Published
OnlineFinancial

William Hill boosts net revenue with online performance

FTSE

WilliamHillWebsite
-listed bookmaker William Hill reported a 6% net revenue increase for the second half of the year, partially due to the online department performing well after having had a difficult year. The boost has led the operator to announce that it expects 2016 operating profits to reach £260-280m.

Improvements made to the mobile sportsbook and an increased emphasis on football betting led to online wagers up 6% with gross win margin up 8.4% due to profitable football results. Net revenue growth follows positive customer reactions during the period, with average player wagers up 17%.

William Hill governance reported a potential £30m in operating efficiencies which it will begin to implement in 2017 along with a £15m marketing drive to aid digital revenue growth. This comes after, despite no chance in net retail revenue, international business surging in Australia and the US with net revenue growth.

Interim chief executive Philip Bowcock commented: "Online has returned to wagering growth in the UK following significant enhancements to our mobile sportsbook in Q2 and we are making good progress on the gaming and user experience improvements in H2, further helped by the Grand Parade team we acquired in August.

"Our international businesses are all performing well, with double-digit wagering and net revenue growth in each of our key markets of Australia, the US and Italy and Spain."

William Hill also appointed three new non-executive directors to its board, notably John O'Reilly, who aided an increase in Coral's online performance.

Joining O'Reilly is Mark Brooker, former chief operating officer at Betfair and former Ladbrokes board member, as well as Robin Terrell, who joins from Tesco.

Chairman Gareth Davis said: "These appointments significantly enhance the board's digital, multi-channel and gambling industry experience. John's, Robin's and Mark's collective expertise will strengthen the business as we implement our strategy of digital and international diversification."

Premium+ Connections
Premium

Galaxsys

 
Premium

Imagine Live

 
Premium

RISK

 
Premium

GammaStack

 
Premium

Revsharks

 
Premium

Digitain

 
Premium

Lynon

 
 
Premium

Sport Generate

 
Premium

PIN-UP Partners

 
Premium

1xBet Partners

 
Premium Connections
Consultancy

SCCG Management

Executive Profiles
Zeal Network SE

Stefan Tweraser

VIP Play

Les Ottolenghi

Scientific Games

Keshav Pitani

Social & App

Spribe CEO exclusive: Simplicity is the foundation

Spribe CEO David Natroshvili speaks to Gambling Insider abou...

Redefining iGaming: A history of crash games

Crash games is a growing vertical that has taken gambling by...

A certain something: What makes crash games special?

Crash games. They’re simple, they’re easy to learn and,...

Smarter innovation to shape the future

Spribe CCO Giorgi Tsutskiridze discusses the past, present a...

Facing Facts: The corner of quarterly contemplation

With Q1 reports out across the industry, Gambling Insider co...

Taking Stock: A guide to key stock prices across the industry

Gambling Insider tracks prices from some of the industry’s...

15 years of Gambling Insider: From the Founders

Over the last 15 years, Gambling Insider magazine has interv...

15 years of Gambling Insider: The Awards over time

Global Gaming Awards Event Manager Mariya Savova gives us he...