Australian casino operator Crown Resorts Ltd, 62-percent owner of horse race and sports betting brand CrownBet Pty Ltd, says the latter has dropped two instances of opposition to the planned merger of two major online betting rivals.
In the same Thursday filing to the Australian Securities Exchange, Crown Resorts said that one of the CrownBet commercial rivals – Tabcorp Holdings Ltd, an Australian wagering, gaming and keno operator – had agreed to provide CrownBet – under a “commercial arrangement” – a digital stream of television broadcast channels Sky 1 and Sky 2 “for the personal use” of CrownBet wagering customers “on their own mobile and personal computer devices”
Under the commercial terms of the arrangement, CrownBet will make payments to Tabcorp, “subject to an annual minimum amount”.
Tabcorp and Tatts Group Ltd, the latter a wagering, lotteries and gaming business with operations in Australia and New Zealand, have proposed a AUD11-billion (US$8.4-billion) merger.
CrownBet had opposed the deal via the courts and via submissions to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
The parent Crown Resorts said on Thursday that there had been “settlement” of CrownBet’s opposition – that had been pursued via the Australian Competition Tribunal – to the rivals’ merger.
There had also been settlement of proceedings commenced by CrownBet in the Supreme Court of New South Wales in relation to the legal status of the rivals’ “proposed arrangements with clubs in New South Wales,” said the filing.
On November 24, Crown Resorts confirmed it was in talks regarding the future of its interest in CrownBet.
Crown Resorts has concluded this year some major realignment of its business. In May, the firm completed the disposal of its remaining stake in Asian casino operator Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd. The firm has also closed offices in several Asian jurisdictions, including in Macau.
