Poll results: William Hill, Rank, 888 tie-up doesn't make strategic sense
Three-quarters of respondents to this week's poll give proposed three-way merger the thumbs down
A substantial majority of respondents to this week poll see no strategic logic in Rank and 888’s takeover bid for William Hill.
While there are still very few details of how the three-way transaction might look, 74% of voters appeared to agree with Hills itself and questioned how beneficial a tie-up between the parties would be.
Hills said in a statement earlier this week: “It is not clear that a combination of William Hill with 888 and Rank will enhance William Hill’s strategic positioning or deliver superior value to William Hill’s strategy which is focused on increasing the Group’s diversification by growing its digital and international businesses.”
The main issue seems to be how Rank fits into the deal with its estate of bingo and casino halls, while William Hill is currently focusing on its online business.
As a result just 26% of voters thought the tie-up made strategic sense, with support presumably focused on the benefits Hills would reap from 888’s highly regarded marketing and CRM capabilities.
The Gibraltar-based company would also help develop Hills’ in-house casino strategy, and if Rank could install sports betting kiosks and SSBT’s in its land-based estate – which appears to be legally viable – the deal could make more sense.
Coral, for example, has shown just how powerful a well-considered cross-sell strategy can be when converting land-based customers to online and Hills and Rank both have experience in creating the all-important omni-channel.