Industry News
Gauselmann Group is Back on Course for Success, Sales Development Returns to Pre-Covid Levels
The Gauselmann Group is leaving the pandemic behind and picking up economically from the successful pre-COVID period: at the end of the first six months of the year, it is already becoming apparent that the family-run corporate group will achieve similarly high sales revenues in 2022 as in the 2019 financial year. Sales revenues in the first half-year of 2019 were at around 1.740 billion euros. The first six months of 2022 closed with sales revenues at 1.746 billion euros. Overall, the cumulative sales revenues of all group entities in 2019 was approximately 3.4 billion euros.
“It is great news that the pandemic has bottomed out and we are finally back in charted territory again. This success is primarily the fruit of our good ideas and the dedication of each and every one of our employees and once again goes to show what you can achieve with hard work and team spirit,” Founder and Management Board Chairman Paul Gauselmann said.
The past two coronavirus years had cost the company some two billion euros in lost sales revenues. During the lockdowns, all gaming arcades, casinos, sports betting shops and shipboard casinos across Europe – as many as 1000 outlets altogether – had had to close for around nine months. Operating costs, however, remained largely unchanged.
The good development is also attributable to the group’s increasing diversification. The Gauselmann Group is positioning itself on an ever-broader base – and in doing so is reducing its dependence on individual markets and business models. This is also reflected in the current sales performance. A return to pre-COVID levels was only possible because with the development and expansion of international business operations and casinos, the company has tapped into two business areas that compensate for the increasingly difficult situation on the German home market. The most important markets in other European countries are currently the UK and Spain.
“From an entrepreneurial point of view, it was hugely important to drive forward our international business activities,” Paul Gauselmann explains. In the meantime, an ever-larger share of sales revenues – around 60% – is generated abroad.
In addition to internationalisation, casinos are another major factor in sales success. As well as the casinos in Saxony-Anhalt and the investments in Berlin and Rhineland-Palatinate, the casinos in North Rhine-Westphalia have been an important addition to this business segment since 2021. A look at the figures of the casinos in Saxony-Anhalt shows how enormous the potential is in this area: already in the second year of operation by the Gauselmann Group, the number of visitors doubled several times over. In line with the legally defined channelling mandate, it was thus possible to redirect more players from illegal to legal offerings and protect many customers from the big risks of illegal gaming.
“I have never experienced such a percentage rise in any other sector so far,” Paul Gauselmann points out.
The only bitter pill in the general success story are the political conditions that govern commercial gaming in Germany. The ever-increasing restrictions have not only led to a reduction of more than 30% of gaming machines, the closure of gaming arcades and thus also to the selective loss of jobs, but have also diminished the attractiveness of the legal gaming offering. This, in turn, increases the appeal of illegal gaming offerings – in the context of which consumer protection and responsible gaming are alien concepts. The Gauselmann Group has nevertheless managed to defend its market leadership.
“This is very gratifying, but also necessary in order to uphold our standards even under the more difficult conditions,” said the company patriarch.
This positive development of the company from Eastern Westphalia is also reflected in the “personnel growth” factor. The number of employees increased by 10.7% in 2021, with the company now employing almost 15,000 people worldwide. All of this allows the Gauselmann Group to look to the future with renewed confidence. One source of hope for further building on this successful track record lies in particular in the area of online gaming in Germany, which is currently being developed on a legal footing under the new State Treaty on Gambling that came into force on 1 July 2021 and for which the first licences were recently issued. However, this presupposes that the state intervenes to put a stop to illegal online business as quickly as possible. According to media reports, the new German Federal States’ Joint Gambling Authority has already started calling on illegal providers to discontinue their activities. Failure to do so comes with fines of up to 500,000 euros. Experience in the UK market has shown that land-based gaming and online gaming meaningfully supplement rather than cannibalise each other – provided that the legislator permits a sufficiently attractive range of online gaming offerings; an area where Germany has so far significantly lagged behind other counties.
“We will definitely be making an active contribution with good ideas in the online segment,” promises Paul Gauselmann. The most important insight, however, is “If we perform and can draw on more reasonable framework conditions going forward, success will follow.”
Flexion, the games marketing company, has announced that its revenue grew 9% to year-end December 2024. The growth is attributed to the Company’s success in the alternative app store market.
Since its IPO in 2018, the company has built a well-positioned games marketing business around the alternative stores and grown annual revenue 50-fold to almost US$100 million. Its game portfolio represents several billion US$ in gaming IP for alternative market partners like Samsung, Amazon, Huawei, OneStore and Xiaomi.
“With the Digital Markets Act (DMA) coming into force in Europe and recent legal actions in the US, mobile game developers have felt a new-found freedom to explore their market options. We’ve already moved beyond the era when Google and Apple controlled everything. Developers are looking for alternatives that offer better margins, and additional audiences and revenue. Partnering with Flexion opens up a range of market channels with very little up-front investment,” said Jens Lauritzson, CEO of Flexion.
Flexion currently distributes more than 30 high-profile titles on the alternative stores. Top-tier games in the Flexion portfolio make on average US$ 10 million a year based on Q4 2024 run rate. That’s income in addition to their Google and Apple revenue with a business model that adds little to their costs.
In Q4 2024, Flexion-serviced games were, on average, generating 9.3% through the alternative stores of the revenue they made on Google Play. This is a significant boost for Flexion’s partners without major costs or effort.
“If you scale for the size of the stores, the alternatives massively out-performed Google in Q4 for our games. This is exciting both for Flexion’s business and for the future of the games industry as a whole. We’re seeing the beginning of a sea change in games marketing,” Jens said.
“We’re seeing just the beginnings of a major shift in how top-tier developers address their markets. Using Flexion to access alternative stores is an easy first step into the post- Google and Apple world. Many developers are already looking at their options beyond that and Flexion will be right there with them providing the technology and expertise they need to maximise the potential of their games,” Jens added.
The post Flexion Reports Revenue Increase of 9% for 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
The latest AskGamblers Complaint Service report for 2024 has officially been released. The comprehensive report highlights the most important accomplishments and records of the AskGamblers Complaint Service team for the previous year.
In 2024, The AGCS team (formerly known as AGCCS) managed to return $6,890,547.11 to players. Over 7259 players turn to AskGamblers, submitting complaints against 1114 casino brands. Out of all the accepted and processed complaints, the team had a 68% resolution success rate. One of the notable milestones that reached was returning a total of $70 million to the members.
Dijana Radunović, General Manager at AskGamblers, said: “It’s amazing to see the trust players put in us year after year, and we’re able to repay them by helping them recover their funds from operators or solve other related issues. We’ve had another successful year, with a few records broken and amazing milestones achieved and we can’t wait to see what lies in store in the years ahead.”
The post Players Reclaim Close to $7M Through AskGamblers Complaint Service in 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
DigiPlus Interactive Corp. (DigiPlus) has won seven honours – including five coveted gold awards – at the 2025 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards. This milestone places DigiPlus among the most awarded companies in the region this year, spotlighting its strategic growth and transformative impact across digital entertainment, social development and investor relations.
The Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards are the only business awards Programme that recognises innovation across all 29 markets in the region. Widely regarded as the world’s premier business awards, the Stevie Awards represent a prestigious recognition of business excellence.
DigiPlus bagged five Gold Stevies for ‘Innovative Achievement in Growth’, ‘Innovation in Investor Relations’, ‘Excellence in Social Impact Companies’, ‘Innovation in Annual Reports’ and ‘Innovation in Corporate Websites’. The company also clinched Silver and Bronze Stevies for ‘Achievement in Product Innovation’ and ‘Innovation in Brand Renovation’ respectively.
At the core of these wins is DigiPlus’ commitment to innovation and digital transformation. From redefining the player experience through localised and immersive content, to launching a refreshed brand identity that resonates with a more connected and tech-savvy user base, DigiPlus has embraced a future-forward mindset. The company’s calculated investments in big data, cutting-edge technologies and stakeholder engagement have not only fueled business growth, but also opened inclusive pathways to digital participation through its social development arm, BingoPlus Foundation.
“This momentous victory at the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards affirms DigiPlus’ emergence as a true powerhouse of innovation and progress, reshaping industry boundaries and redefining digital consumer engagement on a global scale. Through consistent growth and business performance, DigiPlus reaffirms its unwavering commitment to creating long-term value,” said DigiPlus Chairman Eusebio Tanco.
Winning entries in the Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards undergo a rigorous, multi-layered evaluation by an esteemed panel of judges composed of business and industry leaders across the region.
“The 12th Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards received an impressive array of outstanding entries. This year’s winners have clearly shown their dedication to innovation, and we commend their resilience and imaginative efforts,” said Maggie Miller, President of the Stevie Awards.
The post DigiPlus Bags 7 Wins at the 2025 Asia-Pacific Stevie Awards appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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