Bwin.party Revenue Up 1% To $276 Million In Q1 2012

Bwin.party has released its financial figures for the first three months of 2012, revealing a 1% increase in revenue to €215.9 million ($275.8 million) compared to the same period last year.
Overall, Q1 saw revenue from the company’s Sports betting wagers rise 11% to €1.083 billion while casino and other games increased 10% to €71 million. On the other hand, bingo suffered a dramatic decline of 15% to €15.6 million, largely affected by increased competition in Italy, and the closure of its site in Denmark for regulatory reasons.
Poker revenue, too, fell by 3% to €52.2 million in Q1, with the daily average number of players to the site plummeting by 15%. Accounting for its disappointing poker results, Bwin.party said the figures reflected the company’s previous marketing focus, which had been relying on third party poker affiliates to deliver a large numbers of players to its sites, a strategy which ultimately proved only marginally profitable.
Elaborating further a company statement explained: “Having adjusted our player marketing activities in 2011 away from high volume but low value affiliates towards direct marketing, average daily players fell 15% year-on-year to 96,700 (2011: 113,300), a 1% decline versus the previous quarter.”
Striking an optimistic note going forward, Bwin.party said it was poised to make further savings as a result of its recent merger and that it was also  looking forward to obtaining a German online gambling licence. A company statement further added:
“With the imminent launch of our download casino product on the bwin platform, the Euro 2012 football tournament starting next month and the integration of our poker liquidity in the second half, we remain confident about the group’s full year prospects.”
Bwin.party shares are currently trading at 135.20p, down from a 52 week high of 175.70p but way above its 52 week low of  98.50p. The company has a market capitalisation of £1.11 billion.