Light & Wonder, the prominent Las Vegas-based real money online casino operator, has recently announced that they will be dropping their live casino dealer games, and will be focusing their efforts on other facets of their business.
The decision to move away from live casino dealer games came after a strategic review. Matt Wilson, Light & Wonder CEO, and CFO Oliver Chow explained that the business wanted to focus on areas of the business with superior returns.
On the side of operations, one key change to the dynamics around supplying to operators saw pricing hit. This is why Light & Wonder chose to focus instead on 1PP (first-person perspective) monetization tools, aggregation, and content to drive online growth.
Light & Wonder initially launched its live casino operations in October of 2023 alongside Authentic Gaming. Their departure from the live dealer iGaming market will leave Evolution and Playtech as the only two remaining live casino suppliers in the US.
Light & Wonder Aims for More Growth in 2025
Even though Light & Wonder will leave the live dealer market, Wilson noted that the company is still targeting huge growth for 2025. He noted that 2024 was a record year for the company, claiming the success and great earnings they have reaped was due to the flexibility of its teams.
During the fourth quarter of 2024, the company saw an 8% increase in operating income, as well as an 11% rise in 2024 cash flow. A key factor in this growth was a rise in sales of gaming machines to North American and Australian buyers.
As far as the company’s net income, Light & Wonder reported $336 million net income showcased an impressive 86.7% increase, with its iGaming sector increasing by 9%. Online expansions in the international and US markets helped the iGaming revenue reach $299 million, with increased growth of 11% in Q4 alone seeing $78 million created.
Meanwhile, recent internal restructuring that saw Simon Johnson named the new iGaming division CEO and he will have been instrumental in the organization’s decision to streamline its online services.
Moreover, Light & Wonder saw a big expansion into the Brazilian market – Chow stated that 50 game titles were launched into the country’s iGaming market through various collaborations with online casino games operators.
Such endeavors are shaping Light & Wonder to be one of the best online casinos in various iGaming markets.