Bingo News: March 2008 Archives

Jackpot Joy has always provided a wide array of casino type games as well as their online bingo game and the newest addition is the game Family Fortunes.

It's a 5 reel multi slot game with some great bonus features including free spins and the Family Fortunes bonus.

A new programme is set to hit our TV's soon - Celebrity TV Bingo which will air daily from 9am to 12 noon on Sky channel 847. This means players will be able to play online bingo and on TV simultaneously.

Ann Summers Bingo & Casino have now launched their affiliate programme with St Minver.

The online bingo site was launched back in July 2007 and the Casino in January 2008 - it hasn't taken them too long to realise that an affiliate programme might help to increase their member base.

I have just received an email informing me that Ladbrokes Casino is upping the stakes when it comes to offering free money to its players - I know on their online bingo site the offer was deposit £10 and receive £20 free but the new offer is a £20 no deposit required offer.

Well it was for one of the armed robbers who stole cash from a Gala Bingo club in Sunderland as he set fire to himself as he tried to burn out the getaway car - now that's what I call Karma!

Staff at the Pallion New Road club were threatened by three masked raiders with baseball bats before they drove off in a dark vehicle Marissa Carruthers of the Sunderland Echo reports.

I have spoken many times about bonuses that an online bingo site offers its players, they can range from the welcome bonus (free bingo money) to deposit bonuses.

Senior bank debt at Gala Coral, the UK's biggest bingo hall operator owned by Cinven, Permira and Candover, is trading even lower now at just 80 per cent of its par value, reflecting investors fears a debt default is likely.

Alchemy Partners, the private equity firm run by Jon Moulton, is in talks with lenders about its struggling £100m buy-out of Buckingham Bingo, a Manchester operator affected by the smoking ban, gambling laws and tax changes.

Negotiations with Barclays, the main creditor, present Mr Moulton with a stark choice:

1) inject more equity into the business so as to cut its high debt levels 

2) write off its £60m equity investment and leave Barclays to take over the company.

Probability plc, the AIM quoted mobile phone bingo and gambling specialist, has entered into an agreement with Orange, part of the France Telecom Group, to supply. Probability's casual bingo games to Orange customers. The non-exclusive agreement is a step forward in the Company's strategy of recruiting customers to its bingo mobile gaming brand.

LadyLuck's Mobile Bingo, Casino and Slots service is designed for use on your mobile phone. Their biggest winner to date walked away with £211,000 in profits from playing their mobile casino games.

Dream Bingo, the first online bingo site launched on the Microgaming platform, has now launched 75 ball bingo. I remember reviewing the site when it first launched and being a little disappointed that there was only 90 ball bingo available.

The Guardian reports the value of Gala Coral has been cut in half.

The information comes by way of an investor in Permira, one of the private equity firms with ownership in the company. Gala itself has confirmed it is talking with its lending banks about amending some of its borrowing agreements.

Senior debt is being priced down on the secondary debt markets to below 85p on the pound.

CyberBingo honoured with Gambling Online Magazine Top Bingo Site award again.

Cyber Bingo was first awarded this coveted prize back in 2003 whilst thrilling for the CyberBingo team to have won it once again in 2007 it is in fact somewhat amazing for such a little known site to win the award so many times.

Parlay turns away suitors and shares plunge 20 percent following announcement the Canadian online bingo software developer has turned down all three suitors, sending the value of its shares on the Toronto stock exchange into a 20 percent nosedive. 
 

UK based Netplay TV announced it has splashed the cash on Bingos.com, a pan-European online bingo operator, Netplay has reportedly spent £6.25M on the company.  Which if you think Netplay's market cap is near £13m they have bet the house on this working out.

Netplay, the guys who bring us Bigboxbingo, are planning to launch a new show in association with Jim Bowen the man of Bullseye fame.  Netplay TV are not the first gaming company to try and tap into the Bullseye franchise Ladbrokes has already had a stab details of this are in our extended story.

The Mecca Bingo club in Wrexham has reduced one lucky lady to tears after she scooped £19,560 on the National Bingo game.

The winner said "I couldn't believe it when I realised how much I had won. I sat with a big smile on my face but with tears running down."

One lucky Grandmother seems to have lady luck in her back pocket - she has won the National Bingo game, not once but THREE times in as many years!

The 68 year old woman had her first win back in October 2005 pocketing £20,000, a mere three months later she won another £20,000 at the same club..

Alistair Darling has provided a kick in the teeth for the bingo industry by simply not changing the double taxation levied against bingo. Ours is the only gambling sector that has this double whammy levied against it and many were hoping to see a change in yesterdays budget, but it wasn't forthcoming! Shame on you Darling!

For those of you who don't know the Foxy Bingo cruise took place recently and being a huge fan of both the online bingo site and the Foxmeister I am able to bring you pictures of the Foxmeister himself in a few "compromising" positions!

Bad weather hampered docking back in Hull, but watch this space for a full and frank interview with one of the players who was actually on the cruise to find all the gossip!

Many a time I have written articles here about land bingo hall closures since the smoking ban came into force in July. The bingo industry as a whole has suffered at the hands of government both with the smoking ban and the double taxation on bingo yet they then feel the need to mock the industry with their TV campaigns for the new government run, National Lottery.

I took the time to participate in the first Guaranteed 10k Jackpot at Wink Bingo, and was amazed to see 500+ players in the room!

The atmosphere was electric as we all had our fingers crossed that it would be ME!

Sven Goran Eriksson, according to The Sun Newspaper, has been running bingo nights for his players - with himself as the bingo caller no less.

It is reported that he is a big fan of bingo and has been most of his life, he also feels that its a great way for his players to bond and unwind.

I haven't visited Mirror Bingo in a little while and was pleasantly surprised to see that they have made the change to the new version of the software. I have also noticed that they have lifted their no deposit required welcome bonus to £10 from £5.

I read today that online bingo operators may be forced to contribute towards the cost of gambling awareness and help groups.

Andy Burnham, the governments Culture Secretary is set to bring in new rules which will force gaming operators to contribute to organisations like GamCare.