Problem gambling is costing William Hill US$ 35 million
The company reported “weaker than expected online performance” in the UK and blame it on online regulations on problem gambling.
UK.- William Hill’s poor online performance could cost the company £25 million (US$35,46 million) this year.
The company blames the regulatory crackdown on problem gambling online as more customers have been timing out, then being kicked off the site for being gambling too long and choosing to voluntarily bar themselves because they know they’ve got a problem.
William Hill expressed: “Is impacting the level of actives across the Online business, particularly in gaming” and, if it continues at the current rate, will cost William Hill £20 million to £25 million over the year.” The company affirms the rest of the business is doing well, even after its network of High Street bookmakers also made a loss on the Cheltenham horse racing festival.
New interim online MD Crispin Nieboer has drawn up an action plan that include “refocusing the business on maximising UK customer yields, improving performance in non-core markets, and assessing opportunities for cost efficiencies.”
In James Henderson, William Hill’s CEO words: “Today’s statement reflects the combined effect of our assessment of the impact of recent regulatory changes and unfavourable sporting results including the worst results at Cheltenham in our recent history. We are also experiencing softer UK growth as a consequence of acquiring lower value customers. While the rest of the Group is performing in line with our expectations, we continue to focus on improving online’s performance so that we can, once again, outperform the market.”
