Gaming Realms has attributed the growing demand of its gaming products internationally as one key factor in achieving its 2023 record revenue. Revenues increased by 25,6%, to PS23.42m ($29.4m/EUR27.4m).
Gaming Realms revenue in 2023 was 25.6% higher than the PS18.65m of 2022. The company’s trading update from early February predicted a PS23.0m revenue target. This was exceeded.
The licensing revenue from deals for content distribution grew by 33.3%, to PS19.92m. This offset a drop of 5% in revenue generated through social publishing, to PS3.50m.
EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) adjusted for inflation was up 29% from 780k PS in 2022 to 1006m PS. The head office costs are PS2.89m and share options and related charges amounting to PS2.4m have been excluded.
EBITDA was PS9.24m, excluding share options and related costs of PS632,000, and adjustment items totaling PS194,000. The EBITDA in 2022 was PS7.45m. This represents a 24 percent increase year-over-year.
Gaming Realms generated PS11.3m in EBITDA from its licensing sector, while the social publishing segment accumulated PS800,000. According to the company, these results prove that it has succeeded in delivering sustainable growth.
The profit before taxes increased by almost half. 2023’s PS5.17m was 46.9% higher than 2022’s PS3.52m. Year-end cash also grew significantly to PS7.5m. This is a 158% rise.
Gaming Realms chief executive Mark Segal cites the Slingo product, a mix of its slot games and bingo, as the key to success in 2023.
Segal said, “I’m delighted to announce another record-breaking year for Gaming Realms.” Segal says, “We have licensed our games to 20 regulated countries and launched with 44 partner in the past year. We also have 75 games that are live which shows the size of our licensing business.”
International growth and new partnerships drive financial success
Gaming Realms has increased its portfolio of exclusive games available on the remote server by 10, to 75, over the course of 2023. The company also received igaming licences from West Virginia, Sweden, and Greece.
Also, the business launched on the Portugal market. Gaming Realms claims that the new licenses show its commitment to “increase its distribution and market diversity”.
Gaming Realms has launched Slingo Originals with 44 partners including Bet365, Penn Entertainment and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.
The Growth of Europe and North America
Gaming Realms claims that it will “consolidate” its North American position by 2023. Content licensing revenue in North America grew 26% from PS6.4m to PS8.1m. Penn Entertainment launched in five countries, and Caesars Entertainment was in another four.
BetMGM’s Slingo Red Wings was cited as another factor in its success. A promotion with Detroit Red Wings (a National Hockey League team) helped BetMGM acquire and retain new players.
Gaming Realms revenues in Europe increased 33% from PS7.9m to PS10.5m by 2022. This was attributed to the growth of its European key markets, including the UK, Italy Spain, and The Netherlands. The company also announced new launches in the Netherlands, Italy, Spain and UK.
Gaming Realms expects to launch its first partnership in Greece soon after obtaining a licence as a provider.
Increased revenue offsets higher costs
Gaming Realms reported revenue growth by over a quarter in order to reduce the increase of its costs.
Marketing expenditure increased from 38,000 PS to 95,000 PS, more than double the amount spent in 2022, and operating costs increased from 2.58m PS to 3.44m PS, an increase of 33.3%.
Administrative expenses increased 13.9% from PS4.18m to PS4.76m, despite the fact that share options and related costs decreased from PS150,000 down to PS103,000.
Gaming Realms, which has an adjusted EBITDA of over PS10m by 2023, looked back at its PS0.3m loss for 2019 and highlighted the progress the company made over the past five years. They cited a growth rate of 48% in the licensing revenues as the key to this success.
New Launches to Start 2024 Gaming Realms
The company already has a few licensing agreements signed before the first quarter of 2024. This includes partnerships with Tetris and Relax Gaming, both for Money Train. The licensing division increased its total number of players by 24 %.
In Q1 of 2024, Gaming Realms also launched 14 new operators. Livescore, DAZN and Entain are among the new operators in Q1 2024. Gaming Realms launched its Ontario operation with Bet365.
In addition, the company launched three Slingo new games and signed a distribution deal with Playtech in order to help new markets launch.
Gaming Realms characterized its 2024 start as “promising”, with revenues in line with the expectations. The increase is due to the fact that its licensing revenue grew by 20% in the first two month of 2024 compared with the same period last year.
Segal said: “We are thrilled to be able to deliver further launches of games, partner deals, and with launches planned in West Virginia, Greece and other countries, expand our global footprint.”
