Launches and sign-ups 13 June 2012
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (07 June to 13 June 2012).
Playtech completes social licensing agreement
Solutions provider to pay 6m annual licence fee amid calls for “more clarity” over agreement “ Sagi confirmed as special advisor.
Playtech has finalised its software licensing agreement with founder Teddy Sagi’s social gaming assets, thought to be CTXM and Viaden Gaming, as part of the company’s plans to join the main list on the London Stock Exchange later this year.
The deal will give the solutions provider access to the B2C platforms and products developed by CTXM and Viaden, including Slots Farm and rummy brand Raminoz, which attract more than 1.5m monthly active users. In a statement this morning Playtech said the incorporation of such an offering into the company’s core B2B business model would “provide the potential to build a significant new stream of additional earnings to Playtech.”
Skywind Holdings Limited, the company with which the deal was signed and understood to be owned by Sagi, will also gain use of Playtech’s real-money gaming software as part of the deal.
The deal also means that Playtech will gain exclusive use of real-money mobile poker and casino software, complementing its mobile sportsbook Mobenga, which was acquired in July 2011 and yesterday signed an agreement with Italian operator Sisal to provide a sportsbook for Android and iOS platforms. It will also have access to more than 150 social and mobile games developers, thought to be based in Eastern Europe.
Exclusive: Serbian operators protest Sportingbet-Lottery deal
The Serbian Association of Gambling Providers (UPIS) has reacted angrily to a partnership between Sportingbet and the country’s national lottery Državna lutrija Srbije, accusing the lottery of “organising sports betting via the Internet in a completely unlawful and illegal way.”
In an open letter, the association criticised the Lottery for having “grossly violated existing laws” by selecting Sportingbet to power its dot.rs sportsbook, which was launched last week with the operator’s branding, described as being “powered by Državna lutrija Srbije.”
However, eGaming Review understands that the pre-match and in-play betting platform is provided by Sportingbet using the Lottery’s operating licence, via a partnership with the operator’s Greek and Balkan marketing partner Centric Multimedia. Playtech provides the software for all non-sportsbook products on the site, including lotto, bingo and scratchcard games.
Spanish poker networks begin to take shape
Three of the leading poker network providers have revealed the makeup of their Spanish-facing operations in the week the country’s General Directorate of Online Gaming (DGOJ) began awarding egaming licences.
GTECH G2 has announced the launch of the Spanish Poker Network (SPN) with members including land-based operator Orenes and Gaming Media Group brand PokerHeaven.
Ongame has gone live with Paf as well as Goalgaming brands Goalwin and PokerMambo, while Goalwin white-label PokerLoco completes the four-strong network. Another of Ongame’s dot.com network partners, Betfair, announced yesterday that it had been licensed in Spain for sportsbook and casino games but is yet to apply for a poker license in the jurisdiction.
Seven days in launches and sign-ups
Bodog88 acquires Bodog Poker network
Bodog88 has completed the acquisition of the Bodog Poker Network for an undisclosed sum, BodogBrand has announced.
The Manila-based Bodog Brand licensee, which primarily targets the Asian market, is seeking a partner to “bring the network forward” having negotiated the deal with BPN chief executive Patrik Selin.
Paddy Power launches talking Queen Euro 2012 app
Not content with building a 108ft statue of new England football manager Roy Hodgson on the edge of the white cliffs of Dover in Kent ahead of Monday’s big game with France, Paddy Power has today brought her Majesty The Queen to life on any £10 note via an augmented reality application.
The free to download app, designed by Blippar, opens up in camera mode on iPhone or Android and becomes a single, “magic lens” through which the Queen will share her views with the bookmaker on England’s chances, Wayne Rooney’s hair transplant, the “cheating” French, the Germans’ penalty tactics, and any other burning issues during the tournament.
William Hill launches Passoker ahead of Euro 2012
William Hill has announced the launch of Passoker’s in-play betting product ahead of this summer’s European football championships, which will kick off in Poland this afternoon.
The deal was originally signed in January, at which point the launch was announced as taking place a month later, and will see the game, which features commentary from Martin Tyler and Sid Waddell, go live on Williamhill.com.
Betfair extends Betgenius partnership
Sports data software provider Betgenius has strengthened its ties with Betfair, extending its partnership to provide the operator with its Connextra software to run live video adverts.
The deal follows the announcement of an agreement which will see Betgenius supply sportsbook management software for Betfair’s fixed-odds service, which went live in the UK late last month.
Sisal partners with Mobenga for Euro 2012
Mobenga has signed a deal with Sisal to supply the Italian operator with a mobile sportsbook solution for the iOS and Android platforms, going live just before the start of the European football championships last week.
The Sisal Matchpoint sportsbook will come with a real-time data feed, providing information the latest updates from matches, as well as an ‘Info Centre’ gathering statistics, results and league tables. The app will have the ‘Quickbet’ feature, providing odds on the most important matches of the day, and deposit and place bets in just two steps, allowing customers to deposit funds and place bets in just two steps.
Intralot launches South African fixed odds site
Intralot South Africa has announced the launch of online and mobile fixed-odds sports betting sites, which went live on 1 June.
The launch, under the company’s JustBet brand, comes after Intralot South Africa was granted a fixed-odds sports betting licence by the Western Cape Gambling and Racing Board in January. The licence covers online, mobile and telephone betting across the country, as well as land-based sports betting in the Western Cape province.
Paddys enters LatAm with SIS agreement
Paddy Power has established a presence in Latin America, becoming the first sportsbook operator to offer live streaming of horse racing from the South American continent through a deal with Satellite Information Services (SIS).
The service was originally launched on the SIS+ betting shop channel and has now gone live, broadcasting around 4000 races a year from race courses including Valparaiso, Hipodromo Chile and Club Hipico Santiago in Chile; La Plata and San Isidro in Argentina, and Maronas in Uruguay.
Icelandic sportsbook supplier Parspro has launched a sports betting site for Cirsa in the newly-regulated Spanish market. The operator has gone live with an online and mobile sportsbook, featuring pre-match and in-play betting, making it the first native land-based operator to launch an online offering in the market.
Cirsa director of egaming Sonia Carabante commented:”We are confident that the excellent combination of technical providers, which we have chosen, will greatly contribute to our online success.
“Parspro is a key player in our setup, providing its complete sports betting packge,” Carabante said.
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Sports and betting data supplier Betradar announced that Veikkaus Oy and Norsk Tipping deployed the company’s Live Odds Service within their respective offerings. This follows Tipp3 Austria and Sazka as the latest state lotteries to use Betradar’s live odds service. In total, Betradar supplies more than 30 state lotteries on four continents with its product and service portfolio.
OMI Gaming has signed a multi-year agreement which will see the mobile gaming specialist’s products added to EveryMatrix‘s GamMatrix gaming management platform. OMI’s sales and marketing director André Orefjärd commented that he was “excited” to become Everymatrix’s partner: “Our commitment to create fun, high performing, triple-A quality mobile casino and social games has been acknowledge and strengthened our position within the market.
“With this agreement we are able to deliver top notch mobile casino games to operators and players across Europe and beyond,” he explained.
EveryMatrix has also announced the launch of Playadjara.com, a Georgian-facing gaming site powered by the GamMatrix platform.