"We are taking the appropriate measures to maintain our coverage and service at the highest levels possible"

What are the firm's latest developments in virtual betting?

The most significant advance recently has been the introduction of in-play betting and modelling them in the same way as a real-life match. We changed the game quite a bit with our tennis product, for example. Tennis is a ball-by-ball betting product, therefore we introduced two to three hour matches complete with all the in-play options of a person-to-person game. Two years ago, it was all about pre-match betting, today the importance of live betting and who will win the next point has grown significantly.

How is the firm dealing with the current global situation?

We are working very closely with our customers, league partners and rights holders to ensure they remain updated in real time amidst the rapid changes in the sporting schedule across the globe.

We are currently following existing processes and protocols that are in place to manage event rescheduling, modifications, cancellations and postponements. While this is occurring at an unprecedented rate, the procedures with which we address these situations remain the same. We are taking all the necessary and appropriate measures to maintain our coverage and service at the highest levels possible.

We remain extremely vigilant to the impact coronavirus is having on the sporting calendar. We understand that this is a challenging time for businesses and we remain committed to working through this together with our customers and partners.

Are virtual sports and online gambling increasing their markets worldwide?

With no live sporting events planned for the coming weeks, the spotlight is on products such as virtuals that can offer life-like entertainment and instant betting opportunities. In the last few weeks alone, we have seen our virtual products help to generate a significant contribution towards sportsbook revenue for some customers with European operators seeing huge demand for football, horse racing and tennis. To put this into context, in the 10 years we have been developing and delivering virtuals, our products typically make up a high single digit figure of sportsbook revenue.