UK embraces New Zealand’s 123racing game - June 14, 2006

New Zealand-based Racingworld Technology will debut its new on-line virtual racing game in England tomorrow (Wednesday UK time) at Kempton Park races.

Called 123racing.com, the game has been trialed at harness racing meetings in Christchurch, Invercargill, Dunedin, Nelson and Auckland over the last two months with the focus now shifting to a larger global market.

Robert Earle, chief executive of IGS, who is presently in the United Kingdom, sees tomorrow’s introduction as an entree to a huge international audience.

“Kempton Park is only the start. We now have access to all UK race data provided by PA Sport which means we can run the game on any UK race card,” he said.

123racing is offering £1000 ($NZ3000) in prizes.

“Not only will this be available for all our new UK players, but those who have been entering the New Zealand competitions will also be able to have a crack at the prizes.

“On top of that I have also been to the east coast of the United States to talk with different parties over there and they are also interested in the concept,” he said.

123racing is promoting the game as free to play at the moment to educate and enrol players all over the world, but ultimately the company would like it to be a pay-to-play game, which would dramatically increase the level of prize money available and the benefits that could be given back to individual racing clubs where the events are being held.

“The great thing about the technology is that we can do virtually all the work from New Zealand. If we could get together with the TAB it could be an excellent income earner for them and the Racing Industry.” he said.

Entrants in 123racing must pick a horse in each race and first prize goes to the person who returns the most points for their virtual picks. Points are accumulated with 3 points for 1st, 2 points for 2nd and 1 point for 3rd. Bonus points are added based on the official tote payout of a $1 each way bet.

Racingworld Technology employs 25 people and is based at the Christchurch Technology Park, the hub of South Island software development.