Gaming company shares hold steady

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19, 2002

Last Updated: 12:22 p.m. EDT.

Trading of Multimedia Games Inc. (NASDAQ:MGAM) was heavy this morning as the company revised its earnings estimates due to an ongoing conflict with federal Indian gaming regulators.

Stock price held steady at $21.06, up $1.18 from the close of day prior. The mid-day volume was 1.8 million shares.

Multimedia this morning said it expected diluted earnings for fiscal year 2002 to be $1.60 to $1.70 per share. Before the dispute with the National Indian Gaming Commission, the company was forecasting $1.75 a share.

This morning, three Oklahoma tribes were in federal court to try and halt the NIGC from enforcing a decision against the MegaNanza game. The game is considered to be Class III, which can't be operated without a tribal-state compact.

None of the affected tribes -- the Chickasaw Nation, the Choctaw Nation and the Cherokee Nation -- have such an agreement and argue that the game is rightly classified as Class II. The were presenting their views to a federal magistrate in Tulsa because the federal judge dealing with the case was not available.

During a conference call with investors yesterday afternoon, Multimedia chairman and chief executive Gordon T. Graves said the tribal intervention would help the company's case. "The tribes have a strong position in any federal lawsuit," he said.

"It's very advantageous sitting side to side with those tribes," he said.

The company in April filed a lawsuit against NIGC that the tribes have joined. Without their involvement, Multimedia faces a motion to dismiss filed by the government.

Government attorneys argued that the company lacked standing to challenge any decision affecting MegaNanza.

Today on Indianz.Com:
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Relevant Links:
Multimedia Games - http://www.multimediagames.com
National Indian Gaming Commission - http://www.nigc.gov