Hot on the heels of recovering share prices is news that PartyGaming intends to launch two new products this year. According to chief executive Richard Segal, the company’s new PartyCasino site will run in tandem with Starluck Casino and will also feature two new games. "In the first half there will be a person-to-person skill game and in the second half there will be another more akin to casino," Segal stated.
The chief executive also announced the introduction of “shared purse” facilities to allow players to hop from game to game. The functionality is designed to help players experience a wider range of PartyGaming games, as well as encouraging the company to cross-sell.
Segal also addressed the rising interest in online gambling over cellular phone networks. While sports betting and simple casino games have been testing successfully, the PartyGaming boss cautions players not to get too excited about the prospect of playing poker on their cellphones just yet.
"A sports bet is very easy to place,” Segal points out. "But imagine you're playing poker and have a royal flush in your hand, and then you lose connectivity. The indications are not getting us over excited about mobiles.”
As an alternative to traditional online gambling, Segal cited digital television as a sound means of providing online poker facilities.
Emerging and current markets were also one area in which Segal had much to say about PartyGaming’s New Year’s resolutions. Currently over 80 percent of PartyGaming’s poker revenue is derived from the United States. Concerned with ongoing legal issues and rumors of possibly further anti-gambling legislation in the U.S., Segal announced that PartyGaming plans to offer services to gamblers in six new countries in a variety of languages.
Despite his opinion that short term expansion into Asia would be problematic due to widespread fraud and the existing low levels of technology, Segal reinforced his company’s desire to diversify away from existing markets. "From an investor's point of view, it will do well to reduce our dependence on the United States market," he said.

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