ARE Arena Events Group Plc

RNS Number:5650V
Arena Leisure PLC
7 May 2002

7 May 2002

                               ARENA LEISURE PLC

                 BETTING SHOP PICTURE RIGHTS DEAL SET TO BRING

                an additional £4m per year to ARENA RACECOURSEs



Key highlights


  • Agreement reached between Racecourse Association, racecourses and
    Bookmakers' Afternoon Greyhound Services Limited to show live racing
    pictures in betting shops

  • Fixed payment to courses of £4,000 per race

  • Agreement is expected to generate Arena £6m per year, representing an
    increase of over £4m from the £1.88m that it currently receives

  • Arena's revenue likely to be enhanced by additional income from pre-race
    data rights agreement between the British Horseracing Board ("BHB") and
    leading bookmakers - Arena awaits further details from Levy Board.



Ian Penrose, Group Managing Director of Arena, said:

"I am delighted that the picture rights deal has finally been concluded and that
live racing product will continue to be broadcast into betting shops. Arena has
played an important role in these discussions and I am pleased that we have
secured an additional £4m per year for our racing product.

"This news follows on the back of the successful launch of the attheraces TV
channel on Sky last week and comes before the impending launch of full
interactive betting on the channel at the end of this month."

For further information please contact:

Ian Penrose

Group Managing Director

Arena Leisure Plc                              020 7495 2277

Nick Davis

Director of Communications

Arena Leisure Plc                              020 7495 2277

Caroline Sturdy/Miles Bake

Bell Pottinger Financial                       020 7861 3863



Additional Information

Arena Leisure Plc ("Arena"), the leading racecourse operator, gaming technology
provider and media rights owner, is pleased to note that agreement has been
reached between the horseracing industry and the UK's major bookmakers regarding
the provision of live racing pictures into UK betting shops.

The agreement, which runs from 1 May 2002 for a period of two years and eight
months, was reached between the Racecourse Association ("RCA"), the individual
racecourses and the Bookmakers' Afternoon Greyhound Services Limited ("BAGS")
this morning. Under its provisions, each participating racecourse will receive a
fixed payment of £4,000 per race shown in a betting shop.

As Arena owns 6 racecourses, staging over 1,500 races per year, this new deal is
expected to generate Arena £6m per year, representing an increase of over £4m
from the £1.88m that it currently receives.

Revenue from the picture rights deal is likely to be enhanced by additional
income expected from last month's five-year data rights deal agreed between the
British Horseracing Board ("BHB") and bookmakers Ladbrokes, William Hill, Coral,
Stanley Racing and Done Brothers, which runs from 1 April 2002. This data
licence agreement concerns the use of pre-race data (including names, weights
and jockeys) in betting shops and comprises a payment based on an annual charge
of 10% of the bookmaker's gross profits from betting turnover. It is forecast to
generate approximately £110m for racing in its first year of operation and £120m
in each of the next four years (source: BHB). Last year's Levy raised
approximately £65m and is forecast to raise between £90-105m this year. The Levy
Board will distribute the new data rights income and Arena awaits further
details as to how much it will receive from the new arrangement.

On 16 April 2002, Arena announced that its six racecourses made a total
operating profit of £2.06m for the 12 months ending 31 December 2001 with
turnover of £22.9m.

                                    - ends -



About Arena Leisure Plc

Formed in 1997, Arena Leisure Plc is a leading racecourse operator, gaming
technology provider and media rights owner. It is the UK's largest independent
racecourse owner in terms of fixtures, hosting over 1,500 races per year at its
six racecourses. In 2001, Arena's racecourses staged approximately 20% of all
British horseracing fixtures, betting on which accounted for some 16% of the
total British off-course betting revenues.

Together with its partners in attheraces, BSkyB and Channel 4, Arena acquired
the majority of media rights to UK horseracing for a period of up to ten years
from July 2001. Attheraces will exploit the media rights associated with live
racing across all technology and media platforms and in many territories around
the world. The first platform (www.attheraces.co.uk) went live on the Internet
in December 2001, and the attheraces interactive digital television channel went
live on Sky on 01 May, 2002 (channel 418).

The press release issued today by the RCA is reproduced below.

BRITISH RACECOURSES AND BOOKMAKERS AGREE NEW £30m PICTURE DEAL



Representatives of 49 British Racecourses and bookmakers announced agreement on
a major increase to a rights deal that secures Betting Office access to pictures
of UK racing at a press conference in London today 7 May. The new contract,
which has been offered to 49 racecourses is at the rate of £4,000 per race from
2002 (excluding free to air televised races, some bank holidays, abandonments
and Winter Saturday evenings). Some 85% of races are covered by the new
agreement. In addition racing will receive an initial £3m in 2002 as the
Racecourse Association's integrity's provider RACETECH will supply SIS with all
its pictures. This figure will rise to £3.25 million in 2003.

The total package is worth the equivalent of £27.7 million to racecourses in
2002, an increase of 141% on 2001 and £29.65 million in 2003 a rise on 2001
figures of over 150%. This means that the total income for racing from
attheraces, GG Media, Picture and data rights in 2003 totals £165million, the
equivalent figure in 2000 was £87million. Britain's racecourses and their trade
association the RCA have been central in securing this investment by bookmakers
and other partners.

Failure by the parties to reach agreement would not only have disappointed the
sport's off-course customers but would have risked significant damage to both
Racing and the bookmaking industry. Betting levy could have suffered a decline
of some £30million per annum. This deal protects the Levy yield and assists the
Levy Board in its long term financial planning.

Under the terms of the new picture rights deal there will be further payments
for additional fixtures and races, whereas under the previous contract income
was fixed. The deal is for 32 months although racecourses may opt for an 8 month
break clause. During this break clause period the value per race will be £3,700.
Both sides in the negotiations felt it important to maintain the flexibility
offered by a medium term contract given the anticipated abolition of the Levy
Board in 3-5 years and the impact of the ongoing enquiry into racing by the
Office of Fair Trading. Each racecourse is free to accept either option or
reject the offer. There is no minimum acceptance criterion.

Keith Brown Chairman of the Racecourse Association which represents all 59 UK
racecourses welcomed the new deal and said today;

"This is a significant day for British racing and helps secure both a new fair
deal for racecourses and opens a new period of cooperation between the
commercial sectors of the sport. I regret the BHB's attempts to undermine the
deal and their Chairman's comments have been unhelpful and inaccurate and gives
little thanks for the support that the RCA and racecourses have given the BHB in
recent months. I welcome the continuation of the Levy Board. The BHB's
commercial data deal brings only marginally more income than that agreed for the
41st Levy determination by the Government and I am therefore concerned at the
BHB's attempts to compromise the independence of the Levy board. This picture
deal reflects the reality of the world we live in and the requirements for
racecourses to conclude freely negotiated commercial contracts. I am most
disappointed that the governing body, the BHB, has once again sought to restrict
the right of racecourses to license their rights."

Richard Johnston, Chief Executive of Racecourse Holdings Trust said:

"As a lead negotiator in this agreement I recommend this deal to the racecourses
who I expect to sign up for either option in the coming days."

Warwick Bartlett, Chairman of the Confederation of Bookmakers Associations said:

"This deal enables the betting industry to focus on growth for the benefit of
all parties and ensures the continuation of no deductions for punters. The
Government's far sighted decision to reform betting tax provides the betting and
racing industries with the perfect platform to lead the world".





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