PartyGaming Revenue Rises Nine Percent

Online gambling giant PartyGaming has announced a 9 percent rise in revenues for the third quarter of 2010, as its merger with fellow gaming operator Bwin continues to gather steam.

The deal between the two companies, which is on track to be completed in March, will create a mega company with both a focus on poker and online casino that PartyGaming is known for an on sports betting, which is Bwin's specialty.

PartyGaming's poker site was the only sector to experience a drop in revenues between July and September, with takings down five percent as the company struggled against the two biggest poker sites, PokerStars and Full Tilt.

The two giants of online poker have expanded aggressively into the European market in recent months, which has posed a big threat to PartyGaming's big market share on the continent.

But its casino, bingo and sport sectors all saw steady growth for the quarter, with casino revenues rising 2 percent to €34.9 million and bingo rising a staggering 36 percent to €13.1 million. Total revenues rose to €85.3 million