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Sportsline sells gambling information website
New York, June 23: All bets are off for SportsLine.com. The online provider of sports information said on Monday it sold its leading gambling enthusiast site, VegasInsider.com, to British company Sports Information Ltd., in a move to appease concerns of its newest client, the NCAA.
New York, June 23: All bets are off for SportsLine.com. The online provider of sports information said on Monday it sold its leading gambling enthusiast site, VegasInsider.com, to British company Sports Information Ltd., in a move to appease concerns of its newest client, the NCAA.
The NCAA, or National Collegiate Athletic Association, is the governing body for U.S. collegiate sports. The organization opposes gambling on its events because of fears they can be tainted by organized crime and other illegal gamblers who prey on the impressionable students who compete in the games.
SportsLine also is in talks to sell its Las Vegas Sports Consultants and hopes to unload the unit by the end of the year, a spokesman said.
SportLine`s shares jumped 25 percent, or 46 cents, to $2.30 in early afternoon trading on the Nasdaq.
Neither SportsLine subsidiary takes bets, but both sell news and handicapping information to bettors. Media conglomerate Viacom Inc. VIAb.N and its CBS television network own about 31 percent of SportsLine`s shares.
SportsLine, based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said it plans to turn its focus to managing the Web sites for the NFL and its 32 teams, the PGA Tour and the NCAA, with whom it announced a three-year deal in February.
SportsLine disclosed its plans to sell VegasInsider.com and Las Vegas Sports Consultants at the same time as the NCAA deal.
"In all honesty, the other entities weren`t thrilled with us being in that business, and we felt like those other relationships were more important," SportsLine spokesman Larry Wahl said.
London-based Sports Information Ltd., which sells online sports gaming information in Europe and Asia, said VegasInsider.com, with its 60,000 daily unique visitors, has the highest traffic in the industry.
The companies did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
In its deal with the NCAA, SportsLine will consolidate the league`s information about collegiate sports and championships onto one Web site. SportsLine also has exclusive rights to broadcast NCAA championships over the Internet. Bureau Report
The NCAA, or National Collegiate Athletic Association, is the governing body for U.S. collegiate sports. The organization opposes gambling on its events because of fears they can be tainted by organized crime and other illegal gamblers who prey on the impressionable students who compete in the games.
SportsLine also is in talks to sell its Las Vegas Sports Consultants and hopes to unload the unit by the end of the year, a spokesman said.
SportLine`s shares jumped 25 percent, or 46 cents, to $2.30 in early afternoon trading on the Nasdaq.
Neither SportsLine subsidiary takes bets, but both sell news and handicapping information to bettors. Media conglomerate Viacom Inc. VIAb.N and its CBS television network own about 31 percent of SportsLine`s shares.
SportsLine, based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said it plans to turn its focus to managing the Web sites for the NFL and its 32 teams, the PGA Tour and the NCAA, with whom it announced a three-year deal in February.
SportsLine disclosed its plans to sell VegasInsider.com and Las Vegas Sports Consultants at the same time as the NCAA deal.
"In all honesty, the other entities weren`t thrilled with us being in that business, and we felt like those other relationships were more important," SportsLine spokesman Larry Wahl said.
London-based Sports Information Ltd., which sells online sports gaming information in Europe and Asia, said VegasInsider.com, with its 60,000 daily unique visitors, has the highest traffic in the industry.
The companies did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
In its deal with the NCAA, SportsLine will consolidate the league`s information about collegiate sports and championships onto one Web site. SportsLine also has exclusive rights to broadcast NCAA championships over the Internet. Bureau Report