Bet365 removes casino games from sports app
EGR understands change was made in April to remove risk from Apple updates to the App Store rules
Bet365 has stripped out casino games from its core iOS sports app, as Apple’s new enforcement of its App Store clause 4.7 looms on September 3.
The clause states that real money gaming apps cannot feature HTML5 games.
It’s understood bet365 stripped all casino games out of its sports app back in April to ensure compliance with the clause, although it has never been publicly announced.
A source with knowledge of the operator’s plans said the gaming content was “probably not gone for good” as 365 could work on solutions for an update in the coming months but the removal was a short-term solution to a potentially large problem with launch in New Jersey also pending.
The source added: “They are not the only operator to face this issue, but are likely to be the only one willing to kill short-term cross-sell as a solution.”
Bet365 is understood to generate a much higher percentage of its revenues from sports than casino compared to the majority of its competitors.
The company still has casino games in its Android sports app.
It is uncertain how the operator’s standalone gaming apps will be affected, although its Vegas app comes via Playtech which said this month its product line was native-ready.
Bet365 declined to comment.
Other operators are unlikely to take as drastic action as 365. BetVictor for example recently enabled a new iOS app with three native casino games embedded that is complaint with the new guidelines.
The new BetVictor iOS app with native games