01 September 2011
Inspired Gaming Group (Inspired), the world's leading supplier of Virtual Sports products to the betting and gaming industry, celebrates the launch of its Virtual Sports in China through a joint venture between Ladbrokes PLC and AGTech Holdings Limited.
The "Lucky Racing" game is a rapid-draw fixed-odds game delivered on the National Sports Lottery platform, using random number generation to allow customers to bet on a 12 car virtual race over two laps of an oval race track. The game is supported by a bet management system developed with OpenBet.
The game was approved by the PRC lottery regulator (Ministry of Finance of the PRC) earlier this year and has been successfully operating in a small number of shops since June. As of this week, the product launches in 1,000 shops throughout the Hunan province.
Fixed-odds virtual sports betting is one of the fastest growing gaming market segments worldwide. Inspired's Virtual Sports already generate in excess of US$ 7 billion in turnover worldwide. Lucky Racing is pioneering in China and is expected to be a key growth driver for China's lottery industry.
"The launch of Lucky Racing is an extremely important milestone for Inspired in China and we're excited to be exploring a new territory with Ladbrokes and AGTech. We will be looking to develop new content tailored specifically to the Chinese customer and remain committed to providing the most diverse range of sports at the highest quality in all of the 22 countries we currently serve ", commented Steve Rogers, Managing Director for Virtual Sports at Inspired Gaming Group.
Inspired's suite of Virtual Sports includes soccer, horse racing, tennis, greyhound racing, speedway, roulette, lotto and cycling. Already available in 22 countries worldwide and in 16 different languages, the innovative product is fully configurable and customisable, providing Virtual Sports customers with bespoke content, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
David Loveday, CEO of OpenBet, commented: "This is yet another project that demonstrates how OpenBet works in partnership with its customers and other providers to deliver an all round successful sportsbook solution. Lottery businesses are at the forefront of what we do and where we are going as a business and being able to bring our product to China, with Inspired Gaming and Ladbrokes, is very exciting for OpenBet and marks yet another milestone in our international expansion and expertise."