Industry News
888 Holdings Plc Announces Q3 2023 Trading Update
888, one of the world’s leading betting and gaming companies with internationally renowned brands including William Hill, 888 and Mr Green, announced an update confirming its trading during the three months ended 30 September 2023 (Q3 2023).
Highlights
- Group: performance in line with 28th September 2023 trading update with revenue of £405.0m, down 10% year on year. Trends and drivers of year-over-year performance are consistent with that update with significant and ongoing improvements being made to the sustainability and quality of the mix of the business impacting performance in the short-term.
- UK&I Online: continued strong customer engagement with average monthly actives +17%. Revenue -10% driven by ongoing impact of safer gambling changes and refined marketing approach, coupled with lower-than-expected betting net win margin from customer friendly sports results in September, particularly UK football.
- Retail: strong underlying performance driven by improved product offering through investment in SSBTs and gaming cabinets, partly offset by customer friendly sports results meaning revenue was +1% year-over-year.
- International: average monthly actives -2% and revenue -19% with an ongoing significant impact from compliance changes in dotcom markets, particularly the Middle East, with a slower recovery in revenue and customer activity than initially anticipated.
- Synergy delivery on track and significant cost savings being delivered that have helped to partly mitigate the impact of regulatory and compliance changes.
- Section8 in-house games successfully integrated into William Hill online and the initial integration of William Hill’s proprietary global trading platform into 888’s in-house platform, with certain sports now being traded across the group from one trading engine.
- Prioritising the safety and wellbeing of the Group’s more than 500 colleagues in Israel and their families following the outbreak of war post Period end. Activated business continuity plans, which are working well with no significant impact on business operations expected.
- No change to expectations of Q4 revenue being down mid-single digit and FY23 Adjusted EBITDA Margin of 18-19%.
Per Widerström, CEO of 888, said: “I am very excited to have joined the 888 Group as the new CEO. I have already been struck by the strength of the Group’s assets and its clear potential, as well as the ambition of our team.
“I am happy to note that despite the regulatory challenges the Group has faced this year, the hard work by the team is already showing signs of results meaning that we head towards the end of the year with positive momentum, and well placed to grow in the coming years.
“This is a business with a very strong foundation for profitable growth. But there are clearly also several areas for improvement which we will focus on to unlock our full potential and drive value creation. I am looking forward to working closely with our fantastic people in the Group, the talented executive team and the Board to ensure we are in the best possible position to deliver our plans and maximise value creation.”
AI
Blacklyte unveils AI-powered desktop gaming “Teammate” companion
Blacklyte has announced the Blacklyte AI Teammate, an AI-powered desktop gaming companion the company says is designed to react to gameplay and provide coaching-style assistance. Blacklyte said the product will be shown in base colors at LVL UP EXPO.
According to the company, the AI Teammate can guide players through levels, provide feedback on playstyle, and suggest alternative moves based on analysis of in-game decisions and potential outcomes. Blacklyte positions the device as a desk-based companion that integrates with its broader lineup of desks, chairs, and accessories.
“We at Blacklyte are excited to bring the Blacklyte AI Teammate to life. By creating this new desktop teammate, we are giving people a new way to connect with games. The Blacklyte AI Teammates are not just another robot; they are true partners who understand gamers, games, and how to get the win.” said Alex Liu, Blacklyte Founder and CEO. “Beyond gaming, the Blacklyte AI Teammate is a true partner who supports, adapts, and upgrades their new owner’s life. They are always there when needed, on the desk, in a game, and beyond.”
On hardware, Blacklyte said the device has a silicone body with a steel core for poseability and an LED face screen intended to display emotions and responses. The company said it connects to PCs through the Blacklyte app available on the Apple and Play Store, with the app supporting controls and firmware updates. Blacklyte also said additional colors and collaborations are planned in the future.
The post Blacklyte unveils AI-powered desktop gaming “Teammate” companion appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
Andrew Cardno
Quick Custom Intelligence Launches QCI Metrics
Quick Custom Intelligence (QCI) a leading provider of casino operational intelligence software, announced the launch of QCI Metrics, a new anonymized data-sharing program that enables gaming and hospitality operators to benchmark performance using yesterday’s operating data—providing timely, actionable insights without exposing customer, financial, or personally identifiable information. This innovative solution extends beyond gaming machine ranking into host performance standardization.
Available through the Chatalytics.com portal and integrated into the QCI Platform, QCI Metrics transforms operational data—including game performance and host effectiveness—into standardized performance indexes.
While traditional benchmarking solutions rely on limited datasets or delayed reporting cycles, QCI Metrics delivers insights based on yesterday’s data—giving operators a timely, continuously updated view of how they are performing against peers across both gaming and player development.
All data shared in QCI Metrics is:
• Aggregated and normalized
• De-identified
• Abstracted at the property level using internal IDs
No transaction-level, player-level, or campaign-level data is ever shared.
“QCI Metrics gives operators the ability to see how they stack up against peers across player development and gaming in near-time, without compromising privacy. It’s a practical, secure way to unlock industry-wide insights,” said Andrew Cardno, Co-Founder and CTO of QCI.
QCI Metrics is designed to help operators quickly identify performance gaps, respond faster to trends, and adopt proven strategies in a highly competitive environment.
The post Quick Custom Intelligence Launches QCI Metrics appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.
Industry News
RAW iGaming unveils RAW Riches: A site-wide progressive jackpot overlay built for scale
RAW iGaming announces today the launch of RAW Riches, a site-wide progressive jackpot overlay designed to deliver jackpot moments without adding operational complexity.
Launching as part of the RAWVerse ecosystem, RAW Riches introduces a new approach to jackpots, prioritising seamless integration, player engagement, and operator control.
A fully embedded experience
RAW Riches introduces a multi-tier progressive jackpot layer deployable across an operator’s entire portfolio, regardless of game supplier. Unlike traditional jackpot mechanics that require separate integrations or fragmented systems, RAW Riches operates as a fully embedded experience within the operator’s brand, creating a single, unified jackpot.
Tom Wood, CEO of RAW iGaming, said: “The industry built jackpots in silos. We built one that connects everything.
“RAW Riches gives operators a site-wide jackpot running across every entity and every game supplier, configured to their exact needs and brand, all from a single solution.
“We pride ourselves on producing the industry’s most distinctive and disruptive game concepts and RAW Riches is no different.
“This is the kind of product that changes how operators think about jackpots entirely.”
A seamless player experience
Players opt in and continue playing as normal. When triggered, the jackpot experience takes over instantly. Every trigger results in a win, with no losing outcomes, before the player is returned to their original game to continue playing.
Scaleable without complexity
RAW Riches solves one of the industry’s most persistent operational challenges in scaling jackpots across multiple providers, brands, and markets. Key features include:
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Single deployment across all games and brands
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Full operator control over jackpot configuration and branding
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Multiple delivery options, including bespoke branded game builds
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Seamless deployment within any existing RAW integration or delivery partner
RAW Riches is available today across regulated markets in Europe.
The post RAW iGaming unveils RAW Riches: A site-wide progressive jackpot overlay built for scale appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.
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