Gaming in Holland Lunch @ICE London draws large crowd
With the return of in-person events, the traditional Gaming in Holland Lunch at the world's largest gaming trade show, ICE London, also made a highly anticipated comeback.
As usual, we were extremely happy to welcome representatives from almost every major stakeholder in the Dutch gambling market. We hope you enjoyed the Gaming in Holland Lunch as much as we did!
Photographs of the event are available here.
Stakelogic Live partners with BetCity
Stakelogic Live has launched a suite of live casino games with Netherlands-licensed operator BetCity.
The deal will see players at BetCity.nl become able to experience product offerings from the live dealer arm of Stakelogic, including American Blackjack tables, European Roulette, Auto-Roulette and Auto-Roulette Classic tables.
Stakelogic CEO Stephan van den Oetelaar commented: “BetCity has quickly emerged as one of the top brands in the Netherlands thanks in part to its leading game portfolio. This is not only a major deal for BetCity, but also a major deal for Stakelogic Live as it marks our arrival as a leading live casino provider in the fast-growing Dutch market and beyond.”
BetCity CEO Melvin Bostelaar added: “We want to offer our players the best experience in the market and that is why we have chosen Stakelogic Live to strengthen our position in the Dutch market.”
UK Gambling Commision introduces new rules for identifying and aiding at-risk customers
The UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) has announced the introduction of new rules intended to identify and aid at-risk gamblers.
The new rules, which are scheduled to come into effect on September 12, 2022, require operators to monitor an expanded range of risk indicators, implement automated processes to detect risk, and ensure that vulnerable customers are not exposed to marketing and bonus offers.
Gambling Commission CEO Andrew Rhodes commented: “Time and time again our enforcement cases show that some operators are still not doing enough to prevent gambling harm. We expect operators to identify and tackle gambling harms with fast, proportionate and effective action and we will not hesitate to take tough action on operators who fail to do so.”
Better Collective acquires esports brand Futbin for up to €105m
Affiliate giant Better Collective continues its expansion into esports by acquiring Futbin, the world’s leading esports brand related to the FIFA video game, for a price of up to €105m.
During the last twelve months, Futbin generated €13m in revenues growing with a CAGR of 55% from 2019 to 2021.
GlobeNewswire forecasts the global esports market to continue growing with a 22% CAGR between 2022 to 2030, with ads and sponsorships representing the largest share of revenue.
Upcoming events
The following events may be of interest to the GiH community.
Dutch game supplier Eurocoin Gaming will hold open house on May 11-12 in Waalwijk.
The annual members’ meeting of trade association VAN Kansspelen will take place on May 12, also in Waalwijk.
Registration for the 2022 Gaming in Holland Conference & Expo, which will take place June 20-21 at Jaarbeurs Utrecht, is now open.
EASG 2022, the 13th European Conference on Gambling Studies and Policy Issues, has now been scheduled for 6-9 September 2022, and will take place in Oslo, Norway.
Holland Casino posts €40m in online revenues in Q4 2021
State-owned operator Holland Casino posted €40.4m in online revenues during the first three months following the opening of the regulated Dutch online gambling market on October 1, 2021, representing a 22% market share.
These and other figures are included in the operators 2021 annual report which was published earlier today.
Due to Covid-19-related measures, Holland Casino's fourteen land-based venues were closed for no less than 168 days in 2021 and faced a number of other restrictions during the other 197 days of the year. As a result, the number of visits decreased by 31.7% in 2021 compared to 2020.
Total revenues in 2021 amounted to €304.2m, down from €333m in 2020. As a result, the operator suffered pre-tax losses of €64.3m and saw its tax debt increase to €281.9m – up from €144.6m in 2020.
Despite these figures, the Holland Casino is “at its core in good financial shape,” the operator's CFO Ruud Bergervoet said, citing the results of a restructuring round which kicked off in 2020, as well as the lifting of all Covid-19 restrictions in the Netherlands from March 2022 onward.
In related news, Holland Casino also announced the promotion of Malinda Miener, Director of Compliance, to Chief Compliance Officer, in order to further strengthen its focus on safe and responsible gaming.