Ladbrokes Looking into Revamping Its Online Business?

Is technology acquisition deal with Betdaq close at hand? A report arrived this week of negotiations between British land and online betting giant, Ladbrokes, and Irish billionaire Dermot Desmond, the owner of the Betdaq betting exchange, about a potential "technology" takeover which would help the bookmaker revamp its declining online business. Apparently, Ladbrokes CEO Richard Glynn seeks to boost the company's internet operations by buying in the pricing and trading skills of an established peer-to-peer betting exchange, owned by Desmond, who has a stake of about 2 percent in Ladbrokes. According to a Ladbrokes spokesman, the bookie is not interested in buying Betdaq itself, and as he said, "It's only a discussion about technology supply. Exchanges have good up-to-the-minute pricing technology. Any deal would be financed from the GBP50 million already set aside for investment in online gambling by Ladbrokes.”