Month: February 2021

Gaming brought in $7.30bn of SJM’s revenue, down 78.0%.  Gaming revenue in Macau as a whole for 2020 was down 79.3% year-on-year following closures and travel restrictions, though the last restrictions for travellers from mainland China were lifted yesterday.

Breaking this gaming revenue figure down further, non-VIP table games brought in $5.86bn, a 76.7% decline. VIP gaming revenue dropped 85.1% to $2.04bn and slot revenue declined 68.0% to $379.3m. This resulted in gross revenue of $8.28bn, of which $971.0m was removed through bonuses and commission.

Hotel, catering and other revenue also declined rapidly, by 71.3% to $202.5m. 

SJM’s flagship Casino Grand Lisboa venue brought in $2.07bn in revenue for the year, down 84.0%. Other SJM-promoted casinos brought in $1.35bn, down 78.5% and revenue from satellite casinos – which are operated through service agreements between SJM and third party promoters – dropped 84.5% to $4.85bn.

After paying $3.37bn in gaming taxes and levies, down 78.3%, SJM was left with $3.94bn, down 77.6%.

SJM’s operating expenses came to $7.26bn, with the vast majority, at $7.10bn, in general and administrative expenses. It paid an additional $124.7m in marketing expenses, down 98.0%.

This led to a net loss of $3.15bn, compared to a $3.37bn profit in 2019.

After $22.5m in tax, down 56.4%, SJM’s post-tax loss was $3.17bn, after a $3.32bn profit the year before.

The business also incurred a $313.7m loss through the change in fair value of investments, leading to a $3.49bn total comprehensive loss, compared to 2019’s $3.27bn total comprehensive profit.

Sharrock joins from retail chain Marks and Spencer, where she had been head of human resources since 2018. Shamrock had also served as head of HR within BT’s consumer division and previously held roles at ESPN and ITN.

“I am proud to be joining The Jockey Club at such an exciting time for the business,” Sharrock said. “The deep heritage of the organisation, the passion of the people within it, and the vision of Nevin and the leadership team present an incredible opportunity.”

Nevin Truesdale, chief executive of The Jockey Club, said Sharrock would play a key role in recruiting and training new talent.

“I’m thrilled to welcome Helene to our team,” Truesdale said. “She will play a lead role in driving our people agenda over the next few years as we continue to innovate, welcome and retain talent and support the wellbeing and development of colleagues throughout The Jockey Club.”

Sharrock’s appointment follows the Jockey Club’s announcement of three new senior commercial hires last month.

Charlie Boss joins the organisation as chief commercial officer in May, while Alexandra Goldschmidt becomes director of partnerships and Hannah Grosvenor national sales director.

The £80,000 (€93,008/$112,854) grant will be added to funds provided by the Professional Jockeys’ Association (PJA), which operates the scheme on behalf of its members.

With the support of the HBLB funding, the PJA will continue to look for a sponsor or alternative funding from the within the sport to continue to fund the scheme in the longer term.

The funding comes after the scheme lapsed at the end of November last year after the PJA was unable to find a new sponsor or other funding from within racing due to the current economic climate caused by the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

“The PJA has now committed close to £500,000 out of our own reserves to keep our jockeys covered for the last two years and our members can now be assured that they are covered for a career ending injury for the next six months whilst we try to find a sustainable, long-term solution for this vital scheme,” PJA chief executive Paul Struthers said.

HBLB chairman Paul Darling added: “This scheme has been in place for almost 10 years, paid for by commercial sponsorship and contributions from jockeys. It provided a critical safety net for jockeys, for whom the risk of serious injury is part of everyday normality.”

Darling also said the contribution from the HBLB would be a one-off one, with the organisation to work with the PJA to find a new sponsor.

“It is essential that fresh funding is found to continue this scheme and I am sure that racing organisations will play an active part in ensuring that the scheme is continued,” Darling said.

In October, the HBLB also said it would contribute £31.9m in funding towards the first four months of racing in Great Britain in 2021, to help the industry’s recovery from Covid-19.

The Austrian Treasury is currently responsible for licensing and enforcement of gambling regulations, but the new authority will take charge of these duties. 

Blümel said a key focus of this new regulator will be player protection, necessitating a series of new controls on legal and illegal gambling. 

“Player protection is of particular importance, as gambling is a very sensitive area for players, their families and for society, which also carries considerable risks,” he explained. 

“Players are often affected by addiction and as a consequence confronted with financial, psychological and existential issues.”

As a result, the regulator will be tasked with establishing a national self-exclusion system covering online and land-based gambling. 

It will also be expected to step up enforcement activity against unlicensed operators, and will have the power to order internet service providers to block access to these sites. 

A blacklist of unlicensed domains will be created as part of this process. 

New regulations will also be developed for loot boxes, which Blümel said could have a particularly negative impact on younger gamers, and lead them into traditional forms of gambling. 

The Minister went on to say that Austria would look to replicate Germany’s regulatory model, introducing controls such as monthly deposit limits, as well as limiting stakes and playing time for online slots. The exact limits will be developed in consultation with experts in gambling addiction. 

Furthermore, taxes on the industry are to be raised, to ensure operators contribute to the prevention and treatment of problem gambling, and advertising controls will be tightened. This will see gambling marketing subject to controls similar to those imposed on tobacco companies. 

In addition to these player protection focused measures, Blümel announced new anti-corruption safeguards, in the wake of a political scandal that engulfed Austria-based gaming giant Novomatic, Casinos Austria and a number of high-ranking politicians. 

Discussions in parliament are underway over a ban on donations, advertisements and gifts in kind to politicians or parties from gambling providers, arms manufacturers and the tobacco industry. The Minister said this would ensure a higher level of transparency. 

This will also see the federal licence for video lottery terminals (VLTs) abolished, with providers instead requiring licences from the states in which they operate. Three licences to construct new casinos will also be scrapped.

The necessary regulations to facilitate these changes are expected to be developed by the end of April. They would then be put to parliament, with a view to having the laws passed by Autumn 2021.

Plans for an overhaul of Austria’s regulatory framework have long been discussed, with Blümel revealing in March last year that he aimed to “untangle” multiple functions currently held within the Treasury.

Revenue for the six months through to 31 December 2020 totalled AUS$40.9m (£22.9m/€26.6m/US$32.4m), up 8.8% from $37.6m in the same period in 2019.

Breaking down its revenue performance, lottery retailing was by fair Jumbo’s main source of income, with revenue in this business segment amounting to $37.8m, up 2.7% on the previous year.

Revenue from the software-as-a-service (SaaS) segment also rocketed 200.4% to $1.6m, due to the scaling up of some customers that became fully operational in the period.

Managed services revenue was also up by 655.1% to $1.5m, helped by a full six months of contributions from the Gatherwell UK lottery business, compared to just one month in the comparable period in 2019.

Jumbo also noted that total transaction value for the business, comprising the gross amount received from the sale of goods and services rendered in the half, increased by 25.6% to $47.5m as a result of growth within the SaaS and managed services segments.

“For the first time, we are reporting our results in three segments, reflecting the evolving strength and diversity of Jumbo, as we continue to leverage our superior lottery management capabilities and technology to reshape our business, making lotteries easier for our partners and customers, and underpinning our continued growth, both domestically and offshore,” Jumbo’s chief executive and executive director Mike Veverka said.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the half was up by 0.9% year-on-year to $23.1m. Lottery retailing EBITDA reached $15.4m, SaaS $10.4m, managed services $464,000 and other revenue $187,000, but Jumbo also reported a corporate loss of $3.4m.

Cost of sales in H1 was up by 45.2% to $4.1m, mainly due to the new service fee under the reseller deal agreed with Tabcorp in August 2020. Jumbo also noted a 15.5% increase in operating costs to $18.1m, primarily as a result of higher administrative costs, which climbed 36.6% to $15.3m.

This left a profit before tax of $19.1m, down 7.8% from $20.7m at the same point in 2019. Jumbo paid $5.9m in tax, resulting in a profit of $13.2m, down 8.3% year-on-year.

Jumbo also accounted for a negative impact of $109,000 as a result of foreign currency translations, meaning it ended the half with a profit of $13.1m, a drop of 9.0% on the corresponding period in 2019.

“We’re delighted with the group results which show our new business segments helping to lift results in periods when the Jackpot cycles are low,” Veverka said.

In terms of other key highlights for Jumbo during the first half, the retailer in November agreed a deal to supply the Western Australia’s Lotterywest with its online software platform and related services – its first agreement with a government-owned lottery.

Also in November, Jumbo secured a remote gambling software operating licence from the British Gambling Commission, while the retailer in September named veteran Australian executive Susan Forrester as chair of its board of directors.

Other business activity saw Tabcorp in September agree to sell its 11.6% stake in Jumbo Interactive for $97.8m.

The report was conducted through a web-based survey of the Ampersand Gaming panel, with 106 responses. It marked the fifth such report, and the second since the start of the pandemic. 

The results showed a large degree of optimism about the future of online casino. The majority of respondents, at 70%, said they expected this vertical to grow significantly over the next 12 months, with a further 26% predicting it to grow slightly and only 2% projecting decline.

For land-based casino, however, results were far more mixed, as 42% projected it to decline significantly and 8% to decline slightly, while 31% projected growth.

Looking specifically at respondents’ own businesses, 77% said they were optimistic, of which 17% very optimistic and the remainder quite optimistic. Only 5% were pessimistic, of which only 1% were very pessimistic.

When asked to list the biggest opportunities in the gaming industry, popular responses included online and mobile gaming, esports and new markets such as Latin America, Africa and the USA.

Covid-19 was seen as the biggest threat to the industry, meanwhile, with regulation in second place.

Regulation was also seen as the most important trend or development for those in the industry to follow, with new markets following.

New and emerging markets, however, declined in importance as a trend compared to past surveys, as did negative perceptions of the industry.

Respondents were also asked what area they would choose if given $500,000 to invest in technology. The most common response was artificial intelligence, with cashless solutions, mobile platforms and payments next.

When asked about organisations or types of company that have had a positive impact on their business, answers included land-based operators, suppliers and regulators, but no single answer gained a large number of responses.

Turning to organisations or types of company that have had a negative impact, regulators again featured, as did government and unlicensed gambling businesses.

Respondents said they most aspired for their business to be like British betting giant Bet365, with Entain, Playtech and IGT also popular answers. Out of non-gambling companies, respondents said they aspired to be like tech giants Amazon, Tesla, Google, Apple and Netflix.

Finally, Ampersand members said they currently use calls with colleagues, calls with suppliers and news sites to learn about new developments in the industry, but when society returns to normal, they expect live events again to be the main way to learn about these developments.

Breaking down the respondents, the majority of those answering were involved with casino or sports betting, with 39% and 29% of respondents respectively. Most respondents were either C-level executives, partners or managing directors at their business, while Europe and North America were the most common locations.

You can read the Ampersand Bellwether Report in full here.

Stella David will become senior independent director and joins the Remuneration, Nomination, and Environmental, Social and Governance Committees. Vicky Jarman has been appointed an independent non-executive director and joins the Audit and Remuneration Committees.

David was previously the chief executive of William Grant & Sons Distillers, after more than 15 years working with Bacardi Ltd, culminating in five years spent as the brand’s global chief marketing officer.

Until recently she was chair of shoe manufacturer & retailer C&J Clark Ltd, and spent seven years as a non-executive director at Nationwide Building Society, where she chaired the Remuneration Committee.

David is currently a non-executive director of Domino’s Pizza Group, Bacardi, provider of home repairs and improvements HomeServe Plc, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.

Vicky Jarman is a chartered accountant who qualified at KPMG before working with financial advisory and asset management firm Lazard and Co, first in the investment banking team and then as chief operating officer for the London and Middle East operations until 2009.

Jarman is currently non-executive director of Signature Aviation plc and Great Portland Estates plc.

She was previously non-executive director and chairman of the Audit Committees of financial services company Equiniti Group, recruitment firm Hays plc and manufacturing company De La Rue plc, as well as senior independent director at Equiniti, and non-executive director at estate agency Knight Frank LLP.

Barry Gibson, chairman of Entain, said: “I am delighted to welcome Stella and Vicky to the Board of Entain. Between them they offer a hugely additive variety of skills, perspectives and experiences gleaned from many different roles and industries.

“We now have a truly exceptional Board that will help Entain realise its clear and ambitious strategy for sustainability, growth and innovation.”

“I would also like to thank Stephen for his huge contribution to Entain over the past the five years, as well as his counsel and help to me personally. I wish him all the very best for the future.”

Entain confirmed the appointment of Jette Nygaard-Andersen as its new chief executive in January, replacing former CEO Shay Segev as he stepped down from the role to become co-CEO of sports streaming platform Dazn.

Earlier this month, the operator confirmed the appointment of former Louisiana gaming chief Ronnie Jones to an advisory role on its board, along with other former regulators from several US states.

Under the agreement, Genius will power the MFL’s first live data collection and distribution platform, covering the league’s largest competitions, including the Liga Super, Piala FA and Piala Malaysia.

Live match statistics will be made available across an automated social media publisher service, live widgets and the MFL’s other media platforms.

Genius will also deploy accredited statisticians at all Liga Super games and the knockout stages of the Piala Malaysia to operate Football LiveStats. This will capture advanced team and player statistics including shot locations, assists and cards with detailed explanations.

In addition, Genius has launched a new integrity program to safeguard MFL competitions from the threats of match-fixing and betting-related corruption. This includes the Genius Bet Monitoring System, in-person workshops and a bespoke Integrity Audit Service.

“When live data is easily available in digital formats, it enhances fans’ experience as well as their knowledge of the matches and competitions while it’s being played,” MFL chief executive Dato ’Ab Ghani Hassan said.

“This will further expand the dimensions of the competitions, players and teams.”

Mohamed Feizel, senior commercial partnerships manager for Asia at Genius, added: “Live data and statistics are a central part of the modern fan experience, particularly with the majority of world football still being played behind closed doors.

“In partnership with the MFL, we aim to provide their fans with engaging updates before, during and after every game while providing a platform to expand their global audience.”

Churchill Downs Incorporated has launched the process to sell the Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights, Illinois, with plans for the new owner to redevelop the site.

THe operator, however, said it remains committed to running Arlington’s 2021 racing calendar, which lasts until 25 September. It said it does not expect the sale to close before this date, nor does it expect the sale to impact the schedule in any other way.

Real estate business Coldwell Banker Richard Ellis (CBRE) will market the property to new developers.

Churchill Downs Incorporated chief executive Bill Carstanjen said the racecourse’s location should make it an attractive property site for buyers.

Read the full story on iGB North America

Image: Marswilsalc

The affiliate pointed out that Colombia is the only Latin American jurisdiction with a fully regulated online gaming sector, and said it was therefore the perfect place for BonusFinder to launch.

“We love operating within regulated markets, it is truly our main focus and our passion,” BonusFinder managing director Fintan Costello said.

“It means the players are better protected, the operators are all legitimate – and everything runs fairly for the players.”

“Better regulation – including affiliate licensing – represents the future of the industry worldwide, and we are delighted to be working in another well-regulated and well-respected market like Colombia.”

BonusFinder has expanded into several new markets recently, with an emphasis on its expansion into jurisdictions in the US.

In October, the affiliate extended its licence in West Virginia to cover igaming, allowing the website to collate and display a range of bonus offers from online casino operators that are licensed in the state.

In November, it secured its affiliate licence in Michigan ahead of the launch of online sports betting and igaming in the state, and received a further affiliate licence in Virginia earlier this month.