WPTE changes CFO

[Kneel B4 Zod]

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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

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WPTE lost money in 2002, 2003, made $750k in 2004, and lost $5m in 2005. I don't think you can blame all of their losses on online gaming. I don't even think they announced the first version of their online room until March of 2005.

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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

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WPTE lost money in 2002, 2003, made $750k in 2004, and lost $5m in 2005. I don't think you can blame all of their losses on online gaming. I don't even think they announced the first version of their online room until March of 2005.

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WPTE made money in 2004, at the peak of TV poker ratings in the U.S.

WPTE lost money in 2005 due to the start-up of WPTOnline.com, and due to the up front expensing of the production cost of the PPT TV project.

WPTE will make money from the WPT TV product in 2006 and 2007.

WPTE is also building its cash reserves by 1) finally getting PPT Season 1 on the air, and 2) selling 100% of its investment in PokerTek.

WPTE was forced to migrate to the online gaming business because WPTE sees its US TV rights fees revenue stream eventually going away.

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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.


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Harrah's and ESPN now split the sponsorship revenue from the integrated sponsorship deals such as PartyGaming and Miller Brewing.

Harrah's does make more money from its 50% share of the Miller Brewing and PartyGaming deals than WPTE gets from The Travel Channel. That is a given and is to be expected since Harrah's currently has the defacto "world championship".

Will Harrah's continue to have the defacto "world championship" of poker once the COMMUNIST PARTY of the People's Republic of CHINA decide where the majority of gamblers in the world can play Texas Hold'em?

Don't bet on that yet.

WPTE is allied MGM MIRAGE, which is allied with Stanley Ho and his daughters in Macau.

The Ho's have connections to the upper echelons of the Chinese government.

PartyGaming? I don't see any sign that PartyGaming is aware of what China means to the company's future yet.

One more uncertainty: will the U.S. Senate pass a law prohibiting the likes of Harrah's from doing business with companies, such as "software development companies", that are AFFILIATED with online gaming entities?

If so, then the WSOP may eventually have to leave Las Vegas and move to either London, or better yet, Macau in order for Harrah's to harness all available revenue streams.

The control of the global poker industry is far from being played out.

While PartyGaming and Harrah's have the lead now, the one entity out there that is capable of changing everything, namely the COMMUNIST PARTY of the People's Republic of China, hasn't decided at this time who it wants to control the poker industry by 2015.