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Better Collective Acquires Skycon Limited and Upgrades its Financial Targets for 2023

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In order to realise the vision of becoming the Leading Digital Sports Media Group, Better Collective expands its efforts within digital display advertising by acquiring Skycon Limited for a total consideration of up to 45m GBP.

Upgrade of financial targets 2023

Skycon Limited will be consolidated into the Better Collective Group. Better Collective upgrades its financial targets for 2023 as follows:

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Revenue of 305-315m EUR (previous 290-300m EUR)

EBITDA before special items of 95-105m EUR (previous 90-100m EUR)

Net debt to EBITDA before special items <2.0 (unchanged)

About Skycon Limited

Skycon Limited (Skycon) is a British company founded in 2017 and is run out of Newcastle-under-Lyme, England. The company specialises in display advertising with an “audience-based” approach, which is paid advertising on channels such as sports media. Skycon’s approach is highly complementary to Better Collective’s existing Paid Media approach with a “search engine-based” approach. The acquisition will increase the addressable market for Better Collective’s Paid Media division and will further increase its value proposition towards the Group’s diverse business partners.

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Better Collective will integrate the business into its existing Paid Media operations and will take over Skycon’s substantial recurring revenue share database. Skycon has seen great growth, which Better Collective expects to fuel further with several cross-selling synergies, while also improving its own business through operational synergies.

Synergy highlights

  • Skycon has solely worked with one sportsbook and Better Collective will expand this to its global network of sportsbooks.
  • Better Collective will be able to broaden the geographical scope of Skycon for instance into the US.
  • Better Collective will redirect future new depositing customers (NDCs) to its best-in-class global sportsbook agreements, which will increase the value per future NDC delivered.
  • Skycon will be utilised on the AdTech platform which Better Collective is currently building.

Jesper Søgaard, Co-founder & CEO of Better Collective, said: “We have invested heavily in growing our Paid Media division to reach its current significant scale, while we also have invested in moving revenues to recurring revenue share contracts. During the past year, our efforts have proven successful and acquiring Skycon will be highly synergistic to this journey. Skycon is a great business, which is built on Better Collective’s favored revenue share model. It is a perfect fit as we can leverage our leading skill set within media buying to grow Skycon’s revenues. We also see a clear path to further growth as the asset can be scaled across more of our business partners, into new territories, and optimized with our unrivaled first party data in sports media. This acquisition will further deepen our moat.”

Transaction details

Better Collective will pay up to 45m GBP on a cash and debt free basis, including an upfront cash consideration of 25m GBP and up to 20m GBP in earn outs. The earn outs are based on certain financial performance targets in the 12 months post closing period. The acquisition will be funded by cash, and the earn-out is estimated to be at least 50% financed by the existing revenue share database.

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New KSA Campaign: Get Your Life Back on Track, Take a Gambling Break

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The Dutch Gaming Authority (KSA) launched a new awareness campaign to draw attention to the gambling stop. With the campaign “Pick up your life again, take a gambling stop,” KSA is aiming to increase attention to the risks of gambling and make the Cruks register more well-known.

Insights

The campaign is a follow-up to the pilot campaign from 2023. This pilot yielded many valuable insights, for example that more people are attracted to the word gambling stop. This name is therefore used in the new campaign.

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Positive effect

The campaign focuses primarily on young adults who (possibly) no longer have their gambling under control. That is one of the reasons why the campaign is largely running via social media instead of traditional (mass) media. The focus is on the positive effect that a gambling stop has on the life of a person with gambling problems. The powerful moments of young people who pick up their lives again can be seen in online videos, social ads and social posts (Google, YouTube, Meta and Snapchat).

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EGBA: Record Participation As European Safer Gambling Week Expands to 26 Countries

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The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) announced record-breaking results from its fourth annual European Safer Gambling Week, held 18-24 November. The initiative – which included a social media campaign and events programme – demonstrated the broader European sector’s strengthening commitment to safer gambling through new levels of participation and expanded geographic reach.

The campaign saw record engagement with 195 partners actively participating – a 20% increase from 2023. Eight national gambling authorities participated, more than double the previous year, by either joining the social media campaign or speaking at the various events.

The campaign’s reach also expanded significantly to 26 countries – a 30% increase from 2023 – with partners in Croatia, Serbia, Slovakia and Ukraine joining for the first time, reflecting the growing pan-European dimension of the campaign. This was helped by social media graphics being made available in the local languages of 27 countries.

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The social media campaign reached 3.1 million users across Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and X platforms, generating 1169 social media posts – a 67% increase from the previous year.

A cornerstone of this year’s campaign was its comprehensive events programme, featuring 20 specialised events – an 11% increase from 2023. The events attracted record participation with 4500 registrations and 3000 attendees. Key discussions explored trends in AI, problem gambling prevalence reporting and innovations in safer gambling tools and messaging. The events featured 105 speakers, including senior representatives from gambling authorities in Belgium, Denmark, France and the UK.

The initiative builds on EGBA members’ year-round commitment to safer gambling, which in 2023 resulted in 67 million safety messages sent to their European customers. This dedicated week amplifies these ongoing efforts while encouraging greater collaboration between operators, regulators and harm prevention organisations.

“The success of this year’s edition reflects the sector’s deepening commitment to player protection. The significant increase in participation, especially from health organisations and regulatory authorities, demonstrates the common purpose and growing unity in our approach to safer gambling. Through this collaboration, we’ve reached a record number of Europeans with crucial safety messages during the campaign. Together, we’re making gambling safer and we already look forward to building on this success in next year’s edition,” said Maarten Haijer, Secretary General of EGBA.

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CT Gaming to Participate in ICE Barcelona 2025

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CT Gaming is going to participate in ICE Barcelona 2025, which will take place from 20 to 22 Jan 2025.

“It is always a pleasure to kick off the year at ICE. This year is particularly special as we explore a new location, which we anticipate will bring fresh connections and exciting opportunities,” said Biser Bozhanov, Director of Business Development and Strategies at CT Gaming.

Positioned at stand #3C56, CT Gaming will present an impressive lineup of its signature products alongside exciting new additions, including the multigame Diamond King 4.

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“We are eager to showcase our latest offerings and engage with clients, colleagues, and industry professionals to gather their valuable feedback. This year’s selection is a strong testament to CT Gaming’s enduring legacy and commitment to excellence,” added Bozhanov.

Among the products displayed at stand #3C56 will be the slot cabinet NEXT, known for its ultimate comfort and functionality. This cabinet comes with 27″ or 32″ high-definition screens, an optional premium stand, a USB phone charger, a bill validator with a stacker and an enlarged CMS panel for seamless operation. Other representatives from the slot cabinet family are EZ Modulo 32/32/32 and EZ Tower. Both of these cabinets combine sleek designs with advanced technology set to deliver an unparalleled gaming experience.

Alongside the slot cabinets, the company will showcase its staple multigame titles, such as Diamond King 3, Mermaid’s Quest, Tower Link and the newest addition to the multigame portfolio – Diamond King 4. With 40 exciting games, 20 of which are linked to a progressive jackpot, the multigame takes player engagement to new heights. Unlike previous versions, players can now win any of the three jackpot levels directly from the base game, while the cascading white and pink diamonds promise thrilling rewards at every turn. Designed with the next generation of players in mind, Diamond King 4 features enhanced graphics, modern themes and an immersive experience that’s perfectly in sync with today’s gaming landscape. The newly conceptualized linked progressive jackpot, Diamond Tree Deluxe, presents an elevated reward experience with its upgraded features.

Last but not least, CT Gaming will unveil the latest updates to its Casino Management System – Rhino, designed to enhance operator functionality and player engagement.

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