Big Action, Small Loss @ Rank Gambling Group

Published: Saturday, March 04, 2006 Online-Casinos.com

BIG ACTION, SMALL LOSS FOR RANK GAMBLING GROUP

More online betting than traditional business gambling

The parent company for online sportsbook and online casino brands Blue Square and Hard Rock, the British public company Rank, released unexciting 2005 year-end results this week.

Blue Square reported a small loss despite considerable sports betting and other revenues from Rank's Hard Rock chain of cafes and hotel and online sports and gaming websites.

Although Blue Square's gross revenues for the year were at GBP 22.5 million higher than the GBP 20.8 million recorded in 2004, its operating profits fellby a million to GBP 1.7 million. Mike Smith, chief executive of Rank, said: "Blue Square reported a small loss despite considerable gains in volume from online gaming, which for the first time exceeded sports betting in terms of total stakes."

Rank Group results overall saw revenues up 2.9 percent to GBP 810 million, but group operating profits down almost ten million at GBP127 and a net loss for the year of GBP 208 million as a consequence.

The leadership of Rank will change next (March) month when Ian Burke succeeds Mike Smith as group chief executive. Bill Shannon will join the board as non-executive director in early April and John Sunderland and Oliver Stocken will retire from the board at the Rank annual general meeting in late April.