Olympic silver medallist Steve Cram handed out the awards at the black tie ceremony held at London’s Old Billingsgate conference centre.

Dragonfish beat Microgaming and Virtue Fusion to win Bingo Network of the Year while Virtue Fusion beat Dragonfish, NYX Interactive and Parlay Entertainment to win Bingo Supplier of the Year.

NYX Interactive won the Innovation in Bingo Award, beating Alvin5 and Playtech and Cozy Games, who were highly commended in the category.

Dragonfish also won White Label Partner of the Year, while online scratchcard business NeoGames, who power Scratch.co.uk, were highly commended in the Software Rising Star of the Year award category.

Somewhat surprisingly, G2 GTech, owners of St Minver, the bingo white label supplier, were not shortlisted for any bingo awards, although they did win Lottery Software Provider of the Year.

UK bingo sites such as Astro Bingo and Bingomania are on the PGS network and Parlay are one of the pioneers of online bingo. Frelix’s deal with Parlay is seen as a key strategic move for their domains development as Parlay are seen as one of the leading companies in technological development in the online gaming industry.

OnlineBingo.eu was launched in 2007 on the St.Minver network and proved popular in countries such as Sweden, Spain, Denmark and Germany. St.Minver used to be a customer of Parlay’s but moved to the G2 network recently.

Aglaia Panteli, MD of Frelix said in a press release, “After their corporate acquisition, moves by St Minver to G2 software prompted us to seek a different network provider, we needed a platform that would support us in our aggressive international strategy. We knew that PGS was the ideal multi-language, multi-currency network that would allow us to launch quickly into different countries. This means we will be able to offer even bigger jackpots, greater prizes and more entertaining games to our players.”

“We are thrilled to welcome the OnlineBingo.EU team as a PGS partner. They have a proven track record, with success in existing markets as well as an excellent ability to open new territories. Their popular bingo sites will continue as the sites that the players know and trust, and will now become part of a growing and vibrant European online bingo network. Over the coming weeks, we look forward to making several new partner announcements as the PGS network expands internationally.” said Scott White, CEO of Parlay.

The new partnership aims to launch new sites and a marketing campaign around the end of the summer.

Gross win in bingo, casino and games grew by 32% while bet volumes in the Paddy Power’s online sportsbook grew 39 per cent. Profits were slightly ahead of the company’s expectations.

Paddy Power Bingo suffered several years of neglect as part of The Games Network, which was powered by Parlay Entertainment software. Company insiders told Bingo News that since they switched to Virtue Fusion software, which also powers brands such as Crown Bingo, Ladbrokes Bingo, William Hill Bingo and Sky Bingo, their financial performance and player retention has increased markedly. Virtue Fusion was recently acquired by online gambling software giant Playtech.

The Chairman of Paddy Power plc, Nigel Northridge, Chairman of Paddy Power plc told the company’s Annual General Meeting: “2009 was a year of significant developments for Paddy Power. We grew our turnover and market share across all our channels and expanded internationally through successful acquisitions in Australia, continued shop openings in the UK and a B2B agreement in France.

“Turning to 2010, the highlights of the year to date have been a very strong revenue performance in online (total gross win (ex Australia) +32%) and good bet volume growth across all channels. Significant investment has contributed to this growth and we continue to invest to maintain our business momentum and strong competitive position. Following a run of adverse sporting results in 2009, I am also pleased to report that the Group’s sportsbook gross win percentages have returned to normal expectations in the year to date.”

Shares in Paddy Power were up 1.92 per cent in early trading at 26.50 euros.

The purchase follows the decision in March to join Unibet’s bingo network, shortly after Bingo.com had announced it was switching software providers from Parlay Entertainment to Cozy Games.

Tarrnie Williams, chief executive of Bingo.com, said: “Bingo.com is pleased to have secured a private placement from Unibet. With one of the World’s leading gaming operators as both an investor and operational partner, Bingo.com will now have the resources to support its brand in a number of emerging online bingo markets. We very much look forward to taking on a leading role in the expansion of online bingo worldwide.”

Petter Nylander, chief executive of Unibet, said: “Investing in Bingo.com, one of the strongest bingo brand names in the industry, is exciting for us. We believe in the power of the Bingo.com URL and believe that Bingo.com will be a leader in online bingo for years to come. We look forward to growing our businesses together in existing and new markets.”

One rival bingo operator said: “It’s a very interesting deal, not least because it was widely thought that Bingo.com does not actually own its domain name but in fact leases it from a third party. It would be fascinating to see if Unibet has now made certain that the url is actually owned by the corporation because without that the company is worth sharply less than you might otherwise think.”

Unibet already owns one of the strongest bingo operators in Scandinavia, Maria Bingo, and it will be interesting to see how Bingo.com is positioned by the company post Unibet’s investment. Maria Bingo was bought in December 2007. Unibet has been on a trail of acquisitions, including Travnet, a Scandinavian trotting community, in April 2008.

Live Presenter Bingo will aim to recreate the live bingo hall experience for online players via live video streaming. The technology for this innovative game was developed by Atac Media who have managed to integrate their video streaming technology into Parlay’s bingo software. Live Presenter Bingo is offered in both 80 and 90-ball formats of the game and is hosted by Beast Gaming’s Alderney licensed technology platform.

Simon Hannah of Atac Media said, “We are delighted to be developing a partnership with Parlay, who are one of the most respected technology companies in the industry. The relationship means we can now offer our Live Presenter Bingo to all online partners.”

Perry Malone, CTO of Parlay added that, “Atac Media’s live caller games are a lot of fun to watch. With the addition of a live bingo option, Parlay can further expand the services offered to our network partners and give players more product selection and value.”

Parlay currently has 15 gaming partners throughout Europe as it is able to offer multi-language and multi-currency bingo software. Beast Gaming will license and market Parlay’s bingo and side games.

All brands operating on both St Minver’s International Bingo Network and Boss Media’s bingo network will switch to the new software by February 2010.

The announcement, which was made at the European iGaming conference (EiG) in Copenhagen this morning, is a huge blow to Parlay Entertainment as St Minver was probably their largest customer. Bingo News has previously suggested that St Minver was likely to switch to new software but today’s announcement is the first official confirmation of the move.

G2 has spent millions of euros on developing Boss Media’s bingo platform, which they acquired as part of a deal to put together a full online gaming solution. As well as acquiring Boss Media and St Minver they bought sports betting software company FinSoft and games development house Dynamite Idea.

“GTECH G2 has made a multi-million Euro investment in its Bingo product,” said Atul Bali, President of GTECH G2. “With the combined resources of Boss Media and St Minver, two of the companies acquired last year to form our interactive gaming division and with ongoing investment in key products like our bingo network, we will continue to lead the way in terms of product innovation and services.”

Alison Digges, Group Head of Bingo for GTECH G2, said: “In early 2010, we plan to merge Boss Media’s bingo partners with St Minver’s International Bingo Network to create one large combined network using G2 Bingo software and operated from our Bingo hub in Gibraltar. Pooling the liquidity of over 80 bingo partners will make the GTECH G2 Bingo network one of the leading networks in 2010″.

The new software, referred to internally as Bingo 2.2, will initially be tested on the Scandinavian online bingo site Hem Bingo and will launch this week.

G2 said that the software would give them multi currency, multi language functionality and hugely improve their bingo offering: “”Bingo 2.2 allows clients to pool liquidity and maximizes the jackpots in the bingo rooms through its linked games and multi currency functionality. In addition, it offers a fantastic suite of multi lingual mini games launching from the game window including mini progressive slots, table games, video poker and scratch cards. The Bingo software and mini games portfolio will be updated quarterly with innovative new feature functionality, to ensure that G2 Bingo remains at the cutting edge of bingo front and back end development, catering to the needs of both the Bingo player and licensee.”

Parlay Entertainment recently issued a profits warning as the company admitted that licensing revenues had fallen and that had led to a massive decline in revenues and a loss making first half of 2009.

The brutal numbers reflects the loss of some key customers as well as increased costs as the company sets up in Alderney.

Second quarter revenues from software licensing, installation fees and support services plunged from $2.6 million in the second quarer of 2008 to $0.8 million in the second quarter of 2009.

Consolidated revenues fell to $1.8 million for the first six months of 2009, compared to $4.7 million in the same period of 2008, while expenses fell from $4.6 million to $2.8 million.

“Throughout our second quarter, we continued to make a significant investment in the establishment, development and organization of our managed solutions offering in Alderney and Canada through Parlay Games Services”, said chief executive Scott White. “The remaining months of 2009 will be used to aggressively expand that service through the addition of new customers and brands across multiple languages and currencies.”

The company, which describes itself as “the world’s leading supplier of Internet and TV bingo software solutionsis floated on the Toronto Stock Exchange.Shares in Parlay stand at 45 cents on extremely thin volume, having hit as low as 11 cents last month.

Parlay is likely to hit futher revenue problems when St Minver, one of its leading clients, switch over all its white label bingo partners to Boss Media software as part of the integration of St Minver into G2.

Bingo Boogie will be powered by Virtue Fusion software on the Better Bingo Network from Thursday 3 September, according to information released to affiliate managers today.

The site is leaving TGN (The Games Network) although other sites under the same ownership will remain on TGN, the management team said. TGN uses Parlay software.

Bingo Boogie affiliates will continue to earn their commission on all players they have introduced to the site and all player data will be moved across to an improved affiliate system.

Bingo Boogie was originally launched in 2005 and was awarded Which Bingo Site of the Month in October 2005. It also finished eighth in the New Site of the Year Award in 2005, beating some well known big brands.

It was owned by Adam Barber, who also owns jackpot.co.uk, but was sold to an investment group in 2007 where it has continued to grow under their watchful eye.

A source close to the site told Bingo News: “We are very excited to see how the site performs on the Better Bingo Network and to see if it can live up to the expectations we have for it. We think our players will really be excited by the move to new software.”

The site, which has one of the great domain names for an online bingo site (eyesdown.com), runs on Parlay Entertainment software and is part of The Gaming Network (TGN), which is licensed in Malta. The Eyes Down team say they plan to build a great bingo community that gives a lot back to their loyal players.

Players get a £10 bonus just for signing up – even without giving their credit card details. Eyes Down players also get a 150% bonus on their first deposit and subsequent deposits are eligible for between 50% and 100% bonuses.

Eyes Down Bingo is aimed at the UK market but they appear to accept sign ups from most countries, with the notable exception of the United States.

They definitely like to do things with a twist at Eyes Down – they’re currently running a Christmas in July promotion with special Santa bonuses and stocking fillers for their bingo players.

They also have a Manic Monday promotion that rewards all 1tg players when a full house is called with a special bonus.

Eyes Down has over 40 slot machines to keep players occupied when they are not playing online bingo and you can even play them during the bingo game because they open in a new window and can be played concurrently.

The site is owned by Decado Holdings Limited and is based in Panama, which is an unusual location for a bingo operation. Their About Us section tell us they have been running bingo sites since 2001, which means they must be real veterans of the online bingo business.

Playtech will take live bingo, blackjack, roulette and a fixed odds draw from NetPlay TV under a five year licensing agreement. As part of the deal NetPlay TV will move bingos.com and its other bingo brands onto Playtech software; the deal is a blow to Parlay Entertainment who have supplied bingos.com with bingo software since launch.

NetPlay TV said that it had conditionally placed 58,352,476 new ordinary shares at a price of 22 pence per share, raising gross proceeds of £12,837,545. The shares are being purchased by Directforce Trading Limited, who are already significant shareholders in Playtech.

Martin Higginson, CEO of NetPlay TV plc, said: “This agreement will take NetPlay TV to new heights. The investment of £12.8m into our business, along with the strategic relationship, both in terms of distribution and technology with Playtech, will enable us to drive the development of our converged gaming solutions.”

Mor Weizer, CEO of Playtech Limited, said: “We have been looking for a partner in the ‘live’ interactive gaming market for some time. Our clients and their customers are demanding ‘live’ products and therefore it is logical we offer them the best services available. This agreement enables us to offer our licencees unique TV quality gaming shows, this will also enrich their offering to gamers, and will boost Playtech’s Bingo offering, increasing Playtech’s bingo network liquidity significantly.

“We believe ‘live’ gaming is going to be very big in the coming years and, as such, a significant investment in this business makes perfect sense.”

Playtech have been keen to increase liquidity in their bingo network for some months and the deal is significant as one of Playtech’s largest bingo partners, Bet Fred Bingo, will soon switch to Virtue Fusion’s software.

Shares in NetPlay TV have traded at between 14p and 27p in the past 12 months and is currently valued at £34.9 million.

The network will use Parlay front-end software and Entraction’s back-end administration system. The network is expected to launch later this month.

Scott White, CEO of Parlay, said: “By combining the strengths of Parlay’s industry-leading bingo games with Entraction’s expanding footprint in the European gaming market, we anticipate the creation of a compelling bingo network solution, which will see the launch of multiple brands in the coming months. The Entraction network is expected to launch at the end of May 2009 and Parlay anticipates it will achieve critical mass very quickly in Q2. We are delighted to have finalized our launch plan with Entraction and we look forward to assisting our new partner in the expansion of their online bingo initiative”.

In a prepared statement Peter Åström, CEO of Entraction, said: “With Parlay’s launch of their new multi-lingual, multi-currency bingo platform, Entraction will now be able to focus on the growth of bingo as a core business offering which we expect will complement our rapidly expanding European gaming network. We plan to offer the bingo platform to both existing and new partners, allowing us to make a serious commitment to growing this area of our business.”

Entraction used to run 24hPoker.com and Martinspoker.com but sold the companies in April 2009 to concentrate on providing back-end services to gambling companies, mainly by powering one of Scandinavia’s largest online poker networks.

Virgin Bingo said the move was part of a strategic review of their online gambling operations and that it would give them more control over their bingo operation.

Virgin have recently acquired an operating licence in Alderney and are also applying for one in Malta; under the Virtue Fusion deal they will run their own chat moderation, customer service and financial processing, which would not have been possible under St Minver’s full service solution.

The loss of the Virgin Bingo contract for St Minver is understood not to be a major financial issue for the company but is more of a blow to the company’s profile. The largest brands on St Minver’s platform are Littlewoods Bingo, who recently launched a secondary brand called Game On Bingo on the rival Globalcom platform, and Chit Chat Bingo, which is an in-house brand of St Minver.

A spokesman for St Minver said he was “disappointed” at the loss of Virgin Bingo but that the two companies had agreed an amicable handover and that they understood the business reasons for the switch.

In a sign of Virtue Fusion’s continued growth, Paddy Power Bingo switched to Virtue Fusion last week, moving off a Parlay Gaming platform, which also powers the St Minver network.

Customers were sent an email this morning telling them that the switch had taken place and their existing user name and password would work on the site.

The move takes Paddy Power away from Parlay Gaming software, which has powered their bingo site since launch. Paddy Power Bingo was originally on TGN (The Games Network) before they switched to a stand alone platform provided directly by Parlay.

Bingo News understands Paddy Power were unhappy with the performance of their bingo site on the previous network and are hoping Virtue Fusion’s network will increase the lifetime value of their bingo players substantially.

Paddy Power Bingo joins a host of top bingo brands powered by Virtue Fusion, including Crown Bingo, William Hill Bingo, Ladbrokes Bingo, Sky Bingo, Mecca Bingo and Scot Bingo. Click for a complete list of sites on Virtue Fusion software.

Like-for-like royalty revenues for the fourth quarter 2008 fell 53% to $871,661, dragging total fourth quarter revenues down by 38% to $1,241,621.

Chief executive Scott White said: “In 2008, Parlay took a very significant step to divest its US-facing business and focus on licensing its software to customers in the United Kingdom and Europe. The impact of that divestiture required that that we bring our cost structure into line with revenue, which efforts were substantially completed in Q4. We also anticipated that it could take up to three quarters to see the results of refocused sales and marketing initiatives translate into new royalty revenue.”

“Recently executed licensing arrangements and new customer launches will increasingly contribute to revenue throughout 2009, while our cost base will remain static. Parlay ended 2008 with in excess of $3,200,000 in cash. We have continued to invest in our technology and human resources with our share re-purchases exceeding 1,700,000 shares since the commencement of our normal course issuer bid.”

The final results for 2008 showed that total revenues hit $8,537,669, down 1% from 2007, royalty revenues were $4,696,576, down 40% from 2007,  software license fees were $2,922,089, versus zero in 2007 and net income was $497,909, or $0.04 per share.

Parlay’s software is used by bingo sites including Yahoo Bingo, NetPlay TV’s Bingos.com and three bingo networks,  St Minver, TGN and BingoNexus. Parlay is based in Oakville, Canada and has offices in Bridgetown, Barbados, and Valletta, Malta.

Parlay Entertainment were the subject of a bid from by PEIC Aquisition Corp, a vehicle led by online gambling legend Mark Blandford, the founder of Sportingbet. PEIC pulled out of the bidding in March 2008 after two more parties became involved in the potential sale, only for the remaining bidders to also pull out.

Parlay is widely considered to have dropped behind many online bingo software providers in recent months, most noticeably Virtue Fusion who are said to have persuaded several clients using Parlay software to switch to VF software. Announcements of the changes are expected in May.

Shares in Parlay stand at 40 cents at the moment, valuing the company at around $5 million.

There will be three different sessions from 9am to 12.30pm, titled The Hottest Game on the ‘Net, Internet Bingo – A New American Tradition and Your Bingo Hall and the Internet.

One of the main areas will be to look at how play-for-fun online bingo software could act as a marketing and promotional tool for real world bingo operators.

It is interesting to see speakers from both Parlay and The Games Network, who operate online bingo sites in Europe. Both companies clearly anticipate the relaxation of US online gambling legislation and the potential for huge growth in online bingo in the north American market place.

Session details are as follows (from the conference organisers):

The Hottest Game on the ‘Net

Bingo is prospering as a live Internet game in many jurisdictions around the world, including Canada, the United Kingdom, Sweden and others. With more than 250 online bingo sites already operating, many are predicting that bingo will be the next Internet poker. This roundup will examine bingo’s performance as an Internet gaming product in these markets and review how the industry is changing as a result.

Moderator: Scott White, President and Chief Executive Officer, Parlay Entertainment Group

Speakers: Andrew Branscombe, Chief Executive Officer, TheGamingNetwork.com; Patrick Duffy, Managing Director, Palatial Leisure/Palace Bingo; Lara Wood, Director of Marketing, Emerging Brands, Atlantic Lottery Corp.

Internet Bingo – A New American Tradition?

Although online bingo games for money have yet to be offered in the United States, operators in several states have pushed for change, and it may only be a matter of time before this option becomes available. The sagging economy and governments’ need for revenue could be all it takes to open the floodgates. In the meantime, the popularity of bingo as a free play online game has risen significantly. Speakers in this session will examine what is happening in the U.S. and how the free play model benefits the bingo industry.

Moderator: Victor Rocha, Owner/Editor, Pechanga.net

Speakers: Anthony N. Cabot, Partner, Lewis and Roca LLP; Mark Herrmann, Chief Operating Officer, GameLogic; Trent Schwartz, Managing Director, Gabdab.com

Your Bingo Hall and the Internet

Even if providing live games on the Internet isn’t an option, bingo halls should be taking full advantage of what the Internet offers. The ability to fully market and promote your games at very little cost, especially in today’s economy, is one very tangible benefit. At the very least, operators should keep a customer database and reach out to those customers on a regular basis. You can provide coupons, special offers and a virtual wealth of information online. Experts in this session will help you simply and effectively build a Web site and provide ways for you to best utilize that site.

Moderator: Patricia McQueen, Events Editor, Gaming, BNP
Media Speakers: Terry Debono, Partner, The Debono Group; Scott Gothberg, Bingo/Pulltab Manager, Mystic Lake Casino; Art Harnack, Bingo Manager, Westside Gymnastics Parents Club, Sunset Bingo

Boss, which was acquired last year by gaming giant GTech, has previously been better known for their casino and poker software.

The software offers 75 ball and 90 ball bingo at present and 80 ball bingo will be released at the end of the second quarter 2009, according to company sources.

There are currently only two mini games on the site but a rollout of up to three games a month is planned with the aim of having a total of 19 mini games by the end of 2009.

Only one site, HemBingo, is currently operating on the Boss software; HemBingo is operated by a large Swedish media company, United Media, and the site targets the Swedish market.

Boss Media claim that the new software is highly easy for an operator to change the design and to update with promotions and that a new site can be launched in a matter of days. Anyone who has ever worked with Boss Media will raise an eyebrow about this as speed has now always been a hallmark of the company’s production team.

The new software was unveiled at the International Gaming Expo (IGE) at London’s Earls Court, which opened yesterday.

The release of high quality Boss bingo software will raise questions about St Minver’s long term commitment to the Parlay software they currently licence. St Minver were bought by GTech at the same time as Boss, along with sport software supplier FinSoft, and it would seem likely that GTech’s management will push to use in-house software rather than support a rival platform.

The event will also see the 2nd Annual Online Bingo Industry Awards on the evening of June 16.

Speakers already lined up include:

Mark Blandford, CEO, ValHala Investments, UK
Simon Collins, Founder, Cashcade (Foxy Bingo, Bingo Scotland, Mirror Bingo, Think Bingo)
Dominic Mansour, CEO, Bingos.co.uk
Angus Nisbet, Head of Gaming, Blue Square/Rank/Mecca Bingo
Chris Gorring, Online Gaming Consultant, former Head of Bingo Operations, Jackpot Joy
Phil Fraser, Founder, Which Bingo
Catriona Campbell, Founder Foviance
Bev Byrne, UK Community Director, Game Village
Warwick Bartlett, Partner, GBGC
Stuart McCarthy, Head of Bingo, SkyBingo
Justina Cruickshank, MD, Marmalade
Jess Luthi, Affiliate Program Advice
Raj Ramanandi, Affiliate BingoBase
Steve Cook, Head of Sales & Marketing, NYX Interactive
Perry Malone, CTO, Parlay Entertainment

The Annual Bingo Summit has for the past three years been the best attended conference for the European online bingo industry and promises to be even better this year, especially as more than a handful of people will know about the existence of the Online Bingo Industry Awards more than two hours before the event starts.

Norsk Bingo AS, which owns 30 bingo halls across Norway, plan to install 2000 touch-screen tabletop kiosks within the next two years.

The kiosks operate using software from Parlay Entertainment, who said that 20 terminals were installed during the autumn prior to the larger rollout.

Players deposit money onto the terminals using radio frequency identification cards, which can be loaded at the same place they buy bingo tickets for the real world bingo games.

Perry Malone, CTO and co-founder of Parlay Entertainment, said: “Parlay has always been a leader in the online bingo industry. And we’re pleased to be part of this latest innovation. The collaboration between Norsk and Parlay sets a new direction for both the online and land-based bingo industries, and is further evidence of the wide-ranging convergence that is sweeping through this sector. An innovative offering like this can help reinvigorate the land-based industry, whilst at the same time bring online bingo to a wider audience.”

The DTT license will see them operate 24 hours a day on Freeview Channel 48, making it the first dedicated gambling channel on the Freeview platform. Broadcasts will start on 8 January 2008 under the Live Bingo and Supercasino.com brands.

Until now NetPlay has bought capacity from other operators, mainly Virgin and Nuts TV.

Martin Higginson, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, said: “This is a major milestone for our business. Freeview is the largest digital TV platform in the UK with over 15.3 million homes using the service. To secure a dedicated channel to broadcast our services is a real achievement for the whole team. We will now be able to drive people to our Freeview channel 48 and thus build loyalty in this destination.

“NetPlay TV now broadcasts its services, including Supercasino.com and Live Bingo on three of the four digital TV platforms, Freeview, Sky, and Freesat, giving it a total addressable audience of over 23 million homes in the UK. Allowing our customers to interact with live presenters is a real differentiator. We firmly believe customer playing habits are changing and as such more and more users are now demanding a ‘live’ gaming experience.”

in May 2008 NetPlay TV acquired the Sky Channel 848 from Hollywood TV Ltd for the total sum of £475,000, payable in NetPlay TV shares. In April 2008 they acquired online bingo company Bingos.com for 7.35 million euros. Bingos.com operates on software supplied by Parlay Entertainment.

Shares in AIM listed NetPlay TV were up 1.5 pence at 27 pence in early trading.

A statement by the company said that the exchange had approved amendments that would allow up to  1,482,500 options to vest at the point of takeover and also allow the board to issue up to 494,903 more options. With 12,685,765 common shares in issue at the moment, the new shares that could be issued equal approximately 15.5% of the total shares currently issued.

These amendments had previously been approved by Parlay’s board of directors on August 27, 2008 but also needed approval by the Toronto Stock Exchange. The amended plan does not increase the number of stock options which Parlay is able to grant.

Parlay’s software is used by bingo sites including Virgin Bingo, Yahoo Bingo, Paddy Power Bingo, NetPlay TV’s Bingos.com and three bingo networks,  St Minver, TGN and BingoNexus. Parlay is based in Oakville, Canada and has offices in Bridgetown, Barbados, and Valletta, Malta.

Parlay Entertainment were the subject of a bid from by PEIC Aquisition Corp, a vehicle led by online gambling legend Mark Blandford, the founder of Sportingbet. PEIC pulled out of the bidding in March 2008 after two more parties became involved in the potential sale, only for the remaining bidders to also pull out.

Shares in Parlay Entertainment were today trading at 45 cents, valuing the company at approxiately $5.7 million. It trades on a price-earnings ratio of 45.

Cook will head up NYX’s international sales team. NYX Interactive supplies bingo, casino and sports betting software and is based in Stockholm, Sweden.

Currently two bingo sites – Bingohuone.com and Mamamiabingo.com – operate on NYX software.

Steve Cook has spent two years as European Managing Director of Parlay Entertainment Inc. He was previously European Managing Director of Tribeca Tables and General Manager at Sega Europe.

Parlay provides bingo and interactive television software to the St Minver Network and to Unibet, Stan James, Bingos.com and Irish boomakers Paddy Power.

Parlay is floated on the Toronto Stock Exchange; shares opened unchanged on the news this morning at 39 cents, valuing the company at just over $5 million.

The site, which runs on Parlay Entertainment software, is

The introduction to the site states: “We offer you something much more than just Bingo! Enjoy the camaraderie and have fun with our warm and welcoming chat hosts or dial our toll free number to get on line with one of our exceptionally helpful operators. There’s this and much more! Typically women outnumber men at online Bingo halls, but the trend is shifting. It is not uncommon to find men logging in at BingoFlash. The site has deliberately adopted a more sophisticated design and approach. It is designed to appeal to both male and female Bingo fans.”

Inital inspection of the site by Bingo News reviewers suggest the site may not yet be fully working, or they need a new graphics team. The so-called sophisticated design looks like it has been put together by a 16 year old with a clip art graphics set, in our opinion.

The Bingo Flash website is aimed at the American bingo market. Bingo News has learned that a UK facing site aimed at men is on the point of being launched in the next week and will provide an update shortly.

The CGTV cable channel will allow Canadian players to play free games, including bingo, blackjack, video poker, slot machines and skill games. They will be able to play at www.cgtvcanada.com.

Allan Weinrib, Senior Director for CGTV Canada, said: “With the addition of Parlay’s gaming suite to CGTV Canada’s website, our viewers now have the opportunity to interact with the CGTV brand online. Since we are the first and only television network in North America to celebrate the casino and gaming lifestyle, it seemed like a natural fit to partner with Parlay to offer free online gaming content.”

CGTV Canada said it plans to promote the online games through advertising on its television network and in print campaigns.

“Our free-play gaming solution allows web operators like CGTV Canada a hassle-free opportunity to reach new audiences with interactive online content,” said Perry Malone, CTO for Parlay Entertainment. “Operators benefit by exposing players to branded messages, offers and other advertising within the game, while at the same time building their marketing database through site registration.”