THE Scots IT company Rapid Mobile has sold its ground-breaking Mobet software to online betting firm Betfair, writes John Penman.

Betfair, which is one of the world’s leading online betting exchanges, will rebrand Mobet to provide a mobile betting platform to complement its online service.

The move comes as the Edinburgh-based firm appoints IT expert Pat Chapman-Pincher as its new chairman. Chapman-Pincher has been a well-known figure in the IT, media and telecom industries for more than 30 years in both CEO and non- executive roles. Her appointment comes as Rapid Mobile looks to develop new products in mobile technology.

Mobet was developed as part of a programme run by Betfair product manager Tom Johnson.

Johnson said Betfair has always intended to offer its own mobile betting solution, but having considered all available options, believed the best route was to approach Rapid Mobile.

“They have a proven product and one we trust to enhance the Betfair experience,” he said.

The purchase includes the intellectual property rights and source code for the Mobet application but Betfair has retained Rapid Mobile to provide support as well as professional services for planned enhancements.

Mobet was launched in 2004 and has provided Betfair customers all around the world with secure, subscription-based access to the betting exchange.

“I’m very pleased to confirm that we have taken millions of pounds worth of bets for Betfair and not had one second of downtime,” said Richard Marshall, technical director at Rapid Mobile.

Iain Maddox, Rapid Mobile’s managing director, said: “This product passed all the tests in terms of usability, functionality, speed, scalability, security, robustness and mass distribution. This proves our ability to provide fit-for-purpose mobile application solutions for any market.”

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