iGaming
32Red CEO Ed Ware wants to see his firm stretch its wings away from the core UK market, but casino remains closest to the operator’s heart.
ED WARE: ‘KEEN TO EXPLOIT THE BINGO MARKET’
Regulated markets will cost to enter
888 8
Italy ‘the right new territory’ for 32Red brand
INTERVIEW W
What are 32Red’s plans for 2012? We intend to proceed as we have been which
is primarily to continue to increase our levels of invest- ment in the online casino market within the UK. This will be through our estab- lished marketing channels and using our ‘second to none’ comparative approach and quality of service propo- sition. We have undertaken a good deal of research into the newly regulated Euro- pean markets and have applied for an Italian licence which we hope to be able to use to operate there in the first half of 2012. This is our first foray away from our home market and we are very much looking forward to the opportunity. We see Italy as much the right new territory for our 32Red brand and - for the time being - ahead of other newly regulated countries.
What does online bingo provide that other gambling products don’t? While it’s not our main busi- ness we have been keen to exploit the bingo market in a measured way as it enables us to access a new group of potential customers; as well as it offering a platform to advertise the brand away from the post-9pm water- shed for television advertis- ing that our casino business adheres to. Obviously, player yields are much lower than that enjoyed by the casinos we operate, although acquisi- tion costs are not much dif- ferent. There are some very well established operators in this space and we accept that we can’t simply take them on without a change in our focus.
What was the impetus to re- enter the sportsbetting market with 32Redbet?
We are a business driven by putting casino customers and their requirements at the centre of what we do. We see casino players as distinct from poker players and regular sportsbetting cus- tomers but recognise that a good many people actually do have the need to place a bet, even if only occasion- ally. That’s not to say that we don’t have very regular sportsbetting customers using our service daily, but the primary function of 32RedBet is to act as a defence to players being lost to betting operators who invariably operate a casino.
Is the poker market still tough? Has Black Friday had any effect?
Poker seems to only get tougher! We’ve seen very little by way of repercus- sions following Black Friday but that is very likely only a reflection of the size of our
poker business and not the huge shift that took place in that market.
How useful has the sponsor- ship of Swansea City been? Did you anticipate promo- tion to the Premier League when the deal was struck? Naturally we are very pleased with events at Swansea. Not only are they a progressive, good foot- balling side, but the manage- ment and key people at Swansea are thorough pro- fessionals and a pleasure to work with. Our initial inter- est was driven by the switch to BBC1 for the highlights programme for Champi- onship teams ahead of the first season of our sponsor- ship; not all prospective sponsors were up to speed on this so we think we stole a march a little. We were always aware that the club was set up properly finan- cially and that they were able
to attract a good calibre of playing and coaching staff. We were overjoyed with their promotion to the Premier League.
Is there a big crossover with casino and financial betting? As mentioned earlier, we see the casino player as a very special individual and our customers are almost exclu- sively using their designated disposable income to play casino games with us as opposed to some of the other services we offer. Casino is a particular type of recreation and distinct from the other remote gambling activities, and perhaps our heavy focus on casino players has resulted in us recruiting con- noisseurs of casino gaming who are just not really inter- ested in anything other than that… It’s difficult to judge that, but for sure financial betting remains very much a peripheral product of us.
Bodog Brand out of the US market B
BODOG
odog, once one of the most forthright and high profile of US facing brands, has com- pleted its withdrawal from the US market, a few weeks earlier than expected. Last month the Kahnawake- licensed Morris Mohawk Gaming Group (MMGG) switched its operation from the Bodog name to its own new brand - Bovada meaning US residents are no longer be able to access
bodog.eu or any other Bodog branded website. Earlier this year Bodog
revealed its plans to with- draw MMGG’s licence to use the Bodog brand expire in 2012 in order to protect its image in other jurisdic- tions. In a statement at the time, the firm explained: “In order to ensure the brand’s expansion is not affected by negative per- ceptions, both in the UK and elsewhere in emerging markets such as Asia, where Bodog88 is already successful, a decision has been made to withdraw the Bodog brand from the US market at the end of 2011.”
6 BettingBusinessInteractive • JANUARY 2012
In a statement marking the withdrawal of the Bodog brand from the US- market, the company added: “We understand MMGG will now operate under its new brand, Bovada, at the following website:
www.bovada.lv, such domain being given to MMGG pursuant to its rights on expiry of the licensing agreement. The Bodog brand is confident MMGG’s customer account information and funds will continue to remain safe and secure, as it has done
since MMGG entered its original agreement with the Bodog Brand in 2006 and we would like to wish MMGG the greatest success in its new venture.” In the meantime, Bodog is concentrating on revolu- tionising online poker operations with the roll out of its Recreational Poker Model which blocks infor- mation being mined by data websites used by pro- fessional players. After two weeks of operations, the firm appears happy with the new system,
which has been introduced to protect those who play poker for fun from the sector’s sharp players. It is also planning to introduce a facility for players to review their hand histo- ries, which due to its anonymous player approach, will allow all hands to be seen, thus making against any possi- ble collusion easily detectable.
PROTECTING THE POKER ECO-SYSTEM Comment 63
88 Holdings deputy chairman Brian Mattin- gley has said that 2012 is set to be a year of major opportunity for 888, with the opening of several newly- regulated markets across Europe. However, he has warned that the cost of setting the company up in these jurisdictions will affect the firm’s bottom-line next year. “We have to invest in the
newly regulated markets in Europe, that includes Spain, Italy and Denmark,” he com- mented. “In order to estab- lish and build our market share, whilst this is a major opportunity for us, the sig- nificant but strategic invest- ment, along with the increase in gaming duty in Spain and Denmark, will have an impact on the group’s profit expectations. We do, however, expect results for the year ending 31st December 2012 to be slightly ahead of market expectations.” The firm’s figures in the short term are much health- ier with 888 announcing that it expects clean EBIDTA for the year ending 31st December 2011 to be signif- icantly ahead of market expectations as trading has remained very strong, espe- cially in casino and poker, for the last few months of the year.
It is not just Europe where 888 is looking to expand either, although Mattingley has said the company will go at its own pace regarding the US. “I would like to point out that we are the only online gaming company currently with a Nevada suitability licence and therefore we must be a perfect candidate to obtain a full licence,” he said. “We are actively in dis- cussions with a lot of people and we are not going to be hurried. We are going to ensure that whatever we do is right for the company and when we have something to report we will do. But we will not be rushed into doing any- thing in the US because no- one is really sure how the US will pan out.”
TRADING IN CASINO HAS REMAINED ‘VERY STRONG’
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