Launches and sign-ups 9 September 2015
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (3 September 2015 to 9 September 2015)
GVC edges out 888 for £1.1bn bwin.party takeover deal
Bwin.party board recommends GVC’s 130p per share offer to create a firm with annual EBITDA of 270m
GVC Holdings looks set to acquire bwin.party in a deal valued at around £1.1bn after the bwin.party board last week unanimously recommended a 130p per share offer.
The Sportingbet owner said its combination with bwin.party, which was officially announced to the market on Friday, would create an online gaming giant with annual EBITDA of 270m and a sportsbook generating turnover of 4.5bn.
The firm also said the deal, which is expected to complete in Q1 2016, would result in 125m worth of revenue and cost synergies and create a platform which would provide “further consolidation opportunities”.
The decision of the bwin.party board may well have brought to end one of the most protracted takeover battles in egaming history with GVC having gone head-to-head with rival bidder 888, which until last night had been bwin.party’s preferred option.
Paddy Power expands B2B services into Spain
Paddy Power has expanded its B2B arm into Spain following a deal to provide local sports betting brand RETAbet with live pricing services.
The Bilbao-based RETA Group operates 1,700 retail sportsbook outlets in Spain and launched its first online product RETAbet.es in June 2015.
Paddy Power will provide the firm with in-running event creation, pricing and settlement services across its online and retail products.
Seven days in launches and sign-ups:
Gaming Innovation Group to launch new brand
Gaming Innovation Group (GIG) is planning to launch a new online sportsbook and casino brand in Q4 2015, with the product placing an emphasis on gamification and personalisation features.
Rizk.com will be the third product to launch on the Malta-based operator’s proprietary iGamingCloud platform, joining GIG’s Betspin.com and its flagship Guts.com brand.
The product will be backed by a new TV advertising campaign, a social media and affiliate marketing presence, and will largely be targeted at customers in the Nordics with a lesser focus on the Western European online gambling market.
Paddy Power and Betfair agree merger terms
Paddy Power and Betfair have agreed terms on an all-share merger to create one of the world’s biggest online gambling companies.
Yesterday’s news follows the announcement late last month that the two companies were in talks to create a combined entity named Paddy Power Betfair with revenues of more than £1.1bn.
In a statement this morning the operators confirmed Paddy Power shareholders will own 52% and Betfair shareholders 48% of the new Paddy Power Betfair entity which will operate a dual-brand strategy throughout Europe.
Colossus Bets brings tech in-house for website overhaul
Colossus Bets has ended its partnership with platform provider i-Neda after developing its first in-house built website, as the pools betting operator also prepares to launch a new free-to-play product.
The London-based firm overhauled its desktop and mobile website to coincide with the start of the new football season and features a complete redesign and the integration of more technically complex but player-friendly consolation prizes, adding to its partial cash-out feature.
Approximately 10 new members of staff were hired to help build the website after Colossus Bets decided a propriety product would be more economically efficient than a third-party and speed-up future product developments.
Tombola unveils new TV ad campaign
Tombola has launched its latest TV advert in which the online bingo operator decided to put customers centre stage.
The advert was first aired last week across ITV1, Channel 4, Channel 5 and many of the major Sky channels, backed by a strong presence across social media and newsletters to existing customers.
Shot over two days in Yorkshire, the 30-second ad features 25 Tombola players who were also featured in regional press after hundreds of people auditioned to take part.
Optimal Payments to rebrand to Paysafe Group
Optimal Payments will rebrand to Paysafe Group in a bid to create a more “distinctive brand” following its 1.1bn acquisition of rival Skrill earlier this year.
The payment processing firm announced it was working on a new name after revealing its H1 2015 financial results last month and the Paysafe Group brand will be put to a shareholder vote at a special meeting taking place on 28 September.
Optimal is looking to create a new corporate identity to better represent the expanded group created by the reverse takeover of Skrill, first announced back in March.