888 Holdings plc
14 September 2006

888 Holdings Public Limited Company

('888' or the 'Company')


Interim Results for the six months ended 30 June 2006





888, one of the world's most popular online gaming entertainment companies,
announces its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2006.


Financial Highlights


Profit before tax* up 88% to $48.0m (H1 2005: $25.6m)
Net Gaming Revenues ('NGR') up 32% to $163.5m (H1 2005: $123.7m)
Profit before tax* margin up to 29% (H1 2005: 21%)
Operating expenses % of NGR down to 25.6% (H1 2005: 28.0%)
Cost per acquisition** of US$165 (H1 2005: US$200)
Net cash generated from operating activities up 109% to $56.1m (H1 2005:
$26.8m)
Basic EPS* up 89% to 13.8c (H1 2005: 7.3c)
Interim dividend of 4.5c per share
Special dividend of 4.0c per share


* 2006 - excluding share benefit charges


** Excluding customers recruited on a revenue share basis.


Operational Highlights


Geographical expansion outside US - 48% of NGR from non-US territories
and 67% of new real money sign ups from non-US territories


Rapid growth in NGR in the UK up 61% and Continental Europe up 16%


Increased yields per member from Casino and Poker divisions


Continued technological innovation


Continued investment in the 888 brand through sports sponsorships
including two new football sponsorships with Sevilla FC and Toulouse FC in
addition to the World Snooker Championship and a third year with
Middlesbrough FC


Commenting, John Anderson, CEO of 888 said:


'These are excellent results and represent a record performance of profitable
growth. We have delivered on all our flotation goals.


Trading during the first 10 weeks of Q3 is in line with management expectations
and we are on track to achieve a satisfactory outcome for the full year.

As of 31 December 2006, I shall step down as CEO and take the role of
non-executive Director. The current COO, Gigi Levy will succeed me as CEO.
Gigi is an excellent, experienced individual who is more than capable of taking
on this challenge.

I am proud to have led 888, since 2000, through its formative years into the
success it is today. Over the past six years, 888 has been a pioneer in the
online gaming industry.'



An audio replay of the presentation to analysts will be available from the
investor relations section of 888's website (
http://www.888holdingsplc.com

Business Financial Newswire
"888 Holdings target price raised to 145p from 125p at Daniel Stewart, buy maintained"

Business Financial Newswire
"888 Holdings raised to buy from neutral at Goldman Sachs, TP 153p up from 121p"

Business Financial Newswire
"Online gaming firm 888 Holdings reported EBITDA of $45.6m (2008: $55.7m), slightly ahead of market expectations.

Total operating income was $246.7m (2008: $262.6m), the decline driven by the economic downturn and foreign currency effects.

Profit before tax was $34.6m (2008: $48.6m).

B2B revenue was $51.3m (2008: $38.6m), an increase of 33%.

Emerging offering revenue was $25.1m (2008: $13.8m), an increase of 82%.

A final dividend of 3.0 cents will be paid, giving a total dividend for the year of 6.6 cents.

888 said its B2B division has been launched in its own right as 'Dragonfish'.

The acquisition of Wink Bingo completed on 31st December 2009 and it already contributing to revenue and profit.

Real money registered customer accounts totalled 7.1m (2008: 5.8m), an increase of 22%.

Dragonfish signed a first-ever e-Payments processing agreement with Linden Lab, extending its offering beyond online gaming

Dragonfish also signed a major deal with bwin Italia and deals have been signed to open up new territories, including: South Africa (Phumelela), Balkans (Loper Gate), China, South and Central America (Probability). "

Business Financial Newswire
Online gaming firm 888's total operating income rose by 21% in the first quarter to $69m and a 13% increase on a pro forma basis.

888 had 7.6 million casino, poker and sport real money registered customer accounts at the end of March - an increase of 24% since March 2009.

But is says Q2 trading to date has been disappointing in casino, poker and bingo, in part due to historical seasonal trading patterns.

During the first 25 days of the quarter daily average revenue was approximately 13% below the Q1 average.

Chief executive Gigi Levy said: "While Q1 saw improvement on a year-on-year basis, B2C trading remains challenging across our product range, partly influenced by the seasonal pattern.

"Emerging Offering continues to out-perform the core products, and Dragonfish continues to win new deals, notably those in the newly regulated Italian market with bwin Italia and Gioco Digitale.

"However, revenue from new deals is yet to gain significant volume.

"We believe that the right steps are being taken to counter the current challenges we face, and the board remains confident in 888's strategy."

With a few of the gaming stocks falling away, I suspect consolidation in the sector is not too far away. The next year or so should give traders some interesting opportunities.

Business Financial Newswire
"Online gaming firm 888 has signed astrategic agreement with online gaming B2B provider Microgaming to launch a joint poker network for the French market.

888 and Microgaming will establish a joint venture which will develop, offer and support the shared poker product for Microgaming and 888's B2B's Dragonfish licensees in France, as well as to 888's own B2C poker customers.

Players will benefit from a shared pool of player liquidity whilst still enjoying the unique 888 experience."

888 signs Italian joint venture with Endemol Italy

888 announces a joint venture with Endemol Italy, the largest independent TV production company in Italy, to co-invest in the Italian market.

The agreement will see the launch of a comprehensive gaming offering, operating on 888.it, which will benefit from exclusive utilisation of Endemol's brands in the Italian market, including Big Brother and Deal Or No Deal.

The joint venture, which represents 888's first major consumer launch in the Italian market, will operate under 888's licence in Italy. It is planned to launch once the Italian gaming authority provides final regulations for the provision of casino games, expected in the second half of 2010."

Business Financial Newswire
"Dragonfish - the B2B division of 888 Holdings - is launching a suite of Quickplay instant format games built specifically for the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

The games will be available to clients on the Dragonfish bingo network and standalone networks.

The games, consisting of Hi Lo, Slots and Keno, feature some of the most recognisable players who will soon be representing their countries in South Africa.

The games can be integrated seamlessly into the bingo environment via Dragonfish's bingo integration platform.

The release follows the launch last year of a number of Quickplay instant games for bingo clients, including new video slots, scratch cards and major branded games such as X-Factor, Spiderman and Fantastic Four. "

SELL 888...

Profit warning from 888 as poker earnings slump
Business Financial Newswire
Online gaming firm 888 Holdings said this morning that it has continued to experience a difficult trading environment across its products, with the exception of bingo and its recent acquisition Wink Bingo.

Trading is being impacted particularly by the continued weakness of online poker, which management believes is affecting the online poker industry generally. 888's poker daily average ring games' players declined approximately 18% during the period from January to May and management believes that this decline reflects industry-wide trends.

Revenue has also been impacted by the weakness of the Euro and Sterling against the US Dollar (the company's reporting currency). In particular, management estimate that May revenue would have been approximately $1.9m higher had exchange rates remained at their January average levels. For the year to date, management estimate that 888 has experienced a total revenue loss of approximately $5m as a result of foreign exchange movements.

Following 888's application on 21st May 2010 to obtain a licence to operate in the newly regulated French market, it is expected that trading could be further adversely impacted by the mandatory transition of business onto the regulated platform. This transition will require significant marketing investment, which in turn will have a short to medium term financial impact on the business.

After assessing the effect of the above and the expectation that online gaming trading during the period of the FIFA World Cup will be difficult, 888 has revised its outlook for the remainder of the year and now expects profit to be significantly lower than previous market expectations.

Although it is trading in difficult conditions, the Group continues to trade profitably, is cash flow positive and its financial position remains strong.

A number of steps, including cost cutting, have already been implemented and the Board remains confident about the future strategy and prospects of the Group. The underlying fundamental strengths of a regulated, legitimate and safe online gaming entertainment environment remain, and with this comes opportunity. 888 remains committed to further acquisitions as part of the ongoing industry consolidation

Seems to be a general gaming issue. LNG said something similar a week ago.

i have never understood the appeal of this gambling on-line stuff and have fortunately never been remotely tempted to jump in ..... too late to short? .... not necessarily

Brilliant timing of the buy recommendation by KBC Peel

Goldman Sachs recommendation in March is just pure shitty.

Well done Maestro another winner..

StockMarketWire.com
"Dragonfish - the independent B2B division of online casino firm 888 - has signed an extension to its existing agreement with Costa Bingo.

Under the terms of the agreement, which will run for an additional period of three years until July 2013, Dragonfish will continue to provide Costa Bingo (www.costabingo.com) with a comprehensive, fully managed, bingo solution.

Costa Bingo will commit to a number of significant marketing projects.

Costa Bingo has been highly successful through utilising innovative marketing initiatives, most notably the Free Bingo concept helped the site become one of the busiest bingo sites in the UK market. "

lol mitzy

StockMarketWire.com
"Online gaming firm 888 is acquiring the Mytopia social games development studio from Real Dice Inc.

The assets acquired comprise a games development studio, numerous games, including 'Bingo Island 2', a real-time multiplayer mobile Poker application available for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and J2ME handsets, a technology platform for hosting and operating real-time social games on social networks and a software licence for Particle Code, a cross-platform application development framework for mobile devices and tablets

The assets acquired will form the cornerstone of 888's social gaming and mobile strategy, offering a seamless experience across different platforms.

Social network and smartphone gaming applications will also be offered to Dragonfish B2B partners, allowing them to take advantage of this fast-growing area. During the year ended 31 December 2009 the assets subject of the acquisition generated an un-audited pro-forma loss of $0.1 million before tax.

The consideration consists of a base price and additional earn-out adjustments.

The base price of $18m will be paid as follows: $12m cash payment upon completion and an additional $6m payable in cash upon meeting certain milestones connected to the mobile and social networking games prior to 31 December 2011.

An additional earn out payment in cash will be made calculated on the basis of net profit for the calendar year 2011.

The total maximum consideration payable by 888 to the vendor is capped at $48m. "

StockMarketWire.com
888 has been awarded a licence to operate poker betting websites by Autoritde Rulation des Jeux En Ligne, the French gaming regulator.

Chief executive Gigi Levy said: "We are delighted to receive a licence to operate in France.

"We believe that the future of the online gaming industry is in regulated, legitimate and safe online gaming environments, and we have the right offering to obtain a significant market share in the newly regulated French market."

StockMarketWire.com
Online gaming firm 888's independent B2B division, Dragonfish, has signed an agreement with Microgame for a comprehensive casino product to the Italian gaming market.

Dragonfish will provide a fully localised product with a broad range of games, both flash and download, including video slots, video poker, table games, branded games and a selection of Quickplay instant games such as virtual sport.

Microgame will integrate Dragonfish's flexible gaming platform, taking advantage of Dragonfish's leading casino games, lobby, and a selection of back office tools.

The integration provides Microgame partners with the ability to manage their user interface, cashier, ePayment processing and customer support services.