Big Fish Games' revenues dip as focus turns to social casino

Churchill Downs has reported a 12% year-on-year drop in total bookings from its Big Fish Games social games division.

The decline was felt most sharply in Premium paid bookings i.e. paid PC games, which dipped 14% year-on-year.

By contrast Social casino bookings were up on 7%, thanks to new features introduced into both Big Fish Casino and Jackpot City Slots, including Clubs and Tournament features that allows players to partner up.

Casual and mid-core F2P bookings declined 27% thanks to a reduced spend on user acquisition, as the firm looked to transition to social casino games.

UA spend for social casino increased by $7m versus 2Q16

Big Fish Games generated adjusted EBITDA of $18.3 during the quarter, up 3% year-on-year.

The uptick was largely due to a $9.1m decline in marketing expenses, which was entirely due to a pullback in UA spend for the Casual & midcore F2P segment.

Analyst firm Eilers and Krejcik said the results showed the firm was on the right track despite the declining bottom line figures.

“Management is positioning the company for sustainable long-term growth and profitability by refocusing its resources and UA spend towards the casino category. Notably, the company has done a much better job of containing marketing expenses over the past few quarters and we are beginning to see much less EBITDA margin fluctuations.

“Specific to the social casino category Jackpot Magic Slots continues to show positive signs and while the category remains fiercely competitive new features including Clubs & Tournaments appears to be clearly aimed at recapturing lost market share to Huuuge Casino.”