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  #1  
Old 09-25-2006, 08:59 PM
olivert olivert is offline
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Default WPTE changes CFO

http://biz.yahoo.com/e/060925/wpte8-k.html

I had met both (soon to be former) CFO Todd Steele and Controller/CFO-designate Scott Friedman very briefly only two weeks ago when they were with Mr. Lipscomb in San Francisco at the ThinkEquity Growth Conference.

Todd Steele is joining a "private equity" firm, which means he could be joining either a "venture capital" firm, or a "leveraged buyout" firm, or a firm that does a combination of the two among other things.
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  #2  
Old 09-26-2006, 09:25 AM
jbrent33 jbrent33 is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

How will this move affect the emerging Chinese market?
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  #3  
Old 09-26-2006, 07:26 PM
wisehandpoker wisehandpoker is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

Oliver, I'm a fan of your work. Ignore the haters and keep it up.
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  #4  
Old 09-26-2006, 11:18 PM
DesertCat DesertCat is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

[ QUOTE ]
Oliver, I'm a fan of your work. Ignore the haters and keep it up.

[/ QUOTE ]

here, here. I enjoy your posts even if I occasionally choose to debate your opinions on China.
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  #5  
Old 09-27-2006, 12:16 PM
MagCFO MagCFO is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

They need to do something. If you lose $5mil a year during the poker boom, you're doing a terrible job.

How in the hell do you lose money right now, that's what I want to know.

Personally, I hope ESPN buys WPTE or they go out of business. That's what poker really needs to happen.

WPTE is locked into a terrible TV deal until 2009 or 2010. Whoever made that deal should be fired, and I'm sure the CFO was right in the middle of it.

/rant
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  #6  
Old 09-27-2006, 12:21 PM
MagCFO MagCFO is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

[ QUOTE ]
They need to do something. If you lose $5mil a year during the poker boom, you're doing a terrible job.

How in the hell do you lose money right now, that's what I want to know.

Personally, I hope ESPN buys WPTE or they go out of business. That's what poker really needs to happen.

WPTE is locked into a terrible TV deal until 2009 or 2010. Whoever made that deal should be fired, and I'm sure the CFO was right in the middle of it.

/rant

[/ QUOTE ]

Further rant...

You're the only game in town, and this is your financial results....

http://moneycentral.msn.com/investor...px?Symbol=WPTE

That's solid.

Please, let someone else who knows what they are doing to a shot at this. Unfortunitely, contracts signed with all the good casinos keep this from happening (thus, a buyout or bankruptcy is needed).

Would you invest in a company that is losing money in the poker business right now? Hell no.

gg WPTE.
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  #7  
Old 09-27-2006, 12:32 PM
olivert olivert is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

[ QUOTE ]

WPTE is locked into a terrible TV deal until 2009 or 2010. Whoever made that deal should be fired, and I'm sure the CFO was right in the middle of it.


[/ QUOTE ]

What are you talking about?

WPTE's legacy deal with The Travel Channel, signed in 2004 (which might as well have been 1004 the way the TV poker industry has evolved) is a MUCH BETTER deal, in terms of the amount of up front CASH, than the one Harrah's just signed with ESPN.

WPTE gets $10 million in CASH from The Travel Channel.

Harrah's received $0 in CASH from ESPN for the WSOP in 2006-2010. That's right. ESPN got video rights to the WSOP Main Event, the "World Championship" of tournament poker, for $0 in CASH.
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  #8  
Old 09-27-2006, 02:03 PM
MagCFO MagCFO is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

ESPN is willing to pay much more than the Travel Channel, thus the lawsuits over the PPT.

ESPN is also a much better market for the WPT. But no, they're stuck with the Travel Channel now. Would you rather be on ESPN or the Travel Channel? Would you brand be stronger on the TC or ESPN? How much money have you made so far with TC?

That's great that got $10mil upfront, but they still lost $5mil last year, which is pretty much unbelievable at this stage in the poker industry.

Say what you want about there TV deal, but I'm around people that know the situation pretty well. WPTE has done a terrible job making money, no one can dispute that.
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  #9  
Old 09-27-2006, 02:24 PM
olivert olivert is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

[ QUOTE ]
ESPN is willing to pay much more than the Travel Channel, thus the lawsuits over the PPT.

Say what you want about there TV deal, but I'm around people that know the situation pretty well. WPTE has done a terrible job making money, no one can dispute that.

[/ QUOTE ]

Again, what are you talking about?

And also, where have you been since 2004?

You are still stuck in 2004, while I am talking about 2006.

In 2004, ESPN wanted to pay WPTE more money for the PPT than The Travel Channel did.

In 2006, ESPN is NOT willing to pay Harrah's Entertainment even 1 penny for the WSOP Main Event, the "World Championship" of poker.

The TV poker business has changed, and changed dramatically, from a "rights fee" product to a "time buy/infomercial" product.

Those of you who continue to claim that WPTE got a "terrible" TV deal don't know what you are talking about.

FACT: WPTE gets more money from The Travel Channel for the WPT than any other TV poker producer gets from any TV network in the world.

The only reason why WPTE loses money is because it is forced to spend millions of dollars to migrate WPTE from a TV productions business to an online gaming business, with Asia and the Chinese-speaking markets in Asia in particular, being the target markets, when WPTOnline.com is scheduled to re-launch in the 3rd quarter of 2007 with "version 2".

WPTOnline.com "version 1", which operates primarily in the UK, loses money and will continue to lose money until the plug is pulled because the software is not scalable.

WPTE's legacy TV contract with The Travel Channel, which gets WPTE $10 million a year, is a year-to-year option which The Travel Channel can choose to exercise approximately 60 days before the start of filming for a new WPT season. Those options only run through "season 8", or the 2008-2009 season.

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  #10  
Old 09-27-2006, 02:32 PM
MagCFO MagCFO is offline
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Default Re: WPTE changes CFO

So are you saying Harahs doesn't make any money for the TV broadcast of the WSOP?

That's obviously not correct.

Harah's makes more money from the WSOP than WPTE makes in entire year, I'd be willing to bet.

Harah's makes a pretty good amount of money from my company. Party Poker pays a ton, and ESPN does not keep all of it.

When Harah's does their 3rd Q earnings report, we'll probably be able to see how well they did.

The bottom line is WPTE isn't making money in a booming industry. Now they're trying to get involved in another market they don't have the money to be involved in (online poker).

WPTE is a dud. You must be an investor to be arguing so hard for them. They've proven their ability so far. No investor in their right mind would invest in that company right now.

WPTE tries to screw over business partners like they have some great brand or something. They don't.

Time will tell.
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