The impact of commercial consolidation on the slot sector

As suppliers shore up their positions through M&A, the industry consensus seems to be “big is beautiful”, says eGaming Monitor’s Kevin Dale.

There are a number of particularly acquisitive businesses in the B2B space, with a secondary line in operators snapping up suppliers.

This aids market access and eases margin squeeze. Helen Walton of G Games adds that the wave of operator M&A seen in recent years has to be matched by suppliers to achieve scale. But, she says, that comes with downsides.

Scale can make it very hard to do the niche, authentic localisation, segment audiences and deliver something just right for small but profitable groups. Scale ultimately reduces choice, something Walton says is arguably inevitable in a space as crowded as gaming content.