Internet Update
Dateline: 06/25/99
Canadians are hot on gambling. You just need to take a look at the number of lottery tickets sold to figure that out. And, of course, the professional nanny class doesn't like it one bit. Witness the brouhaha that broke out when the B.C. provincial government moved to expand gaming in the province. Eventually the government backed down. No lottery terminals. No destination casinos.
But there is one area where governments and professional do-gooders have little control. And that, of course, is the Internet. Online gaming companies need only establish in Caribbean havens that allow gaming and there is little our governments can do about it.
Several Canadian companies have caught on to this lucrative market and have become established players in the world of online gaming. Here's a brief overview of Canadian companies engaged in online gambling, either by actually running casinos, bingos and the like, or by developing and selling the software.
Cryptologic - Founded in 1995 by brothers Andrew and Mark Rivkin, Cryptologic is a pioneer in the field of online casino software. In November 1996 Intercasino went online as their first licensee and, in fact, the first casino on the Internet. It is still the largest. The current Version 3.0 of the software, launched last October, is the first casino software that lets you play online with other players in real time and chat with them as well.
Besides their casino software, the company also developed Ecash, software for processing online electronic payments for e-commerce. On January 1, the company purchased the multi-lingual E-zine Gamesmania which gets three million visitors monthly.
The company trades on the TSE as CRY.
GIC Global Intertainment Corporation - Although incorporated in the State of Nevada, this is a Canadian company operated from offices in Vancouver. Last April it acquired two operating and profitable online gaming sites, Cyberbetz and the Internet Sports Book Casino. Both sites target the lucrative Asian markets with Chinese and Japanese language versions as well as English. But the company's plans are much more ambitious than just operating a couple of gaming sites.
GIC plans to use these sites to launch a Global Horse Racing Channel using live feed technology to show the top ten horse races worldwide live in realtime. Again the sites will target the Asian markets as well as English language gaming enthusiasts. Hong Kong in particular is known for its enthusiasm for horse racing. The Hong Kong Jockey Club pulls in a billion dollars in wagers a day. The pool per race is 120 times larger than the average pool for U.S. horse races.
Last week (June 18), the company purchased the Millennium Lottery from the non-resident Irish company New Media Entertainment. Tickets cost only $1 U.S., but the winning ticket, to be drawn at midnight December 31st, will win an estimated pooled jackpot of an astounding $100 million dollars. The tickets are being marketed in five languages - English, Chinese, Spanish, Japanese and German. 10% of revenues will be donated to charities in the countries designated by the ticket buyers.
GIC Global Intertainment trades on the U.S. OTC BB as GGNC.
IGN Internet Global Network - Another Vancouver based company, IGN develops, operates and licenses gaming software through its wholly owned subsidiary, Winstreak. This is just one of five IGN subsidiaries which also includes an ad agency, online broadcasting, online shopping and a financial services company that helps businesses locate offshore and online in St. Kitts & Nevis.
Winstreak has four branches including two sports wagering sites (currently closed because of legal uncertainties), a lotto site (which appears to be under construction) and Casinos of the World. The latter is fully operational and you can play for free if you don't want to play for cash (or if you want to practice a bit first).
IGN trades on the VSE as IGN and on the OTC BB as IGNIF.
Starnet Communications - I profiled Starnet briefly three weeks ago when I looked at Canadian Internet companies trading exclusively on U.S. exchanges. The company got its start as a provider of interactive online pornography but has since divested itself of that business and is focusing on online gaming. It has been remarkably successful as a content provider and a developer of gaming software for other sites.
Its subsidiary, World Gaming, was reviewed by top40casinos.com as "maybe the best all around (gaming) site on the Internet" with "state of the art everything". The site operates in eight languages.
Starnet also offers World Sports Book and World Race Tracks. The latter already features what GIC Global is planning with real video feeds of seven different horse races worldwide.
Starnet's Softec Systems subsidiary licenses its proprietary software to others providing turnkey gaming sites for entrepreneurs. And its financial services division, EFS, developed STAR-MX, the first international financial transaction technology to be certified by a Canadian chartered bank (Bank of Montreal).
This Vancouver based business trades exclusively on the OTC BB as SNMM.
We all know that gambling is a mug's game. But it is an amusing pastime for many. If you enjoy casual gambling, you may want to consider placing a bet on the stock of one or more of these companies. The odds of picking a winner are probably higher than your chance of winning online!
There are other Canadian companies involved in online gaming as well, but that is all for this article. A Gaming Sub-Index will be added to my Internet sub-indexes this weekend.
Comments? Suggestions? Why not post them on our Bulletin Board or email me.
E-mail me!
Top 40 Casinos - The definitive site for rating online gambling sites.
Internet Sourcebook - This interesting and useful site lets you narrow down searches on Internet companies with various parameters including country.
High Tech Links - my collection of High Tech Links at Investing: Canada.
Canadian Internet Stock Average - my charts of Canadian Internet stocks and how they have fared since January First.
06/23/99 - Consumer
Clubs: Are They Worth the Price?
My wife and I recently attended a presentation by a large
consumer club that offers factory pricing. But there is a catch!
06/21/99 - Introducing
Our Mutual Fund Database of Key Links
Here's a handy guide to our newest feature
at Investing: Canada.
06/18/99 - More on
Broker Trust
Three activists for reform in the investment industry comment on
my recent article on the subject.
06/16/99 - Best of
the Net: globeinvestor.com
Find out about one of the hottest new stock investment websites
in Canada and my pick for Website of the Month for June.
06/14/99 - Monthly
Mutuals Analysis
Our regular monthly review of mutual funds.
Canadian Mutual Fund Database - A database of mutual funds with links to a variety of sites offering relevant information on each. This index is a work in progress and will be revised and changed continuously.
The Daily: Have you checked out The Daily? Links to daily Canadian business and investment news and commentary.
Live Chat: Check out our live Chat Room for entertaining and informative live discussion with other investors on your topic of choice. I've designated certain times for certain discussions, but most of the time it is an open free-for-all. You can chat publicly with everyone in the room or privately one-on-one with someone. Check our Events Calendar for discussion times and topics or go straight to chat. If you find the Chat Room empty when you visit, try again later or make arrangements with a friend to meet there at a pre-determined time. (You don't have to discuss investing so if you want to have a live chat with your Aunt Matilda in Moose Jaw, that's okay too!)