UK bookmakers Ladbrokes announced their first annual loss in a decade as the company fights to turn around its languishing digital operations.

In preliminary results released on Tuesday, Ladbrokes announced a pre-tax loss of £43.2m in 2015, a dramatic shift from 2014’s £37.7m profit. The numbers were dragged down by £50m in new UK taxes, thanks to the 15% online point of consumption tax and the 25% increase in the land-based Machine Games Duty.

Group revenue was up 3.2% to £1.2b but operating profit fell 36% to £80.6m thanks to those aforementioned taxes and expenses related to the company’s ongoing efforts to boost its digital offering.

Lads also suffered £99m of one-off charges due to the restructuring of its Irish retail operations and costs associated with the proposed merger with rival Gala Coral Group. The company says the merger is proceeding apace and it’s eagerly awaiting the UK competition watchdog’s initial report in April.

UK bookmakers Ladbrokes announced their first annual loss in a decade as the company fights to turn around its languishing digital operations.

In preliminary results released on Tuesday, Ladbrokes announced a pre-tax loss of £43.2m in 2015, a dramatic shift from 2014’s £37.7m profit. The numbers were dragged down by £50m in new UK taxes, thanks to the 15% online point of consumption tax and the 25% increase in the land-based Machine Games Duty.

Group revenue was up 3.2% to £1.2b but operating profit fell 36% to £80.6m thanks to those aforementioned taxes and expenses related to the company’s ongoing efforts to boost its digital offering.

Lads also suffered £99m of one-off charges due to the restructuring of its Irish retail operations and costs associated with the proposed merger with rival Gala Coral Group. The company says the merger is proceeding apace and it’s eagerly awaiting the UK competition watchdog’s initial report in April.

Canada’s Amaya Gaming says PokerStars’ former owners have rejected responsibility for the $870m judgment the Commonwealth of Kentucky was awarded shortly before Christmas.

On Monday, Amaya announced that it had filed a notice of appeal of that $870m judgment, which relates to PokerStars’ dealings with Kentucky customers in the period following the 2006 passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) and Stars’ forced exit from the US market following the 2011 Black Friday indictments.

Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate originally awarded Kentucky’s state government $290m in damages in November, only to treble that award the following month, as allowed by the centuries-old statute under which the state filed its claim.

At the time, Amaya announced it would seek to offload any damages on Isai and Mark Scheinberg, from whom Amaya purchased PokerStars’ parent company the Rational Group in 2014. Amaya now says it filed such a claim with the Scheinbergs in late January, seeking indemnification of the judgment in accordance with the 2014 sale agreement.

Canada’s Amaya Gaming says PokerStars’ former owners have rejected responsibility for the $870m judgment the Commonwealth of Kentucky was awarded shortly before Christmas.

On Monday, Amaya announced that it had filed a notice of appeal of that $870m judgment, which relates to PokerStars’ dealings with Kentucky customers in the period following the 2006 passage of the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) and Stars’ forced exit from the US market following the 2011 Black Friday indictments.

Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate originally awarded Kentucky’s state government $290m in damages in November, only to treble that award the following month, as allowed by the centuries-old statute under which the state filed its claim.

At the time, Amaya announced it would seek to offload any damages on Isai and Mark Scheinberg, from whom Amaya purchased PokerStars’ parent company the Rational Group in 2014. Amaya now says it filed such a claim with the Scheinbergs in late January, seeking indemnification of the judgment in accordance with the 2014 sale agreement.