SOURCE: Reuters

(London, England) — Online gaming firm PartyGaming (PRTY.L: Quote, Profile , Research) said on Wednesday it had strengthened an existing deal with ITV (ITV.L: Quote, Profile , Research) to provide the UK broadcaster with branded online betting, casino and bingo games.

PartyGaming has had a affiliate deal with ITV since June, an ITV spokesman said, which linked ITV.com users to Party's own poker and gaming sites.

The new deal signed over the summer has seen ITV revamp its Web site and Party has developed a poker room based on ITV's Friends Reunited social networking site and an Emmerdale soap opera-themed bingo site, as well roulette, blackjack and sports betting.

ITV is looking for ways to combat falling revenues from advertisers who are switching their attention to the Internet, and also to fill the hole left in revenues by a recent scandal over faked TV premium-rate phone quizzes.

PartyGaming is looking for new ways to boost revenues as it faces stiffer competition for poker players and struggles to compensate for the loss of U.S. gamblers following an effective U.S. ban on Internet betting almost a year ago.

It said last week it was close to announcing deals with large European media companies. Analysts expect it will now announce deals with other European broadcasters.

A PartyGaming spokesman said the games, which run on its network, had been on ITV's Web site since Tuesday, confirming a report on industry magazine eGaming Review's Web site.

By 1545 GMT PartyGaming shares were up 2.7 percent at 28 pence, while ITV was down 0.8 percent at 111.4 percent.