888 has struck a deal with US casino group Caesars to offer online poker and casino products under its own brands in New Jersey, possibly from as early as November of this year.
The deal has been agreed with Caesars Interactive Entertainment via its All American Poker Network (AAPN) joint venture with private equity firm Avenue Capital Group.
CEO Brian Mattingley said in the London-listed operator’s second-quarter earnings call this morning: “The regulator is very, very confident that he will launch, and be ready to launch, on the 28th of November 2013. We think that’s quite ambitious. But he is absolutely 100% convinced that’s the time scale he will launch in.”
Mattingley however emphasised that 888 would be among the first to market, regardless of whether or not the regulator managed to hit this date.
“We are absolutely, at this moment in time, up to date with all of our submissions, we’ve done our personal submissions, our corporate submissions, and have had all of our paperwork accepted. There’s a whole series of time scales and milestones. As long as we hit all of those time scales and milestones, then we will launch with everybody else. That’s what Derek (sic) Rebuck has stated at the DGE.”
COO Itai Frieberger confirmed the 888-branded products would be launched on one of Caesars’ four casino licences in New Jersey. Also that Caesars was dedicating another of its licences to an WSOP-branded, 888-powered poker room, suggesting scope for the US casino giant to announce another B2B partner, potentially for a Caesars-branded online casino in NJ.
In response to a question from analyst James Hollins on whether or not the new deal “put to bed any talk of [Caesars] not partnering with you on their B2B”, Mattingley said: “The only person who can answer that is Caesars. I don’t see any reason why signing this deal will change anything. I think Caesars are committed to working with us. Whether they will use anybody else, that is something they have yet to share with us.”
The Caesars-branded online casino and bingo platforms in the UK are powered by Jackpotjoy operator Gamesys, confirmed last month as the preferred B2B partner of another of Atlantic City’s bricks ‘n’ mortar casinos, the Tropicana. Gamesys took over casino from 888 after it proved unworkable from a cross-sell perspective having casino and bingo running on platforms owned by different suppliers.
Mattingley also went out of his way to correct analyst Vaughan Lewis’ assumption that 888 was a minority shareholder in the AAPN joint venture, with Frieberger later confirming 888’s share was close to 50%.
“Vaughan, we are not a minority equity interest at all. We have exact parity with Avenue. There are two or three very small shareholders who were part of the original Avenue introduction deal but we are literally equal shareholders in that venture,” said Mattingley.
Article written by Stephen Carter
