FORTUNA LAUNCHES ONLINE BETTING IN POLAND

1/27/2012 : First to offer a licenced online service in Poland
 
The Polish Ministry of Finance granted an online betting licence to Fortuna zakłady bukmacherskie (Fortuna) earlier this week, making it the first bookmaker authorised to offer the online service to Polish clients.
 
Fortuna, who has already laid the groundwork and developed a 20 000 strong subscriber base in anticipation of the licence award, will be kicking off the service on efortuna.pl today (Wednesday), a company spokesperson said.
 
"Offering sports bets via the Internet is a key issue when it comes to the presence of Fortuna on the Polish market. For several years, Fortuna has been successfully providing on-line betting services in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. We expect great interest in this distribution channel among Polish customers. We believe, the Polish players, who from now on will be able to bet online with legal bookmakers will use this service to prevent subjecting themselves to fines for betting with illegal operators," said Jan Stefanek, chief executive officer of Fortuna zakłady bukmacherskie.
 
Fortuna now offers both retail and online betting with internet users and select Fortuna retail shops also able to participate in live betting.
 
Fortuna is confident that the amendment to the Polish Gambling Act for online betting that came into force on July 14, 2011 will see Polish customers placing their bets with licenced and secure domestic operators, cutting out foreign and illegal bookmakers who avoid paying taxes in Poland.
 
"We are adamant that we are perfectly capable of not only fulfilling the expectations of Polish online clients, but also scooping the position of the leader in this field in Poland," added Stefanek.
 
News of the licence award and launch of its online sports betting offering has seen Fortuna's stock price rise to its highest level in over three months.