Online casino and online poker Operator Bwin, with sites like PokerRoom, Hollywood Poker, Eurobet and Bwin in its network, asks shareholders to contribute with another 500 million Euro to the capital stock.

The purpose of the increased capital is to enable the purchase of competing UK firm Sportingbet, according to Austrian financial news site Boerse Express. A number of other potential deals are also envisaged.

Furthermore, the court of first instance has rejected the application for a preliminary injunction submitted to the Vienna Commercial Court by Omnia Communication-Centers company recently. Such an injunction would have prevented Bwin from offering online casino games on the Austrian market under its Gibraltarian licence.

The court rejected the application on the grounds that there was no competition between the plaintiff and Bwin.

"We welcome today's decision by the court to reject this application for a preliminary injunction,", said Bwin Co-CEO Norbert Teufelberger on learning of the positive outcome of the proceedings.

"Legal action is not the right solution,", added Co-CEO Manfred Bodner. "We are in favor of a constructive dialogue to regulate the gaming market not only in the best interests of the consumer, but also in conformity with EU legislation and taking into account the realities of the internet age."