Playtech’s strong performance in the first half of 2020 has been a testament to the organisation’s dynamic management and growth acceleration in its online casino vertical. An adaptive organizational approach allowed the company to secure the preservation of its cash flow and allowed it to boost liquidity in a time of profound adversity for the casino industry.  The year’s challenges have resulted in an adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) for the business of  €160 million or approximately $189 million for the first half of the year.

Management matters

Despite the hard-knock that Playtech’s B2B sector took due to the suspension of live sporting events and the shuttering of casinos and retail outlets in response to the global health crisis, the brand maintains a positive outlook for the remainder of the year.  The organization credits this success to increased market volatility and a subsequent uptick in trading which yielded a positive outcome for its TradeTech division coupled with an upswing in its online business. Playtech’s Bingo, Poker, and online casino operations all experienced growth in the first half of the year.

The winds of fortune are only a small component in the business’ overall positive performance, with its management strategy being hailed as the keystone of its success.  The company’s dynamic response allowed it to effect changes to maximize its available liquidity to over €600 million. This profound reaction included a flurry of early-response measures designed to protect the business, including holding on to shareholder distributions from 2019, which netted the brand €65 million in cash.

The unbanning of live sports and the re-opening of a large percentage of the company’s land-based and retail operations spurred on its positive performance for 2020.

Hope on the horizon

The continued success of Playtech, considering its position as an online casino software supplier industry leader, is indicative of a future positive change of fortunes for the entire industry. The company was originally based in Estonia, eventually moving to the Isle of Man and celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2019.

The brand’s primary offering is turnkey online casino and sports betting solutions for the iGaming sector, and it is a leading force in this global market. The company’s turnover exceeds €1.5 billion over its 20-year existence and its operations include subsidiaries like TradeTech Alpha Limited, Quickspin, and YoYo Games.

Playtech, not satisfied with just being resilient, plans on cultivating existing relationships and simultaneously growing its player offering. In the first half of 2020, the company launched in the New Jersey market, in conjunction with long-time partner Bet365.

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Online casino software provider SoftSwiss is the latest addition to Yggdrasil’s franchise network. Joining the YG franchise network means access to a range of premium real money online casino games and being associated with a platform that achieves revenue growth through collaboration.

New tech

The Agreement will come into effect on 18 August 2020 and gives SoftSwiss access to a huge range of casino games that it can then pass on to its partner network in key regions. These include a flurry of fresh titles like Vault of Fortune and third-party games from YG Masters affiliates. Yggdrasil will also give the provider access to its BOOST promotional tools and its GATI distribution technology.

The GATI technology will giver SoftSwiss access to a system where it can develop new releases and explore new revenue streams with other partners. Collaboration opportunities with other YG franchisees will be possible meaning potential alliances with brands such as Flow Gaming, Azure Tech, and Soft Gamings.

Leading the iGaming Industry

SoftSwiss, headquartered in Curacao, has a reputation for having an extensive online casino games portfolio with over 10,000 gaming titles for more than 60 reputable gaming studios and content providers. The company first launched in 2008 in the guise of an online auction operation but gradually reinvented itself as a leading iGaming company with all-in-one solutions for online casinos.

The company’s online casino software platform was launched in September 2012 and quickly gained recognition for is user-friendliness and flexibility. Today it is the premier Bitcoin gaming software in the industry.

SoftSwiss has its software development arm located in Belarus. This arm of the organization has allowed it to recently add a range of new casino games to its software. It recently signed a new deal with online casino monolith Playtech that will allow SoftSwiss to offer its clients a collection of new live dealer games from Playtech’s Live Casino label.​

Eyecon, an Australian independent online pokie development studio is the most recent content partner to join Microgaming’s massive network. Eyecon’s entire range of titles will now be available on the industry giant’s award-winning iGaming platform, exposing its products to a massive, new audience.

Microgaming’s partner network will now be able to access Eyecon’s full catalogue, including premium titles such as Temple of Iris, the colourful Fluffy Favourites, the syrupy-sweet Sugar Train, and the evergreen Shaman’s Dream.

Microgaming’s content distribution platform regularly pushes out over 800 top online pokie releases to its international portfolio of operator-partners and holds regional online gaming distribution licences in over 20 global jurisdictions.

A prosperous partnership

Joining up with Microgaming is a smart move for any developer as they offer a lucrative and unique set of benefits.

Eyecon Commercial Director Paul Gielbert expressed excitement with this partnership, calling it a fantastic and expansive opportunity. In addition to its complete range of pokies, Eyecon will also be sharing its collection of player-engagement tools.

An empire of alliances

The partnership is destined to be mutually beneficial according to Microgaming Commercial Director Leon Thomas. He stated that the deal will allow Eyecon to distribute its pokies to an international market and simultaneously allow Microgaming to bolster its content bank.

Included in Microgaming’s current content provider portfolio are Gameburger Studios, Sling Shot Studios, Alchemy Gaming, Fortune Factory Studios, Neon Valley Studios, All 41 Studios, and Triple Edge Studios.

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Live casino industry leader, Evolution Gaming has repeated its past successes, scooping the Live Casino Supplier of the year award at the 2020 EGR B2B Awards for the 11^th year running.

The awards took place on a virtual platform this year on 21 July and Evolution beat 12 other candidates to rise to the top of the category once again.

Breaking the mold

Evolution CEO Martin Carlesund shared his excitement at the company’s unprecedented 11-year winning streak, relating how the studio had overcome various hurdles over the last 12 months to surpass even its own expectations. He added that a lot of hard work has gone into ensuring that the company didn’t falter in its dedication to consistently grow its portfolio of titles and evolve the Live Casino genre.

The year has been an eventful one for Evolution, with two of their recent releases, Mega Ball and Crazy Time quickly becoming fan favorites.

According to Carlesund, the studio’s focus on reinventing classic casino titles has resulted in the creation of exhilarating, new experiences such as Lightning Baccarat, Power Blackjack, and Speed Blackjack joining its list of premium live and first-person games.

Acknowledging talent

Carlesund gave full recognition to his team of developers, crediting them with the success that allowed the company to walk away with its latest award.

The CEO emphasized that the team was fully deserving of all accolades for their loyalty and hard work which he characterized as playing a significant part in enriching the entire industry.

Evolution Gaming first broke ground in 2006 and established itself as a pioneering force in B2B Live Casino solutions, expanding its reach to Europe and beyond over its 14-year history.

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Gaming Innovation Group (GiG), an Online casino platform provider and iGaming and Lottery games industry leader has cemented a partnership deal with iGaming marketing and networking specialist, GS Technologies. GiG revealed that they have been allocated the role of official iGaming platform provider to a brand new online casino brand currently under development by GS Technologies.

The deal which will run for 3 years (with 2 optional 1-year extension periods), puts GiG in a position to officially launch its online casino by December 2020 at the latest. The GS / GiG deal has a fixed-fee schedule and will be served by GiG’s existing license, issued by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA).

Not GS’s first rodeo

GS Tech currently administrates numerous popular iGaming platforms as well as owning and running the 2012 Alpha Affiliates programme where it coordinates specialised marketing efforts for prominent partner casino brands. Alpha CEO Nic Prokofev, commenting on the new deal stated, that since GiG as regarded as “reliable and trustworthy” the world over, Alpha is proud to be connected to GiG’s journey and ongoing success.

GS Technologies’ sterling reputation in real money online casinos and related technology services ensures that the deal will signal the beginning of an exciting new path in both GiG and GS Tech’s journey.

A big deal-deal

GiG CEO Richard Brown had nothing but praise for Alpha Affiliates, saying the marketing provider would be a central component to the continued success of GS Technologies. Brown further stated that having GiG named as the partner of choice for GS Tech and Alpha is a huge honour.

With Alpha’s expected launch of its new online casino set for the end of 2020, GiG can look forward to profits and benefits resulting from the partnership deal from as early as 2021. This agreement brings together two of the most prominent and reputable brands in the industry today.

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Casino operator SkyCity Entertainment Group has revealed that it is planning to layoff even more employees due to the ongoing global economic crisis.  The group is preparing for the eventuality of a smaller domestic market once it can resume trade. This, unfortunately, means that at least 700 employees could be facing the axe.

SkyCity briefed shareholders, investors, employees, and the local market earlier this week regarding its efforts to mitigate the continuing destruction caused by current national trade restrictions. The global pandemic required that the group suspend all its casino operations in Mid-March across New Zealand and Australia.

Hard choices

The group expressed that making massive staff cuts was an extremely difficult decision, despite its inevitability. With no alternative solutions in sight, this drastic move seems to be the only one available to ensure the survival of the group.

Just over a month ago; estimated employee layoffs were much more conservative. A maximum of 200 Adelaide-based casino employees were expected to lose their jobs. The group had hoped to avoid making larger job cuts by requesting that its remaining employees accept a 20% drop in their salaries. This measure was only temporarily viable in the face of a steadily worsening economic landscape.

Necessary cuts

The vast majority of the group’s layoffs will be from the group’s Auckland operations. The casinos in this region have a staff complement of roughly 3,000 employees. Current projections mean that 10% of SkyCity’s Auckland-based casino staff could soon be facing unemployment.

SkyCity CEO, Graeme Stephens, expects the layoff processes to run their course in a matter of “some weeks”. Stephens emphasized that management would do whatever possible to ensure that the layoff processes are as considerate and painless as possible.

SkyCity is gearing up to resume its New Zealand operations within a week, but on a reduced scale and with only a percentage of its previous workforce.​

Online casino content supplier and aggregator Relax Gaming revealed its intellectual property deal with ReelPlay for the application and licensing of the studio’s Infinity Reels trade dress and mechanic.

ReelPlay launched its Infinity Reels innovation in the fall of 2019, coinciding with the release of the El Dorado Infinity Reels slot.

The new mechanic adds the chance for an additional reel and re-spins with a progressive multiplier on each spin. The reel addition repeats, greatly increasing win potential. ReelPlay recently announced Giza Infinity Reels, its second Infinity Reels game, and has Odin Infinity Reels waiting in the wings for release in June 2020.

The recent partnership also gives Relax Gaming the rights to trademark and license the Infinity Reels mechanic for its partner network. The supplier’s in-house game development studios and third-party provider partners will now be able to integrate Infinity Reels into their future online slot games.

Strengthening Bonds

The intellectual property deal also serves to extend the previously formed partnership between Relax Gaming and ReelPlay. The duo of B2B gambling companies initially formed a partnership in 2019 when Relax Gaming integrated its branded titles onto Relax Gaming’s platform.

The two companies previously extended their distribution agreement, covering third-party content from ReelPlay’s selected studio partners, which include Gameslab and Boomerang Games.

ReelPlay’s brand new title, Giza Infinity Reels, was initially launched exclusively on Relax Gaming’s aggregator before its industry-wide debut.

Comments from the top

Relax Gaming’s Chief Product Officer Simon Hammon had only good things to say about the rollout of the Australian studio’s El Dorado Infinity Reels game, stating it “marked the introduction of a truly unique and original mechanic that we believe will be a big disruptor in the industry.”

Mr. Hammon added that the freshly-inked intellectual property deal displays their dedication to “enhancing value and passion for innovation” and that they are excited to bring a fresh catalogue of Infinity Reels to market via both their in-house and partner studios “that will push the boundaries even further.”

Chief Commercial Officer of ReelPlay, David Johnson revealed that their expectation of this deal is that it will “unlock a world of new potential for all involved” and that they are looking forward to how Relax Gaming and its partner studios will “incorporate the Infinity Reels IP into a wide variety of slot games.”

The news about ReelPlay and Relax Gaming’s deal came to light days after the Australian studio publicized its intellectual property partnership with Sweden’s NetEnt, designed to assist the two companies in bolstering their rights associated with their respective Infinity Reels and InfiniReels franchises.

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