Realex Payments have established themselves as the payment provider of choice for major gaming brands over the last number of years, and this week they announced a new partnership with Betsafe which strengthens their ties with the industry. "We are delighted to welcome Betsafe on board" said Mark Johnson of Realex Payments. "We have built up our industry expertise over a number of years and they have seen that we bring the tailored approach and peace of mind that their needs demand".

With strong pan-European acquiring connections, a partnered approach and a focus on security and customer service, Realex Payments have made their mark in the online gaming sector.

"We have recognised Realex payments as very professional and experienced in the online gambling industry. The Realex team have understood our requirements perfectly and, as a result, the integration went smoothly and fast. Thanks to Realex we are able to provide our customers with a unique experience, along with very high acceptance rates." said Olga Bencini, Payment Solutions Director at Betsafe.

"We pride ourselves on our partnered approach, and it’s success has been demonstrated once again with this new partnership. We look forward to growing a successful relationship with Betsafe over the coming years" added Johnson.

Betsafe is one of the leading suppliers of online gaming products in Scandinavia. Since January 2006, Betsafe has established itself as being one of the most trusted and reliable gaming companies in the industry, and the company is known to sponsor and handle large events such as Gumball 3000 and the poker tournament Rigged in Riga. They offer their customers a wide selection of products such as poker, sportsbetting and casino games.

Realex Payments is the UK’s fastest growing online payments service provider. Based in Hammersmith, London, they process in excess of £9 billion per annum for over 4,000 clients across many sectors including 32red, Cryptologic, Boyle Sports and Party Poker from the eGaming sector.

About Realex Payments:

Realex Payments is a leading European payment service provider. With offices in London Paris and Dublin, Ireland, the company enjoys an exceptional track record of growth. Founded in 2000 by award winning entrepreneur Colm Lyon, the company provides a broad range of payment services to small and large businesses as well as financial institutions.

Realex Payments process billions of pounds per annum for merchants domestically and internationally, across a wide range of industries including airlines, mobile carriers, utilities, insurance companies and gaming companies. Clients include Virgin Atlantic, Vodafone, The AA, AXA Insurance, Aer Lingus, Cryptologic and Party Poker.

For more information, contact Tracy Glynn, Head of Marketing, Realex Payments. Tel: +44 (0)20 3178 5370

The London-based player protection and standards body eCOGRA has undergone a change in ownership following a successful management buy-out (MBO) initiative led by chief executive Andrew Beveridge.

The organisation announced this week that the original Founding Members of eCOGRA, three major and competing online gambling groups, had agreed to the change. In future the new ownership structure of eCOGRA would not include software or other service providers or operators enabling it to be truly independent in the discharge of its audit, advisory, compliance and seal awarding activities.

The Founding Members note that the company had established itself as a credible and respected industry player with major business connections since its launch in 2003, and that it is now appropriate that the founding ties be severed, allowing eCOGRA to make its own way in the world of online gambling.

Staffed by IT, responsible gambling and audit specialists, eCOGRA offers a wide range of professional business services to internet gambling companies, and enjoys business relationships with major trade associations and several international licensing jurisdictions.

The company’s Safe and Fair seal of accreditation has become a reliable indicator of operators committed to high standards of commercial conduct, customer respect and fair gaming, and is held by 150 websites, belonging to some of the most successful tier one companies in the industry.

"The industry is maturing, and eCOGRA must be part of that evolving process," Beveridge said this week. "The trend toward national or state regulatory regimes around the world is just one of the areas in which our professional services are increasingly in demand by companies and jurisdictions committed to ensuring that they are well prepared in all respects to meet the highest international standards."

Beveridge revealed that eCOGRA’s services and operational structure would remain largely unchanged.

"We will continue to offer unbiased player dispute mediation through our Fair Gaming Advocate, and our TGTR outcomes-based software monitoring system is proving increasingly popular with non-accredited entities and will if anything be expanded," he said.

"Our policy of independently assessing operators for the award of the Safe and Fair seal, and subsequent review and monitoring activity, will remain in place, and the provision of professional business services and advisory consulting remains a key element in our commercial offering and will become an increasing important part of the services offered.

"Importantly, our strong commitment to responsible gambling will continue, specifically in our operator training initiatives and the requirements enshrined in our standards."

"Going forward eCOGRA intends to become a major force in helping shape new gaming regulations, offering specialised advice and assistance to existing and emerging jurisdictions and be at the forefront of establishing industry standards".

The MBO has scored an important coup in bringing eCOGRA’s former Independent Directors onto the new Board.

"Our chairman will be Michael Hirst OBE, supported by a directorate that includes Bill Henbrey, Bill Galston OBE, Frank Catania and myself," said Beveridge, adding that biographies were available on the eCOGRA website at http://www.ecogra.org

"We are very fortunate that these highly experienced and respected figures in the industry will continue to make their considerable knowledge and business expertise available to us," he said.

Michael Hirst said that the original mandate of the eCOGRA Independent Directors had been to continually improve the credibility of the industry, ensure players were properly protected and develop appropriate standards and regulations.

"Those basic principles will remain our goal in addition to increased competitive commercial activity," he said.

eCOGRA CEO and the Chair of the CEN workshop agreement on "Responsible Remote Gambling Measures", Andrew Beveridge, today welcomed the publication of this first Pan-European consumer protection agreement by CEN.

CEN is the European Committee for Standardisation, one of three European Standardisation Organisations officially recognised by the EU (http://www.cen.eu/). CEN draws up voluntary technical specifications, such as a CEN workshop agreement, to help facilitate a single market for European industry and consumers across its members in 31 European countries.

This CEN workshop agreement on "Responsible Remote Gambling Measures" (16259) defines 9 policy objectives for the protection of online players in the European Union and 134 concrete measures to ensure that those objectives are actually met.

The 9 policy objectives are:

• 1. The protection of vulnerable customers
• 2. The prevention of underage gambling
• 3. Combating fraud
• 4. Protection of privacy
• 5. Fair gaming
• 6. Accurate customer payments
• 7. Responsible marketing
• 8. Customer satisfaction
• 9. Safe operating environment

CWA 16259 shows consensus across a wide range of remote gambling stakeholders – from experts on problem gambling and players to industry representatives and addiction and criminology academics – showing that there is real desire to work together to ensure consumer protection issues are fully addressed as important EU developments unfold.

Andrew Beveridge, Chief Executive Officer of eCOGRA and Chair of the CEN workshop agreement, said "Over the last 7 months, CEN has provided the platform for us to make this agreement to secure the high level of protection for consumers across Europe that is vital for the online gambling industry as it matures. eCOGRA intends to bring into line its own eGAP Requirements with these CWA control measures, thereby benefiting eCOGRA, its sealholders and players."

He added "This is self regulation at its best, bringing together a wide range of stakeholders from across the world for the benefit of the consumer. This agreement can only complement existing industry standards and inform both national and EU regulation of online gambling. It has been an honour to be part of and chair this process."

About eCOGRA

eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA) was founded by competing online gambling companies seven years ago to improve operational standards and player protection. Accredited companies must comply with practical business and integrity standards, coupled with an impartial inspection, review and monitoring program that authorises them to display the organisation’s revocable Safe and Fair seal.

Since its formation, the organisation has extended its services to cover online casino and poker room operations, Internet bingo, sports betting, mobile and live gambling businesses, and affiliate program best practice through an Affiliate Trust Seal, positioning its influential accreditation within reach of all online gambling companies.

Many of the top software providers in the industry have already been assessed by the organisation, which is recognised by several international online gambling regulators and by bodies such as the European Gaming and Betting Association, which counts most of Europe’s major online operators among its members.

Since 2003, the eCOGRA seals have become synonymous with tier one levels of fair and responsible gaming, professional conduct and high operating standards when displayed on an online gambling website.

Accreditation remains open to all software companies and their operators and affiliate programs. For more information, go to http://www.ecogra.org

About CEN

The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is a business catalyst in Europe, removing trade barriers for European stakeholders such as industry, public administration, service providers, consumers and other stakeholders. Its mission is to foster the European economy in global trading, the welfare of European citizens, and the environment. Through its services CEN provides a platform for the development of European Standards and other specifications.

CEN’s 31 National Members work together to develop voluntary European Standards (ENs) in various sectors to build a European Internal Market for goods and services and to position Europe in the global economy. By supporting research, and helping disseminate innovation, standards are a powerful tool for economic growth. More than 60,000 technical experts as well as business federations, consumer and other societal interest organizations are involved in the CEN network that reaches over 480 million people.

For further information, please visit: http://www.cen.eu

The independent player protection and standards body eCOGRA has announced the award of two more Safe and Fair accreditation seals to online gambling sites, bringing to 150 the number of tier one operations that have successfully met eCOGRA’s international requirements.

The latest seals were awarded to Red Flush Casino and Casino La Vida by eCOGRA’s Independent Directors on January 25 following an extensive on-site inspection and audit process that examined every operational aspect and the financial systems in use.

To ensure continued compliance, Red Flush and Casino La Vida will be consistently monitored through regular onsite reviews and eCOGRA’s Total Gaming Transaction Review regime, which involves analysing every live gambling transaction for software fairness.

The accreditation inspection was supervised by eCOGRA compliance manager Louise Chunnett CA (SA), CISA Certified, who commented in her report to the Compliance Committee:

"These operations have a successful management with well trained, motivated and competent individuals servicing their players. The review was well and comprehensively structured, with full buy-in from management and the staff in attaining certification."

Red Flush Casino and Casino La Vida are part of the Club Red Gaming Group of casinos. Each of these gaming destinations currently hosts over 450 games powered by Microgaming software.

Casino manager Alex Roberts commented: "We’re certainly proud of our newest accomplishment and glad to be recognised for our ongoing transparency, integrity and satisfactory operating standards."

eCOGRA chief executive officer Andrew Beveridge congratulated the new seal holders, noting the full cooperation that the eCOGRA auditing team had been given throughout an extensive process toward accreditation.

"This achievement provides internet players at Red Flush Casino and Casino La Vida with an added layer of assurance that the games are fair and the casinos are run on professional lines and to internationally recognised best practice standards," he said.

The Titan Poker sponsored player from Britain wins the $100,000 Challenge and places second in the $250,000 Super High Rollers for total winnings of $2,925,000 AUD.

Team Titan player Sam Trickett, nominated as European Poker Player of the Year following his huge successes representing Titan Poker at tournaments around the world in 2010, has proven his poker skills by dominating two major high roller tournaments at this year’s Aussie Millions poker championships in Melbourne, Australia.

Earlier this week, Trickett won the 2011 Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge and pocketed the first place prize of $1,525,000 AUD.

Trickett took some of his winnings and bought an entry to the $250,000 Super High Rollers event, the most expensive buy-in tournament ever staged. From a starting field of 20 of the world’s best poker players, including Chris Ferguson, Tom Dwan, and Phil Ivey, Trickett fought his way to heads-up play against Erik Seidel, the eventual winner of the event.

For his second place finish, Trickett took home $1,400,000 AUD. The two tournaments combined place Trickett as the fourth top tournament money earner in the world so far in 2011. Trickett’s winnings this week at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, Australia, already surpass his entire live tournament income from 2010.

Trickett, a 24-year-old player from East Retford in the United Kingdom, enjoyed a stellar year in 2010 with a total of $1,071,356 in poker winnings. He had six cashes at the 2010 World Series of Poker*, including a second place finish in the $5,000 No Limit Hold’em event for $505,725. In August, Sam finished in fourth place at the EPT Vilamoura for a prize of €139,680 and in September he was the winner of the PartyPoker World Open in London, taking home the first prize of $200,000.

Titan Poker regularly awards its players with seats at the world’s most well-known live poker events, including the WSOP*, the ECPokertour, and the Asian Poker Tour. New players are invited to try out the free poker download and win an amazing poker package at Titan Poker.