Rank Group has announced financial figures for the 15 weeks leading to 14th October 2012. The bingo hall and casino operator experienced a 5% like for like growth from the same period of last year. The organisation has stated that the growth in the second half of the year is due to the strong performance in trading in the digital channel for Mecca, as well as the popularity of the Grosvenor Casino franchise.
Since 2011, Mecca has seen a like for like growth of 2%, with actual revenue growth standing at 1%. The Grosvenor Casino business has performed considerably well with an 8% like for like revenue growth. This was achieved despite customer visits falling by 5% and was caused by a 13% increase in customer spend per visit.
Digital revenue for Rank Group held the most growth. Grosvenor experienced a huge 72% increase in digital revenue, whilst brick and mortar establishments only grew in revenue by 7%. Mecca venues also suffered in comparison to its digital counterpart, as customer visits were down 3% year on year and 2% on a like for like basis.
The least profitable area of the Rank Group organisation proved to be Top Rank Espana. The Spanish bingo business operates 11 bingo venues across Spain and has been present in the country since 1994. Revenue had decreased by 9%; whilst customer visits in Spain were down by 5% with spend per visit also falling.
This is a disheartening figure for digital bingo operators who are entering the Spanish market under newly acquired licenses by the Spanish Gambling Commission. Bwin.Party has recently launched binguez.es, a Spanish bingo website. Despite stuffgate.com estimating that the website is approximately worth $12,358, the lack of interest from the Spanish market in Top Rank Espana may prove to be an indication of a downturn in overall bingo revenue in the market.
However, binguez.es is likely to fare better than brick and mortar establishments. Rank Group's financial figures indicate that digital bingo products are outperforming physical venues. Mecca's digital bingo rooms experienced an 11% growth compared to a 1% decrease in revenue generated from Mecca venues. The customer base for www.Meccabingo.com continues to grow.
Source:
http://computernewsarticles.com/computer_articles/2012/10/rank-group-financial-figures-show-downturn-in-spanish-bingo-industry-311137.htm
