Marketing Magazine – The advertising watchdog has received 67 complaints that the latest Ladbrokes outdoor ad campaign glamorises gambling and links it to sexual success. Complainants to the Advertising Standards Authority believe the ads are harmful and irresponsible because they glamorise gambling, link it with social and sexual success, and exploit the credulity of young and vulnerable people. The Ladbrokes outdoor campaign features red stylised posters of the characters in its wider campaign, but use taglines such as “once is lucky, twice is talent” and “when you win it’s skill, when you lose it’s bad luck”. The criticism of the…

The new responsible gambling television advert features a character called Mr Brightside, who is shown enjoying a night out with friends despite having earlier been denied a winning football bet by a decision of a linesman. The advertisement finishes with a message that reads ‘Please Bet Responsibly’ and does not include any promotional or sales messages. Ladbrokes said the advert is one of a number of measures it has taken to help promote responsible gaming, such as the introduction of the Association of British Bookmakers code of player protection, new set limits software on machines and retraining staff to include…

iGaming Business – Bookmaker Ladbrokes said that despite having suffered a year-on-year drop in group operating profit during the three months to March 31, 2014, it was still able to deliver all of its “stated operational targets” either on time or ahead of schedule. The company recorded operating profit of £18.4 million (€22.4 million/$30.9 million) in the first quarter of 2014, down from £37.4 million in the corresponding period last year. Ladbrokes put a 2.3% drop in revenue down to industry-wide results that have impacted a number of companies. The bookmaker’s UK retail operation recorded a gross win margin of…

Calvin Ayre – Shortly after he sold his independent betting firm Betstar to UK bookies Ladbrokes, Alan Eskander bemoaned the (mostly) British invasion that was changing the face of the Australian betting industry. Ladbrokes also recently acquired Bookmaker.com.au, while William Hill now owns Centrebet, Sportingbet and TomWaterhouse.com, Paddy Power owns Sportsbet, Bet365 is operating under its own banner and Betfred is prepping its own down under launch. Eskander told the Australian Financial Review that if current consolidation trends continue, “in five years time there will be three or four major players in Australia at best.” The biggest player in Australian…

iGaming Business – Bookmaker Ladbrokes has completed the acquisition of Australian private bookmaking business Betstar in a deal worth £12.4 million (€15 million/$20.7 million). Ladbrokes said the deal would allow it to add an existing and complementary client base, as well as accelerate the growth of its Australian business. Betstar has approximately 40,000 registered customers and generated gross win of A$12.9 million in A$214 million amounts staked during the year to March 31, 2014. The Betstar brand will be maintained under the terms of the deal. The acquisition is the latest attempt by Ladbrokes to strengthen its Australian business, following…

iGaming Business – UK bookmaker Ladbrokes has successfully launched the full range of products from online gaming software supplier Playtech across its digital platform. Ladbrokes said that the move to Playtech was part of a “wider revamping” of the Ladbrokes digital business to give customers a better experience on mobile or desktop for its sportsbook and casino services. The successful launch has led to the withdrawal of the existing casino software and games portfolio from the Ladbrokes.com and Ladbrokes.dk domains. Ladbrokes said that as well as adding the Playtech products, it has also made improvements to the ‘Vegas’ tab by…