F E A T U R E 2013 : W H A T W E L E A R N E D
WINNERS AND LOSERS
The only winners this year were the
lawyers. Both the German public and
operators missed out through another year
of frustrating delays.
08
A YEAR TO
FORGET FOR
LADBROKES
Ladbrokes has had to endure a
torrid year punctuated by three
profit warnings which diminished
the City’s faith in the bookmaker’s
potential and heaped pressure on
CEO Richard Glynn
WHAT HAPPENED?
The operator appeared to have turned
a corner in April 2013 when it joined
forces with Playtech to revamp its digital
business, betting on Playtech’s ability to
repeat the success it brought William Hill as
part of its online joint venture. But although
heralded as a significant leap towards
resolving its issues at the time, the migration
to Playtech’s platforms and marketing
technology has been problematic. In
September, after the operator’s third
profit warning of the year, Glynn admitted
Ladbrokes had underestimated the
disruption it would cause.
Negotiations over a potential early
release from its Microgaming contract are
ongoing, however Glynn considered any
settlement unlikely owing to the software
supplier’s rivalry with Playtech.
Patrick Coffey, an analyst at Barclays,
www.egrmagazine.com
believes that the m &