PMU.fr set to separate horseracing liquidity
French operator expected to separate retail and online betting pool in February following litigation introduced by Betclic
Former French monopoly Pari Mutuel Urbain (PMU) could be required to separate the liquidity of its horserace betting business between physical outlets and online as early as next month, eGaming Review understands.
French rival Betclic Everest Group lodged a complaint against PMU with Autorité de la concurrence, the French Competition Authority, after it argued its competitor held an unfair advantage through its monopoly of the retail horseracing market, which it uses to pool bets with those made online.
Betclic claimed that by combining retail bets with those struck online, PMU.fr has been able to significantly increase the winnings pot for each bet and offer additional bets and more stable odds.
PMU itself suggested the solution of separating its offline bets late last year and a ruling from the Authority is due in the coming weeks after a market test for the feasibility of such a division ended on 2 December.
“It seems the French Competition Authority is going to decide in February and ask [PMU] to separate its liquidity which would make the competition between operators much more balanced because it will be online liquidity only,” an industry insider told eGR.
PMU currently dominates French online horseracing betting with around an 85% share of the market, despite its latest results showing a slight decline in its overall business.
According to the operator’s full-year 2013 results, stakes were down by 1.8% year-on-year to 9.6bn whilst stakes placed on domestic races also fell 5% to 8.9bn.