Another chapter is about to close in the PartyGaming/Empire Online soap opera. Late last week, rumors began circulating that the online poker operators were close to an out-of-court settlement of their impending lawsuit, pushing the value of Empire's stock up five percent. In response to these rumors, Empire Online released a statement saying that it was indeed close to settling its legal despute with online poker giant PartyGaming. Although Empire Online refrained for offering further details regarding the settlement, stating instead that “a further announcement will be made in due course," various media sources have pinned the settlement at approximately $200 million in Empire's favor.

In November, Empire Online announced that it planned to sue Party Gaming for cutting off Empire's flagship online poker site, Empire Poker, from Party's player pool. Empire accused its former partner of breach of contract when it took PartyGaming to court in Gibraltar, suing for “substantial damages." The supposed $200 million settlement, while constituting a tremendous sum, is still substantially more modest than the $500 million in damages that Empire allegedly demanded at the lawsuit's outset.

Empire Online's gains from its lawsuit against PartyGaming should help it buffer itself against losses incurred by Empire Poker. Although Empire Online reported surprisingly positive fourth quarter results for 2005, this had little to do with Empire Poker, which has felt the brunt of a substantially diluted player pool. Rather, Empire Online's continued growth has its newer gaming platforms to thank, namely Club Dice Casino, and fledgling online poker room Noble Poker.

Source: Poker777 Staff

Sunday, 12 February 2006