PokerStars set for 2014 online casino launch
Amaya CEO David Baazov says he expects a PokerStars-branded online casino up and running in Spain and Italy by year-end
Amaya Gaming CEO David Baazov says the company plans to launch an online casino on the PokerStars platform by the end of the year, after completing its $4.9bn acquisition of parent company the Rational Group in August.
Speaking to analysts following the Canadian gaming company’s Q2 2014 financial results, Baazov said Amaya plans to launch a PokerStars-branded online casino in Spain and Italy – the first admission of the poker giant’s intention to release non-poker products.
The chief executive also revealed Rational’s Full Tilt casino brand had soft launched to a small number of players in Spain, with plans to roll out in Italy at a later date.
“The launch of casino has only been done on a small subset, only on Full Tilt,” Baazov said. “This calendar year we expect it [online casino] to launch on PokerStars as it relates to Spain and Italy. And to have a broader roll out in terms of Full Tilt.
“There has been no major marketing push behind it [Full Tilt casino] yet. The company has been focussed on ensuring its casino platform is up to its high technological standards, we do not want to provide any disruption to the core poker offering.
“Going forward we anticipate significantly scaling up the casino exposure to Rational’s player base including launches into new regulated jurisdictions in Q4 2014 and in 2015. Additionally we plan to launch a casino client and the ability to play via mobile,” he added.
Rational had so far kept tight-lipped over the possibility of PokerStars diversifying its product range outside of poker, although a recent licence application in Spain hinted at a potential launch.
Ahead of its online casino launch, Rational announced in July that it was rebranding Full Tilt by dropping ‘Poker’ from its name. It also changed its long-standing FullTiltPoker.com URL as part of its transition into a multi-vertical gaming operator.
This morning Amaya revealed H1 2014 revenues of $83.7m (£46m) up 11% on the same time last year, with adjusted EBITDA of $29.8m (£16.4m) leading to net income of $36.7m (£20.2m).
Baazov said Amaya’s acquisition of the Rational Group an “enormous opportunity” for growth in new verticals, highlighting casino and sportsbook, and markets such as India and Latin America.