During the first half 2006, the owner of Littlewood Pools and Littlewood Gaming registered a 25 per cent increase up to £5.0 million in post tax profits from continuing operations and an 18 per cent reduction in debt to £92.3 million.
Sportech also completed the withdrawal from sportsbook betting activities following the sale of Bet Direct and the termination of the contract to provide exclusive betting services to ITV. The company is now refocusing on the core business of football-related gaming as well as on online bingo, casino and poker.
The Football Pools division reduced its profits by £3.6 million to £9.0 million as the forecast continued decline in customer numbers proved correct. Customer numbers have reduced by 8.5 per cent year on year to 546,000.
LittlewoodsBingo.com, launched in February, had a total of 13,000 registrations and 1,200 active players at the end of June. The bingo operation incurred a start-up loss of £0.1 million.
Following three successive six month periods reporting declining profits, the casino and poker business reported a 33 per cent increase up to £0.8 million in profit for the first half of 2006. The number of registered players has increased year on year by 52 per cent to more than 96,000, whilst the number of active players has also increased by 13 per cent to over 16,000.
Chief Executive Ian Penrose commented: “Sportech is starting a process of significant change. We have great products and we operate in growing global markets. Our products are at the heart of football, gaming and leisure and this is a very strong base to operate from. Having sold loss making operations we are now focused on growing our core businesses of football-related gaming, online bingo, poker and casino. We are addressing all areas of our business including new product issues, technology, distribution and commercial property.”
Penrose concluded saying that the outcome of the strategic review would not yield instant results, but would be an effective medium to long term strategy to create a viable growth which would in turn deliver better returns for shareholders.
Elsewhere, Talarius, owner of the Quicksilver Adult Gaming Centres, announced that Cyberslotz, an online gaming site that deals only with UK customers, performed exceptionally well in the first half with 90% sales growth. In the future, as Cyberslotz prepares to expand outside of the UK, Talarius is considering the various funding options available, including a potential de-merger of the popular online gaming operation.
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