NEWS / THE BRIEFING /
THE SMOKING GUN
s Rumours, gossip and scandal from the dark corridors of online gaming
T
he Cheltenham Festival tends
to make people act irrationally.
TSG for one certainly made –
and lost – its fair share of nonsensical
bets. But it seems the fever pitch
atmosphere really got to operators
this year, producing some of the most
eye-catching, rival-bashing marketing
campaigns to date.
Many took to Twitter to spread the
word. Betfair encouraged followers
(and C-list celebs it had presumably
paid) to post ‘selfies’ wearing yellow
along with the #Chelfie hashtag, while
Paddy Power opted for #Cheltmental
and produced a seemingly endless
stream of photos of people wearing
horse heads.
The pair went head-to-head later
in the week when Betfair ran an ad
carrying the strapline ‘Paddy Power
Bets at Betfair – Because he Can
Cashout on Multiples’. Underneath
featured a line saying ‘Meet Mr Patrick
Power in Disguise, a Betfair customer’.
This was, apparently, based on fact.
The exchange operator reckons it has
six customers called Patrick Power,
three called William Hill and one called
Victor Chandler. Somehow TSG thinks
Paddy Power’s mischief team might not
let Betfair get away with that one…
THE LAST LEG?
Meanwhile, Paddy Power took a bit
of a bashing last month following its
campaign around the Oscar Pistorius
murder trial. One presenter on UK TV,
Adam Hills on the Last Leg (a show that
was based on the Paralympic Games),
ranted for a full 60 seconds. And it was
pretty brutal stuff. It began by accusing
the operator of glamourising a murder
MR GREEN BRINGS IN
NEW PRODUCT CHIEF
Mr Green has strengthened its
management team after appointing
Thomas Rosander as its new chief
product officer (CPO). Rosander,
who joins the online casino from
Electronic Arts, has been tasked
with improving Mr Green’s overall
customer experience, a remit which
will see him oversee areas such
as website development, games,
customer services and payments.
trial and ended on the message, along
with a phallic poster, of: “Paddy Power,
don’t be a dick”. Ouch.
INVENTIVE INCENTIVES
Ladbrokes’ full-year results brought
little in the way of good news but the
firm was keen to focus on the positives
and did a good job of selling the future
growth story. Oddly it didn’t release
the full annual report until a few weeks
later. The delay may have been due
in part to the revelation that CEO
Richard Glynn’s long-term incentive
plan contributed to him receiving an
85% boost to his annual pay putting
his annual earnings at around 57% of
digital operating profits.
Given the massive tax hit the firm
then took on FOBTs days later and the
plunge in share price that brought,
the timing was horrific. To paraphrase
a song someone else also fond of
wearing red ties once sang, things
can, surely, only get better.
23% 60% £60
MILLION
The drop in full-year profits in
2013 at GTECH, prompting it to
announce international expansion
plans and the launch of a online
sports betting product
12
S
PEOPLE
NEWS
The percentage of
sportsbook wagering
now derived from mobile
devices at Betfair, a new
high for the firm
Amount XLMedia, chaired
by ex-Ladbrokes chief
Chris Bell, has floated
on London’s Alternative
Investment Market
BETFAIR BOARD RESHUFFLES
FOLLOWING PETER RIGBY
APPOINTMENT
Betfair has announced former
Informa CEO Peter Rigby is to join
the company as a non-executive
director next month as part of a
number of changes to the board’s
structure. Current non-executive
directors Mike McTighe and Fru
Hazlitt are to retire with effect
from 31 March.
HEALTH LOTTERY CEO LEAVES
BY “MUTUAL CONSENT”
Health Lottery chief executive
Dominic Mansour has left the
company by “mutual consent”.
Mansour, who joined the Health
Lottery from GTECH in January
2013, left his role earlier this month
and is expected to remain within
the industry once his period of
gardening leave expires.
SAGI TO FLOAT PAYMENT
SOLUTIONS PROVIDER
SAFECHARGE
Playtech founder Teddy Sagi is to
list payments provider SafeCharge
on London’s Alternative Investment
Market thi