32Red has sold its Bet Direct sportsbook to Stan James for £5.75m, as revealed by eGaming Review at the end of September.
The news came with the publicaiton of the firm’s results for the first half of the year which showed total revenues increasing of 47.2% to £9.2m. However, casino revenues were almost static and poker revenues fell nearly 4% over the period.
32Red bought Bet Direct in June 2006 from Sportech for £12.5m. The company said it will use proceeds from the sale to increase the profile of its casino, poker and sportsbetting products and expansion into new territories. Bookmakers Stan James and Boylesports were reportedly in the running to buy Bet Direct, but Boylesports chief executive Daniel O’Mahoney counted his company out of the race late last week.
In its statement, 32Red said that further to a strategic review of both brands and a review of the potential business development opportunities for the company, it had accepted the offer of £5.75m for the intellectual property and “certain assets” of the Betdirect business. Chief executive Ed Ware said: “The sale of the Bet Direct brand allows us to channel our marketing and management focus on the core 32Red brand.”
Ware added that mobile gaming services and an integrated bingo offering will be added to the product range in the final quarter of this year.
32Red reported casino revenues of £4.6m for the six month period to the end of June, a 1.7% increase on the same period in 2006, and a drop in poker revenues of 3.8% over the six month period in 2007, compared to revenues of £0.6m in 2006.
The number of active customers grew to 75,911, compared with 44,539 in 2006.
Chief executive Ed Ware said: “Whilst the recent UK legislative changes effective from 1 September 2007 allow greater access to the UK market, we have identified a number of new territories into which we intend to market the 32Red brand.”
http://www.egrmagazine.com/cgi-bin/item.cgi?id=2226&d=pg_dtl_art_news&h=0&f=0
Showing posts with label Betdirect. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Betdirect. Show all posts
October 30, 2007
October 26, 2007
Boylesports: 'We will not be buying Bet Direct'
Boylesports has counted itself out of the running to acquire 32Red’s sports-betting operation Bet Direct, according to the chief executive.
Speaking on the publication of his company results for the year, boss Daniel O’Mahoney said: “We will not be buying Bet Direct”.
The news leaves Stan James as the leading contender to snap up the online bookmaker which has been up for sale for over a month.
O’Mahoney said his company would concentrate on re-investing in his own business. “We are delighted,” he said. “These results put us in an excellent position.”
In the year to the end of June, Boylesports saw turnover increase 25% to E629m while operating profit rose to E15.6m from E12m the year previously. Boylesports operates an online and telephone betting operation along with a retail operation in its native Ireland.
The company said that a “string of favourable results” had a positive impact on profit, in particular at the Cheltenham and Aintree horse-racing festivals.
O’Mahoney hailed the company sponsorships at English premier League club Sunderland and at Cheltenham as having helped boost the company profile in its target market of the UK.
“We get good exposure from them both,” he said. The UK now accounts for over 50% of Boylesports’ UK client base.
“The UK is obviously very competitive, and you need a quality product,” he added. “But even a small percentage of the UK market can still be significant.”
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2218
Speaking on the publication of his company results for the year, boss Daniel O’Mahoney said: “We will not be buying Bet Direct”.
The news leaves Stan James as the leading contender to snap up the online bookmaker which has been up for sale for over a month.
O’Mahoney said his company would concentrate on re-investing in his own business. “We are delighted,” he said. “These results put us in an excellent position.”
In the year to the end of June, Boylesports saw turnover increase 25% to E629m while operating profit rose to E15.6m from E12m the year previously. Boylesports operates an online and telephone betting operation along with a retail operation in its native Ireland.
The company said that a “string of favourable results” had a positive impact on profit, in particular at the Cheltenham and Aintree horse-racing festivals.
O’Mahoney hailed the company sponsorships at English premier League club Sunderland and at Cheltenham as having helped boost the company profile in its target market of the UK.
“We get good exposure from them both,” he said. The UK now accounts for over 50% of Boylesports’ UK client base.
“The UK is obviously very competitive, and you need a quality product,” he added. “But even a small percentage of the UK market can still be significant.”
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2218
October 11, 2007
Bet Direct ‘could fetch £6m’
32Red’s up-for-sale Bet Direct operation could fetch £6m (US$12m), valuing the business at less than half of the price it fetched when it was sold by Sportech in May of last year, according to sources.
It is thought that Irish-based bookmaker Boylesports remains the favourite to snap up the business, though Stan James and Chronicle bookmakers (half-owned by Dermot Desmond, the Irish billionaire and owner of Betdaq) are also rumoured to be in the hunt. The deal could well go through within the next two weeks.
The Aim-listed operator confirmed a fortnight ago in a statement to the London Stock Exchange it was in talks to sell Bet Direct after eGaming Review broke the story that the loss-making sports-betting operation was on the market.
32Red bought the business from Sportech in May 2006 for £12.5m.
Boylesports gave an official no comment, as did Stan James, which was thought to be among the original bidders for Bet Direct when it was sold by Sportech.
No-one at Chronicle was available for comment.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2182
It is thought that Irish-based bookmaker Boylesports remains the favourite to snap up the business, though Stan James and Chronicle bookmakers (half-owned by Dermot Desmond, the Irish billionaire and owner of Betdaq) are also rumoured to be in the hunt. The deal could well go through within the next two weeks.
The Aim-listed operator confirmed a fortnight ago in a statement to the London Stock Exchange it was in talks to sell Bet Direct after eGaming Review broke the story that the loss-making sports-betting operation was on the market.
32Red bought the business from Sportech in May 2006 for £12.5m.
Boylesports gave an official no comment, as did Stan James, which was thought to be among the original bidders for Bet Direct when it was sold by Sportech.
No-one at Chronicle was available for comment.
http://www.egrmagazine.com/item/2182
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