NetEnt prepares for live casino rollout
Software provider to enter beta phase with two partners in the fourth quarter after moderate Q3 revenue growth.
Net Entertainment will begin beta-testing its new live casino offering before the end of the year, the Swedish-listed software provider has announced in its interim report for the three months ended 30 September.
Agreements have been struck with two partners ahead of the Q4 test phase, while discussions are ongoing with several “large operators”, while the company also anticipates completing preparations for the rollout of slot games in Italy in the fourth quarter as the country’s regulator prepares to award licences on two fixed dates in December.
The beta-launch will initially be for live roulette, however NetEnt president and CEO Per Eriksson revealed: “We will continue to develop new games which will launch in 2013. The plan is to have the same amount of games [as other players in the live-dealer market] and a similar range of games to what they have.
NetEnt’s revenues for the third quarter were affected by the Swedish Krona strengthening against the Euro, meaning the SEK122.5m figure “ while up 9.9% compared to the SEK111.4m recorded in Q3 2011 “ represents a 19.7% year-on-year increase if calculated in Euros.
Operating profit was up 6.1% year-on-year, from SEK34m to SEK36.1m, however profit after tax was flat at SEK30.8m (compared to SEK31m in Q3 2011).
Meanwhile the slots vertical increased its contribution to NetEnt’s gross gaming yield, with the launch of seven new Android titles in August playing a part in its 77% contribution, up from 71% in the corresponding period last year.
The quarter saw Boylesports become the latest operator to go live with NetEnt’s casino offering following an agreement signed between the two parties in May, part of a push from the provider to make an impression on the UK market.
Five new customers are still yet to go live, including Skybet, with whom NetEnt agreed a UK-facing deal in February. Eriksson admitted that the process was taking longer than expected, but that a launch was likely “in the very near future”.
The CEO has high hopes for the UK and said in an analyst call this morning: “It is a very important market for us “ it’s a huge market but our presence there is still relatively small.”
He added that the Boylesports launch has helped NetEnt in its discussions with other UK-facing operators, where it is involved in talks with “Bigger and smaller operators, but mainly the bigger ones.”
Elsewhere, Eriksson admitted the company is keeping a close eye on regulatory developments in Germany and Belgium, while admitting “Spain is an interesting market for us.
“When we get some clarity on Germany it will potentially be an even bigger project for us,” he added. At present, Germany is preparing to award up to 20 sports betting licences, however its proposals could be referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union over complaints about non-compliance with EU law, following this week’s publication of the European Commission Action Plan on online gambling.