WPT Announces First Quarter Revenues Down on Last Year

Thursday, 10 May 2007

World Poker Tour Enterprises has announced disappointing results with a net first quarter loss of $2.3m. Over the same period last year, the net income was $3.6m. The company is keen to explain this as resulting from a fewer episodes of the WPT telev

World Poker Tour Enterprises has announced disappointing results with a net first quarter loss of $2.3m. Over the same period last year, the net income was $3.6m. The company is keen to explain this as resulting from a fewer episodes of the WPT television series – five this year as opposed to six last year. Profits are expected to rise over the rest of the year, as more series are planned overall.
The company saw a$0.4m decrease in online gaming revenue as players abandoned an in-house website beset by technical problems. The site has now re-launched following a move to specialist industry provider CryptoLogic.
One sobering piece of news was a $0.5m decrease in television licensing revenues. As televised poker becomes more popular, competition has increased. WPT was also forced to back down when players asserted their rights to their own brands, after it attempted to corner the market through exclusive contracts with players and casinos.
However, WPT Enterprises has no debt, and total cash equivalents and investments of approximately $37m, so there is plenty of scope for building on a number of recent developments.
'We are excited about our prospects in 2007,' said Steve Lipscomb, President and CEO of WPT Enterprises.



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