Online gaming operator bwin.party has suffered a year-on-year fall in revenue during what it described as a “challenging” 12 months through to December 31, 2013.The company recorded total full-year revenue of €652.4 million ($910.4 million), a significant drop on the €801.6 million achieved in the previous year.
The operator said the drop in revenue reflected a shift from “volume-to-value” as well as ISP blocking in Greece, migration losses and the full-year impact of gaming taxes in Germany.
In addition, bwin.party said that total clean EBITDA also fell from €143.6 million in 2012 to €108 million in the last 12 months.
However, bwin.party was able to post continuing operating profit of €51.9 million for 2013, up from a loss of €16.5 million in the previous year.
Costs also reduced by €97 million in 2013, much higher than savings of €70 million the firm had initially targeted.
The operator also enjoyed significant growth in its mobile and touch gaming business with gross gaming revenue up to €76.9 million, an increase of 77% on the €43.4 million posted in the previous year.
Norbert Teufelberger, chief executive officer of bwin.party, said that although 2013 proved to be “challenging”, it also marked a “turning point” for the business and it will now push to return to “sustainable growth”.
“It was a challenging year for our business, but it also marked a turning point as we increased our focus on regulated and to-be-regulated markets, began to roll-out new and refreshed versions of our mobile and desktop products, and commenced the transformation of our technology infrastructure through the adoption of the Agile development methodology,” Teufelberger said.
“Having streamlined the shape and size of our business we now have the foundations to return our business to sustainable growth.”
source : www.igamingbusiness.com
