PlayTech Software Review

PlayTech Casinos

Playtech games are widely available in the more than 150 online casinos across the globe. The most popular online platforms include:

• Europa Casino
• Eurogrand
• Bet365
• 888casino
• BGO
• William Hill

These casinos have more games by Playtech than other developers.

PlayTech Slots

Slot machines command the largest part of Playtech's games list and are are noticeable for their quality graphics, many bonus rounds and progressive jackpots. Their most famous slots include the series with brands like DC, Marvel, Paramount, Fox and MGM. 

PlayTech slots have 3, 5 or 9 reels and you can also classify them by the number of paylines. Most often you will come across 5 reel slots with 15 to 25 paylines. Many slots let you stop the reels when desired and allow free spins and re-spins. RTP (the theoretical Return To Player) is usually 95%. The slot machines feature special symbols that award you with free spins, re-spins and other bonuses and functions.

Playtech offers a large number of slot machines with jackpots. Genie's Hi-Lo, Gladiator and The Incredible Hulk are the most well-known among this type of slot. In 2002 the company launched the Win a Jackpot network that brings together video poker, table games and slot machines. So far, this network has paid out over 195 million EUR to its users.

Another corporate speciality is that in comparison to other developers the company offers more slot machines themed to comics and film franchises. Playtech has developed over 40 progressive slots themed to the Marvel and DC franchises including X-Men, Hulk, Batman and Superman. Many online casinos even make a special section on their websites: "Marvel and DC-themed Slots" or Comics.

One more theme that you will come across often is sport. Playtech offers more slot machines themed to football and other kinds of sports than any other company.

The most popular slots are:

• Jackpot Giant - a five reel slot machine themed to fantasy. The slot comes with 50 paylines. The slot machine awards free spins, the bonus round and the maximum payout for the combination of five Wild symbols
• Superman The Movie - a five slot machine themed to the 1978 Superman film, with 5 reels, 100 paylines themed to the Superman film released in 1978. The slot features free spins and the bonus round and the four-level progressive jackpot
• Age of the Gods - a slot machine themed to the old gods of Ancient Greece and Rome with 5 reels and 20 paylines. You are rewarded for four gods with four types of free spins with Stacked Wilds and multipliers. A bonus game gives you the chance to receive 1 of 4 progressive jackpots
• Batman & Catwoman Cash - a five reel slot machine with 25 paylines themed to the Batman and Robin film releasing in 1966. You have a chance to get free spins with an expanding symbol and play a bonus game as well as a four level progressive jackpot feature.
• Frankie Dettoris: Magic Seven - is one of the same-name series of slots dedicated to the famous jockey. The five reel slot machine comes with 25 paylines and features free spins and two bonus rounds. The game of risk  gives you a chance to increase the prize for each combination that lined up

PlayTech Games

Apart from regular slots the other games released by Playtech can be subdivided into several categories:

• Arcade style games - have a main storyline, there are no reels or paylines and actions are determined by random number generators. "Around the World" invites you to guess the numbers, bigger or smaller, while "Medusa's Gaze" burns down the blocks of the same colour by glancing at them
• Casino table games - the most popular games ranging from 12 roulette wheels to Sic Bo
• Cards games - you can choose from over 15 types of blackjack, 6 versions of poker, Pontoon, Baccarat, Stravaganza and Casino War
• Games for live casinos - feature a classical collection of games that are played against a real dealer who is sitting on the other side of the screen
• Scratch cards - are games where you have to scratch the top layer off of the card to reveal icons and get an instant reward. PlayTech have over 20 in their games lists
• Virtual sports games - are games that simulate real sporting events. Frankie's Fantastic 7 and Derby Day are themed to horse racing and allow you to make bets on virtual horses who race around a track
• Bingo games - are developed by the subsidiary Virtue Fusion. They have produced over 65 mini-games that have been integrated into these applications including slots with progressive jackpots

Playtech is ranked 4th in the world by number of games following NetEnt, Microgaming and Play´n GO.

PlayTech Product Range

PlayTech have a wide range of products in practically all gambling areas:

• Slot machines
• Poker
• Bingo games and lotteries
• Games for live-casinos
• Sports betting
• Terminals that support servers
• Games for online, social and mobile casinos
• Game support platforms
• Software products for casino operators (IMS)

Playtech Partnerships

Marvel Studios and DC Entertainment are worth noting as Playtech's partners. The former signed a license agreement in approximately 2010 but in 2013 the owner of the comics franchise Walt Disney Company decided not to renew the license. So from 1st April 2017, Playtech removed all Marvel slots from the list of its applications.

However, the studio found the solution in rebranding. The remote slots were transformed from the Fantastic Four into the Age of the Gods: Furious Four.

In October 2016 the company signed a contract with DC Entertainment and thanks to this agreement, the slot machines themed to Superman and Batman came into being between 2016 and 2017.

Playtech's partners also include:

• Captain Up – a marketing platform for social websites
• Ladbrokes Coral – a bookmaker that together with Playtech creates the studios for live-casinos
• Featurespace – a risk management and fraud prevention company
• Betfred – an independent British bookmaker

Euro Partners – a partnership program owned by Playtech that has over 50,000 partners registered in its network and has become one of its most powerful marketing and business development tools.

PlayTech Platforms and Software

The Playtech company offers the following platforms and software:

• EdGE - Flexible Open Platform Solution is a platform for the integration and support of game applications. Along with this platform you get all the company's games that are available on most modern devices
• Mexos - is a platform for the online marketing of casinos. It helps to develop promos and advertising for gambling websites
• Mobile Hub - is a framework for the integration of mobile applications. The open platform allows you to integrate any games not only those released by Playtech. The software is developed together with Mobenga
• Solutions for sports betting - developed by the Geneity Limited subsidiary. The platform is created for both online platforms and land-based casinos
• Poker - client iPoker features nine different types of poker. Along with the client you get the marketing system and all the tools the operator may require
• Back offices and platforms for bingo and lotteries - Playtech is also a member of the World Lottery Association and the European Lotteries Association
• Software for retail operators - these are the omni-channel terminals BLING™ which are developed by the subsidiary Videobet
• IMS (Information Management Solution) - is a general platform that serves as the foundation for almost all software. This system provides all the tools that are required to run a casino. It can integrate the third parties' applications and software
• Playtech ONE - is another innovation platform which allows users to easily switch between the games on terminals and online sites

The first omni-channel game launched on the Playtech ONE platform on 6th February 2017 was Tiki Paradise which is a 5 reel slot that has ten paylines and bonuses

PlayTech History and Structure

Playtech was founded in 1999 in the Estonian city of Tartu by businessman Teddy Sagi. The company was awarded its first license in 2001 and in 2006 Playtech placed its shares on the London Stock Exchange and became a public corporation. The company's developers were the first to develop multi-channel games (omni-channel). 

From the year 2007 Mor Weizer has been the Head of the company. Other key managers are Ron Hoffman (CEO) and Adam Kay (Head of the Investment Department).

2010 was marked by a lot of acquisitions and integrations with a number of companies merging with Playtech including:

• GTS aggregator
• PTTS - Marketing Company
• Ash Gaming - Game developer
• Mobenga - Mobile betting application developer
• Virtue Fusion - British bingo provider
• Intelligence Gaming - Management console provider

In 2011 the company acquired PT Turnkey Services and the Euro Partners Affiliate Programme, which is one of the leading partnership programs in the gambling industry. Another notable company from Great Britain, sports bookmaker Geneity joined in 2012. The Belarusian company Viaden Media was bought by Teddy Sagi and Playtech in 2012, and the brand PokerStrategy was acquired in 2013. In 2014, Playtech bought Aristocrat Lotteries and joined the Gambling Business Group.  Their more recent history of acquisition is:

• 7th February 2017 - bingo developer Eyecon
• 14th November 2016 - broker CFH Group
• 13th June 2016 - Austrian software and terminal developer Best Gaming Technology
• 31st May 2016 - Funtactix, a game developer for mobile and social networks
• 24th May 2016 - Swedish game developer Quickspin
• 2nd April 2015 - Forex market brand TradFX
• 16th February 2015 - Scottish game and software developer YoYo Games

Playtech should have also acquired the online currency trader Plus500 for 699 million USD but the agreement did not take place and they withdrew from the German market in 2015.

Playtech has two subsidiaries, Videobet and Aristocrat Lotteries.

The company's headquarters are on the Isle of Man and other offices are situated in 17 countries around the world including Australia, the Philippines, Austria, The Isle of Man, Germany, Gibraltar, Denmark, Israel, Italy, Sweden, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Estonia, Cyprus, Russia and the Ukraine. The company's employs over 5,000 people.

Australia

In Australia we have the developer Eyecon studios, acquired in its entirety by Playtech with the following details:

• Address - Level 1, Oxley House, 25 Donkin Street, West End, Qld 4101, Australia. Telephone - 0061 730 505 000. Email - info@eyecon.com

Bulgaria

The office in Bulgaria for the development of games is located in the city capital:

• Address - 115 Tsarigradsko Shose, European Trade Center, Building C, Sofia, Bulgaria. Telephone - (+359) 2 987 4953. Fax - 00359 2 418 7066. Email - info@playtech.bg. Website - www.playtech.bg

The United Kingdom

There are a number of offices in the United Kingdom for administrative purposes.

• 10 Jamestown Rd, London NW1 7BY, UK. Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7267 6060
• 80 Hammersmith Rd, London W14 8UD, UK. Website: geneity.co.uk. Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7348 5500
• Playtech Ltd, 61 Southwark St, London SE1 0HL, London SE1 0HL, UK

The Isle of Man

On the Isle of man the Head Offices for development can be found:

• Address - St Georges Court, Upper Church Street, Douglas, Isle of Man IM1 1EE, United Kingdom. Website: playtech.com.  Telephone 0044 1624 645 999

Israel

The Israel division is a games development studio which occupies 2 offices:

• Platinum building, 21 Haarbaa st. - Tel Aviv, Israel
• Electra building, 98 Igal Alon st. - Tel Aviv, Israel
• Email: jobs@playtech.com

Cyprus

The Cyprus office is games capital of Cyprus

• Address - 3 Athinadorou Street, Dasoupolis, Strovolos, Nicosia,  2025 Cyprus. Telephone: 0035 722 678 944

Latvia

In Riga there are three games studios:

• "ELT", Ganibu dambis 24A, Riga, LV-1005, Latvia. Telephone: +371 6601 0660. Fax: +371 6601 0661. Email: office@elt.lv

Ukraine

The development studio in the Ukraine is in Kiev

• Address - Palace of Sports, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 floors 02000, Sportyvna Square, 1, Kiev

The Philippines

In the Philippines there is a live games studio as well as a a financial management company pertaining to Playtech - Paragon ICC

• Address - 14th Floor Yuchengco Tower 1 RCBC Plaza, 6819 Ayala Avenue Makati City, Makati, 1200 Metro Manila, Philippines. Telephone: 0063 2 756 7800

Sweden

Various companies are located in Sweden, the betting house Playtech BGT Sports and the development studio Quickspin

• Playtech BGT Sports: Address - Djäknegatan 16, Floor 4, 211 35 Malmö, Sweden.  Email: moc.hcetyalp@ofni.com
• Quickspin: Stockholm: Address - Drottninggatan 95A, 113 60 Stockholm
• Quickspin: Malta: Address - The Hedge Business Centre, Le Meridien Hotel, Ground Floor, STJ 1062, St Julian’s, Malta, Email: info@quickspin.com

Estonia

The Estonian offices are located in Tartu and Tallinn, as well as Playtech Estonia OÜ в Тарту:

• Address - Vanemuise 7, 51001 Tartu. Telephone: 00372 697 7900. Email: info@playtech.ee. Website: http://playtech.ee/?nav=kontakt

Playtech Offices Estonia OÜ, VideoB OÜ in Tallinn:

• Address - Lõõtsa 5, 11415 Tallinn. Telephone: +372 697 6597. Email: info.tallinn@playtech.ee. Website: http://playtech.ee/?nav=kontakt

Social Media

• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company-beta/18717
• YouTube: PlayTechChannel

Throughout its existence Playtech has grown from a small Estonian company into an international giant with offices in 17 countries worldwide. They have developed over 500 high quality games and the company pursues various activities including financial and broker deals.

As the company's CEO noted at the ICE exhibition on 23rd March 2017, Playtech has further plans to acquire worthwhile companies. This is the way the company diversifies its activities. Playtech implements the idea of omni-channeling not only through its products but through its structure as well.

Playtech ONE is another vivid embodiment of this principle. It is the first platform of this type that allows users to access one game via different channels including computers, terminals in retail outlets and mobile devices.