German casino fans will be aware that over the last month the Austrian gaming operator Novomatic has expanded it’s German portfolio with the purchase of slots hall operator Casino Royal. The deal was approved by the German Federal Cartel Office and the company have outlined high hopes for themselves and the German market over the coming years.
Why did Novomatic acquire Casino Royal?
The purchase has made Novomatic the country’s leading operator of gambling halls. Casino Royal has around 3,500 gambling machines at 130 locations across Germany, with a particular stronghold in the state of North-Rhine Westphalia. This, combined with the fact that they own Admiral Play Halls has made them the biggest in Germany. The latter generated a huge €102m in revenue throughout 2016 and employs 1,000 people.
Yet, there won’t be huge changes at the company, with the Novomatic managing director, Martin Restle, looking to maintain and preserve the Casino Royal brand. He demonstrated this by retaining the current management team. As well as that, Novomatic CEO Harald Neumann predicted that the German market would be “characterised by strong changes” over the years, and identified this deal as a chance to build on their current strategy.
Revenues continue to soar
This is part of a wider plan for Novomatic, who have enjoyed a very successful year financially. The preliminary results in February suggested that the company would hit revenues of €4.4bn, the first time they had surpassed the €4bn mark. They put this achievement down to the growth of its core markets in the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain. And, with the acquisition of Casino Royal, they hope the German market will remain good to them.
What’s more, that appears to be just the start of their plans for global expansion. Last year the company bought a majority stake in Australian gaming device supplier Ainsworth Game Technology (AGT). They believe this will allow them to grow into markets across Australia, then potentially into Asia, South America and the US. This is after the company suffered in their home country where watchdog imposed conditions prevented them from securing more than 25% of Casinos Austria.
Either way, it’s clear Novomatic are increasing their influence in the gaming world and have a clear focus in Germany. The added competition and inclusion of a quality firm should ensure that players receive the best when it comes to gaming technology. Of course, you don’t have to visit the casinos to play the latest games, with excitement and entertainment at your fingertips with Lucky Nugget Casino. But with more options than ever before, the quality should still continue to soar.
