Amaya is a rare breed of company in the online casino industry that is little known outside its own borders but continues to thrive domestically. That looks set to change throughout 2013, as the company looks to expand through acquisitions on the back of excellent results in 2012.
The company itself was founded in 2004 and quickly developed a reputation as Canada’s predominant provider of electronic and online gaming services to partners. Based at headquarters in Montreal, they now operate on virtually every continent and provide everything from online casino software to mobile lotteries and land based video slots. They are partnered with some well-known names around the world to provide technological solutions and services, with the likes of Novomatic and Aristocrat Gaming, together with large international gaming brands such as BetVictor and Bodog88 among related companies.
While even the company’s staunchest supporters across Canada would not put the company on the same footing as the likes of Microgaming and Playtech in the industry, a successful 2012 indicates that Amaya may well shake off the tag of being big in Canada and begin to challenge the larger software providers.
In financial terms, Amaya posted results for Q3 2012 that far outstripped analyst expectations, and their cash flow potential was confirmed shortly thereafter when they paid an estimated $167 million for the full acquisition of Cadillac Jack, a fellow provider of video slots and Latin themed games with a strong foothold in the Mexican and US markets. The deal naturally gave Amaya control over the entirety of Cadillac Jack’s operations, including their intellectual property, giving them the opportunity to bring some well-known games that are popular in Hispanic countries to their online casino partners.
Amaya is something of an anomaly in terms of the provision of casino games. Whereas Microgaming and Playtech operate primarily online and the likes of Aristocrat and IGT have limited online presences but strong land based market shares, Amaya combines both. April 2012 saw them sign an agreement with the Societe des Casinos du Quebec to provide a variety of land based titles. The agreement culminated in December with a further contract to provide virtual horse racing terminals throughout land based gambling establishments in Quebec.
Naturally, everyone backs their home team and we are sure that fans of online casinos in Canada are looking forward to what Amaya hopes to achieve over the coming years. They have everything in place to really challenge the bigger software providers and will no doubt be at the centre of developments in Canada’s online and mobile casino industries.
