bb124 digital

[email protected]

£5.20 (€8.30) • ISSUE:124 • JANUARY 2015 • www.betting-business.co.uk

REBRAND:BoyleSports nowboasts a capitalnew look andhashtag#BetonBoyle

BETTING NEWS 14

RESEARCH: A lookat some of thefindings of therecent ResponsibleGambling Truststudies

REPORT 22

ICE TOTALLYGAMING: Find outmore about theexhibitors at theworld’s biggestgaming trade show

ESSENTIAL GUIDE 26

espite the clearsynergy with itssports broadcastingbusiness, Sky hasagreed to sell off 80

per cent of its Sky Bet operationto venture capitalists CVCCapital Partners. It is somewhatof a coup for the investment firm,which has been trying to returnto the UK gambling space forsome time.

The deal values the SkyBetting & Gaming business at£800m, a price that represents amultiple of approximately 15xEBITDA for the 12 monthsended 30 June 2014.

The Sky Bet managementteam, under the leadership ofmanaging director RichardFlint, will remain with the busi-ness under the new ownershipstructure, as will all of Sky Bet’semployees. Sky said it would

work in partnership with CVC atSky Bet, retaining an equitystake of approximately 20 percent and having board represen-tation. Most importantly for thebookmaker, it also said that SkyBet will continue its strong part-nership with Sky Sports.

Flint commented: “Over thelast seven years, Sky Bet hasgrown rapidly to become one ofthe UK’s leading online bettingand gaming operators, achievedthrough the hard work of ouremployees and the valuablesupport of Sky and Sky Sports.Looking forward, we have excit-ing growth opportunities, bothin the UK and internationally.”

The deal incorporatessports betting business SkyBet, Sky Vegas & Sky Casino,Sky Poker, Sky Bingo and Odd-schecker, the UK’s leadingodds comparison site is also

part of the acquisition.Rob Lucas, managing partner

of CVC, said: “We are delightedto have agreed to acquire a con-trolling stake in Sky Bet. RichardFlint and his team have built afantastic business, which is aleader in the fast growing mobileand online, betting and gamingmarkets. The partnershipbetween CVC and Sky willprovide a strong platform tosupport SkyBet’s ongoingsuccess at this exciting point inits development.”

The sale will see Sky receive£600m in cash, with a furtherdeferred consideration of upto £120m. It seems that as a Skysubsidiary, Sky Bet has growntoo big for the group whichwants to focus on its pay TVmodel.

Jeremy Darroch, group chiefexecutive of Sky, explained: “In

the last ten years, we have suc-cessfully grown Sky Bet from astart-up to one of the leadingonline betting and gaming com-panies in the UK. This transac-tion will allow us to focusfurther on the substantialgrowth opportunities in ourcore international pay TV busi-ness while realising significantvalue for our shareholders.”

CVC has been involved inseveral successful gamblingorganisations in the past. It hasinvested in William Hill, IGGroup, Malaysia’s Magnum, andpayment processor Skrill. Twoyears ago it was also involved ina high profile pursuit of Betfair,with talks over a £1bn takeoverof the exchange. However,Betfair CEO Breon Corcoranhad only recently been installedand the two companies failed toagree on price and strategy.

£800m SkyBet dealsees returnof CVCCapitalPartnersCVC Capital Partners, which oncetried to buy Betfair for £1bn, hasre-entered the betting market witha fascinating deal for a majorityshare in Sky Bet.

ACQUISITION

TAXATION

The Isle of Man has moved to meetthe challenge posed by the UK’sPoint of Consumption tax by giving

operators based on the island a rebate.The Isle of Man Government is to allow

IoM licensed-operators to claim ‘DoubleDuty Relief’, up to a monetary maximumequivalent to the amount of gamblingduty which would have been paid to theIsle of Man Treasury on the same activity.These changes became effective from 1December 2014.

Peter Greenhill, CEO for e-gamingdevelopment with the Isle of Man Depart-ment of Economic Development, said:“We recognise the burden that the newUK tax will place on our licensed opera-tors and, while we are not legally boundto offer this relief, we have decided thatthis is the best approach.

“In addition, the Isle of Man’s positiverelationship with the United Kingdom’sHM Revenue and Customs means that ouroperators will not have to appoint a fiscalrepresentative in the United Kingdom,thereby saving them substantial costs.”

The Isle of Man currently has 56licensed operators and e-gaming repre-sents a hefty 13 per cent of its economy.Greenhill added: “This decision providesreassurance to Isle of Man licenceholders so that they can continue to runtheir operations from data centres on theIsle of Man and base their decisionmaking capabilities here as well so as toprotect against any future claims underBase Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS).”

It is a clever manoeuvre for the juris-diction given the fact than many opera-tors are looking closely at how theirorganisations are licensed - only lastmonth BoyleSports started moving itsremote operations to Gibraltar. With thisscheme, the Isle of Man is trying to under-line its attractiveness as a remote gamingjurisdiction.

D

Isle of Manoperatorsget DoubleDuty Relief

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ A

DA

M H

OLT

LIV

EP

IC

SKY BET IS THESPONSOR OF THE

FOOTBALL LEAGUE

BB124-p01-news_09/10 02/01/2015 10:05

News

The latest review into gamblingadvertising has concluded thatthere is no evidence for any

further restrictions as the currentregime is working to plan.

The review, by the Committees ofAdvertising Practice (CAP) and theBroadcast Committee of Advertis-ing Practice (BCAP), said that theimpact of gambling advertising onyoung people and problem gamblingbehaviour is limited.

The report said: “It is also impor-tant to note that the Codes play animportant part within a wider regu-latory environment overseen by theGambling Commission that com-bines regulation and industryresponsibility initiatives to focusproportionately on gambling relatedharms. CAP and BCAP consider thatcalls for further, broad restrictionson advertising, like a 9pm watershedon TV, ignore both the evidence baseand extensive framework of regula-tion already in place.”

The report was launched inresponse to a request by the Depart-ment of Culture Media and Sport andforms part of a multi-agency processlooking at how gambling is adver-tised. CAP’s work follows independ-ent research findings publishedearlier this year by the ASA whichshowed that the ASA’s decisions oncomplaints around gambling ads‘meets societal expectations’.

Shahriar Coupal, director of CAP,said: “We know gambling can be a

contentious issue which is why thereare strict rules in place to ensure it isadvertised responsibly. While ourReview shows that our regulation ofgambling ads is effective, we’restaying vigilant and will act whereevidence shows that children or vul-nerable people might be at risk.”

The report said that two key indi-cators of gambling-related harm -problem gambling and underage par-ticipation - are at low levels andtrends suggest they have been indecline since 2007 during a period ofvery significant growth in advertis-ing volumes. It added that the aca-demic literature points to gamblingadvertising having a potential impactbut, in relation to problem gambling,the impact is found to be relativelysmall. CAP and BCAP said they areconfident that the evidence does notpresent a case for tighter restric-tions, such as broader prohibitionson advertising in certain media.

The report added: “We also notethe results of the recent ASA Reviewof its application of the Codes whichfound no instances of gaps in therules that might hinder their capac-ity to take action where necessary toensure that gambling advertisingremains responsible. Indeed themajority of the ASA’s work on gam-bling relates to issues of general con-sumer protection rather thangambling-related harms.”

The report did recognise thatgambling advertising remains a sen-

sitive policy area permeated bywhat has been referred to as a ‘moraldimension’, but CAP and BCAP saidthat it was not their place to judge.It added: “On a more fundamentallevel, social concerns about theproper place of gambling in oursociety - including whether it shouldbe promoted or encouraged - canonly be addressed at a social andeconomic policy level; advertisingregulation must take its cue fromthe framework envisaged under lawand implement rules in an evidence-based and proportionate manner.”

The report continued: “UK lawallows gambling to be advertised asa legitimate leisure activity. Ourresponsibility as part of the UKadvertising self-and co-regulatorysystem is to create proportionateand targeted rules that protect thepublic, young people and the vul-nerable from potential harms,arrived at on the basis of the bestavailable evidence. We are confi-dent that the gambling rules in theCodes continue to meet this impor-tant objective.

“Nonetheless, we will not be com-placent. The limitations to the exist-ing evidence base call for continuingvigilance by regulators includingCAP and BCAP, and we are commit-ted to working pro-actively to ensurethe Codes continue to set the neces-sary level of restrictions to ensuregambling advertising remainsresponsible.”

Report finds noevidence for furtheradvertising restrictions Calls for more restrictions on gambling advertising ignoresthe evidence base, says CAP and BCAP.

MARKETING

ichard Glynn, theembattled bossat Ladbrokes,has announcedhe is to step

down from the bookmakerafter five years as CEO. In arather muddled statementto the stock market, thelisted betting firmannounced that it is to startthe process to find Glynn’ssuccessor, and that he iswilling to stay on in the roleto ensure an orderly transi-tion.

Glynn’s tenure at the topof one of the country’sbiggest gaming firms hasbeen fraught with problems,which have only been mag-nified as its nearest rivalWilliam Hill experiencedhuge growth under the stew-ardship of Ralph Topping.

It is probably for thisreason that Ladbrokes’statement started quitedefensively: “Ladbrokes,under the leadership ofRichard Glynn, has been

implementing a fundamen-tal re-engineering of its busi-ness and operational anddigital capabilities. As thisyear has progressed, it hasbecome increasingly clearto the Board that the neces-sary organisational andoperational changes havebeen implemented and thebenefits of the transforma-tion plan are beginning tocome through.

“Whilst the Boardacknowledges that therecovery programme hastaken longer to deliver thaninitially anticipated, in greatpart due to economic andregulatory headwinds, theBoard believes that thechanges made are nowdeeply embedded in theorganisation and thatincreasing attention shouldnow be focused on deliver-ing sustainable growth froma much stronger operationaland digital platform.”

The bookmaker said thatGlynn was appointed CEO

After a rocky five years, Richard Glynn believbetter position to deliver sustainable growth.

RECRUITMENT

Ladbrokesfor Glynn’s

R

CAP AND BCAP SAID THERE WAS NOEVIDENCE FOR A 9PM WATERSHED

FOR GAMBLING ADVERTS

BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 20152

BB124-p02-03-News_09/10 02/01/2015 10:08 Page 1

The Gambling Commission has published the latest research figures for 11-15 year olds who say they played National Lottery games and other gamblingproducts. These indicate that the claimed rate of gambling among 11-15s has remained relatively static over time, with no evidence of a rise in problem gambling levels. The Commission, which regulates gambling to ensure that children are protected, organises regular surveys to better understand potentialunderage play. This latest survey of nearly 3,000 children aged between 11 and 15 in England and Wales was conducted independently by Ipsos MORI.

Rate of gambling for 11-15 years olds steady

Austrian bookmaker SKS365 Group, the ownerof the international sports betting platformplanetwin365, has confirmed recent reports

about its application for betting and gaminglicences in Spain.

The expanding Austrian bookmaker, that oper-ates online and land-based services with bettingshops in Austria, Serbia and Belgium, is nowseeking online licences in Spain. SKS365 Grouphas applied for general licences in the categoriesof betting and other games, as the company hopesto win over Spanish customers with its proprietarysportsbook.

Thomas Smallwood, CEO of SKS365 Group, saidof the company’s move into Spain: “Planetwin365offers an extremely strong European sportsbookwhich will have great potential in the Spanishmarket. We can bring new value in sports betting tothe Spanish customers through our innovative andhighly competitive product, which has alreadyproven very popular in other countries. We seeSpain as a really attractive market and are hopingfor a launch in the first half of 2015.”

12 new operators have applied to the Spanishregulator La Direccion General de Ordenacion delJuego (DGOJ) to enter the country’s online gamingmarket under a new licence tender.

The process saw the 12 operators request a totalof 20 licences, nine of which are for betting pur-poses and 11 are for other games, while a further 32are specific product licences. Already licensedoperators also submitted seven new applications,six of which were for betting and one is to coverother games.

Other firms expected to have applied for aSpanish licence are Gala Corla, BetClic andMarathonbet.

The new licence process was introduced afterthe DGOJ reviewed its policies and frameworks inMay. At the time, the regulator confirmed that itwould approve betting exchanges and slots to beserviced by licensed online gambling and bettingoperators, with existing licensees required to re-apply in order to provide slots in their productinventory.

The Spanish regulator had been under pressurefrom igaming operators, who have felt restricted byregulations concerning product inventory for themarket. The DGOJ further stressed that it wouldneed a six month window to implement changes tocurrent Spanish provisions in order to monitor andregulate the market.

SKS365among theapplicantsfor newSpanishsportsbettinglicencesSPAIN

of Ladbrokes in April 2010with a ‘clear mandate’ toimplement the recoveryprogramme within a fiveyear term, which suggeststhat the firm is hailing histenure as a qualifiedsuccess. Indeed, following‘extensive and construc-tive discussions’, Glynnwill complete his term and‘continue in his role as CEOinto 2015’, at least until Lad-brokes finds a replace-ment.

Chairman Peter Erskinecommented: “On behalf ofthe Board, I would like tothank Richard for his lead-ership of the company andhis considerable achieve-ments in delivering a newdigital future for Lad-brokes. He has devotedenormous energy and dedi-cation to securing the trans-formation of the companyand the benefits of thatwork are beginning to beseen. I am pleased that hewill both see through the

final steps of the implemen-tation plan and be on handto facilitate an orderly suc-cession process. Lad-brokes has beentransformed and is a farstronger company as aresult of his work.”

Glynn added: “Everyoneat Ladbrokes has workedincredibly hard over thepast, nearly five years, todeliver the transformationprogramme. We have facedsignificant operationalchallenges, as well as eco-nomic and regulatoryheadwinds. However, I ampleased that the businessis fundamentally strongerthan it was and now hasthe operational and digitalcapabilities to competeeffectively. We have deliv-ered against all of therecent milestones andincreasingly shown realcompetitive momentum.

“It has been a privilegeto lead Ladbrokes overthis crucial phase. I am

very proud of theresilience and profession-alism the team has shownduring this intense periodof activity. It is the righttime for Ladbrokes toidentify my successor. Iwill continue to serve thecompany to help ensure asmooth succession I lookforward to the company,the shareholders, our part-ners and in particulareveryone in the teamreaping the benefits, overthe next few years, of allthat has been sown.”

The Board said that itwill shortly start a processto identify Glynn’s succes-sor, a search that will eval-uate both internal andexternal candidates. Oncean appointment has beenmade, Glynn has agreed toremain in post as requiredto ensure an orderly tran-sition.

APPOINTING A CEOCOMMENT 53

lynn believes he will leave behind a Ladbrokes in a muchble growth.

kes on the huntnn’s replacement

THOMAS SMALLWOOD:‘GREAT POTENTIAL IN

THE SPANISH MARKET’

BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 2015 3

ANALYSIS

Richard Glynn wasbrought in fromSporting Index withambitions totransform the onlineside of the business,but it has been theretail channel that hasflourished during histenure. Indeed, attimes theperformance of thebetting shops hasmasked realproblems for theremote side of thebusiness andundoubtedly helpedGlynn reach the endof his five-year term.Fortunately for anysuccessor, Ladbrokesseems to have thebuilding blocks inplace for growth now(not least the stilllargely unrealisedpotential of theBETDAQ business)and the rightappointment couldsee the firm makinglarge strides to catchup with the currentlydistant William Hill.

RICHARD GLYNN: ‘IT HAS BEEN APRIVILEGE TO LEAD LADBROKES’

BB124-p02-03-News_09/10 02/01/2015 10:08 Page 2

iGaming

Gala Bingo has cele-brated raising over£6,000 for charity

partner Royal VoluntaryService by breaking a worldrecord for using the largestbingo card ever. A smatter-ing of celebrities, includingStrictly Come Dancing’sJames Jordan, helped play agame of bingo using a 5 by 2metre bingo card.

The money will help fundRoyal Voluntary Service vol-unteers to provide lunchclubs across Great Britain.

Gala Interactive directorof gaming Alison Diggesexplained: “We were keen todo something to supportsuch a relevant and essentialcharity particularly in the runup to Christmas. Bingo is allabout sociability as our busychat rooms will testify! Manyof our players are olderpeople or have older peoplein their lives. We want tocreate awareness that olderpeople can often be lonelyand on their own but thatneedn’t be the case.”

Kate Rooks, senior corpo-rate development managerat the Royal VoluntaryService, added: “Our part-nership with GalaBingo.comwill help us raise awarenessof the devastating impact ofloneliness and raise vitalfunds to help our volunteersmake a difference tosomeone’s Christmas. Asimple chat with someonecan lift the spirits and changesomeone’s day - or life.”

Meanwhile, Gala Coral hassigned a deal selling 47 bingohall properties, with another

five in the pipeline. The dealsees Gala continue tooperate retail bingo in theproperties, but as a tenant tothe new owners M&G Invest-ments, which has spent£173.4m on the deal.

As part of this transaction,Gala Retail has entered intonew 25 year leases with M&Gand has also made a paymentof c. £34m to reduce the renton its bingo properties byapproximately £9m to£15.5m per annum.

Paul Bowtell, CFO of GalaCoral Group, said: “Theannouncement is good newsfor the Gala Coral Group as itfurther streamlines ourfinancial structure. In addi-tion, the move to currentmarket rents on these clubsfor Gala Bingo will enhancethe profitability of the busi-ness.”

The group has alsodonated £10,000 to ProstateCancer UK, which raised thefunds via its GOALvemberchallenge. Each week, thechallenge asked punters toselect a footballer fromCoral’s list of players andeach time they scored thatweek, they won a free bet.For every entry intoGOALvember, Coral donated£1 to Prostate Cancer UK.

Coral PR and broadcastdirector Simon Clare said:“We’re delighted to be pre-senting this cheque toProstate Cancer UK. Punterstook part in our GOALvem-ber challenge in their thou-sands so it’s great to see their‘free’ bets going to such awonderful cause.”

rading activities aroundlast year’s biggest deal,which saw Canadiangroup Amaya take over theowners of the PokerStars

and FullTilt operations, is being inves-tigated by Quebec securities regula-tor AMF.

Forbes reported that the RoyalCanadian Mounted Police and AMFhad raided the Montreal offices ofAmaya, those of Canadian invest-ment bank Canaccord Genuity, and asubsidiary of Canadian insurancecompany Manulife Financial.

The news caused 18 per cent to bewiped off Amaya’s stock price andled the firm to issue a statement tothe stock market, declaring inno-cence. It read: “To provide clarifica-tion on a media report, Amaya Inc.confirmed that the corporation andits officers are cooperating with theAutorité des marchés financiers, thesecurities regulatory authority in theProvince of Quebec (the AMF), in aninvestigation with regards to tradingactivities in Amaya securities sur-rounding the corporation’s acquisi-tion of Oldford Group in 2014.

“To the corporation’s knowledge,this does not involve any allegationsof wrongdoing by the corporation.Amaya will continue to cooperate, ifand as requested, consistent with ourpractice to always cooperate withregulatory authorities. The corpora-tion will continue to monitor theinvestigation if and as it proceeds.The investigation has had no impacton Amaya’s business operations,employees or companies.”

AMF spokesman Sylvain Thébergetold local press: “This search waspart of a wider investigation on whichwe have no further comment.”

Canaccord also took a big hit in itsshare price, leading chief executiveofficer Paul Reynolds to issue a memoto employees. It said: “I can assureyou that Canaccord Genuity is notthe subject of this investigation, noris any member of our capital marketsgroup. This is strictly a request forinformation related to individualtrades in our client accounts.”

Despite the dip, some analystssuggest that there will be little long

term disruption to the share price.One institutional investor toldToronto’s Globe and Mail: “With thistype of company in this space, it’s notentirely unexpected. High-yieldinvestors are aware that these thingscan come up from time to time. Itdoesn’t necessarily concern them atthis point.”

Only last month Forbes magazineprofiled Amaya Gaming Group CEODavid Baazov, declaring him to be thenew ‘king of online gambling’ havingpulled off the incredible coup of theacquisition of PokerStars.

The profile piece written by Forbesstaff editor Nathan Vardi, recountshow Baazov had been eyeing the oper-ations and governance for severalmonths prior to making his move. Itfurther details investment negotia-tions between Baazov and strategicinvestment fund Blackstone GSOwho would invest $1bn in the acquisi-tion deal, its biggest ever investmentcommitment.

Forbes labelled the $4.9bn acquisi-tion of the market leader in onlinepoker as one of 2014’s most interest-ing tech buyouts.

Gala Coral breaksbingo record after charitablepromotionBINGO

ANALYSIS

Whilst 2014 has proved to be a successful year for Amaya Gaming and itscorporate value, financial analysts have predicted that Baazov and hisfirm face a tough 2015, as the operator will have to justify its leveragedacquisition of PokerStars and FullTilt. Amaya will likely face a decline inrevenues having withdrawn from Turkey, Russia and Germany.The igaming and sports betting industry will further await the highlyanticipated launch of Amaya Gaming’s sports betting and casino product,as the firm looks to broaden its online gambling product inventory.

Amaya officesprobed overPokerStars dealThe amazing deal that saw Amaya take-over PokerStars and FullTiltis being looked at by some officials in Canada.

INVESTIGATION

T DAVID BAAZOV:THE NEW ‘KING

OF ONLINEGAMBLING’

JAMES JORDAN HELPSGALA BINGO BREAK A

WORLD RECORD


BB124-p04-08-iGaming_09/10 02/01/2015 10:14 Page 1

VISIT US AT

STAND N5-330ICE


iGaming Swedish igaming operator Unibet has won the App of the Year award for its Spin Citycasino games app. Other winners at the inaugural App awards included supplierPlaytech which took home the Best In-Play sports betting App while European sportsbetting operator Betsson won Best Sports Betting App.

Unibet’s Spin City wins app award

Mikael Pawlo is to step down asCEO of the AktieTorget-listedoperator Mr Green & Co, with

the firm’s nomination committeesuggesting he should become a newmember of the Board. The agree-ment means that Pawlo will continueserving as CEO until the end of June2015.

As one of the founding trio behindMr Green, Pawlo has served as theCEO of the company, first in Maltaand subsequently when it became alisted holding company.

Pawlo explained: “It has been anincredible journey to be part of estab-lishing Mr Green as a secure andentertaining alternative in the Euro-pean gaming market. We haveevolved from an idea in a Word docu-ment in autumn 2007 to today havinga group with 145 employees and agame win for the third quarter of SEK484.2m (£40m). The group is nowentering a new phase and the foun-dation has been laid for continued,rapid profitable growth and it is timefor someone else to take over.”

Tommy Trollborg, board chairmanof Mr Green & Co, added: “I cannotemphasise enough the importanceof Mikael Pawlo to the success of MrGreen online casino. Under his lead-ership, we have created a casinoexperience that we believe is in aclass of its own. For this reason, I amdelighted that the company can beassured of Mikael Pawlo’s expertisethrough the proposal to elect him asa new Board member.”

he Intertain GroupLimited has completedits acquisition of theentire issued sharecapital of Dumarca

Holdings PLC, the Malta-basedparent company of theVera&John group.

As consideration for theDumarca Shares, the companymade an initial payment of 44.5meuro (£34.8m) in cash,exclusive of working capitaladjustments, and approximately5.0m common shares of Intertain.

The initial payment was fundedthrough cash on hand and aninterim bridge loan of approxi-mately CA$10.0m (£5.5m) pro-vided by certain management ofIntertain, on an ‘arm’s lengthbasis’, to ensure that the companycontinues to have sufficientworking capital to fund itsgrowth. The bridge loan bears aninterest rate per annum of theprime business rate (as reportedby the Bank of Canada) and isdue for repayment in five years.Intertain may repay the principalamount at any time prior to the

maturity date. The bridge loan issubordinated to the company’s8.5 per cent senior secureddebentures issued pursuant to anindenture dated 10 July 2014.

Intertain CEO John KennedyFitzGerald commented: “We arevery happy to close this transac-tion and look forward to grow thecompany both organically andfrom other potential acquisitions.

“The cost of capital we are pro-viding through this temporarybridge loan will be the lowest costof capital within the company,and further demonstrates Inter-tain management’s commitmentto our vision for the company.”

Dumarca Holdings directorDan Anderson added: “Workingtogether with Intertain enhancesour expertise in existing marketsas well as access to new. We haveformed a great team withinVera&John, and look forward toleveraging our abilities to driverevenue synergies across thegroup and increase the value ofour material share ownership.”

Intertain may be required tomake a further cash payment in

the event Vera&John generatesearnings before interest, taxes,depreciation and amortisationover certain thresholds in 2015and 2016. The cumulative EarnOut payment over 2015 and 2016is subject to a cap of 8.1m euro(£6.3m).

Vera&John provides Intertainwith a fully-integrated globalonline casino, operating in 11countries with three core brands:Vera&John, Vera&Juan andVera&John Social. Vera&Johngenerates approximately 75 percent of its sales from the Nordicregion, which will give Intertainaccess to a large and growingmarket.

In November Intertain postedan adjusted EBITDA figure ofCA$6,444,000 (£3.6m) for Q3,over $2m more than the preced-ing quarter. The group’s mainbrands, InterCasino and Man-dalay Media, were also granted acontinuation of licence from theUK Gambling Commission,thereby guaranteeing uninter-rupted service for UK-based cus-tomers.

Pawlo tostepdown asMr GreenCEOSWEDEN

ANALYSIS

While the board’sdirectors lendingIntertain the moneyto ensure it hassufficient workingcapital may show amanagement thatbelieves in thedirection of thecompany, it suggeststhat external lendersweren’t as convinced.So it’s no wonder thatIntertain is interestedin Vera&John’s highcash flow conversion.Given favourable taxtreatment, lowmaintenance CAPEXand negativeworking capitalrequirements,Vera&John hashistorically achievedan operating cashflow to EBITDAconversion rate ofapproximately 100per cent.

Intertain finishes acquisitionof Vera&John thanks tomanagement ‘bridging loan’Intertain has completed its acquisition of Dumarca Holdings, but only after a£5.5m bridging loan was agreed.

CONSOLIDATION

T

MIKAEL PAWLOWILL CONTINUESERVING AS CEOUNTIL THE ENDOF JUNE

INTERTAIN LAUNCHED ON THE TORONTOSTOCK EXCHANGE IN MARCH 2014

BB124-p04-08-iGaming_09/10 02/01/2015 10:15 Page 2

www.callcredit.co.uk/products-and-services/fraud-and-verification/age-verification@callcredit

directsales@callcreditgroup

Don’t gamble with age verification

www.callcredit.co.uk/gaming [email protected] 388 4300

When it comes to age verification, the stakes have never been higher for online gaming companies. Tough legislation means failure to prevent under 18s from registering can lead to heavy fines, loss of trade and irreparable brand damage.

Thankfully, Callcredit Age Verification enables online gaming companies to check identity and date of birth quickly and accurately. So you can keep out age cheats and stay on the right side of the law.

To find out more

iGaming


PokerStars has made its Facebook app PokerStars PLAY available as a standalone app for mobile and tabletdevices on both iOS and Android platforms. The PokerStars PLAY mobile app is free-to-play, with the option ofin-app purchases to increase play money bankroll. It also uses innovative gesture-based controls, designed tosimulate real poker play. Rather than clicking buttons to bet, raise or fold, players can now slide chips or cardsinto the middle of the table.

PLAY moves onto mobile

iGAMINGBRIEFS

HOLLANDAPPLICATIONPROCESS OPENSDutch gambling regulatorKansspelautoriteit hasopened its online gamblingapplication process. Oper-ators interested in servic-ing legal online gamblingservices to Dutch con-sumers have beenrequested to apply via theKansspelautoriteitwebsite.The Dutch regula-tory will begin to assessfirst applicants for a regu-latory Dutch igamingmarket. All applicants willbe kept informed of theirprocess and any furtherlegislative developments.

FAS FINING GOOGLEOVER GAMBLING ADSRussia’s Federal Antimo-nopoly Service (FAS) hassaid that Google is facingadministrative penaltiesfor featuring gambling adsin the country, following acomplaint to the FAS filedby a user who came acrossa gambling ad in thesearch engine. Googleexplained the bannedadvertising by bots thatcan get around AdWordsfilters. “Unfortunately, insome cases questionableadvertisers attempt to findholes in our filters byvarious means and some-times they succeed. Weare constantly improvingour system and working onthe reliability of our filters,”the FAS said, citing aGoogle statement.

CAESARS HOPESMERGER SOLVESDEBT PROBLEMSUS casino group CaesarsEntertainment Group(CEC) has entered into adefinitive agreement tomerge with equity invest-ment firm Caesars Acqui-sition Company (CACQ) asit seeks to solve itsUS$18.4bn debt crisis.Under the terms of themerger deal, CEC share-holders will own about 62per cent of the combinedcompany, with CACQshareholders taking therest. The mergedcompany will also ownCaesars Interactive Enter-tainment, Harrah’s NewOrleans, Harrah’s AtlanticCity, Harrah’s Laughlinand CACQ’s current equityinterest in Horseshoe Bal-timore.

PlaySimple, an Indianmobile social gamingstart-up, has raised an

undisclosed amount offunding from venturecapital firm IDG VenturesIndia in a round of fundrais-ing that also included angelinvestor and former Zyngaexecutive Yezdi Lashkari.

The Bengaluru-basedstart-up will use the fundsto build a portfolio of mobile

casual games targeting theglobal markets.

Siddharth Jain, co-founder of PlaySimple, said:“Our vision is to build aworld class mobile enter-tainment company out ofIndia. We believe that thereis a huge opportunity outthere and now is a greattime to go after it.”

Jain co-founded thestart-up this year along with

his Zynga colleagues SurajNalin and Preeti Reddy andsoftware engineer Sid-dhanth Jain. PlaySimplehas already released agame title, GuessUp. Withthis funding, the companyis looking to release multi-ple games over the next fewmonths early in the newyear before they startraising their next round ofcapital.

Karthik Prabhakar,senior associate at IDGVentures India Advisors,commented: “Globally,mobile gaming is a verylarge, growing market.Gaming is a hits business,but the ones that succeeddo take off rapidly towardsprofitable growth in a shortperiod of time. The team atPlaySimple is young andhighly experienced in build-

ing, scaling mobile gamesfor the global markets.”

IDG is a global networkof technology venture fundswith over $6bn under man-agement has already built asuccessful portfolio ofgaming investments in theUS and China. One suchinvestment, Funzio, wasacquired by Japanesegaming company GREE for$210m two years back.

he EuropeanGaming & BettingA s s o c i a t i o n(EGBA) has wel-comed the inclu-

sion of the online gamblingindustry in the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive.

EGBA secretary generalMaarten Haijer believes thatthe industry’s inclusion inthis new directive is a posi-tive step towards more Euro-pean harmonisation for thegambling sector.

He said: “EGBA hasactively engaged with the EUinstitutions to include onlinegambling in the directive. Thenew directive ensures thatEU online gamblingproviders now have onerather than 28 sets of AMLrules to comply with toprovide their services in theEU. The risk-based assess-ment underpinning the direc-tive will apply to all services,with the exception of landbased casinos where therecan be larger sums of cashmoney involved.

“With only electronic pay-ments, no cash and perfect

traceability on the internet,EGBA is confident that thedirective will further add to thesafe provision of EU regulatedonline gambling services.”

The EGBA is now pushingfor further harmonisation, inthe hope that perhaps anonline gaming directive willsee the light of day and regu-late the industry across themany jurisdictions whichcurrently offer all manner ofrules, restrictions and taxa-tion hampering economiesof scale across Europe.

Haijer explained: “Theinclusion of the online gam-bling sector in the new anti-money laundering directiveadds to the growing numberof European legislationapplicable to the onlinegambling sector. Followingthis success, EGBA encour-ages the European Commis-sion to come forward withadditional EU initiatives toaddress the regulatory frag-mentation that the sector iscurrently facing. Con-sumers and operators alikebenefit from a more har-monised approach at the

European level.”Clive Hawkswood, chief

executive of the RemoteGambling Association, is abit more circumspect aboutthe possibility that one set ofmoney laundering rules willbe applicable across Europe.He commented: “The fourthAMLD, like its predecessors,sets minimum standards forEU Member States to follow.However, it is important toremember that each of theMember States has a greatdeal of freedom to implementits measures, and any othersthat it feels are appropriate,on the basis of a national riskassessment that they musteach undertake. One resultof this is that although thebenchmark will be the sameacross the EU, it is very likelythat the exact requirementsand regulations in eachcountry will be different.

“As a consequence of this,the finalisation of the fourthAMLD will for most gamblingoperators still mark the startof the process rather than theend while every EU MemberState moves towards imple-

menting changes in twoyears’ time.”

The fourth anti-moneylaundering directive (AMLD)will for the first time obligeEU member states to main-tain central registers listinginformation on the ultimatebeneficial owners of corpo-rate and other legal entities,as well as trusts. Thesecentral registers were notenvisaged in the EuropeanCommission’s initial pro-posal, but were included byMEPs during the negotia-tions. The aim is to enhancetransparency, make dodgydeals harder to hide and fightmoney laundering and taxcrime.

MEP Krišjanis Karinš com-mented: “For years, crimi-nals in Europe have used theanonymity of offshore com-panies and accounts toobscure their financial deal-ings. Creating registers ofbeneficial ownership willhelp to lift the veil of secrecyof offshore accounts andgreatly aid the fight againstmoney laundering andblatant tax evasion.”

Funding for Indian social gaming start-up INVESTMENT

ANALYSIS

The RGA’s CliveHawkwood doesn’tanticipate too manyproblems for the onlinesector because onlinecasinos were alreadycovered by the thirdAMLD, and mostoperators also appliedsimilar rules to the restof their business, sothere is already a highlevel of expertise and aculture of complianceacross the Europeanonline industry. Headded: “This means theindustry is well placedto work withgovernments andregulators to deliverdetailed anti-moneylaundering regulationsthat will provide aproportionate responseto the threat withoutplacing unnecessaryburdens on the sector.Unfortunately, in somejurisdictions that may bean uphill struggle.”

EGBA pushingfor more EUharmonisationfor gambling Following the inclusion of the industry in the latestAnti-Money Laundering Directive, the EGBA wantsthe fragmentation of gambling laws to be addressed. EUROPE

T

ExCel, LondonFebruary 3rd - 5th, 2015 Stand No. S4-140

Visit us at

MAARTEN HAIJER:‘CONSUMERS ANDOPERATORS ALIKE

BENEFIT FROM A MOREHARMONISED

APPROACH’

BB124-p04-08-iGaming_09/10 02/01/2015 10:19 Page 3

PLAYTECH SPORTSSingle-wallet and cross-platform by Playtech’s IMSSophisticated sports betting system by GeneityThe best mobile experience by the leading mobile enabler, Mobenga

ALL THE ADVANTAGESYOU NEEDFor winning with yoursports betting operation across all platforms.

Betting

he first new grey-hound track to openin almost 20 years hasgot off to a promisingstart, with more than

4,000 people attending the firstdog meeting. The new track hasbeen developed alongside Tow-cester Racecourse and is the firstdual-racing venue in the country.

Owner Lord Hesketh told theBBC that the greyhound facili-ties will help the long term-futureof the racecourse. He said: “Ifthis place is going to survive andprosper, it’s going to have tooperate for more than 17 days ayear. There’s a lot of money beenspent here - you’re looking northof £15m.”

The greyhound circuit cost£1.8m to create, with the rest ofthe money spent since 2006 toredevelop facilities at the course.

Racecourse chief executiveKevin Ackerman explained tothe Racing Post that they are not

expecting to get everything rightfrom the start. “Of course it’s alearning curve. We’ve also hadconstructive ideas and com-ments and will be both improv-ing and fine-tuning things in thelight of experience. Althoughthere’s a crossover of customersfor horseracing and greyhounds,there are differences and we’llbe assessing how best to meetexpectations.”

Other teething problems havestemmed from the betting ringas Towcester’s tote operation isoffering a remarkably generous18 per cent retention on the Totewin pool. Ackerman said: “Totebetting has almost fallen intodisuse at some tracks, princi-pally because it’s bad value, butthat won’t be the case here.”

He has pledged that the book-making betting market will ‘offerbetter value’, but it remains to beseen whether on-course bookieswill be able to turn a profit if they

have to compete on-course witha keen tote.

Ackerman added: “We are stillvery much on a learning curve.We have taken a punt on grey-hound racing in many ways withthe investment here to make it adual facility. But we haveabsolute faith in the industry andwill look to flourish step by step.”

Meanwhile, Towcester hasbeen added to the BAGS roster,along with two other new tracks,Wimbledon and Doncaster. 53meetings having been allocatedto the Northamptonshirestadium on Friday and Saturdayevenings, starting from 3 April.

Incoming BAGS chairmanDominic Ford said: “I am takingover as chairman at BAGS just asit has announced its most exten-sive fixture list. This representsa major endorsement in thestrength of British Greyhoundracing and the value that BAGSbrings to all of the tracks.”

Bwin has updated its mobile betting offerto provide what it describes as the firstsports betting app to be truly designed

around users’ fingertips, delivering an intu-itive interface with innovative gesture-basedcontrols.

Available on both iOS and Android devices,the new app uses dynamic navigation tobring instant access to a wealth of sports,leagues and events, as well as multiple entrypoints for ‘quick dives’ into the odds thatsports fans require.

The new app also introduces ‘Slider Black-jack’, a unique and ‘industry-first’ mini-gamewhich allows the player to seamlessly swipe,with the flick of a finger, between placing abet and playing a hand or two of Blackjack.Meanwhile, a live scoreboard ensures theynever lose track of their bets or the latestmatch action.

As well as a slick interface, Bwin haspacked the app with statistical contentincluding quick view head-to-head data,team performance records, individual playerstats and league tables, plus live video feedsof sporting events from around the globe.

The pan-European release of native iOSand Android apps follows ‘outstanding’ cus-tomer feedback from a trial release launchedin Spain earlier in the year, exclusively on thecompany’s bwin.es label.

Sam Sadi, bwin’s director of sports labels,said: “We are very excited about the launchof the new Bwin sports app. Our customersdemand the very best betting experiencefrom us and with this update, that is exactlywhat we are delivering. But more than that,the app’s dynamic navigation, clean designand ground breaking features such as SliderBlackjack, mean that Bwin is once more atthe leading edge of mobile development.”

Bwin bettingapp contains‘industry-first’ gameMOBILE

ANALYSIS

A new greyhoundstadium is awelcome boost to asport that has beenmassively sufferingof late, withnumerous racetracksclosing down in thepast ten years. Withthe future ofWimbledonundecided, it iscurrently going headto head againstleague football teamAFC Wimbledon forplanning permission,BAGS has been boldin providing thevenue with 29 BAGSslots as the sporthopes to retaingreyhound racing asa sport within thecapital.

Towcesterhopinggreyhoundtrack withenhancebusiness

A promising start for Towcester Racecourse’s new greyhound racingendeavour might see the emergence of a new business model.

RACING

T

ADVERTISING

Members of the SenetGroup have now com-mitted to carrying

prominent new responsiblegambling messages on allTV advertising and otherforms of advertising onlineand in betting shops.

The main message will be‘When The Fun Stops, Stop’,which will appear on adver-tising carried by bookmak-ers in order to raiseawareness of the potentialrisks of gambling and the

benefits of staying incontrol.

Gambleaware.co.uk willalso feature more promi-nently in the new straplines,as a source of advice forthose who may have a

problem with gambling.The messages are part of

a campaign led by Senet, theindependent body set up byWilliam Hill, Ladbrokes,Coral and Paddy Power topromote responsible gam-

bling standards and ensurethat the marketing of gam-bling is socially responsible.

All TV advertising bySenet Group member com-panies will carry the promi-nent new message aboutresponsible gambling and itwill appear in their shopwindows, in press advertise-ments and other forms ofadvertising, making this themost visible warning yet tobe carried by the industry.

Later in January, theSenet Group will be launch-ing a broader campaign to

promote responsible gam-bling, including a major TVand radio advertising cam-paign. Ron Finlay, interimchief executive of the SenetGroup, said: “Gamblingcompanies provide fun andentertainment for hugenumbers of people. But ifyou’re spending more thanyou can afford, it can lead tostress, anger, guilt and otherproblems. When gamblingstops feeling like fun, it’stime to call it quits.”

Marc Etches, chief exec-utive of the Responsible

Gambling Trust, said: “Wecommend the Senet Groupfor its campaign to helpgamblers stay in control oftheir gambling. This initia-tive is a new and importantstep in the evolution ofresponsible behaviouramong British-based gam-bling businesses. We arepleased that the campaignfeatures GambleAware, aneasy to remember websitethat offers help to all thosewho need confidentialadvice or support withproblem gambling.”

Senet Group launches responsible gambling messages

NEW BAGS CHAIRMANDOMINIC FORD


BB124-p10-14-Betting_09/10 02/01/2015 10:23 Page 1


Betting

he point of con-sumption taxwould have costBetfair morethan £40m had

it been imposed for the fullyear, according to theexchange’s financialreports.

For the six monthsended 31 October, Betfairsaw revenue up 26 percent, driven by strong cus-tomer base growth andsuccessful gaming cross-sell, as well as the WorldCup and ‘favourablesports results’. Evenexcluding the World Cupand unusually high grosswin margins, revenue wasup 12 per cent and thestrong revenue growthresulted in EBITDA up 51per cent to £73.9m.

The first half result,coupled with recenttrading performance,means Betfair nowexpects full year EBITDAof between £97m and£103m. This includes anestimated incrementalcost of approximately£18m, following the intro-duction of the Point of

Consumption gaming taxin the UK from 1 Decem-ber 2014. The firm said: “Ifthis tax was in place forthe full year, we estimatethat the cost would beapproximately £44m.”

Betfair CEO Breon Cor-coran said that the resultsdemonstrate strong deliv-ery against its strategy forachieving sustainablegrowth that we outlinedtwo years ago. He said thatBetfair has substantiallystrengthened its competi-tive position by investingin products that differenti-ate Betfair and by enhanc-ing our marketingcapabilities in a crowdedmarket place.

He explained: “Innova-tive products such asCash Out, Cash BackExtra and Price Rush,coupled with a relentlessfocus on providing valuethrough market leadingpromotions and odds,have allowed Betfair toacquire and retain morecustomers than everbefore. Over one millioncustomers bet with us inthe first half of the year, a

50 per cent increase onlast year.

“Our focus on regulatedjurisdictions is also payingoff. Revenues from sus-tainable markets grew by32 per cent in the first halfof the year and now con-tribute more than 80 percent of total revenues.

Betfair has also deliv-ered considerable opera-tional gearing and, as aresult, strong top linegrowth has led to substan-tial EBITDA marginexpansion and strong cashgeneration. In the last 12months, Betfair has gener-ated underlying free cashflow of £114.1m and had£271.4m of corporate cashat 31 October.”

The performance alsomeans that the exchangehas been able to announcea £200m return of capitalto shareholders and anincrease in our targeteddividend payout ratio - awelcome fillip to thosewho have seen Betfair’sshare price dip sharplyafter its IPO and gradu-ally make its way back upthe hill.

Part of this is down tothe long-term strategy offocusing investment inmarkets that have ‘suffi-cient regulatory visibility’to lower the risk of‘unfavourable regulatoryoutcomes’ which are notexactly unknown in onlinegambling.

The exchange is nowlicensed in Italy and Bul-garia, and Betfair operatesits sportsbook in Spain,sustainable markets arenow defined as: UK, Aus-tralia, Bulgaria, Denmark,Gibraltar, Ireland, Italy,Malta, Spain and USA.These countries now con-tribute 81 per cent ofGroup revenues.

Corcoran added: “Wehave recently commencedtrials of a cross-market liq-uidity matching mecha-nism on the Exchange. Thefunctionality will enablethe liquidity on connectedExchange markets, suchas Match Odds and DrawNo Bet, to be interlinked.This will improve liquid-ity, and provide a bettercustomer experience, inancillary markets.”

Paddy Power’s new CEOAndy McCue has beengetting his team ready

for him hitting the groundrunning. Despite not offi-cially taking up the roleuntil 1 January, last monthsaw McCue arranging his‘backroom staff’ at the Irishbookmaker.

Peter O’Donovan hasbeen appointed ‘chiefproduct officer’, leading anewly created product func-tion which brings togetherthe technology and productdevelopment teams across

Paddy Power and Cayetanoin Bulgaria. In addition, thetechnology department ofSportsbet, the group’s Aus-tralian business, will have adotted reporting line intoO’Donovan. Global productinnovation will also be coor-dinated centrally under him.

Johnny Hartnett hasbeen appointed managingdirector, Paddy PowerOnline with responsibilityfor paddypower.com andpaddypower.it, togetherwith Dial-a-Bet and Cus-tomer Operations. Hart-

nett is currently director ofoperations at Paddy Powerand was previously COO inSportsbet, and prior to thathead of sports risk &trading in Paddy Power.

Christian Woolfendenhas been appointed manag-ing director, retail (UK &Ireland). Woolfenden hasbeen global marketingdirector at Paddy Powersince 2011, having previ-ously been global branddirector for the Bacardibrand. Prior to joiningBacardi in 2008,

Woolfenden worked foreight years at Procter & Gamble in Switzerlandand London in finance and marketing roles. Asearch process is under-way to fill the role of mar-keting director.

McCue commented:“These appointmentsreflect a strategic emphasison customer and product. Iam delighted to be fillingthese positions with highcalibre individuals with aproven track record ofsuccess in the group.”

Preston-based inde-pendent BetSid hasextended its retail

estate again with the acqui-sition of two shops inChorley. BetSid has boughtfellow independent Betabetand will be rebranding theshops early this year.

The takeover securesseven of its Betabet’semployees and providesemployment opportunitiesin the local area. BetSid hasexperienced rapid expan-sion since it began tradingin June 2013 and is theexclusive betting partner ofPreston North End FC.

Paul Kirkby, operationsmanager for BetSid, told thelocal paper: “There was realopportunity in the expan-sion of BetSid into Chorley,the firm had an establishedpresence on the high streetand a secondary premisesin the town. We are reallypleased the current Betabetteam are staying with usand the continued successof our business will providemore opportunity for localemployment into a trustedand local booking firm.

“There are not manyindependent bookmakerson the high streets ofBritain any more but we areconfident we have some-thing to offer and thingshave been going brilliantlysince the start.”

BetabetbuybringsBetSidbrandtoChorley

New Paddy Power CEO arranges his teamAPPOINTMENTS

Betfair counts theadditional cost ofpoint of consumption

Some goodhalf-year resultsfrom Betfairhave provided itwith somemomentum intowhat looks likebeing a costlytax year.

TAXATION

TANALYSIS

This must be the firstset of Betfair figuresto mention‘favourable sportingresults’ which showsthe boost that thegroup’s sportsbookhas given torevenues, at least thisyear. In the past, theexchange modeldidn’t discriminatebetween favourableand unfavourableresults, as the firmalways received thecommission on thematched bets.Perhaps these resultsmark the point whereBetfair, instead ofbeing a pioneeringbetting exchange,became a regularbookmaker with someinnovative products.It seems to beworking for thebottom line though -sports revenue wasup 24 per cent to£166.6m, with £15.9mcoming from theWorld Cup.

MOBILE REVENUE NOWREPRESENTS 70 PERCENT OF SPORTSBOOKREVENUE FOR BETFAIR

INDEPENDENT

ANDY MCCUE HASBEEN GETTING HISTEAM IN PLACE

English Championship football club Nottingham Forest have won a Sky Bet £250,000 transfer fund tospend in the upcoming January transfer window, despite being subject to a Football League transferembargo. Sky Bet ran the competition to celebrate its title sponsorship of the English Football Leagues.The betting operator had drawn a shortlist of 10 Football League fans from its customer base.

Forest wins Sky Bet cash

BB124-p10-14-Betting_09/10 02/01/2015 10:27 Page 2

[email protected]

Always on the ballLive Betting Solutions from the market leader

Betradar’s Live Betting Solutions offer complete match administration with profit maximising Live Odds and are optimised for all types of business. In total, our round-the-clock coverage amounts to over 15,000 live events each month across 17 sports. Our Live Odds Service via XML feeds is your fully automated and integrated in-running trading service for direct use, requiring only very limited resources to offer a broad variety of live betting sports and markets. Our Live Scouting Service, meanwhile, is your perfect information source to operate your own in-running trading.

For more information, please visit our website www.betradar.comor contact us today: [email protected]

Meet us atICE Totally Gaming 20153rd - 5th February 2015, ExCeL London, Stand S1-150

Betting

14

The Football Pools haslaunched MatchXtra, a new punter-friendly pool

betting opportunity with a fixed-odds vibe.

MatchXtra uses innovativepools technology from LongitudeLLC, a New York-based techno-logical solutions company, tooffer exceptionally competitiveodds on Premier League andother matches throughout theworld.

With MatchXtra, customersare able to bet on fixed odds-typemarkets, such as,home/draw/away, correct scoreand both teams to score, with agrowing range of additionalmarkets becoming available.These new pools-based betsoffer popular betting options,unparalleled value and, impor-tantly, the ability to bet withoutbeing knocked back or havingyour stakes restricted.

MatchXtra soft launched inOctober on footballpools.comand the odds are already provingto be attractive to customersdespite the ultra-competitivePremier League betting market.

Conleth Byrne, managingdirector of The Football Pools,said: “The benefit to customers isthat it’s a pool mechanism, notfixed odds and therefore theprices become market-driven atlow betting margins. Workingalongside Longitude to developthis new concept has been areally positive experience and animportant step for The FootballPools.”

Tom Ascher, CEO of Longi-tude, said: “The launch ofMatchXtra is a significant mile-stone for Longitude as is thepartnership we have created withThe Football Pools. We arethrilled that our technology wasselected by The Football Poolsfor this important expansion, andwe look forward to ongoing col-laboration and future enhance-ments to the MatchXtra offering.”

The development of MatchXtrais a revolutionary step for the Liv-erpool-based operator and isintended to signal the start ofmore exciting developments tocome. In the coming monthsMatchXtra will be expanded tocover a greater range of bettingopportunities across a growingnumber of matches. New offer-ings will include ‘Price Match’ -the ability for customers tochoose the odds at which theywant their bet placed, lay bettingand multi-game betting, allpowered by the globally patentedLongitude technology.

Irish bookmaker BoyleSportslaunched its new brand iden-tity last month at its Grafton

Street shop in Dublin. OwnerJohn Boyle unveiled the newbrand with the help of jockeyBarry Geraghty, former GAAfootballer Ciaran Whelan andsoccer pundit Eamonn Dunphy.

Commenting on the newbrand launch, John Boyle, CEOof BoyleSports, said: “The newbrand launch further signifies tocustomers that BoyleSports areserious about sport and that youcan always Bet On Boyle to haveyou covered for any sportingevent that you wish to bet on.”

As part of the rebranding,

which has seen the firm capi-talise the S in the middle of itsname, the bookmaker has alsointroduced the social media tag#betonboyle to give it greatertraction on Twitter and Face-book

Boyle added: “We had over16,000 In-Play events to bet onin November which was amassive 100 per cent increaseon the 8,000 in November2013. This further solidifiesour efforts to ensure thatBoyleSports’ customers canget the best betting experi-ence possible here, there oranywhere through all of ourbetting channels.”

he Associationof BritishBookmakers(ABB) andM e d w a y

Council have launchedBritain’s first scheme thatwill allow anyone devel-oping a problem withtheir gambling to excludethemselves from everybetting shop in Chatham.

Existing schemesmean that while someonecan exclude themselvesfrom one specific opera-tor, they would need tofill in separate exclusionforms for each bettingbrand. However, underthis trial scheme, a cus-tomer only needs to fillout one form and submittwo passport photos atone shop, and the detailswill be automatically becirculated to all shopsparticipating in the pilotscheme. The customerwill then be unable toplace a bet in any of thoseshops.

Launched at a Coralshop in Chatham towncentre, the event wasattended by MedwayCouncillors, and repre-

sentatives of betting shopoperators, and followsthe formation of theMedway ResponsibleGambling Partnershipwhich was signed by theCouncil, the ABB, KentPolice and the SaferMedway Partnership.

Speaking at the launch,Councillor Peter Hicks,portfolio holder for com-munity safety and cus-tomer contact, said thiswas an important initia-tive: “This is a real coupfor Medway, with the onlymulti-operator self-exclusion scheme in thecountry. It puts theCouncil and our partnersat the cutting edge ofresponsible gambling.”

In the run up to thepilot, shop staff havebeen specially trained tohelp customers fill out theform and understand theagreement they aresigning with the ten shopstaking part in the scheme.Someone taking part willalso be advised of all theother help available,including counsellingsessions and grouptherapy which is funded

by the industry. This is in addition to

other measures beingintroduced by the ABBmember shop, includingdevoting 20 per cent of allwindow advertising toresponsible gamblingmessages, increasedprominence to gamblinghelplines within the shopand requiring gamingmachine players tochoose whether to set alimit on the amount ofmoney they spend or timethey play for.

As part of the industry’sResponsible Gamblingweek planned for the endof January, shop staff willalso be promoting thebenefits of setting a limitwhen they play on gamingmachines.

Hilary Douglas fromthe ABB said: “We arepleased to have launchedthis ground-breakingpilot scheme. It is theresult of building a strongrelationship withMedway Council andlocal councilors, whichwill help customers inChatham to bet safely andresponsibly, which is

what we all want.”Councillor Vince

Maple, the leader of theLabour Group, said “Theissues of gambling on ourhigh streets continues tobe something which resi-dents raise with me on avery regular basis. Ibelieve solutions to theissues need a multi-levelapproach with change atboth a local and nationallevel. The MedwayResponsible GamblingPartnership will be animportant way to look atthe issues here inMedway and seek to findpositive solutions.”

Meanwhile CouncillorGeoff Juby, the leader ofthe Liberal DemocratGroup, was less fraternal:“Whilst I welcome thecode, I do not think itaddresses the issue of theconcentration of bettingshops in deprived areas.If planning laws permit-ted local councils to limitthe number of bettingshops in any one area, thiswould do far more to cutdown the use of theseestablishments byproblem gamblers.”

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

A new way ofdealing withself-exclusionis being trialledin Chathamthanks to theco-operation ofa number oflocalstakeholders.

Capital rebranding idea from BoyleSportsBRANDING

TANALYSIS

Working with councilson a local level is avery welcomedevelopment for thebetting industry,especially given thekey role they play inthe planning processthese days. While a lotof the posturingagainst betting shopsby councils is morepolitically motivated,some councils still feellike they have been runroughshod by thebetting industry’s moveto the high street fromoff-high streetlocations. While thishas been more of amechanism of theplanning process andthe limitations placedon councils, it’s still thebookmakers who havereceived the brunt ofthe discontent,especially as in somecases their verypresence in theconstituency is a dailyreminder of an anti-LBO councillor’sfailure.

Self-exclusion triallaunches in Medway

POOL BETTING

Footballpoolswith afixedoddstwist

EAMONN DUNPHY, JOHNBOYLE, BARRY GERAGHTY ANDCIARAN WHELAN


Betsson has become the first ‘pure internet’ company to be listed on the Nasdaq Stockholm Large Cap. Betssonqualified to be upgraded to the Large Cap list 1 January 2015 as its market cap has been greater than EUR 1bnover the past two years. CEO & president Magnus Silfverberg said: “The fact that Betsson is entering the LargeCap list demonstrates that we have a well-functioning business with talented employees and a clear strategy.”

Betsson goes Large

BB124-p10-14-Betting_09/10 02/01/2015 10:31 Page 3

Get ahead of the game!

reliable & accurate data

super fast data software outscores other providers

comprehensive data-set pre-play, in-play and post match

SIS has been the leading supplier of content for 28 years

Betting


BETTINGBRIEFS

TITANBET ONTALKSPORTTitanbet has continued itspromotional push into the UKbetting market by becominga partner of national com-mercial radio station talk-SPORT. The onlinesportsbook has joined forceswith the station’s Kick-Offshow, presented by MarkSaggers, and will receive anumber of on-air mentions.Their brand ambassadors,including head of UK sports-book Russell Yershon, willalso take part in three inter-views a week to discuss thelatest odds and bettingmarkets. Yershon said:“Having deals with offline,online and now broadcastoutlets allows us to grow ourbrand even further and talk-SPORT’s audience providesthe perfect demographic forus to make the next step as abusiness.”

SCHMEICHEL SIGNSFOR TIPICOPeter Schmeichel has joinedlegendary goalkeepersOliver Kahn and MichaelKonsel as an ambassador forGerman bookmaker Tipico.Jan Bolz, CEO of Tipico Ltd,is excited about the promi-nent new signing: “During hisactive career, Peter Schme-ichel was not only incrediblysuccessful, but he alsoenjoyed an untarnished rep-utation as a great sportsman.Schmeichel stands forsuccess, sporting integrityand trust. These are valueswhich the brand Tipicostands for as well. We areproud of our three brandambassadors.” Schmeichel said: “I amproudly looking forward towork as an ambassador for aserious betting provider likeTipico. It will be fun to workwith my old colleagues. Nowwe are no longer competi-tors, but will work togetherto promote the brandTipico.”

ALGERS JOINS BETWAYBetway has appointed AlanAlger as sporting events &media relations manager.Alger was previously withCity Index, SpreadEx, Sport-ingbet and then Blue Squarein June 2007 where he wasPR Manager for six years.Most recently Alger headedup Skrill’s sponsorship of thethree Football Conferencedivisions. He said: “I’mthrilled to have joined suchan ambitious and fast-growing business and I amreally excited about Betway’splans for the coming monthsand beyond.”Betway CEO Richard Akittadded: “Alan’s experience inbetting and public relationsspeaks for itself and makeshim an outstanding additionto our expanding team. Hisvast knowledge will be acrucial asset as we continueto grow the Betway brand.”

ustralia is aboutto see a new stylebetting shopfrom one of itsbiggest opera-

tors. TattsBet has revealedits concept for the ‘TAB ofthe future’ in time for thebusiness’ rebrand as UBET.TattsBet chief operatingofficer Barrie Fletton saidthe new concept would be abest of breed experience forwagering customers glob-ally. “Our environmenthasn’t evolved a great dealover the years. We’verefreshed a number of agen-cies across the network, butnot stepped back and prop-erly considered the conceptas a whole. We think this willbe a game-changer forwagering in Australia.

“We appreciate some ofthe existing outlets arepretty outdated and not par-ticularly inviting. This newconcept will help attract anew, younger customer,while making our existingcustomers more comfort-able. Both racing and sportspunters will notice a dra-matic improvement.”

The new shops featurevideo wall technology,focussed audio ‘soundcanopies’, in-built head-phone jacks, ‘a purpose builtscent’, and a new interac-tive betting terminal. Alsonew is the UBET Live unit -an innovative standaloneunit dispensing tabletdevices, with a dynamic appallowing punters to bet on adigital platform in thecomfort of their seat,subject to regulatoryapproval.

Design-wise, the localpostcode will be integratedinto the design features andis linked back to sport andracing through relevant sta-tistics and facts using com-binations of the numbers inthe postcode. A dedicatedspace has been allocated forcommunity messages,tipping competitions etc.Social media will be inte-grated into the entertain-ment hub.

Fletton added: “In devel-oping our new UBET brand,retail was top of mind. Oneof the key aspects we con-sidered as part of the

rebranding process was thefact there was little align-ment between our onlineand retail offerings. Therebrand, new retail conceptand new website and mobileapp will allow us to create aseamless, multi-channelexperience.

“We know punters aren’tchannel exclusive.Someone who regularlyuses a mobile app, forexample, might prefer to betin person when they’re atthe pub with their mates.Likewise, some of ourregular retail customersalso bet over the phone oronline. We’re working onensuring all channels aredelivering an exceptionalexperience and this newretail concept will do that.”

Fletton said that while thewagering sector had experi-enced growth driven largelyby the digital channels, retailwould remain a priority underthe UBET brand. “Retail stillrepresents around 70 per centof our business. What we’ll beaiming for under this newbrand is growth across allchannels as we invest in the

product and service offer-ing.”

Working with its brand-ing and design agency andretail design studio, theteam conducted an exten-sive immersion tour acrossretail outlets of all kinds, atdifferent times in differentlocations, to fully under-stand the customer behav-iour to apply to the newconcept.

Fletton added: “It’s excit-ing to look at all these won-derful innovations asconcepts, but we need totest them in a live environ-ment, listen to our cus-tomers and see what worksand doesn’t. From there wecan look at what the bestoptions are for rolling outacross the network.

“The great thing aboutthe model we’re developingis that it is modular and scal-able and easily adaptableas we evolve and as tech-nology develops. We’re notinvesting in something thatwill be outdated in twelvemonths when the next tech-nological advancement ismade.”

ANALYSIS

Tattsbet has clearlybeen putting plentyof time and effortinto its rebrand andthe newpossibilitiesavailable in theretail environment.The fact that acouple of theconcepts are stillsubject toregulatory approvalshows how far thefirm is pushing theenvelope. As BarrieFletton said: “Thisis one of the mostexciting times inour business’ 52-year history. There’sbeen a hugeamount of workgoing on in thebackground overthe past 12 monthsand we’re excitedto launch a numberof initiatives, alongwith the new retailconcept, in the newyear.”

‘TAB of the future’TattsBet is not only rolling out its new UBET brand this year,but a brand new concept in betting shops.

AAUSTRALIA

DARTS

William Hill, the newsponsor of the PDCWorld Darts Cham-

pionship, has launched anew darts in-play bettingapp. The William Hill Dartsapp, which is now live inthe App Store, includesinnovative features suchas live match simulationfrom all major PDC andBDO events, player statis-tics and results.

There will also be up to

26 betting markets permatch available on the appincluding; Leg Winner,Highest Checkout,Under/Over, Red/Green,Number of 180’s andCorrect Score.

Current William Hillaccount holders can usetheir existing log-in toaccess the action and newcustomers can select thequick and easy ‘Join Us’button.

“We’re really excitedabout the start of the

William Hill World DartsChampionship and thelaunch of our new dartsapp,” said Jamie Hart,director of innovation andcustomer experience atWilliam Hill. “I think we’vehit the bullseye with thisapp and believe it will be amassive hit with dartsfans.”

William Hill was predict-ing £10m of bets on theWorld Darts Championshipfor the first time ahead ofthe tournament.

William Hill launches dedicated dart app

Coral and Ayr Racecourse have agreed a new five-year deal for the bookmaker to continue its backing of theScottish Grand National. Coral has sponsored the race since 2007 and will continue to do so until at least 2019.Simon Clare, Coral PR and broadcast director, said: “The Coral Scottish Grand National is now one of the mostwatched and most bet on horse races in Great Britain and the race continues to go from strength to strength.”

Coral extends Ayr partnership

BB124-p10-14-Betting_09/10 02/01/2015 10:33 Page 4

Visit us at

ExCel, LondonFebruary 3rd - 5th, 2015

Stand No. S4-140

THE HOFF © 2013 Hoffworld, LLC.THE HOFF and DAVID HASSELHOFF aretrademarks of Hoffworld, LLC and are registered inthe United States and other foreign nationals. Used underlicence from MX Digital, LLC. All rights reserved.

18

Politics

he GamblingC o m m i s s i o nhas got a legalfight on itshands which

could have huge implica-tions for gambling legisla-tion in the UK and theregulator’s control over it.Last month saw the First-Tier Tribunal quashing theGambling Commission’srefusal to grant GreeneKing a bingo operatinglicence for one of its pubsin a move that could wellsee the regulator watch onhelpless as the industrydevelops in a way unfore-seen by the 2005 GamblingAct.

The ruling threatens toundermine one of the keyaims of the Gambling Act,which was to set up a regu-lator with flexible enoughpowers to react to devel-opments in a dynamicmarket around a loose leg-islative framework.

However, the First-Tier Tri-bunal seems to be firmingup some of the regulatoryrequirements.

A spokesperson for theGambling Commissionsaid: “We are seeking per-mission to appeal the deci-sion of the First-TierTribunal requiring theGambling Commission toallow [license] a pub chainto introduce commercialgambling with potentiallylarge numbers of gamingmachines into pubs. Thisruling appears to handicapthe Commission in doingwhat it was set up to do -that is, react to new devel-opments and protect thevulnerable.

“We are clear, and thisview is strongly supportedby the government, thatcommercial betting,gaming and bingo and anyassociated high stakes andprize machines should beprovided only in separate

premises licensed for thatspecific purpose - prem-ises that adults make adeliberate choice to visit inorder to gamble. A judg-ment from the Upper Tri-bunal should hopefullyclarify what we can andcan’t do by way of operat-ing licence conditions.Meanwhile, we areworking closely with theDepartment for Culture,Media and Sport to see howwe can both use ourvarious powers to keepcommercial gambling indedicated licensed prem-ises and stop it spreadingto pubs.”

The Tribunal’s logic wasthat under the GamblingAct 2005 it is a licensingauthority, rather than theGambling Commission,that has the power to deter-mine premises licenceapplications, and the Com-mission has no power toimpose a condition on an

operating licence that thelicensed activities are notprovided ‘at a specifiedplace or class of place’.

The Decision Noticeconcludes with a findingthat ‘it is not open to theCommission to use s159(3)of the Act to give them aneffective right of veto onan application for a prem-ises licence. Their role inrespect of premiseslicences … is to give guid-ance; make representa-tions; even appeal againstthe licensing authority’sdecision – but not to usurpthe role of decision maker’.

Of course this openswider questions on theGambling Commission’spowers over premiseslicensing and whether itsstance on things such asprimary purpose and prem-ises within premises willbe able to withstandscrutiny under the eye ofthe law.

Glenda Hughes, chair ofthe New ZealandRacing Board, has wel-

comed the off-shore bettingannouncement made by Min-ister for Racing Nathan Guyat the organisation’s AnnualGeneral Meeting in Petone.

Speaking from the AGM,Guy announced the creationof a working group todevelop recommendationsto combat the impact of off-shore betting on racing andsport. He said: “Bettingthrough overseas providers

deprives our local industryand sports of the fundingthey deserve.”

It is estimated that NewZealanders bet up toNZ$300m (£148m) per yearwith overseas agencies.Hughes says this is concern-ing because overseas book-makers are benefiting fromNew Zealand’s great racingand sports products withoutcontributing to the indus-tries. “Profits generated fromthe TAB are returned to theracing and sports industries

which is the whole point ofthe model, but offshorebetting is eroding this. Over-seas bookmakers do not paygambling levies, totalisatorduty or GST, or have meas-ures in place to manageproblem gambling or corrup-tion that meet New Zealandstandards.”

Ministerial officials arecurrently preparing member-ship options and the group’sterms of reference. The Min-ister says he currentlyexpects to see recommenda-

tions for change from theworking group in late 2015.

Hughes says the issue ofoffshore betting has been alongstanding one for theindustry that has created anuneven playing field in anincreasingly competitivemarket.

“We welcome the Minis-ter’s announcement and lookforward to seeing the recom-mendations from theworking group,” she said.

The NZ Racing Boardposted a Net Profit of

$137.0m for the financialyear ending 31 July – a mar-ginal increase on the 2012/13financial year. The threeracing codes - NZ Thorough-bred Racing, HarnessRacing NZ and GreyhoundRacing NZ received $134.1m(£66.4m) in distributionswhile National SportingOrganisations received$5.0m (£2.5m) and a record$2.3m (£1.1m) was paid orprovided to other sportingbodies from gaming activi-ties.

Software providersacross the globe arebeing reminded that

they must apply for a Gam-bling Commission licence ifthe businesses they supplyare licensed by the Commis-sion.

From 31 March 2015 Com-mission licensed operatorsare required to only sourcegambling software fromCommission licensed soft-ware businesses.

Software providers arebeing advised to apply for the relevant licence atthe earliest opportunity toavoid potential disruption tobusiness.

A Commission spokesper-son said: “Licence applica-tions normally take six weeksto process but can takelonger if the application isincomplete or the Commis-sion needs to investigatefurther. We are thereforeadvising software providerswho need a licence to maketheir applications as soon aspossible and preferablybefore 31 December 2014.”

Further information onwho needs a gambling soft-ware licence can be foundon the Commission website.Gambling software isdefined in the Gambling Act2005 as computer softwarethat is used in connectionwith remote gambling butdoes not include anything foruse solely in connection witha gaming machine. An oper-ator requires a gamblingsoftware licence if it manu-factures, supplies, installs oradapts gambling softwarethat is used in connectionwith remote gambling.

Commissionremindsproviders ofthe need fora softwarelicence

New Zealand looking to tackle offshore operatorsNEW ZEALAND

Bingo pub judgmentleaves GamblingCommission in aquandary

The GamblingCommissionhas been hauledback foroversteppingthe mark whenit prevented apub fromapplying for abingo licence.Having lost inthe courts, theCommissionhas decided toappeal thedecision.

BINGO

ANALYSIS

While some have takenthe First-Tier Tribunal’sruling as meaning thatpubcos can now applyfor bingo licences carteblanche, it’s not quitethe case. As DavidClifton of Clifton Daviesput it: “It may be thoughtthat is rather overstatingthe effect of the decisionin the sense that itmerely enables GreeneKing to proceed withapplications for bingopremises licences for itspubs. Whether or not togrant such licences (withtheir accompanyingmachine entitlements)will be a matter for thelicensing authorities towhich such applicationsare made. It will be ofinterest to the industryand lawyers alike to seehow this developsfurther.”

LICENSING


NATHAN GUY: ‘OVERSEASBOOKMAKERS DO NOT PAYGAMBLING LEVIES’

T

BB124-p16-Politics_09/10 02/01/2015 10:38 Page 1

Blue

BloodBest-in-breed online gaming content

gameaccountnetwork.comLondon | Las Vegas

Stand: N2-310

20

The Remote Gambling Association (RGA) has continued to lobby for a lower tax rate following theimplementation of point of consumption tax. Chief executive Clive Hawkswood said: “Any rate above10 per cent GPT is not sustainable in what is a very mature market where consumers already knowwhat level of value and choice to expect. However, it would be unrealistic to expect HM Treasury toreview the rates until the new regime has had a chance to bed in properly.”

RGA repeats tax argument

he extra moneyprovided tohorseracing bythe country’sfour biggest

retail bookmakers hasbeen earmarked for staginga more competitive Britishracing product and gener-ate growth in the Levy.

The Additional Volun-tary Contribution (AVC)Fund of £4.5m is suppliedby William Hill, Ladbrokes,Coral and Betfred as partof the 53rd Levy Schemeand the decision to use theFund in this manner hasbeen agreed upon betweenBHA and its stakeholdersof Racecourses and Horse-men, the four bookmakersand the HBLB.

BHA chief executivePaul Bittar said: “It is essen-tial for the long-term pros-perity of the sport that theracing product which wedeliver is attractive to bothdomestic and internationalcustomers. It is for thisreason that we recentlyannounced a series of race-

planning initiatives totackle the issue of small-field races, and why it wasagreed from the outsetbetween Racing andBetting that this was thecorrect use for the AVCFund. We are thankful tothe four firms for their com-mitment in this regard.

“Racing and Betting aresymbiotic industries, andat the heart of this agree-ment was the philosophythat we are better off align-ing our efforts to make theracing product more com-pelling and competitive,year-round. We hope thatthis targeted investmentensures the contributionto this scheme by the fourbookmakers generatesreturns to the Racing andBetting industry whichoutweigh the level ofinvestment.”

£4.2m will be used toextended the provision ofprize money. Eligible Class2 races in Britain will payto 8th place and Class 3 to6 races will pay to 6th

place. This applies for bothJumps and Flat. Horsemenrepresentatives believethat the introduction ofthis enhanced prize moneyscheme - which, even for ahorse finishing in 6thplace, will assist with cov-ering the cost of sending arunner to the racecourse -should have a positiveimpact on field sizes.

For some time it hasbeen an area of concernfor the industry thatSunday racing is not per-forming as well as wouldbe hoped in terms of bothquality and quantity ofrunners. To this end initia-tives have been introducedsuch as Sunday prizemoney thresholds (imple-mented by HBLB in 2014)and the Sunday BonusScheme (trialled by BHAin 2013).

The Sunday BonusScheme performed well in2013 with runners up by anaverage of 30 per centagainst corresponding2012 races. As such it was

decided that the AVC Fundcould be used to reintro-duce and enhance thisscheme, there having beenno available pot of moneyin 2014 to extend the trial.

To this end a number ofSunday Bonus Races willbe introduced, taking theform of a series ofenhanced prize moneySunday races, culminatingin a Final towards the endof both the Flat and Jumpsseasons. The added benefitof this scheme is thatSundays will also have afeature race to act as a focalpoint for the day’s racing.

Once finalised, eachSeries will be designed tocreate interest in Sundaysand where possible theSeries will be aimed at gen-erating additional runs perhorse. £300,000 of the Fundwill be dedicated toenhancing Sunday Racingin this manner, with anadditional £500,000 beingprovided by the HBLB’sRacing and Betting Incen-tive Fund.

The government has revealedthat it has already started workon its five year review of the

Welfare of Racing Greyhounds Reg-ulations 2010, which sets down theminimum conditions required forall greyhound tracks in England.

DEFRA minister George Eusticesaid that although the review is duein April 2015, work on it has alreadybegun, with the aim to go out to keystakeholders early in the new year,to collect the evidence that we needto assess the effectiveness of the

regulations.He added: “Once we have inde-

pendently collected and consid-ered that evidence, DEFRA will goout to a wider public consultation,which will most likely commenceafter the election, given that wewill quickly be at the end of Marchand into a purdah period.

“Given the strength of views onthese issues, it is important that wedo not have a quick consultationthat gets lost in the run-up to thegeneral election. This is an impor-

tant issue, and we do not need torush it. Provided we have startedthe engagement with stakeholdersbefore the general election, weshould allow plenty of time forpeople to respond to a public con-sultation after it.”

The review will consider howeffective the regulations havebeen, including how self-regula-tion is working, how injury statis-tics are collated and thetraceability of greyhounds afterthey have left the sport.

The Horserace BettingLevy Board’s alloca-tion to prize money in

calendar year 2015 is to bemaintained at its 2014levels along with that ofother key items of expendi-ture. The Board’s budgetedexpenditure in 2015 is£78.0m, up on the £77.5mbudgeted in 2014. Thesefigures exclude AdditionalVoluntary Contributions(AVCs) of £4.5m from thefour largest retail book-makers.

However, the Levy Boardis maintaining expenditurelevels in 2015 ‘in the fullknowledge’ that this isalmost certain to incur abudget deficit in both the2014/15 and 2015/16 Levyyears, which run from Aprilto March. The levy Boardwarned that ‘this is verylikely to necessitate a sig-nificant reduction inexpenditure in calendaryear 2016’.

Levy Board chairmanPaul Lee commented: “TheBoard’s ability to maintainin 2015 our contribution toprize money and otherareas is a reflection ofoperating prudently andhaving rebuilt reservessince 2011.

“The Board had alwaysanticipated running a smallbudget deficit in Levy year2014/15. However, reportsfrom the Bookmakers’Committee of Britishhorseracing’s trading per-formance, and resultantanticipated Levy yield, inthe first two quarters of the2014/15 Levy year havebeen worse than originallybudgeted. The secondquarter, covering July toSeptember 2014, was par-ticularly disappointing.

“The Board is mindful ofthe disruption that wouldbe caused by makingchanges now to its expen-diture in calendar year 2015and also we have the abilityto incur deficits for a periodof time. However, thiscannot be done on anongoing basis.”

He added: “The Board isexpecting to receive reportson the third quarter of2014/15 at its meeting inlate January 2015. Fromthat point, the Board canbegin to formulate a view asto the extent of an expendi-ture reduction that might becontemplated for 2016.”

Levy yielddip will see‘significantreduction’in 2016expenditure

Greyhound consultation must not be rushedGREYHOUNDS

Levy top up to be usedto develop field sizes

While the extra£4.5m providedby the industry’sbig players is tomainly be usedas prize money- it has beenfocussed toimprovecompetitivenessin horseracing.The AVC Fundseems to betackling somekey industryissues.

FUNDING

HORSERACING

TANALYSIS

The bookmakers havebeen wise to try andhelp allocate how theirextra funding is usedgiven that £4.5m couldhave easily been lostamongst the rest of thework of the Levy Board.The AVC Fund will besubject to a set of KPIs,both quantitative andqualitative, which willmonitor performance ofthe initiativesthroughout the year.There is scope to alterthe manner in whichthe funds are usedbased on theperformance of theinitiatives. A statementon behalf of the fourcontributingbookmakers said: “Thebetting industrywelcomes these newinitiatives which aredesigned to improvethe attractiveness ofracing for the benefit ofboth parties.”

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ JU

LIA

N H

ER

BE

RT

LIV

EP

IC

GEORGEEUSTICE


Politics

BB124-p16-Politics_09/10 02/01/2015 10:43 Page 2

www.facebook.com/tabaustriawww.youtube.com/tabaustriawww.linkedin.com/company/tab-austria

Better games through innovation

scan or go to www.tab.at/go4platinum

[email protected] orphone +43 7229 78040

The most successful betting companies in the world rely on the advantages of our flexible products. Our new Go4Platinum cabinet is designed to meet all the challenging demands of the modern industry. It is adjustable according to individual needs and can be equipped with banknote reader, NFC device, recycler, card reader or hooper. The ultra-slim body is supplemented by LED-light strips, which run along-side the cabinet. Undoubtedly this terminal will be a visual and technical highlight in every location.

GO4PLATINUM

www.tab.at

Booth S4-230


Half ofmachineplayersstopReport

“The RGT has taken undertaken a systematicprogramme of research that has attemptedto determine if harmful patterns of play can

be identified from industry data. It ought to beemphasised that the timeframe in which thesestudies were implemented was relatively short.As a consequence, given time and opportunities,more findings will emerge as further analyses ofexisting data is undertaken.

The Reports are instrumental in providing evidence that there are patterns of play that canbe used to identify problem gambling status. Thenext step is to determine the nature, severity andchronicity of harms that are associated withproblem gambling. Identifying harms that have aserious health and social cost burden will resultin more targeted campaigns directed towardhigh risk and vulnerable sub-populations.

The accuracy of predictive models can beimproved given that there is still a considerableamount of analyses that can be undertaken inrefining combinations of variables, time permitting.

These data are based on an unrepresentativegroup of players, that is, players electing to useloyalty cards during play. Approximately 10 percent of bets are registered plays. The findingsindicate loyalty card-holders are more involvedplayers and have high rates of problem gamblingand at-risk gamblers. It remains unknownwhether unregistered players exhibit typical profiles. Accordingly, policy makers need to becautious in implementing responsible gamblinginterventions on the basis of non-representativepopulations.

Rather than providing clear findings that candefinitively inform policies, the Reports attest tothe complexities and difficulties in using exist-ing data derived from non-representativesamples. The combination of behaviouralmarkers of harm, although able to predictproblem gamblers to some extent, currentlyoffers limited sensitivity and specificity to alloweffective policies that target only problem gam-blers. This means that decisions currently needto be made by regulators in policies that trade-off capturing problem gamblers and minimisinginterference with recreational players. However,there is considerable opportunity to improveaccuracy in future by examining more variables,improving methodological and statisticalapproaches and developing our understandingof what we are actually trying to predict (i.e.,gambling-related harm).

It is suggested that at this stage, it would beinadvisable to rush policies on the basis of thesefoundational studies. Rather, considerationneeds to be given to the development of a strategic blueprint of evaluative studies that areapplied in a logical and coherent manner overthe next five to ten years. This is not to suggest a‘do nothing’ approach in the meantime. Theimplication is that more will be achieved by astrategic approach compared to fragmented,disjointed and potentially costly policies that failto achieve their objective.”

an you providesome examples ofthe behaviour thatyou have identifiedas being markers

for problem gambling? The markers are subtle andcomplex to identify. A few ofthem were expected, such asfrequency of play, variabilityin staking behaviour andlevels of play engagement.From the research we foundthat there was no one specificmarker that indicatedproblem gambling behaviour.One player’s problematic playmay differ widely fromanother’s, and therefore it iscombinations of markers andtheir values that need to beconsidered together.

The overall result showedthat it is easier to identify aproblem gambler across mul-tiple sessions of play;however, it is also possible toidentify problem gamblerson FOBT machines without aunique identifier, althoughthe predictions are less reli-able.

Why did you use PGSI overDSM IV measures? The PGSI screen is an indus-try-accepted form of meas-urement which haspreviously been used inBritain for prevalencestudies, and all stakeholdersagreed to use this criteria asthe most appropriate for thestudy being conducted. Inaddition, the PGSI offerssome advantages - the screenhas recognised thresholds ofat risk whereas the DSM doesnot. The PGSI screen covers agreater range of harms (i.e.,health problems as a result ofgambling), whereas DSMmainly focuses on things thatare intrinsic to the individual.

Why should potential interven-tions with people who don’thave a gambling problem be acause for concern?We have only just discoveredthat it is possible to identifymany problem gamblersplaying FOBT machines, witha 66 per cent improvement

over current methods, butthis is definitely new territoryin the field of social responsi-bility. Consequently, mes-sages sent to an individual, nomatter what their problemgambling score, must be care-fully formulated. To datethere have been no studieswhich examine the impact ofinappropriate warnings onhealthy players.

From a social responsibil-ity point of view, it seemspreferable to send an unnec-essary communication to aplayer at low or no risk ofgambling harm. The majorityof players will not receivemessages they don’t need,and a machine learningapproach to the problem willensure that the modelsimprove over time.

Your report suggests thatpeople lose around twice asmuch money when they mixtheir B2 gaming with their B3gaming, with just B2 gamingalone. But isn’t it fair to say

that this is because they playfor twice as long when theymix up the gaming as they areentertained longer? Or is theresomething else underlying thedata?There is something elseunderlying the data. Thesession lengths for mixed play(B2 and B3 gaming machines)are actually 3 to 4 times longerthan B2 and B3 by themselves(12m:16s for B2 and B3,3m:18s for B2, and 3m:57s forB3). For B3 content, the maxstake is lower (£2), but thegame cycle is shorter (2.5secmin). Therefore it doesn’tappear that players are enter-tained for longer, but ratherthat they are more engagedgamblers.

Do your results question theefficacy of the ABB code ofconduct on machine limits?Can any tweaks be done to itto make it more relevant? Our analysis used the ABBcode of conduct as the base-line for measuring effective-

ness, and the research wasable to provide a 66 per centimprovement in the accuracyof detecting problem gam-blers. The results of thismodel show we could cor-rectly identify twice as manyproblem gamblers. Given thisimprovement, we have pro-vided the industry with amethod of measurementwhich identifies moreproblem gamblers and there-fore helps more people.However, it’s worth notingthat this isn’t a direct compar-ison, as we’re looking at aver-ages over all sessions ratherthan limits on single sessions.

In addition, we’ve beencommissioned by the Respon-sible Gambling Trust to do acomplete evaluation of theABB code in collaborationwith NatCen, to be publishedearly next year.

You were quite outspokenabout £2 stake limits being oflittle use in isolation to tackleproblem gambling. What hasled you to this conclusion?The research shows that thereis not one single marker ofharm which, when addressedin isolation, will identify moreproblem gamblers. Rather, acombination of behaviouralfactors must be consideredwhen developing accurateidentification. This has beenconfirmed by all members ofthe research consortium.

We know from the surveythat these players are highlyengaged in multiple forms ofgambling and that addictionis prevalent at all stake sizes.If the maximum stake level isreduced, a highly engagedplayer who bets at £2 or moremay move to another form ofgambling to get the same levelof excitement - which simplymeans shifting the channel ofpotential gambling harm, notaddressing it responsibly. Toidentify problem gamblerson gaming machines, stakesize is used as an input butonly in combination withother markers to generatemore accurate results to helpmore people.

‘One player’sproblematic playmay differ widelyfrom another’s’David Excell of Featurespace answers some questions about the tworeports he worked on regarding the analysis loyalty card data for gamingmachines and the relationship on how problem gambling activity can beidentified from certain behavioural markers.

‘It would beinadvisableto rushpolicies’The Machines ResearchOversight Panel, chaired byAlex Blaszczynski, hasprovided a level-headedround-up of the findingsuncovered by the recentresearch.

C

BB124-p22-24-Report_09/10 02/01/2015 11:16 Page 1

The study into player behaviour found that half of the people who previously played on gamingmachines no longer do so. The figure is even higher for people who had previously only gambledon machines in a bookmaker, with 63 per cent no longer playing machines. Conversely, 4 percent of people who had not previously played on gaming machines had played one in a bettingshop, with 11 per cent now having played gaming machines in other venues.

Heather Wardle,research director atNatCen Social

Research and one of the leadresearchers on the Responsi-ble Gambling Trust’s recentbatch of research into gamingmachine and problem gam-bling, has warned againstassuming the recent analysisof loyalty card players can beapplied across every player.

The analysis of 7bn interac-tions with gaming machinescame up with a surprisingproblem gambling rate of 23per cent for loyalty cardholders, but Wardle has saidthat the figure cannot be com-fortably extrapolated to everymachine player as the studyhad absolutely no visibility ofthe playing habits of non-loyalty card holders.

She even warned againstapplying the problem gam-bling figure to the loyalty cardpopulation as the study pur-posely skewed its sample tocapture the most frequentgamblers in order to ensurethe research had a decentnumber of subjects sufferingfrom problem gambling.

Given previous prevalencestudies had based a lot of con-clusions on a very smallnumber of actual problemgamblers surveyed, theresearch team wanted toensure that they had the datafrom a larger sample toanalyse, and as such targetedheavy machines users withinthe loyalty card population.Wardle even said that theskewing process might meanthat the data isn’t even indica-tive of the whole loyalty carddemographic.

Indeed, the PrevalenceStudy has previously high-lighted young men as a keyrisk group. However, with thericher data in this study,young men did not haveproblem gambling rates ashigh as other age groups butdid have higher rates of beingan at-risk gambler.

Overall, 23 per cent of par-ticipants were categorised asproblem gamblers, accordingto the PGSI scale. A further 24per cent were moderate riskgamblers, 24 per cent werelow risk gamblers and 29 per

cent were non-problem gam-blers.

It was also an eye-openerthat part of Wardle’s researchteam found that problem gam-bling behaviour was evidentat all stake sizes, with the pro-portion of problem gamblersbarely increasing the higherthe staking levels.

The study found thatalthough there is some varia-tion in the proportion ofproblem gamblers at eachstaking level, the fact is thatproblem gamblers have arange of staking behaviourwith a fifth of players with thelowest average stake per bet(53p) classified as problemgamblers

Even at the highest level ofstakes (representing anaverage stake of £13.40 perbet or more), nearly one in fivepeople (18 per cent) were non-problem gamblers.

This means that not onlywould a £2 stake limit notprevent people developinggambling problems, it wouldalso penalise higher stakingplayers without any sem-blance of a problem. As thestudy put it: “Because of thisoverlap it is unlikely that stakesize alone would sufficientlydiscriminate betweenproblem and non-problemgamblers.”

The report continued: “Themain questions are whetherpolicy makers, industry andregulators are willing toaccept these trade-offs, andwhat level of error they arewilling to accept for differentpolicy approaches. Theanswers to these questionsare likely to vary based on thetype of intervention. If theintervention is non-intrusive,a pop-up message forexample, then it may beacceptable that this is some-thing experienced by bothnon-problem and problemgamblers alike.

“If it is more intrusive, suchas a mandatory break in play,then attempting to exclude asmany non-problem gamblersas possible may be preferredwhilst recognising that thismeans one is likely to misssome people with problems.Underpinning all of this should

be consideration of the impactof any intervention; ensuringthat it does not have unin-tended consequences and thatit is reaching the anticipatedgroup of people.”

Part of the unintended con-sequences could well be thatif any screening process dis-covers too many false posi-tives - ie an intervention withsomeone who wasn’t experi-ence gambling problems -then in the social environmentof a betting shop it might leada problem gambler to take anyintervention they have expe-rienced rather less seriously.

The analysis also high-lighted two new and interest-ing associations betweenproblem gambling andmachine problems: the rela-tionship with number ofcurrent loyalty cards held andwho the gambler lives with.

The study explained:“Looking first to at-risk gam-bling and machine problemsamong men, living alone wasassociated with both behav-iours. Living alone was alsoassociated with femalemachine problems, with thosewho lived alone being morelikely to experience problems.

“The more loyalty cardsheld, the more likely male par-ticipants were to be at-riskgamblers, and both men andwomen to be problem gam-blers. As problem gamblingrates among machine playersidentified in nationally repre-sentative surveys like thePrevalence Study are lowerthan among Loyalty Card par-ticipants, it suggests thatthose who have a loyalty cardmay be more likely to beproblem gamblers. Further-more, among those who dohave loyalty cards, there issome evidence of a relation-ship between a higher numberof cards and some gamblingproblems.”

One of the conclusions ofthe research was that book-makers should be extracareful of the incentives andpromotions that it offersthrough their loyalty cards,given that those that holdthem seem more susceptibleto developing a gamblingproblem.

One of the lead researchers on the ResponsibleGambling Trust’s investigations into problem gamblingon machines has warned against applying its findingsfrom loyalty cards to the whole machine gaming public.

Loyalty Card holdersnot representative ofwhole gambling public

David Ross Fabrications LtdMetalwork supplied from our designs or your own.

For example:

UNIT 1EPECKLETON LANE BUSINESS ESTATEPECKLETONLEICESTERLE9 7RNTEL;01455 823721FAX;01455 828339EMAIL;[email protected]

SPECIALIST SUPPLIERS OF METALWORK TO THE

BETTING INDUSTRYFOR OVER 16 YEARS

Bet slip dispensersLight boxes-wall and freestanding

External ashtraysMagnetic wall boards

Swivelling Tower with Poster Frames

Pelmet LightsUpstands

Floor bins with or without logoPaper Racks

Pen dispensersLeaner legs

Coupon Dispensers

Poster Frames

Racing Post Holders

Machine Tables

Bandit Screen Posts

Window Display Legs

Stainless Steel Handrail Systems

TV Gantry Systems

LCD TV Brackets

Plasma TV Brackets

Photographs courtesy of Coral Racing & Chisholm Bookmakers

[email protected] www.eagoco.com.tw


BB124-p22-24-Report_09/10 02/01/2015 11:17 Page 2

Report

s well as arousal,your studym e a s u r e dreflection impul-sivity and

response inhibition. Whywere these values chosenand how strong are they asindicators of problem gam-bling?Low reflection impulsivityand response inhibition arekey components of self-regu-lation, in terms of the individ-ual responding adaptively tovarious situations and stimuli.In other words, they are twoof the processes that areimportant in helping the indi-vidual achieve their set-goals,while maximising benefit andminimising potential negativeconsequences.

Essentially, having lowreflection impulsivity andunimpaired response inhibi-tion will be important whenan individual is in the ‘action’of gambling and they need tomake sensible decisionsabout how much time andmoney they can afford tospend gambling within thatsession.

Research clearly showsthat individuals suffering withaddictive disorders often havedeficient response inhibitionand high reflection impulsiv-ity in comparison to ‘normal’populations. Furthermore,the same limitations areclearly shown in problemgambling populations. Thekey question thereforebecomes “is it a pre-existingvulnerability before the gam-bling pattern is established, orcan the gambling product andgambling environment affectone’s vulnerability?”

Are there any other realworld environments wherethese two measures mayhave acted in a similar way? Low reflection impulsivityand response inhibition willbe inherent in any goal-directed behaviour, as theindividual must constantly bemaking evaluations aboutwhat is the most appropriategoal to move towards as con-texts and circumstanceschange.

Reflection impulsivity isabout the individual taking anappropriate amount of time todeliberate on the informationthey have or can obtain, andsubsequently making accu-rate judgements. Responseinhibition is about being ableto respond appropriately totriggers that stimulate a spe-cific behavioural response,rather than acting reflexively.

We are designed to repeat-edly engage in behaviour thatis rewarding, such as sexual

behaviour, eating and eventhe pleasure and excitementof taking risks. Of course,depending on the circum-stance, sometimes thesebehaviours may have nega-tive consequences as well asbeing rewarding. Responseinhibition, in this context, isabout withholding the urge toengage in a behaviour thatmay be rewarding in the short-term but ultimately is out-weighed by the probablenegative consequences.Reflection impulsivity,working alongside responseinhibition, is the mental act ofweighing up all the informa-tion available to enable theindividual to respond in a waythat has most utility, ratherthan being heavily swayed byshort-term rash thinking.

If you are looking for anexample where both will be atthe forefront of behaviouraloutcomes, I’d lead towardssomething like motorwaydriving, where the situationand context are changingrapidly (traffic, conditions,speed cameras) and suchinformation is important toweight and respond to, andfurthermore there will beperiods where it is adaptive toalmost switch-off (longstraight, empty roads) but alsobe ready to change thisapproach if a hazard appearsunexpectedly (e.g. an animalin the road).

Rather than the stakebeing the trigger for anybehaviour changes, couldit actually be the size of theprize causing the changesin the decision makingprocess? Obviously thetwo go hand in hand tosome degree, but not nec-essarily on FOBTs wherethe top prize is capped at

£500 regardless of stake.This is certainly a limitation ofthe experiment, and as you’verightly identified, it is very dif-ficult to dissect stake andpotential win without substan-tially altering the nature of thetask. Ultimately, the researchteam thought it was moreimportant to control the‘volatility’ of the gambling task,in terms of chances of winning,rather than controlling forpotential prize size. Essen-tially, we aimed to make thetask as authentic as possible,and as we needed to controlthe probability of winning (aneven money chance), there-fore we thought it was impor-tant to match prizes with thestake size risked.

Your research was con-ducted using just 32 partic-ipants. Is that the standardfor a study such as this?The reason that surveystudies, or independent meas-ures experiments, require vastsamples is because there is aneed to try to minimise theeffect of individual differ-ences i.e. demographics, per-sonality, experience etc.Rather than comparing differ-ent sets of individuals in dif-ferent conditions, thisexperiment compares thesame individuals in differentconditions and therefore con-trolling for the effect of indi-vidual differences on theoutcome variable. So inrepeated measures experi-ments it is the norm to haverelatively small samples, and32 participants is a perfectlyadequate sample for a studywith this level of experimen-tal control.

The study measuresimpaired decision makingat £20 stakes, but also

around £2 stakes? Whatwas the difference aroundstaking levels?The general trend observedwas that the quality of deci-sions after the higher stakinglevel (£20 per bet) was poorerthan after the lower stakinglevel (£2 per bet). However,the quality of decisions beingmade after the £2 per bet con-dition was poorer than afterthe control condition whereparticipants risked no money.In short, even after gamblingat lower stakes the quality ofdecision making wasimpaired.

In terms of the size andnature of the impairment, it isimportant to be clear that par-ticipants didn’t suddenlymake absurd decisions aftergambling at the higher stakelevel. Ultimately, in their pre-dictions and judgements, par-ticipants were more likely tobe correct than incorrect atboth low stake and higherstake levels. However, therewas a statistically significantdeterioration in probability oftheir predictions beingcorrect as stake sizeincreased.

Statistically speaking, thesize of effect could conserva-tively be observed as low.However, it is also importantto acknowledge that the gam-bling task used is rather‘sterile’ i.e. participants wereplaying with ‘house money’and they could only bet onceevery 5-6 minutes. It is possi-ble that the size of effect mayincrease (or indeed decrease)when using real gamblingproducts in real gamblingenvironments.

The study suggested thatplayers made decisions inroughly the same time nomatter what the condition -

does this suggest thatgame frequency is not asimportant an issue as pre-viously thought?I wouldn’t draw that conclu-sion from the data. Essentially,the impact of event frequencyon self-control was notobserved in this experiment,however, the vast majority ofliterature identifies event fre-quency as fundamental in self-control and gamblingbehaviour. In fact, I wouldhypothesise that event fre-quency is at least as importantas stake, and if pushed, possi-bly argue that it may even moreimportant that stake size.

Your research is being high-lighted by some as proof forthe need to restrict stakesto £2. Is it safe to extrapo-late the findings in this wayin your view?To conclude that this experi-ment provides evidence thatreducing maximum stake sizeto £2, as a way of reducingproblem gambling, is overtlynaïve and massively prema-ture. This study is the firstpiece of a thousand piecepuzzle in trying to understandthe role that specific struc-tural characteristics play increating gambling-relatedharm. Fundamentally, thenext step is to see how theeffect of stake size interactswith other features of gam-bling products such as eventfrequency and prize structure,as well as the interaction withthe physical and social gam-bling environment.

The real value of thisresearch is that it clearlydemonstrates that structuralcharacteristics, such as stakesize, can affect processes inte-gral to self-control, over ashort space of time. We are along way from having defini-tive statements about the rela-tionship between stake sizeand loss of control within agambling session but we havemade the first, and in ouropinion the most importantstep. The exciting propositionfor the team at the Universityof Lincoln is that if processesintegral to controlled gam-bling, such as reflectionimpulsivity, can be negativelyaffected by game characteris-tics, equally there must alsobe scope to enhance self-control in gambling by manip-ulating game features.Research is already under-way exploring the potentialto improve processes such asresponse inhibition andreflection impulsivity bymanipulating existing andadding in new structural char-acteristics in various gam-bling formats.

‘The first piece of athousand piece puzzle’One of themorepublicisedpieces ofresearch fromtheResponsibleGambling Trustwas ‘The Roleof Stake Sizein Loss ofControl inWithin-SessionGambling’,which wasmainlyconducted bythe Universityof Lincoln. Theheadlinefinding fromthe researchwas thathigher stakesimpairdecisionmaking, whichunderstandablyactually didmakeheadlines.Here, one ofthe leadresearchers onthe project, DrAdrian Parke,answers somequestions onits findings.

A


THE EXPERIMENTALGAMBLING INTERFACE

BB124-p22-24-Report_09/10 02/01/2015 11:16 Page 3

ICE is on course to eclipse the2014 success story when anindependently audited 23,506attendees from a record 156nations travelled to London to seethe 515 exhibitors who chose it astheir international shop window.

Appy talkImproving trendAlongside the show, the 2015ICE Conferences programmecomprises a voyage through eighthigh-level, targeted events whichcover all of gaming’s verticalmarkets. These include theInternational Casino Conference,World Regulatory Briefing andBetmarkets.

Conference call

Essential guide to ...A new dedicatedICE app isavailable for freeon Android andiOS devices. Itallows visitors toaccess the fullevent schedule,browse thelatest productlaunches,receiveinformation on all of the speakerstaking part in the ICEConferences.

`BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 2015

Andrew McCarron

It gets to the point where you can run outof superlatives for something that has

gone from strength to strength in recentyears. ICE is now so big and so success-ful that you wonder where it can go next,but the organisers have strived to keepthe show pushing forward.

Certainly the move to ExCeL has donewonders for the betting industry’s repre-sentation at ICE. While still at Earl’sCourt, the betting suppliers were frag-mented across the show floor, with notone real focal area for bookmakers to in-vestigate the latest equipment. Itwouldn’t be so wrong to say that the bet-ting sector felt like an interloper at a gam-ing exhibition.

The switch to East London, though, al-lowed ICE to rip up the rule book and startagain and as a result the betting elementof the exhibition has been given a totalshot in the arm and is feeling more like awelcome part of the community again.

The return of the betting-focused Bet-markets conference after many years inthe wilderness also reflects on the sizeand importance of bookmaking acrossthe gambling industry.

Given that 2015 will see the first fullyear of the point of consumption taxa-tion, as well as further safeguardsadded to B2 gaming machines, the in-dustry could be forgiven for being cau-tious with any expenditure. But there isalso the counter argument that now isthe time to invest and make that break-through into the next layer of competi-tion. Whether you are from Camp A andare looking for cost cutting technologyor Camp B on the hunt for the next killerproduct, rest assured it will be availablein ExCeL next month.

irst time ICE exhibitor, TheBright Group, based in Silver-water, New South Wales, Aus-

tralia is preparing to embark onits own international ‘voyage of discovery’as it transports its people, products andpresentation some 17,000 km (10,563mi)across 11 time zones to exhibit at Febru-ary’s ICE show taking place at the ExCeLCentre, London. Officially the furthesttravelled exhibitor on gaming’s busiestshow floor, The Bright Group is taking astand presence at ICE in order to furtherits ambitious international expansionstrategy.

Raif Oymen, The Bright Group’s direc-tor, responsible for global engineering, ex-plained: “Having previously been to ICE asvisitors, we recognise and understandfully the show’s importance to the globalgaming industry. As we continue our inter-national expansion outside of our alreadyestablished Australasian and North Amer-ican regions, we believe attending ICEsends out the right signals that we areready and that we are extremely seriousabout the markets that exist in Europe.

“Preparations for the show have longbeen underway and our R&D and produc-tion departments are working round theclock to get all of our products ready. Welook forward to showing the global indus-try gathered in London our range of exclu-sively developed products and technolo-gies, which includes representativepieces demonstrating our design capabili-ty, attraction features for machine toppersand top boxes, as well as two new centre-piece products; the Magnum topper rangeand the Sound Chair.”

He added: “Attending ICE is importantto The Bright Group, not just for display-

ing our latest developments but also tofind out where the market is moving. Itwill be a very hectic week, but we are look-ing forward to seeing what London has tooffer.”

ICE marketing director Jo Mayer com-mented: “ICE has been described as theworld’s favourite gaming exhibition andthe experience of The Bright Group en-dorses and reflects that billing. Our cam-paign theme for 2015 is Discover andthere’s no doubt that ICE with its commu-nity of international exhibitors drawnfrom in excess of 50 nations provides visi-tors with a unique opportunity to discoverand explore the latest gaming innovationsfrom every corner of the world in a waywhich no other exhibition can. This is agreat testament both to the power of exhi-bitions and to the status enjoyed by theICE brand on the international stage.”

44Innovative pool betting operatorColossus Bets has doubled the

prize on its new 15 matchaccumulator product

46Italian operators using the

GameAccount Network nowhave access to some ofNetEnt’s best slot games

48Income Access has teamed

up with US-facing onlinehorseracing wagering brand

DerbyJackpot

BB22BB

Bet

ting

Bus

ines

s In

tera

ctiv

e E

ditio

n

January 2015

42Betradar is to roll out its LiveChannel products in Nigeriawith bookmaker 1960Bet

VIEWPOINT

Evenbigger,even better

EXHIBITOR

Bright Group travels17,000 km to exhibit at ICE

ICE’s furthest travelled exhibitor, The Bright Group,believes that attending ICE sends out the right signals to theEuropean industry.

RAIF OYMEN: ‘WE BELIEVE ATTENDINGICE SENDS OUT THE RIGHT SIGNALS’

F

BB124-p26-39-Essential_Layout 1 02/01/2015 13:23 Page 1

27B2BBettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 2015

Ice Totally Gaming

One of the interesting draws across ICEweek is the Betmarkets event, a popular

conference on the first two days of the showfocused exclusively on sportsbetting, whichhas returned to complement the growingsportsbetting section of the ICE showfloor.

The event will present top quality educa-tional content for sportsbetting executivesdriving their companies’ strategies in inno-vating and expanding the in-play proposi-tion, mobile and multi-screen sportsbetting,social gaming, sports integrity and emphasison New Jersey and Asia.

Key speakers include director of footballgovernance and regulation at The FA, DarrenBailey, Betclic Everest Group sportsbookproduct manager Olivier Kaplan, Sun Inter-national’s general manager sports bettingDaniel Kustelski, Betfred head of sports-book Harrison Bani, Nederlandse Staatslo-terij’s sports betting manager Steen Madsen,Betfair sportsbook product director Alex

Deacon, ESSA’s Mike O’Kane and Betfredsportsbook development manager Joe Ellis.

Also running as part of the Betmarketsconference are two sportsbetting tours ofthe ICE Totally Gaming Expo floor in part-nership with Sports Betting Community. At10.30 on the Tuesday and Wednesday of theexhibition, SBC will be leading a touraround some of the key suppliers to the bet-ting industry.

ICE organisers have announced thatmany of gaming’s most influential trade as-sociations and representative bodies haveconfirmed their attendance at next month’sexhibition.

Kate Chambers, portfolio director respon-sible for ICE, said: “Whilst the primary func-tion of an international event such as ICE isbased around the commercial exchange ofnew products and services, the exchange ofknowledge, information and ideas have be-come increasingly important. It has been

well documented that most, if not all of gam-ing’s transformational products have beenlaunched at ICE.

“But as well as being the commercial cen-tre for world gaming, ICE is increasingly theindustry’s political hub and the landmarkevent at which policy is debated and decid-ed by many of the industry’s most influentialtrade bodies. We are committed to work inpartnership with our trade association part-ners to ensure that ICE remains at the cen-tre of all things gaming and in the processdelivers on behalf of all of its community ofstakeholders.”

The 26 strong list of organisations headingfor London in February comprises; AGEM,American Gaming Association, Associationof British Bookmakers, Bingo Association,eCogra, European Association for the Studyof Gambling, European Casino Association,European Gaming and Betting Association,European Sports Security Association,

Gambling Commission, Gambling PortalWeb Masters Association, Gambling Thera-py, GamCare, Gaming Regulators EuropeanForum, Gaming Standards Association,Gibraltar Betting & Gaming Association, In-ternational Association of Gaming Advisors(IAGA), Interactive Gaming Council, Inter-national Association of Gaming Regulators,International Masters of Gaming Law, Inter-national Social Games Association, NationalCasino Forum, National Gaming Academy,Remote Gambling Association, The Respon-sible Gambling Trust, and the World LotteryAssociation.

BETMARKETS

Return of Betmarkets sees moreemphasis on sports betting

Bookmakers will have another reason to attend ICE Totally Gaming next month thanks to the welcome return of Betmarkets.

MIKE O’KANE OF ESSAWILL BE SPEAKING ATBETMARKETS


Essential Guide to ... ICE Totally GamingBettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 201528 B 2 B

series of events have been pro-grammed during this year’s ICE,which have been curated to help

maximise the experience. Pro-grammed by GamCrowd, these events havebeen particularly designed to benefit entrepre-neurs and investors from the start-up communi-ty, as well as first time visitors, but aims to deliv-er value to all stakeholders at the world’s largestbusiness-to-business gaming event.

Over the three days of ICE 2015, Pitch ICE willprovide the platform for entrepreneurs to pitchlive and direct to attendees. An initial selectionprocess before the show will lead to a shortlist ofentrants that will have 15 minutes to sell theirbusiness or concept on the show floor.

All slots will be filmed and shown onlinewhere a public vote over the two weeks follow-ing ICE 2015 will determine the best pre- andpost-funding propositions. The winner fromeach of the two categories will gain free accessto GamCrowd’s incubator skills and expertise.

Led by GamCrowd CEO Chris North, chair-man Ian Hogg, and financial director AndrewBowen, the gambling industry’s first crowdfund-ing and crowdsourcing platform will also host afull day of workshops and seminars on TuesdayFebruary 3, which will cover every aspect of thestart-up process, including funding, licensing,regulation and corporate finance.

In addition, GamCrowd are to hold network-ing and one-to-one mentorship sessions forstart-ups and venture capitalists from their net-work throughout the show. North will also con-duct 45-minute guided tours of the exhibitionhall daily, passing on the benefit of 15 years’ in-dustry experience. He will give an insider’s guideto the expo as well as the companies present, of-

fering tips for getting the most from the show,with the party calling in at a regulatory body, aswell as platform and payment providers.

The partnership builds on GamCrowd andClarion’s joint venture at EiG 2014 where theyran the Start-up Zone and a series of interactivetalks and events that culminated in the Launch-Pad competition.

“ICE challenges conventional thinking andwisdom, while offering the chance to discovernew opportunities for businesses and individu-als, which also neatly sums up what GamCrowdaims to achieve,” said North. “The betting andgaming industry start-up community is a bur-geoning one and we hope that our partnershipwith Clarion Events - and particularly the cre-ation of Pitch ICE - will help to nurture innova-tion and entrepreneurship to even higher levels.”

Next year’s event is the 20th anniversary ofICE becoming a standalone event. According toClarion Events’ portfolio director, Kate Cham-bers, who is responsible for ICE as well as EiG(Berlin, October) and GiGse (San Francisco,April), the content partnership with GamCrowdencapsulates what ICE is about. She explained:“Throughout its existence ICE has consistentlyworked in partnership with the gaming industryand, as a consequence, has become widelyrecognised as being the cockpit of gaming inno-vation.

“Most, if not all, the transformational prod-ucts and services in gaming over the last twodecades have been launched at ICE, which iswhat makes this partnership with GamCrowdso fitting and so exciting. We look forward torecognising those stand out credentials throughthe content programme and in the process pro-viding a vision of our industry’s future.”

EVENTS

GamCrowdhelping Clarion bePitch perfectGamCrowd.com and Clarion Events have agreed a contentpartnership designed to take visitors on a journey of learning anddiscovery at ICE Totally Gaming 2015.

GAMCROWD CHAIR IAN HOGG

GW Games is an expanding studiowhich is already active on a

number of online, mobile and land-based platforms and with a numberof high profile operators. Commer-cial director Andrew Henson is excit-ed by the launch of a new identity, ef-fectively marking the birth of a newbusiness: “A strong brand unques-tionably influences awareness and,as such, can positively impact uponproduct choice and loyalty. Equallyimportant is the part that the brandvalue can play in attracting, motivat-ing and retaining talent.”

GW Games arrives on the scenewith a significant amount of brandequity already in the bank, havingbeen created to stand alongside sis-ter developer Games Warehouse,skill games specialist and all-timemarket leader in the SWP (skill withprize) multigame terminal sector.These UK based business units alsoshare owners with US based AMI En-tertainment Network, globalproviders of music solutions.

“This heritage assures both busi-ness partners and players of ourcommitment to the quality and in-tegrity of the GW Games content,”confirmed Henson, adding that “themove into online and mobile gaming,alongside land-based content, is alogical step to take, as the strengthof a proven brand lays the founda-

tions for the ongoing introduction offurther new, exciting and differentoptions.”

GW Games has laid ‘extremelyfirm’ foundations as it moves for-wards with its commitment to totalcorporate regeneration. Over thepast two years, solid relationshipshave been cemented with major plat-forms, with games now live on bothOpenBet and Microgaming Quickfireand imminent further releases due onGTS/VF, Leander, Odobo and GECO.

Henson and his growing and di-verse team of cross-platform contentdevelopers now have half a dozengames across an igaming operatorbase that includes Betfair, Bet365,Ladbrokes, Paddy Power, Sky Vegasand William Hill. In addition, landbased (terminal) customers includeLadbrokes, William Hill, PaddyPower, Betfred, Gala Bingo, Playna-tion and Inspired Gaming.

By the end of Q1 2015, the live GWGames portfolio will total 10 ‘excitingand highly distinctive games’ with arange of themes across the spectrumfrom traditional to comical, radicaland even musical. “The vision for thisbusiness is to be brave and to exploreboundaries,” explained Henson. “GWGames will demonstrate many quali-ties over the coming months andyears, but dull, conventional and pre-dictable will not be amongst them.”

GW GAMES

Launching thenew brand GW GamesFebruary’s ICE Totally Gaming event at ExCel inLondon will see the formal unveiling of a new cross-platform content development brand, GW Games.

ANDREW HENSON

A



Ray Davies, e-Gaming Development Manager

Tel: + 44 (0)1624 682365

Email: [email protected]

www.whereyoucan.im/egaming

ISLE OF MAN.WHERE YOU CANFIND A WINNING BASE FOR YOUR E-GAMING BUSINESSThe Isle of Man is home to many of the

world’s leading gaming brands and software

developers, which is no surprise when you

consider that the Island offers:

Government support and commitment

to the gaming sector

100% player protection

No hidden costs

Fast licensing process

Low duty based on Gross Retained Profit

Low-cost operating base

World-class resilient IT infrastructure

Skilled staff

2014 was a very strong year for the e-gam-ing sector on the Isle of Man. Our three

key performance measures of jobs, govern-ment revenue from duty/license fees and li-cense holders all grew in excess of 10 percent. E-gaming now represents over 13.5 percent of our GDP, and we’re predicting this fig-ure will rise to 18 per cent by 2020.

So how do we build on this success nextyear?

Strategies should never be cast in stone;they always need to evolve as market condi-tions change. 2014 saw a seismic change inthose conditions with the introduction of thenew UK legislation and the POC tax. The Isleof Man recognises that the effects of thischange will be seen in an increasing numberof M&As both with operators and supportingsoftware and service companies. The thresh-old for a successful new entrant to the markethas also been raised along with the require-ments of investors in start- up businesses.

Our strategy is therefore evolving to take

these changes into account and to recognisethat, in future, successful operators will needto be licenced in a number of jurisdictions -not just one. We have a healthy mix of worldleading brands, high growth emerging futurestars and start-ups supported by our excel-lent local corporate service providers and ourstrategy involves supporting each of theseareas and helping them to grow.

We also expect continued diversificationof the sector on the Island. We have always at-tracted and supported all aspects of the in-dustry on the Island. We are the home toworld leading gaming operators, platformand software providers, game developers,data centres and hosting companies, corpo-rate service providers as well as lawyers, ac-countants and consultants who specialise inthe industry. This diversification has devel-oped over time following on from our being atthe forefront in creating the legislation for e-gaming. This clustering effect is heathy forboth the industry and for our Island’s econo-

my - 30 years of continuous growth is almostunheard of elsewhere in the world.

A further testimony to this diversification isthe first mover advantage that we have createdin the digital currency market, one that will beembraced fully by the gaming industry as it willsubstantially lower the cost of payment pro-cessing and remove charge backs. We expectthat 2015 will see the introduction of digitalcurrencies into mainstream gaming operators.

Another focus for the Isle of Man next yearwill be with Asian facing operators, withwhom we already have an excellent reputa-tion given our attractive tax structure, ourworld class power supply and telecoms infra-structure, and open minded government. Nowthat the UK POC and legislation has been final-ly settled we are seeing an increased interestfrom the region. We also see South Americaand parts of Africa ready to open up for e-gam-ing and these are areas where our expertisewill be of great interest in the near future.

Non licensed businesses will also be of in-

terest to us in 2015. This has always been partof our strategy and will continue to be so.Those businesses that have already estab-lished themselves on the Island and havegrown dramatically are testament to the ben-efits that we have to offer. This creates sub-stantial numbers of new jobs on the Isle ofMan and supports the growth in our economy.

In summary, 2015 will be an exciting yearfor the Isle of Man and the industry as a whole,and we remain optimistic about the timesahead. The pace of change in e-gaming neverseems to wane, and so no doubt there will benew issues that see the light of day to fill thepanel sessions and late night bar discussionsat our conferences.

One constant that really can be bet on is theIsle of Man’s firm and fair stance on regulationand gold standard in measures to protectplayers and their funds. We are extremelywell placed and prepared to navigate thechanging industry landscape that lies ahead.

Stand N5-320

Building on a successful yearPeter Greenhill, Head of e-gaming at the Isle of Man’s Department of EconomicDevelopment, reflects on 2014 and makes some predictions for the new year.

ISLE OF MAN



Some of the biggest retail and onlinenames in the business have opted

to use OptimaMGS, powered by Mar-ginMaker, with details of the new im-proved platform to be revealed at ICE atExCeL in February.

OptimaMGS is a multichannel plat-form which includes an integrationframework allowing multiple casinobrands and a superclass sports bookpowered by MarginMaker2 to be pro-moted worldwide.

It also integrates the worldwidehorse and greyhounds racing ITSP V6Tote network for retail and online, per-mitting 24x7 betting with live streamingfrom all the race courses which offeroff-track betting through the network.

Unibet, BetPack, BTC, JenningsBetand StanJames are amongst the clientsbenefitting from the platform.

Optima’s Certified Partner Networkis also being unveiled at the show. Thenetwork includes a myriad of third partypayment, e-gaming and sports bettingproduct integrations out of the boxsuch as Worldpay, Paypoint, Paypal,PaysafeCard, Skrill, Neteller,Retail2Web, Betradar, Betgenius, In-spired, Realistic Games, Net Entertain-ment, Microgaming, Amaya, Ezugi andEvolution Games.

Optima CEO Jacob Curciel com-mented: “We have invested heavily toexpand our software and services cata-log for the e-gaming industry by acquir-ing MarginMaker2 platform rights andbusiness from GTech. MM2 has nowbeen improved in different areas suchas security, reporting and integration.

“A key change in the MM2 retail plat-form for UK bookmakers is the intro-duction of the shop serverless architec-ture which simplifies and reduces costsand overheads to the operation.”

The iSHOP betting system for the re-tail channel - which will be demonstrat-ed live on the Optima stand at ICE - isbeing rolled out to hundreds of shops inthe UK in the next few months.

Optima will run a continuous presen-tation schedule each day in the ICEshow where new products and thetechnology roadmap from Optima willbe showcased. New products from theOptima MGS Certified Partner Networkwill also be announced.

Curciel added: “Optima’s mission isto provide, maintain and support themost stable, scalable, fast, secure, effi-cient and modern modular e-gamingsoftware suite in the market for newand existing commercial public and pri-vate bookmakers worldwide.”

Stand N1-480

etConstruct has announced that Alderney Licenced666Bet has joined its comprehensive sports bettingplatform. 666Bet will now offer its customers BetCon-

struct’s full sports betting portfolio, including pre-matchbetting and BetConstruct’s market leading live betting suite. Thelive betting suite will allow 666Bet to offer its customers over19,000 live events per month spanning over 50 sports, and this se-lection will be available on desktop and mobile platforms. As partof the agreement, 666Bet will offer UK and Irish racing, with a fullsuite of horse racing over the coming months.

BetConstruct CEO Suren Khachatryan said: “This is a majorcoup for us, at the end of what has been a spectacular year. Earlierthis year 666Bet arrived on the UK gambling scene with an un-precedented explosion and has already proven itself to be disrup-tive and capable of challenging the established players.”

BetConstruct’s UK-based commercial director George Voyatziscommented that the collaboration came to fruition quickly,demonstrating the ‘ease with which the two companies work to-gether and their matching desire to shake up the UK betting land-scape with agility, daring and innovative products, that provide themarketplace with much-needed fresh content’.

BetConstruct has also made Open Face Chinese Poker (OFC)immediately available to all its clients. The game consists of two tofour players, each of whom receive five cards, face down, whichthey place on a board consisting of three levels - back (5), middle(5) and front (3). Cards are subsequently dealt, one at a time, untileach player has 13 cards which they have arranged on their individ-ual board. To be considered a legal and viable, each player’s threehands must be of sequential strength, in decreasing order, fromback to front. Failure to achieve this causes fouls and receivespenalties.

Rather than betting prior to each round, the game is played out infull, following which points and bonuses (which have an agreedpre-assigned financial value) are scored for winning hands and par-ticular card combinations.

Levon Gyulzadyan, product manager for OFC at BetConstruct,commented: “The game is only a few years old, yet is has already at-tracted millions of players as it offers a type of tactical play that isnot present in other versions of poker. Since opponents can seeeach other’s cards, there is no bluffing, but the depth of the strate-gic nuances make OFC captivating and unique.”

Stand S1-350

SIS has had a regular presence at the glob-al gaming expo, but this time the focus

will be on the rollout of a suite of new prod-ucts aimed at the digital market. Renownedas a major supplier of content to the retail in-dustry, SIS has significantly broadened its of-fering in the last 12 months. Exciting premi-um content has been added to its comprehen-sive, high-quality horse racing, greyhoundracing and virtual products.

This season SIS became the Liga de FutbolProfesional’s first official, exclusive partnerfor collection and distribution of live datafrom more than 2,500 Spanish league and cupmatches per season, and has launched dy-namic, innovative data products from one ofthe top leagues in the world.

Using proprietary gathering tools, SIS isproviding a range of high-quality, pre-match,in-running and post-match data feeds, andproducts tailored to bookmakers’ needs,with further developments to come. Thissuper-fast data includes Alert and Dangermessages direct to the trading room by feed,

interface client or console.SIS commercial director Paul Witten com-

mented: “We’ve always been known as a trust-ed supplier of official data, providing relevantproducts tailored to betting, and the La Ligaportfolio is our latest high quality offering.”

As one of the world’s leading providers ofbroadcast solutions, SIS is now offering anew slant on streaming for bookmakers’ dig-ital offering. It has invested in a dedicated in-frastructure, as well as developing key part-nerships with the leading suppliers in order

to offer ‘best in class’ digital streaming.SIS Stream is a multi-platform solution

which gives bookmakers a different way ofattracting and retaining punters. Its ‘openstreaming’ service allows punters to viewcontent free of charge before placing bets.

The SIS Stream platform can deliver anunlimited amount of compelling content, sothat customers can bet wherever and how-ever they want. Operators are charged a flatfee per customer who watches a stream dur-ing a pre-defined session, usually lasting 24hours. Current content on offer includesthoroughbred racing from Dubai and LatinAmerica.

Further new content is about to be un-veiled and SIS product and account man-agers will be on hand at ICE to demonstratethe latest in SIS innovation and discuss fu-ture developments for 2015, including on-course initiatives which have been trialled attracks across the UK.

Stand S1-140

OPTIMA IS

Optimasigns 30clients to newplatform insix months

666Bet signsup withBetConstructBetConstruct has signed major new dealfor its sports betting platform whilst alsoboosting its poker games portfolio.

BETCONSTRUCT

B

SIS

Supplying the digital marketSIS’s appearance at ICE this year will showcase a real focus in the development of its offer,as a leading provider of content and services to the betting industry.


[email protected]


2B gaming software and online gaming contentprovider GameAccount will be using ICE to showcasethe huge strategic and commercial benefits of its

unique Simulated Gaming offering to an internationalaudience of key opinion-formers.

Explaining how Simulated Gaming can be deployed by land-based casinos, GAN commercial director Daniel Lindsay said: “Wedeveloped Simulated Gaming as an off-Facebook social gamingproduct to enable land-based casino operators to offer a fully im-mersive gaming proposition for their customers when not on site.

“The trust and integrity of the land-based brands are brought on-line and the same games - tables and slots - are available. Inessence, it’s a mirror image of the land-based environment wherevirtual credits purchased allow continuous play and, where regu-lations allow, cash back incentives, using land-based loyalty cardsand Casino Management Systems.”

Highlighting the commercial benefits he said: “Casinos benefitin a number of ways. Not only does Simulated Gaming serve to gen-erate significant incremental revenue courtesy of a new channel ofentertainment, but it also reactivates lapsed players and drives re-newed casino visitation where spend is up on gaming as well as onother verticals within the property.”

He added: “In general, social gaming monetises players - regis-tration to deposit - at around 2 per cent. The very best social casi-nos manage somewhere around 5 per cent, whilst our SimulatedGaming product is currently monetising above 15 per cent of regis-tered players through to deposit and play. The feedback we are re-

ceiving from land-based casino operators is that it presents theperfect opportunity to engage with their current, lapsed and futurepatrons as well as allowing them to prepare for real money onlinegaming in a pre-regulated environment. For players, it’s a positiveexperience which allows them to earn rewards - where regulationsallow - whilst playing their favourite slot games and using brandnames they trust.”

Following its successful showing at October’s G2E in Las Vegas,GameAccount Network has confirmed that five US operators willbe live with its Simulated Gaming offering by the first half of 2015along with a group of operators in the Australian gaming market.

Enabling bricks and mortar casinos in the United States to moveonline is a core element of the company’s mission statement and tothis end GAN has partnered with Betfair plc to provide its internetGaming System following the introduction of regulated real-money online gaming in New Jersey in November 2013.

The company has also built an established business in Europe,licensing gaming content across the regulated .com market. In theregulated Italian market, GameAccount Network provides con-tent delivery to over 65 per cent of the existing operators with a fur-ther three new operators joining the network in 2015. In the regu-lated Spanish market, GameAccount provides platform servicesand content and will be providing a range of proven performinggames ahead of new regulations coming into force in 2015 allow-ing slot games.

Stand N2-310

XB Net, a member of The Stronach Group,which owns and operates premier race-

tracks, breeding and training facilities andtechnology companies in North America,wrapped up its first full year of deliveringNorth American racing to UK punters by final-ising a deal with Ladbrokes. Along with part-ner TurfTV, XB Net made an immediate splashin the market by providing North Americanracing to William Hill and Paddy Power shopsfor the duration of 2014, and will deliver morethan 1,000 fixtures into the UK in 2015.

In their venture, XB Net secures track con-tent rights, live streaming video and past per-formance data for TurfTV to produce and dis-tribute a hosted program of North Americanracing, complete with expert analysis, inter-views and selections, to UK betting shops.Tracks offered by XB Net and TurfTV includemany of the top tracks in the United Statesand Canada, including Gulfstream Park,Saratoga, Belmont Park, Keeneland, Mon-mouth Park, Woodbine, Laurel Park and Pim-lico Race Track, the home of the legendaryPreakness Stakes.

“It is the goal of The Stronach Group andXB Net to deliver high-quality, exciting USracing to the rest of the world,” said RenéSchneider, vice president of business devel-opment for XB Net. “We’re excited to contin-ue working with TurfTV, Ladbrokes, WilliamHill and Paddy Power to ensure millions ofpunters and racing fans in the UK can watch,wager and enjoy the best North Americantracks and events.”

In addition to making strong progress inthe UK, XB Net recently launched a venturewith Spanish gaming giant, Codere, to show-case North American racing in its bet shops inMexico and Spain. Bettors can wager on toptracks using terminals manufactured andserviced by the Austrian firm, Best GamingTechnology (BGT). Additionally, XB Net con-tinues to supply US racing to more than 2,000off-track betting locations operated by theTurkish Jockey Club.

XB Net recently introduced a state of theart white label, pari-mutuel racebook thatcan be quickly integrated into the platform ofestablished online gaming companies. Theseracebooks provide hassle-free live wageringon horse and greyhound races with a pro-jectable revenue model. Furthermore, XB Netcontinues to offer pari-mutuel wagering tonearly a dozen partners via its proprietaryEasyGate interface, which serves as an inter-national wagering hub and provides wager-ing pathways, live video and past perform-ance data

MRG Systems has more than2,600 information screen sys-

tems installed in betting shopsthroughout the UK and Europe. Thatamounts to over 40,000 screensbeing managed every day. PaddyPower, Coral Racing, the NewZealand Racing Board and two bu-reau services in Ireland use our solutions.

Our track record for providing informa-tion screen systems in the UK is exception-al and this year we have set ourselves thechallenge to attract new business fromother territories around the world. ICE2015 provides one of the best opportunitiesfor us to meet new customers seeking inno-vative new screen solutions.

The UK betting industry is possibly themost mature betting market in the world.MRG is an important contributor to thedrive for higher performance, customer fo-cused products designed to enhance thecustomer experience. Twenty years ago wecommenced writing the Bookmakers Infor-

mationDisplay System (BIDS) with help fromPaddy Power who remain customers to thisday. The most recent version BIDS5 ex-ploits the latest agile development tech-niques to achieve optimum outcome forour clients.

BIDS5 is capable of automating most ofthe routine functions undertaken by staff inthe studio. A full day’s events will run withlittle or no intervention from the operator.That leaves the studio free to generate mul-tiple eye-catching offers and promotions asthe day’s events develop. BIDS5 can trans-form your business. Always relevant, thesereal-time interventions will increase salesand enhance your brand.

BIDS5 accepts multiple data sources

which are processed and sent auto-matically to the local servers.The display and switching ofvideo sources from variousfeeds is also managed fromthe centre by the studio. Using

HTML templates the system is easy to sup-port and maintain by staff. It is highly flexi-ble; making it an easy fit for different bet-ting and gambling models used elsewherearound the world.

Also on the stand this year will be theDailyForm touchscreen form guide, Man-agers Monitor, All in One screen and theAVS500 amplifier. Each one of these is de-signed to enhance the customer experi-ence, reduce operating costs and help to in-crease profitability. Our aim is to provideproducts which take the pressure offcounter staff, reduce studio operatingcosts and boost revenues by managing tar-geted advertising more efficiently.

Stand S1-226

XB NET

XB Net capsstrong yearwith Ladbrokesagreement

GAMEACCOUNT NETWORK

Buoyant GameAccount Networkbrings Simulated Gaming to ICE

‘Faster, Higher, Stronger’ is the Olympiantheme adopted by GameAccountNetwork to promote its presence at ICE2015.

B

DANIEL LINDSAY

MRG SYSTEMS

Betting, gambling and casino screen solutions

Ian Hunter of MRG Systems details how the firm has been helping betting shops run their businesses for over two decades.


www.betconstruct.com


he increased competition and regulation of theonline gaming industry requires operators tofocus on cost efficiency while ensuring that

player lifetime value is maximised as much aspossible, while offering an exciting player experiencewithin a responsible gaming framework. At Bit8, we havedeveloped disruptive Artificial Intelligence technologythat allows operators to offer sophisticated marketingcampaigns based on tailored bonuses and promotions.

Engagement and retention tools such as advancedbonuses, targeted promotions and tournaments, experi-ence points, achievements and customer journeys are allneeded in combination to achieve the best rates of returnfor the operator. Rather than taking a one size fits all ap-proach, the player database is intelligently segmentedinto specific targeted segments that change dynamicallyas the player behaviour changes. The AI system learnsmore about each player’s behaviour, giving better results

that fit what the player wants to do, while simultaneous-ly taking into consideration other player behaviour tooffer new items that the player may not have found ontheir own unprompted. When new players sign up andare acquired, the initial offers and recommendations andthe loyalty points aid operators to convert new playersinto loyal players.

The campaign and bonus monitoring tools enable op-erators to minimise churn and loss and the inbuilt busi-ness intelligence reports identify those players that needto be actioned either by sending a timely communicationby email, SMS, or some other channel or by creating acustomised tailored promotion that keeps the players onthe site.

The use of AI technology and sophisticated rules allowoperators to provide VIP levels of player experience at alower cost, since manual labour can be minimised and de-creased to a minimum. The AI technology enables real-

time decisions to be made that a human customer supportand account management team cannot ever manage to doin the same timeframe, especially when dealing with largenumber of players.

Promotions and tournaments can be set-up flexiblyacross multiple game suppliers and verticals, using ashared common wallet that can be optionally setup withsub-wallets for each vertical if needed. The Bit8 systemsupports casino slots and scratch-cards together with tra-ditional casino games, fantasy games and casual games,live casino, sportsbook and live sports betting, and poker.

Bit8 gives operators the right innovative advancedtools that allow them to free up internal resources to focuson marketing, player experience and using our technolo-gy in an almost infinite number of combinations toachieve that disruptive edge that will be hard to matchwith existing traditional solutions.

Stand N6-220

The firm E-gaming has specialised in thefield of server-based gaming (SBG) since

2005, and is today active in more than 10countries worldwide.

The Czech Republic-based company op-erates - either directly or through its localpartners - more than 20,000 terminals, andthese numbers are increasing constantly dueto the fact that e-gaming is looking for newterritories and jurisdictions.

“Many countries are currently looking tohave increased control and better monitor-ing of their land-based gaming operations,”said the company’s Pavel Michalcio. “In suchterritories we are actively looking for long-term and secure partnerships.”

In Europe, e-gaming recently passed thecertification process in Macedonia andSpain, with initial results proving successful.The company is also ready to enter new mar-kets in the region, once the gaming legisla-tion in those territories has been updatedand approved.

“In addition to these new markets, we al-ways rank among our priorities the domesticmarkets of the Czech Republic and Slovakia,

where we achieve excellent results despiteof the strong competition and a difficult peri-od in terms of pending legislative changes,”Michalcio said.

“We started to expand into South Americaa couple of years ago, and now we have agood quantity of machines installed in somefamous casinos in Mexico. Mexican playersreally like our games, and as such will sendmore units in the near future as other compa-nies are now interested in working with us.”

Elsewhere in South America, e-gaminghas machines installed in Panama, and thecompany is currently in discussions with twoas-yet-unnamed countries in this key region.

“As a young, innovative and very flexiblecompany in the field of SBG, we are con-stantly looking for new challenges,” saidMichalcio. “We closed some deals with someEuropean companies for delivery of gamecontent for online platforms, and are lookingto expand in this field, too.

“During the ICE show in London in Febru-ary, we will present our latest games and in-novations, new online casino platform andalso our new cabinet. We are looking for-ward to welcoming visitors from around theworld to our stand.”

Stand N1-450

At Microgaming, we’re busy gearing upfor the largest gaming show of the year.

2014 was a pretty roarsome event, but we’reconfident that 2015 will be just as spectacu-lar, if not even a little bit better!

Located at the entrance of N5, Mi-crogaming is at the heart of the ExCeL. Thetwo-tiered stand will be home to a plethoraof the latest devices, showcasing ourhottest gaming content across online, mo-bile and land-based platforms. This in-cludes 2014’s blockbuster games, Avalon II,Terminator 2, Jurassic Park and Game ofThrones, as well as previews of what liesahead in 2015. In addition, our most recentproduct developments for Casino, Multi-player, Poker, Bingo and Live Dealer will beon show, and available for demo by ourproduct gurus.

Adjacent to our stand is the long-stand-ing tradition of the Microgaming Bar, the so-cial networking hub of the event. But thisyear we’re upping the heat with a Quickfire-inspired Bar. Our Quickfire platformhas grown exponentially over the lastfew years and it’s time to bring this tothe fore. This year alone we’ve signedover 45 operators, taking our totalnearer to 200, and we’ve evolved ourproduct to become all-encompass-ing - Casino, Poker, Bingo, Multi-player and Live Dealer.

With over 23,000 attendees at theshow, ICE is the perfect opportunityfor us to set the tone for the yearahead. And what would ICE be with-

out some exciting, new announcements?Last year we delivered a bundle of excitingmessages, and even brought a seven metrelong dinosaur to the show! So the questioneveryone is asking is ‘what has Microgam-ing got in store this year’? Well we can’t givetoo much away, but rest assured, we alwayslook to excite attendees, and our an-nouncements will include a new brand li-censing agreement, an extensive roadmapof content, and a flurry of exciting deals!

Finally, moving on from last year, wherewe amazed attendees with our vision of thefuture, we’ll once again be showing aglimpse of what we think lies ahead for ourindustry. On the Microgaming stand, we’lldelve into the fascinating world of wearabletechnology and show how virtual realitycould become reality in the near future.

Want to know more? Step into our worldat the Microgaming Stand and Quickfire Bar.

Stand N5–220

BIT8

Maximise player lifetime valuein online gaming operationsAngelo Dalli, co-founder and CEO at Bit8, explains how the firm is using ArtificialIntelligence to make a difference in extending lifetime values.

ANGELO DALLI

E-GAMING MICROGAMINGPlanning for a more spectacular 2015

E-gamingtargets newmarkets

Neill Whyte, head of product channels at Microgaming,explains what his firm has in store this year.

As gaming jurisdictionsaround the world are realisingthe benefits of server-basedgaming, e-gaming is lookingahead to a busy 2015.

T


MRG Systems LimitedThe Mill, Upper Mills Estate, Bristol RoadStonehouse, GL10 2BJ

T +44 (0)1453 820840 E [email protected] +44 (0)1453 820860 W www.mrgsystems.co.uk

Contact MRG today for the latest information screen systems.Call 01453 820 840 or email [email protected]

MRG deliver digital display systems for the top brand bookmakers.

Long-standing customers include Paddy Power, Coral,

New Zealand Tote and Irish bureau services.

A central studio screen management system which organises multiple data sources, marketing images and live video for display on thousands of screens in real-time.

3-5 Feb 2015

See us on stand

S1-226

Our systems manage over 40,000 screens seven days a week

Thrilling displays and a first class performance


AB Austria is a manufacturer ofcoin-operated gaming, bettingand entertainment machines.

Today, it carries one of thelargest and most prolific product ranges inthe whole industry. The demands ofchanging to new technology combinedwith the demands of increasingly competi-tive approved hardware are just some ofthe issues that operators are facing global-ly. To overcome these challenges TAB de-signs and develops individual and high-specification solutions to completetoday’s gaming and betting offer.

TAB Austria’s game portfolio for theGolden Island Gaming Platform has againexpanded and it will launch a host of newgames, including more features and highperforming content. Operators will alsosee the latest version of the platform thatis designed to meet all the demands ofstreet and casino gaming. TAB providesfive different and reliably engineered cabi-nets and an ever growing selection of highdefinition games with state-of-the-art ani-mations.

Each terminal from TAB Austria is apiece of ‘genuine Austrian quality’. TheGolden Island platform is available as VLT,AWP and as a progressive Jackpot version

and includes several technologies thatmeet the requirement of the current mar-ket. Hardware and software are perfectlyintertwined and thus work seamlessly andintelligently together. The innovative andintuitive design of the user interface pro-vides the very best overview to have every-thing in view.

TAB says that the new Go4Platinum bet-ting cabinet is extremely well designedand equipped with the latest and best com-ponents. The terminals will be finished incustomers’ corporate colours and will en-hance the end user’s betting experience.

The new Go4Platinum cabinet is char-acterised by its ultra-slim body and theclear and futuristic lines. It has been de-signed to deliver convenience and playercomfort in betting shops. It includes care-fully considered screen positioning, aneasy-to-reach button panel and plenty

space for leg clearance. It is supplemented by eye-catching

LED-light strips, which run alongside thecabinet and are adjustable according tocustomer’s individual preferences. Thefirm pays particular attention to our cus-tomer’s needs and requirements to makethe player experience more exciting andlet the terminal work faster when playersget busy. The firm said its aim is to createunique machines that maximise clients’profits and identity.

TAB Austria offers a wide range ofturnkey terminal solutions that provide aunique player experience and refer to al-most all the top operators in the industry.The y can be customised via colour, equip-ment, screen size – and hardware deviceslike card reader, hoppers, recycler or NFC,whatever is desired by operators.

Stand S2-330

It has been something of a rollercoasterride over these past 12 months. We went

into ICE 2014 feeling confident that it wasgoing to be a big year ahead for Yggdrasiland that turned out to be very much thecase.

With just two operators signed up lastFebruary we are now live with 14 operators,six of which went live in Q4 alone: Portoma-so, L&L Casino, ENET, JV Bet, ComeOn andOffside Gaming. We also have a number ofdeals in the pipeline which we hope to an-nounce pre-ICE.

In addition to this we only had two slotgames at ICE 2014 and we can now offer allour partners nine top class slots. We havehad tremendous industry feedback on ourgames and we will be growing our contentportfolio throughout the year.

Lotto7, our daily draw progressive jack-pot, is scheduled to launch in Q2 after a fewdelays. However, we have all the certifica-tions in place now and we are really excitedabout the opportunities to offer a uniquedaily lottery draw to all of our partners.

There are a number of things I’m lookingforward to this year, but gamification is atthe top of the pile. It is going to play a crucialrole in our strategy moving forward and on-line businesses simply cannot ignore it intoday’s environment.

The challenge for operators is to maketheir websites and mobile apps sticky sothat the customers are engaged and don’tfeel the need to go somewhere else.

User engagement is now the key battle-ground and by offering something a little dif-ferent, be it a unique player promotion or cus-tomer loyalty scheme, you can take cus-tomers on a journey they never want to leave.

Yggdrasil’s Infinite API for gamificationallows operators to boost their customerengagement and we look forward to helpingthem achieve their goals in 2015.

Mobile, as ever, is going to be a key focusfor the majority of the industry this year andwe will be announcing some exciting devel-opments in this sphere ahead of ICE. Thiswill coincide with the launch of a particularlyinnovative new game, so make sure youcome and see us at the ExCeL.

Stand N2-140

ICE 2015 is an opportunity for Kiron In-teractive to showcase a host of new con-

tent and services, after a rapid expansionto its portfolio in 2014. The company is oneof the main providers of virtual sportsgames to the land-based and online gam-ing industries.

Its flexible and advanced gaming plat-forms are helping to power the rapidgrowth of virtual sports around the globe,as players bet online, on the move and ingaming venues.

Among the latest developments are anupgraded bet management system, Bet-Man, and its new Vision Platform, whichprovides a cost-effective screen solutionfor casinos and betting shops.

The improved BetMan product will beon show for land-based operators, along-side a brand new version suitable for thoseconcerned with online.

Land-based companies, such as bettingshops and casinos, can also benefit fromdemonstrations of new hardware. Theseinclude compact devices designed to re-place bulkier PCs, and Kiron’s proprietary

Vision Screen solution, which enhancesthe in-venue experience for players.

The RaceKings product, powered bymulti-station betting terminals, hasbrought the excitement of horse racing tothe casino floor and is helping operatorsattract a new generation of customers. Asecond version of this product will beavailable at ICE in 2015, this time with anewly-designed and improved, more user-friendly betting interface.

The expanding content portfolio is nowone of the most comprehensive available.

As well as an upgraded suite of horserac-ing, dog and football products, it includesharness racing and a new motor-racinggame.

Kiron will also be showcasing its newdigitised horse and dog tracks, followingthe success of a number of implementa-tions with existing clients. These allowplayers to watch the action unfold in famil-iar settings in order to make the gamesricher and more immersive. This supportsKiron’s philosophy of always tailoringcontent for local audiences, whereverthey are in the world.

Following the success of its virtualsports games the company is developing aportfolio of complementary numbersgames. The first of these, Keno, will bedemonstrated at its stand at ICE. It will bejoined in 2015 by other popular numbersgames. These will integrate seamlesslyinto BetMan, allowing an operator to tailorits daily schedule to its choice of virtualsports and numbers games.

Stand S1-132

YGGDRASIL GAMING

Gamificationthe big thingfor YggdrasilFredrik Elmqvist, CEO andfounder of YggdrasilGaming, explains what thefirm’s plans are for 2015.

KIRON INTERACTIVE

Come and see the improved BetMan

TAB AUSTRIA

A customisableexperience

TAB Austria is set tolaunch the widest, mostdiverse and innovative rangeof new gaming, betting andamusement products at thisyear’s ICE.

T



Gaming operators as standard proce-dure already have a number of auto-

mated checks in place to quickly and effi-ciently check a customer’s name, addressand date of birth, as well as being able toconfirm that the payment method beingused by the customer is owned by that indi-vidual - all of which can help to preventidentity fraud, payment fraud, unautho-rised withdrawals, account takeover andmoney laundering.

However, as gaming becomes an in-creasingly accepted social activity, thereis now a requirement for operators to havea more detailed view of their customersafter a number of high profile cases re-ported in the media have found individu-als to be gambling well outside of theirmeans, utilising funds from sources suchas stolen goods.

As such over the coming months the in-dustry will see a number of new regula-

tions coming into play which will chal-lenge operators to not only take into con-sideration the affordability of a customerbut also to obtain a more in-depth view ofthings such as income risk, investments,property details, length of residency andemployment in order to try and preventpotential fraud and money-laundering,not only at the inception stage butthroughout the whole customer lifecycle.

Currently, the majority of these addi-tional checks involve a series of manualinvestigations, which can be a lengthyprocess. Subsequently, we’re seeing moreoperators seeking further insight and datawhich they can stream-line into their ex-isting processes.

By using databases such as our customersegmentation tool CAMEO and consumerdatabase Define it is possible to better un-derstand their customer’s lifestyle, theirdemographics, their behaviours online and

offline, as well as confirming any signifi-cant life events; all of which can be usedalongside modelling techniques to identifyrisk behaviour patterns which may be in-dicative of financial crime.

By using additional data in this way it’spossible to identify if an individual’s gam-ing behaviour suddenly changes or fallsoutside of the expected behaviours, whichcould flag with the operator that therecould be a problem and further investiga-tion can be undertaken.

Using data in this way has been highlysuccessful in other sectors with perhapsthe most relevant example being the alter-native finance sector, which similarly tothe gaming industry, has seen an increasein regulations and the need for deeper cus-tomer insight to make more informed deci-sions to diminish risk.

The growing pressures of the regulatoryenvironment mean that operators will need

to be more proactive in identifying andmanaging potential risk going forwardsand should therefore make use of all thedata that is available to them. By incorpo-rating customer insight datasets alongsideexisting fraud and risk strategies operatorswill have a more granular view of their cus-tomers, with increased automation and ef-ficiency, which is of critical importance tothe gaming industry.

Stand N7-152

CALLCREDIT

Understanding the customer

Rob Meakin, market development manager at Callcredit Information Group, discussesthe importance of in-depth CRM.



At ICE 2015, IGT Interactive will outlineits commitment to quality with its

blueprint for the year ahead that will addvalue and help its partners grow their on-line and mobile revenues. With the world-wide igaming marketplace constantlychanging, IGT is perfectly placed to adaptto updating regulation. Find out about IGTInteractive’s ongoing plans to maximiseopportunities in Newly Regulated Mar-kets.

The division will demonstrate its devel-opment of innovative Marketing YieldFeatures across its games, a number ofmeta-game, revenue-enhancing features,such as competitions and free spins,which are to be deployed on its remotegame server (rgs) to drive marketing andplayer engagement.

Show-goers will also be able to learnabout two exciting, brand new MegaJack-pots Games - which are set to create astorm thanks to a mammoth launch cam-paign – as well as IGT’s strengthening of itsextensive Licensed Portfolio. New titles tobe unveiled include Wheel of Fortune,Sherlock Holmes and Family Guy, as theycombine with the likes of Ghostbusters,Transformers, Battleships and Star Trek.

Joining a roster of superior brandedcontent is IGT’s unbeatable selection ofplayer-favourite games. Prowling Panther,a title that has achieved resounding land-based success globally, will take centrestage ahead of its imminent Triple ChannelSimultaneous Release in the UK acrossland, mobile and online. The game’s grip-ping graphics, impressive audio package,and high-volatility gameplay have provento be a winning formula with players.

Stand N2-240

Do you think the growth of mo-bile will continue at the samerate in 2015?

Mobile has continued to grow ata superb rate throughout the year and weexpect the same trend in 2015. It’s thefastest growing channel in the online casi-no market and that presents great poten-tial for product development.

What is Net Ent’s strategy for gaming con-tent this year?There are already plenty of fantastic devel-opments in full swing for 2015. Our focuswill always be on creating top quality con-tent with exciting and unique featureswithout jeopardising value. We are themarket leaders in our field and have risento the summit by producing best-in-breedcontent for desktop and mobile. That mis-sion will remain exactly the same as we ex-pand our diverse portfolio of graphicalstyles, mechanics, brands and much more.

Where do tablets fit in with the gaming ex-perience?

Tablets play a significant role in onlinecasino. The costs have come down consid-erably since they first launched and moreand more people own them today. The in-troduction of the ‘phablet’ is one to watchas these have been launched to combinethe functions of a smartphone and tablet.Inevitably, further developments and cus-tomisations will be required for tablets tokeep them as enjoyable to play as otherformats.

Has Net Ent’s licensing strategy workedwith games based on classic films?A lot of research and time goes into our li-censing agreements. The hard work haspaid off as the results have been excellentin terms of game performance and cus-tomer perception.

We have a range of games that includeAliens, Scarface and South Park that fea-ture differing graphical intricacies andcomplexities which showcase NetEnt’smission to push the creative boundaries.

Branded games provide a different di-mension to our portfolio and they comple-

ment our in-house content perfectly. Weare proud to offer branded content fromsome of the world’s most recognisablenames.

What are you most looking forward to atICE?ICE is the perfect opportunity to show-case what NetEnt can offer its customersand also to reflect on the achievements ofthe past year. The movers and shakers ofthe industry all descend on London for thethree-day event and it’s a chance to meetwith the market and catch-up with cus-tomers to discuss the latest trends. Theconference allows companies to unveiltheir latest games and technology on thebiggest stage. Over the years we havemade some huge announcements at ICEand this year will be no different, so watchthis space!

Stand N5-330

With its Virtual Sports Portfolio, Be-tradar is stirring up the sports bet-

ting and gaming industry worldwide. Be-tradar’s Virtual Sports deliver fast-pacedreal money betting all day long across re-tail, mobile and online. With millions ofbets placed every week, Virtual Sports areproven to appeal to a wide variety of bet-tors.

The launch of Virtual Football 2011gave the starting signal with a powerfulcombination of artificial intelligence, 3Danimations and most importantly, an ex-tensive soccer league betting offering.This most realistic virtual soccer productis currently incorporated by over 50 book-makers worldwide, this has prepared theground for the next sport, Virtual Tennis.

Launched in 2014, the solution can beseen as the most realistic and revenue-dri-ving tennis product on the market. In ad-

dition, Betradar will release the latest ad-dition to its virtual sports portfolio in2015, Virtual Basketball. Together withtwo racing solutions, Virtual Horses andVirtual Dogs, Betradar provides a portfo-lio of five entertaining and revenue-dri-ving solutions.

The success of Virtual Sports is prima-rily based on the company’s focus to pro-vide dedicated solutions built for betting,that are attractive to multiple targetgroups. A fast-paced gameplay with newbetting cycles every few minutes and allmain sports betting markets availablewith realistic odds provides punters a per-manent betting offer. Multiple events run-ning simultaneously in league and tourna-ment mode with events based on real-match statistics, lets customers evenplace multiple bets intuitively, the rev-enue-driver for betting businesses. In ad-

dition, the company’s new Sports BettingGames are a unique offering, featuringreal betting markets based on Betradar’slive betting data, and are opening upturnover potentials with always-on fastbet cycles. All users, from casino gam-blers to traditional sports bettors, shouldimmediately feel comfortable with the in-tuitive game play of Betradar’s GamingSolutions.

Virtual Sports and Sports BettingGames have formed an integral part of Be-tradar’s business, complementary to itsbetting, content and streaming solutions.This portfolio allows Betradar to exceedcurrent market demands and position it-self as the unique ‘one-stop-shop’provider for betting and gaming operatorsworldwide.

Stand S1-150

IGT INTERACTIVE

Blueprintfor theyearaheadA big year for IGT isbolstered by the big licensednames available on its standat ICE.

BETRADAR

Built for bettingBetradar is offering bookmakers the chance to speed up bet cycles, enable quick stakerecycling and increase their revenues.

NET ENTERTAINMENT

‘Plenty of fantasticdevelopments’Simon Hammon, chief product officer at NetEntertainment, discusses what 2015 has in store forthe company.

D


More than just a leading publisher

Consulting

GB Media Marketing Services provides a complete communications service. With a management team boasting decades of international

industry experience, GB Media is the only company of its type in the gambling space, employing teams of designers, marketers,

journalists and business development executives.

For more information please call John Sullivan +44 (0) 1204 396 397 or email

[email protected]

gbmedia.eu

Consulting

Corporate Identity

Creative Marketing

Crisis Management

Design

Events

Exhibition Marketing

Market Research

Public Relations

Publishing

Social Media

Video

More than just a leading publisher

www.icetotallygaming.com

Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea A key date in our events calendar

ICE is where it happens

DISCOVER AT ICETOTALLYGAMING.COM EXCEL, LONDON 3RD - 5TH FEB 2015

@TOTALLYGAMINGHQ#ICEGAMING

We would never miss the ICE show

The most important international show of the year

AFFILIATE PROGRAMMES, ASSOCIATIONS, AWPS, BETTING EXCHANGES, BINGO EQUIPMENT, CASH HANDLING, CASINO MANAGEMENT, CCTV, CHIPS, COMPONENTS, CONSULTANTS, CRM, EPOS, FOBTS, FRAUD, LOTTERY, MEDIA, MOBILE, ONLINE, PAYMENT, POKER, RECRUITMENT, REGULATORS,

ROULETTE, SECURITY, SLOTS, SOCIAL GAMING, SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY, SPARES, SPORTS BETTING, TABLE GAMES, VIDEO, WIRELESS

RetailBettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 201542 B 2 B

Dedicated dogs man at SISSIS has underlined its commitment topromoting greyhound racing with the appointment of Gary Baiden as greyhound executive. Baiden, formermanager of Oxford Greyhounds, hasspent more than 26 years in the industryand SIS plans to tap into his vast experience to liaise more closely with tracksaround the country and develop SIS’s greyhound products and services.

NIGERIA

etradar, supplier of sports andbetting related data, is to rollout its Live Channel products

in Nigeria. Bookmaker 1960Betwill roll out Live Channel Retail across5,000 stores by using a local satellite dis-tribution provider and will implement theLive Channel Online into its sports bettingwebsite 1960bet.ng.

In addition, 1960Bet has also signed upfor Betradar’s Managed Trading Services,a new business concept that allows sportsbetting operators to externalise theirlabour intensive risk and liability manage-ment to Betradar’s proven industry ex-pertise. Combined with the live streamingservices Live Channel Retail and LiveChannel Online, 1960Bet is strengtheningits live betting offering significantly in re-tail outlets and on their website, to providetheir clients with a new level of entertain-ment and bet stimulation.

1960Bet CEO Dotun Ajegbile stated:“We at 1960Bet have had a strong andtrusting relationship with Betradar since

we launched in 2012, and the quality oftheir services have gone a long way in driv-ing the growth of 1960Bet. We now lookforward to taking advantage of the grow-ing interest in live betting by rolling out theBetradar Live Channel in 5,000 of our1960Bet shops and agents. Together withthis, we have entrusted our day to day risk-management to the Betradar ManagedTrading Service, and we are confident thisis a great step forward in securing our fu-ture growth in the market.”

Sportradar’s sales director for theAfrican region Gregory Parsons added:“We are very pleased to see the BetradarLive Channel make its first entry into theNigerian market with 1960Bet. We expectlive betting to begin to gather significantlymore traction in Africa in the very near fu-ture, particularly in Nigeria. 1960Bet willbe looking to capitalise on this great op-portunity by leveraging local satellite dis-tribution technology to make rapid andsignificant in-roads into the market.Through the Betradar Managed Trading

Services, we will now offer even more of acomprehensive range of meaningful, andgrowth-driving, services to 1960Bet andtogether we are very excited about whatthe future holds.”

Sportradar has also launched a newbrand which sees all of the market-leadingsports data services that Sportradar haspreviously provided to the media industryunder the brand Scoreradar will now beaggregated under the new brand‘Sportradar Media Services’.

Launched in 2007, the Scoreradar suiteof services and products has grown to thepoint where today, the brand is a key andrecognised player in the sports medialandscape. These services and productshave included pre, live and post event datafeed deliveries, as well as hosted contentsolutions such as live sports applications,statistics centres and live score products.By constantly evaluating all aspects of thebusiness and garnering valuable clientfeedback, Sportradar was guided towardsthe conclusion that the name of the Scor-

eradar brand did not do justice to its fullrange of content.

Speaking about the re-brand,Sportradar CEO Carsten Koerl said: “TheSportradar brand is a powerful one thatstands for proven quality and reliability toover 600 clients worldwide. With all the re-cent developments that we had imple-mented in our media-facing services, itfelt like the right time to bring all thoseservices together under a new Sportradarbrand, sharing in the whole organisation’smomentum and high regard.

“But this is not a cosmetic change. Thedata feeds and applications we are provid-ing across multiple channels such as web,mobile, TV and print are best in class andcontinue to grow in number and quality.‘Sportradar Media Services’ reflect ourongoing investment and focus on thetechnologies and innovations that willdrive our client-focused solutions and willpropel us as we strive to enhance sportscoverage in a progressive and cost effec-tive manner.”

1960Bettakes upthe LiveChannelportfolioImpressive Nigerianbookmaker 1960Bet hasinvested in Betradar’s LiveChannel products.

B

BB124-p42-43-b2bRetail_Layout 1 02/01/2015 11:36 Page 1

DATA


MACHINES

BetConstruct passes DLV test

BetConstructhas signed a deal withLatvian gaming equipment manufac-

turer DLVwhich will enable it to offer asports book alongside its suite of gamingand slots products.

DLV is gaming software and gaming ma-chine cabinet manufacturer with thirdparty clients in more than 30 countries.DLV also has its own land-based operationsacross Europe, Latin America and Asia.The result of this landmark deal means thatcustomers of all of these proprietary andthird party operations will now have accessto BetConstruct’s comprehensive sportsbetting product, which offers 18,000 liveevents per month across 50+ sports.

Suren Khachatryan, CEO of BetCon-struct, said “Partnering with DLV and al-lowing customers to place sports bets ontheir cabinets, allows BetConstruct to startanother exciting chapter in our global de-velopment. The two companies are lookingforward to working together and extendingtheir relationship even further as new op-portunities arise.”

SUREN KHACHATRYAN

Terminal trial in Spain

Mediatech Solutions, provider of in-dependent real money gaming plat-

form and provisions, has partnered withASE (Basque Gaming Arcades Associa-tion) in the Basque Country Spain for apilot program of its new Candy poweredgaming terminals and platform. 20 nextgeneration terminals, offering slots con-tent provided by NYX Gaming Group,will initially be distributed throughoutthe ASE’s arcades during the trial withthe view to continue to refine and growthe offering based on real time data fromthe players and operators. Mediatech’sfounder and CEO Jessica Ordovas said:“We are privileged to have ASE as a part-ner on this pilot program. They have beenprogressive and supportive of the devel-opment of this system, which we hopewill fundamentally change the way retailis delivered and supported for both oper-ators and consumers from a product andeconomic point of view.”

Lottery deal

Premier Lotteries Ireland (PLI) hasofficially become the new operator of

the National Lottery in Ireland followingpayment of the final instalment of the li-

cence fee and a successful transitionprocess. The company, whose sharehold-ers are Ontario Teachers’ PensionPlan (OTPP), An Post and An Post pen-sion funds, will operate the Irish Lotto, apopular LBO bet in the UK, for the next 20years having won a tender process with abid of 405m euro.

“I am delighted that following a greatdeal of detailed preparatory work by allinvolved, the operation of the NationalLottery has successfully passed from AnPost National Lottery Company to Pre-mier Lotteries Ireland,” said Minister forPublic Expenditure and Reform BrendanHowlin.

contentB2B

Retail

signage systems

marketing

publications

B2BRetail

B2BRetail

B2BRetail

[email protected]

making sense of the gaming industry

www.tab.at

Better games through innovation

[email protected]

gaming machinesB2B

Retail

B2B Retail Listings

RACING

New boss atNZ racing

New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs& Trade CEO John Allen has been ap-

pointed chief executive of the NewZealand Racing Board. Allen will join theRacing Board as its chief executive inMarch, after end his five-and-a-half yearsheading the government department in Jan-uary, MFAT said in a statement. He will takeover from Stewart McRobie, who has actedin the role since July when Chris Baylissstepped down.

“It’s going to be fun,” said Allen in a RacingBoard statement announcing his appoint-ment. “The NZ Racing Board is a NZ$2bnbusiness that plays a vital role in the NewZealand economy by supporting the racingand sport industries. It is also the owner andoperator of the TAB which is an excitingcommercial enterprise and an iconic NewZealand brand.”

acecourse Data Company(RDC)has appointedRacing Postas anofficial distributor of British

horseracing Pre-Race Data (PRD)up to the end of 2018. The partnership was an-nounced soon after it was revealed that the sixmonth stand-off between the publication andthe sport’s new data handling company hadcome to an end after Racing Post reached anagreement with RDC to use official PRD in allof its print and digital products. The extendeddeal will see the publisher licensed to sell suchdata to other customers alongside its own edi-torial, tipping and analysis of British racing.

The agreement with Racing Post meansthat nearly all those customers who received‘official and reliable’ PRD via the previous li-censor, Racing Enterprises Limited(REL), willcontinue to do so under RDC’s licensing.

RDC directors Richard FitzGerald and TonyKelly said: “We are delighted to come to anagreement with Racing Post. Racing Post’scontract provides customers with the peaceof mind and assurance that the most crucialelement of data that facilitates the placing of abet is official, reliable and accurate.

“It is essential for the sport that racecardsare distributed from a licensed source andthese deals protect British horseracing’sdata and realise value from a significant

piece of data.” Racing Post chief executive Alan Byrne

said: “We are pleased to have reached anagreement with RDC. We look forward to sell-ing official British racing data along with ourown unique content to a range of customers inthe domestic and overseas markets who ap-preciate the value that Racing Post expertisecan bring to their businesses.”

RDC was assigned the PRD licence fromRacing Enterprises Limited (REL), with effectfrom January 1, 2014 to 31 December 2018. In-come received by REL will be wholly investedin British horseracing, via Great British Rac-ing, and the staging of events such as the £4mQipco British Champions Day.

During this summer the Racing Post did nothave official racing data via RDC because itbalked at paying an additional £500,000 fee ontop of its previous £150,000 deal. But the RDCwas adamant that the paper had been payingbelow the odds, claiming that licensing is ap-plied via a transparent rate-card, which has in-dustry backing and is utilised across all cus-tomers. RDC says it has aligned its licensingprinciples with FRAND (Fair, Reasonable andnon-discriminatory), which is widely used bystandards-setting organisations and in li-censing. There has been no indication of howmuch this new deal is worth.

Racing Postnow licensedto sell on Pre-Race Data

ACTI

ON

IMAG

ES /

JULI

AN H

ERB

ERT

LIVE

PIC

R

JOHN ALLEN

BB124-p42-43-b2bRetail_Layout 1 02/01/2015 11:37 Page 2

SportsbookBettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 201544 B 2 B

Getting SocialEveryMatrix has launched social sports betting platform Favourit, which has been integrated into the EveryMatrix platform.Favourit gives users a global community ofbetting experts, real time betting data and analytics, competi-tive real money betting odds as well as a free virtual balance totest out their strategies. The Favourit platform is available inmultiple languages and is available on web, mobile (HTML5 &iOS) and tablet.

ootball pool betting specialistColossus Betshas doubled theminimum guaranteed prize on

its HDA15 football jackpot to£2,000,000.

The firm, which also offers the innovativefractional Cash-In, said that its growing B2Bnetwork has made it feasible to quickly up thetop prize on its new bet.

Founder and CEO Bernard Marantelli said:“With our B2B distribution and customer

base continuing to grow, as promised we willpush the envelope and give our clients andpartners the world’s biggest sports jackpotsthat when combined with our unique Frac-tional Cash-In feature, gives them the world’sbiggest and most engaging sports jackpots.

“We would love to see a Betdaq, Betfair orBoylesportsclient win £2,000,000 - and in2015 we will continue to add sports and in-crease jackpots, until we pay out tens of mil-lions every week.”

The £2,000,000 HDA15 is a weekly 15-legpool bet with a Home-Draw-Away formatcomprising a minimum £1m win fund and aminimum £1m bonus - both numbers net ofdeductions. Any winners of the win fund willnow have a free pick on the correct score ofone further football match the followingweek, to try and land the bonus.

A full unit costs players just £2, but like allColossus pools, the HDA15 can be played foras little as 20p (which buys a 0.1 unit and playsfor a proportional £200,000).

Since its introduction at the start of thefootball season, the HDA15 has already beenwon in October 2014 as a £1m prize, and inSeptember 2014 the £1m HDA15 saw thebiggest Colossus Bets Fractional Cash-Inoffer to date, a £320,000 offer for a playergoing into the last leg who had correctly fore-cast the first 14 results.

Marantelli said that the move to £2m as aminimum prize rewards the public embrac-ing this bet.

Alongside the HDA15, the operator’smajor bet is the headline grabbing £10mColossus - a seven leg correct score accu-mulator, which is available across all ofColossus Bets’ B2B partner sites, includingBetdaq, Betfair, and Boylesports.

Founder and CEO Marantelli is a profes-sional gambler with expertise in pool bettingwho decided jackpot pools were not run op-timally. After failing to convince incumbentoperators to improve their product offeringto generate bigger pools, he set up Colossus

Bets to provide lottery-sized jackpot poolson a weekly basis.

Last year he was also involved in one ofthree syndicates to share a world record£5.4m Scoop6 bonus, after sharing a £10mpool eight ways the previous week.

Since launch Colossus Bets hasprocessed 2.5m bets, attracted 42,000+Twitter followers, services 25,000+ activeplayers, has contracted 14 B2B partnerscontracted of which four are currently live.

Alongside its five technology patents,Colossus Bets is also currently developingmulti-million pounds games for severalother sports, including NFL, NBA, horserac-ing, greyhounds, AFL and ARL.

Through its unique technology, ColossusBets allows players to Cash-In all or part oftheir multi-leg bets at virtually any stage of agame. This enables players to bank profitsfrom their ticket whilst retaining part of itand playing for a corresponding share of thejackpot prize.

Ebbe GroesChief executiveEveryMatrix“”I am thoroughlyimpressed withFavourit’sambition, driveand genuineenthusiasm tochange the userexperience.

POOL BETTING

One of the more innovativeoperators to enter the UKmarket in recent times hasdoubled the prize on its new15 match accumulatorproduct.

Colossus Betsdoubles HDA15jackpot to £2m

F

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ C

AR

L R

EC

INE

LIV

EP

IC

BB124-p44-45-b2bSportsbook_Layout 1 02/01/2015 13:04 Page 1

SPORTS RIGHTS

10 year tennis deal forPerform

The Women’s Tennis Association(WTA) has signed a ground-breaking 10

year media agreement of more thanUS$525m with incumbent partner Perform.This extended partnership is the largest live

media rights and productionventure in the history of theWTA and in women’s sports.Perform joint-CEO SimonDenyer said: “We are thrilled toexpand on our highly success-ful partnership with the WTA.We are strong believers in theexceptional sport entertain-ment value of the WTA and arecommitted to driving the valuefor all WTA members and part-ners. This deal also deliversmaximum exposure to theWTA’s global fans on multiple

platforms. This is a ground-breaking and in-novative partnership with the WTA and isalso a major first step in a significant 10 yeargrowth plan for Perform.”

VIRTUALS

Award for Vermantia

Gaming supplier Vermantiahas won theGold Award in the category ‘Extrover-

sion & Competitiveness in International Mar-kets’ at the E-volution Awards ceremony, or-ganised by, among others, the Laboratory ofElectronic Commerce and Athens Universityof Economics and Business. Vagelis Tsaras,corporate development director at Verman-tia, stated: “Vermantia since 2007, is the onlyGreek company that managed globally and ina highly competitive environment to offergaming content at lottery and gaming opera-

tors. Key facilitatorsof this effort are thepeople of Vermantiathat with the same vi-sion and goals, man-aged to consolidateVermantia abroad.”

DISPUTES

Resolution bodies needCommission approval

The UK’s Gambling Commissionhasbeen named as the competent authority

for Alternative Dispute Resolution Entitieswho handle disputes relating to gamblingunder Europe’s Alternative Dispute Resolu-tion (ADR) Directive which will be imple-mented by July 2015.

This means that all ADR entities that han-dle, or wish to handle, gambling disputes willhave to demonstrate to the Commission thatthey meet the requirements of the Directivesuch as those relating to independence, gain

approval from the Commission to handlegambling disputes, and meet the informationrequirements of the Directive, such as havinga separate website and providing informa-tion to their competent authority (the Com-mission). Gambling operators will have to en-sure that they use ADR entities approved bythe Commission.

EXCHANGE

Betfair keen on B2B model

BetfairCEO Breon Corcoran has suggest-ed that the company is to take a more

B2B role when entering new markets after itsabandoned attempt to operate directly inAustralia. Last August Betfair sold its 50 percent share in Betfair Australia to partnerCrownand changed its approach in thecountry to follow a more B2B route. In its lat-est results, the firm said: “We also believe thedeal represents a new and profitable operat-ing model for the Exchange.”

In the smaller markets, it now appears thatBetfair will follow the B2B model and pro-vide a platform and support for partners, whowill then be expected to market the brand inthe territory.

DATA

CG deal for Betradar

Betradar is to provide CG Analytics, thedata analytics subsidiary of CG Tech-


PLATFORM

nology, with access to acomprehensive packageof pre-game and liveodds data for the firm’slive betting portfolio.“We are pleased to part-ner with Betradar, thelargest sports dataprovider in the world,and to boost the strengthof our In-Running wager-ing offering,” said LeeAmaitis, president andCEO of CG Technology. He continued:“Through this agreement we will build onour successes in In-Running wagering andcreate a comprehensive, interactive datapackage that combines speed, accuracy andincreased In-Running props, offering ourcustomers a product that is unprecedentedin the marketplace.”

AFFILIATES

New Palcon for XLMedia

XLMedia, provider of digital perform-ance marketing services, has launched

Palcon, a proprietary content managementsystem which enables improved day to daymaintenance of the company’s network ofover 2,000 specialist content websites.

Palcon is expected to enhance both mo-bile and social penetration rates across thegroup’s ‘web estate’ with improved user ex-perience for users through mobile devices.Mobile conversion has become a significantgrowth driver for the online gambling indus-try, with an estimated 44 per cent share of theglobal interactive gambling market by 2018.

betting platform

marketing

mobile

news &analysis

B2BSportsbook

B2BSportsbook

B2BSportsbook

B2BSportsbook


B2B Sportsbook Listings

SBTechhas announced a newpartnership that will provide itsinnovative turnkey sports-bet-

ting solution to Cherry, whichspecialises in online casinos and lotteries.

The deal will allow Cherry’s brands - Cher-ryCasino.com, EuroSlots.com, SpilleAuto-mater.com, NorgesSpill.com and Nordic-Slots.com - to offer a sportsbook tailoredspecifically for the Scandinavian, Nordic andEuropean markets in which they operate.

The sportsbook solution will include livebetting on more than 18,000 monthly events,access to innovative new bet types such asthe newly developed Fast Markets (allowingbettors to predict what will happen in thenext 1 or 5 minutes of a live match, for fastbetting and settling), and all across web, mo-bile and the latest tablet-specific platform,SBTech Touch.

This will enable Cherry to penetrate fur-ther into their markets, using its existing suc-cess to broaden its reach to include sports-betting enthusiasts. Costs are also kept low

thanks to the professional risk managementand trading services offered as part ofSBTech’s service.

Cherry Malta’s managing director MariusAndersen is thrilled at the new partnership:“As a trusted public company we have con-ducted an intensive period of due diligenceon different providers. SBTech have built asolid reputation in their field, positioningthemselves at the forefront of the industryand consistently releasing new and innova-tive solutions to keep the punters happy. Sothey were an obvious choice for us as we lookto increase our reach into our current mar-kets and we’re excited to see the results.”

SBTech CEO Itai Zak is equally pleased:“We’re delighted to have Cherry on board.They are hugely successful in online gamingin their markets and we’re confident that wecan lead them to even greater success withour innovative sports-betting solution.”

Cherry to offerbetting throughSBTech

SIMONDENYER

LEE AMAITIS

F

BB124-p44-45-b2bSportsbook_Layout 1 02/01/2015 13:06 Page 2

iGamingIron clad hitMicrogaming has launched its hotly-anticipated Game of Thrones slot online and onmobile. Based on the international TV hit, Game ofThrones is a 5x3 reel game available in both 243ways-to-win and 15 lines. The game has gone live toboth Microgaming and Quickfire operators.“”

We revealed ourlicensing agreementfor the Game ofThrones series inFebruary, andanticipation for thegame’s launch hasbeen building eversince.Roger RaatgeverCEOMicrogaming

BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 201546 B 2 B

et Entertainment can now offerhis content to Italian operatorsafter signing a deal with

GameAccount Network plc, thedeveloper and supplier of enterprise-levelB2B gaming software and online gamingcontent.

The partnership will see the NetEntgames integrated into GameAccount’splatform, meaning a selection of its gamesare now live and available to Eurobet’splayer base in Italy.

Björn Krantz, chief of GMO and MD atNetEnt Malta, said: “I am very pleased thatwe now have our integration completedwith GameAccount Network, and it hasbeen a great team effort from both organi-sations. I am very excited that Eurobet isnow going live with a wide selection of ourbest-in-class games, and I am confidentthat Eurobet and its players will now beable to enjoy the very best player experi-ence that exists on the market today. Aswe have previously announced, SNAI andSISAL are also waiting to go live with Ne-tEnt’s games over the GameAccount Net-work platform, and their commerciallaunch will be announced separately.”

Dermot Smurfit, CEO of GameAccountNetwork, added: “We are delighted thatour integration with NetEnt will allow Eu-robet and our other operating partners inItaly to realise the benefits of an evenstronger portfolio of content delivered byGameAccount Network. We often talk

about the importance of delivering greatgames that people enjoy playing; thiscommitment and strategy is clearlydemonstrated here.

“The GAN team looks forward to demon-strating the full breadth and capabilities ofour gaming software and online content toan international gathering of gaming pro-fessionals at February’s ICE exhibition tak-ing place at London’s ExCeL Centre.”

Game Account has also signed a dealwith Reno-based Spin Games LLC to inte-grate Spin’s remote gaming server (RGS)and launch its HTML5 games portfolio forSimulated Gaming nationwide in the Unit-ed States and real money internet gamingin selected regulated markets.

The Spin Games RGS will be integratedinto the GameSTACK Internet GamingSystem relied upon by leading casinos forthe operation of Simulated Gaming nation-wide in the United States including Fox-woods Resort Casino in Connecticut, Em-pire City Casino in New York and ParxCasino in Pennsylvania.

Simulated Gaming is the innovative in-ternet gaming service designed byGameAccount Network PLC specificallyfor land-based casinos in advance ofprospective regulation. Simulated Gamingoffers a gaming-as-entertainment websiteenabled with unique and patented moneti-sation features and a compelling internetgaming content portfolio of over 100 casi-no slot, table and skill-based games in-

cluding poker, backgammon, gin rummy,poker dice and blackjack tournaments.

Launched in the US by GameAccountNetwork in January 2014, Simulated Gam-ing has been developed to monetise inter-net traffic to existing websites operated byland-based US casinos with average rev-enue per daily active user (ARPDAU) of$2.75, as against an original estimate of$0.60.

Dermot Smurfit, CEO of GameAccountNetwork, commented: “Spin Games hasdeveloped a strong mobile-first portfolioof HTML5 games content including a widerange of video poker, slots and keno likely

to appeal to casino patrons online. As ourfirst RGS integration for Simulated Gam-ing in the United States, we’re delighted todistribute Spin Games’ gaming contentacross our growing network of major UScasino operators engaged in offering Sim-ulated Gaming to their casino patrons.”

Kent Young, CEO of Spin Games, added:“GameAccount has deployed its internetgaming system for various major casinosin the United States, into diverse regulatedreal money internet gaming markets in-cluding New Jersey, and represents acompelling distribution opportunity forSpin Games’ HTML5 gaming content.”

ITALY

NetEnt availablein Italy viaGameAccountItalian operators using the GameAccount Network nowhave access to some of NetEnt’s best slot games.

GAMEACCOUNT’SDERMOT SMURFIT

N

BB124-p46-47-b2biGaming_Layout 1 02/01/2015 12:41 Page 1

LIVE DEALER

Ezugi enters the Dragon

Ezugi’s live casino studio is beinglaunched with one of Cambodia’s

largest groups, the Dai Long Company,owners and operators of the Grand Drag-on Resorts casino. The agreement seesEzugi using its casino streaming technolo-gy to broadcast live and direct from thegaming floor, which shall include baccarattables and VIP tables along with proxy/tele-betting. Darren Heng, chief executive offi-cer of Dai Long Company, commented: “I

am delighted to make thisagreement with Ezugi.They are one of the mostestablished and success-ful live casino platformproviders in the world.This fits extremely wellwith Grand Dragon Re-sort’s brand strategy, tooffer a superb live casino

gaming experience and I look forward togrowing this exciting new partnership.”

Evolution gets Skill deal

Software supplier SkillOnNethaspenned a deal to join forces with Evo-

lution Gamingwhich will see Evolution’slive dealer games be the featured titles in anextended live casino roster on SkillOnNet’spopular web and soon-to-be-released mo-bile versions of casinos including Slots-Magic, MegaCasino, and EUcasino.

The company’s Andy Andrew said thatthe partnership with Evolution would nowgive SkillOnNet the most comprehensiveportfolio of live games anywhere in the bet-ting and gaming world. He added: “Unlikesome casino operators and providers wereally value live content and are deter-mined to provide the best that is available -not only to our own players, but to the in-creasing number who are coming to us viaour white label partners.”

SECURITY

Prolexic protectsEveryMatrix customers

EveryMatrix is to deliver services withexperts in DDOS and Mitigation servic-

es Prolexic. This service is intended to notonly benefit the EveryMatrix network butenhance the protection of all clients and op-erators that use the EveryMatrix productportfolio.

Prolexic Technologies is one of theworld’s largest, most trusted distributed de-nial of service (DDoS) protection and miti-gation provider. Able to absorb the largestand most complex DDoS attacks everlaunched, Prolexic protects and restoresmission-critical, internet-facing infrastruc-tures for global enterprises and governmentagencies within minutes.

EveryMatrix CEO Ebbe Groes said:“Adding Prolexic as part of our day to dayservice offering gives reassurance to our op-erators and partners that they are now fullyprotected from harmful DDOS attacks.”

PLAFORM

Leander in a Spin

Platform provider Leander Gameshas signed a deal to supply content to

online gaming site Spin Genie, operatedby Bear Group Limited. Leander will in-tegrate its own proprietary games andthose from third party developers, via itsremote gaming server platform, LeGa. Thedeal follows an existing partnership be-tween Leander and Bear Group Limited’sowners, Gaming Realms, with which itsupplied social games for its Bejig and 5Stars Slots sites onFacebook.

Paul Gielbert,managing directorof Bear Group,said: “Signing thisagreement with Le-ander is consistentwith our strategy ofselecting the bestand most uniquecontent in the mar-ket for our players.”

Finnplay finds new Tribe

Finnish-based gaming platformprovider Finnplay has provided the

gaming platform solution for a newlylaunched social lottery operator calledTribeLotto. TribeLotto.com offers play-ers the possibility to play the lottery withhundreds, even thousands of lottery linesfor the price of one line. It also shifts lot-tery from being traditionally a solitudegame as most people know it, to a socialgame played together in ‘tribes’ with theaim of winning together. TribeLotto is theonly Lotto where you can affect the proba-bility of Win without paying anything


extra.Tomas Toro, director of brand and mar-

keting for TribeLotto, said: “We selectedFinnplay Oy and the Billfold publishingplatform over several other technologyvendors because the business has knownexpertise and delivers a good return of in-vestment.”

SLOTS

Invisible launch

NetEnt has delivered the classic Uni-versal Pictures film The Invisible

Man as a new branded slot game usingHTML5 technology. Based on the 1933movie, in which a mysterious doctor dis-covers a serum that makes him invisibleand slowly drives him to commit acts ofunspeakable terror, The Invisible ManBranded Slot is a five-reel, three-row, 20-line (fixed) win-both-ways video slot thatwill also be added to NetEnt’s Touch port-folio.

Simon Hammon, chief product officerof NetEnt, commented: “The InvisibleMan showcases a great player and gamingexperience of a very popular title andstory. NetEnt’s use of HTML5 for bothdesktop and mobile on this fantastic pro-duction continues to showcase our abili-ties, and our innovation in driving the casi-no market forward.”

N O V O M AT I C - W I N N I N G T E C H N O L O G Y

www.greentube.com

Cross-platformCasino Solutions

Marilyn Monroe Photos ©Renaissance Road Inc.


For a quote call Chris Jones +44 (0)1273 699900

gaming | betting | gambling

S&Jcommunications

Get great PR from theindustry experts

casinoB2B

iGaming

publicationsB2B

iGaming

marketingB2B

iGaming

softwareB2B

iGaming

www.microgaming.co.ukmicrogaming.co.uk

+44 (0)1624 [email protected]

B2B iGaming Listings

irtual games specialist Kiron In-teractivehas partnered with IPGInternationalto supply its new

Keno game to one of Asia’s lead-ing casinos. The deal with the Naga WorldHotel and Casinoin Phnom Penh, Cambodiais part of a strategy of supplying its top-per-forming products across the region.

Kiron and IPG signed a multi-year agree-ment in September 2014 to provide playerswith an enterprise-class gaming platform,customised to conform to Naga World’s localrequirements and deliver a secure, reliableand feature-complete solution. It will be of-fered to the casino in a purpose built area thatincludes a state of the art audio visual systemin order maximise its appeal to customers.

Steven Spartinos, co-CEO of Kiron Interac-tive, said: “Our new Keno solution has bene-fitted from our long standing experience in thevirtual games industry and a detailed reviewof operator needs and existing Keno systemsavailable in the market. We are excited to joinforces with IPG and provide our solution toNaga World, a leading regional casino.”

William Redshaw, CEO at IPG Internation-al, said: “The strategic alliance with Kiron In-teractive to provide Keno to Naga World Casi-no is another example of IPG’s continuedcommitment to providing cutting-edge gam-ing solutions, options and alternatives tomeet the gaming requirements of leadingcasinos in the Asia Pacific Region today andin the future.”

NUMBERS

Kiron’s keno in Cambodian casinos

V

PAUL GIELBERT

BB124-p46-47-b2biGaming_Layout 1 02/01/2015 12:52 Page 2

Back officeBettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 201548 B 2 B

ffiliate management system In-come Access has announcedthat the company’s mobile app-

tracking solution is now beingactively used to track player acquisitionsfor the apps of a leading UK-based onlinecasino and bingo operator.

The integration follows months of betatesting and the recent news that Apple’sApp Store will now host affiliates’ in-appbetting apps.

On 25 November 2014, Apple announcedthat it would allow iGaming affiliates’ appsfeaturing in-app betting to return to the AppStore. Earlier in 2014, the California-basedtechnology giant informed affiliates thattheir in-app betting apps would only behosted in the App Store if affiliates held anoperating gambling licence in the jurisdic-tion targeted by the app.

Developed to respond to the growth inplayer acquisition via the mobile channel,Income Access’ mobile app-tracking add-on for its platform allows operators to com-prehensively track player acquisition fortheir mobile gaming apps. Players’ com-plete mobile journeys can now be tracked -from their first click on a banner or PPC adpromoting an app to app downloads, in-stalls, registrations, deposits and device in-formation.

Developed and beta-tested over thecourse of Q3 and Q4 of 2014, Income Ac-cess’ mobile app-tracking is now being ac-tively used to track player acquisitions for

the online casino and online bingo apps inthe UK.

The launch of the app-tracking softwareallows operators to track their entire acqui-sition portfolio on a single platform. Now thatthe Income Access software is equippedwith app-tracking functionality, acquisitionmanagers are for the first time able to moni-tor how all their acquisition channels are per-forming in tandem. As a result, they can max-imise their ROI by optimising the conversionfunnel and marketing spend.

“In Q1 of 2014 we saw player acquisitionvia the mobile channel hit 40 per cent and it’scontinued to rise over the rest of the year,suggesting that cross-channel acquisitionis the industry’s future,” said Nicky Senyard,founder and CEO of Income Access. “Re-sponding to the mobile trend, we’ve trans-formed our platform into an integrated ac-quisition-tracking technology capable ofstreamlining each and every channel - withIncome Access, the acquisition whole isnow greater than the sum of its parts.”

Income Access has also teamed up withDerbyJackpot, the US-facing online horse-racing wagering brand developed and oper-ated by the New York City-based game de-velopment studio GiddyApps. Under thepartnership, DerbyJackpot’s new affiliateprogram will integrate with the Income Ac-cess acquisition-tracking platform and willbe managed by the company’s in-houseteam.

Launched by GiddyApps in 2013, Derby-

Jackpot offers online wagering on livehorse-racing events at more than 50 USracetracks. Residents of 37 US states, in-cluding California, Illinois, New York andPennsylvania, can engage in real-moneypari-mutuel wagering via the website of thebrand, which is approved and regulatedby the Oregon Racing Commission.DerbyJackpot features astrong social media ele-ment and allows players toengage in group-chat andcompete against theirfriends.

Ryan Wesely, vice presi-dent of marketing at Derby-Jackpot, commented: “IncomeAccess has a very strong reputa-tion in driving player acquisitionsfor real-money gaming clientsthroughout Europe, so they wereour first choice when it came tochoosing a technology partnerfor our affiliate program here inthe US. In addition to their plat-form’s capabilities, Income Ac-cess offers program manage-ment expertise to assist in ourlaunch and help acceleratethe growth of our affiliate mar-keting program.”

AGCC licence for BetConstructBetConstruct has been approved for aCategory 2 licence, issued by the Alder-ney Gambling Control Commission,which will enable BetConstruct to offer its betting solu-tions to all gambling operators licensed by the AGCC. CEOSuren Khachatryan said: “Alderney has, for a long time,been a seal of approval of the highest order in the industry,and we are proud to be a part of this important jurisdiction.””Robin Le Prevost

Director of ecommerce development States of Alderney“Our rigorous licensingand verification processis widely seen as the defacto standard forcompanies in thegambling industry, andwe are delighted towelcome BetConstructto our world classlicensee community.

MOBILE

App-tracking can nowfollow mobile players

A

The move to mobile for a lot of gamblers has caused problems for many affiliates aiming to keep track of their players.

GIDDYAPPS HAS PARTNERED WITHINCOME ACCESS FOR DERBYJACKPOT

BB124-p48-49-b2bBackOffice_Layout 1 02/01/2015 12:32 Page 1

TESTING

NMI to test William Hillcasino games

William Hillhas engaged complianceexpert NMi for testing its full suite of

online casino games to the requirements ofthe UK Gambling Commis-sion, following introduction ofthe Gambling (Licensing andAdvertising) Act. NMi has along history of working withWilliam Hill, having tested themajority of the bookmaker’sCategory B fixed odds bettingterminals and games.

Shane Kelly, head of QA andtest for William Hill, said: “Weappointed NMi based on thehigh level of professionalismand the in depth complianceknowledge that they were ableto demonstrate. As a high pro-

file organisation, we value partnershipswith innovative organisations that canboth complement and facilitate our busi-ness goals. This is a significant develop-ment and we look forward to a long stand-ing relationship.”

CONAJZAR approvesBMM Testlabs

Gaming testing laboratory BMM Test-labshas received approval and test lab

registration from CONAJZAR, Paraguay.The registration covers devices and systemsfor gaming and lottery.

Travis Foley, EVP operations - BMMAmericas, commented: “We are verypleased to confirm that BMM is now accred-ited in Paraguay through this recent ap-proval from CONAJZAR. BMM will contin-ue to support the regulators and operators inthe South American market and we are look-ing forward to expanding our services intoParaguay.

“We are pleased CONAJZAR has chosento work with BMM and we would like tothank Attorney Javier Balbuena Estigarriba,CONAJZAR President, and his team for theirdiligence and attention during BMM’s regis-tration process.”

SYSTEMS

Royal visit for Continent 8

Continent 8 Technologieshas had an-other brush with royalty after HRH

Prince Michael of Kent visited its data centrein Gibraltar. The location is housed withinthe decommissioned Operations Centrewhich was designed for secure and resilientoperations providing an ideal location foruse by General Dwight D. Eisenhower dur-ing World War II, now a modern Data Centrefacility.

It was from here that General Eisenhowersupervised Operation Torch, the Allied inva-sion of north Africa, in November 1942.More recently, the underground complexwas also a key control site for NATO opera-tions in the Falklands and the Gulf. HRH

conducted a visit to theEisenhower Room, theold Operations Centreand took the opportunityto view newly commis-sioned Data Centre facil-ities within this historically significant loca-tion.

Bet365 adopts Riak

Basho, the creator and developer of dis-tributed NoSQL database Riak, has

rolled out its flagship product to majorbookmakerBet365. Martin Davies, CEOTechnology at Bet365, said: “Our decision toimplement Riak was purely strategic. After astringent evaluation process we decidedthat Basho’s flexible, scalable database wasbest-suited to our needs. Given the hugeamount of data we process on a daily basis -from customer details to betting odds - itwas imperative that we had a platform tosupport this. We selected Riak, and have notbeen disappointed with the results.”

SOCIAL

888 socially aware

888.com has signed up to use a new SocialMonitor product to measure and analyse

its social media presence and that of its com-petitors. The tool is entirely customisableand can monitor any iGaming brand in up to27 languages across the web, including so-cial media, blogs, forums and news sites. So-cial Monitor is a managed enterprise-class


INTEGRITY

solution for bespoke so-cial media monitoring, an-alytics and engagementneeds. Joakim Nilsson,founder of SCRMCloud, added: “SocialMonitor bridges the gap between technolo-gy and a growing need for igaming compa-nies to monitor how their brands resonateacross social channels.”

PAYMENTS

CreditGuard made Safe for $8m

Advanced payment firm SafeChargehas acquired rival payment processor

CreditGuardLtd for an initial cash consid-eration of US$8m and deferred considera-tion capped at US$0.4m. The acquisition ofCreditGuard marks a further milestone inthe execution of SafeCharge’s strategic planaimed at entering new and rapidly growingmarkets and sectors bringing with it a port-folio of clients from sectors including travel,insurance, telecoms and government.

SafeCharge chief executive David Avgisaid: “CreditGuard is highly regarded withinthe payments industry, with a solid portfolioof clients across multiple market sectorsand a vast knowledge and expertise in En-terprise IT infrastructures, networks and se-curity. This enables us to fast-track our entryinto new verticals and take a strong positionin the exciting Israeli market.”

Editor:Andrew McCarron Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1457 867 683

Managing editor:Ken Scott Email: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1273 699 900

Contributors:John Samuels, CHris Webster, Steve Turner

Advertising sales:Neil Judson, Email: [email protected]: +44 (0) 1204 396 397Fax: +44 (0) 1204 392 748

Ad Production:Dave Roderick Email: [email protected]

Subscriptions:Sarah Haworth, Email: [email protected]: +44 (0) 1204 396 397Fax: +44 (0) 1204 392 748

Advertising & Subscriptions:GB Media Corporation LtdBolton Technology Exchange33 Queensbrook, Bolton BL1 4AY, UKTel: +44 (0) 1204 396 397

Fax: +44 (0) 1204 392 748

Editorial & Production: 20 New Road, Brighton, BN1 1UF, UKTel: +44 (0) 1273 699 900

Publishing Director:John SullivanEmail: [email protected]: +44 (0) 1204 396 397Fax: +44 (0) 1204 392 748

Opinions expressed in this publication should not beregarded as the official view of GB Media CorporationLtd, except where stated. Views, opinions and rec-ommendations contained in this publication are putforward for consideration only. No action should betaken in reliance upon any such views, opinions orrecommendations. Neither GB Media Corporation Ltdnor contributors accept any responsibility for any lossoccasioned to any person howsoever caused orarising as a result of or in consequence of actiontaken or refrained from in realiance on the contents ofthis publication.

Notes for contributors: BBi welcomes thesubmission of articles for consideration by the editorwith a view to publication. Submission of an article willbe held to imply that the article contains originalunpublished work which GB Media Corporation Ltdmay lawfully publish. All submissions are made at theowner’s risk.© GB Media Corporation Ltd, 2015All rights strictly reserved. No part of this publicationmay be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, ortransmitted in any form or by any means without theprior written permission given, full acknowledgementof author, publisher and source must be given.

ball pensB2B

Back Office

hostingB2B

Back Office

licensingB2B

Back Office

risk managementB2B

Back Office

t. +44 (0) 1624 678 888e. [email protected]. www.continent8.com

17,280(120 GROSS)

PUNTER PENS

BLACK INK

FOR

£180 DELIVERED + VATCONTACT:

SALES AT HAINENKO LIMITEDTel: 020 8882 8734

Email: [email protected]. 30 YEARS

B2B Back Office Listings


marketingB2B

iGaming

he International Ice HockeyFederation (IIHF) has an-nounced a landmark three-year

partnership with integrity spe-cialists Sportradar. Under the partnership,Sportradar will monitor a total of three flag-ship tournaments per year from 2015 to 2017and will deliver a total of 12 educationalworkshops, which will be targeted at partici-pating players, officials, administrators andcoaches.

Sportradar’s Fraud Detection System willmonitor the world’s betting markets on theIIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, IIHFWorld Junior Championship and IIHF IceHockey U18 World Championship each year,ensuring that any suspicious odds move-ments or patterns are flagged, analysed andpromptly forwarded to the IIHF. Furthermore

Sportradar will send experts to the hostcities to provide all relevant participantswith valuable insight and understanding ofthe global markets on ice hockey and thedangers posed by fixers.

IIHF president René Fasel said: “Very fewsports excite and engage fans like ice hock-ey does. And we want to keep it that way. Theintegrity of our World Championships andour sport are central to that.”

“What this partnership does is send apowerful message. It sends a powerful mes-sage to our fans that we will not compromisewhen it comes to protecting the honesty ofthe game we all love. By including the U20and U18 competitions, we send a messagethat we are doing all we can to safeguard oursport for today and tomorrow. By partneringwith a professional organisation likeSportradar, we send a message to the fixersthat we are watching them. Zero compro-mise; zero tolerance.”

Sportradar managing director AndreasKrannich added: “Hearing president Fasel’swords is reassuring to me and should be re-assuring to all those that love ice hockey. Byasking us to monitor 126 ice hockey gamesand deliver 12 workshops over three years,the IIHF has shown a keen awareness of thisvitally important issue. We have workedhard to develop the ice hockey Fraud Detec-tion System and we have honed it to theneeds and sensitivities of the sport.”

Sportradar tomonitor ice hockeytournaments

NMI HASALREADYTESTEDWILLIAMHILL’S FOBTS

T

PRINCE MICHAEL OF KENT JOAKIM NILSSON

BB124-p48-49-b2bBackOffice_Layout 1 02/01/2015 12:38 Page 2

G

Whether your market is low stake high volume gaming, remote, land-based casinos, bingo, betting or amusements there’s only one publishing house that’s really connected.

The publishing division of GB Media is responsible for the award winning titles International Casino Review, Betting Business interactive and Coinslot, as well as the official ICE catalogue.

For a unique window on the world of gaming, simply contact us on +44 (0) 1204 396 397 or email us at [email protected].

GBmedia

Comment

oday it’s hard to speakabout clear legalisation ofonline betting, which wasstated at the level of lawregulation, because the

model elected by the Russian legisla-tor significantly differs from the clas-sical one, e.g. British model of onlinebetting. According to the Federal lawNo. 244-FZ it is forbidden to acceptbets on the internet. In the documentit is stated that gambling institutionsact as a place for betting, namelybetting shops.

So, in the law it is all about an ‘inter-active bet’, which is a mean for betting,but it doesn’t say that the bet can bemade on the site. 244-FZ doesn’t forbidmaking payments, which is a condi-tion of participation in gambling.However, they’re not talking about thesite in this law. It means that theessence of the site itself as a place ofbet reception isn’t stated in the law.Therefore, in my opinion, it is incor-rect to say that 244-FZ legalises betting

on the internet. The law establishes a ban on the

organisation and carrying out gam-bling activities with the use of infor-mation and telecommunicationnetworks, including the internet net-works, and also means of communica-tion, except for the cases provided bythe same law. But those ‘exceptions’aren’t clarified in the law.

Anyway, this process is charac-terised by high dynamics of develop-ment. In any case law-enforcementpractice and market laws will intro-duce corrections to the standard regu-lation. The situation will change, andwe will monitor it attentively.

At this moment there are a numberof factors which prevent playersmaking interactive bets. The condi-tions which form those factors dependnot only on government bodies, butalso on participants of the market andplayers themselves.

All betting market participants needclear and transparent rules stated in

the law, according to which they willwork. However, as we know, theRussian legislation as regards gam-bling, unfortunately, is not exactlystable.

At this point in time, the system andthe taxation order of the bookies foraccepting interactive bets aren’t yetdefined. Without this factor it isextremely difficult for a businessmanto make a decision to begin operationon the market.

There is also the very real questionabout activity of the Center for theAccounting of the Translations of Inter-active Bets, which remains open. Dataabout players via CATIB can be poten-tially available to competitors - otherparticipants in the market. All bookiesare worried by questions about guar-antees of information and economicsecurity, as all are interested in thatbusiness processes were safe and inter-ests are reliably protected.

Necessity to pay the income tax isanother limiting factor, but from theplayers’ side. Thus, according to thelaw the bookie is obliged to hold 13per cent of the interactive bet’s win asa tax on the income of natural persons.

Herewith, players (despite of theefforts of the acting SRO, Roskomnad-zor and FTS who block access to thegambling and betting sites on the inter-net), have a lot of alternative high-quality betting services, where it isn’tnecessary to pay income tax. Theplayer simply ‘saves’ 13 per cent of hiswin. In my opinion, the Russian bettingmarket has to become more attrac-tive, more reliable and prestigious forour players, so that the doubtfuleconomy in 13 per cent charge isn’t adecisive factor in a choice of bettingprovider.

Therefore, for the organisation ofonline betting in its classical under-standing, it is necessary first and fore-most to make changes to thelegislation. It is necessary to beginwith the law No. 244-FZ, the basic onefor bookies, which should be alteredso that it no longer establishes a banon organisation and carrying out gam-bling with the usage of informationand telecommunication networks,including the internet networks.

There are existing opinions that theacting regulations have already settledall necessary business aspects butthese are the product of free interpre-tation of the law and, in particular, ofthe interpretation of the concept of aninteractive bet.

It already feels like a bigyear ahead for the gam-bling industry; frustratingly

though it’s more for externalreasons than anything thatcan be directly addressed.

The absolute key date forthe sector though is 7 May -election day. Gambling hasbeen hoofed up and downParliament like a delinquentwith a hedgehog over thelast couple of years and thehustings ahead of thisgeneral election willundoubtedly prove fertileground for those wanting toscore cheap political points,regardless of their accuracy.Of course it is even moredangerous when you addinto the mix a moneyed andmotivated lobby group.

We will see just how muchdirt has stuck to the industryduring the campaigningprocess - and how manypromises are made in therun up to polling day. Inthese days of coalition gov-ernments, manifestos aremore easily pushed asidethan ever before (just ask LibDem voting university stu-dents), but adding restric-tions to gambling may wellbe one of the few issues togarner cross-party support.

Anti-industry campaign-

Legality ofonline betting inRussia is opento interpretationHow true is it that the Federal law No. 244-FZ and its amendmentslegalises online betting in Russia? Leonid Oboznyy, president of theFirst Gaming company (Rub90), explains that all is not what it seems.

Research opportunit

T

andrew mccarronviewpoint


BB124-p52-54-Comment_09/10 02/01/2015 12:23 Page 1

Chancellor George Osborne announces a third consultation on the future ofthe Levy in less than a year during his Autumn Statement

“The government will consult on theintroduction of a racing right in early 2015 andwill announce a decision after consultation.”

The betting industryprides itself on beingat the cutting edge of

innovation and technol-ogy and, more often thannot, it is justified to do so.

There is one part of theindustry however thatseems to be lagging backinto the 19th Century. Irefer to the application insome quarters of theIndustry of TattersallsRule 4(c), better known asthe Rule 4 deduction.

The 19th Centuryculture and question beingthis: On what basis shouldthe Rule 4 deduction bemade?

Should the Rule 4deduction on the winnerbe made on the basis ofthe odds available in themarket when the non-runner was officiallyannounced, as the 1886wording (revised in 2005)has it? Rightly or wrongly,this is more commonlyinterpreted as the time of

withdrawal.Or should the deduction

be made, on the winner,on the basis of the marketposition of the non-runnerat the time when the betwas actually struck?

One can understand theoriginal (and current) Tat-tersall’s wording, stillapplied by some operatorstoday. When Tattersallsrules were first compiled,it would have been diffi-cult at best to determinewhat the full market posi-tion was, back at theprecise time that thewinning bet was struck.

But surely there are nowadequate and comprehen-sive records available todetermine what the priceof the withdrawn horsewas at the time of eachaffected bet. And wouldthis not be the more logicalbasis on which to makethe deduction? After all,given the purpose of theoriginal rule, should it not

be the odds and resultantover-round percentage ofthe market at the time thatthe bet was struck thatshould be altered, and notthe market position whenthe announcement of thewithdrawn horse is made?

If Tattersalls Rules werebeing written today, in theknowledge of moderntechnical standards, itwould be hard to justifyany other approach.

The principle of Tatter-salls Rule 4(c) is far fromshowing its age and isapplied now not only tohorse racing markets butused by many operatorsto settle many othersporting markets where a‘day of race’ treatment ismore appropriate thanthe use of ante-post rules.It would be a positive forthe industry to see it usedconsistently and alwaysin the spirit of making afair adjustment to anagreed bet.

Fairness inTatters - Timefor a new rulefor Rule 4?

John Samuels of IBAS believes that the industry is nowin the position of offering bespoke rule 4 judgementsdepending on when the bet was struck.

ers have been bemoaningthe fact that the Responsi-ble Gambling Trust researchhasn’t provided a simple‘whole truth’ about B2gaming machines, but thisis far more inconvenient forthe industry than the cam-paigners. If the researchwas the best in the worldand identified where FOBTswere causing harm, thenthat that area could havebeen quickly dealt with,cauterised if you will, andeveryone could have beensatisfied at effective actiontaken. And a differentdebate, less informed bysmoke and mirrors, couldentertain us ahead of elec-tion day.

Strangely enough, thisresearch actually IS the bestin the world, as there havebeen no studies like it andable to deal with quite somuch data. Of course tosome it’s almost worthless,despite being world-leading,as it doesn’t conform totheir own belief structure, orbecause it is funded by theindustry (even though thedirection of research isinformed by the RGSB ofwhich two members of the11 strong board are formergambling CEOs).

But neither is it perfect. Infairness, no-one is claimingit is. And the key here is tobuild on what has been dis-covered, and use the find-ings directly to helpincrease the effectivenessof current harm preventionstrategies.

Again, this is where noeffective ‘black and white’scenario is actually quiteharmful for the industry.Politicians (or at least theiradvisors) skim reading thestudies will see there is noobvious way of effectivedecisive action againstproblem gambling. Giventhat nature abhors avacuum, they will thencreate decisive action oftheir own - the odds beingthat all machine gamingmust be account-based.

Some bookmakers mightbe happy to take that tokeep what is essentially vitalrevenue and be safe in theknowledge that the smallpercentage of their cus-tomers who are in danger ofdeveloping a problem willbe more easily identified.There are a lot of importantwords in that sentence, butthe phrase that keepsgetting overlooked is ‘smallpercentage’. As hard as it is

for some to accept, most ofthe people who play B2/B3gaming machines do so forentertainment purposesand do not develop anyissues.

Problem gambling is acomplicated and, as is fre-quently shown in studies, isa multi-product issue. Thesimple solutions that are alltoo often mooted will notdeal with the problem, butshift them, potentially toareas where they are lesslikely to be identified.

If this research couldhave done something, it isto get all those invested inproblem gambling andgaming machines to worktogether and identify somereally effective ways toprevent harm withouthaving huge implications forthe rest of the gamblingpopulation. If people canfind some room formanoeuvre in their (up untilnow) ingrained positions,with all crusades, reluc-tance to threaten thebottom line or politicalgrandstanding put to oneside, then perhaps thisresearch and co-operationcan benefit the people whoreally need the help; theproblem gamblers.

arch provides antunity to work together


IF A HORSE IS WITHDRAWN, JOHNSAMUELS BELIEVES THAT THE RULE4 DEDUCTION SHOULD BE IMPOSEDAT THE TIME OF THE BET RATHERTHAN THE WITHDRAWAL

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ S

CO

TT

HE

AV

EY

BB124-p52-54-Comment_09/10 02/01/2015 12:24 Page 2

Comment


Charles Kettering, American inventor (1876 - 1958)

“Every time you tear a leaf off acalendar, you present a new place fornew ideas and progress.”

very time a chiefexecutive rolebecomes vacantin the gamblingindustry the

rumour mill cranks up andeven new betting markets arereleased by competitor firmswith a list of possible names -ranging from the plausible tothe outright fanciful. (Myname appeared in the runnersand riders for the Ladbrokesjob in the first list compiledby Paddy Power - I will leaveyou all the speculate wheremy odds of 11/1 place me onthat spectrum).

Given the nature of the gam-bling industry, it shouldperhaps be no surprise thatthis type of high-profile specu-lation is an important elementof the make-up of the sector,and it may even be one of thecontributing factors behindthe lack of talented individu-als entering the sector fromthe outside.

But there are other reasonsthat can be identified behindthis lack of supply of newblood.

First, expectations on thepart of stakeholders in gam-bling companies tend to besky-high and they generallyeclipse the reality of what isactually possible and achiev-able (partly due to the growth-driven nature of small-cap;partly the lure of attractivecash flow and partly due to anover-simplification of regula-tory and technology issues).

Second, this is a sectorwhich fairly neatly dividesbetween companies which cuttheir teeth in unregulatedmarkets (with an extremely‘entrepreneurial’ culture andrisk profile) and those fromheavily regulated back-grounds (with the equally chal-lenging opposite culture akinto government or police).

This has led to a disconnect:while the balance betweenunregulated and regulated isnow changing markedly, theexpectations of stakeholders

have yet to catch up. The job ofthe modern gambling chiefexecutive is therefore tomanage this tectonic shift, fromwhichever part of the scale thecompany is on. The sheer com-plexity of the task relative tothe size of the companies mightbe another reason for the reluc-tance of big hitters to join thefray from the outside.

Given this backdrop thereare, I believe, a number of attrib-utes which contribute to thesuitability and success of a chiefexecutive in this sector. Differ-ent chief executives will suitdifferent companies at variousstages of their evolution. Busi-nesses need to pick the rightpeople with the right profile.Would you put an entrepre-neurial/start-up guy in chargeof a major PLC? Has promo-tion from within worked? Areleft-field candidates ever giventhe time and support to get togrips with the sector’s idiosyn-crasies and complete the job?

A large part of the equationis understanding what the newchief executive will have todeal with once they have takenup the role and what it will taketo handle the multi-faceted andrapidly changing issues thatwill inevitably arise. Here’s mybrief rundown of what I thinkthese issues are:

Management skills - Anynew boss needs to be able toassess their inherited team thenmake sensible judgement calls.Bringing in an army of stafffrom a previous role is trickyand they have to deliver veryquickly to be deemed success-ful. Harnessing the talentwithin is critical, as is gettingthis balance right. This pointdovetails nicely with culture -do you break it, modify it or addto it? In an industry where a lotof companies are very similar(but are often convinced theyare very different) you have tocarry the troops and the seniormanagement team along withyou. Destruction or modifica-tion of a culture just for the sakeof it is potentially dangerous

and damaging.Technology - Any CEO has

to grasp the technologyrequired and really understandhow it can be a help rather thana hindrance, whether land-based, remote or, increasingly,multi-channel. Technology inthis sector must be understoodfrom the start. From a transac-tional point of view, the moderngambling company can be (andincreasingly should be) hugelyadvanced and highly complex -and so, therefore, is the supplychain. The old adage of ‘leave itto the techies’ simply won’t cutit any longer.

Regulation - The impact ofregulation on gambling cannever be under-estimated.Regulation has to be under-stood, the CEO has to have asure grasp of the issues, andall decisions in this regardneed to be well thoughtthrough. I believe that hererelationship building (ratherthan grandstanding, mudsling-ing or simply ignoring) is ofvital importance; this sectorcan get political very quickly,so the ability to handle keygovernmental stakeholders isextremely important. This is akey difference between gam-bling companies and othertech-driven consumer busi-nesses; it is hugely dangerousto get wrong and often thank-less to get right (keeping gam-bling off the public agenda isoften the best outcome!).

Owners, board membersand investors - Given the natureof the market all of these impor-tant factors are liable to hugechange. They need to be under-stood and managed by the CEOas they evolve. Communica-tion is key - to the staff, to thecustomers and of course to theowners. Strong communica-tions can build confidence,especially if expectations areset at realistic levels and risksare properly articulated. TheCEO needs to embrace thisfactor and lead this battle.Their profile and the percep-tion of who they are in the

outside world must be positiveand accessible but also frank, grounded and carryinggravitas.

The competition - Competi-tion is always fierce. The chiefexecutive needs to know howto fight, defend, co-operate,destroy, merge or acquire thecompetition. To survive, everyCEO has to be adept at thiskind of combat and has to leadfrom the front in addition tobeing a player in the widerindustry. All CEOs have readthe art of war; in this sector aswith any other the CEO mustavoid fighting battles thatcannot be won. They need tofully understand both theirown and their company’sweaknesses as much as thoseof their opponents rangedagainst them.

It all sounds like the CEOneeds to be something of aClark Kent and it is true thatthey will need to deploy exten-sive powers. For anybody whohas never been a CEO, I cantell you now it is a lonely role.When things go well you getlittle credit (it would have allhappened anyway!) and whenthings go badly it is entirelyyour fault.

Anybody who takes on therole of chief executive at anycompany will soon find outthat there are consequencesto having ultimate decision-making authority. But whatreally makes it a lonely job arethe questions that can keepyou awake at night, such aswho is spinning you a line,who can you ultimately trust,and who among your staff aretelling you things they simplythink you want to hear.

The gambling market canbe a brutal and unforgivingplace, and reputations can be shredded if decisions goawry. As Napoleon well knew,every leader needs a bit of luckto carry them along, but it ismy belief that a chief execu-tive job at a major firm can be rewarding, and not justfinancially.

Napoleon Hill’s ‘Thinkand Grow Rich’ is aclassic book well

worth reading even if youare not in business. Forthose seeking a paradigmshift to enjoy substantiallyhigher profits at lower risk itcould be considered essen-tial reading.

I used to take a short cutthat shaved 10 miles off amonthly journey, but it wasthrough mainly derelictland, partly used for mush-room farming. I stoppedusing it because it smelt ofrotting mushrooms and mywindscreen was plasteredwith large and multi-coloured insects.

Some 12 years later I tookthe route once again. Ithought I had taken a wrongroad - there were manicuredlawns, gated communitiesof large houses, expensivelooking restaurants, Audiand Jaguar concessionsand a very swish shoppingmall. Where I had smelt badodours and experiencedclouds of insects, someonewith more vision than Icould muster had seencheap land and potential forproperty development.

For bookmakers with thevision and prepared tomake a paradigm shift intheir business model a dra-matic increase in grossprofits awaits while: enjoy-ing lower volatility of profitswith significantly loweroperating costs

This all adds ups up toan order of magnitudeincrease in net profits and ashareholder pleasinggrowth in value.

Many bookies, includinglarger firms, shut them-selves off the very informa-tion that permits theparadigm shift to beenjoyed. As I did, they onlysmell mushroom farms andsee insect clouds ratherthan the potential forswanky property develop-ments.

Most bookies have had‘sharp punters’ that makeover 130 per cent of stakesmonth after month. Thepast tense applies herebecause these punters got

severely limited ofbanned by the bookiesprice-setters.

If the bookie had followedthe superior knowledgepossessed by these ‘sharp’punters, appropriating it fortheir own business deci-sions, they too would bemaking similar profits of 130per cent.

If ‘sharp’ punters aremaking 130 per cent ofstakes, it follows that theprices of the selectionstaken by the ‘sharps’ are atabout 30 per cent too high.

So if a bookie aims tounbalance his book by:

reducing the prices of theselections taken by the‘sharps’ by 30 per cent - e.g.from evens to say 7/10reducing the tranches of lia-bility accepted for the‘sharps’ selections beforereducing the price evenfurther under-lays thesesame selections increasesthe prices of the selectionsnot selected by the ‘sharps’to attract more business tothese bets then the bookiewill also make similar profitpercentages that the ‘sharp’punters are enjoying.

It is a business modelbased on humility, the sharppunters are clearly betterthan our expensive price-setters, so it is best tofollow the lead of our‘sharps’ and laugh all theway to the bank.

Some of the liability con-trollers and price-setterswill not be open to educa-tion into the new businessmodel, but there will beplenty of other naive book-making competitors whowill be pleased to snap uptheir price-setting ‘talent’.

A businessmodel based on humility couldreap an extra 30 per cent

DavidLoveday,principleconsultant atRegulusPartners,identifies thequalitiesneeded for agaming CEO.

Five important issues that newgaming CEOs must tackle

E

Retired consultant Ric Ingram positsthe fact that bookmakers are turningaway expertise with information thatcould actually make them money ifthey were only to use it.

BB124-p52-54-Comment_09/10 02/01/2015 12:27 Page 3

bbi

Dedicated to servicing the needs of the international betting and iGaming industry, Betting Business interactive is your partner of choice if you’re searching for the very best journalism, the widest distribution and inventive advertising opportunities.

For more information, simply contact John Sullivan at [email protected] or call us on +44 (0) 1204 396 397.


Business

aming Realms, thecreator and devel-oper of interactiven e x t - g e n e r a t i o nonline gaming appli-

cations, has seen a mixed sixmonths with a 421 per centincrease in revenue to £4.6m notbeing able to stop a loss beforetaxation of £3.1m.

Given that the Gaming Realmsbalance sheet includes market-ing spend of £3.6m, costs for theAlderney Licence, costs relatedto the acquisition of BlueburraHoldings, as well as continuedcosts associated with building anew gaming platform, there areplenty of reasons why the firm isspeculating to accumulate rela-tively early in its lifecycle. Indeedthe firm can also boast a strongbalance sheet with £3.8m cashand cash equivalents.

During the last six months,Gaming Realms saw daily activeplayers up 14 per cent to 5,205,acquired of Blueburra HoldingsLimited for approximately£10.5m to increase affiliate sizeand bingo database, andobtained licenses from the Alder-ney Gambling Control Commis-sion and the UK GamblingCommission.

It also delivered a new in-house scalable platform withthe launch of Spin Genie brandwhich includes a feature set toenhance conversion, retentionand monetisation of real money

gambling players.The company also agreed an

exclusive UK Licence with Real-Networks for the provision ofSlingo, (one of the world’s mostpopular bingo formats) for useon its real money gambling plat-form. Gaming Realms said thatthis provides strong cross-selling opportunities for slotsplayers via social gaming whichhad 50m monthly active users atits peak.

Chief executive PatrickSouthon said: “We are pleasedto report the completion andlaunch of our platform which isshowing good initial growth.We believe the acquisitions ofQuickThink Media and Blue-burra Holdings, coupled withthe monetisation ability of ourexciting new ‘feature led’ gam-bling platform, will enable us togrow revenues even morequickly in 2015.”

Since the acquisition of Blue-burra Holdings, the group hasexpanded its existing WhiteLabel business with Diva Bingo,Butterfly Bingo and Total Gold,with plans to launch two moregaming brands in Q1 2015.Revenue through the WhiteLabel Business decreased 6 percent during the period to £1.6mas a result of a refocus of effortsand marketing budgets on thegroup’s own platform and prod-ucts.

The board said it is confident

that the acquisition will gener-ate positive cash flow and alarge consumer database forfuture growth.

Gaming Realms has also beenworking to mitigate the effectsof Point Of Consumption tax bydeveloping its own proprietaryplatform to aid efficiencies aswell as building features to aidretention. Utilising QTM andthe affiliate data in BBH willenable the Group to acquireplayers at a lower cost.

The Board said that itremains confident that thegroup is well positioned tomaintain its strong growth tra-jectory and continued playeracquisition. The strategyremains to engage users on newmobile devices through a softgaming proposition, whilemaintaining its focus on reduc-ing CPA.

It added: “The group is nowbetter placed to deliver a more‘tailored’ and unique experiencefor players with development inits analytics and player behav-iour tools. The group expects tosee improved retention andplayer values through this focus.

“The launch of Spin Genie,delivery of the proprietary plat-form; and exciting licence dealssuch as Slingo, gives the Boardconfidence there are significantmarket opportunities ahead toachieve further progress in 2015and beyond.”

Growth helps tostem losses atGaming RealmsA busy six months has seen Gaming Realms develop itsown platform, buy Blueburra Holdings and still cut down onits losses.

RESULTS

Payment processor Optimal Pay-ments has felt compelled tomake a statement to the stock

market after a ‘recent weakness’ inits share price in order to redressthe balance.

The company confirmed thattrading in the year to date has beenstrong and expects Optimal Pay-ments’ financial results for 2014 tobe ‘at least in line’ with marketexpectations. The Neteller andNetbanx businesses are bothexpected to deliver good revenuegrowth and profitability in the yearto 31 December 2014 and the inte-gration of the US businesses,acquired in July, is progressing well.

Optimal Payments added that itcontinues to deliver on its statedstrategic objectives and remainsconfident in the outlook for organicand accretive inorganic growth andhas just appointed Brian McArthur-Muscroft to succeed Keith Butcheras chief financial officer and direc-tor of the company with effect from1 January 2015. McArthur-Muscrofthas over 25 years’ experience ofdealing with financial strategy, withthe last 20 years specialising in thetechnology sector.

Butcher has agreed to remainwith the Optimal Payments until 31March 2015 to oversee an orderlytransition and assist in the prepa-ration of the year-end Report andAccounts, before taking up a newrole.

Dennis Jones, non-executivechairman of Optimal Payments,said: “I’m delighted we haveselected Brian McArthur-Muscroftas our new CFO, after an extensiveand rigorous search process. With aclear mind to the future, the Boardwanted a strong candidate with aproven track record of contributingto the growth of large companieswho could assist us with our own

ambitious growth strategy.”McArthur-Muscroft was previ-

ously group finance director atTelecity Group Plc where he led theIPO of the business in 2007 andraised £400m in senior debt facili-ties with major UK institutions tosupport the rapid growth of the busi-ness. He was chosen as the ICAEW’sFTSE 250 Finance Director of theYear in 2012 and Business Week’sFinance Director of the Year in 2013.

McArthur-Muscroft currentlyserves as a non-executive directoron the Board of Robert Walters Plcand is a governor of Hockerill AngloEuropean College, a secondaryschool in Hertfordshire and atrustee of Touraid, an internationalrugby charity which organises tour-naments to bring disadvantagedchildren from all over the world tothe UK through the creation of long-term links with UK schools andclubs.

President and chief executiveofficer Joel Leonoff commented:“On behalf of the Board of directorsand the entire company, I want tothank Keith for his dedication andcontribution over the past four and ahalf years as CFO of Optimal Pay-ments. Since joining the company inMay 2010, Keith has been a keymember of the Board and executivemanagement team that has over-seen a substantial turnaround in thebusiness, which started with theacquisition of Optimal PaymentsInc. in February 2011.

“Keith’s contribution was recog-nised earlier this year when he wasawarded Finance Director of theYear 2014 at the Quoted CompanyAwards. I wish Keith continuedsuccess in his future endeavoursand I am also grateful to him foragreeing to oversee the seamlesstransition to Brian’s tenure as thecompany’s CFO.”

With a new CFO in place, Optimal Paymentsis hoping a recent statement will firm up itsshare price.STATEMENT

Optimalexpects to meetexpectationsdespite weakshare price

OPTIMAL PAYMENT’SNETELLER BRANDSPONSORS CRYSTAL PALACE

ANALYSIS

Gaming Realmslaunched its newplatform through itssubsidiary Bear GroupLimited to help it fulfilits strategy of deliveringunique content to thereal money gamblingmarket. It will also bringenhanced cash flow,running at more efficientmargins, therebyoffsetting the effect ofthe introduction of PointOf Consumption tax.According to the firm,the first brand to havelaunched on thisplatform, Spin Genie,has shown verypromising results withlow cost of acquisitionand good initial playervalues and retention.

GAMING REALMS ISHOPING THAT ADEAL WITH SLINGOWILL HELP ATTRACTCUSTOMERS

G

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ H

EN

RY

BR

OW

NE

BB124-p56-58-Business_09/10 02/01/2015 12:26 Page 1


DDoS MitigationSmart, Scalable, Targeted continent8.com

Isle of Man | London | Paris | Dublin | Singapore

Gibraltar | Guernsey | Malta | Montreal | New Jersey

BetVictor hasannounced

the appointmentof Anton Bell aschief marketingofficer. Bell hasbeen consultingthe betting oper-ator on market-ing issues forGaming EdgeConsultancy.During the con-sultancy period, Bell played a key rolein the development of new BetVictorTV advertising campaign ‘InsideTrack’ featuring former Englandnational football team manager -Sven Goran Ericsson.

Spain’s Grupo Codere hasannounced the senior managerial

appointments of Alejandro Pascualas European chief operations officerand Jose Antonio Gonzalez Lainez aschief of spanish operations. Pascualwill lead Codere European opera-tions, having previously served aschief operating officer of CodereItalia. He has held senior managerialpositions at Codere since 2000 whenhe joined the gambling group a Direc-tor of Administration.

Gonzalez Lainez has been pro-moted from his position as Commer-cial Director for Codere Espana. Thesenior appointments will play a keyrole in the Spanish gambling opera-tor’s future growth strategy, as theoperator sets to turn around its declin-ing financial performance. GrupoCodere had reports eight straight con-secutive losses and has suffered fromfailing casino investments in its LatinAmerican business division.

Austrian sports betting operatorGoldBet Entertainment Ltd has

appointed Michele Sprovieri as itsnew chief executive officer. Sprovieri,who was previsouly chief technicalofficer, takes over leadership of the

European bookmaker from outgoingCEO Tim Parker.

Playtech has appointed HilaryStewart-Jones as deputy-chair-

man. Alan Jackson, non-executiveChairman ofPlaytech, com-mented: “Sinceher appointment,Hilary has madea significant con-tribution to thecompany’s boardthrough herextensive knowl-edge of the gam-bling industry.”

The British Horseracing Associa-tion (BHA) has announced the

appointment of six new non-execu-tive directors to its board, with aview to help the associations gover-nance and future racing growthstrategy. The new non-executivedirectors, who have been appointedfor three-year terms from 1 Decem-ber, are: Atholl Duncan, an experi-enced non-executive director insports organisations, Julie Harring-ton, who spent eight years withNorthern Racing, Noel Harwerth,former breeder and former memberof the Tote Board, Joe SaumarezSmith, CEO of Sports Gaming Ltd,Laura Whyte, former HR director forJohn Lewis and Eamonn Wilmott,founder & MD of Horses FirstRacing.

Chairman Steve Harman said“This is the start of a new chapter forthe BHA Board and the next step inits evolution as a governing and reg-ulatory body.”

Per Afrell, a non-executive directorof Bwin,party, has stepped down

as a member of the Company’s Audit& Risk Committee. He remains amember of the company’s Remuner-ation and Nominations Committees.

GVC Holdings hasannounced a sixthsuccessive quarterof revenue growth.The operator

announced that Net GamingRevenue (NGR) for Q4-2014 to14 December 2014 averaged660,000 euro (£518,000) per day,up 26 per cent on the Q4-2013.

The firm also revealed a 150per cent increase in MobileGross Gaming Revenue(GGR), which reached 168,000euro (£132,000) per day. Therewas also a sixth successivequarter of growth in depositvalues, with Q4-2014 being 20per cent higher than Q4-2013.

The firm said that trading isstrong across all major territo-ries and brands, ‘reflecting thesuccess of the company’s focuson achieving a World Cuplegacy through its brand-build-

ing and marketing initiativesover the last year’.

Sports margin for the fourthquarter to date was 9.0 percent, around 10 per cent lowerthan the rest of the year, butstill higher than Q4 2013’sfigure of 8.4 per cent.

The GVC board said it hasbeen delighted by the perform-ance of the Group during 2014and believes this strength oftrading provides an excellentfoundation for continuedgrowth in 2015. It added thatthe investments already madein both marketing and mobiledevelopment have borne fruitduring 2014 and the Group willbe continuing these initiativesin 2015.

The board noted that NGR,from 1 January to 14 Decem-ber, has amounted to over217m euro (£170m), already

higher than full-year consen-sus figures, with another 17days of the year left to run.The Board said that itremained confident of ‘atleast’ matching the recentlyraised market expectationsfor the full 2014 year.

The company said in a state-ment: “It is the board’s inten-tion to capitalise on its recentsuccesses by maintaining itsquarterly dividend policywhilst continuing to invest inproduct and business devel-opment. This positive outlookis set against a backgroundthat includes the commence-ment of the UK Point of Con-sumption tax and the fact that2015 does not include a majorsporting event on the scale ofthe football World Cup. Theboard views the future withconfidence.”

appointments

GVC confidentheading into 2015Despite the commencement of the UK point ofconsumption tax and the fact that it’s a fallow year formajor sporting tournaments, the board of GVC Holdingsseems pretty happy.

PERFORMANCE

G

ANTON BELL

HILARY STEWART-JONES


Business


Australian billionaire James Packer has secured control of new betting operator BetEasy through hisCrown Resorts leisure enterprise. Crown Resorts now owns two thirds of the BetEasy enterprise giving thegaming operator quick access into the AUS$13bn online betting market. Packer stated that after reviewingthe current Australian online betting market, Crown Resorts viewed BetEasy as providing ‘significant bene-fits and opportunities to our existing and future customers’.

Packer buys into BetEasy

CHINA

Chinese onlinesports lotteryservice provider

500.com has appointedJeffrey Williams as a newindependent director. Hewill also serve as amember of the Auditcommittee of the Boardof Directors.

500.com is listed onthe NASDAQ and offers acomprehensive and inte-grated suite of onlinelottery services, informa-tion, user tools andvirtual communityvenues to its users.500.com was among thefirst companies toprovide online lotteryservices in China, and isone of two entities thathave been approved bythe Ministry of Finance toprovide online lotterysales services on behalfof the China SportsLottery AdministrationCenter, which is the gov-ernment authority that isin charge of the issuanceand sale of sports lotteryproducts in China.

Williams currentlyserves as president ofShenzhen DevelopmentBank and was the firstperson of a non-Chinesenationality to lead aChinese bank since thefounding of the PeoplesRepublic of China.

In a separate develop-ment, Yu Wei hasappointed as a memberof the Strategy Commit-tee and Honghui Deng asa member of the Nomi-nating and CorporateGovernance Committeeof the Board of Directors.

In addition, currentdirectors Jiepin Fu, MinFan and Jinping Ma havestepped down from theBoard of Directors of thecompany following theexpiration of their one-year terms.

Man San Law, chair-man and chief executiveofficer of 500.com said:“On behalf of the Boardof Directors, I would liketo express our sincerestgratitude to Mr Fu, MrFan and Mr Ma for theiroutstanding contribu-tions to the companyover the past year. Wewish them success intheir future endeavours. Iwould also like to extendmy warmest welcome toMr Williams whoseextensive experienceand expertise in corpo-rate matters will surelybenefit the companyover the long-term.”

ports data andmedia rightso p e r a t o rPerform Grouphas delisted its

shares from the LondonStock Exchange followingthe acquisition of a majorityshareholding by AccessIndustries, which nowholds, or has been offered, atotal of 87 per cent ofPerform Group shares.

Perform will continue toexecute its growth strategythrough increasing its inter-national presence, furtherstrengthening its contentand rights portfolio, anddeveloping and launchingnew products and servicesto meet the demands of itsevolving sports media mar-ketplace.

Since reporting half-yearresults on 29 August,Perform Group has tradedin line with expectations andremains in a strong financial

position. For the full year,Perform Group remains ontrack to achieve revenue andadjusted EBITDA in linewith the Board’s expecta-tions.

Simon Denyer, joint-CEOat Perform, commented:“For Perform Group and ourstaff and business partnersit is business as usual andnow that we have certaintyin place around the owner-ship of the company we lookforward to progressing witha number of plans to expandfurther into new areas.”

Lincoln Benet, CEO ofAccess Industries, added:“Access Industries has beena supporter of PerformGroup from the start and wecontinue to be excited by thecompany’s future potential.We look forward to workingwith the Perform Groupmanagement as the companydelivers its growth strategy.”

Since delisting, it has been

business as usual forPerform, which hasannounced a two-yearrenewal of its partnershipwith Fédération EquestreInternationale (FEI), theworld governing body forequestrian sport.

The new agreement seesPerform deliver extendedproduct management andmarketing of FEI TV, theFEI’s official video websiteand digital home of live andon-demand content from theworld of equestrian sports.

The renewal follows thesuccessful streaming of theFEI’s flagship event, theAlltech FEI World Eques-trian Games 2014 in Nor-mandy (FRA) this summer.The FEI platform deliveredmore than 250 hours of liveand on-demand coverage injust two weeks during theGames, resulting in a signifi-cant increase in subscrip-tions to FEI TV, which is now

one of the biggest and mostsuccessful services inPerform’s extensive portfo-lio of sports offerings.

“Since we launched FEITV, we have been delightedwith the results,” ChristianOsterode, head of broadcastand media rights for the FEIcommented. “The platformenables us to offer very com-prehensive and high qualitycoverage from all ourOlympic and non-Olympicdisciplines to global onlineand mobile communities.

“We have massivelyexpanded our reach and arenow in a position to engagedirectly with more fans inmore countries than everbefore. The massive trafficsince the launch clearlydemonstrates that FEI TV isa fantastic tool to showcaseour sport, communicate ourvalues and convert usersinto true equestrian enthusi-asts. Perform has enabled

FEI to monetise these digitalassets. We are pleased toextend this partnership andlook forward to continueproviding equestrian fanswith all the action fromaround the world.”

Warren Palk, managingdirector, Northern Europe& MENA at Perform, added:“FEI TV continues to be theleading online destinationfor equestrian fans. Thegrowth in subscribernumbers over the last fiveyears is testament to thequality of the platform andthe marketing the partnershave invested in. We aredelighted to have extendedour relationship once againwith FEI TV and lookforward to bringing morehigh quality content andevents to a growing fan baseover the coming years asthe platform continues toextend its reach across theglobe.”

The restructuring around Scien-tific Games after its acquisitionof Bally continues with the elec-

tion of two new members to theboard of directors. Richard Haddrill,former CEO of Bally Technologies,Inc, was elected as executive vicechairman of the board last monthwhile Judge Gabrielle McDonald hasalso been elected as a director.

Gavin Isaacs, Scientific Gamespresident and chief executive officer,commented: “Scientific Games ispleased to welcome two extremelyaccomplished, talented, and highlyqualified leaders to our board.Richard is an extraordinary execu-tive who led Bally to record profitsand revenues and has a deep back-ground in growing high-performingcompanies. Gabrielle has an interna-tionally renowned record forintegrity and fairness, as well as adeep background in law, complianceand international business. Richard

and Gabrielle are strong additions toour already outstanding Board.”

In his role as executive vice chair-man, Haddrill will focus on assistingthe company in realising its businessand financial objectives in connec-tion with the integration of Bally,which the company acquired inNovember 2014. Haddrill will alsofocus on new business development,

as well as providing general strate-gic guidance to Scientific Games’management.

Prior to joining the Board, Had-drill served as Bally’s CEO from 2004to 2012 and from May 2014 until thecompany’s acquisition. He served onBally’s board of directors from 2003until the acquisition, includingserving as chairman of the Boardfrom 2012 to 2014.

Prior to becoming Bally’s CEO,Haddrill served as CEO and as amember of the board of directors ofManhattan Associates, a softwaresolutions to the supply-chain indus-try. Prior to that, he served as presi-dent and chief executive officer ofPowerhouse Technologies, a tech-nology and gaming companyinvolved in the video lottery industryand online lottery and pari-mutuelwagering systems.

Haddrill is chairman of the boardof directors of Corrective Education

Company, a company involved inproviding training and educationalternatives to judicial prosecution.In addition, he is a director of theAmerican Gaming Association andThe Smith Center for the PerformingArts in Las Vegas.

Judge McDonald is a former U.S.District Court judge and since 1999has served as Special Counsel onHuman Rights to Freeport-McMoRan, an internationalresources company. From 2001 until2013, Judge McDonald also servedas a judge on the Iran-United StatesClaims Tribunal in The Hague.

Prior to that, she served six yearsas a judge on the InternationalCriminal Tribunal for the formerYugoslavia in The Hague, and waspresident of the Tribunal from 1997until 1999. Judge McDonald is amember of the board of directorsof the American Arbitration Asso-ciation.

Williamsjoins500.com

High profile appointees to Scientific boardRECRUITMENT

RICHARD HADDRILL: EXECUTIVE VICECHAIRMAN OF SCIENTIFIC GAMES

AccessownershipseesPerformdelistfromstockexchange

Sports streaming specialists Perform Group is no longer a listed firm after AccessIndustries followed up with its aim of taking the company private.

PERFORM’S JOINT CEOS OLIVERSLIPPER AND SIMON DENYER

LISTING

S


COME TO THE SPORTS BETTING INDUSTRY’S MAIN NETWORKING NIGHT AROUND ICE TOTALLY GAMING.

LONDON BABYTUESDAY 3 FEBRUARY CAFE DE PARIS

Register here www.sbcnews.co.uk/londonbaby2015

ORGANISERS

SPONSORS

23-26 JUNE 2015 AMSTERDAM

BORED AT WORK??

Find your DREAM JOB at jobs.sbcnews.co.uk

bA dedicated jobs board for the sports betting industry

60

Agenda

fter the busyC h r i s t m a speriod the Foot-ball calendar isu n r e l e n t i n g

throughout January FA Cup third & fourth

round proper are on theweekends on the 3rd and24th respectively sand-wiched between are fulldomestic and premiershipfixtures on the weekendsof the 10th and 17th and thestart of the Africa NationsCup in Equatorial Guineawhich culminates in Febru-ary.

A plum third round FACup ties see Liverpooltravel to AFC Wimbledon -a repeat of the 1988 finalwhen the famous CrazyGang lifted the trophy inone of the modern dayshocks within the tourna-ment. Also Arsenal play

Hull which is repeat of lastseason’s final. Current out-right betting has Chelseaand Man City as joint 5-1favourites and its 9-1 barthose.

Ivory Coast understand-ably lead the Africa Nationsbetting at 4/1 with Premier-ship stars such as YayaToure and Wilfred Bony attheir disposal.

The 2015 first TennisGrand Slam takes place inMelbourne from 19 Januarythe Australian Open. On theSunday 1 February 2015arguably the biggest sport-ing event in USA will takeplace in Glendale, Arizona -Superbowl XLIX currentlyat week 16 of the regularseason betting is wide open.New England Patriots are10-3 favourites followingby last season’s victors theSeattle Seahawks at 4-1.

A new year sees focus switch to the world’s plus the culmination of the American version

IGB Affiliate has announced that it is adding fourbrand new awards to the iGB Affiliate Awardswhich is set to take place on 1 February 2015 at

Chelsea Football Club during the London AffiliateConference.

In partnership with casinomeister.com,OLBG.co.uk, bingoport.co.uk and Bluff Europe therenew categories will reward the best online casino,sports book, bingo and poker room but uniquely fromthe player perspective.

“I felt it was really important to introduce playerfocused categories into the iGB Affiliate Awards asthey are after all the lifeblood of the sector and theiropinion is probably the most important to bear inmind when considering who to work with. I am reallylooking forward to the awards night now as I am par-ticularly interested to see if these winners will differfrom the affiliate category winners,” commentedAlex Pratt, head of iGaming Business. “I would alsolike to thank the portals that have come on board tohelp us create these awards and their player commu-nities that will make the decision on who will win.”

The Players’ Choice: Best Online Sportsbook willbe decided by the 200,000+ members of the olbg com-munity who will be voting against criteria rangingfrom ease of use and customer service to the range ofsports and bet types offered.

Richard Moffat, CEO of OLBG.com, commented:“Our community of knowledgeable sports bettorslove to help others to improve their betting and asidefrom providing winning tips, a key part of this ishelping people to choose a suitable sportsbook to betwith. Our members will take the voting seriously andwe welcome the opinion of others.”

The Players’ Choice: Best Online Bingo Operatorwill be decided by the www.BingoPort.co.uk commu-nity by bringing in this category from their estab-lished bingo awards they run annually during theLondon Affiliate Conference.

“We’re very excited to be able to integrate ourPlayers’ Choice Best Online Bingo Site award into theiGaming Business Awards in 2015. We’ve been pre-senting this award for the past 6 years, and feel thatusing the reach of real money bingo players that Bin-goPort.co.uk has access to we’re able to give an accu-rate representation of the real players’ choice when itcomes to the best online bingo site,” commentedScott Logan of BingoPort.

The bingo sector is set to take asignificantly higher profilewithin gaming’s most influen-

tial b2b exhibition following astrategic partnership agreedbetween ICE, the Bingo Associa-tion and Bingo Life.

The partnership will see bingo’srepresentative body in the UK andBingo Life, the sector’s dedicatedprint and digital media channel,taking a joint stand presence onthe show floor, which will serve asa hub for Bingo Associationmembers and the internationalbingo community at large.

Miles Baron, chief executive ofthe Bingo Association, said: “Weare delighted to have struck thispartnership with what is undeni-

ably the most influential businessevent on the international gamingcalendar. Our joint presence willprovide a meeting place for ourmembers and will allow us toengage with non-members at thesame time as showcasing theindustry to external opinionformers. 2014 has been a landmarkyear for UK bingo during which wesecured a reduction in bingo dutyfrom 20 to 10 per cent andincreased our membership.

“However there is still much tobe done and I look forward tobuilding a long term relationshipwith ICE and utilising the uniqueplatform it provides to continueour dialogue with all of our stake-holders including policy makers

and politicians.”Kate Chambers, portfolio direc-

tor responsible for ICE, said: “ICEserves all sectors within thegaming industry and I amdelighted that we are working inpartnership with the Bingo Associ-ation and Bingo Life to createanother focal point on what is thebusiest show floor in gaming. TheBingo Association has been recog-nised for its outstanding lobbyingactivity winning the Best PublicAffairs campaign at the prestigiousPR Week Awards in October and Ilook forward to working with Milesand his team to help raise furtherthe profile of bingo and to con-tribute to the strategic objectivesof the Association.”

Ante Post: Wbookies sa

A

ICE hoping for afull house frombingo industry

Players to have their sayat affiliate awards


BB124-p60-61-Agenda_09/10 02/01/2015 11:41 Page 1

61

The British Poker Awards will return to London’s Hippodrome Casino for a second successive year, organiser BluffEurope Magazine has confirmed. The ceremony is set to take place on 23 February, 2015, with the best and brightest ofUK poker talent expected to be in attendance. Poker enthusiasts are able to vote until 31 December at www.thebritish-pokerawards.com, with categories including Best Online Player and new video category Hand of the Year.

Poker Awards getting Hipp

ICE organisers are embracing the 2015 edition’s‘Voyage’ motif by hosting the World Regula-tory Assembly (WrA) Cocktail Reception on

the Cutty Sark, the 19th century clipper thatworked between Britain, China, Australia andEgypt and is arguably the world’s most famoustrading ship.

Supported by key gaming organisationsincluding International Association of GamingAdvisors (IAGA), International Association ofGaming Regulators (IAGR) European CasinoAssociation (ECA), National Casino Forum(NCF) and the World Lottery Association (WLA),the WrA Cocktail Reception (2 February) willprovide invited delegates with the opportunityto peer-to-peer network with C-Level execu-tives, gaming regulators and influencers inadvance of the exhibition, which opens its doorsto the international gaming community the fol-lowing day.

Kate Chambers, portfolio director responsi-ble for ICE, said: “The Cutty Sark, which is situ-ated just across the River Thames from ourhome at the ExCeL Centre, is a unique symbol ofinternational trade and commerce and repre-sents a fantastic environment to begin the net-working opportunities for which ICE week isfamous. The WrA reception is an invaluableevent for guests to meet, to discuss the weekahead and explore all the opportunities that ICEand the WrA has to offer.”

Taking place alongside ICE, the WrA com-prises a series of high-profile events designed toshare knowledge and deliver high-level net-working opportunities. They include the WorldRegulatory Briefing (in association with IAGA),an event within the ICE Conference programmethat will focus on crucial updates on worldwideregulatory updates; the Annual RegulatorsLunch, which brings together the internationalRegulatory community to network while hearingkeynote addresses from industry leaders; andthe IMGL Masterclass, a full-day free-to-attendsession where key regulatory stakeholders shareknowledge on current industry updates.

The importance of ICE as the meeting placefor all of gaming has been put into sharp focuswith confirmation that a record 100 interna-tional gaming regulators are expected at the2015 event from international jurisdictionsincluding; Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada,Channel Islands, Denmark, Finland, France,Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Jamaica, Kenya, Latvia,Lithuania, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Singa-pore, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, UnitedKingdom, and the USA.

he world’s oldest football tournament - the FA Cup,can version of the sport in Arizona.

: What thes say

JONATHAN WRIGHTHead of tradingBoylesports

There’ll be no January bluesfor our customers in 2015as what promises to beanother bumper sportingyear kicks off with the Aus-tralian Open which wewelcome, as the return oftennis’s leading lightsalways guarantees bettinginterest, despite the timedifference.

There’s also no let up inthe top quality racing actionwith Cheltenham providingtwo mouth-watering meet-ings in the shape of the NewYear’s Day fixture which isoften the last festive hurrahfor many before it’s time toget back to work and thefestival trials day, bookend-ing the month to get pulses

racing as the penny dropsthat the famous four daysare just a few weeks away.

The football action willalso continue thick and fastand at the time of writing,one of the most romanticdays in the calendar willhave just taken place - theFA Cup third round - still abetting highlight for fansnationwide.

ALEX DONOHUEPublic Relations OfficerLadbrokes

Punters are eased into theNew Year with the foot-balling feast provided bythe FA Cup 3rd Round, andthose who are luckyenough to pinpoint the bigpriced shocks will berewarded. No doubt a fewwill try to negotiate theirway through the ties with

an odds-on accumulator.But in our position we’dhave to expect at least oneteam to do us a favour. It’s avery different style of thegame on offer and the endof the month as the AfricanCup of Nations takes centrestage.

Elsewhere the NFL isreaching its finale and theplay-offs have seen interestfrom a betting perspectivegrow and grow in recentseasons. On the HorseRacing front Betway will belooking towards our keyCheltenham ChampionChase sponsorship with anumber of racedays and wealso look forward to the keycontenders emergingthrough a number of trials.

ALAN ALGERHead of media relationsBetway

Regulatorsassembleforcocktailson theCutty Sark

LISTINGS

MONTHLY BRIEFING

JANUARY 201518-20 Affiliate Summit West2015, Paris Casino LasVegas, USA20 Society for the Study ofGambling Meeting, LondonMathematical Society, DeMorgan House, London31 – 3 February LondonAffiliate Conference 2015,London Olympia, London, UK

FEBRUARY 20152 European Online GamingLaw 2015, Crowne PlazaLondon – The City Hotel2 International CasinoConference, ExCelConference Centre, London, UK3 World Regulatory Briefing,ExCel Conference Centre,London, UK3-4 Data Insight and BusinessIntelligence, ExCelConference Centre, London, UK3-4 Cross-Platform and Multi-Channel Gaming, ExCelConference Centre, London,UK3 Lotteries for the Future,ExCel Conference Centre,London, UK3-4 Game Design andDevelopment, ExCelConference Centre, London,UK3-4 BetMarkets, ExCelConference Centre, London, UK4 Cybercrime, Security andRegulatory Compliance,ExCel Conference Centre,London, UK2-4 2015 New Horizons inResponsible GamingConference, Vancouver,Canada2 8th Annual InternationalGaming Awards (IGA), SavoyHotel, London, UK3-5 ICE Totally Gaming, ExCel Conference Centre,London, UK3 London Baby Sports BettingCommunity Networking Party,Café de Paris, London4 Fire & Ice, The Troxy,London26 iGaming LegislativeSymposium, Sheraton GrandSacramento Hotel,Sacramento, USA

MARCH 201518-19 Caribbean GamingShow & Summit, CaribeHilton, San Juan18-19 FAJDA Peru 2015,Atlantic City, Lima, Peru

APRIL 201514-16 iGaming North America2015, Planet Hollywood, LasVegas, USA21-23 GiGSE 2015, HyattRegency, San Francisco,USA

MAY 201520-21 ad:tech SanFrancisco 2015, SanFrancisco, USA


AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ P

ET

ER

CZ

IBO

RR

A

BB124-p60-61-Agenda_09/10 02/01/2015 11:42 Page 2


Analysis

THE £10,000,000 COLOSSUSALL OTHER BETS ARE LOWER LEAGUE S

w

1 (1) SportingBet - 0.632 (3) Betfair - 0.843 (2) Sky Bet - 0.994 (-) Bet365 - 1.57 5 (5) BetFred - 1.736 (7) Bet Victor - 1.737 (6) Paddy Power - 1.838 (8) Ladbrokes - 1.859 (-) Coral - 2.1610 (4) Totepool - 2.22Chart supplied by: SciVism. Data for November Working Hours 08:00-23:00

TOP TENMOBILE AVERAGE JOURNEY - PAGE DELIVERY TIME (SECS)

Issues onmobile deSciVisum explains alittle more aboutthe JourneyConsistency andwhat the standarddeviation or ‘SD’figures actuallymeans in its chart.

1 (2) bet365 2 (3) William Hill3 (4) Betfair4 (1) Paddy Power5 (7) Betfred 6 (8) 888sport 7 (6) Winner8 (5) Stan James9 (10) Betway 10 (-) CoralChart supplied by: Freebets.com. Data for November

TOP TENBOOKMAKERS FOR MONEYBACK OFFERS

1 SportingBet 1132 Bet Victor 1413 Bet 365 1454 Sky Bet 1505 Ladbrokes 2106 William Hill 2427 Coral 2478 Betfair 3179 BetFred 52010 Paddy Power 686Chart supplied by: SciVism. Data for November Working Hours 08:00-23:00

TOP TENMOBILE AVERAGE JOURNEY - STEP SIZE (KB)

1 Betfair - 99.882 Bet Victor - 99.863 Stan James - 99.854 Sky Bet - 99.825 Coral - 99.676 Bet 365 - 99.297 William Hill - 99.198 Ladbrokes - 99.039 SportingBet - 98.9010 BetFred - 98.73Chart supplied by: SciVism. Data for November Working Hours 08:00-23:00

TOP TENMOBILE JOURNEY AVAILABILITY (%)

1 Cheltenham - Paddy Power Gold Cup Chase2 Newbury - Hennessy Gold Cup Chase 3 Cheltenham - JCB Triumph Hurdle Trial4 Cheltenham - Murphy Group Handicap Chase5 Ascot - United House Gold Cup Handicap Chase6 Cheltenham - Ultima Business Solutions Handicap Hurdle7 Cheltenham - Mares’ Standard Open NH Flat Race8 Cheltenham - Michael Scudamore Intermediate Handicap Hurdle9 Doncaster - Betfred November Handicap10 Cheltenham - Stanjames.com Greatwood HurdleChart supplied by: Totepool. Data for November

TOP TENUK HORSERACE POOLS

1 (1) Winner 2 (2) Paddy Power 3 (3) 888Sport4 (9) Coral 5 (-) BetBright6 (4) BetVictor 7 (8) Titanbet 8 (6) William Hill9 (7) 10bet10 (10) TotepoolChart supplied by: Freebets.com . Data for October . Sorted by value excluding free betpayback

TOP TENBOOKMAKERS FOR ENHANCED ODDS OFFERS

AC

TIO

N IM

AG

ES

/ JA

SO

N C

AIR

ND

UF

F L

IVE

PIC

BB124-p62-63-Analysis_09/10 02/01/2015 11:06 Page 1


www.colossusbets.comStart playing at colossusbets.com

Bet on our easy-to-play

weekly pick 7 football game.

Cash-In profits in full

or in part as matches progress.

Win your share of the pool

by holding your nerve to the end.

@ColossusBets facebook.com/ColossusBets

SPONSORED BY COLOSSUS BETS

1 Sky Bet - Racing: If Fav wins2 Ladbrokes - Football: If both teams score Man C v Man U3 Sky Bet - Football: If both teams score Man C v Man U4 Sky Bet - Football: If Arsenal don’t beat Swansea5 Betfair - Boxing: If Bellew v Cleverly ends in KO6 Betway - Rugby: If try scored in the last 5 minutes7 Bet365 - Greyhounds: Sky dogs 2/18 BetVictor - Football: If Man City beat Bayern Munich9 Coral - Greyhounds: If 2nd by a length or less10 Paddy Power - Football: If Arsenal and Man Utd drawChart supplied by: Freebets.com . Data for November

TOP TENMONEYBACK OFFERS BY CHANCE

1 Bet365 - Greyhounds: Sky Dogs 2/12 Paddy Power - Football: If Arsenal and Man Utd draw3 Paddy Power - Boxing: If Bellew v Cleverly ends in six rounds4 Paddy Power - Rugby: If losing first tryscorer scores in match5 Paddy Power - Football: Pick your own money back6 Ladbrokes - Football: If both teams score Man C v Man U 7 Sky Bet - Racing: If Fav wins8 Sky Bet - Football: If both teams score Man C v Man9 Sky Bet - Football: If Arsenal don’t beat Swansea10 Betfair - Boxing: If Bellew v Cleverly ends in KOChart supplied by: Freebets.com. Data for November

TOP TENMONEYBACK OFFERS BY VALUE

1 (1) Bet365 - 0.622 (2) Betfair Sports - 1.333 (3) BetVictor - 1.694 (4) Totesport - 1.925 (5) Ladbrokes - 2.156 (6) Betclic - 2.217 (7) Sky Bet - 2.248 (8) Paddy Power - 3.269 (-) Gamebookers - 3.4310 (-) Betfred - 3.54Chart supplied by: Gomez. Data for November

TOP TENONLINE SPORTSBOOK PERFORMANCE

RESPONSE TIME (SECS)

1 International Cricket - Australia v South Africa (1st ODI) £53,042,188.322 International Cricket - India v Sri Lanka (2nd ODI) £50,029,580.323 International Cricket - Australia v South Africa (5th ODI) £49,129,311.204 International Cricket - Sri Lanka v England (1st ODI) £45,558,994.685 International Cricket - Australia v South Africa (4th ODI) £45,427,836.766 International Cricket - Pakistan v New Zealand (2nd Test) £42,977,623.687 International Cricket - Australia v South Africa (3rd ODI) £40,130,788.908 International Cricket - India v Sri Lanka (5th ODI) £39,258,593.889 International Cricket - Pakistan v Australia (2nd Test) £36,803,948.7610 International Cricket - India v Sri Lanka (4th ODI) £34,048,461.88Chart supplied by: Betfair. Data for November

TOP TENTOP TEN BETTING EXCHANGE MARKETS

s on the move - whene delivery goes wrong

n this case the figures relateto the average customer’stime to obtain a ‘result’. Overthe testing period wemeasure a customer

journey from start to finish every 5minutes: the time taken can vary greatlyand the SD figure is an indication of thisvariability. The smaller the figure themore consistent the journey times areto each other.

It’s important to note that having agood consistency figure on its own isn’t

an ideal indicator of performance. Theconsistency value shows variation, soyou may have a low SD number, but itcould mean that the mobile site is deliv-ering a consistently slow service. Thebest mobile betting sites will need to behigh up in all the league tables.

So what can go wrong? Over the lastthree months we have tested daily from8am to 11pm (avoiding scheduled main-tenance). Not only are we testing thedelivery times of the betting services,but we are also recording sporadicerrors too.

Sporadic errors are faults that maynot trigger an ‘alert’, but if addedtogether the total time or enoughinstances of the fault may warrantfurther investigation - high levels ofsporadic errors can indicate underly-ing issues.

Stan James, Coral and Bet365 per-formed well with sporadic errorsreported less than 0.1 per cent of thetime. However, the worst performingsite suffered sporadic errors 3 per centof the total time - that equates to 800minutes a month or a 1-in-7 chance of auser encountering a fault.

An example is that one site keptthrowing us from the horse racing page

back to the home page. It was only spo-radic, happening less than 1 per cent ofthe time. Still if you were the ‘punter’you’d not be best pleased. There aremany reasons why this can happen, inour experience it could be a generalsoftware bug or a bug in the load bal-ancing or session handling functions.It’s easily fixed and easily avoided.

We have found that relying on third-parties for content (content deliverynetworks or CDNs) can leave a bettingcompany exposed to a degradedservice seriously impacting customerloyalty and the bottom line. There wasa recurring issue with one company’sthird-party personalisation service.The impact was slow content delivery:the third-party personalisation tool,while intended to tailor content forusers, may in fact make the whole expe-rience worse for them.

The use of CDNs can throw up manyfaults. One particularly noteworthyerror with a CDN that seriouslyimpacted delivery times was it failingto authenticate users. Why should aCDN try and authenticate users? Thatis NOT its job! A double failure consid-ering it shouldn’t be authenticating andthen failing to do so anyway.

1 (9) Betfair – 0.23 2 (1) Sky Bet - 0.28 3 (3) BetFred - 0.53 4 (4) Bet Victor - 0.575 (5) Paddy Power - 0.676 (7) Bet 365 - 0.88 7 (8) Ladbrokes – 0.998 (6) Stan James – 1.069 (-) Willaim Hill – 1.4310 (-) Coral 2.12Data for November Working Hours 08:00-23:00.Chart supplied by: SciVism

TOP TENMOBILE JOURNEY CONSISTENCY

(SD)

1 BetVictor 19.68%2 Betfair exchange 15.12%3 Bet365 14.99%4 Paddy Power 8.94%5 Coral 7.27%6 William Hill 6.82%7 Ladbrokes 6.10%8 Sky Bet 5.37%9 Betfair Sportsbook 4.45%10 Betfred 3.53%Chart supplied by: Oddschecker. Calculated on market share of betslip clicks .Data for October for Football across UK, Euro & Internationals

TOP TENFINDINGS FROM FREEBETS.COM MONEY BACK OFFERS REPORT

1 Horseracing - Open Meeting, Cheltenham2 Horseracing - Hennessy Gold Cup, Newbury3 International Football - England v Slovenia, Euro Qualifying4 Horseracing - Breeders’ Cup, Santa Anita5 Domestic Football - Man City v Man Utd, Premier League6 Horseracing - Betfred November Handicap, Doncaster7 Domestic Football - Liverpool v Chelsea, Premier League8 Tennis - Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, London9 Golf - DP World Tour Championship, Dubai10 International Cricket - Sri Lanka v England, ODI Series, Sri LankaChart supplied by: Betfred. Data for November

TOP TENRETAIL BETTING EVENTS

1 AUS - Tom Waterhouse - Melbourne Cup - E17,228,4002 GBR - Colossus Bets - The £10,000,000 Colossus - E12,743,9003 SWE - V75 -Bjerke - E9,771,2934 AUS - Ladbrokes Megafecta - Melbourne Cup Day - E6,891,3605 ESP - La Quinella - E6,573,9926 GBR - Classic Pools - E3,823,1007 SWE - V86 - Solvalla/Bergsaker - E2,578,9248 GBR - Colossus Bets -Pick6 - E2,545,1809 AUS - Ladbrokes Megapick - Victoria Derby Day- E2,067,40810 AUS - Ladbrokes Megapick - Melbourne Cup Day- E2,067,408Chart supplied by: Colossus Bets. Calculated by biggest pools/guarantees over a week’s period during themonth. One entry per bet type. Data for November

TOP TENGLOBAL POOLS

1 Germany 30, Daily2 Wall Street, Daily3 UK 100, Daily4 Spot, EUR/USD5 Spot, GBP/USD6 Wall Street, Dec7 UK 100, Dec8 Germany 30, Dec9 SPX 500, Dec10 Spot, AUD/USD

Chart supplied by: Spreadex. Calculated on volume of bets. Data for November

TOP TENFINANCIAL SPREAD MARKETS

1 International Cricket - Pakistan v Australia 1st Test2 Domestic Football - West Brom v Man Utd3 Domestic Football - Man Utd v Chelsea4 European Football - Liverpool v Real Madrid5 Domestic Football - QPR v Aston Villa6 International Football - England v San Marino7 International Football - Estonia v England8 Domestic Football - Chelsea v Arsenal9 Domestic Football - Aston Villa v Man City10 International Cricket - India v West Indies 1st ODI Chart supplied by: Spreadex. Calculated on volume of bets. Data for November

TOP TENSPORTS SPREAD MARKETS

I

BB124-p62-63-Analysis_09/10 02/01/2015 11:06 Page 2

Choose your channel. Play the game.Head to the jungle and hunt down the big wins in Prowling Panther – IGT’s first ever simultaneous triple channel launch in the UK. Available on the floor, online and on the go. Prowling Panther is one great game with three ways to play.

Convergence begins at www.igt.com/interactive or simply give us a call at +44 (0)203 249 8500.

© 2014 IGT. All Rights Reserved.

bb124 digital

Documents

sky sports

sky vegas sky casino

sky willprovide

sky poker

sky bingo

valuablesupport of sky

sky receive600m

sky betsemployees