The UK Update

The UK’s Tote is similar to Sweden’s Svenska Spel in that they are both government owned land and online slots, casino and betting companies. However, while Svenska Spel is exclusive to Sweden and all other gambling activity is illegal, Tote is only one option to UK citizens, who also have access to offshore online slots, as well as privately owned land and online casinos like William Hill and Ladbrokes, both of which operate and are quite successfully sharing the market.

The most recent development is that the UK is looking to sell Tote, maybe because of its recent decline in profits, combined with the government’s lack of time to dedicate to staying abreast of the most recent gambling developments, games and graphics. Many people have thought that the major casinos would jump at the chance to acquire all of Tote’s assets, largely because Tote managed to spread and diversify its reach into all facets of gambling in the UK. From its online and land casino diversity to its various offerings of slots, poker and betting, Tote was one of those companies that everybody thought would be successful.

However, taking into account that the current economy in the UK (or anywhere for that matter) isn’t so conducive to selling anything, let alone gambling companies, the government is now considering waiting the low period out and seeing if they can get a higher price once the market turns around.

Another layer in the mix is the fact that if William Hill or any other major gambling company were to acquire Tote, it would be a messy violation of UK’s antitrust laws since the company would automatically be in so much control over the industry. However, it has been suggested that the company be broken up, and the current bigwigs could all potentially share in the profits of selling the skeleton.  William Hill especially has expressed an interest in expanding their own online market, having been strongly established as a land casino and betting facility for years.

For now, we all will have to wait, as the government is holding off on any decisions anyway.

Back to August 2008 Archive.