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Betsson Publishes Interim Report for Q1 2022

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Betsson AB has published its interim report for the first quarter of 2022.

Highlights

  • Group revenue was EUR 170.2 (157.4) million, an increase of 8%. Organic increase of 14%.
  • Casino revenue decreased by 5%. Sportsbook revenue increased by 45% and the sportsbook margin was 8.3% (7.2%).
  • EBITDA was EUR 33.4 (35.8) million, a decrease of 7%. The EBITDA margin was 19.6% (22.7%).
  • Operating income (EBIT) was EUR 23.6 (27.3) million, a decrease of 13%. The EBIT margin was 13.9% (17.3%).
  • Net income was EUR 20.9 (23.7) million, corresponding to EUR 0.16 (0.17) per share.
  • Operating cash flow was EUR 26.9 (32.3) million.
  • Active customers increased by 33% to 1,256,449 (948,109).

CEO’s Comments

“Revenue growth driven by continued good momentum in the sportsbook and through geographic diversification”

Some years ago, Betsson conducted an extensive review to capitalise on growth opportunities on the gaming market that would maintain profitability. The review resulted in the following strategic cornerstones: growth in existing markets, growth in new markets, strategic additions and acquisitions and investment in Business to Business, B2B. Thanks to a goal-oriented work from our employees, we have been able to take advantage of the growth opportunities identified, which has resulted in increased revenue and healthy profitability.

Betsson’s revenue increased during the first quarter by 8 percent (14 percent organic) to EUR 170.2 (157.4) million. Once again, new records were set for sportsbook revenue and in several individual markets. It has been said many times before, geographic diversification makes Betsson’s business less sensitive to disruptions in individual markets.

The launch in March of the proprietary sportsbook in the United States was an important milestone in Betsson’s continued global expansion. The US investment is primarily focused on presenting the US adapted sportsbook to other operators within the framework of the B2B offering. More specifically, we are initially using the Business to Consumer (B2C) offering in Colorado as a showcase for the sportsbook. Many months of hard work from the product and technology teams were required to create a competitive sports product for the American market.

Starting this quarter, developments in Latin America will be reported as a separate region in our financial reports. The region is developing very satisfactorily. Market presence has also been strengthened in Latin America through the launch of our offering in both the City and Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. To support the region’s growth, Betsson has built up a regional hub with central functions to serve local markets based on their respective conditions. The assessment is that these markets are still in their early stages in many respects and that growth opportunities for the coming years continue to be positive.

Although Betsson has several highlights to celebrate in the past quarter, the geopolitical developments in the surrounding world are concerning. The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to incredible human suffering and created a high level of uncertainty in many countries. Belarus’ active choice to get involved in the conflict on the Russian side led to Betsson’s decision to return the local license and completely shut down the operations that was building up in the country. The conflict has also brought that Betsson-contracted developers in Ukraine could in some cases be evacuated to Malta and Budapest, in other cases to less dangerous areas of Ukraine. Betsson sets the safety and health of its employees at the highest priority and is therefore carrying out ongoing efforts to ensure their security.

During the quarter, further efforts were made to promote responsible gaming. Through increased training efforts and earlier customer interaction et cetera, the trend of the share of red-flagged customers has decreased during the last years.

Looking ahead, we are seeing more undertakings on the horizon. Our ambition is to further strengthen our presence in North America by operating under a new license in the Ontario region in Canada starting this summer. We also aim to launch in Mexico together with our local partner Big Bola Casino in 2022.

Applications to operate in the Netherlands under the new license model were submitted during the quarter in line with the Group’s plan.

All in all, the year has been off to a good start as there are many important activities that we look forward to during the remainder of 2022.

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Flexion Reports Revenue Increase of 9% for 2024

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Flexion, the games marketing company, has announced that its revenue grew 9% to year-end December 2024. The growth is attributed to the Company’s success in the alternative app store market.

Since its IPO in 2018, the company has built a well-positioned games marketing business around the alternative stores and grown annual revenue 50-fold to almost US$100 million. Its game portfolio represents several billion US$ in gaming IP for alternative market partners like Samsung, Amazon, Huawei, OneStore and Xiaomi.

“With the Digital Markets Act (DMA) coming into force in Europe and recent legal actions in the US, mobile game developers have felt a new-found freedom to explore their market options. We’ve already moved beyond the era when Google and Apple controlled everything. Developers are looking for alternatives that offer better margins, and additional audiences and revenue. Partnering with Flexion opens up a range of market channels with very little up-front investment,” said Jens Lauritzson, CEO of Flexion.

Flexion currently distributes more than 30 high-profile titles on the alternative stores. Top-tier games in the Flexion portfolio make on average US$ 10 million a year based on Q4 2024 run rate. That’s income in addition to their Google and Apple revenue with a business model that adds little to their costs.

In Q4 2024, Flexion-serviced games were, on average, generating 9.3% through the alternative stores of the revenue they made on Google Play. This is a significant boost for Flexion’s partners without major costs or effort.

“If you scale for the size of the stores, the alternatives massively out-performed Google in Q4 for our games. This is exciting both for Flexion’s business and for the future of the games industry as a whole. We’re seeing the beginning of a sea change in games marketing,” Jens said.

“We’re seeing just the beginnings of a major shift in how top-tier developers address their markets. Using Flexion to access alternative stores is an easy first step into the post- Google and Apple world. Many developers are already looking at their options beyond that and Flexion will be right there with them providing the technology and expertise they need to maximise the potential of their games,” Jens added.

The post Flexion Reports Revenue Increase of 9% for 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Players Reclaim Close to $7M Through AskGamblers Complaint Service in 2024

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The latest AskGamblers Complaint Service report for 2024 has officially been released. The comprehensive report highlights the most important accomplishments and records of the AskGamblers Complaint Service team for the previous year.

In 2024, The AGCS team (formerly known as AGCCS) managed to return $6,890,547.11 to players. Over 7259 players turn to AskGamblers, submitting complaints against 1114 casino brands. Out of all the accepted and processed complaints, the team had a 68% resolution success rate. One of the notable milestones that reached was returning a total of $70 million to the members.

Dijana Radunović, General Manager at AskGamblers, said: “It’s amazing to see the trust players put in us year after year, and we’re able to repay them by helping them recover their funds from operators or solve other related issues. We’ve had another successful year, with a few records broken and amazing milestones achieved and we can’t wait to see what lies in store in the years ahead.”

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SlotsCalendar Announces its Second Awards Edition at iGC Malaga 2025

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SlotsCalendar, a leading name and tastemaker in iGaming, has announced the second edition of the SlotsCalendar Awards. Winners will be announced during the iGC Malaga event in May 2025.

These awards are rapidly gaining significance in the iGaming world as SlotsCalendar’s steady growth, success, and player-centric mentality represent the community’s interest.

Players have approximately a month to vote between the 10th of April and the 12th of May.

For its 2025 edition, the SlotsCalendar Awards Gala returns to the iGaming Club Conference in Malaga, happening on May 28th. The Awards categories for this year are as follows:

• Game Studio of the Year

• The Slot Everyone’s Talking About

• Star Slot in the Making

• Casino of the Year

• Excellence in Bonus Variety

• Industry Standard in Responsible Gambling

• Live Casino of the Year

• Best Sports Betting Platform

• Best New Casino

• Best Crypto Casino

While the idea of iGaming Awards is not new to the industry, the SlotsCalendar Awards are unique for a simple reason: winners are voted by players from the entire iGaming community.

The uniqueness of these awards makes them particularly important in iGaming. Placing the decision-making strictly in the hands of the player is a fundamental shift in the iGaming community.

SlotsCalendar CEO Viorel Stan said: “It’s truly an honor and a privilege to see how our SlotsCalendar Awards have evolved. Last year’s inaugural edition was a crowning achievement for us. It proved how vast and involved our community is, creating a level of engagement that made us incredibly proud. Being able to return to the iGC and reward some of iGaming’s luminaries in the name of the SlotsCalendar Community is beyond gratifying.”

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