Wednesday, Dec. 27, 2006

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PartyGaming Plc. scoops up Empire Online stocks

By Sarah Polson

Noam Lanir, the owner of Empire Online, has sold his remaining shares in the company to PartyGaming Plc. The $40 million transaction completes Lanir's expected transition out of the online gambling business.

Empire Online had become listed on the London Stock Exchange a little more than 18 months ago. It was initially worth $928 million but had fallen to $244 million after its shares fell 80%.

The fall was due to the passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) in the United States meant to help prohibit online gambling in the nation.

The UIGEA also affected PartyGaming, who decided to stop allowing U.S. customers, which saw their stocks drop dramatically as well. Since then the company has been looking to expand its holdings and consolidate with other online gambling sites to beef up its holdings.

The deal between Empire Online and PartyGaming, which owns PartyPoker.com, is expected to be finalized by the end of the week.

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