Rank makes omni-channel play following Bede platform launch

Operator also reveals plans to launch a Spain-facing bingo site in the summer

The Rank Group has successfully completed its migration to the Bede Gaming digital platform and subsequently launched new Mecca and Grosvenor digital sites and mobile apps.

The announcement marks the culmination of a 14-month integration process from its previous OpenBet platform, with Rank and Bede now switching their focus to adding new games and CRM features to improve player engagement and create an “omni-channel experience”.

“We are very pleased to have launched our new digital platform within the timeline and budget that we set,” Henry Birch, Rank Group CEO, said.

“Performance so far has been encouraging and we will turn on increased functionality over the coming months,” he added.

Joe Saumarez Smith, chairman of Bede Gaming, told EGR the next step of the process would see the integration of new games suppliers into the platform as well as the introduction of more targeted bonusing.

“We have a rules engine, where Rank can build specific bonuses based on a sequence of events,” said Saumarez Smith. “For example if a customer loses 10 hands of blackjack in a row, they can send them a message saying ’looks like you’re having some bad luck, here’s a bonus’”.

Bede will also focus on using omni-channel data for Rank brands, with customers’ activity in land-based casinos and bingo halls tracked and shared with the digital teams and vice-versa.

“We are spending a lot of time in their land-based environment understanding how customers behave and how we can take advantage of that information,” Saumarez Smith said.

The partnership between Rank and Bede also extends to Europe, where Rank’s Spanish bingo brand Enracha will be launched online in the summer.

“The actual launch date depends on the Spanish regulator,” Saumarez Smith said. “But where the regulations allow, Enracha will have the same features as Mecca -  it’s built on the same platform.”