SUPPLIER SPECIAL REPORT

ICE is back!

After a two-year break and a rocky start to the year, ICE London will be returning to the ExCel Centre in London from April 12 to April 14, and suppliers in these pages are ready to talk business.

The organizers, Clarion Gaming, say there will be more than 1,000 products on display from more than 450 suppliers from 55 countries. The conference sessions are scheduled to feature more than 160 speakers from all walks of the gaming world.

New this year, will be the ICE365 Live studio, which will be broadcasting live from the exhibition floor in a bid to bring a new hybrid experience to the show. It will feature speakers such as OpenBet’s Jordan Levin, Ithuba CEO Charmaine Mabuza, as well exclusive data from H2 Gambling Capital, YouGov, and eGaming Monitor.

The ICE Esports Arena will be returning, complete with a live Rocket League tournament with top tier teams, 00 Nation, Team Queso, SMPR Esports, and Dignitas, which will be slugging it out for the GBP25,000 prize pool.

There will also be keynote speeches from some of the leading figures in the esports field, who will share insight on how best to tap into market opportunities.

Clarion had originally intended to hold the event in its usual February slot, however, it was forced to postpone after the outbreak of the Omicron variant in the U.K. The new dates have been viewed as less than optimal by some of the largest suppliers, due mainly to the clash with the Easter holidays, with some big names choosing to opt-out of the event.

These cancellations include Novomatic, Light & Wonder, Zitro, TCS John Huxley, Abbiati, Merkur Gaming, EGT, and Alphastreet. Novomatic said it was a decision that hadn’t been taken lightly, but a multitude of adverse aspects – including the pandemic, logistical challenges, and, last but not least, the unfavorable and unavoidable alternative date – have culminated in a situation in which participating in the show is no longer viable.

More recently, companies such as Slotegrator and Softswiss, have also announced they are also not planning to attend in order to focus their financial resources on aiding Ukraine.

Despite the setbacks, registrations for the show were tracking above 2020 levels, which was the last time a live event was held. Clarion says from March 1st to March 8th, registrations were up more than 26 percent from the equivalent period in 2022.

“The core message is that despite the difficulties facing the industry and the unavoidable problems concerning our enforced temporary dates, ICE London 2022 will be the biggest gathering of the international industry since the last edition of ICE two years ago,” says Clarion Managing Director Stuart Hunter. “We are in close contact with our community of exhibitors and visitors and to a person they are looking forward to being able to reconnect with their customers and suppliers in a live environment.”

In this edition’s Special Supplier Report, companies share some of their plans for the event and what we can expect to see from them in the coming months.

Making international debut at ICE

7777 GAMING

B2B provider 7777 gaming will make an international debut at the upcoming ICE London and will present original inhouse iGaming content, consisting of 50+ games, innovative jackpot solutions and an all-in-one platform. A key focus will be put on the wide range of online games, including instant win games, slot games, table games, themed games, iLottery, sport iLottery, scratch cards, and more.

Elena Shaterova, Chief Commercial Officer at 7777 gaming commented: “There is no better place to premiere our company as a provider than ICE London – the largest global gaming hub uniting B2B gaming industry experts in Europe. Our B2B debut comes at the right time, after a long period of absence of live events.

“We are fully prepared to offer the complete package of games needed from the online operators to engage and retain the audience, especially now with the influx of online gaming usage worldwide. Our games portfolio offers a next level of gaming entertainment that will surely answer the operators’ requirements and expectations.”, Shaterova added.

Having been a technology provider of the leading B2C operators on several highly regulated markets for more than a decade, 7777 gaming’s expertise and diverse portfolio of games has established the company’s reputation for excellence, high-performance and innovation.

Key performance indicators for the company’s games are higher average turnover per game by 13 times, higher average GGR per game, 5 times more new users and 2 times more RNG and depleting pool versions.

The company is creating its games with the mindset of the new player, who enjoys lottery and scratch games, but do not have the experience in classic casino games and is ready to enter the online gaming entertainment with games that speak to his language.

Some of the most preferred and played games are: Sea of Treasure, Golden Pyramids, Egyptian Treasure, Lucky Clovers, Jinn, Fortunes of Rome, and many more.

The company has a license as a B2B gaming provider on the Romanian market and has recently renewed its 10-year license on the Bulgarian market as well. Plans of the company for Q2 are obtaining an MGA license. 7777 gaming’s products are GLI certified and cover all online games verticals by also offering a unique look and feel for the end-users.

Meet the 7777 gaming team of gaming experts at the world’s leading B2B gaming exhibition – ICE London, at stand N1-340.

Expanding in Latvia and Lithuania after GLI certification

BETCONSTRUCT

Soft Construct (Malta) Limited has successfully passed the GLI certification process for the Live Casino games of CreedRoomz by BetConstruct in Latvia and Lithuania. As a result of continuous work, BetConstruct, a gaming and sports betting provider, has got the green light to promote the CreedRoomz live casino offering in the two Baltic countries, Latvia and Lithuania. The approval was received for 10 games - Dragon Tiger; Super Six Baccarat; Casino Hold’em; Russian Poker; Switch BlackJack; Hi-Lo; Swift Roulette; Baccarat; Bet-on Poker and Roulette.

This new offer is unique and interesting for the company’s Baltic partners, as CreedRoomz is adapted to various aspects of the business, such as the scale of activities, the region, and the preferences of the players. It allows the clients to use BetConstruct’s live casino key products and services, stay ahead of the competition, and access different player profiles.

By adding these new games to their operations, BetConstruct partners from Latvia and Lithuania intend to increase player satisfaction and engagement.

The Gaming Beat and The Future You’d Love

BBIN

Revolving around the annual theme, “The Gaming Beat,” BBIN is returning to ICE 2022 and looking forward to a reunion with the industry.

In 2022, BBIN launched its first charitable campaign “The Future You’d Love” via its TGB Charity to collect the public’s thoughts and ideas about the future. In the post-pandemic era, TGB Charity hopes to create a platform for everyone to show the future they would like to have and live in. Its efforts have inspired many people to participate, including many of BBIN’s industrial partners, TGB Charity’s partners, and creative artists from all over the world, who have all shown a variety of stunning possibilities for the future.

The collected ideas from the campaign will be taken as important references for TGB Charity’s future charitable projects and will provide a meaningful survey of diverse future perspectives. What people are concerned about will be the main focus of TGB Charity’s future events and projects. Furthermore, the collected ideas from this campaign have been well-documented in the highlight video of “The Future You’d Love,” released on TGB Charity’s official website and Youtube channel.

From a long-term perspective, BBIN continues to organize new charitable programs, constantly measuring their effectiveness and embedding these values into the core of BBIN’s business. It is firmly believed that meaningful endeavors and care for significant issues will eventually navigate us through the transition period to arrive at a new-normal era, where a prosperous and sustainable future is perfectly balanced.

Helping clients face new regulatory challenges

BMM TESTLABS

BMM Testlabs, the world’s original gaming test lab and product certification consultancy, is pleased to participate in the ICE London tradeshow taking place at ExCel in London between April 12-14, 2022.

Jon Stuckey, SVP Business Development, commented, “We are looking forward to having conversations about sports betting compliance and online casino gaming approvals at ICE London this year. New regulations for legalizing sports betting and online casino gaming have been surfacing globally, and BMM is prepared to educate our partners on the proper compliance procedures and requirements, as we take them all around the world, especially to the U.S. and Canada now.”

Francesco Bianchi, VP of Government Relations and Compliance, EURSAM, continued, “iGaming and online gaming platforms are very common throughout Europe, and there are many emerging companies in this sector that we look forward to meeting at ICE London. Building these relationships early on will ensure that we are all working toward a compliant future for the global gaming industry.”

Stuckey and Bianchi will attend ICE London, joined by BMM’s European-based leadership team. ICE London hosts a global network of gaming professionals across the industry at all levels of seniority, and the BMM team is prepared to provide face-toface connections and support to attendees.

Attendees and exhibitors are encouraged to stop by the BMM Testlabs stand (N3-420) to network with our world-renowned product certification, quality assurance testing, and compliance services team.

Multi-cloud provider for online gambling

CONTINENT 8

According to independent analysis company Canalys, global cloud services spend exceeded $50 billion in Q4 2021, bringing the industry total for the year to $178 billion.

With increased demand for cloud infrastructure services, Continent 8 (C8) has positioned itself as the multi-cloud provider for the global online gambling (real-money gaming) industry, and we have achieved some phenomenal growth in our Cloud capabilities.

C8 operates a regulatory compliant Cloud environment in Atlantic City, Malta, Gibraltar, Isle of Man and Kahnawake – as well as community or Public Clouds in Colombia, Dublin, and Taiwan.

As C8 expands we can deploy network edge Clouds which can be grown to provide community or regulatory Cloud functions, as well as hybrid or network edge functionality to customer infrastructure, aligning with C8’s multi-cloud vision.

A number of our team will be attending ICE London in April including Aidan Rees- Williams, Caroline Moran, Graeme Price and Graham Foster from our Sales team.

With a connected network of over 80+ locations globally, Continent 8 is the trusted infrastructure partner to the iGaming industry, offering market-leading Connect, Manage and Secure solutions.

Comtrade strikes deal for gCore technology with newcomer Spinza

COMTRADE

Comtrade Gaming, a leading technology supplier to the gaming industry, announces that it will supply its gCore technology (Remote Game Server) to new game provider “Spinza”.

The deal will see Spinza, a new online slots provider, have its own version of Comtrade Gaming’s RGS hosted in the cloud.

“We are delighted to announce the deal with Spinza. Our RGS adds real value for game vendors and puts them in control of their own destiny. New game studios can struggle with the underlying technology to host their games and can be reliant on other partners, our technology bridges that gap. Spinza are a great new games studio with big ambitions, and we look forward to supporting them on that journey,” says Steven Valentine, Comtrade Gaming’s Chief Commercial Officer.

Comtrade Gaming’s RGS is licensed in the UK, Gibraltar, Malta, NJ, PA, and many more jurisdictions.

Tom Whistler, Spinza’s Director, comments: “We are thrilled to partner with Comtrade Gaming and their technology. As a new game studio, it was important for us to partner with someone who could provide us with RGS software but also the technical skills to help us build games while we build up our own team. Time to market is key when you are just starting out and the flexibility, they have shown to help in all areas, has been of huge benefit.”

New face for live casino

DIGITAIN

Digitain said that Jason Marcelino has joined the company as commercial director for its new, luxury Live Casino, which will be launched at ICE.

Built in-house by our own development team, the new Live Casino is an exciting addition to Digitain’s portfolio of products and will be formally launched at ICE in April.

Jason has over 10 years of land-based experience having worked at some of the top Mayfair Casinos in London. He also has worked online for more than 5 years, for some of the premium live casino operators and suppliers.

Of his new role, Jason said, “Live Casino is in my blood, and I am incredibly excited to join such a great company as Digitain shortly before the launch of this great, new product. I am surrounded by passion and talent and Yerevan is a vibrant capital city where the founder has built the best iGaming office in the world. The potential for scale is enormous and I look forward to showcasing all aspects at ICE in April.”

Matthew Charlesworth, Managing Director of Digitain’s Live Casino commented, “As our Live Casino moves ever closer to a trading-ready position, we sought to bring on board someone with Live Casino passion and expertise combined with solid iGaming commercial experience – and Jason ticks those boxes and many more.

We are truly delighted to welcome Jason to the Digitain Live Casino family.”

Going live with Loto-Quebec

EVOLUTION

Evolution says Loto-Québec has launched four of Evolution’s Dual Play live gaming tables – two Dual Play Roulette and two Dual Play Baccarat – hosted at Loto-Québec’s land-based Casino Montreal.

Loto-Québec is the first Lottery Corporation and the first online game site provider to offer Evolution’s Dual Play solutions in Canada.

This latest service extension builds on Evolution’s successful partnership with Loto- Québec, which began in 2018. In its initial move into Live Casino (called Casino en direct in French), Loto-Québec offered its online players six Evolution dedicated tables (including five hosted by French-speaking game presenters), as well as other Evolution live tables. All of these tables are hosted at Evolution’s live casino studio in Vancouver.

The Loto-Québec online casino subsequently expanded to include Evolution’s full suite of live tables, streamed live from Evolution’s European studios.

Evolution Dual Play tables embody land-based and online casino convergence by allowing players at the actual Baccarat and Roulette table in the land-based venue and online players to play alongside each other in the same live games at the same table.

Jeff Millar, Commercial Director, North America at Evolution commented: “Live Casino is the natural bridge between land-based and online, and with Dual Play we have developed a product exclusive to land-based casinos that want to explore their online potential.”

Back and eager to catch up with friends

EVERYMATRIX

EveryMatrix will be fielding a 30-strong team at ICE London this year and will be highlighting its services from SlotMatrix through to JackpotEngine.

SlotMatrix is the world’s largest casino aggregator. It makes content available from 175+ game studios, including established suppliers and up-and-coming brands. The B2B pure gaming aggregator is present in 17+ markets with 100+ unique and proprietary games, and a wide range of promotional tools for acquisition and retention. All with ZERO platform fees!

JackpotEngine helps motivate players by adding an extra layer of excitement to their regular betting and allows operators to create their own jackpots for any selection of games, across any vendors, and for any segment of players. JackpotEngine also allows operators to stay compliant while attracting and retaining players where traditional bonusing is not an option or limited.

The company’s managed services division helps clients from acquisition and retention marketing to responsible gaming and payments management. It provides support to your executive teams, ensuring smooth, transparent, and compliant operations. Just like our products, our Managed Services has been designed in a modular fashion: we can help you with everything or just one specific area.

EveryMatrix will be in the North Suite Galleries, on the 1st floor, in NG-10 and NG-11.

G+D: Robust and reliable security

G&D

There are lots of changes in early 2022 in Asia’s casino markets, especially the gaming law reforms in Macau and the enhancement of gambling laws in Singapore.

The gaming law reforms in Macau look positive for the casino industry in the future. There will be a maximum of six licenses, providing the way for the existing six concessionaires to renew their licenses at end of 2022 for 10 years. Under the amended gaming law, the government put a maximum cap on gaming tables and slot machines, based on usage. Junket operators can only work with one concessionaire, while satellite casinos need to be owned by the concessionaire according to a strata title basis. All the reforms eased concern and casinos can implement strategies for future business investment.

Singapore introduced a new single regulator, the “Gambling Regulatory Authority” to manage all forms of gambling, and the new Authority can address evolving gambling products and business models effectively. The GRA will be more effective in reacting to technological and global trends and will respond faster to emerging products.

The reform and enhancement of gaming laws in both Macau and Singapore will promote the healthy development of the gaming industry. Although there is uncertainty under Covid-19, Singapore is open up for visitors and the revenue of casinos is growing gradually. As a casino business partner, G+D offers solutions ranging from small systems to automation solutions with cash management software for maximum efficiency and security. Our wide range of high-quality banknote processing systems will satisfy the requirements of all sizes of casinos. With continued casino growth and healthy casino development, G+D will continue to provide advanced technology, robust and reliable high system security and accounting accuracy products and solutions to cope with the growth of casinos.

Ready to impress at ICE

ENDORPHINA

Endorphina said it’s ready to impress with its nextgeneration AI experience at ICE London 2022. ICE London 2022, the largest global gathering of gaming operators throughout Europe, will be taking place from April 12-14th at ExCel London. We can expect igaming leaders to speak, share and discuss topics that will push the entire industry towards success.

Endorphina, the online slots game provider, will also be making an appearance. Every year, Endorphina impresses and entertains with its stand at ICE.

The gaming provider has also announced that it has something special prepared this year for stand N6-320. Endorphina says it knows exactly how to surprise you, so be sure to stop by to find out and meet their entire team: Zdenek Llosa (Senior Sales Manager), Jan Urbanec (CEO), Phil Korinek (CMO), Rashad Karimov (Sales Manager), and Connor Donohoe (Sales Manager). They will all be greatly looking forward to meeting you in person!

Book a meeting here - https://endorphina. com/ice-london-2022

Helping clients seize opportunities

GLI

It’s an exciting time for the gaming industry. Opportunities abound in online gaming, sports betting, iLottery, and more, and, as always, Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) stands ready to help suppliers, regulators, and operators seize them.

GLI will be on stand #N3-210 at ICE London, where attendees will learn more about the company’s complete suite of integrated compliance solutions tailored to each client’s individual needs. Don’t wait for the future. Be ready for it with solutions that put you in control, save time, and make it easier to report and prove compliance.

Additionally, Vice President of Latin American and Caribbean Karen Sierra-Hughes will be speaking on the World Regulatory Briefing panel “Shared Experience: New markets” at ICE VOX. This will take place on April 11 at 1:35 p.m. (GMT) at the Capital Suite in the ExCel Centre London. She will also moderate the ICE panel “Global Markets Masterclass – Argentina Roundtable: An opportunity to connect with those with interest in the LatAm market,” at 4 p.m. on April 12. Then on April 13 at 4:50 p.m., she will speak at “LatAm Masterclass - Shared Experience: Does controlling the number of licenses issued fight industry threats or is it just threatening free trade?”.

GLI looks forward to seeing old friends at this year’s event and meeting some new ones as well. Most importantly, the GLI team looks forward to helping its clients blaze new trails in 2022.

Riding the waves

HABANERO

With Habanero seeing record numbers and entering several key markets in 2021, 2022 is lining up to be a crucial year for us where we look to utilize last year’s impressive momentum to help us reach new heights and milestones. That said, we plan to do this by sticking to what we have always done – by delivering flexible and engaging solutions to our clients, all with titles built on solid mathematics.

We recently saw Chinese New Year pass by, and as part of that, we were delighted to offer our players Lantern Luck, a wonderful gaming experience to celebrate the year of the Tiger! The game has performed hugely well with our players, with immersive graphics, pitch-perfect sounds, and engaging mechanics allowing us to offer players something different from our usual product.

In terms of what’s coming up for us, we’re all set for the release of groovy new title Disco Beats at the end of March. Providing players with good vibes, catchy disco beats, and a bonus wheel that awards incredible bonuses and wins, we are delighted with how the product has materialized and can not wait to see how it is received by our audiences.

We’re also thrilled by the idea of seeing everyone back together at live industry events, starting with ICE in April, followed by the CasinoBeats Summit in May, which we will be sponsoring. We also expect ICE’s muchanticipated return to bolster our networking efforts for our Head of Business Development Arcangelo Lonoce, and bring in new business opportunities, but at the same time, it will just be wonderful to see some faces we haven’t seen for a while!

If the events that we attended at the back end of last year were anything to go by, such as the SBC Summit in Barcelona, iGB Live, and SiGMA, then we couldn’t be more eager to attend, and cannot wait to explore more opportunities with new connections!

We’re humbled to be seen as part of iGaming’s evolution, contributing to the waves of change that it is currently going through in terms of entertainment and engagement. For us, it’s all about riding the waves and delivering to customers and players exactly what they want when it comes to entertainment. After all, business is all about agility and the ability to evolve to client requirements.

Stepping up to the mark for digital signage

IDX/ID NERD

Thinking of enhancing your public profile or digital space using LED video walls? Looking to get your business noticed and talked about on hundreds of thousands of social media feeds? IDX and idNerd Studios HK can help. There are so many lost opportunities when it comes to static billboard displays or the same old boring content defacing our skyline and buildings.

Given the incredible transformations in interactive and immersive technologies, it’s baffling why companies are consistently falling short of the mark for digital signage solutions.

For this reason, IDX and sister company idNerd Studio have created a combined service that removes all the headaches for any business, brand, building contractor, architect, or whoever else might benefit from a seamless digital solution. What exactly do we mean by this?

1. Our 3D animation studio, idNerd, creates whatever original, innovative, industrydisrupting, or anamorphic content you can imagine. Or we can provide a discovery journey to find out what’s possible.

2. IDX works with many LED vendors ensuring you get the right product for your budget. Working with technology daily, we can ensure that you’re buying the latest tech at the right price point, helping you to future-proof your investment.

3. IDX designs and develops our own media systems, with proven experience in providing high quality and delivering wow content anywhere.

IDX has access to a team of professional technicians, hardware specialists and other maintenance staff to take care of installations and deployment anywhere on the globe.

There are so many exciting products available now, including flexible, transparent, even virtual studio sets for streaming events. Gone are the days when you just pick a square screen to deliver flat content. Even gaming floors and ETG stadiums can become so much more interactive and entertaining for guests.

Supplying Singapore Pools

IGT

International Game Technology’s IGT Global Services has signed a six-year contract with Singapore Pools to provide IGT’s central lottery system, Aurora, and its related technologies.

IGT’s Aurora was built to drive lottery innovation and profitability and will offer reliability for Singapore Pools’ high volume of transactions.

“Set up to provide a legal, safe and trusted avenue for people to place bets, Singapore Pools requires the sophistication, reliability and innovation that IGT’s Aurora central system provides to support the Lottery’s significant number of daily transactions,” said Jay Gendron, IGT Chief Operating Officer, Global Lottery.” IGT’s service-oriented Aurora incorporates a suite of flexible solutions designed to manage, transform and further grow the Lottery’s business. This best-in-class technology coupled with IGT’s longstanding lottery leadership will ensure Singapore Pools continues to channel its surpluses to good causes while offering a secure and responsible gaming environment for all.”

Along with the new central system, IGT will deploy Aurora Navigator, Data Connector and Aurora Anywhere. Aurora Navigator offers a single place to view, manage and administer all lottery applications and back-office functions to help Singapore Pools manage its business. The Data Connector is the plug-and-play platform for fast, efficient data integration and analysis. IGT’s Aurora Anywhere is the secure gateway that allows for external applications to connect to the core lottery system which creates opportunities for expanded gameplay. Additionally, IGT will provide ongoing maintenance, marketing support and operator training.

Promoting responsible gaming

JADE SPORTSBET

Jade SportsBet, the rising retail and remote sportsbook provider in the Philippines, has strengthened its compliance with PAGCOR’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Gaming with the launch of self-regulatory tools on the JadeSportsBet.com website.

As remote gaming gains popularity in the Philippines, people become more comfortable putting their money into play on their mobile devices. Jade SportsBet has gone the extra mile to ensure that customers are always within their limits while they enjoy the products and services that the platform offers.

JadeSportsBet.com has presented three responsible gaming tools to uphold the highest standards when it comes to providing a safe and fair gaming environment. The self-regulation tool allows players to set the amount of money they can deposit to their accounts, either per day, per week, or per month. Reality check helps customers manage the amount of playing time they can spend on the website while the selfexclusion tool allows players to lock themselves out of the platform if a player feels the risk of developing a gaming problem.

Whether it be for the money, or for the excitement of winning, or the thrill, as most patrons become more connected, more social, and more mobile, we can expect continued growth in the number of players. And with that Jade SportsBet has committed to look after the safety of its customers, the responsible and entertaining way!

High-denomination slots debut in Macau

LT GAME

Our large portfolio of slot games and state-ofthe-art cabinets provide a unique selection of games that can be tailored to any property’s unique player demographic.

LT’s new Jackpot Series, which contains a group of high denomination games, has just been approved for the Macau market. Jackpot Series games are straightforward and perfectly suited for high-denomination areas. The first two games approved in Macau Jackpot Tornado and Jackpot Bonus are having fantastic results in the North American market, with other games in the series due out soon.

Jackpot Bonus features classic game styling that embodies the nostalgia of a classical stepper game. It has frequent free game features with exciting payback!

Jackpot Tornado features the crescendo win feature. Bonus pays can only be the same or higher. Look for the Jackpot Alley Bonus in the game with retrigger.

Non-progressives, stand-alone progressives, and linked progressives are available with all Jackpot Series Games.

Bowl of Gold is a Chinese culture-themed Progressive link. It has five levels of progressive and pick progressive features. The game is specifically designed for Asian players and is engaging with unique features which bring the players more excitement than ever. Bowl of Gold consists of three titles; Door to Riches, Gold Dragon, and Golden Piggies Fortune. They all have unique features, but if there is one thing all three titles have in common it is the five levels of progressive jackpots, as well as five jackpot bonus payouts. Bowl of Gold Link’s maximum bet is 68 credits and all progressives can be won.

With the same slot cabinet, LT has introduced a series of Table Game Slot titles. Paradise Roulette; Lucky 6 Baccarat; Golden Frog Baccarat and much more to come. All games are powered with a real dealer and wheel animations! No more CG graphics. The players will experience the same excitement as if they were playing the traditional table games while enjoying their privacy and social distancing.

The real dealer appears on the top display to provide players with the illusion of interacting with a real dealer and the players can change the dealer anytime they want for fun or even superstitious reasons.

The FAFA SLOT RGX 1000 is a new gaming cabinet with real moving objects. It introduces a fascinating storyline with exquisite animations, and a unique BINGO Jackpot, allowing players to control the gaming speed, but also to enjoy the excitement of both slot games and interactive games.

The game, with titles including Fortune monkey; God of the Sea; Rank up Dragon; Fortune Master, and Savannah King, features diversified culture and story backgrounds. Splendid visual effects of LED objects falling down will surprise and excite game players. Shutter doors interlocking with enhanced visual effects will introduce players to a new and exciting world.

Another brand-new LT Slot Game - the Tekken series has hit the market. Being a famous Japanese media franchise, Tekken is centered on a series of fighting video and arcade games, which have been very popular with players over decades. The games include “Heihachi, Askua and Panda.

Rebranding to tap into gaming of the future

LIGHT AND WONDER

Scientific Games Corp has undergone a major rebranding, changing its name to Light & Wonder to reflect a new company direction that will focus on cross-platform game development across land-based casinos, online and mobile, in both the real-money and free-to-play social gaming markets.

“It’s the way players play these days… They like to play on phones and play on screens. [While] their parents [like to play on] proper gaming machines,” said Jamie Odell, chairman of Light & Wonder.

“We’re already seeing increasing examples of where games are being launched, at the same time, across platforms, allowing all that extra dollar to come through and to get extra excitement of playing the same games on different platforms.

“So for us, it’s inevitable that that’s the way that play is going to go and we’re going to facilitate it with great IP, great processes, great technology, and content, which we deliberately developed to make sure it can work easily across those platforms.”

Light & Wonder said the rebrand comes as part of a year-long strategic plan to transform the company into a digital-focused business, a plan which included the divestment of its sports betting and lotteries business in order to focus on digital, which it forecasts would be at the same scale of its land-based business in three years.

“We are thrilled to introduce the world to Light & Wonder, a company that will build great games and franchises that offer players a seamless experience across platforms,” said Light & Wonder Chief Executive Officer Barry Cottle in a company statement.

As part of this transformation, the Company’s new website featuring iGaming and land-based casino products, technology, and services will now be lnw.com. This new portal to the Company offers an exciting look at player-favorite games, as well as platforms, systems, player account management, and hardware.

Light & Wonder will operate under an assumed name until a legal name change is complete in Spring 2022. At that time, the Company intends to start trading under a new stock ticker it has reserved, LNW.

Creating innovative entertainment experiences

PRAGMATIC PLAY

Pragmatic Play is an industry-leading content provider that offers a multi-vertical portfolio of high-quality slots, live casino, bingo, and virtual sports titles. With an unmatched passion to create innovative entertainment experiences that are mobile-friendly and highly immersive. Pragmatic Play develops engaging titles across 31 different languages, operating in all major certified markets and currencies.

Pragmatic Play creates five new slot titles each month, which can build upon fan-favorite IPs as seen in the much-loved Big Bass Bonanza and John Hunter series of releases, while also introducing new mechanics demonstrated best in the multi-award-winning Gates of Olympus. Recent hits have joined its extensive portfolio, from a reimagining of the traditional pen and paper game in Tic Tac Take to the innovative Wild Beach Party and the popular Magician’s Secrets.

The provider’s Live Casino vertical gives operators a host of traditional casino titles from Roulette to Blackjack, while also offering operators its game show-inspired hit releases like Sweet Bonanza, Candyland, and Mega Wheel.

Unique Bingo titles are also available from Pragmatic Play, which can be customized to drive operator branding. The exclusive Bingo Blast and Reels Room evolve the classic bingo experience to appeal to a broader audience that is also supported by its Virtual Sports content. This gives players a 3D rendering of an RNG-certified sporting event that allows for player engagement between real-life action and high-frequency simulations with a similar betting market.

Completing its content provision, which covers all bases, is Pragmatic Play’s newest vertical entry with its Sportsbook, becoming the fifth major content pillar offered. It gives operators access to custom markets and odds across thousands of sporting competitions along with access to official data, maximizing margins.

Situated at stands N4-210, N4-230, and N4- 250 at the upcoming ICE London trade show, Pragmatic Play will be showcasing its upcoming and existing titles from its varied high-quality library and looks forward to meeting new and established affiliates, operators and suppliers.

Malta license underpins growth plans

PINNACLE

Pinnacle Solution, the B2B arm of pioneer sportsbook Pinnacle, has been licensed by the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) to provide its services to sportsbook partners within its jurisdiction.

The highly-regarded MGA license, along with a new esports product that will be showcased for the first time at ICE 2022, will underpin the supplier’s ambitious growth plans for 2H22 and beyond, with the company looking to unlock partnerships in a number of new territories, with particular focus across Europe and Latin America.

Recognition by the MGA is the latest milestone for the risk management experts, having grown exponentially in recent years by adapting Pinnacle’s B2C sports betting and trading heritage into an award-winning, revenue-driving B2B product that now services more than 50 operators globally.

The granting of the license follows a thorough process that placed Pinnacle Solution’s technology and working processes under intense scrutiny, with the end results showing that the sportsbook supplier was operating transparently, within EU rules, and with no technical changes required for approval.

Pinnacle Solution will now look to use its flexible product suite, which will include its recently-expanded esports offering, to target new partners looking for an accredited supplier capable of extracting the full potential out of their sports betting brands.

Paris Smith, CEO of Pinnacle, commented: “We’ve made great efforts to ensure our trading practices and technology stack can be scaled quickly, openly, and transparently in order to give our sportsbook partners a first-class service that delivers the enhanced hold and revenue performance they’re after.

“Obtaining the MGA license is proof that our expert teams have developed products that meet the market’s demands and high standards, and we’re now looking forward to servicing new partners in more markets with the ultimate sports betting, esports, and risk management solutions.”

Pinnacle Solution will be exhibiting at ICE 2022, from April 12–14, showcasing its iFrame Solution, Risk Management API, and awardwinning esports product to all interested parties looking to boost their sportsbook’s performance.

Standing the test of time

PLAY’N GO

When we think of our favorite film, book, or music, there’s the current box office hit, bestseller, and top of the charts. But there are also those that hit that nostalgic part of our brains that we can’t help but return to time and time again as they give us a buzz of familiarity. This is our philosophy when it comes to our games.

Despite time gone by and what seems to be an endless stream of new content to tickle your fancy, at Play’n GO we endeavor to create titles that give the same buzz as the latest and greatest no matter how many times they’re played. We design games that stand the test of time and take entertainment to the next level.

Rise of Olympus, for example, was released way back in 2018 and as we careen towards the middle of 2022 it still holds one of the top spots as a favorite among players. Placed within our Greek Mythology ‘world,’ Rise of Olympus tells the story of Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades as they deal with the aftermath of overthrowing their father, the titan Cronus.

On the horizon, a new Greek Mythology slot is set for release at the beginning of May, Rise of Gods: Reckoning, which sees Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades in a new reality and with a whole new challenge ahead. Before the game is even released players will already have a gauge of who the characters are, giving a buzz of familiarity.

If you were to step back and look at all of our titles chronologically, you will physically see our carefully curated timeline of thumbnails that play their part in the bigger Play’n GO picture.

This is just part of the reason Play’n GO games are elite in their standing in the industry and why players choose our games time and time again.

Match-fixing on the rise as sports betting hits record

SPORTRADAR

Match-fixing betting profit amounted to about EUR165 million ($182 million) in 2021 as sports betting turnover reached record highs, according to a report from Sportradar.

The report, Betting Corruption and Matchfixing in 2021, found there was suspicious activity in 903 matches last year, the highest level in Sportradar Integrity Services’ 17-year history. The report looked at activity across 10 sports in 76 countries worldwide. The number of reports was up 2.4 percent from the previous high in 2019.

The greatest number of suspicious reports were generated in Europe with 525, followed by Asia with 161.

The rise in illegal activity came as global sports betting turnover reached more than EUR1.45 trillion, according to Sportradar estimates. The company said calculates that organized crime syndicates and illegal betting outlets made profit to the tune of $165 million, but added the figure may be even higher as it doesn’t include other potential financial schemes, such as money laundering.

“There is no easy short-term solution to the match-fixing issue, and we’re likely to see similar numbers of suspicious matches in 2022, if not more,” said Andreas Krannich, managing director, Sportradar Integrity Services. “As the market has developed, so the threat of matchfixing has evolved. Now, would-be corruptors take an increasingly direct approach to matchfixing and betting corruption, with athletes messaged directly via social media platforms.

“We can take what we observed in 2021 and ask ourselves as fans of sport, what lessons can we learn? At Sportradar, we believe in adopting a progressive approach to integrity protection, through bet monitoring and intelligence gathering. This has been proven to deliver sanctions against those involved in match-fixing. Preventative measures, such as educating athletes and stakeholders, are also crucially important in the long-term fight against match-fixing.”

The report found that soccer had the highest frequency of suspicious matches at a rate of one in every 201 fixtures, followed by esports at one in every 384 and basketball at one in 498.

Lower level competitions in soccer are significantly affected with 50 percent of cases in domestic leagues coming from third-tier or lower divisions, such as regional and youth soccer.

The months of September and October saw the highest number of suspicious matches detected with 105 and 104, respectively. This corresponds with the start of the traditional soccer season.

Assessing the year ahead, the report forecasts a further increase in the number of suspicious matches set to be detected in 2022.

Introducing Pok Deng

SA GAMING

Originating in Southeast Asia, Pok Deng is a popular table game, which is spreading to other parts of Asia. SA Gaming, as the leading platform in the region, is adding this game into the lobby, hoping to introduce it to players around the world.

Pok Deng is a card game where the banker plays against five players. Each player compares the hand values of the two cards to the banker separately; the one closer to 9 points wins. Bets can be placed on any player but not on the banker. Special betting options on individual player pairs are also available, with odds of 11 to 1.

Some combos are considered special patterns in this game, like pairs, cards of the same suit, and some other special combinations. Winning with, or losing to pairs, cards of the same suit, and special combinations, doubles the odds – meaning players could win more than their bet amount!

There are five special combinations, taking a hand’s value from 7.1 to 7.5 points. Having two cards of the same suit with a hand value of 0 points is counted as 7.1 points. Any face card (K, Q, or J) and a 10 make a combination of 7.2 points. For 7.3 points, it would be having two face cards. There are special pairs (A, 5, 6, 10) worth 7.4 points. Having an A and a K of the same suit makes an AK Flush, which is counted as 7.5 points. These special combinations are counted as between 7 points and 8 points, meaning that they are of the highest values, other than naturals.

As a regional favorite, SA Gaming hopes to help its operators attract new players in the region where the game is played, and introduce it to places where the game is less known.

Driving win through novel analytics and predictive modeling

WALKER DIGITAL

WDTS, the technology leader for table games automation, game protection, chip security, and loss prevention, now adds novel analytics and predictive modeling so casinos can win more and keep more using Perfect Pay Baccarat’s bet-by-bet player tracking feature.

Historically, understanding player value, risk, and profitability in table games has relied on intermittent, error-prone and highly subjective manual ratings occasionally weighted by assessments of player speed and skill. Despite the drawbacks and labor expense needed to collect manual player ratings, it has been the only way to attempt to target and develop the most profitable player segments while avoiding loss and protecting scarce marketing dollars.

Today, automated RFID-enabled bet-bybet payer tracking has made manual player tracking obsolete and eliminated every barrier to collecting precise, real-time data that exactly captures actual and theoretical win per player and powers AI-driven predictive models, which gain greater accuracy over time and with more data.

Stephen Moore, CEO of WDTS, explains that “RFID takes analog data like player behavior and converts it to digital. Once digital, the granularity of data allows us to deploy exciting new business intelligence products and solutions integrated into casino floor operations as part of the Perfect Pay suite of applications.”

Perfect Pay’s real-time analysis solutions can determine player segments that drive win versus player segments that drive loss; quantify the impact of free hands-on player profitability across player segments; assess the impact of money-management behaviors on player win rates, and identify player betting patterns that shape player decisions influencing hand count and average bet. Additionally, a specialized side-bet vulnerability model maintains the optimal ‘true-count’ system for every side and propositional bet to identify high-risk players and shoes.

Contact Emily Io, Senior Vice President of Sales, at eio@wdtablesystems.com for an overview of player segmentation and predictive modeling solutions available with Perfect Pay.

Legendary performance for new progressive

ZITRO

Zitro has introduced a new and exciting gaming experience with its latest release in the progressive group: Wheel of Legends – a 4 level – Multi-game Progressive Link with four exclusive games and unique themed features.

Wheel of Legends, featured on the superb Altius Glare cabinet, has grown to become one of slot players’ favorite multi games, thanks to its stunning graphics, its advanced LED lighting technology, and its premium sound effects.

What’s more, all four games in Wheel of Legends include 4 levels of jackpot, with 243 ways to win, and exclusive features such as Free Games, Multipliers, and Extended Wild Multipliers. During the game, when any of the legend-themed characters are charged with energy, the bonus jackpot is activated. A new layout with 2x5 reels is shown and direct prizes, additional free games, or the mini or minor, can be awarded. With only 10 symbols, a giant wheel appearing at top of the screen will be activated and will randomly land on the MEGA or the SUPER jackpots.

Thanks to its cutting-edge performance and its impressive 4K images, Zitro’s premium multi-game – Wheel of Legends – offers a truly immersive player experience.