PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Feb. 11, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- AngelCiti Entertainment's (OTCBB:AGEL) wholly owned subsidiary, Worldwide Management, announced that it will split off its online poker operations into a separate unit to more fully exploit the meteoric growth of the online poker industry. While online gaming itself continues to grow at a dramatic pace, the online poker industry has more than tripled in the past year according to statistics provided by PokerPulse.com, with an estimated $16 billion to be wagered at online poker websites this year.
The Travel Channel's 13-week WORLD POKER TOUR series has been a ratings success on television, quickly becoming the highest-rated programming on the network in 2003, highlighting poker's growth and popularity. The show continues to capture new fans, as well as to captivate many of the nation's 50 million poker enthusiasts. This year's World Series of Poker attracted a record 839 players and $2.5 million was won by a player who qualified by winning an online tournament at PokerStars.com.
"The prospective growth opportunity in online poker is extensive," remarked AngelCiti president George Gutierrez, "and we have succeeded in successfully positioning our online casino operations into a high-growth mode. It is now time to take that same mandate into our online poker operations, whereby they will begin to provide a greater percentage of our overall operations and profits. Management is also considering splitting the online poker unit off into it's own separate public company, as and when business continues to develop, to more fully exploit the opportunity for our investors."
The Industry
A Bear Stearns report for the industry pegged annual revenue at $4.2 billion for 2003, while Christiansen Capital Advisors predicts a slightly more rosy picture pointing to an estimated $4.5 billion in revenue for calendar year 2002, saying 2005 revenue could exceed $10 billion. PokerPulse.com estimates that approximately $46,237,221 is wagered at online poker sites during any given 24 hour period.
The Company
AngelCiti's wholly owned subsidiary, Worldwide Management, provides gaming software to numerous online casinos including SharkCasino.com, SharkPoker.com and TheHouseWins.com, and currently services casinos in English, Spanish, German, Chinese and Japanese.
This news release contains forward-looking statements regarding AngelCiti's business strategies and future plans of operations. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risk and uncertainties. The company's risks and uncertainties include: intense price competition, economic, political and regulatory uncertainties, the need to raise additional capital for growth and expansion and its reliance on the internet as a means for promoting the software it sublicenses. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release speak only as of the date hereof and AngelCiti disclaims any obligation to provide public updates, revisions or amendments to any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect changes in AngelCiti's expectations or future events.