The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club has agreed to an exclusive one-year contract with Television Games (TVG) to broadcast its races for the 2009 season, club president Joe Harper said on Saturday.

As part of the deal, Del Mar has agreed on advance deposit wagering with TVG for the 37-day meet that begins July 22, but doesn't have agreements with California's other three ADW companies (Youbet, TwinSpires and Xpressbet), but track executive vice president Craig Fravel said he hopes to have those in place this week.

"We have an understanding (with TVG)," said Fravel. "We're still working on marketing terms. We're not 100 percent done."

Del Mar concluded a rancorous contract with TVG last year, but the network was bought by new owners, Betfair, this year and Harper decided to let bygones be bygones.

"The truth is we signed with them because it's the new TVG," said Harper. "We like the new owners. We got a better deal. We like it."

Fravel added, "(TVG) has 50 percent market share in California."

Del Mar looked into having the races on Horse Racing Television (HRTV) or both TVG and HRTV, but ultimately decided to stay with TVG.

"We want to be on all of the wagering platforms," said Fravel. "We ended up with a television only exclusive with TVG."

During the 2008 season, Harper was steadfast in his dislike for doing business with TVG, but that changed this spring when the British bookmaking operation Betfair bought the flailing American television and wagering outfit.

"When you look it, when we entered into the (first) contract with TVG, they had a lot of cash," said Harper. "We signed a lengthy contract and just shrugged it aside. They were difficult to do business with. That seems to have changed with the Betfair folks."

Del Mar previously had a five-year contract and five-year option with TVG. It was an exclusive deal for both television coverage and wagering.

Del Mar might have sought a longer new contract with TVG, but its lease with the state is up at the end of the year. The DMTC is seeking a renewal of the lease.