The group’s revenues during the first half of 2006 increased to SEK 265.8m, up 39 per cent compared to the same period in 2005. Operating profit was down to SEK 6.3m from SEK 15.1m last year. The result includes costs of SEK 5.6 million for financial advisory services and consulting in connection with the division of the group.
The Betsson group includes three divisions: Betsson Online, which operates the sportsbook, betting exchange, online casinos and poker room, Net Entertainment, which provides B2B online gaming software, and Cherry Casino, which is the market leader in restaurant casinos in Sweden.
Net sales for Betsson Online, formerly Cherry Online, increased by 71 per cent to SEK 61.9m during the second quarter and by 137% to SEK 130.7m for the entire reporting period.
Despite a large interest in sports betting during the second quarter, Betsson Online reported a negative result of SEK 5.3m (Q2 2005: SEK 3.4m), primarily due to increased costs for development and marketing, which did not give the expected outcome and during the third quarter has been reduced and changed. For the entire reporting period, Betsson Online reported a loss of SEK 3.8m.
Betsson.com increased the number of registered customers by 16 per cent to 345,000 during the second quarter. The number of active customers also increased during the period by 3 per cent to 49,000 and has increased in total by 142 per cent during the last year.
For Betsson Poker the second quarter was not satisfying. The number of registered poker players increased by 7 per cent to 241,000, while the number of active poker customers decreased by 15 per cent to 29,900. The primary reason for the decrease was increased competition in poker on several of Betsson’s core markets. Competition from the soccer world championshipsand seasonal effects have also contributed to the decrease. Compared with second quarter 2005, the number of active poker players has increased by 83 per cent.
The number of active players in Betsson Sport totalled 16,400 during the second quarter, up 127 per cent over a year earlier. The increase is due to a successful launch of Betsson’s own sports wagering system and the strong interest in the soccer world championships.
The number of players at the betting exchange increased during the quarter by 30 per cent to 5,200. The number of active casino players at Betsson Casino decreased by 18 per cent to 13,800.
The number of registered customers in the online casinos, CasinoEuro.com, CherryCasino.com and CasinoDomain.com, decreased by 2 per cent to 206,000. The number of active customers increased by 14 per cent to 13,900.
Betsson, which recently obtained a license in Northern Cyprus and was named by Internetworld Sweden’s best gaming site 2006, plans to launch during the fall several new products, including Bingo, which are expected to attract both existing and new customers.
Net Entertainment\’s revenues, which consist of royalties and other proceeds from software\’s sales, increased by 39 per cent to SEK 22.9m during the second quarter. Operating profit was SEK 8.3m, in line with the the same period in 2005. Exclusive internal group sales increased by 62 per cent to SEK 18.2m. The software provider also signed six new external licensing agreements.
For the entire reporting period, the net sales increased by 49 per cent to SEK 44.6m and the operating result amounted to SEK 18.9m. Excluding internal group sales to Betsson Online, net sales increased by 55 per cent to SEK 33.9m.
Cherry Casino\’s revenues for second quarter decreased to SEK 52.6m and the operating profit was stable at SEK 1.8m. For the entire reporting period, net sales amounted to SEK 101.1m and the operating profit to SEK 2.2m. The decrease in net sales is primarily due to the decreasing market for Swedish restaurant casino games.
At the Extraordinary General Meeting held on September 6, the company has decided to distribute all shares in the subsidiary Cherryföretagen AB as dividends to the shareholders in Betsson.
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