Gaming firm continues revival

Online gaming firm 888 Holdings declared its turnaround a success after a US ban on internet gambling saw it lose 55% of its revenues last year.

The firm, which operates the brands Casino-on-Net and Pacific Poker, reported a 298% rise in pre-tax profits on continuing operations to 19 million US dollars (£9.4m) for the six months to June 30.

888 also announced a partnering deal with Tower Torneos to develop gaming sites for the Latin American market.

A similar move in February saw 888 join forces with Riley's snooker halls, enabling it to stage live poker tournaments and attract customers online through rileyspoker.com.

Backgammon and bingo has also been added to the company's portfolio, with clients accessing games using the same software as for casino and poker.

The company's efforts to offset October's ban on US internet gambling saw it stage an "intense marketing campaign" in territories including the UK.

As a result of sponsorships, including the Seville football team and the World Snooker Championships, the company said a recent survey gave 888.com the highest level of brand awareness of any gaming and betting websites in the UK.

The first half of the year also saw 888 introduce casino games in 12 languages.

Chief executive Gigi Levy said the company's turnaround had been successful, adding that the second half of the financial year had started strongly with record turnover in July.

He said: "This strong result, for what is traditionally one of the seasonally weakest months of the year, leads us to believe that we will see additional growth in the second half."

News Added: 11 September, 2007

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