GAMBLING INSIDER

Australian sports betting operator Tatts Group has revealed a 6.8% year-on-year increase in its group revenues for the first quarter of the 2018 financial year.

During the three months leading up to 30 September, group revenues were A$743.1m, while net profits grew by 14.8% year-on-year to A$67.2m during the period.

Company EBITDA also jumped during the first quarter, rising 9.6% year-on-year to A$128.2m.

The group’s main lottery brand, The Lott, grew the strongest during the quarter, with revenue rising 8.8% year on year, while online lottery sales increased sharply by 29.6% when compared to the same period in 2017.

Tatts main sportsbetting arm, UBET, reported less significant growth during the period, with turnover increasing by 1.8% during the period, however online sales also increased sharply by 15.8% during the first quarter.

Tatts Group gaming services businesses MAX and MAXtech also enjoyed a good quarter, with revenues rising year-on-year by 4.7% and 5.3% respectively.

Earlier this month the Australian Competition Tribunal (ACT) approved for a second time the A$11.3bn merger between Tatts Group and its main competitor Australian lottery operator Tabcorp, following a protracted legal battle between it, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) and a number of rival sports betting firms.

Opponents of the A$11.3bn merger claimed that any prospective deal would that the deal would impact market competition unfairly as well as consumer pricing. As a result of these claims, the ACCC asked for a second review of the merger proposal by the Australian Competition Tribunal, which later dismissed the claims as unfounded.

With the tribunal’s approval, the merger is now likely to proceed sometime within the next few months.