to protect the interests of its stakeholders. We will provide an update in due course.”

With virtually all global sports shutdown due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, all major bookmakers are bracing for a significant negative impact. William Hill has said it expects the crisis to reduce group EBITDA by between £100m and £110m for the year, and has suspended its dividend until further notice.

AYO.NEWS says:

Though it must be frustrating for William Hill, we don’t think anyone can really blame Marsh for deciding to stick in his current role given the uncertainties in the sports betting industry right now. We wouldn’t be surprised to see further similar situations occur over the coming weeks either.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

US sports betting giant DraftKings has launched “#DKRally”, a new charity initiative aimed at mobilising sports fans to support communities affected by the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

For every person who shares their rally cap (baseball cap worn inside-out and backwards etc), on social media using the hashtag #DKRally, the operator has pledged to donate $1, up to a total of $1m, to United Way.

Explaining the initiative DraftKings President North America, Matt Kalish, said:

“The rally cap uniquely embodies the American spirit and our hope in the face of adversity, no matter the challenge ahead. It represents the come-back attitude we have at DraftKings as we work with our communities to face down COVID-19.

“Our player community over the years has shown a steadfast commitment to social good in times of need through many charitable programs on our platform. We are confident America will now rally for those in need to help ignite this important comeback.”

While Vice President of Strategic Partnerships at United Way Worldwide, Larissa Rydin, added:

“United Way fights for every person in every community and has long been at the forefront of disaster and crisis recovery efforts in communities around the world. Our response to the COVID-19 pandemic is no different.

“United Way continues to leverage is extensive convening power and resources, in partnership with the 2-1-1 network, crisis relief non-profits, and federal agencies, to lead a targeted and coordinated response to the pandemic. Each day, thousands of people are losing their jobs, out of school children are not receiving food, and the virus is straining the capacity of our healthcare system. We are grateful to partners like DraftKings for joining us during this time of crisis.”

AYO.NEWS says:

Hats off to DraftKings for this initiative. With the pandemic reaching a new intensity in places like New York, many people are going to need support as this crisis continues, and for a long time afterwards. We hope to see more projects like this from major betting operators.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Gambling and financial affiliate marketing company Catena Media has provided a trading update relating to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) crisis.

For January to February 2020, immediately prior to the COVID-19 crisis significantly affecting sporting events outside of China, the company reported a 6% increase in year-on-year revenue to €18m, while adjusted EBITDA surged 20% to €8.9m.

During that period, the casino segment generated 59% of Catena’s revenue, with sports contributing 35%.

Like most gambling businesses, Catena Media has shifted focus away from sports betting, towards casino, to try and dampen any negative affects from the pandemic, and the company has said it doesn’t believe the crisis will have “foreseeable negative long-term effects on the business.”

Commenting on the situation CEO of Catena Media, Per Hellberg, said:

“The world is facing an unusual and challenging situation due to COVID-19.

“Several sport events have been cancelled or postponed, and it is uncertain for how long this will last, but we are holding back on costs and finding alternative revenue streams for the sport segment.

“Provided  the sports events start up after the summer break, our target remains unchanged, to reach double-digit profitable growth in 2020.”

AYO.NEWS says:

As with all the business projections, statements and forecasts we’re seeing come out of the gambling sector, everything depends on just how long this crisis lasts.

In the short-term the immediate worry has been the cancellation or postponement of sporting events, but if the lockdowns and disruptions last for a significant time, then we will likely see many other factors come into play.

Already, in the UK and other countries, there are calls to limit or ban online casino gambling for the duration of the crisis due to a number of concerns. These include people stuck at home developing problem gambling issues, and also the fact that if governments are funding emergency wage subsidies, its unlikely they will allow that money to be gambled away.

Of course, some experts have already said this crisis could last a year or longer, in which case all bets are well and truly off, as entire economies, supply chains, and infrastructure could collapse, leaving online gambling in the dust like everything else.

Right now, all eyes should be on Wuhan, China. Yesterday, after two months, the city started lifting most of the draconian lockdown measures imposed on the 23^rd January. If there isn’t another flare up and re-imposition of the lockdown, then we can all probably breathe a sigh of relief knowing the crisis will probably last only a couple more months.

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

After weeks of farcical denial, organisers have finally bowed to reality and postponed the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games.

It is the first time the Games have been postponed (though three games were cancelled, during the World Wars), and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has stipulated the Games must be rescheduled for a date no later than summer 2021.

The decision to postpone the Games came after increasing pressure from the global sports community over the past week, as the scale of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic became clearer.

Latest to apply pressure was the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC), while the Canadians and Australians had already vowed to boycott the games if they went ahead – a move Britain hinted it was likely to follow.

In arguing for a postponement the USOPC had pointed out that, even if by some miracle the virus had been brought under control by summer, the disruption to training, doping controls and qualification processes made going ahead with the games impossible.

The decision to postpone the Olympic Games will be a severe blow for Japan, which is thought to have invested around $12 billion already. Japanese businesses, including Toyota, Bridgestone and Panasonic, are also said to have paid out a record $3.3 billion in sponsorships.

Information about ticket refunds has yet to be made available.

AYO.NEWS says:

The IOC’s abysmal handling of this must have cost it a lot of credibility. Anyone who’s been paying attention could see weeks ago that it would have been insanely reckless to attempt to hold the Games given the current crisis.

As for the sports betting industry, though the Olympics aren’t as important as many would think, it will still be yet another blow to an industry already on its knees.  

AYO.NEWS says features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited.

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.