LONDON, April 18, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- ukbetting.com, a leading online bookmaker, has today signed an agreement with Orange to be the network's first wireless betting provider. The deal, which is the first of its kind for both parties, will give ukbetting.com access to Orange customers with WAP-enabled handsets creating the capability for them to view the latest odds and place tax-free bets.
The service goes live on Thursday, April 4 in time for the nation's biggest betting event, the Grand National. Orange WAP customers will register to use this service by visiting www.orange.co.uk. They will then be directed to a dedicated site hosted by ukbetting.com, where they can register to place bets on their mobile phones. Customers must be over 18 years of age in order to register and use the service.
Once registration is complete, customers are able to bet by visiting the "Racing" menu, located under the "Sport" section of the Orange WAP portal. Prices will be available the day before for most events and users will have the option to deposit or withdraw funds from their account using their mobile phone.
ukbetting will initially deliver horseracing betting services, followed by football in time for the World Cup this summer. Betting markets will be rolled out for other sports and major sporting events.
Eric Semel, CEO of ukbetting plc, said, "Mobile betting is going to bring gambling to a totally new audience, as well as providing a new exciting platform to existing keen punters. We want sports fans to be able to access our content and betting services with as much ease as possible anytime, anywhere."
"Fixed location betting can make it hard for punters to keep up with ever-evolving circumstances, trends and outcomes, which all enable the customer to gauge when to bet on a scenario at the optimum potential value," added Semel.
Miles Pearce, Orange Sports Multi Media Manager commented: "The launch of this new service further strengthens the expanding portfolio of sports services available on Orange. The mobile betting service underlines are commitment to provide services our customers need whenever, wherever and however they choose."
ukbetting plc
ukbetting plc (AIM:UKB.L), the digital wagering operator is the owner and operator of sportinglife.com, sportal.com, ukbetting.com, sportscard, totalbet.com and the bettingzone.co.uk.
Orange
-- Orange, wirefree and any other Orange product or service
referred to in this release are trademarks of Orange.
-- Orange provides a broad range of personal communications
services, including Orange GSM 1800 services and other digital
cellular telephone services.
-- In August 2000 Orange plc was acquired by France Telecom, leading
to the creation of Europe's second largest mobile operator. The
new Orange has operations in 20 countries across Europe and
beyond, and aims to have a presence in markets covering 1.5
billion people worldwide by 2005.
-- As at the end of December 2001, Orange had over 12.4 million
customers in the UK, 17.8 million in France and approximately
39.3 million controlled customers worldwide.
-- In May 2001, for the fourth consecutive year, the J.D. Power and
Associates study on the UK mobile market ranked Orange number one
for customer satisfaction.
-- Orange provides high quality coverage to 99% of the UK population
and over 80% of the geographic area. Coverage is based on hand
portable, unlike some other operators which choose to base their
coverage on boosted car kits.
-- Orange UK now offers roaming on 259 networks in 116 countries.
-- Information about Orange can be found on the Orange website at
www.orange.co.uk and media information can be found at
www.orange.com
For further information, call the Orange media centre on 020 7984 2000