Launches and sign-ups 24 June 2015
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (18 June to 24 June 2015)
Ladbrokes and Gala Coral in mega-merger talks
Two UK heavyweights in discussions over combination which would create online firm with revenues of approximately £400m
Ladbrokes and Gala Coral are in talks over a potential merger which if completed would create a combined entity big enough to rival the leading UK online brands.
In response to a story published by the Racing Post earlier this week, Ladbrokes chief executive Jim Mullen (pictured) yesterday issued a statement to the market confirming Ladbrokes was in discussions with Gala Coral over a possible merger with Coral Retail, Eurobet Retail, and Gala Coral’s online businesses.
“Since becoming CEO my focus has been on a more aggressive plan to build digital scale and grow our recreational customer base across all channels, which is key to creating a more sustainable and growing Ladbrokes,” Mullen said.
“My plans are well advanced and I look forward to presenting them to shareholders. A merger with Gala Coral could create a combined business with significant scale and has the potential to generate substantial cost synergies, creating value for both companies’ shareholders.
William Hill launches innovative pre-paid MasterCard
William Hill has signed-up with MasterCard to launch a pre-paid card which gives customers immediate access to money held on their William Hill accounts anywhere a debit or credit card is accepted.
The Priority Access card, which has already been rolled out to the operator’s VIPs, is linked directly to customers’ William Hill balances and can be used to withdraw cash or pay for goods using their William Hill account.
The card, which scooped the prize for Innovation of the Year at the eGaming Review Marketing and Innovation Awards last week, enables customers to access winnings as soon as bets are settled, as opposed to the standard three to five working days for withdrawals.
Seven days in launches and sign-ups:
Chroma Sports launch creative tech hub
International digital developer Chroma Sports, whose clients include Sky Sports, Racecourse Media Group and News UK, has launched a creative tech hub designed to unearth a new generation of digital sports products.
Chroma Labs is a centre for innovation where both employees and client partners can submit their creative ideas to Chroma’s product teams, which are then brought to life by the company’s designers and developers.
The initiative has already unearthed new products including the Betometer, an online betting tool which identifies wagers where statistics suggest a superior winning chance than the odds. Set to launch with one of Australia’s largest bookmakers later this summer, it will be rolled out internationally in the autumn.
“Inventive minds from within our business and from our customer base can submit their ideas and, using our expertise, we can build them on a mixed business model, either exclusively or as a licensed product that will benefit our customers across the sporting world,” Paddy O’Clery, Chroma Sports CEO, said.
“It’s crucial that we continue to innovate and grow our product range and Chroma Labs is central to that creative focus,” he added.
Marathonbet unveils advance-stake betting feature
Online sportsbook Marathonbet has unveiled a new feature enabling customers to use potential winnings from outstanding wagers to place new bets but not be liable for the stake if the bet is settled as a loser.
Advancebets, which was launched earlier this month, allows customers with a zero balance to place new bets or increase stakes on existing bets without having to top-up their accounts in a similar fashion to the popular Cash Out feature.
But customers will only pay back the Advancebets stake once bets have been settled and will not be liable for the stake should there be insufficient money on account after settlement.
Intertain pays £1.5m for Parlay Games’ bingo software
Intertain has acquired Parlay Games’ bingo software as well as the domain Bingo.ca for CA$2.8m (£1.5m), in a deal which hands the Toronto-based operator its first propriety bingo platform.
Under the all-cash deal, Intertain will have access to Parlay’s back office system, HTML5 mobile bingo products, plus additional casino, mini and side games and said it would begin integrating the platform into its Ver&John back-end immediately.
“Intertain has acquired some of the leading bingo brands in the world during the past 12 months and it has been our plan to eventually own a proprietary bingo platform to provide the company with options and flexibility for our current and future business,” John Fitzgerald, Intertain CEO, said.
BetVictor strikes Chelsea FC betting partnership
BetVictor has signed a deal with Chelsea Football Club to become the English Premier League champions’ new global betting and gaming partner.
As part of the deal, Chelsea will promote BetVictor branding across its 42,000-seater stadium and in addition to new digital marketing campaigns the Gibraltar-based operator will also offer enhanced prices and special markets for the club.
BetVictor said the deal would increase its visibility in international markets – the firm currently operators a brand in the Asia, a market where Premier League coverage is widely consumed.
Ladbrokes Australia debuts multi-million dollar mobile pools
Ladbrokes Australia has launched a new mobile pools product as the operator continues to use Australia as a testing ground for innovation.
Mega Margin will allow users to bet on the outcome of Australian Rugby League (AFL) and National Rugby League (NRL) games, and includes partial cash-out functionality as well as a potential multi-million dollar pay out.
“Our mobile-led platform is perfectly suited to a bet with ‘on-the-go’ Cash Out decisions and life-changing jackpots for our players and Mega Margin is a great innovation for us,” Paul Cherry, COO of Ladbrokes Australia, said.
Bwin.party sells World Poker Tour to China-based Ourgame
Bwin.party has sold its World Poker Tour (WPT) subsidiary to China-based Ourgame International Holdings for US$35m (£22m) in an all cash transaction.
Under terms of the deal bwin.party will continue to sponsor various WPT events and television shows in both Europe and the US until the end of next year, and has first refusal over any additional sponsorship opportunities that may become available during that period.
Ourgame, an online and mobile casual games provider with a focus on card and board games, has been working with the WPT on live events in China since 2012 and previously helped organise the WPT National China.
Playtech to fund Plus500 deal with £250m share sale
Playtech last week announced it will sell off 9.9% of its share capital to raise around £250m to fund its planned £459.6m acquisition of financial trading company Plus500.
A placing of more than 29 million ordinary shares will see founder Teddy Sagi’s Brickington investment vehicle purchase 33.6% of the new shares – the same percentage it currently holds in Playtech.
In a statement, Playtech said the placing was in line with the firm’s “strategy to acquire profitable, regulated, cash generative businesses with market leading positions”.