The Scandinavian betting operator reported a 100% increase up to £18.4m in gross winnings revenue for the second quarter of 2006 (Q2 2005: £9.2m), while the total gross winnings revenue for the half year rose by 122% up to £35.8m (H1 2005: £16.1m). Profit after tax increased by 39% to £3.9m for the second quarter and by 79% to £9.5m for the first half of 2006.
Gross winnings revenue for sports betting amounted to £6.2m for the second quarter of 2006 (Q2 2005 £4.5m). In particular, the World Cup 2006 saw records in monthly gross turnover and numbers of bets taken, with a satisfactory gross winnings margin considering the outcome of the championship. For the first half 2006, gross winnings revenue for sports betting amounted to £11.9m (H1 2005: £7.0m).
The gross winnings margin for sports betting for the second quarter 2006 was 6.4 per cent. While margins can vary quite significantly from one quarter to the next, depending on the outcome of sporting events, over time they will even out. The average calculated from January 2004 to June 2006 is of 7.3 per cent.
Non-sports betting saw a record quarterly gross winnings revenue of £12.2m (Q2 2005: £4.7m) during the second quarter of 2006. For the first half 2006, gross winnings revenue for non-sports betting amounted to £23.8m (H1: £9.1m). Of the non-sports betting gross winnings in the second quarter, poker represented 46 per cent and casino 46 per cent.
In Sweden, total gross winnings revenue grew by 49 per cent during the second quarter compared to the same period last year. Gross winnings revenue for the rest of the Nordic countries grew by 68 per cent and for Southern Europe by over 400 per cent.
As of June 30 the number of active customers amounted to 223,104. They were 72,407 a year earlier and 190,610 at the end of March 2006. An active customer is defined as one placing a bet in the last three months. The total number of registered customers has continued to increase during the quarter and exceeded 1,340,000 at the end of June, up by 1,000,000 year on year and by 340,000 over the previous quarter.
“We are very pleased with the continued success of non-sports products by setting a new all time high in revenues during Q2, securing a balanced product portfolio going forward. Unibet stands strong”, commented Petter Nylander, CEO of Unibet. “During the quarter we carried out extensive marketing activities in connection with the FIFA World Cup, and still secured a positive cash flow.”
“As one of Europe\’s leading gaming operators we are continuing our work with responsible gambling and social responsibility by being accredited by G4 for complying with their responsibility code and entering into an agreement with Adictel, the well respected responsible gambling consultant firm in the French market,” added Nylander.
Calculators
