Digital entertainment company NetEnt had a fantastic 2015. Between receiving a transactional waiver from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (allowing the company to operate within the state) and seeing nearly a 50 percent increase in profits for 2015, the company is doing quite well.
NetEnt posted its fourth quarter profits this February; the report covered earnings from October through December 2015. The report listed fourth quarter figures, a full year review, and significant events that attributed to the high fourth quarter.
Per Eriksson, President and CEO of NetEnt, expressed excitement for his company’s future and potential growth in the report:
“2015 was yet another fantastic year for NetEnt. Continued growing demand for digital casino entertainment and for our products helped us reach new record levels in terms of revenues, profits and cash flow.
The fourth quarter featured many new signed and launched customers, and strong growth. Revenues increased by 34.0 percent to 323.1 MSEK and operating profit rose by 51.6 percent to 121.8 MSEK, compared to last year.
We see good conditions for continued strong growth in 2016 supported by growing market shares in the UK, a large pipeline of signed customers yet to be launched, mobile growth and the expansion in North America.”
Factors that contributed to NetEnt’s success in the U.S.
During the 2015 calendar year, NetEnt acquired contracts with New Jersey online casinos the Golden Nugget, Caesars Casino, and Resorts Casino. Each of those properties was individually approved as a part of NetEnt’s initial transactional waiver. Additionally, NetEnt is now distributing games to Gamesys US which means they can found at both Tropicana and Virgin Casino.
The first contracts to be approved by the NJDGE were finalized in December, and were content distribution agreements with Resorts Casino, Atlantic City. These agreements allowed Resorts to distribute NetEnt games both for Resorts Casino and for its partner NJ online casino Mohegan Sun.
The future for NetEnt in New Jersey
Late in November 2015, NetEnt announced that it planned to discuss the possibility of a content contract with Amaya. Amaya is the corporate owner of both online poker room PokerStars and online casino Full Tilt. This opportunity was prompted by PokerStars’ approval to reenter the United States. PokerStars has officially announced that they expect to be operational in New Jersey on March 21.
The nature of the potential relationship between NetEnt and Amaya would likely take the form of a provider of content agreement. Basically, PokerStars NJ would host online gambling titles from NetEnt. This potential partnership is made somewhat more likely due to PokerStars’ stateside affiliation with Resorts Casino. This tightly wound network with limited access to game developers bodes well for NetEnt’s New Jersey future.
In an interview with Gambling Insider, PokerStars’ managing director Bjorn Krantz spoke about the positives that a content provider agreement would bring to both companies:
“We would very much welcome an extension of the partnership with PokerStars, but we need to sit down and discuss what both parties want. We will then see what we can agree upon.”