Launches and sign-ups 15 July 2015
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (9 July 2015 to 15 July 2015)
Unibet acquires Stan James Online for £19m
Stockholm-listed operator eyes major push into the UK online sports betting market
Unibet is set for a major expansion into the UK market after the operator announced a deal to acquire the digital business of Gibraltar-based firm Stan James for £19m.
The Stockholm-listed operator is expected to complete the acquisition of Stan James Online in the second half of Q3 2015 with the £19m paid fully in cash and based on a multiple of approximately 6x the firm’s 2015 EBITDA.
While the deal does not include the company’s 90 UK betting shops, under the terms of the agreement all of Stan James’ 150 Gibraltar-based employees will now switch employment to Unibet once the acquisition receives regulatory approval.
32Red acquires Microgaming-powered casino for £8.4m
32Red has struck an agreement to acquire Microgaming-powered online casino Roxy Palace for £8.4m in a part-cash, part-paper deal which will see the firm bolster its UK presence and expand into new European markets.
Roxy Palace, which has 230,000 registered customers, last year posted net gaming revenues of £10.1m and EBITDA of £1.6m. Approximately 50% of Roxy Palace’s revenues are derived from the UK, with the unlicensed markets of Netherlands and Sweden also making significant contributions.
Sellers Hyperlink Media and Applied Logics will receive £1m cash on completion, with two further payments of £0.5m due by 31 December 2016. The remainder will consist of 10,000,000 new shares which are expected to be issued by the end of the week.
Playtech rolls-out new bingo software
Playtech Bingo is to begin the roll-out of its new HTML5-optimised platform with a number of the firm’s B2C clients expected to launch on the multi-channel solution in the coming weeks.
Digital marketing firm Send Media’s Sea Bingo brand is expected to be the first to launch on the multi-channel software, which eGaming Review understands will go live by the end of this month.
Playtech has ceased development in Flash and is now offering a seamless HTML5 experience across desktop, tablet and mobile with the supplier reporting a 24% rise in bingo revenues in Q1 as a result of the sharper focus on mobile.
OpenBet lands major Singapore supply deal
OpenBet looks set to enter the highly-regulated Singaporean market after striking a deal with local firm Singapore Pools, providing the operator gains an exemption from the country’s current online gambling ban.
The software supplier is believed to have agreed to provide Singapore Pools with an online sportsbook tailored specifically to the local market, which was last year estimated to be worth approximately $500m (£240m).
Online gambling in Singapore is currently prohibited as part of the country’s updated Remote Gambling Act, which came in force on 2 February and saw a swathe of operators withdraw from the market.
Full Tilt bolsters online casino with NYX deal
Full Tilt has bolstered its casino offering with hundreds of new titles from NYX Gaming after striking a deal with the supplier to integrate its Open Gaming System into its platform.
The partnership will give Full Tilt casino players access to titles from NYX’s NextGen Gaming studio including Titan Storm and Judge Dredd, plus third-party content, available on both desktop and mobile.
“The agreement with NYX Gaming supports our strategy of enabling our customers to enjoy the best in multi-vendor content,” Dominic Mansour, Full Tilt MD, said.
Mansion agrees Crystal Palace sponsorship deal
Operator to replace Optimal Payments’ NETELLER brand on the front of Palace shirts for the upcoming season
Mansion Group is the new sponsor of Premier League team Crystal Palace after agreeing a deal to replace Optimal Payments’ NETELLER brand.
While the length and terms of the deal were not announced, a statement by the operator said the deal would see Mansion “working closely with the Premier League team across a broad spectrum of commercial activities”.
Playtech licensees hit £5m jackpot
A series of progressive jackpots on Playtech’s highest performing slot games have dropped in just seven days, resulting in pay outs of more than £5m across a trio of licensees.
A handful of regular players on Coral Bingo, Gala Bingo and bgo.com struck gold on popular Playtech slots including Beach Life, Chests of Plenty, Adventures in Wonderland, Leprechaun’s Luck and branded favourite Gladiator.
“To have so many progressives fall is incredible and we’re delighted, but it’s not unusual with the quality and range of best performing slots we have within our industry-leading casino offering,” Shimon Akad, Playtech COO, said.