The U.K.-based subsidiary of GTECH SpA, the casino slot and lottery company formerly known as Lottomatica, has reached an agreement to acquire Probability PLC, a Gibraltar-based mobile gaming technology company, in a deal worth £18 million. Probability will become a wholly owned subsidiary of GTECH U.K. under the deal, which was approved by a majority of Probability shareholders.
The agreement is subject to approval by regulators in Gibraltar, the U.K. and Italy.
The AIM-listed Probability posted net revenue of £8.6 million in its most recent fiscal year ending March 31, 2013, while net revenue for the six months ending September 30 were £6 million, down 20 percent year-on-year—a decline that caused a 25 percent drop in Probability’s share price.
The deal values Probability at 58.7 percent above its February 17 closing price of 31.5p per share. Probability CEO Charles Cohen said the two companies’ “combined knowledge and resources will drive future growth for our mobile customers.” Probability’s current U.K. and Italian client roster includes the William Hill, Paddy Power and 888.
GTECH president of products & services Renato Ascoli called the deal “a significant step to meet the mobile gaming needs of our World Lottery Association and commercial customers.”
