BetVictor shuts down in-house live casino
Bespoke service closed with immediate effect just 18 months after launch
BetVictor’s in-house live casino offering has been shut down with immediate effect less than 18 months after launch, with the operator admitting the service “did not deliver sufficient value”.
The Gibraltar-based firm said that this decision “had not been taken lightly” but explained that a detailed review had found a proprietary live casino product had little benefit when compared with a third-party solution.
“The CEO and the senior management team have acted decisively on rigorous analysis in the best interests of the long term future of the business,” a BetVictor spokesperson told eGaming Review.
Its other live casino products, supplied by Evolution Gaming, Net Entertainment and Microgaming will remain available to customers.
The company said it hopes to find suitable alternative employment for the 52 staff affected by the closure. In conjunction with Evolution it has identified between 50 and 60 vacancies in Malta and Belgium which the supplier will invite the affected staff to apply for.
All staff will go on a 60-day consultation period and have been informed of all current available internal vacancies and secondments within BetVictor, the company said.
BetVictor’s in-house live casino was launched in conjunction with Medialive in October 2013, representing the first egaming firm to set up its own studio rather than outsourcing it to a third-party supplier and external location.
It constructed a custom-built studio at the company’s Gibraltar offices, with 40 croupiers employed to manage games and communicate with players 24 hours a day.
Victor Chandler, the company’s founder and chairman at the time, said the move was driven by the desire to offer a higher quality service and increase the appeal to VIP customers.
“We believe we can do it better and can give a better experience than anyone in the market is currently doing,” he told eGaming Review at the time of launch.