Launches and sign-ups 20 July 2016
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (14 July 2016 to 20 July 2016)
Playtech acquires Best Gaming Technology for ?115m
Purchase of SSBT provider designed to boost Playtech’s retail and omni-channel offering
Playtech has purchased 90% of the shares in sports betting supplier Best Gaming Technology (BGT) for ?115m, the London-listed firm announced last week.
Vienna-headquartered BGT provides self-service betting terminals (SSBTs) and other services to a variety of retail bookmakers, including Coral, Ladbrokes, Paddy Power and William Hill in the UK and Codere in Spain.
“In addition to supplying many of the most profitable bookmakers in the UK, the acquisition will provide Playtech with greater penetration into the Spanish and Italian markets with several significant potential new customers in the pipeline,” Playtech said in a statement.
BGT, which will be acquired using Playtech’s cash resources, also provides ePOS and till systems for betting operators and an omni-channel web/mobile betting platform.
Former Scientific Games chief leads ?200m Inspired Gaming takeover
Former Scientific Games CEO Lorna Weil has led a takeover of Inspired Gaming Group in a deal valuing the supplier at ?200m, it was announced last week.
New York-based Hydra Industries, a recently established gaming-focused acquisition vehicle, has agreed to pay private equity house Vitruvian Partners approximately US$100m up front with the remainder in shares.
The cash will be funded by a $20m private placement from Macquarie Capital and $80m from Hydra’s cash in trust.
Seven days in launches and sign-ups:
Betfair becomes global sponsor of FC Barcelona
Betfair has signed a new deal with FC Barcelona to become an official global partner of the Catalonia club for the next three seasons.
The deal will see the operator’s branding displayed on Camp Nou’s digital LED hoardings, and Barcelona fans offered special betting offers.
Betfair will also have access to the club’s players to create promotional material and develop marketing campaigns.
Matchbook launches horseracing product with Goodwood sponsorship
Matchbook has become the official betting partner of the Goodwood Festival to mark the launch of horseracing on its betting exchange.
The exchange operator is sponsoring five races across the first three days of the festival as part of the deal, including the first race of the event, ‘The Matchbook Betting Exchange Stakes’.
“For years Matchbook has built a reputation of providing unparalleled value to sports betting customers, and adding horseracing is the obvious next evolution of that,” said Matchbook spokesperson Cian Nugent.
Sky Bet unveils ?2m Fantasy Football marketing campaign
Sky Betting & Gaming (SB&G) is launching a new ?2m multi-media campaign for its Sky Sports Fantasy Football product as part of a major marketing push ahead of the new football season.
The ‘Let the #mindgames begin’ campaign started this week via a TV and VoD launch, with the Leeds-based operator aiming to hit the one million sign-up mark for the free-to-play game.
SB&G appointed creative agency Who Wot Why to lead the campaign, which will also be backed throughout the 2016-17 season by additional film content, online, social media and targeted CRM.
William Hill Australia unveils in-store top-up card
William Hill Australia has unveiled a new branded top-up card, giving customers quicker access to their winnings and the ability to deposit funds into their online account via thousands of retailers across the country.
The operator partnered with payments solutions provider Emerchants and its EachWay network to launch the reloadable winnings card, which can be used at around 4,500 participating retailers.
Customers can top-up their WilliamHill.com.au account via cash, credit card or eftpos card, with the funds credited in real time so the cardholder can immediately access their funds online.
Gaming Innovation Group to unveil new Maltese HQ
Gaming Innovation Group (GIG) is set to open a new “first of its kind” headquarters in Malta as it looks to rapidly expand the business following its recent acquisition of Betit Group.
The Oslo-listed gambling firm is to unveil its modern office building in Q2 2017, located in St George’s Bay on the Southern European island under an eight-year lease.
The office aims to promote energy conservation and will feature more than 500 square metres of terrace space for green areas, sports, meetings, outdoor workstations and parties.
PMU follows William Hill with message platform deal
Pari Mutuel Urbain (PMU) is following the path of William Hill and Paddy Power by striking a deal to integrate Onionsack’s messaging platform, giving customers the ability to place bets through messaging channels.
The deal will enable PMU customers to text a bet in their natural language using SMS or Instant Messaging for free by using Onionsack’s sports betting software.
Alain Resplandy-Bernard, deputy CEO of PMU (pictured left), said the focus of the tender process was choosing the “right” provider.
Gaming Realms launches Slingo-branded roulette game
Gaming Realms has announced the launch of a new online table game, Slingo Shuffle Roulette, as the operator looks to build on the success of products previously released under the Slingo brand.
Slingo Shuffle Roulette is the first table game released by the London-listed firm under the Slingo brand and will be rolled out across all core products including Slingo.com, Spin Genie, Pocket Fruity and Britain’s Got Talent Games.
The fixed-odds card game sees customers play against the house and predict the cards they believe will be dealt before the devil card appears, with similar bet placement to standard roulette games.