As reported by the Racing Post, lawyers for At The Races obtained a court order to unmask the identity of a Betfair\’s customer and poster who made an untrue allegation about the financial stability of the company on the exchange’s forum.
“At The Races will not hesitate to protect its reputation when it is being damaged by individuals who hide behind anonymity to make comments on the internet about it, which are unfounded, untruthful and often malicious,” said the company in a statement.
“At The Races welcomes a constructive debate about its operations and respects the opinions of viewers, even when genuinely critical. However, no organisation, which takes seriously its duty of care to its employees and partners, will stand by and accept completely inaccurate comment and gossip aimed at damaging its reputation, particularly if it is delivered anonymously.”
“As the result of a particular posting made recently on a web forum, At The Races confirms that it did use the courts to obtain information on the individual and has since engaged with this person. The individual concerned has confirmed that there was no truth whatsoever in their comments about At The Races. ATR has accepted the individual’s apology and will take no further action in this instance. However, ATR will not hesitate to pursue a similar course of action in the future.”
“We are pleased the Betfair forum has become a key place for racing enthusiasts to express their views but those wanting to use this platform have to be prepared to be accountable,” commented Stephen Burn, Betfair\’s Head of Media.
“If we are served with a court order we are compelled to release a customer’s personal details. Accordingly, customers should be aware that they are responsible for the comments that they post on the forum.”
Betfair also established another precedent, when it decided to void its next Pipe stable jockey market.
The exchange received multiple feedback from players frustrated at having funds tied up for a seemingly open-ended period in such an illiquid market.
“Betfair’s own enquiries as to whether a stable appointment is likely to be made in the foreseeable future have led them to believe that it will not, and it is for this reason that we have taken the decision to void,” said the exchange in a statement.
Following this decision, Betfair also announced that it has an obligation to make these type of markets more punter-friendly. In the future, such markets will have a date-stamp attached to them, so that if a decision is not forthcoming relatively quickly, that particular market will be voided.
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