Party Casino - A Bright Future Under Strong Ownership

Following the merger between Party Gaming PLC and bwin Interactive Entertainment AG in 2011, online casino operator PartyCasino has continued to thrive under the ownership of Isle of Man-based e-gaming operator Gaming VC Holdings PLC (GVC). Online gambling operator GVC experienced an exciting 2016, with the notable acquisition of one of Europe’s leading sports bookmakers bwin. Last month, GVC released its annual results, showing a rise in revenue of 9% to €894.6 million. Earnings rose 26% to €205.7m whilst adjusted pre-tax profit saw a significant increase to €93.8m.

GVC’s Large Portfolio

GVC operates in 4 main areas: sports labels, game labels, business to business and other areas. GVC’s sports labels, which include bwin, Sportingbet, Betboo and Gamebookers, saw positive results for 2016 despite the low percentage of marketing compared to other firms.

GVC’s game labels, which include PartyPoker, PartyCasino, Foxy Bingo, CasinoClub and Gioco Digitale, didn’t fare quite as well but numbers improved as the year progressed. Whilst PartyPoker and PartyCasino represent major challenges for GVC, PartyCasino has witnessed a rise in revenue per customer following its H2 relaunch as well as significant acceleration in acquiring new members. It is clear the brand is a crucial asset to the company, and GVC describes PartyCasino as “one of the world's largest online casinos, with 180 mobile games on offer including many of the classic casino games such as blackjack, roulette and a broad variety of slot machines”.

GVC – Brands Across The Globe

GVC have a good mix of geography-specific brands. Gioco Digitale “was the first fully regulated gaming site on the Italian market launched in 2009”. PartyPoker “remains one of the industry’s most recognised brands, with a particular focus on the UK”. B2B company East Pioneer “runs the Superbahis brand focused on the Turkish market”. Boyd Gaming is a US casino operator “licensed to operate online poker and casino games in New Jersey”. Betboo “provides online bingo, sportsbook, casino and poker access to South American customers”. Gamebookers is a full-service sportsbook “particularly popular in east and central European markets”. PMU is a “French betting operator to whom the Group provides online poker services”.

Further Innovation

GVC recently announced an extension of the partnership between its brand bwin and digital gaming provider NYX Gaming Group. GVC has been in partnership with NYX for 3 years now and employs the company’s innovation on a number of sites including SportingBet. The extension will see NYX increase the range of content on European sportsbook operator Bwin.com. It is already clear that GVC’s ambition is to further increase their market share in the online casino industry and with the resources available under brands such as PartyPoker and PartyCasino the company is in a strong market position. An NYX spokesperson described GVC Holdings as “a true leader in the gaming industry and its strategy for growth and business development is impressive”. Liron Snir, GVC’s Chief Product Officer described the partnership as “another big step towards our objective to build the best casino in the market”.