Starting Saturday, the first day of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) season, the public will be able to bet on games at sports lottery stores, Taipei Fubon Bank said yesterday.
The bank said last year that it hoped to list CPBL games among the betting choices before the Beijing Olympics in August, but the goal was not met.
The first CPBL game open to those interested in placing bets will be the Uni-President Lions versus the Brother Elephants.
Sports Affairs Council (SAC) Minister Tai Hsia-ling (戴遐齡) said that legislation governing sports lotteries was expected to be passed soon, which she hoped would help curb game-fixing scandals that have plagued professional baseball for years.
“One of the articles addresses the issue of criminal liability for those who try to fix [game] results,” she said. “Hopefully, the measure will help prevent players from getting involved in gambling scandals.”
The CPBL also said they had amended regulations to bar anyone related to baseball games — including team managers and all CPBL staff — from betting on games.
Anyone directly related to a game who is caught violating the new rule will be fired and anyone indirectly related to a game will be suspended from their position for a year, the CPBL said.
Meanwhile, the bank said betters would be able to choose between “handicap,” “hi-lo” and “correct score” in the initial stages of the baseball lottery.
A person will be able to choose “handicap” when a strong team is playing a weak team to equalize the chances of winning for both teams.
“Hi-lo” refers to an option where the bookmaker estimates the total score of both teams. Gamblers can then bet whether the outcome exceeds or falls short of the estimated total score.
When choosing “correct score,” a person placing a bet will be rewarded for predicting the exact score of the game.
The prize will be distributed equally among the winners.
“You have to place bets on three games at a time, including two CPBL games and a baseball game in another country” Taipei Fubon Bank vice president Richard Yang (楊瑞東) said.
“Prizes will be given to those who win all three of them,” he said.
Yang said betting on the World Baseball Classics this month had contributed to a daily revenue of NT$40 million.
Yang said he hoped revenue would reach NT$50 million next month with the new lottery options.
The legislation governing the sale of sports lotteries, which would require that 90 percent of earnings from sports lotteries be used for sports purposes, passed its first reading in the legislature last month.
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
Taiwan-based publisher Li Yanhe (李延賀) has been sentenced to three years in prison, fined 50,000 yuan (US$6,890) in personal assets and deprived political rights for one year for “inciting secession” in China, China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said today. The Shanghai First Intermediate People’s Court announced the verdict on Feb. 17, Chen said. The trial was conducted lawfully, and in an open and fair manner, he said, adding that the verdict has since come into legal effect. The defendant reportedly admitted guilt and would appeal within the statutory appeal period, he said, adding that the defendant and his family have
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS