Unibet Poker has seen a sharp revenue increase in the third quarter of 2016, thanks in part, to its new approach to the game.
Highlighting the particulars of its revenue between July and September, Unibet announced that it had increased its revenues by 65 percent compared to the same period in 2015.
In total, the publicly traded gaming company generated $176 million in the third quarter and, somewhat surprisingly, poker was partly responsible.
In contrast to other online gaming companies that have seen poker revenue slide while casino and sports betting profits have soared, Unibet appears to be hitting new heights on all fronts.
Although sports betting ($82.8 million) and casino games ($85 million) accounted for the largest portions of the total haul, poker revenue more than doubled to almost $4 million.
Revenue Increase is Important
While that figure might pale in comparison to the company’s other assets, the fact revenue was up at all is noteworthy. Moreover, since Unibet left the Microgaming Poker Network to forge its own network with Relax Gaming, the site has enjoyed an upturn in traffic.
Part of the recent success of the poker site has been down to Unibet’s novice-focused interface. HUDs, tracking software and any other tools that give seasoned players an advantage are all frowned upon at Unibet Poker. This environment has made the site much more beginner-friendly and that seems to be translating into increased revenue.
In fact, in a bid to take this approach a step further, the operator announced the release of Unibet 2.0 back in September.
Featuring more of the “fun” features that have proven popular, the 2.0 version has elements such as quirky avatars and table settings, the software looks much more like a Facebook-style game than a hardcore poker site.
Blueprint for Success
Over the last two years the trend among the major operators has been to diversify and cater more to casual players. Although this has resulted in a reduction of rewards for experienced players in some instances, the strategy appears to be working.
In addition to Unibet’s recent revenue surge, 888poker has become the second largest online poker site in the world. By focusing on the entertainment aspect of the game through innovations like Webcam Poker, 888poker’s seven day traffic average is now almost 1,000 players more than its closest rival.
While it’s fair to say that online poker is still a much smaller player in the iGaming industry than it once was, the latest figures from Unibet are encouraging. By appealing to recreational players with a more relaxed interface, Unibet appears to be winning more customers and, moreover, setting a precedent for other operators to follow.
