Friday, April 24, 2015 marked the long-awaited release date of the Apple Watch. That very same day, Playtech was proud to announce the launch of the very first sports betting app optimized for use on Apple’s new wearable technology. For the moment, only Coral is licensed to present the app to their customers, but more licenses are said to be in the works.
Customers of Coral who’ve managed to get their hands on the new Apple Watch—there’s a great debate brewing over the limited number of sales—can now install the new sports betting app to gain access to Coral Connect. The Omni-channel gives users of Coral unlimited single-account access to the entire suite of Coral gambling products, including traditional online, mobile and land-based venues.
Through Playtech’s new sports betting app, Coral customers can receive updates on promotions, browse all available sporting events, place wagers and request real-time cash outs of their winnings. It would seem that the only limitations imposed upon the high-tech betting system relates to the unrequited demand for the Apple Watch.
CEO Cook Criticized for Lack of Apple Watch Supply
During a sales call on Monday, three days after the wearable gadget was released, Apple CEO Tim Cook admitted that “Right now, demand is greater than supply.”
The company allowed customers to begin pre-ordering the Apple Watch on April 10th, and by the time the sale date of April 24th arrived, there were very few devices left to stock the shelves of global retailers. All who attempt to purchase the wearable technology are now being told that orders won’t ship until June, at the earliest.
Apple Watch Sports Betting App Great News for Playtech Investors
As for Playtech, the proud parent of the very first sports betting app for Apple Watch, the level of excitement permeating throughout the company couldn’t possibly be greater. “Innovation is part of our DNA at Playtech, an area we take very seriously and invest in heavily year-on-year,” said Mor Weizer, Chief Executive Officer for the world-leading iGaming software developer.
“We are well ahead of any of our competitors on not just this development, but also the entire Omni-Channel offering as we have shown with Coral and as we are about to embark on with a number of other significant licensees,” Weizer continued. “The Apple Watch is a natural extension to this and no other supplier has the technology, global expertise, resource, and support to offer such an all-encompassing solution.”
Playtech is already experiencing a massive surge in stock value in Q2 2015, and the sports betting app for Apple Watch can only serve to proliferate that trend. The London Stock Exchange issued a statement saying that the company’s average daily revenue for the first 25 days of Q2 2015 is already up over 25%.
This comes on the heels of a Q1 2015 report that saw Playtech’s revenue soar 31% over the same reporting period last year, and 7% over the last marking period of Q4 2014. In fact, Playtech saw increases of anywhere from 24% to 198% across all of its land-based and online gambling products, with the only negative integer coming off of its poker client, which dropped 17%.