XLMedia in talks with Google to restore rebuilt casino brands
Affiliate provides update after legacy gaming portfolio was penalised by search giant in early 2020
Google is reconsidering XLMedia’s portfolio of online casino websites after the affiliate transformed its legacy offering during 2020.
The Jersey-headquartered firm spent most of 2020 fighting gaming revenue declines after Google de-ranked 107 of its websites last January.
Since then, XLMedia ignited a transformation process designed to improve operational efficiency with the overall aim of getting the sites restored by Google.
This included rebuilding certain sites in-house, developing new sites, de-indexing immaterial sites and disposing of brands which no longer fit the direction of the business.
Google has since removed the penalty on three of the 10 sites XLMedia hopes to recover, while the affiliate has pledged to refine the rejected sites and resubmit in due course.
XLMedia said in a statement: “The company is pursuing a multi-track approach to recovering the casino vertical, where a number of sites were penalised by Google early in 2020.
“This process is being carried out in conjunction with a fundamental rationalisation of the asset portfolio, significantly reducing the overall number of sites and upgrading the quality of those remaining, with a concentration on highly-engaging content and enhanced functionality to drive increased traffic and build consumer loyalty,” it added.
XLMedia expects to deliver full-year revenue of approximately $54.5m and adjusted EBITDA of around $11.5m.