Ladbrokes poaches Hills online COO as Israel division opens
New digital marketing subsidiary Ladbrokes Israel opens as part of long-term licensing deal with Playtech " Mullen joins after more than two years at operator's biggest rivals
Ladbrokes has announced the hiring of Jim Mullen from William Hill to head up its online operations, on the same day that its Israeli marketing subsidiary officially opens.
Mullen, who joined Hills as COO of its online division from News International in 2010, will take the title of director, digital when he joins the company in November this year. He will report directly to CEO Richard Glynn, with his duties being handled by director of channels Nick Rust in the interim.
Glynn described Mullen’s appointment as “a significant step” in establishing the operator as “a major player” in the online gambling industry.
“The appointment of Jim Mullen allied to the start of Ladbrokes Israel means we have strong foundations in place to accelerate our growth in this important area,” he added. “He will join at an exciting time and we look forward to him helping us make the Ladbrokes brand as strong in the digital arena as we are on the High Street.”
Rust was originally handed control of the digital division in a management reshuffle in August 2012, which saw director of product Richard Ames fired. He will also work alongside Ladbrokes’ human resources team to lead a reorganisation described as “necessary to maximise the benefits from the new operating arrangements with Playtech” in additional to his responsibilities for UK and Irish retail operations.
Mullen’s move follows Hills’ £424m buyout of Playtech’s stake in the 29% William Hill Online joint venture, which was finalised last month.
The announcement that a price for the stake had been set was followed by the signing of a long-term licensing agreement between Ladbrokes and Playtech less than two weeks later. Under the terms of the agreement, the operator has gained access to the solutions provider’s full suite of technology and software products.
Ladbrokes also acquired the privately-owned online and offline CRM business The Nation Traffic for £850,000, with the news that the company was to be renamed Ladbrokes Israel announced at the time ahead of today’s official opening.
The Tel Aviv-based subsidiary will be integrated with existing teams in London and Gibraltar, headed up by what was described as a “highly experienced” team with a strong track record of successfully using Playtech’s products.
At the time Glynn described it as a “no win, no fee” deal, denying that it was in any way similar to the William Hill Online joint venture, emphasising that it was “100% owned by Ladbrokes from the outset”. Playtech CEO Mor Weizer added that the deal could help the business become one of its top three licensees.
Since the signing of the deal Ladbrokes released its first quarter results for 2013 ahead of schedule, with profits down £13m, warning that final year group profits are expected to be “at the bottom of the existing market range”
The earnings announcement added that while its new partner would allow the business to revitalise its online offering, “the risks of disruption from transition are inevitable”. As a result it admitted that digital profits were also likely to decline over the course of the year.
Ladbrokes is yet to make significant changes to its offering, with no date set for the migration of its poker offering to the iPoker network. So far it has integrated a ‘Vegas gaming’ tab on the Ladbrokes.com site, while its mobile offering will be relaunched on the Mobenga platform.