According to leading sports research company ArkSports, publisher of Sport and Technology, online poker is challenging traditional sports such as golf and tennis when it comes to player earnings in Europe. The leading earner at Ladbrokespoker.com during 2004 was Erik ‘The Salmon’ Sagstrom, with earnings of $1.02m. Sagstrom is one of the greatest ever internet poker players. At 21 years old, he has only just made the age to play in Vegas. Although these earnings were eclipsed by the prize money of UK sportsmen such as Graeme McDowell ($2.17m), Lee Westwood ($2.10m) in golf and Tim Henman ($1.51m) in tennis, they surpassed those of Ronnie O’Sullivan ($0.97m) and Stephen Hendry ($0.54m) in snooker, according to the ArkSports research which was commissioned by Ladbrokes International. The most common age group for poker players is between 18 and 30, reflecting poker’s emerging status as a young and fashionable pastime. When it comes to playing poker, the most successful age group is the 18-25 year olds, followed by the 26-30 year olds. Whilst men still account for the vast majority of poker players, the number of women playing online continues to flourish. As a massive area of growth for UK internet poker sites in particular, women are the strongest poker players, enjoying a higher average return than their male counterparts with 99.39% of stake. Compare this to men who enjoy a mere 98.65% return and women really are the wiser players.
IOC and Atos Origin renew deal
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has signed an extension to its current partnership agreement with Atos Origin to include the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games and the 2012 Olympic Games. Atos Origin, the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic Games since 2001 is currently preparing for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Torino and the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. IOC president, Jacques Rogge, welcomed the extension to the Olympic partnership and continued involvement of Atos Origin in the Olympic Games. As the Worldwide IT Partner for the Olympic Games, Atos Origin will be responsible for developing, running and securing key information systems for the Games, including; Core Games management systems for accreditation, workforce management, medical services, sport entries and athletes qualification; The Games Info system for the collection and dissemination of all competition data on the intranet and internet to the world’s media; Operations management of pre-Games central operations, management of the Technology Operations Centre, co-ordination of the IT systems at all Games venues; and security of the Games IT infrastructure. Meanwhile, Atos Origin has revealed that it wants the Asia-Pacific region to represent 10% of its business within the next three years (it is currently 4%). The company is already expanding in Asian countries such as India and Hong Kong, and intends doubling its business in the latter.
BT serves US Open to expanding Asian market
BT Media and Broadcast (BT M&B), the digital media and broadcast services arm of BT, and Total Sports Asia (TSA), Asia's leading integrated sports marketing company and TV rights distributor, have agreed a deal for the provision of a fully managed broadcast distribution service to Asia, for the US Open tennis championships. The dedicated uplink service and satellite link will enable TSA to capitalise on the increasing popularity of tennis and will help to deliver live coverage of the tournament to an increasingly diverse international fan base. BTM&B's solution will integrate the TSA feed into an existing and well-established on-site operation.
New cricket games launched
Cricinfo.com, the world’s leading cricket website, has teamed up with Cat Games to launch a brand-new, multi-player simulation game called Cricinfo CricketManager. The cartoon-style game means thousands of fans will be able to manage their own virtual cricket teams in daily games against competitors worldwide. The players in the game are all fictional and can be named after friends, family or whoever fans choose. A manager can improve his team through various training methods, by morale-boosting activities (every player has his own specific character and preferences) and by enticing new star players from the transfer market. Cricinfo CricketManager is based on the success of Cat Games’ other market-leading games, which have attracted over 2m managers worldwide - www.sundayleague.com (soccer), www.seniorleaguehockey.com (running on NHL.com) and www.bushleaguebaseball.com (running on MLB.com). Meanwhile, thanks to a unique collaboration by Cisco Systems, Hawk-Eye Innovations and www.ECB.co.uk, cricket fans will have the opportunity to be at the heart of the action in the most eagerly awaited sporting event of the UK summer, the cricketing Ashes clash between England and Australia. In a unique agreement, led and managed by Aura Sports, Hawk-Eye Innovations, the company famed in cricket circles for providing their unique virtual imaging in televised matches, have created a online game, sponsored by Cisco Systems.
HDTV preview for Germany 2006
Infront Sports & Media and Host Broadcast Services (HBS) gave a preview of high definition television (HDTV) services at a special press briefing during a live demonstration of one of the FIFA Confederations Cup 2005 matches in June. HBS, the dedicated host broadcaster of the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, will be covering the 2006 event entirely in HDTV and has also been using this format for all matches of the FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005. This enabled HBS to test and refine all the systems that will be in place for the 2006 FIFA World Cup and work closely with companies such as T-Systems and Philips. T-Systems, the German telecoms company, is key to the delivery of the signals within Germany and to viewers throughout the world. Philips, as an official partner of the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany, is involved in a joint initiative with FIFA and Infront to promote the HDTV viewing experience. The number of countries that currently broadcast in HDTV is still limited to Japan, Korea, the US and Canada, but HBS now believes that several of Europe’s leading broadcasters will follow Premiere in Germany by choosing to opt for HDTV in 2006 and there is also strong interest from Latin America and Asia.
Fast Web Media and Coors renew partnership
Fast Web Media, the UK-based operating company, wholly-owned by Total Sports Online, has retained the Coors Brewers account for online marketing services for Carling and Grolsch. The contract, for 12 months, will see Fast Web Media continue to provide online marketing services for Coors and in addition provide content for http://www.carling.com/.
Liverpool in Far East venture
English Premier League soccer club Liverpool FC and China.com have signed an exclusive partnership to launch the official Chinese website and wireless services for the 2005 UEFA champions targeting the Chinese audience. According to the partnership’s terms, China.com has been appointed as the exclusive partner and provider of internet and MVAS services for Liverpool in the People’s Republic of China, and the exclusive partner and provider of internet applications and services for Liverpool in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and Taiwan. The official Chinese website for Liverpool will be operated, hosted and promoted by China.com and be part of Liverpool’s worldwide online network. The website will provide millions of soccer fans across Greater China with the latest team news, match scores, statistics and player profiles, as well as exclusive player interviews and photo galleries. Interactive sections will include chatrooms, a video clip library, online games, downloads, an online forum and an e-shopping platform.
Betfred right on track
UK online bookmaker Betfred has become the title sponsor of the Speedway Championship of Great Britain. The event, which takes place at Oxford’s Sandy Lane Stadium on Sunday 10 July will also be broadcast live on Sky Sports. Betfred will also be the official bookmaker of the event and has been running a series of special promotional bets in the run-up to the championship.
Shanghai for SPORTELAsia 2006
SPORTEL’s early 2006 market will take place at the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel in Shanghai, China from 20-22 March. David Tomatis, executive vice president of SPORTEL, which brings together a whole range of parties involved in televised sport including broadcasters, facilities companies and broadband streaming companies, said: “The Asian region in general and China in particular continue to be focal points for innovation and expansion in the international sports television industry. The move to Shanghai next year will allow us to maintain our pricing structure while offering our clients a spacious exhibition venue and first-class accommodation. Shanghai has become a major centre for trade and business and surely will attract many new participants, both from within China itself and from the entire Asian region.”
Extreme goes mobile
The Extreme Group has announced it is launching ExtremeMob, the UK’s first pre-pay mobile phone service designed exclusively for the under 24s. As a mobile virtual network operator on the Vodafone UK network, ExtremeMob aims to deliver a service with an “edgy content offering that feels more like a lifestyle magazine”.
Page from ArkSports' Sport and Technology (www.sportandtechnology.com) on 2009-01- 6 : News - July 2005 : http://www.sportandtechnology.com/news/0286.html
According to leading sports research company ArkSports, publisher of Sport and Technology, online poker is challenging traditional sports such as golf and tennis when it comes to player earnings in Europe. The leading earner at Ladbrokespoker.com during 2004 was Erik ‘The Salmon’ Sagstrom, with earnings of $1.02m. Sagstrom is one of the greatest ever internet poker players. At 21 years old, he has only just made the age to play in Vegas. Although these earnings were eclipsed by the prize money of UK sportsmen such as Graeme McDowell ($2.17m), Lee Westwood ($2.10m) in golf and Tim Henman ($1.51m) in tennis, they surpassed those of Ronnie O’Sullivan ($0.97m) and Stephen Hendry ($0.54m) in snooker, according to the ArkSports research which was commissioned by Ladbrokes International. The most common age group for poker players is between 18 and 30, reflecting poker’s emerging status as a young and fashionable pastime. When it comes to playing poker, the most successful age group is the 18-25 year olds, followed by the 26-30 year olds. Whilst men still account for the vast majority of poker players, the number of women playing online continues to flourish. As a massive area of growth for UK internet poker sites in particular, women are the strongest poker players, enjoying a higher average return than their male counterparts with 99.39% of stake. Compare this to men who enjoy a mere 98.65% return and women really are the wiser players.
Cricinfo.com, the world’s leading cricket website, has teamed up with Cat Games to launch a brand-new, multi-player simulation game called Cricinfo CricketManager. The cartoon-style game means thousands of fans will be able to manage their own virtual cricket teams in daily games against competitors worldwide. The players in the game are all fictional and can be named after friends, family or whoever fans choose. A manager can improve his team through various training methods, by morale-boosting activities (every player has his own specific character and preferences) and by enticing new star players from the transfer market. Cricinfo CricketManager is based on the success of Cat Games’ other market-leading games, which have attracted over 2m managers worldwide - 
English Premier League soccer club Liverpool FC and China.com have signed an exclusive partnership to launch the official Chinese website and wireless services for the 2005 UEFA champions targeting the Chinese audience. According to the partnership’s terms, China.com has been appointed as the exclusive partner and provider of internet and MVAS services for Liverpool in the People’s Republic of China, and the exclusive partner and provider of internet applications and services for Liverpool in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macao Special Administrative Region and Taiwan. The official Chinese website for Liverpool will be operated, hosted and promoted by China.com and be part of Liverpool’s worldwide online network. The website will provide millions of soccer fans across Greater China with the latest team news, match scores, statistics and player profiles, as well as exclusive player interviews and photo galleries. Interactive sections will include chatrooms, a video clip library, online games, downloads, an online forum and an e-shopping platform. 
