TASMANIA TOTE AND BETFAIR TEAM UP

TASMANIA TOTE AND BETFAIR TEAM UP International distribution for TOTE through Betfair client base The online betting exchange and gambling group Betfair furthered its Australian expansion plans this week with an agency deal with the Tasmanian TOTE which will see Betfair distributing the totaliser's betting products internationally. Betfair business director in the region Andrew Thwaits told Australian media reporters: ''We'll be distributing TOTE Tasmania products to our customers worldwide. "What that means is that Betfair customers will be able to bet directly on TOTE Tasmania products through their Betfair accounts. ''There will be a single log-in, a single interface and a single account, so no transferring of funds. The convenience factor that we're announcing today is compelling.'' Thwaits revealed that Betfair now has more than 1.1 million active customers globally. "We are ideally placed, we think, to take Australian racing to the world,'' he said. ''For every dollar that is bet through the TOTE Tasmania interface on Betfair, money is returned to both the Tasmanian industry and via the participation fee that TOTE Tasmania pays to Tabcorp for being a part of the SuperTAB pool, and a share of that revenue goes directly to Tabcorp as well.'' TOTE Tasmania participates in gaming giant Tabcorp Holdings' SuperTAB pool. Pooling is where totalisators combine the bets placed with them to form bigger pools, and the two suppliers of pooling services are currently Tabcorp and Tatts Group, reports The Age newspaper. The SuperTab pool operated by Tabcorp combines bets placed through Tote Tasmania, Racing and Wagering Western Australia, ACT Tab, and Tabcorp in Victoria. Tabcorp also operates the Tab pool in NSW. Thwaites said the agreement would not stop Betfair from entering into similar arrangements with other pools, such as Tabcorp in NSW, and Tatts Group. He added that the company expects to launch its new service towards the end of May 2008. Betfair will receive a share of net revenue for acting as TOTE Tasmania's agent. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.