The Rank Group plc (LSE: RNK) was established on 22 December, 1995 as a public limited company in England and Wales and in October 1996 it became a holding company owning all the outstanding shares of the Rank Organisation. The London Stock Exchange or LSE is a Stock exchange located in London, England. Events 1790 - The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Suvorov and his Russian armies A Public Limited Company ( PLC, plc or plc or p l c is a type of Limited company in the United Kingdom or the Republic of Ireland which is England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) A holding company is a company that owns part all or a majority of other companies' outstanding Stock. Shares outstanding are common Shares that have been authorized issued and purchased by investors The Rank Organisation was a British Entertainment company formed in 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group
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Origin
The Rank Group Plc is the successor in interest to the Rank Organisation which was formed out of the business interests of its founder, J. Arthur Rank. The Rank Organisation was a British Entertainment company formed in 1937 and absorbed in 1996 by The Rank Group Joseph Arthur Rank 1st Baron Rank ( December 22 1888 &ndash March 29 1972) was a British industrialist and Film producer
Redirection
In February 2000, the group sold its interests in Pinewood Studios and the Odeon cinema chain. Pinewood Studios is a major British Film studio situated in Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire. It also divested itself of its engineering companies plus its Butlins, Warner and Haven Holidays holiday and recreation facilities, which were all sold to Bourne Leisure. Butlin's Holiday Camps, presently known by the (non-possessive trademark Butlins, were founded by (later Sir Billy Butlin to provide economical holidays ( North Haven Holidays is a company that runs many well-known holiday parks around United Kingdom under the Haven and British Holidays brands previously two separate companies Bourne Leisure is a British company which owns Holiday park chains in the United Kingdom and was formed in the 1960's
In December 2005, it sold Deluxe Film for $750m, leaving five main businesses: Mecca Bingo, Grosvenor Casinos, Hard Rock, Blue Square and Deluxe Media, the last two of which are unprofitable. Hard Rock Cafe was founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton, and their first Hard Rock Cafe opened near Hyde Park Corner in London, In 2006 it held around £800m of debt. The casino division was hoped to be well-placed for growth as part of current and forthcoming Gambling Deregulation laws which was hoped to see the introduction of a number of new Las-Vagas style casinos being built in the UK.
In the short term, profits are under pressure. there may be some pressure due to the smoking ban and the increases in the UK National Minimum wage (which rose from £5. 15 to £5. 45 per hour in September 2006), on or just-above which most of its employees earn.
In late 2006 it was one of the worst performing companies in the FTSE250, with a stock market value of £1. 2bn (compared to £2. 0bn six months ago). It is currently being prepared for sale either to a private equity interest or joint partner.
On December 7, 2006, Rank sold the Hard Rock business to the Seminole Tribe of Florida for US$965 million. Rank is keeping the Hard Rock Casino in London, but will be changing its name. Included in the deal is 124 Hard Rock Cafes, four Hard Rock Hotels, two Hard Rock Casino Hotels, two Hard Rock Live! concert venues, and stakes in three unbranded hotels.
Gaming
Rank's main gaming brands: are Mecca bingo, Grosvenor Casinos and Blue Square.
Blue Square
Blue Square was launched on 5 May 1999 and is one of the largest interactive betting services in the UK. Events 553 - The Second Council of Constantinople begins 1215 - Rebel Barons renounce their allegiance to King John Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) The product suite offered by Blue Square has grown from its traditional bookmaking business to now offer all aspects of the gaming market including online casino, slots and online poker. A bookmaker, bookie or turf accountant, is an organization or a person that takes bets and pays winnings depending upon results and depending on the nature Online casinos, also known as virtual casinos or internet casinos, are online versions of traditional (" Brick and mortar " Casinos Online poker is the game of Poker played over the Internet. It has been partly responsible for a dramatic increase in the number of poker players worldwide The fixed odds betting services covers many channels including the Internet, Interactive TV, WAP and telephone. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks Interactive television (generally known as iTV describes a number of techniques that allow viewers to interact with Television content as they view it WAP is an open international Standard for Application layer network communications in a Wireless communication environment Basic principle A traditional landline telephone system also known as "plain old telephone service" (POTS, commonly handles both signaling and audio information
Blue Square started in-running betting on the FTSE 100 Index followed by online Snail and Hamster Racing, although subsequent events featuring Alligators and Turkeys allegedly attracted the interest of animal rights activists and The Vegetarian Society respectively. The FTSE 100 Index (ˈfʊtsiː footsie, abbreviated Financial Times Stock Exchange Index) is a Share index of the 100 most highly capitalised
Blue Square was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Intercapital Group Ltd (ICAP) until January 2003 when it was acquired by the Rank Group for £37m. It showed a 2005 loss of £2m.
Since the start of the 2007-08 football season, Blue Square has sponsored the Football Conference - the highest rank of non-league football in England. Organisation The Football Conference stands at the top of the National League System (NLS a comprehensive structure linking together over 50 different leagues under the England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland
Grosvenor Casinos
Grosvenor Casinos is a UK based chain of over thirty casinos located in major towns and cities across the UK with two sister casinos located in Belgium. A casino is in the modern sense of the word a facility that houses and accommodates certain types of Gambling activities Their headquarters are based in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
In December 2006 the Grosvenor UK Poker Tour was announced in association with Blue Square. The Tour will consist of 11 events throughout Grosvenor casinos in the UK, culminating in a Grand Final at the London Victoria Casino in December. Channel 4 will be recording at every location for a full series in the Autumn. Channel 4 is a public-service Television and Radio broadcaster in the United Kingdom centred around a television channel of the same name which began
Mecca Bingo
Mecca Bingo is a UK based bingo company, with 100 sites located across the UK in most major towns and cities. The company also operates Meccabingo. com & Meccagames. com as an extension of the Mecca Bingo brand.
See also
- RHM - formerly Rank Hovis McDougall, the family flour milling company of J. RHM, known more fully as Rank Hovis McDougall was a United Kingdom Food Arthur Rank. It was purchased in March 2007 by Premier Foods. Premier Foods plc ( is a British -based food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans.
External links
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