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Zynga Enters Into Agreement to Acquire Istanbul-based Rollic
Zynga Inc., a global leader in interactive entertainment, announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Istanbul-based Rollic, a mobile games developer and publisher with an exciting portfolio of popular hyper-casual games that have been downloaded more than 250 million times. With this acquisition, Zynga enters the hyper-casual market – one of the largest and fastest growing gaming categories on mobile – and adds a highly talented team and an extensive network of external developers. Rollic will meaningfully increase our audience and grow our advertising business.
Founded in December 2018 by Burak Vardal, Deniz Basaran and Mehmet Can Yavuz, Rollic is a hyper-casual publisher and game developer based in Istanbul, Turkey. Eight of Rollic’s games have reached #1 or #2 top free downloaded games in the U.S. App Store, and their latest releases, Go Knots 3D and Tangle Master 3D, were the top two most downloaded games in the U.S. App Store in Q2 2020. Rollic’s titles currently have more than 5 million mobile daily active users (DAUs) and 65 million mobile monthly active users (MAUs).
“We are excited to expand into the hyper-casual category with the acquisition of Rollic, one of the fastest growing hyper-casual developers and publishers worldwide in 2020, led by an incredibly creative team,” said Frank Gibeau, Chief Executive Officer of Zynga. “With Rollic, we are meaningfully growing our audience, expanding and diversifying our global advertising business, and adding to our game pipeline and developer network. Zynga and Rollic are well-positioned to grow faster together.”
“The Rollic team is proud to be joining Zynga,” said Burak Vardal, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Rollic. “Our expertise in hyper-casual is a seamless fit for Zynga’s proficiency in product management, data science, ad monetization and world-class publishing. With Rollic’s robust slate of existing and new hyper-casual games joining Zynga’s portfolio, we look forward to advancing our collective mission to connect the world through games.”
Zynga will acquire 80% of Rollic for $168 million in cash. The final upfront transaction consideration will also include customary closing adjustments and is expected to close on October 1, 2020. Over the next three years, Zynga will acquire the remaining 20% in equal installments at valuations based on specific profitability goals.
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SIS and Premier Greyhound Racing reveal improved greyhound race time schedule
Sports Information Services (SIS), the leading multi-content supplier of 24/7 live betting services, and Premier Greyhound Racing (PGR), the media rights company supplier of greyhound racing to the betting industry and direct to viewers, have collaborated to offer a revised race time schedule starting from 20 May.
Designed to protect the long-term future of UK greyhound racing, the new schedule will see morning fixtures start slightly later – moving from 10.47 to 11.01 and 10.54 to 11.09. Additionally, there will also be a slightly later start time for some evening fixtures aimed at a retail audience, with the first evening fixture now starting at 18.08.
Commenting on the improved schedule, Terry Mahoney, Head of Business Development at ARC, said: “The new race times will help make it easier for customers to navigate busy racing schedules as well as improving operations trackside. We will continue to listen, monitor, and adapt schedules where and when needed as we move forward to deliver the best service possible for betting operators as well as punters.”
Paul Witten, Managing Director at SIS, added: “We are passionate about delivering a greyhound racing service that benefits all of the sport’s stakeholders. Together with Premier Greyhound Raxing, we have introduced a revised racing schedule that benefits operators and their customers.
“Our approach to greyhound racing is grounded in sustainability and flexibility. This collaboration with fellow service providers allows everyone to enjoy all the high-quality action produced on a daily basis from tracks across the UK and Ireland.”
SIS has long-term agreements in place with bet365, William Hill, Paddy Power and Betfred to deliver its greyhound content across UK and Irish retail and digital channels. SIS also promotes this content across dozens of leading international operators, as well as through SISRacing.tv.
PGR offers greyhound action, cards, video replays, results, news and info on greyhounds.attheraces.com, and regular live broadcasts on Sky Sports Racing. Premier Greyhound Racing is a joint venture between Arena Racing (ARC) and Entain, the global sports betting, gaming and interactive entertainment group. Between them, the two companies own nine of the 20 licensed British greyhound tracks and ARC manage the media rights for five independent tracks.
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PRAGMATIC PLAY HITS THE SWEET SPOT WITH FRUITY TREATS
Pragmatic Play, a leading content supplier to the iGaming industry, has added Fruity Treats to its collection of clusters pays Slots.
Five or more fruit symbols must connect horizontally or vertically to award a win in this vibrant 7×7 title, which features a variation of the popular multiplier spots mechanic.
At the start of each spin, four marked spots of different colours take up random positions on the grid. If a win forms over a marked spot, a starting multiplier of 5x, 10x, 15x or 20x (depending on the spot colour) will be activated. Each time a winning combination lands on a marked spot after a tumble, the multiplier is applied to the win and then increases by its starting value.
Hitting at least three candy scatters on a spin awards entry to the bonus game with 10 free spins. During the feature, which can be retriggered with five additional free spins, activated multipliers from marked spots do not reset between free spins, potentially leading to massive wins.
Fruity Treats is the latest cluster pays Slot in Pragmatic Play’s multi-award-winning range, joining recent hit Sugar Rush 1000.
Irina Cornides, Chief Operating Officer at Pragmatic Play, said: “The roaming multiplier spots feature in Fruity Treats sets it apart from other successful cluster pays Slots in the Pragmatic Play portfolio, with marked spots staying sticky in the bonus game for even greater win potential.”
Pragmatic Play currently produces up to eight new Slot titles a month, while also delivering Live Casino and Bingo games as part of its multi-product portfolio, available through a single API.
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Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook returns for fourth year
Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook returns in June with registrations now open for a two-day content series featuring speakers from across the Kambi Group and insights covering the full breadth of the industry.
Taking place between 4-5 June, the Festival will be comprised of online sessions taking in topics ranging from UX optimisation and harnessing AI to maximising a summer of soccer featuring both UEFA Euro 2024 and the Copa América.
Erik Lögdberg, Managing Director of Kambi Sportsbook, will open the Festival with a session entitled ‘Exceptional, everywhere: meeting the increasingly high standards of an evolving market’, discussing how operators can develop their sportsbook to navigate changing consumer habits and fragmenting markets.
Kambi’s Head of Legal and Regulatory Compliance, Victoria Fernandes, will also be joined by Partner Success Manager Sabrina Andrade for a Portuguese language session delving into Brazil and how local operators can compete in the soon-to-be-regulated market.
Gerard Starkey, Kambi Group’s SVP of Marketing & Communications, said: “We are excited to once again be welcoming the industry to Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook, and we look forward to sharing the sportsbook insights and knowledge the event has become known for. As ever, the agenda features a broad range of sessions hosted by experts from across the Kambi Group, providing plenty to interest those working in or with the sports betting industry today.”
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