The Stars Group loyalty scheme returns poker to growth
Q3 poker revenues up 7.5%cc despite no change in active user numbers
The Stars Group has hailed the impact of its recently-launched cross-vertical loyalty programme as the operator saw poker return to growth after years of stagnation.
Real-money poker revenues climbed 7.5%cc to $214m in Q3, with the firm claiming high single-digit growth in the vertical could be the norm going forward.
Stars said 85% of active players had participated in the Stars Rewards loyalty scheme, with nearly $45m in prizes awarded.
The firm noted: “The Stars Group believes the programme has positively impacted the overall product ecosystem across verticals and continues to receive positive feedback from most players.”
Despite the uptick in poker revenues, the number of active players was flat at 1.97 million, suggesting an increase in yield form existing users.
Total group revenues climbed 17%cc to $329.4m, as casino and sports also continued to grow.
The combined casino and sportsbook vertical climbed 43%cc to $95.5m.
“Our operations and management continued to perform in the third quarter, delivering strong year-over-year growth bolstered by the launch of Stars Rewards,” said Rafi Ashkenazi, Stars Group CEO.
“Not only did we see improvement in our poker business, but our casino continues to grow with a significant active player base and our online sportsbook continues to see meaningful growth in turnover.
“To build upon these achievements, we plan to focus on reinvesting in our core products and increasing our investment in marketing for the remainder of 2017 and into 2018 while continuing to explore further growth opportunities.”
Adjusted group EBITDA climbed 27% to $155.8m.