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by Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co
The Gambling Commission of Great Britain has released its annual report on participation rates and the perception of gambling for 2017. Every year, the Gambling Commission ask approximately 8,000 people (4,000 men and 4,000 women) about their gambling in the last four weeks, with the report usually published in February of the following year.
So what did this year's report tell us? Things are not terribly rosy for the National Lottery; for the other sectors, it is a mixed bag. Over the last four years, participation in National Lottery draws is down from 37 percent to 27 percent, whereas participation in casino games was up from 1.2 percent to 1.6 percent of respondents, gaming arcades up 10 percent (2.0 percent to 2.2%) , sports betting climbed from 4.1 percent to 6.4 percent, horse race betting was down a significant 42 percent (6.4 percent to 4.1 percent of respondents), and bingo rose from 2.5 percent to 3.3 percent. I'll come back to casino games and bingo later. Despite the recent furore over FOBTs, over a four-year period the number of players, despite a downward blip in 2015, has remained fairly constant at 1.4% of respondents.
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by Luke Haward, CDC Gaming Reports
Gambling has been, at the very least, a simmering topic of relative discontent in Italy for some time now, and it's only going to get hotter and harder to handle in the coming months. As the second largest European gambling market after the United Kingdom, Italy faces some quite similar challenges.
There might not be quite so much noise as there is in the UK, in terms of the national press reporting on problems in the gambling industry, but locally there's significant pushback against the proliferation of gambling devices in various localities, and tension brewing over the 10,000 new betting points which are being proposed for governmental approval. The government also tendered 120 new online gaming licenses recently, with a week to go before the application deadline closes. It's certainly a gambling economy that continues to grow, especially in the online sector. Moreover, this growth, measured as 25% year-on-year for 2016, appears to still be accelerating.
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Andrew says:
I think it was Benjamin Franklin who said there are two things certain in life: death and taxes (ed. note: first known usage of the phrase in print was in 'The Cobbler of Preston,' 1716, by Christopher Bullock.) Well, for the casino in Loutraki, in Greece, the lack of payment of gaming taxes led to the authorities closing the casino. After paying part of what was due, it has now reopened.
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Andrew says:
The Danish Gambling Authority, Spillemyndigheden, has released the Danish gambling market statistics for 2017. Revenues from betting and online are up; from casinos and gaming machines, down.
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Luke says:
Better Collective declares the signing off of a seven-figure deal in acquiring these assets from Finnish affiliate Premium Administration OU (PAOU). The market has proved good to them so far in Nordic nations, and this is a clear consolidation play from the publisher. Finland is currently the Nordic nation in which they have the smallest presence, after all. Better Collective barely seem to pause to draw breath when it comes to expansion, with eight acquisitions in 2017; this is their first of 2018 thus far. As the CEO Jesper Sogaard said during interview with SBC, their long-term plans involve staying at the top of all things affiliate in the European online gaming world. This move will certainly help them in achieving that goal.
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Luke says:
The main opposition party in Ireland, Fianna Fáil, have drawn up their own version of the Gaming Control Bill and filed it as a private members' bill. One of the many features of this bill is that Fianna Fáil want bookmakers to be legally required to limit the losses players can incur online while gambling. They are in good company, harmonising well with what ex-CEO of Paddy Power Stewart Kenny is calling for in Ireland, namely mandatory limits. Fianna Fáil go one step further, in fact, accusing the presiding government of delaying the reform of gambling laws deliberately. A serious claim, indeed, but understandable given the epic delays in this still-ongoing review process. Rather than see the government continue to languish in an interminable and costly review of the old bill, Fianna Fáil are making the case that their own bill should be considered for cross-party support.
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Luke says: GVC Holdings has reported a record-busting 18 percent rise in underlying gaming revenues since the start of 2018 and looks set to benefit still further as its takeover of Ladbrokes Coral proceeds. We know there might be a FOBT related hiccup coming, but GVC is well prepared for that, considering the flexibility baked into the takeover deal in place. It's looking to be a monster year for the behemoth gaming firm, one in which it goes beyond its online roots and finds its way to the high street, really for the first time. They've got thousands of betting shops to deal with now, and a very new game is afoot. The Times runs an interview with CIO Kenny Alexander in this news piece and get a taste for his views on acquisitions. "We can't wait to get stuck in," says the canny Scot, who has built GVC into a gaming beast in just 14 short years.
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Luke says: GVC warns herein that it will be unable to avoid closing some Ladbrokes Coral betting shops in the UK if the government, as is widely expected to happen, slashes the maximum bet in fixed odds betting terminals (FOBTs) to the minimum £2 stake. The industry as a whole has been saying this sort of stuff for some time, although Paddy Power Betfair have vowed to keep shops open regardless and has accused the wider industry of using scare tactics in warning that shops would be forced to close. GVC investors should be laughing either way, whether they head to the bank or huddle and HODL at home, since the terms of the deal, and the overall cost of it, vary according to the government's final word on FOBTs. This was hailed as a little bit of genius in negotiations when it hit the table, and it's standing GVC Holdings in good stead today as well.
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Luke says: In this major announcement, the Far East Consortium make clear the pursuit of their ambitions in the hospitality and casino sector in Europe. This acquisition of Trans World Corporations includes three American Chance casinos in the Czech Republic. Far East are spending up to $42 million and assuming debt liability of a further $11 million to take on the company, for which they also receive five hotels in Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. At this time last year, Trans World were reporting a "landmark year," with all-round stronger performances across their portfolio, and their most recent hotel acquisitions were still being finalised. The Far East Consortium are of course no stranger to the casino world, jointly responsible as they are for the development of an integrated resort & casino at Queen's Wharf, Brisbane.
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