TVG handles $45M in 2001

Television Games Network took $45.4 million in bets last year through its Oregon hub, up 242 percent compared with 2000, according to figures compiled by the Oregon Racing Commission.

Handle in the final quarter of the year was $13.8 million, the highest of any of the four account-betting operations with Oregon hubs. But closely behind TVG was America TAB, a partnership of three Internet sites, which took in $11.3 million in bets in the last three months of the year.

In TVG's first full year of operation, 2000, its handle was $18.7 million. The company currently takes wagers in 12 states, including New York, California, Kentucky, and Maryland.

TVG takes a 5.5 percent cut of each wager, meaning revenues from betting in 2001 were roughly $2.5 million, compared with $1 million in 2000. The network also receives 25 cents per bet through the system from subscribers, capped at $19.95 a month.

TVG's expenses in 2001 were unknown. Its parent company, Gemstar-TV Guide, does not include the network's operating costs in its financial statements, and network officials have declined to provide the figure this year.

In 2000, TVG lost $59 million, Gemstar officials said last year.