Gambling Operator 888 Going Social

Leading online gambling operator, 888 Holdings (888.L), owner of Poker Room. Pacific Poker has announced yesterday that it had acquired Mytopia, a social games developer from Real Dice Inc.

Acquisition granted the gambling operator with Mytopia’s cross-platform social games development capabilities technology platform for hosting and operating social games, its existing games portfolio, which includes a poker social games, working under the Pacific Poker brand, and more.

This acquisition marks 888’s strategy for expanding in the social gaming and mobile arena, reaching its customers through multiple channels. It comes as no surprise that gaming operators are trying to expand to the social gaming arena. The segment of the market already includes millions of players, playing for free and for play money. It is only natural that the gambling operators will use this channel to attract players to their real money websites.

It was reported that the acquisition may cost a total of up to $48M. $12M will be paid in cash upon the finalization of the deal, up to $6M will be paid if Mytopia withstands predetermined milestones. The rest of the payment depends upon the company’s profits for 2011.

Gigi Levi, CEO of 888 commented on the acquisition, saying "This is a very exciting deal for 888, and builds on our aim of providing a variety of entertainment destinations where people can enjoy a truly interactive experience on a multitude of platforms. Mytopia is one of the leading publishers of cross-platform social-games and this acquisition gives us an immediate footprint in the fast-growing social gaming arena, complementing our core offering and giving us access to millions of customers.”