Gambling Insider Mar/Apr 2022

Mar/Apr 2022

FINDING THE BALANCE Has the industry come far enough in terms of responsible gambling?

ROUNDTABLE Industry leaders discuss CRM and responsible gambling HIPPODROME The Global Gaming Awards return to London ANALYSIS

What makes a responsible affiliate?

EDITOR’S LETTER COO, EDITOR IN CHIEF Julian Perry EDITOR Tim Poole Tim.Poole@gamblinginsider.com STAFF WRITER Peter Lynch Peter.Lynch@gamblinginsider.com LEAD DESIGNER Brendan Morrell DESIGNERS Olesya Adamska, Christian Quiling DESIGN ASSISTANTS Radostina Mihaylova, Svetlana Stoyanova

W

Julian Perry, COO, Editor in Chief

Tim Poole, Editor

hen you think about gambling's place in society, you quickly realise responsible gambling is a unique proposition in comparison to other industries.

Putting the entertainment angle to one side, ultimately, gambling is a business that involves customers losing money. So are most products in life, of course, but the addiction problems gambling can bring make it ripe for criticism. Maximising profit therefore becomes problematic.

If a car dealer sells 10 Ferraris to a young, naive professional footballer earning six figures every week, the likelihood is no one bats an eyelid. If that same footballer were to spend a week's salary on casino betting, however, it would make front-page news.

In societies like the UK's, gambling can be heavily frowned upon. Responsible gaming is a key reason. If that sounds like a contradiction, let me explain...

For critics, whether they are politically or financially motivated (usually on the less-reasonable scale), or people who have genuinely been affected by gambling harm and truly want to protect people (far more reasoned and understanding), responsible gambling is considered a tick-box exercise. Operators must avoid this by making the protection of players a core part of their business.

And this is where we truly get to the crux of the matter. Gambling companies' primary source of income is when a bettor loses – we hear time and again the punters' prophecy of 'beating the bookies.' Meanwhile, public companies, especially when you consider that both Entain and Flutter Entertainment are part of the FTSE 100, are answerable to investors and shareholders. It is no coincidence that when new regulations are announced, share prices tumble, likewise when financials fall.

On the flip side, gambling is an entertainment business. The product is an experience. If you win, the thrill is hard to match by, for example, watching Netflix or building a model aeroplane. So how do gambling companies balance the quality of this offering with the need to protect players who suffer from gambling-related harm, or are betting more than they can afford?

Coming full circle, all of the above is exactly why responsible gaming is a truly unique proposition, and why reporting on this industry is so exciting and rewarding for a journalist like myself. I, personally, love betting. But responsible gambling for the masses?

It's one tough nut to crack.

TP, Editor

FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE

MARKETING & EVENTS MANAGER Mariya Savova IT MANAGER Tom Powling COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Deepak Malkani Deepak.Malkani@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7729 6279 SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGERS Michael Juqula Michael.Juqula@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0)20 3487 0498 Martin Dilleigh Martin.Dilleigh@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0) 203 435 5628 SENIOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER - U.S. Aaron Harvey Aaron.Harvey@playerspublishing.com Tel: +1 702 425 7818 ADVERTISING SALES EXECUTIVE Ariel Greenberg ariel.greenberg@playerspublishing.com Tel: +1.702 833 9581 ACCOUNT MANAGERS William Aderele William.Aderele@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7739 2062 Clive Waite Clive.Waite@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7729 0643 BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Michelle Pugh Michelle@GlobalGamingAwards.com Tel: +44 (0)20 7739 5768 SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE Sam Ford Samuel.Ford@gamblinginsider.com Tel: +44 (0) 207 739 9918 CREDIT MANAGER Rachel Voit WITH THANKS TO: Fantini Research, GBGC, Sandra Douglass Morgan, Noah Acres, Rasmus Kjaergaard, Eduards Jakubovs, Magdalena Frankowska, Simon Thomas, Šimon Vincze, Anna Jein, LeoVegas, Kristiyan Petrov, Adam Rowley, Yoel Zuckerberg, Lee Richardson, Gutaf Hoffstedt, Joerg Hofmann, Dalraj Bahia, Rebecca Hopkins, Paul Sculpher, Nick Hill, Willem van Oort, Ranjana Adhikari, Alex Czajkowski, Scott Engel, Johnny Avello, Malcolm Darnley, Josip Vrbić, Araksi Sargsyan, Vladimir Malakchi, Todd Sims, Andrea McGeachin, John Connelly, Arsen Barsegyan, Kevin Reid Gambling Insider magazine ISSN 2043-9466 Produced and published

by Players Publishing Ltd

DALRAJ BAHIA

MD, Operations, Sportradar

SANDRA DOUGLASS MORGAN

Board Member, Caesars Entertainment

All material is strictly copyrighted and all rights reserved.

Reproduction without permission is forbidden. Every care is taken in compiling the contents of Gambling Insider but we assume no responsibility for the effects arising therefrom. The views expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher.

CONT E 38

ISSUES 16 Facing facts

Gambling Insider takes a close statistical look at various results from Q4 2021

18 In numbers

A gaming snapshot by Fantini Research, this time looking at data from New York, New Jersey and Michigan

22 The global outlook

Global Betting & Gaming Consultants, the global gaming data expert, provides exclusive data to Gambling Insider

24 Taking stock

We track operator and supplier stock prices across a six-month period

HUDDLE 26 Gaming's legal eagle

Sandra Douglass Morgan lends her unique insight into gaming and regulation on the GI Huddle

48

GLOBAL GAMING AWARDS 28 A return to the Hippodrome A historic property with a modern outlook, the Global Gaming Awards celebrate their return to the Hippodrome Casino

FEATURES 32 Going the extra mile

Gambling Insider speaks to several Global Gaming Awards nominees about how far the industry has come with responsible gaming

38 Roundtable

Industry leaders from Soft2Bet, Delasport, RavenTrack and Aspire Global discuss CRM and responsible gambling

52 42 Are we there yet?

Regular Gambling Insider contributor Lee Richardson asks where we are in the drive towards responsible gambling

44 Advertising restraints

Gambling Insider regular columnist Gustaf Hoffstedt analyses the impact of advertisements in fuelling gaming regulation

46 Germany: New rules

Dr Joerg Hofmann, Partner at Melchers Law, writes his second Gambling Insider column

48 Sports data: Flying the flag Gambling Insider takes a look at Sportradar's ninth-place spot in The Sport Technology Power List 2021

52 A staff crisis?

Gambling Insider regular Paul Sculpher talks about the ongoing crisis in the UK's land-based casinos

ENTS 64

54 Here to stay

Gambling Insider regular Nick Hill gives his views on responsible gaming and the microscope that constantly follows it

55 A Dutch ad ban?

Willem van Oort, regular Gambling Insider columnist, discusses a looming ban for online gambling advertisements in the Netherlands

56 Are NFTs fair play in India?

Ranjana Adhikari, regular Gambling Insider legal analyst, discusses the latest trend in Indian gaming

58 The profitability of mental health?

A pragmatic argument, regular Gambling Insider columnist Alex Czajkowski discusses the business case for responsible gambling

60 Louisiana's leading launch The Game Day's Scott Engel assesses mobile sports betting's launch in the Bayou State, with Johnny Avello

82

70

62 A responsible affiliate?

Malcolm Darnley of BestOdds points out the best types of affiliates for end users

64 Big Question

Executives from Evoplay, Seven Games and DS Virtual Gaming discuss fast games

INSIDERS 70 Todd Sims SuzoHapp

71 Andrea McGeachin Neosurf

72 John Connelly Interblock

73 Arsen Barsegyan Atmosfera

PRODUCT REVIEWS 74 What's new on the market?

FINAL WORD 82 Kevin Reid 1X2 Network

LAS VEGAS SANDS MACAO

Boyd 2021 2019

2020 2020

2021

400

600 327

300

272

200

FACING FACTS 140

139

114

101

95

67

32

25

6

139 95

100 0

6

The Venetian The Londoner Gambling Insider takes a close look at various results from the fourth Macaoquarter Macao The Plaza Sands Ferry Macao and Four Macao Operations/Other of 2021, with some companies growing from last year, and others still SeasonsMacao recovering from a difficult period

The Londoner The Parisian Macao Macao

4000

300

131 116

100

102

North America

Other

32

October

2000

0

December

November

2019 600

2019 2020

2020 2021

456.2

236.2

223.8 161.4

161.4

69.5

0

Revenue ($ billion)

Revenue ($ million)

Revenue ($ million)

200

0 Las Vegas Locals

53.4 18.1

Las Vegas Downtown Locals Las Vegas

69.5

46.9

3092

)

40

21

20.9

46.9

40 34.9

2020 2.0 1.8

1.5

1.5

1.0

0.5

0.4

1.0

0.5

Downtown Midwest & LasSouth Vegas

Midwest & South

0

2020 300

28

20

200 34.9

100

10 North America

Nordics UK Rest of Asia Betsson Kindred LeoVegas Europe Svenska Spel

2.0

18.1

COMPARING KAMBI COMPARING KAMBI 2020 2021 GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM 2020 2021 50 50

n)

16

33.8

1042

2020 2021

2021

1.8

0.9

0.9

0.6 0.4

53.4

Source: Company reports • Total Q4 2021 revenue amounted to $879.8m • Midwest & South is the highest earner over all three years

EDISH OPERATORS ORS

590.1 539.7

400

223.8

1595

30

Other 0

MGM Resorts International Q4 2021 and 2020 revenue byMGM region ($ billion) RESORTS MGM RESORTS

590.1

456.2

236.2

0

2021

539.7

200

2233

Source: Company reports • Total operating revenue amounted to €300.2m ($343.2m) • Rest of Europe represented highest revenue total with €105.6m • Operating revenues increased by 69% to EUR 300.2 million

Comparing Boyd Gaming revenue per segment Boyd($Gaming for Q4 2019, 2020 and 2021 million) Boyd Gaming

400

50

1000 25

14

Source: Spillemyndigheden (Danish Gambling Authority) • Online casino reported the highest total for the period with DKK 722m ($110.2m) • Land-based casino reported the lowest with DKK 85mand Midwest & South growing by 385% and 295% respectively

600

75

40

52

38

0

209

3000

Revenue ($ billion)

28

218

200

Revenue (SEK million)

33.8

GGR (DKK million)

241

COMPARI

46.9 90.8

3092

161.4

67

50

105.6

100

263

252

125

Revenue (€ million)

Land-Based Casinos

Gaming Machines

140 114236.2

223.8

The Plaza The Parisian 0 and Fo Vegas Macao LasMacao SeasonsMaca Locals

SWEDISH OPERATORS

Revenue (€ million)

Online Casino

101 200

Evolution Q4 2021 revenue per geographical region (€ million) Evolution Q4

Q4 2021 GGR for the Danish gambling market per GGR Danish sector (DKK million - Danish Krone) Betting

400

GGR (DKK million)

NUMBER CRUNCHING

Revenue ($ million)

Revenue ($ million)

ISSUES

0 Las Vegas Las Vegas Regional Strip Resorts Strip Resorts Operations

0.6

0.3

0.3

Regional MGM Operations China

Source: Company reports • Total Q4 2021 revenue of $3.1bn • Las Vegas Strip Resorts revenue grew 277% year-on-year

0.3

0.3

MGM China

0 Revenue

40

Football

101

2

0eSports

Table Tennis

Volleyball Basketball Ice Tennis Football TableHockey eSports Tennis

7

1

Volleyball Basketball

0

5

Ice Hockey

2

Tennis

Football

Table Tennis

LAS VEGAS SANDS MACAO LAS BoydVEGAS GamingSANDS MACAO 2019 2021

2020

2020 2020

600

400

2021 2021

200

101

100

400

223.8

140

114

161.4

327

236.2

139 101

95

67

67

69.5

32

140 300

114

53.4

25 18.1

272

200

32

6 6 0 Las Vegas Downtown The Plaza & The Venetian The Londoner The Plaza The Venetian The Londoner The Parisian SandsThe ParisianFerryMidwest South Locals Las Vegas Macao and Four Macao and Four Macao Macao Macao Macao Macao Macao Macao Operations/Other

0

25

Sands Macao

SeasonsMacao 100

SeasonsMacao

Ice Hockey

201

2021

LAS1.8VEGAS SANDS Comparing LasMACAO Vegas Sands Macao

2.0

Revenue ($ billion)

95

272

200

139

0

400

Revenue ($ million)

Revenue ($ million)

0

300

Revenue ($ million)

272

Volleyball Basketball

2020 590.1

456.2

327

1

MGM RESORTS

539.7

327

eSports

1

1.5

Source: Company reports • Total revenue for Q4 2021 Macao 0.9 amounted to $649m • The Venetian Macao posted the highest 0.6 revenue for both 2020 and 2021

1.0

0.5

0.4

0.3

60 6

139 Ferry Las Vegas Strip Resorts Operations/Other 95

0

50

50 25 0

33.8 20.9

Nordics edRestLeoVegas North of AsiaSvenska Europe SpelAmerica

21

30 20

28

10

UK Rest of 0 Other Europe

Asia

200

218

125 131 100

33.8

GGR (DKK million)

2233

241

22.2

116 28

102

100

200

100

Other 75 0 North America October Operating November Revenue

50

0

131 116

3000

3092 209

2000 1595

105.6 90.8

14

October December

1000

32

14

0 December Betsson

November

UK

33.8

Rest of Europe

Asia

2

2000

300

2233

Betting

1595

Online Casino

1000 1042

Other

2233

30 Gaming Machines

Betsson Kindred LeoVegas Svenska Spel 131

263

10

218

200 0

Lan Ca

20

1042

252

241

209

Kindred LeoVegas 0 Svenska Spel Reve

116

0

46.9

3092

GGR Danish 40

100 Source: 28 Company reports • Kindred with Highest Q4 2021 revenue with SEK 3092m ($331.9m) 38 • LeoVegas with lowest with SEK 1.04bn

North America

CO

50

3000

52

Profit

Nordics

6

4000

263

102

Source: Company reports • Revenue declined 26% year-on-year 25 21 20.9 • Operating profit declined 68% year-on-year

0

6

SWEDISH OPERATORS

Land-Based Casinos

4000

218

209

5238 32

25

Swedish operatorsSeasonsMacao (SEK million) SWEDISH OPERATORS

Gaming Machines

252

Evolution Q4

7.1

38

Online Betting Land-Based Casino Casinos

263 241

252

34.9

Revenue (€ million)

75

46.9 90.8

GGR (DKK million)

90.8

Revenue (€ million)

Revenue (€ million)

1042

40

300

300

105.6

100

Gaming Machines

Las Ve Loca

The Plaza The Venetian The Londoner The Parisian Sands Ferry GGR Danish Comparing Q4Macao 2021 revenue major Operations/Other Macao andfor Fourfour Macao Macao Macao

Revenue (SEK million)

2020 Betting

125 105.6

Online 2021 Casino

161

67

Revenue (SEK million)

Evolution Q4

OPERATORS on Q4

223.8

200

140 MGM 114 China

Regional Operations 101

GGR (DKK million)

GGR2021 Danishrevenue Comparing Kambi Q4 2020 and Q4 and operating profit (€ million) COMPARING KAMBI

400

0.3

32

0

600

Operations Q4 2020 and 2021 revenue ($ million) 2020 2021

Revenue ($ million)

Tennis

5

20

20

Revenue (€ million)

20

Source: International Betting Integrity 20 Association (IBIA) • 69 7suspicious alerts reported in Q4 2021 7 10the5 most alerts (33), basketball • Tennis had and ice hockey had the2least (1 each) 1 1

0

2

33

30

Suspicious alerts

20

40

Suspicious alerts33reported by the International 30 Betting Integrity Association for Q4 2021 Suspicious alerts

33

0

0

ISSUES

NUMBER CRUNCHING

October

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

102 52 32

November 17

14

Decem

ISSUES

FANTINI RESEARCH

IN NUMBERS In partnership with Gambling Insider, Fantini Research provides January sports betting totals for the newly launched, and already biggest-grossing, state of New York, as well as New Jersey and Michigan January: New York

arket

JANUARY REVENUE (M)

% MARKET SHARE

JANUARY HANDLE

% MARKET SHARE

Caesars

$58.985

47.52

$627.402

37.58

DraftKings

$29.583

23.82

$377.953

22.64

FanDuel (FLTR)

$28.089

22.63

$517.492

30.99

BetMGM (ENT, MGM)

$3.84

83.10

$82.205

4.92

PointsBet

$2.56

22.06

$31.202

1.87

Rush Street interactive

$1.07

20.86

$33.465

2.00

Total

$124.139

-

$1.670bn 

-

January: New Jersey

REVENUE

OPERATOR

% CHANGE YEAR-ON-YEAR CHANGE

Meadowlands

$38.394

FLTR, PBH

- 17.97

Resorts Digital

$10.167

FLTR/DKNG/Kambi

- 35.41

Borgata

$4.853

ENT/MGM

- 42.64

Freehold

$2.605

Greenwood

+ 1,518.00

Tropicana

$1.619

CZR

+ 890.65

Hard Rock

$1.182

GiG

- 10.21

Monmouth Park

$0.576

CZR/RSI

- 84.33

Ocean

$0.371

CZR

- 91.87

Resorts

$0.273

DKNG

+ 23.25

Harrah's

$0.150

SGMS

- 43.02

Bally's

$0.029

SGMS/888

- 72.81

Caesars

$0.005

-

- 99.03

Golden Nugget

$0.005

DKNG/CHDN

- 96.36

GNOG

($0.035)

-

- 119.65

Total Sports Betting

$60.196

-

- 26.92

Same Store**

$57.585

-

- 29.47

*Total Casino includes land-based and online casino **Same store excludes Freehold Raceway, which began operating in September

18

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

ISSUES

FANTINI RESEARCH

January: Michigan • • •

By comparison, Michigan generated just short of $500m in total wagers for the month of January, generating $34.67m revenue from this.

Flutter led in terms of market share, for both handle and revenue, with BetMGM second for handle.

Very interestingly, DraftKings was second in terms of handle – in fact almost joint with FanDuel. But it took less than half FanDuel’s revenue, perhaps suggesting there were far more bonuses and promotions involved.

ONLINE SPORTS BETTING OPERATOR

JANUARY REVENUE (M)

% MARKET SHARE

FLTR/FanDuel

$12.291

35.45

BetMGM

$10.891

31.41

DKNG

$5.917

17.06

Barstool

$2.752

7.94

CZR

$1.159

3.34

PBH

$1.096

3.16

RSI

$0.155

0.45

WYNN

$0.125

0.36

SGMS

$0.103

0.30

GNOG

$0.097

0.28

FLTR/FOXBet

$0.096

0.28

Pala

$0.020

0.06

Parx

$0.012

0.03

CHDN

- $0.040

- 0.12

Total Revenue

$34.674

-

ONLINE SPORTS BETTING

20

OPERATOR

JANUARY REVENUE (M)

% MARKET SHARE

FLTR/FanDuel

$132.725

26.72

DKNG

$132.032

26.58

BetMGM

$110.897

22.32

Barstool

$49.961

10.06

CZR

$35.472

7.14

PBH

$12.860

2.59

RSI

$7.956

1.60

FLTR/FOXbet

$5.104

1.03

Parx

$2.475

0.50

SGMS

$2.056

0.41

WYNN

$1.826

0.37

CHDN

$1.575

0.32

GNOG

$1.007

0.20

Pala

$0.870

0.18

Total Handle

$496.816

-

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

Nevada 1,600

FEATURES

GBGC DATA Total ($ US Dollar)

1,400 1,200 1,000

GLOBAL OUTLOOK 800 600 400 200

0

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’21 ’21

Football handle

Global Betting & Gaming Consultants (GBGC), the global gaming data expert, provides exclusive statistical data to Gambling Insider on markets from around the world; visit www.gbgc.com for more Nevada 1,600

Total ($ US Dollar)

7.0

Czech Republic

1,400

9000

1,200

8000

6.0 1,000

800

7000

600

6000

4.0

400

3.0

200

Total Number

5.0

0 2.0

120,000 100,000 80,000

5000 60,000

4000 3000

Jan ’20

Feb ’20

Mar ’20

Apr May Jun ’20 ’20 ’20

40,000

Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec 2000 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20 ’20

1.0

Jan ’21

Feb ’21

Mar ’21

Apr May Jun ’21 ’21 ’21

Jul’ Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec 21 ’21 ’21 ’21 ’21 ’21 20,000

1000

The graph (right)Czech shows Republic Portugal's online betting and casino GGY from the Q3 2016 when the market launched to Q3 2021. The GGY picked up during Q3 2020, reaching its high in Q1 2021. The Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdowns of the land-based establishments helped online gambling revenues grow. Portuguese operators are burdened with a complex tax system with high rates. Operators pay a tax of between 8% and 16% on turnover for online betting, with the lower rate being applied on revenues up to €5m.

The rate rises by 3% points for every €1 in income over €5m, capping at 30% once annual income hits €10m. There is also a security bond and fees operators have to pay upon applying for a licence, and on renewal. There are currently only 15 operators.

sportsbook across Nevada. Following the pent-up demand and extra cash from 0players, 0 Covid-19 closures in March 2020, the gambling the industry quickly 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018recovered, 2019 2020and already industry in Nevada almost came to a halt (April

by March 2021, GGY was again over the 2020 GGY was Machine-only just US$3.7m).

Fuelled by Casinos US$1bn mark.Gambling machines venues

Portugal 140

120,000

120

100,000

100 Total (€ Euro)

The0.0graph above shows monthly GGY reported by all non-restricted gambling locations (venues 2018 2019 2020 with 15+ slot machines), including casinos, gambling Y Sports Betting GGYmachine parlours, racebook and

80,000

80 60

60,000

40

40,000 20

20,000

0

Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 ‘16 ‘16 ‘17 ‘17 ‘17 ‘17 ‘18 ‘18 ‘18 ‘18 ‘19 ‘19 ‘19 ‘19 ‘20 ‘20 ‘20 ‘20 ‘21 ‘21 ‘21

0

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Machine-only venues

22

Casinos

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

Portugal

Gambling machines

Online sports betting GGY

Online casino GGY

Mar ’21

Apr M ’21 ’

GBGC DATA

The graph (left) shows Hong Kong Jockey Club's horseracing and football handle (HK$ bn) in the period from 2004 to 2021. Even in traditionally racing-oriented markets like Hong Kong, football betting has gained popularity in recent years, outpacing racing handle in 2019 and 2021. Both horseracing and football saw remarkable post-Covid growth, reaching 1,600 an all-time high in 2021 with football handle of 1,400 HK$140bn, and racing handle of HK$133bn.

1,200 GBGC estimates the pent-up demand in Hong 1,000 Kong will last in the medium term. Travel between Hong Kong and Macau has been banned800since 600 March 2020, a further boost to HKJC especially as new Covid-19 lockdowns come into400force.

Hong Kong 160 140 120 100 80

Total ($ US Dollar)

Total Handle (Hong Kong $bn)

FEATURES

60 40 20

200 0

2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Jan ’20

Football handle

Horseracing handle

Feb ’20

Mar ’20

Apr May Ju ’20 ’20 ’2

CZECH REPUBLIC YEAR

2009

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

MACHINE -ONLY VENUES

5,595 South 6,863 Africa 8,024

7,856

7,065

5,398

4,298

3,423

2,540

1,088

582

532

580

475

36,874

32,978

80.0

202

221

84,615

343

90,576

444

101,992

473

7.0 6.0

96,862

73,266

60.0

566

538

66,998

60,331

638 57,452

9000

619

548

53,554

5.0

50.0

8000

39,575

7000

Czech Republic

6000 Total Number

Total (South African Rand ZAR)

CASINOS 70.0 GAMBLING MACHINES

2010

4.0

5000 axis) in the Czech Republic The table (above) shows the number of machine-only venues and casinos (lext axis) and the number of gambling machines (right 40.0 from 2009 to 2020. Czech Republic was known as one of Europe's largest machine markets, its numbers peaked in 2011 at 101,992 units. With 4000 3.0 such30.0 a proliferation of all kinds of machines - slots, video lottery terminals (VLTs) and amusements with prizes machines (AWPs) which are in essence slots with 3000 a lower jackpot payout and limited maximum bet amounts, problem gambling2.0became an issue. Soon after, municipalities across the country started to ban 20.0 gambling machines - 457 municipalities as of January 2020, in addition to Prague's 16 districts. Politicians implemented a series of tax increases - five times during 2000 the 2009 - 2020 period, contributing to the demise of the industry. The smoking1.0 ban, which was introduced in 2017, also had its effect, coupled with expansion of 10.0 1000 other gambling segments, most notably online gambling.

0.0

0.0

0

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Racing handle

Sports Betting handle

Racing GGY

2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2

Sports Betting GGY

Machine-only venues

Casinos

Ga

SOUTH AFRICA (ZAR BN) YEAR

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

RACING HANDLE

8.4

8.4

8.9

10.5

10.5

10.0

10.4

11.4

11.4

11.6 140

12.6

14.3

SPORTS BETTING HANDLE

1.0

1.8

3.9

7.2

9.7

14.5

19.2

24.3

34.0

39.7

52.5

61.9

RACING GGY

1.5

1.4

1.7

1.7

1.8

1.8

1.9

2.0

2.2

2.6

2.5

SPORTS BETTING GGY

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.5

0.8

1.0

1.6

2.4

2.9

4.6

6.3

120

Portugal

Total (€ Euro)

100

2.2 80 60

3.9 40 20

The table (above) shows sports betting and racing handle (left axis) and sports betting and racing GGY (right axis) in South Africa. While racing 0 handle and GGY are growing in the period from 2009 to 2020 - both 5% on average a year, sports betting is showing much higher growth rates, handle Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 48%, and GGY 44% on average a year. Like in many other markets, sports betting saw incredible growth in popularity, especially ‘16 with‘16the‘17introduction of ‘18 ‘17 ‘17 ‘17 ‘18 mobile (and online) betting. Also very popular form of fixed-odds betting in South Africa is betting on lotteries and numbers' game, which contributes to the rise of betting.

Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 ‘18 ‘18 ‘19 ‘19 ‘19 ‘19

Online sports betting GGY

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

23

On

TAKING STOCK

TAKING STOCK Gambling Insider tracks operator and supplier stock prices across a six-month period (September 2021 to February 2022). The stock price is taken from the first day of each month LAS VEGAS SANDS

WYNN RESORTS US$

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Six-month high - 5.23 (Jan) Six-month low - 4.85 (Sept) Market capital – AU$11.663bn (US$8.42bn)

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GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

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Six-month high - 100.98 (Sept) Six-month low - 76.06 (Dec) Market capital - $10.848bn

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Six-month high - 257.6 (Jan) Six-month low - 214.8 (Oct) Market capital – SEK 7.463B ($0.80bn)

r

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

6

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Six-month high - 31.89 (Nov) Six-month low - 21.16 (Sept) Market capital - $6.129bn 0

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Six-month high - 1,459.20 (Sept) Six-month low - 991.00 (Dec) Market capital – SEK 238.556bn ($25.68bn)

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TAKING STOCK ISSUES

US$ 6

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FEATURES

THE HUDDLE

Gaming’s legal eagle Ceasars Entertainment Board Member Sandra Douglass Morgan tells us about her background, and lends her unique insight into gaming and regulation on the GI Huddle What led you to pursue a career in law and why gaming?

I’m a Vegas native. I’ve been here since I was about two. My father retired at Nellis Air Force Base and I grew up here. I wasn’t sure that I wanted to be an attorney until I went to the University of Nevada, Reno for my undergrad.

I took a constitutional law class and knew it was going to be my path.

My mother worked in casinos on and off when I was younger. At that time, a lot of children had one parent in the military and one parent in the gaming industry. But I didn’t really plan on going into law or regulation in the industry, I just kind of ended up there.

I went to law school at UNLV and worked at a firm for about three to four years; I then had a great in-house opportunity at MGM Resorts, which as a young lawyer, was the opportunity of a lifetime. It gave me a different window into the industry than the one I heard about from my mum growing up. I realised I definitely wanted a more transactional experience and went on to the city of North Las Vegas.

I worked there for about eight years and ended up being the first African American/ person of colour city attorney in the state of Nevada. To be in public service was deeply gratifying, but it was also a very difficult period.

When I joined, the city was one of the top five fastest-growing cities in the nation; but when I left, we were on the verge of severe financial distress because of the unfortunate economic downturn at that time.

From there, I went to AT&T and was then appointed to the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC). It’s a part-time commission, because they meet once a month, but they are the final decision makers on all regulations and licensing approvals. I was appointed to the Commission by then Governor Brian Sandoval, and was promoted to Chair by Governor Steve Sisolak. Nevada is a little bit weird because we have two regulatory bodies. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) is a day-to-day regulator, with a very strong and talented team of about 400 people across the state. That was my most recent position.

Do you think it’s almost destiny that, being from Las Vegas, you ended up working in gaming?

At the time, I thought there’s more than gaming in Nevada, and as a young lawyer, I wanted to try something outside of the industry. When the law school opened here, it wanted to make sure it wasn’t just a gaming school. But what I think happened to me, and UNLV law school — the Boyd School of Law — is that we embraced the fact that we have this knowledge and understanding.

We have more gaming licensees in Nevada than any other state, so why not embrace something we know very well? And it has done great things for our state. Now, the school offers a Masters of Law in gaming. I realised at Covington & Burling there are certain things we maybe take for granted in Nevada, such as regulated gaming and sports wagering.

You mentioned working for the NGCB; how do you reflect on your time there?

What were your key takeaways?

I miss it. It has a great team and I don’t think people really understand how much that team does. Some of the people have been there for 20 years, and then there are newer people bringing in fresh insights with respect to technology.

With Covid, they’ve been able to pivot and still function, whether it be enforcement investigations or technology approvals. And just as we’ve seen operators expedite payment modernisation, I think the board has also embraced technology to its benefit.

In recent years, there has often been discussion about regulators not quite keeping up with technology’s change of pace. Would you agree?

Regulators should be commended for the work they’re doing because these investigations take time. When you’re doing an investigation, a lot of them require interviews, and if you can’t travel, that’s a difficult thing to do. Regulators receive funding from the Government, and governments are always looking for new revenue sources. That’s why we’ve seen an increase in the legalisation of sports wagering.

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GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

FEATURES

THE HIPPODROME CASINO

GLOBAL GAMING AWARDS LONDON: A RETURN TO THE HIPPODROME A historic property with a modern outlook, the Global Gaming Awards celebrate their return to the Hippodrome Casino Psst! Hey! Have you heard? The Global Gaming Awards are returning to the Hippodrome Casino.

While we at Gambling Insider are obviously excited about this, selecting the famous London casino to host our 2022 Awards was about more than simply choosing a venue.

When our current PM (and then-Mayor of London) Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson opened the Hippodrome Casino on 13 July 2012, he described it as “yet another ringing endorsement of London as a great place to invest.”

And whatever your opinion of BoJo as a politician, in this case he was 100% correct.

The building that occupies the corner of London’s Cranbourn Street and Charing Cross Road is an iconic property.

It first opened its doors while Queen Victoria was still alive and they’re still open today; though back then, people went to see the latest music hall revue and not shoot craps.

In the 122 years since the London Hippodrome first welcomed customers, it has gone from being a venue for circus and variety performances to a theatre, night club,

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GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

restaurant and, today, a casino.

But to gloss over the building’s history like this does the Hippodrome a disservice.

In the building’s early days, crowds would stare, in awe, from its cantilevered galleries as acrobats balanced atop tightropes; they’d

dazzle at astounding equestrian acts and exotic animals, such as elephants, polar bears and lions.

Famous personalities would ply the boards of the venue’s stage, including Charlie Chaplin; who, before rising to international stardom, featured in the cast for the Hippodrome’s opening night.

Harry Houdini would also make an appearance in 1904, performing one of his famous, death-defying escape acts before an undoubtedly terrified audience.

The building endured the German Empire’s zeppelin raids during the First World War and went on to bear the brunt of the Blitz in the Second. And as Britain recovered, the Hippodrome was there to raise spirits.

Its original interior underwent a complete renovation in 1958, transforming it into one of London’s top nightclubs at the time, the Talk of the Town.

Icons of the Cool 50s and Swinging 60s would go on to grace its halls. Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Cliff Richard, The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder and even Engelbert Humperdinck all appeared at the Hippodrome.

FEATURES

THE HIPPODROME CASINO

From here, the building went through various incarnations, was passed between many hands and underwent multiple redesigns; only to come full circle when its current owners, Leicester-born father and son team Jimmy and Simon Thomas, acquired the lease on the Hippodrome in 2009.

They immediately began an extensive restoration, returning the property to its original form and glory. Sensitive to the building’s history, its new owners transformed the site into the UK’s preeminent casino destination, while keeping its legacy intact.

Today, the Hippodrome Casino continues to serve as a cornerstone of London’s West End, as it has for over a century, and its nomination in the Global Gaming Awards’ Social Responsibility category recognises this fact.

This year, the Hippodrome Casino will celebrate its 10th anniversary and, in the decade since opening, has time and again proven our current Prime Minister’s statement true.

Uniquely situated, the establishment sits at the crossroads of the beating heart of Britain’s business and entertainment communities. With Westminster to the south and the City to the east, while both Soho and Chinatown directly abut it to the North, the Hippodrome isn’t only accessible, but integral.

And it has used this position to effect positive change.

No one has expressed this sentiment better than Ros Morgan, Chief Executive of the Heart of London

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GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

Business Alliance (HOLBA).

“They’re a business to be greatly admired and they have a lot of fans here. Their business success is underpinned by their determination to support local improvement and change.

No one has invested more in terms of time and resources in the West End,” she said.

“This means they’re something of an enigma, in presenting the West End’s largest ‘fun palace’ while demonstrating they care a great deal about legacy and tradition, fighting (persuasively and with muscle) local and national battles; and improving the reputation of Leicester Square and the West End at large.

“They care. Which is an old-fashioned approach, but works wonderfully well.”

To help out its local community, the Hippodrome makes its meeting rooms freely available to various groups, including the MET police, Westminster Council, charity and area security organisations. But, like so many,

the casino was hit hard by Covid-19.

However, where many businesses saw a crisis, the Hippodrome saw an opportunity.

As CEO Simon Thomas said:“In the face of 18 months of lockdown and curfew, we achieved so much because we’re simply not the kind of people to lock the doors and turn off the lights.”

While closed, the property embarked on several projects. It improved its physical infrastructure with three major building and refurbishment initiatives, streamlined its day-to-day operations and served as an ad-hoc spokesperson for both the casino sector and central London’s business ecosystem.

Since reopening, the Hippodrome has hit the ground running and is ready to confront the challenges facing Britain’s land-based gambling industry head.

It also published a book on the Leicester Square property’s history. Hard back and 180 pages in length, it tells the story of the iconic building, with original prints and photography.

Bringing the Global Gaming Awards back to the Hippodrome represents a return to normality, not just for the gambling industry but for Britain. When the Globe published a review of the Hippodrome a day after its grand opening on 16 January 1900, would the writers have have guessed their words would hold true over 100 years later?

“There are few more brilliant things to be seen in London than the auditorium of this Hippodrome when lighted by electricity, and thronged, as it was last night, by well-dressed pleasure-seekers.”

We look forward to returning to the Hippodrome Casino in April to celebrate our industry’s achievements over the past year. There is no better venue.

FEATURES

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

RESPONSIBLE GAMING: GOING THE EXTRA MILE Gambling Insider speaks to several Global Gaming Awards nominees about how far the industry has come with responsible gambling, including Betsson Group, Mindway AI, the Hippodrome Casino, LeoVegas, Kindred Group and Casino Guru Social responsibility is important in any industry; but for gambling, it is crucial. As the industry faces ever-more restrictive regulations, it’s important to recognise when, where and how it can help those who struggle with gambling.

This help can come in many forms, and various companies are pioneering new and innovative ways to tackle problem gambling.

Gambling Insider’s Global Gaming Awards provide an opportunity for the industry to acknowledge those companies who have gone above and beyond; but while our Awards focus on what they’ve done, we wondered what the industry is currently doing and, moving forward, will do.

Problem gambling will never go away but our ability to confront it, across the industry and society, is constantly changing and evolving. We have more advanced tools than ever before to identify and reach out to at-risk individuals, and our knowledge of what causes problem gambling is broader and more well-rounded than it has ever been.

With this in mind, Gambling Insider contacted those companies Shortlisted in our

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Awards’ Social Responsibility category to get their take on this topic; and their vision for responsible gambling’s future.

SCIENCE LEADS Technology has made us healthier and more comfortable. What was once confined to the realm of science fiction is now science fact.

While our forebears were forced to place wagers in person, technological advancements allow us to bet from wherever we so choose.

Gone are the days when a bettor’s sole recourse was a bookie’s shop or a racetrack.

Now, anyone with a smartphone and Wi-Fi can wager from wherever, whenever and, effectively, however they want. And this applies to all gaming. While an app can never truly recreate the authentic atmosphere of a brick-and-mortar casino, it does offer you an opportunity to gamble from home.

Humans like gambling, we’ve been doing it since we lived in caves, and we’ll probably be doing it when (or if) we colonise other planets. But as technology advances, new problems arise. In the past, when a person’s

gambling got out of hand, you could send them home; now, that’s no guarantee they won’t keep on gambling when they get there.

New solutions have to be created to counter new problems, and gambling harm is a perfect example. Artificial intelligence is often touted as a be-all, end-all solution; and while we have a way to go before AI allows our species to achieve utopia, it can be an effective tool in society’s ongoing battle with problem gambling.

Leading this charge are several companies, including Denmark’s Mindway AI. Lying at the crossroads of academia and industry, Mindway brings its technological and neuroscientific know-how to bear on problem gambling.

We spoke to Mindway AI CEO, Rasmus Kjaergaard, who had this to say: “In recent years, the gambling industry has seen a wave of heightened focus on responsible gambling and player protection.

“As a part of this wave, we at Mindway develop AI tech solutions that promote responsible gambling, and we work with both online operators and land-based casinos

FEATURES

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

looking to improve their player protection efforts.

“Starting out as a Danish university spin-off, Mindway AI develops detection software rooted in neuroscience, which combines artificial intelligence and human expert assessment. This combination has allowed us to detect at-risk and problem gambling behaviour much earlier than what has previously been possible.

“Mindway AI’s GameScanner software monitors and detects at-risk and problem gambling around the clock for our customers, enabling operators to further boost their responsible gambling efforts and reach out to at-risk players at a very early stage.

“Denmark has, with its well-regulated market, been an excellent starting point and test market for our solutions that enhance player protection. At Mindway AI, we take pride in our Danish roots, our neuroscientific background, and in our impartial position to enhance player protection.

“As we continuously update our AI software, we collaborate with neuroscientists, gambling experts and psychologists specialising in gambling addiction.

“This way, we craft complex AI software with a human touch. These independent experts choose to work with us because they believe in the potential of early detection software.”

It's this element which Kjaergaard believes will be key in combatting problem gambling.

Being able to identify at-risk players earlier will help mitigate, if not outright stop harm.

“Together, we share a belief that early detection could be a real game changer, when combined with appropriate intervention steps, as it decreases the probability of players developing a gambling addiction,” he added.

Mindway is not alone in pursuing a technological solution to problem gambling.

Many companies are turning to technology for their responsible gambling strategies, and among those, several are Scandinavian – or more specifically, Swedish.

LeoVegas and Betsson, both based in Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, are likewise pursuing problem gambling solutions that heavily involve technological innovations and big data.

Eduards Jakubovs, Betsson Group Head of Responsible Gaming, said: “We believe the industry has made enormous progress in terms of responsible gaming throughout the years. As a tier-one operator, we are encouraged to see how comparable companies value their consumers and have made significant investments in responsible gaming.

“Betsson Group was among the first to invest in responsible gambling, and we haven’t looked back since. We created our own Responsible Gambling Prediction Tool, which we built in-house, and we’ve been improving it over the last few months.

“We feel that employing modern technology and machine learning in conjunction with

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GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

human supervision is the way forward, and we have invested in both.

“The new version of the tool is able to take into consideration even more variables and detect/predict events at an earlier stage. Our many years of expertise in this industry, together with all of the historical data, allows us to put all of this information for the benefit of the player; which is ultimately what matters.”

"We, as an industry, will always need to be mindful of, and take measures to address, responsible gambling" WHAT IS TECHNOLOGY, REALLY? While it’s easy to say that technology is the answer, what does this really mean?

Technology isn’t one thing; it encompasses various solutions that employ all manner of innovations. Likewise, problem gambling doesn’t manifest in one way and, as a result, different methods are required.

LeoVegas touches on this, commenting: “Responsible gambling is one of LeoVegas Group's top priorities, and we continuously invest in product and technology development; so we can be really confident that we’re delivering the greatest gaming experience.

“Technology is our main enabler in delivering sustainable customer relationships. There is no easy, one-size-fits-all way of solving harmful behaviour, which is why we have a range of tools and initiatives, which we apply and develop continuously.

“Most recently, we launched mandatory personalised deposit limits to all our customers in the UK. We are also testing on-site messaging to educate and encourage customers, to use RG tools on multiple markets.

“Innovations and fine-tuned technologies like these really play important roles: AI and automatic risk prediction models enable LeoVegas Group to refine customer interactions and tailor them to our customers’ specific circumstances and needs.”

Land-based operators are also important in the industry’s efforts to tackle problem gambling – and they also stand to gain from technology-based solutions.

Combining the cutting edge with the old fashioned is London’s Hippodrome Casino.

While the property this establishment

occupies is over 100 years old, its social responsibility strategy relies on the most up-to-date innovations.

Simon Thomas, Hippodrome Casino CEO, said: “In 2018, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) challenged the industry to make better use of player data for the purposes of risk identification and to develop limit-setting capabilities on gaming machines.

“These were complex projects and required substantial investment in systems and people.

In addition to these technical initiatives we created (in partnership with Aspers Casinos) a new customer messaging programme, ‘PlaySmart’, to encourage healthy attitudes and behaviours to gambling — building on academic research and practices developed over the course of the last decade in a number of international markets.

“Most importantly, we have continued to invest in our people. This reflects the critical – and generally under-appreciated – role that our team members play in promoting customer wellbeing, creating positive experiences for all and intervening early where risk of harm is detected.”

PEOPLE COME FIRST Technology alone is not enough, as LeoVegas adds: "Technical innovations will continue to be important, but we would also like to see more cross-operator collaborations. so we can share insights, best practices and generally get better at aligning our tools for the greater good of responsible gambling.

“We from LeoVegas Group will continue to push for more industry collaborations to raise industry standards and support academia in relevant research.”

And while technology and its myriad possibilities are exciting, focusing solely on digital interventions makes it easy to forget what social responsibility is all about: helping people. People should be at the heart of any company’s responsible gambling strategy – people and community.

Betsson’s Jakubovs acknowledges this, saying: “We’re also investing in our people, and we’re continuously looking for innovative methods to exchange knowledge and train our employees, because responsible gambling must be at the core of any company’s culture.

“The impetus of this can be proven by the fact that in the latest internal survey, 94% of Betssonites feel that Betsson Group is a responsible operator.”

No operator can perhaps be said to have taken this people-first approach to heart more so than Kindred Group. Community is a crucial component of this company’s social responsibility strategy, as discussed

by Anna Jein, Kindred’s Sustainability Manager. Coupled with investments in

FEATURES

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

academic research, Kindred is pursuing a people-focused responsible gambling plan.

“At Kindred, our purpose is to transform gambling by being a trusted source of entertainment that contributes positively to society. To achieve our purpose, we lead by example, giving our players a superior experience while ensuring they feel safe and secure,” Jein tells Gambling Insider.

“We believe making the industry better should be one of the main pillars of SR strategies, especially in the current landscape" “By investing in behavioural research, a thriving sports ecosystem and local community initiatives, we can bring value to society, contributing to improved health, wellbeing and positive long-term outcomes.

Earning trust sustains our business, supports the sector and widens our impact by

contributing positively to society.

“Our way of working is shaped by our operating values, and rooted in our heritage of offering players a better and safer way to gamble.

“Our research, detection and control methods demonstrate leadership in responsible gambling, and we work openly with regulators, consumers and academics. In 2021, our sixth Sustainable Gambling Conference (SGC) focused on 'Safer Gambling: A shared responsibility' and covered high-priority topics such as responsible gambling and integrity.

“In addition, our employee engagement saw a boost in 2021 as we adopted a new hybrid-working model. Further, we continued with our vital work to ensure regulatory compliance and cybersecurity integrity.

“This was complemented by progress on sending our carbon emission targets for independent verification and formal acceptance as science-based by SBTi, and an ongoing focus on community impacts such as improving mental health.”

WORKING TOGETHER These companies have all taken major strides regarding social responsibility, but as briefly touched on at the outset of this article, regulators also have a role to play in mitigating harmful behaviour.

Striking the right balance is key. Private companies and their public sector counterparts need to work together or those most at-risk stand to lose out.

But when all parties involved take on social responsibility as a key part of their overall

THE NOMINEES FOR SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF THE YEAR BBIN

THE HIPPODROME CASINO

KINDRED GROUP

COOLBET

BETSSON

MICROGAMING

ENTAIN

LEOVEGAS

MINDWAY AI

CASINO GURU

 WITH SPECIAL THANKS TO KINDRED GROUP, BETSSON, MINDWAY AI, THE HIPPODROME CASINO, LEOVEGAS AND CASINO GURU FOR CONTRIBUTING TO THIS FEATURE

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strategies, everyone benefits.

As brand futurist Simon Mainwaring said: “If a brand genuinely wants to make a social contribution, it should start with who they are, not what they do.”

Casino Guru upholds this ethos, as discussed by its Sustainable & Safer Gambling Lead Simon Vincze, who says: “The concept of social responsibility was at the forefront of our priorities at the inception of Casino Guru, even though my colleagues might not have called it that.

“The goal was to provide players with truthful and verified information that could be relied upon to make correct decisions.

“Casino Guru has always had the ambition to make online gambling better, increase its transparency and make operators responsible for their actions.

“The sector faces considerable distrust and needs to strengthen efforts to prove its responsibility and reliability, for example by implementing strategies to minimise harm or raise awareness of safer gambling. I am certain going the extra mile will pay off in the long run.

“Moreover, I think working towards a more sustainable online gambling market is the best long-term business strategy. If the industry self-regulates, authorities will not feel pressured to impose increasingly tight restrictions, which will make things more difficult for operators and may even chase players away to offshore markets.” Vincze concludes: “Investing into SR strategies and going beyond what’s expected is key.”

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ROUNDTABLE

ROUNDTABLE: CRM AND RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING Industry leaders from Soft2Bet, Delasport, RavenTrack and Aspire Global discuss the growth of CRM and its importance within issues such as responsible gambling

KRISTIYAN PETROV Head of CRM Delasport

YOEL ZUCKERBERG VP Product Aspire Global

ADAM ROWLEY Managing Director RavenTrack

MAGDALENA FRANKOWSKA CMO Soft2bet

MAGDALENA

KRISTIYAN HOW IMPORTANT IS IT FOR COMPANIES TO HAVE AN EFFECTIVE CRM STRATEGY, IN COMPARISON TO OTHER CHANNELS

ADAM ROWLEY:

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ROUNDTABLE

YOEL ZUCKERBERG:

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ADAM ROWLEY:

HOW HAS CRM GROWN WITHIN THE INDUSTRY IN RECENT YEARS

KRISTIYAN PETROV:

GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM

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ROUNDTABLE

MAGDALENA FRANKOWSKA:

HOW CAN COMPANIES ENSURE THEY REMAIN COMPLIANT WHEN IT COMES TO CRM

ADAM ROWLEY:

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ROUNDTABLE

YOEL ZUCKERBERG:

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MAGDALENA FRANKOWSKA:

IS THERE A CLASH BETWEEN USING CRM TO PROMOTE GAMBLING AND RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING

KRISTIYAN PETROV:

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FEATURES

LEE RICHARDSON

ARE WE THERE YET? Lee Richardson MBA, regular Gambling Insider contributor, CEO of Gaming Economics and Co-Founder of the Big Betting Balagan, asks where we are in the drive towards responsible gambling The term responsible gambling (RG) was – according to a recent Australian state government paper analysing the topic – first coined about 30 years ago, as a means of describing both gambling behaviours (as those demonstrated by consumers) and gambling environments (as that facilitated by policymakers, regulators and operators).

It seems probable it was itself borrowed from the alcohol industry, and its policy discussions concerning consumption patterns, where the concept of ‘responsible drinking’ had been around since the early 1980s.

Whatever its lineage, we’ve been aware of the RG term for at least a generation; yet there’s evidence the industry still struggles with its very definition, and subsequent implementation and effectiveness.

"Operators must now come together quickly to deliver a meaningful solution" - Chris Philp

By way of evidence, in a 2004 paper published by the University of Las Vegas (Challenges In Responsible Provision of Gambling: Questions of Efficacy, Effectiveness and Efficiency), academics Hing and Mackeller argued that there was “a lack of agreement over the facts (efficacy), a lack of agreement over goals (effectiveness) and a lack of agreement over the means to achieve those goals (efficiency).” Almost 20 years on, is that still the case? Sadly, I fear it is.

More recently, in a well-researched background paper (Responsible Gambling; Past, Present and Future) published just five years ago by the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation in Australia, one key conclusion was “…it may (still)

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Lee Richardson need to be clearly articulated that the focus of responsible gambling is reducing gambling harm, rather than reducing or preventing problem gambling.”

Such long-standing doubt about definitions, descriptions and scope continue to dog debate and hinder collective RG best-practice around the globe.

In the UK, where the industry awaits the publication of a (now overdue) White Paper on the UK government’s Review of the Gambling Act 2005 later this spring, RG has been a common point of discussion, debate – and disagreement – for just about all involved in the advance consultation; whether within the industry itself, the media, critics or parliamentarians.

The latest skirmish appears to be the so-called ‘single customer view’ (SCV) which, ostensibly, will deliver the industry with a holistic and detailed perspective of an individual consumer’s gambling activity and behaviour; and thus provide a better picture of potential indicators of harm from that gambling.

Some say it’s a vital part of the RG landscape, others claim it’s fraught with data protection and privacy issues. Nonetheless, after the UK ICO gave its blessing late last year, new Gambling Minister Chris Philp called on the industry to act, saying: “Operators must now come together quickly to deliver a meaningful solution” In quick response, industry body the Betting and Gaming Council has just

invested £1m ($1.3m) and selected self-exclusion organisation GamStop to deliver its first workable SCV application, for delivery before the end of March 2022.

By this summer, the industry should then be in a position to properly evaluate the pros and cons of such a new RG tool, and the scale of benefits for consumers be better quantified.

On the point of backing such initiatives, the UK industry now appears to be embroiled in a spat over how, and from whom, research, education and treatment (RET) for gambling-related harm should best be funded, with the NHS due to stop accepting ‘industry money’ in 2022.

Health services in England received £1.2m last year to help specialist gambling addiction clinics organised by GambleAware – a charity set up to reduce gambling harms – itself largely funded from industry donations.

It insists it is fully independent, with the UK gambling industry having“absolutely no influence” over its activity.

However, in late January 2022, Professor Henrietta Bowden-Jones, Director of the National Problem Gambling Clinic, said “NHS clinicians have been asking, for a long time… for independence of funding from industry”.

Frankly, it’s difficult to know if this development brings a mandatory RET-funding operator levy closer in the awaited White Paper, or pushes it further away. Either way, the demand for more funding for RET seems assured, even if the mechanism might now be murkier.

Despite its critics, the UK gambling industry, particularly online, has much to look back on with confidence. It satisfies millions of consumers on a daily basis, is of significant benefit to the UK economy, has created thousands of high-value, skilled jobs and has developed innovative products now widely adopted throughout the rest of the gambling world.

With a once-in-a-generation chance, through a proportionate, evidence-led government review, it has a golden opportunity to also lead the world in implementing evidence-based, sustainable and effective responsible gambling. Let’s hope it gets the chance to do so.

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GUSTAF HOFFSTEDT

ADVERTISING RESTRAINTS IN NEW MARKETS Gambling Insider regular columnist and General Secretary, BOS, Gustaf Hoffstedt, analyses the impact of advertisements in fuelling gaming regulation Few things in our society have, in recent years, been more disparaged than gambling advertisements. Truth be told, we can surely admit their level of creativity often leaves a lot to be desired. Compounding the issue is the sheer volume...

While the Swedish gaming industry’s marketing spend, or share of voice, has dropped significantly in recent years (particularly across traditional media), volumes still sometimes reach exhausting levels.

When Sweden launched a new licensing system in 2019, the torrent of advertisements became almost comical. While listening to commercial radio during my morning commute, the 30-second gaming ad spots would be stacked one after another; with seven or eight consecutive ads all trying to convince me why their gaming platform was the absolute best.

Looking back, it’s possible that we as a trade association could have done more to curb the onslaught when the new market was coming online. What followed came as a surprise to no one: several ill-conceived political proposals, prescribing advertising restrictions that threatened both our constitutional freedom of expression and the degree of channelisation to the new legal market.

The same debate is now engulfing other gaming markets that are in a similar state of transformation, including the Netherlands and the US, and the issue will likely again be top of mind when Finland, Norway and other jurisdictions sooner or later introduce licensing systems. I encourage them all to learn from the mistakes that were made in Sweden and be better prepared than we were.

The message to the industry needs to be: do not use the same playbook again, opening the floodgates whenever a new system is introduced; but rather, show restraint.

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Gustaf Hoffstedt Let your national trade association be your guide. To the legislators and regulators, I say: accept that advertising spend will spike during the first year, but things will calm down once the fortune seekers have drained their marketing budgets and pulled out.

Gambling ads are almost always front and centre whenever the issue of problem gambling is raised. I think that is a mistake.

While academic research supports the notion that advertising can trigger rash actions among problem gamblers, other responsible gaming measures are far more important in creating a safe gaming market.

It’s my belief that the reason why advertising has taken such a prominent position, in the public’s perception of what causes pathological gambling, can be found in its indiscriminate reach, affecting gamblers and non-gamblers alike. Gaming commercials, especially in

traditional media, touch a wide audience.

Promotional offers from internet casinos reach my dad, who will never try his luck online, despite his son’s penchant for blackjack.

Messages about this week’s lottery jackpot reach my mum, who has never bought a lottery ticket during her first 79 years of life.

While other responsibility tools are geared towards the relationship between the operator and the player, advertising affects the relationship between the operator and the public, which has long been shaped by misconceptions. According to a survey commissioned by the gaming company ATG, four in five Swedes believe 25% of the adult population are problem gamblers, while the actual share is somewhere between 1-2%.

I think this grotesquely exaggerated notion of problem gambling’s prevalence in society stems at least in part from gaming’s aggressive marketing and dominating share of voice.

The situation is reminiscent of the prisoner’s dilemma, probably the most popular game analysed in game theory, which shows why rational actors might not cooperate, even if it is in their best interest to do so.

The individual gaming company knows that the total sum of advertising will damage the industry’s reputation, leading to an excessively harsh regulatory backlash that negatively impacts the individual company’s ability to make a profit. At the same time, the individual company knows that if it does not invest in marketing at a similar rate as its competitor, the latter will gain market share at its expense. This is where an agile trade association has a part to play whenever gaming markets are re-regulated.

The solution is called a shared code of conduct. Only through self-imposed marketing limitations can more harmful government-forced restrictions be avoided.

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DR JOERG HOFMANN

GERMANY: NEW GAMBLING ADVERTISING RULES Dr Joerg Hofmann, Partner at Melchers Law, follows up his recent GI Huddle appearance with his second Gambling Insider column – which focuses on gambling advertising in Germany Since the beginning of the sports betting licensing procedure in January 2020, the topic of “advertising” has caught a lot of attention.

This was mainly due to the fact the Interstate Treaty on Gambling, which came into force on 1 January 2020, introduced massive restrictions on gambling advertising, and at the same time left open numerous questions about its scope and extent.

Operators applying for a sports betting licence must include their own marketing concept as part of the licensing procedure.

Under current law, the Regional Council in Darmstadt is responsible for reviewing these concepts. At least in theory. In practice, things turned out differently.

In the meantime, it had been decided at the level of the gambling regulators to commission an internal working group.

Its aim was to prepare a framework paper for the assessment criteria to be used as a basis for the evaluation of the marketing concepts. Against this background, the Regional Council has postponed the examination of submitted concepts – which made sense, as there can be no binding examination without defined criteria.

As of 1 January 2023, all responsibilities will be transferred to the new Joint Gambling Supervisory Authority of the Lander in Halle (Saxony-Anhalt). The operators are currently required to comply with the principles arising from the Interstate Treaty itself in the best possible way.

Neither the expected advertising directive nor the corresponding framework document to be issued are yet available. Nevertheless, initial information recently became known from Saxony-Anhalt on the expected future restrictions and requirements, with regard to advertising for legal gambling. In detail, this concerns the following points: • Non-time-controlled outdoor advertising, including advertising in facilities that are not only accessible to a certain or definable group of people (with the exception of sports facilities) is prohibited. Time-controlled advertising

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•

•

Dr Joerg Hofmann between 21:00 and 06:00 is permitted.

• Pursuant to sec.5(3) of the Interstate Treaty on Gambling 2021, no advertising on the radio or internet may be made for virtual slot machine games, online poker and online casino games between 6am and 9pm daily.

Likewise, advertising solely for an umbrella brand under which virtual slot machine games, online poker and online casino games are offered – in addition to other licensed forms of gambling – is prohibited between 6am and 9pm, with the exception of umbrella brand advertising in sports venues.

• It already follows from sec.5 (3) sentence 3 of the Interstate Treaty on Gambling 2021 that advertising for sports betting with active athletes and officials is also prohibited.

The brand ambassadors can thus no longer be recruited from an active sporting environment. The use of influencers in the context of sponsoring or advertising is also to be prohibited in future.

This is likely to have far-reaching consequences for streaming and other social media activities.

• A separate section is dedicated to affiliate

•

•

•

advertising. On the one hand, it is expressly regulated in the current Interstate Treaty that no variable (turnover in particular), deposit or stake-dependent remuneration may be agreed upon or paid for advertising for games of chance on the internet, in particular in the form of affiliate links. Thus, the international industry standards of usual contractual terms for the cooperation between affiliates and operators are to be substantially adapted.

Advertising by or through affiliates that also advertise unauthorised gambling services is prohibited. Accordingly, affiliates may not make their services available to black market operators at the same time.

The observance of general principles such as the differentiation of advertising from the editorial content of affiliates by labelling it as advertising is also required.

As has been the case for a long time with advertising for licensed games of chance, in the future it will also apply to affiliates that the display of mandatory information on the prohibition of participation by minors, on the risk of addiction (examples: “Participation from 18; gambling can be addictive”), but also on the availability of operator-independent counselling and therapy, must be clearly visible in advertising by or through affiliates.

Operators must continuously generate an electronic documentation of the time and place of its broadcast advertising for the past three months, transmitting this documentation to the competent authority upon request. In addition, continuous electronic documentation of all advertising on the internet, including details of third-party sites, affiliates, social media channels and the identity of the advertising partners over the past three months, is required and must be submitted to the competent authority upon request.

It goes without saying that advertising for gambling services not licensed by the competent gambling supervisory authorities in Germany is still prohibited and is a criminal offence.

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SPORTRADAR

SPORTS DATA: FLYING THE FLAG Gambling Insider takes a look at Sportradar’s ninth-place spot in The Sport Technology Power List 2021 To say 2021 was a busy year for Sportradar would be an understatement. It began with the appointment of Jeffery Yabuki as Chairman of the company’s Global Board, closely followed by the announcement of a partnership with the Asian Football Confederation until 2028. The group then launched its Universal Fraud Detection System in February, followed by acquisitions of Fresh Eight and Synergy Sports in March.

Another acquisition in the form of InteractSport came in the months that followed, as well as the appointments of Deirdre Bigley to the Global Board of Directors and Lynn S. McCreary as Chief Legal Officer. Sportradar also announced a 10-year global partnership with the National Hockey League (NHL), shortly followed by the announcement that basketball legend Michael Jordan had assumed an advisory role with the group.

All of those efforts – and indeed many more behind the scenes – have been followed by the company being named in the top 10 of The Sport Technology Power List 2021. The Power List, which was created by the STA Group in association with The English Institute of Sport, features brands that are most active in and have the most influence on the sports technology space.

Sportradar placed ninth in the list, finishing as the highest sports data organisation. To be selected for the list, sports organisations must be a noted federation, governing body or rightsholder, or an established commercial entity whose main market is sport; or which operates a dedicated sports division, or has a technology proposition that is used by several major sports clients. Participants must also operate internationally or dominate a significant domestic market.

To be chosen alongside iconic names such as F1, NBA, UEFA and La Liga is no small feat. It’s a competitive list and includes the fields of performance, technology, and broadcast among others. Sportradar, standing tall in the sports data field, climbed 18 places

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Rebecca Hopkins from last year’s spot in 27th.

Rebecca Hopkins, CEO of The STA Group, told Gambling Insider exactly how the list is drawn up, and how organisations like Sportradar are selected.

“The STA Group champions technology in sports globally via its properties The Sports Technology Awards, The STA Startups and The Sports Technology Annual Review, as well as The Sport Technology Power List,” said Hopkins.

“The Power List, which was created in association with The English Institute of Sport, was launched in 2020. The list is part of The Sports Technology Annual Review, which summarises important technology trends, influences and activity within the sports sector; the purpose of the Power List is to highlight the brands making the biggest

impact individually.

“The List and the ranking are finalised by the team writing and editing The Review who draw on industry findings from the EIS’ Innovations Team, insights garnered from The STA Group judges and information from entries to The Sports Technology Awards.”

Hopkins also touched on Sportradar’s achievement, saying: “Sportradar impressed the Power List panel with both the breadth of its offering and its ethos of evolving, improving and creating propositions to meet its target markets’ needs.”

For Dalraj Bahia, Managing Director Operations, Betting and Gaming, Sportradar, the achievement was well deserved, and shows just how crucial data is within the world of sports and sports betting.

Bahia told Gambling Insider: “It’s great

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SPORTRADAR

in the sports ecosystem and the contribution it can make to the future of the wider sports industry.

He continued: “Sports leagues and federations are seeing the opportunities to improve their sports, improve their infrastructure, and most importantly improve fan experience and engagement.

Betting data and technology is making a real contribution to all these areas and the overall commercialisation of sport as a consumer product.”

Through the likes of digital transformation, AV streams, integration into mobile apps and AR/VR experiences, Bahia explained, the industry is continuing to innovate the overall fan experience.

Dalraj Bahia news to be in the top 10, but especially as the only sports data and technology company to be chosen. It’s a reflection of how the industry is developing, and recognition of the role data now plays in the wider sports ecosystem and its continuing development. It also tops off a great 20th anniversary year for us which saw the company go public on the Nasdaq and sign some of our biggest ever deals, including with the NBA, UEFA, ICC, ITF and NHL.” Incidentally, a handful of those brands also made their way onto the list. NBA and UEFA clinched second and third respectively, behind F1 in first. Also included within the top 10 was European Tour, STATSports, PGA, Dazn, La Liga and NASCAR. When asked how it feels to be among such esteemed company, Bahia said: “These are some of the most well-respected sports brands and federations in the world, so of course we’re delighted to appear in the list alongside them.

We’re proud to be a global leader here and represent the sports data industry.

“It’s interesting that as the engagement with data and technology by these brands is at the forefront of their development, we’ve emerged in the top 10 to sit alongside them. We’ve partnered with several of the sports here this year to either renew existing agreements or sign new ones, as they look to the next stages of commercialisation, digitisation and fan engagement.”

Perhaps only The STA Group knows exactly why Sportradar clinched a spot in the top 10, but Bahia has a rough idea of the reasoning. He hypothesised that “this is a sports tech power list and we’ve placed

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technology at the forefront of everything we do for our customers and partners.”

He continues: “Technology also underpins all of our commercial products and services, including our betting platform, transforming opportunities for bookmakers, and our Ad:s programmatic advertising to ensure personalised marketing to customers.

“Acquisitions made in 2021 – Fresh8, Synergy Sports and InteractSport – are all technology companies that enable us to personalise content or capture even more data points than ever before, which we can use to create new products for customers.

The technology enables Sportradar’s innovation, broadens our capabilities offered to the market, and benefits our customers as they develop their sophistication in connecting with fans; digitising their sports and further enabling the commercialisation of their assets.”

When asked what the company’s achievement says about the sports data and technology industry in general, Bahia responded: “It shows how sports technology, and specifically sports betting technology, is now being seen as a mainstream industry.

This evolution has been ongoing globally for several years, as most recently evidenced

by US betting legalisation. The length of our eight-year renewal with the NBA is no coincidence as it looks to navigate and develop in this new era.”

He added another example of UEFA issuing its first-ever tender for a betting data provider, noting that there is broad acceptance of sports betting due to its role

"Sportradar placed ninth in the list, finishing as the highest sports data organisation" “Sport at its heart is an analogue experience which is why it’s so engaging for live attendance at events,” added Bahia. “No one wants to change this aspect, but tech can enhance engagement and connect people with the amazing sports around us.”

He explained that sport has taken technology and evolved, and part of this evolution has been unlocking the betting opportunity to drive commercialisation; the flipside of which is that data also becomes a facilitator of integrity and the protection of sport.

The Managing Director also looked ahead to next year’s list, revealing the methods and approaches the company will deploy to try and move further up the table.

“Continuing what we’re doing!” he said.

“It’s fair to say 2021 was a milestone year, but the 20th anniversary of Sportradar is a reflection of the previous 20 years and how we’ve got to where we are. This is a company that cares deeply about our customers, partners and the wider sports ecosystem. That inherent focus is what drives us every day.

“We’ll continue to focus on creating technology that solves problems and creates opportunities for our customers and partners, and we look forward to working closely with them over the next 12 months.”

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PAUL SCULPHER

A STAFF CRISIS? Gambling Insider regular Paul Sculpher talks about the ongoing crisis in the UK’s land-based casinos As an industry, we thought we had a problem with staffing – particularly gaming staffing – a few years ago. Wages were stagnant in real terms since the introduction of tipping back in 2007, and bottom lines weren’t really swelling to allow operators to boost the rewards for their teams.

Fast forward to today, and the current situation makes 2017 look like there were squadrons of experienced dealers hanging out on street corners begging for shifts. If you add together the impacts of Brexit, Covid-19 and Minimum Living Wage increases, the industry has reached a genuine crisis point, and it’s tough to see where things are going to get better.

Pre-Covid, we used to joke that dealer pay rates weren’t that much better than rewards for shelf stackers. Well, since supermarkets have announced they’ve gone to £10 ($13.15) per hour everywhere in the country (more near London), that’s not so funny anymore.

Plenty of staff are asking themselves “why am I working nights, dealing with sometimes difficult customers, when I could have an easier life working sociable hours for more money?”

"In my dealing days, the holy grail was working on cruise ships, or in London" The answer used to lie in future prospects.

In my dealing days, the holy grail was working on cruise ships, or in London. One of those is now pretty much a non-starter – the cruise lines don’t necessarily value UK experience anymore, and pay rates have come crashing down with the influx of skilled dealers from countries where money goes a lot further.

London is more viable, with tips making the difference – but of course costs of living and commuting take a fair chunk out of wages.

Progression is the other element that appears not to have the appeal it might once have had. The concept of doing a great job as a

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Paul Sculpher dealer and supervisor, and progressing to shift manager for perhaps £7,000 more per year – and a whole lot more problems, both from obstreperous staff and cranky customers – isn’t too aspirational for many. Add in the fact that pressure on shift managers – the toughest job in the casino industry in my view – from above, both from a performance point of view and a licence protection point of view, is ever more intense, and you get to a genuine “why would I do that to myself?” inflection point.

The biggest issue for operators may be that they cannot find people to join the industry, but the people who do stick with you are occasionally not the type you want.

It’s fair to say the majority of “lifers” are the backbone of any casino, who know the majority of customers well enough to greet them by name, and have the experience to deal with the myriad of situations that pop up. However, every casino has someone who’s past their sell-by date, hates their job and the customers (and possibly themselves), and isn’t scared to let everyone know it. It was tough enough to ship them out previously, and now that resources and manpower are scarce mainstream casinos are failing to open tables on schedule. So those decisions don’t get any easier.

What’s the solution? Well, the simple answer is to pay them more, but obviously that solves one problem and creates another.

Let’s say you add £2 to the hourly rate of gaming staff – you can’t boost the bottom tier without them overtaking the next few tiers, so it has to encompass everyone. If you have 50 casinos and 30 gaming staff in each, on 40 hours for example, that’s £6m annually, and that’s a big bill to be paying. The alternative is to inch it up gradually, but gradually might not cut it in a dynamic world where working better hours behind a bar, or easier days stacking shelves with a chance of eventual progression, is available to anyone.

The only other feasible option is to reduce your reliance on humans, which of course has been happening for years. Greater reliance on slots and Electronic Table Games – possibly boosted by the incoming Gambling Review – seems the only feasible direction of travel. It’s likely to be supplemented by pricing policies, which we’ve already seen signs of, nudging marginal players in the direction of the electronic alternatives. This means only table players are punting fast enough to make the casino viable with limited gaming staff.

Whichever way you look at it, the equation doesn’t stack up right now. We can’t afford to pay a ton more for staff, but we can’t operate the engine room of the traditionally table-driven UK casino without enough of them. The UK sector has enough challenges right now, and this one isn’t making life any easier. Perhaps the Gambling Review can come galloping to the rescue...

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NICK HILL

RESPONSIBLE GAMING SCRUTINY IS HERE TO STAY Gambling Insider regular contributor Nick Hill gives his views on responsible gaming and the microscope that constantly follows it For the majority of players, gaming provides an exciting leisure activity that is part of their overall entertainment budget. However, some gamblers struggle to control their play and the repercussions can be significant for them, their families and society.

One study found that problem gamblers, as they are often called, are six times more likely to have suicidal thoughts, and some 19% have considered suicide within the past year, compared to 4% of the general population.

In the UK alone, problem gambling is thought to cost the taxpayer between £260m ($343.6m) and £1.2bn per year.

With this backdrop, it is not surprising that regulators are taking more assertive action.

In the UK, operator fines for compliance breaches reached £44m in 2020 and were again above £40m in 2021. So far in 2022, fines levied against operators exceed £6m.

Operators have a clear call to action; however, their challenge is compounded because different jurisdictions have different expectations that may not be satisfied with a single approach.

For example, the requirements imposed by the Gambling Commission differ from those imposed by regulators in Malta or in Germany; and in the case of multi-jurisdictional operators, there is a need to maintain compliance with each of these regulators simultaneously. This has some undesirable consequences, driving less scrupulous operators underground.

To make matters worse, there is no central register of self-exclusion, and no way for players to carry over their gambling history from one operator to another. This can result in unintentional breaches and slips, both for operators and players.

Regardless of the situation or potential mitigating circumstances, a compliance fine is waiting to happen if the information from

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operators is incomplete or inaccurate. The days of regulators taking a soft touch are over.

This poses significant risk and concern for an industry with current responsible gaming strategies, and accepted practices that are simply ineffective in addressing the known risks.

The iGaming industry is unmistakably in a new reality that puts responsible, sustainable gaming at the head of the table. Both regulators and operators are now expected to be much more proactive in their efforts to address, and prevent problem gambling from taking hold.

Yet, data across the sector – the best weapon for meeting these challenges – remains disjointed.

WHY BLOCKCHAIN IS THE SOLUTION Blockchain provides a credible solution to these issues by allowing player and game data to be recorded instantly and immutably to a public network. Data can be written to the blockchain in real time as it is generated and shared seamlessly with regulators on a permissioned basis. So rather than keeping compliance records to be made available on inspection, blockchain technology allows operators to record this data at the point of origin, which in turn means they can demonstrate effectively how their compliance obligations have been met.

Data recorded to the blockchain is also timestamped, creating a perfect audit trail for irrefutable proof. The net effect should be a world in which operators expose themselves to significantly less risk of regulatory sanction, and where they can make sure they are fully and automatically recording the data they need to satisfy AML and KYC regulations.

Blockchain products negate the need for more complex data storage and recording solutions. Instead, they allow all data to be written to the blockchain directly, where it can be accessed by regulators as required.

They also allow data to be fed into smart

Nick Hill contracts and other automated functions via the blockchain, which can deliver efficiency as well as process gains through several other business functions. The sum total is that compliance measures based on blockchain technology can assist firms in reducing their risk exposure and increase their bottom line.

Companies are also collaborating on ways to bring the regulators to the table. By getting regulators on board with tools to access the blockchain data directly, several steps in the process can be eliminated and result in a more streamlined process.

This presents a winning scenario for gamers, operators, regulators and society.

WILLEM VAN OORT

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A DUTCH AD BAN? Willem van Oort, regular Gambling Insider columnist, discusses a looming ban to online gambling advertisements in the Netherlands Only months after opening its regulated online market, the Netherlands is poised to introduce sweeping online gambling advertising restrictions. These restrictions, however, will not be introduced overnight.

There are strong indications that operators will still be able to effectively distinguish themselves from their competitors by launching a superior product.

WHAT HAPPENED? The Netherlands opened its regulated iGaming market on 1 October 2021. As was widely predicted, this event was followed by rapidly increasing online gambling advertising volumes.

By far the biggest offenders in this regard were the state-owned operators Holland Casino and Nederlandse Loterij.

Initial attempts at industry self-regulation were feeble. Newly launched trade association VNLOK (which was founded by five Dutch land-based operators, including Nederlandse Loterij and Holland Casino) not only excluded the Netherlands’ other online trade association, NOGA (which mainly represents internationally licensed operators) from the negotiations with consumer protection organisations and media companies, but also came up with proposals that were somewhat limited in scope.

As a result, no binding gambling advertising code could be agreed upon prior to the opening of the regulated online market on 1 October. It took until 14 December before a more meaningful advertising code could be announced – just one day before a crucial parliamentary debate.

By that time, public and political irritation had, predictably, reached unsustainable levels, and a far-reaching motion calling on the Dutch Government to ban all “untargeted” online gambling advertising was adopted by a majority of the Dutch Lower House.

This motion was subsequently clarified to include a ban on all broadcast and internet commercials promoting online gambling.

Currently, there appears to be no parliamentary majority for including sports sponsorships in these new restrictions.

LEGAL AND PROCEDURAL ISSUES To introduce such far-reaching advertising restrictions, new legislation will be necessary.

of preparing legislation to ban or otherwise restrict online gambling advertising. It is currently not known what these legislative proposals will entail. However, as mentioned before, it will normally take at least a year before any new legislation can take effect.

In the meantime, the Ministry has initiated discussions with industry trade groups, requesting them to severely curtail their advertising efforts until the new legislation can come into effect. A potential trade-off for the industry is that any cooperativeness at this stage, before any bans could come into effect, could conceivably translate into milder additional advertising regulations. However, very little (if anything) is certain at this point.

Willem van Oort This was recently confirmed by the Minister for Legal Protection, Franc Weerwind.

The fact that new legislation will be required means it will be impossible – normally, at least – to introduce these new restrictions before 1 April 2022, as is currently being demanded by the political group which tabled the parliamentary motion calling for an online gambling ad ban.

In the Netherlands, the introduction of new primary legislation usually takes around two years, although this process can, of course, be expedited. However, in the absence of genuine emergency situations, even the expedited process would normally take around one whole year.

Another issue is that major restrictions such as an online gambling advertising ban must be “consistent and proportional.” This means, for instance, it would be hard to ban online gambling advertising without introducing similar restrictions pertaining to equivalent land-based products. It is not inconceivable that this could mean legislators pause – or, at the very least – limit the scope of the advertising restrictions that will eventually be adopted.

NEXT STEPS At the time of writing, the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security is in the early stages

INDUSTRY IMPACT Realistically speaking, traditional broadcast advertising will soon be closed off as a major avenue for acquiring new customers in the Netherlands. This, however, may not be the catastrophe it would initially appear to be.

Financial statements that were released last fall by major international operators in the wake of their temporary withdrawals from the Dutch market show that the unregulated Dutch online market was significantly larger than originally estimated. Thus, the regulated online market could be quite a bit more mature than would normally be the case so soon after initial market regulation.

Mature markets contain savvy consumers who know what they want and, more importantly, where to find it. Conversations that we have had with experienced players and affiliate marketeers indicate that quite a few Dutch players are eagerly awaiting the return of the larger international operators and, especially, what they perceive as their “superior” product experience.

Thus, product quality rather than advertising power is likely the determining factor that will decide who will fail and who will succeed in the Dutch market.

Even so, currently there remains quite a bit of uncertainty regarding how, exactly, Dutch online gambling advertising regulations will change in the future. However, more information is expected to be available soon. If you would like to know more, our upcoming 2022 Gaming in Holland Conference, which takes place June 20-21, could conceivably be of interest.

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INDUSLAW

ARE NFTS ‘FAIR PLAY’ IN INDIA? Regular Gambling Insider contributors Ranjana Adhikari (Partner) and Sarthak Doshi (Associate) of IndusLaw discuss NFTs in India NFTs have taken the world by storm. Creators are motivated to mint billions from digital art; users excited for collectibles and exclusive memberships; investors ambitious about valuations; and governments concerned about its legal and policy ramifications.

India joined the hype with Bollywood celebrities, fashion designers and sportspersons releasing their own NFTs; a growing user base flipping them on platforms like OpenSea and WazirX; foreign investors accelerating investments. And as far as the Government is concerned, well, it is still playing catch-up.

NFTS & THE INDIAN INDUSTRY India’s NFT craze is catching up with the burgeoning Indian gaming industry too – soon to be a $7bn gaming market in and of itself. Millions of Indians are playing casual games and participating on platforms like Axie Infinity, Sorare and CryptoKitties in increasing numbers.

While Indian users are using global NFT gaming platforms, there is still a demand-supply gap for indigenous games and NFT use cases.

But promisingly, domestic companies are bridging this gap. Companies like JetSynthesys are merging the worlds of music and gaming, esports majors like Nodwin Gaming are releasing game and sports-based NFTs, whereas upcoming companies like Fantico and Avisa Ventures are exploring the ‘play-to-earn’ potential of the space. Investors like Sequoia, Antler, and BeeNext have also bet high on a bunch of upcoming Indian start-ups focusing on NFTs. LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS In our past articles, we have written extensively about the immense potential of this industry; especially the presence of over 600 million smartphone users, the availability of cheap high-speed internet and 65% of the population

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of any part of the copyright itself. For a copyright assignment to be valid, it needs to be in writing and carry a signature of the assignor.

Ranjana Adhikari below the age of 35. This means the market is a highly lucrative one to tap into. We assess briefly below the key issues affecting the legal viability of NFTs in the Indian market.

OWNERSHIP & COPYRIGHT As NFTs represent an underlying digital asset, issues around copyright ownership are important. Under the Indian Copyright Act 1957, the right to create an NFT typically lies with the owner/assignee of the copyright, who has the right to reproduce and exploit it on the digital platform. Whether the owner/ assignee of such copyright is the author/ creator/employer/assignor/producer (in case of games stemming from film content) etc. is a question of interpretation, and is dependent on the chain of title documents entered among various stakeholders like publishers, creators, producers etc.

Further, to cement the transfer of ownership in the copyrighted NFT to the buyer, smart contracts are used to execute the NFT sale.

Gaming companies innovate constantly and, with the evolving models, it will be important to assess the scope of the rights sought to be transferred with the NFT. For instance, one may need to evaluate whether there is any limited assignment

USE OF CRYPTOCURRENCIES Indian regulators have historically taken a cautionary approach to digital assets, starting with the RBI (India’s apex bank) effectively banning cryptocurrencies in 2018 (which was later struck down by the Supreme Court of India). But times are slowly changing.

The recently released Finance Bill 2022, for the first time, acknowledged ‘virtual digital assets’ in legislation. While the 30% tax is not that well received by the industry, it shows that legislators are keen on aligning policies to embrace fast-changing technologies. A policy on this may soon be on the anvil.

EFFECT OF GAMING LAWS Depending on the monetisation model and the overall game for which the NFT is offered, one would also need to evaluate the applicability of the state-wide gaming laws of India. These laws trigger when there is money, or money’s worth put at stake for prizes. Depending on the NFT use case in a game, these laws may apply differently. If the game triggers these laws, then the offering may need to be for a ‘skill game’ format, and may subsequently be blocked further in certain states. Factors like the rules of the game, structure of the platform, location of the company, and monetisation model will be key to assess how susceptible such games are to scrutiny and enforcement action.

Only time will tell whether NFTs are the future or just a fad. But given India’s appetite for tech innovations and user fascination towards Web 3.0 in general, NFTs and the gaming industry may go a long way in the country.

[The authors acknowledge the contribution of Arjun Khanna (Associate) at IndusLaw.]

FEATURES

ALEX CZAJKOWSKI

THE PROFITABILITY OF MENTAL HEALTH IN IGAMING A pragmatic argument, regular Gambling Insider columnist Alex Czajkowski discusses why there is not just a human case for responsible gambling – but a business one Responsible gaming is good for the long-term profitability of an operator.

It was Sarah Francis who turned me on to this years ago at a board meeting for Sportingbet.

It won’t help you make this quarter’s numbers, but long term, it’s better for everyone. Especially your shareholders. And your players. Not to mention your karma.

But while regulators look to ineffectively manage the symptoms of “problem gambling,” setting bet limits, eliminating jackpots and VIP programmes, blocking credit cards etc, they fail to address the true underlying issues.

“Mental health” has been a lukewarm topic of late, with celebs from Ryan Reynolds to Kanye West and even the British royals (short lived as we hope their influence may be… long live the Queen? Done.) piping up about it.

Alex Czajkowski Perhaps ironically, it’s only when you really think about mental health’s impact on employees and those that buy your pints (players!) that it becomes a priority.

And in this post-Covid decade and the havoc that Wuhan-born virus wreaked, it’ll become an increasing influence.

The isolation of quarantines (I’ve been through four). The impact of social media.

The numbing experience of working from home 8-12-16 hours a day. It has consequences, kids!

At a minimum, one in six of us are going crazy...

Even in writing that I can feel the

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stigma associated with it. ‘Cause it’s hard for “normal” brains to process what it is to not be “normal,” as it is outside the realm of the “normal” experience.

You frankly have no idea. Unless you’ve been there. Ask Ryan. Or maybe Kanye.

But you have to prepare for it, for both employees and players. It’s responsible gaming and responsible stewardship of your firm.

While I’ve been thinking about this for a while, it was my discussions with mental health/AI expert Zain Sikafiof of Mynurva. com that really got me thinking about it.

While reviewing his investment deck, it occurred to me how much we could do for “free” (e.g. a one time investment in content that pays dividends in both traffic and karma) plus profit from helping people who pass through the filters of the sales funnel and end up spending cash with consultants.

And profits are important, of course; they pay for the front-end processes that could help thousands of players and employees, and provide the ROI that ensures continued investment.

He cites the UK studies that say “50% of ill-health in the UK is due to mental health.”

And that’s from an eight-year-old study (new ones are underway). These numbers will sadly only go up as more people appreciate the impact your brain has on your body.

As in any sales process, it begins with “awareness” (the other phases being comprehension, conviction and closing the sale, ACCC, or in the age-old model of AIDA: Awareness, Interest, Desire, Action).

These are your people. Your players.

And while it’s not our responsibility, technically, to care for their minds, it is in our own best interests. We can do more for both.

And our care will be rewarded in innumerable ways, including long- term profitability.

FEATURES

SCOTT ENGEL

LOUISIANA'S LEADING LAUNCH The Game Day’s Scott Engel analyses the hugely successful mobile sports betting launch in the state of Louisiana, with help from DraftKings' Johnny Avello Gray Pou is a 34-year-old Account Manager for an advertising agency in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Naturally, he is a follower of LSU basketball, but was only a casual college basketball fan.

And prior to 28 January 2022, he described himself as a “non-existent” follower of the NBA. These days, Pou is watching five or six basketball games a week and tuning into Pac-12 games on Saturday nights. That’s because he is one of many enthusiastic sports bettors who were let through the gate when mobile sports betting finally launched in Louisiana earlier this year.

“We were very excited to have legalised sports betting in Louisiana,” Pou said.

“Everyone that I know, friends, family members, wives of friends, are participating.”

UNLEASHING MOBILE SPORTS BETTING IN THE STATE DraftKings Director of Sportsbook Operations Johnny Avello says sports betting is not new to the people of Louisiana.

“They’ve been gambling for a long time, whether it be with the local bookie or offshore, certainly on horseracing at Louisiana Downs and the Fair Grounds,” he said. Avello noted that DraftKings opened a sportsbook at the Golden Nugget Casino in Lake Charles in November.

“That was very successful, so we knew from just that one location that when we did the digital aspect of it, it would take off.”

Pou also said people in Louisiana were already gambling regardless of its legality. Now that it has been legalised, a long wait to bet on sports through his mobile device is over.

“I did not anticipate being a guy that bets on college basketball or the NBA,” Pou said. “I’m doing it in a responsible way, but I also find myself watching more sports now.”

IMPRESSIVE EARLY RETURNS Published reports indicate strong early results since the launch of legalised sports betting in Louisiana. Residents of the state wagered

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know the tax money will be going towards our roads, our schools and there are a lot of things that need improvement in this wonderful state.”

Scott Engel nearly $40.5m during the first four days of operation, which was the best four-day opening for any market per capita.

Even though the NFL season is over, Avello said he is anticipating more healthy momentum ahead.

“I’ll tell you what I think will do well for the next four months or so: the NCAA conference tournaments,” he said. “I expect good action there, which leads into the NCAA tournament.

"NBA action has been robust down there.

The NHL is maybe not as strong but there are other forms of sporting events you can bet on that will be very popula such as golf, not only the weekly tournaments but the Masters.”

The American Gaming Association said the state will make about $50m per year from sports betting, according to WAFB TV. The reported tax rate for mobile and online betting in Louisiana is 15%. Portions of the revenue will go to early childhood education and disability affairs, as indicated

by Louisiana Sharp.

“Our state has a history of some economic troubles,” Pou said. “Of course, we’ve been wanting sports wagering as bettors, but we also

THE HOMETOWN FEEL According to DraftKings, since mobile sports betting launched in Louisiana, the Cincinnati Bengals have been the team to draw the most bets; and Joe Burrow has been the athlete to have drawn the most bets.

Yet as Avello pointed out, it was another LSU alum who made a significant sports betting splash for Super Bowl 56.

“One bet that stands out was Odell Beckham Jr. to score the first TD at 9-1,” Avello said.

“There was some good value there. He unfortunately went out early, but they certainly cashed on that first score.”

Avello says there has been strong action on local teams such as the NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans. DraftKings reported that the LSU Tigers baseball team has drawn the second-most wagers of any team on its sportsbook since launch in Louisiana. The Ole Miss-LSU basketball matchup on 1 February 2022 was the highest non-NFL game in terms of bets since launch.

"When we look at what Louisianans are betting on, a lot of that is the teams within the state,” he said. “Not all states do that.”

However, Avello also said that many Louisiana sports bettors don’t focus exclusively on the home teams or local ties.

The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks are ahead of the Pelicans, as those two NBA teams have produced the most professional basketball bets since launch. Jordan Spieth has drawn the second-most wagers of any athlete.

Moscow Liga Pro table tennis has been a top-five sport in the state.

“Some people have a different way of handicapping and looking at the games,” Avello said.

“It’s not like everybody from the state was rooting on the side of players who have played there in the past.”

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BESTODDS

WHAT MAKES A RESPONSIBLE AFFILIATE? Malcolm Darnley of BestOdds points out the best types of affiliates for end users Affiliates have many different messages they will direct towards their customer base.

They will want to try and educate them on the nuances of sports betting. They will want to inform their customers with relevant statistics and entertaining information.

They will also want to effectively market to them in hopes that customers will open a new gambling account.

But most importantly of all, a true affiliate will define what responsible gambling means to them. It will make a conscious effort to follow best practices and guidelines, it will be a company that can recognize problem behavior and it will be a true resource for anyone looking for help with a gambling problem.

RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING Unfortunately for a select few, sports betting can stop being a form of entertainment and start to become a problem. As a marketing affiliate, creating content and directing end users to sportsbooks, we must be conscious that for some our product can be harmful and cease to be thought of as entertainment.

Addiction is real and presents itself in many different forms. Sports betting is one of many available products that need regulations and best practices to help keep vulnerable people safe.

The American Gaming Association (AGA) provides a comprehensive marketing guide with best practices and guidelines written with the end user’s best interests in mind.

BestOdds.com believes whole-heartedly in these principles. We, too, believe the overwhelming majority of successful affiliates also believe and follow them.

But there is more besides responsible marketing practices we can all do to help those who show signs of a gambling problem

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financial plan.

I am a sports bettor. Sometimes I am pretty good at it, sometimes I’m not. But I always have a plan, including a bankroll management plan (BMP) before I start to place my bets.

Let’s have a look at what my own possible BMP could look like for an MLB baseball season.

• Sport of choice: MLB Baseball • Strategy: I only bet on AL East teams and when I think there is value on the moneyline, runline or over/under.

• Bet amount: I believe in betting one unit for every bet I make. We at BestOdds.com define a unit as 1% of the total bankroll you have set aside to bet with.

• My bankroll: For baseball season, I like to set aside $500, which must last me from April (the start of the season) until the end of September (end of season).

Malcolm Darnley or are seeking help. Affiliate brands should consider the following: • • • •

Be a voice.

Be a real live person.

Be an informed resource.

Be a company that has a plan and is active in helping those who want it.

BANKROLL MANAGEMENT One of the most enjoyable aspects of creating content at BestOdds.com is that we are challenged to ensure we create with the best interest of our end users in mind.

I personally love providing content on the importance of bankroll management and why every sports bettor needs to have a sound

If you look at my bankroll ($500) and my bet amount (one unit per bet) you can quickly deduce that I am a $5-per-game bettor.

Over the course of placing almost 400 bets in a baseball season, I will go through many winning and losing streaks. What I don’t ever do is chase my streaks by increasing my bet size. After the season ends, sometimes I am up money and sometimes I finish down money, but by only betting 1% of my bankroll and never increasing my bet amount, I am able to make my budget last the whole season. Bankroll management is a key part of being a successful sports bettor and it is a key part of making sure you are playing safely. Create a plan, set a budget and always stay within it. Now, if only the MLB owners and players could figure out a way to get along and have a season, we would be all set.

The above is an example of how an affiliate can truly help its end user. Go Blue Jays!

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BIG QUESTION

How is fast games developing as a popular branch of online casino?

Josip Vrbić, Managing Director for Seven Games

Josip Vrbić

Online casino is the most competitive and, for that reason, the most evolved online gambling category in my opinion. There are so many providers trying to attract as many players as possible to their product ecosystem.

Competition has skyrocketed online casino games to another level. It’s not easy to even imagine a slot game that doesn’t already exist as there are so many different visual styles, configurations, mechanics, and bonus games across the category.

Keeping in mind the hugely diverse slot game portfolios from various providers, it is not surprising to see new game branches developing in the online casino. As this category often has the highest number of visits and engagement among players, providers of casino games don’t want to miss their chance to position themselves in it. Everyone is hoping to bring a new product so that they can stand out, disturb the market and attract players into new ways of having fun. I see this as a natural stage of development.

It is not just tech. Everything around us and our lives happens at a fast-paced rhythm.

People want everything as fast as they can get it. Then they move on to the next thing.

NEW GAME MECHANICS At the moment, we can see the rise of new trademarked mechanics on the market.

All the game providers are working hard to offer players new ways to have fun in novel, unseen ways. Games that work in a different

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way from any known existing games, if done right, can easily catch a player's attention.

This is one of the ways to show yourself if you are not a top-notch provider. By just taking a small amount of traffic from slot games to these new games, providers can generate massive revenue in the short term while also making a good foundation for the future. One of the most popular new mechanics offers the player a greater sense of control over the game they are playing. The best example of this is the huge success of crash games.

SERVICES Not only the games, but also the services built on top of the games are becoming an integral and important part of better and faster online casino experiences. The social and multiplayer aspect of the game is making even the most simple ones attractive for players. Services such as tournaments, achievements and live chats are offering a completely new experience for players; as now they can interact with other people and have something of added value to compete and play for.

GAMING INSPIRED CASINO GAMES I think new casino games are increasingly inspired by gaming. While the first online casino games were inspired by land-based casinos, the new generation (the millennials) come with an online gaming background and are understandably more willing to engage with something they are familiar with. That is

BIG QUESTION

why we will see more gaming-inspired fast casino games in terms of the mechanics and dynamics of playing. The providers who manage to bring the excitement of gaming and the simplicity of gambling will find their way to the top for sure.

create even more space for the creative strike of fast casino games.

We can say one thing with certainty: the online casino will continue to lead the industry through innovation, toward exciting new paths.

TECH DEVELOPMENT As was the case in gambling before, with the further development of technology we will see new types of games and branches in online casinos. The rise of smartphones, which allows players to gamble anytime, has helped the development of fast-paced games.

Alongside this new medium, the development of some technologies, such as WebGL, will

Josip Vrbić is a Managing Director of NSoft’s Seven Games unit. With a strong background in UX/UI Design and Product design, Vrbić firstly led a design team within the company, before gaining a new role as a casino product owner. After establishing solid foundations for further development of this product branch within NSoft, Vrbić was appointed to the position of MD of the whole Games vertical.

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Araksi Sargsyan, Head of Business Development at DS Virtual Gaming

Araksi Sargsyan Fast games can be considered as one of the youngest disciplines in the iGaming industry, and one of the most thriving nowadays due to their simplicity and brevity. Many companies have begun to develop them, since the demand for fast games is not showing signs of subsiding. In order to get a share of adrenaline from them, one does not need to have special knowledge of the games themselves. The odds are calculated before the game round starts. This guarantees that they are not manipulated or dependent on the accepted bets. Also, access to these games is simple; through both computers and tablets, as well as through mobile devices. Some operators have even started accepting bets on this product in their betting shops.

It is worth noting that the logic of fast games is somewhat different from that of the classic slots we are used to. It is true that the games are constructed on the basis of RNG, however, fast games have many additional

characteristics of a sportsbook. The decisive element is that the player themself makes bets on outcomes and is thus not only dependent on luck. Giving control to players’ hands and enabling them to make their own decisions is a very attractive feature for any game. And herein lies the success behind those games. Here we can draw a parallel with a land-based or live casino, where an end user playing blackjack, baccarat or roulette chooses the positions that will allow them to win. Almost all fast game providers have a very captivating feature where you win before the round is over (Rocketon/Crash/Blast, etc.). There is a subtlety here, in that the player never knows when winning becomes impossible, and, with every fraction of a second, the odds on the bet grow, meaning an increase in potential winnings. Imagine yourself taking a win at odds of 2.5 and

watching the odds go up to 200 and higher!

This is a real test of endurance!

Interesting fact: the logic behind fast games makes it possible to transform absolutely any game into a fast game by adapting to the regional needs of a given operator. For example, the ancient Chinese game of Sic Bo, which appeared before the invention of paper, is ideal for the Asian market, while Brazil has been enthusiastic about Jogo do Bicho for two centuries already.

The peak of the popularity of fast games was reached in 2020, when all sporting events were suspended due to the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. Even with the lifting of restrictions, this discipline still has not lost its relevance, becoming an excellent offshoot of online casinos, and so available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for the whole year.

We think that the industry will soon see even more from the category of fast games as well as more providers. The demand for them will not subside and, with the legalisation of the gambling industry in new markets, the number of fans will be multiplied many times over.

In 2013, Araksi Sargsyan took her first steps in the online gaming segment as a Customer Service Representative at BetConstruct. She was quickly promoted to Account Manager, where she was in charge of developing B2B projects around the world. Subsequently, she left B2B to develop a B2C project in Kazakhstan. Then she worked as Business Development Manager for Latin America at Digitain.

With an active and entrepreneurial spirit, Araksi is since 2020 the Head of Business Development at DS Virtual Gaming, a leading brand in the virtual betting domain.

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BIG QUESTION

How is fast games developing as a popular branch of online casino?

Vladimir Malakchi, Chief Commercial Officer at Evoplay The majority of casino operators are in constant search of unique products to extend their game offer. Instant games meet this requirement. It makes the process of entering new markets much easier – instant games stand out against other gambling titles and draw players’ attention with their exclusiveness.

The most significant advantage of instant games over other types of online casino games is the freedom they give in developing, and therefore, reaching players and running the iGaming business. The fundamental merit of this lies in the absence of the traditional structure for gambling games – reels, lines, symbols and limitations in terms of ingame features.

In essence, it’s a free canvas that can be realised differently each time, and this is what makes instant games a good solution for game portfolio diversification. They allow for the implentation of a wide range of themes, storylines, mechanics and features, borrowing them from the experience of different verticals: from iGaming, gaming, and other verticals outside of these. And of course, this helps to differentiate the gambling experience and expand the audience of players by reaching other verticals.

Those who don’t take instant games seriously are losing an opportunity to reach a huge audience, including sports bettors and players from other gambling verticals.

It is essential to mention that wagering on sports comprises 40% of all the online betting activities (data from Visual Capitalist).

THE AUDIENCE OF INSTANT GAMES The potential of instant games is so huge that it covers almost all types of digital entertainment consumers – from conservative flash game players to the young generation interested in YouTube, Twitch and video games. As data from Statista shows, 4.5 billion people are engaged in digital entertainment, and they are of profound importance for instant game developers.

Classic casino games don’t impress this audience, that is a big challenge for all now as we’re shifting to the new generation of users.

Thus, a brand new type of gambling product is required. Instant games aren’t limited by mathematics, which allows them to meet the needs of a wider audience, in contrast to slots, which are narrowed by reels and rows.

The fast download on almost any device, availability of multiplayer gaming,

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social nature and the variety of game plots, make instant games viral. Interest in them grows organically. They have the potential to open new horizons in iGaming and become the next billion-dollar industry.

SPORTS BETTORS ARE ALREADY IN According to general statistics, almost 70% of sports bettors are willing to gamble. In addition, according to YPulse, 55% of 20-38-year-olds bet on sports, which shows that Millennials prefer the betting mechanics.

Bringing betting features to the football-themed instant game is a bright example of situational marketing that helps adapt gambling products to emerging demands and attract a new audience, sports bettors, to iGaming. Those companies that have analysed the market in a timely manner and created an alternative sports-themed game with the ability to place bets are still in a winning position, even though sporting events have returned. They have learned to interact with new audiences, adapt the product, what they offer to partners and players. Therefore, they are flexible in doing business, which has recently become perhaps the most important quality of business.

The last two years have demonstrated big successes in terms of satisfying the needs of sports bettors in light of the cancellation of such major sports events like Euro 2020.

The instant games sector will be actively developing in those regions where it can cover the demands of local entertainment preferences. For example, players from Romania, Serbia or Latin America, where football and wagering are highly popular, will enjoy instant games based on betting mechanics. Pachinko-themed games will appeal to Japanese players, etc.

CHALLENGES With such a large list of benefits, the question may arise as to why there aren't many gaming providers developing instant games.

They do have vast potential. The answer here is simple: instant games are a more complex product, requiring experience, creativity, and a unique approach. To develop a high-performance instant game, it is necessary to analyse its target audience, to understand their preferences and expectations of entertainment. However, even after this, it is impossible to bet on a product’s success with full confidence. Every instant game is a test, starting from scratch.

Vladimir Malakchi Saying this, I have no doubt the future of instant games is bright. Of course, they won’t substitute other verticals for non-casino players, but they will definitely attract them with a more gamified playing experience and diversity of mechanics.

A start-up entrepreneur at heart, Vladimir Malakchi has successfully scaled multiple early-stage companies across the tech space, including one of the world’s top five blockchain developers. Since joining the iGaming world in 2019, Vladimir Malakchi has applied his knowledge and expertise to develop strategic plans, manage business development teams and set key marketing objectives that became key to Evoplay’s outstanding success in the past two years.

THE INSIDERS In every issue, Gambling Insider commissions guest columns and interviews with people at the heart of the gaming industry – to discover more about the challenges its leaders, pioneers and innovators face. These contributors form The Insiders

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TODD SIMS SuzoHapp

ANDREA MCGEACHIN Neosurf

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ARSEN BARSEGYAN Atmosfera

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INSIDERS

TODD SIMS

SuzoHapp aiming for strong 2022 Gambling Insider speaks with SuzoHapp Vice President Todd Sims on his company’s goals for 2022 As the world finally returns to a semblance of normality, it is a good time to look forward to what the future holds; and Todd Sims, VP at SuzoHapp, has been doing just that. Indeed, Sims has spoken with Gambling Insider to examine what lies ahead for the gaming technology manufacturer in 2022. Find out below why sports betting is considered a natural next step for the firm, how the company is aiming to stand out and more.

What are SuzoHapp’s main targets for 2022?

We have a lot planned for 2022 and we’re very excited. With the continued rise in sports betting, you can expect to see some new, innovative solutions from us this year.

We aim to open up the market with new terminal designs for every casino or sportsbook.

We are also in the process of updating our ecommerce platform and are very excited to provide customers with a new, easier way to shop with us. Lastly, we’re excited to see our customers face-to-face again at sales meetings and tradeshows. Last year's G2E was really the first time we saw people come out en masse, although it was still a bit muted compared to the pre-pandemic years. We hope to see more of our customers this year as the tradeshow makes its comeback.

Is your product range changing right now, given trends in the industry such as cashless, digitalisation and the effects of the pandemic?

Absolutely! During the pandemic, I think we can all safely say we spent a lot of time on our phones in isolation and quarantine.

A lot of interesting gaming and sports betting innovations emerged on apps. Now that we’re resuming in-person activity, customers are looking for a seamless transition between the two. Additionally, with restrictions and safety measures, customers became accustomed to minimised interactions with people, and increased kiosk and self-service opportunities. Success, moving forward, is having products that combine the digital and

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"We’re excited to see our customers face-to-face again at sales meetings and tradeshows"

phone experiences with physical retail locations, aligning them in a straightforward way for customers to choose how involved they want to be. Over the next year or two you’ll see a heavy focus on those digital-forward interactions, ecommerce, and cashless.

Can you tell us more about your focus on sports betting and lottery components?

Because of our relationships and partnerships with industry suppliers, we can ensure the best lifetime value with our designs and expertise.

How does what you’re doing make you stand out against your competitors?

We have over 30 years of experience in the industry and a worldwide network of partners, which is a powerful combination in this market.

After years in the gaming industry, sports SuzoHapp is a trusted hardware expert. betting was a natural next step for us – especially We allow our customers to keep their focus on as we had been in the European sports betting their game, while we take on the burden market for years. We are able to assist platform of hardware compatibility. We believe providers by designing retail solutions from top we are the only callyou need to make, to bottom with elements that we know will with an array of products, and an ability work in high-use, high-traffic environments, to quickly and effectively design custom and customise the experience to fit specific needs. solutions to fit your needs.

ANDREA MCGEACHIN

INSIDERS

Delivering on conversions Andrea McGeachin, CCO of Neosurf, talks to Gambling Insider about the role of payments in supporting gambling regulations Do payments providers support the operator or merely provide a generic service? Yes, we should support and make sure operators know how we do that.

In providing that support, however, the imperative is not just for payments companies to create their own rules that add complications and kill conversions; but rather to embed systems that both respect the regulatory obligations and at the same time drive up conversions.

There are some territories where gambling regulations are very clear and actually some where both the payments and the gambling regulations are clear.

But there are countries where they aren’t – and operators need clarity. Particularly in those areas where the rule sets are ill defined, or indeed are onerous.

Payments servicers offer the capacity to provide an enormous support function to operators in the management of AML and fraud, and transparency of this support to the operator is key.

Traceability of non-KYC vouchers is a big discussion point across Europe, where many countries adopt the MLR5 standard rule of €100/€150 ($108-163) maximum purchase value. In the Netherlands, for example, the KSA (not a payment regulator but as a gambling regulator dictating payment rules in online gambling) requests traceability of the non-KYC vouchers, but its real definition of this is not listed. Some payment methods chose to tick a box and create an extra three steps for the players.

It meets the regulation for sure, but the player experience deteriorates and there is a much easier method to achieve this requirement without hurting the player experience.

So businesses like Neosurf have had to apply themselves to identifying and implementing solutions that meet a broad range of situations.

They’ve had to use a dual lens, on the one side supporting the operators’ regulatory minefield, and the other on delivering a seamless experience.

Some payments services have created new

user experiences to add KYC before spending, forcing players to use wallets. The resultant user experience is frequently a clunky one that kills conversions.

Keeping the bad players out and the good players converting within local gambling rules is the payments responsibility, and part of the overall relationship with the operator.

Again, this balances the management of the regulatory risk, and the business goal of optimal conversions.

This demands care and attention, and when it comes to the local payments and APMs that are considered higher risk to AML and fraud (not that they are; it is a perception), the ability to provide clean conversions while ensuring the operator has security needs to be a joint effort.

USER EXPERIENCE DOESN’T HAVE TO BE CLUNKY

The technology out there enables smart execution. For example, we analyse and learn from the digital lenders and banks that facilitate optimised onboarding and KYC. Onboarding is built on the game-changing principle of dynamic conversations. It onboards

more customers at a lower cost while reducing regulatory risk.

In total, 43% of players surveyed cite ‘application processes taking too long’ as the biggest reason for abandonment.

Also, prospective players abandon their deposits for any number of reasons, but many routes to failure result from one simple fundamental…. that every player is different and needs to be treated differently.

Today’s generic digital customer onboarding journeys are inadequate. Their one-size-fits-all static web forms try to find a compromise between stakeholders’ conflicting demands but fail to deliver any of them well.

The answer in improving alignment to regulatory compliance lies in leveraging the rich digital big data world we live in, while exploiting advances in personalised player onboarding and orchestration.

This functionality is served by platforms like PrinSIX that use what/if styled workflow scripts to personalise KYC questioning scripts around the given answers. It enables the fastest user onboarding experience without asking firms to re-engineer their IT. The same technology wizardry used to deliver this richer level of KYC also happens to be useful in maximising commercial opportunity, allowing payments wallets and operators to say ‘yes’ more often because of a richer appreciation of both regulatory and compliance risk.

In addition, the dynamic user journeys adopted by financial institutions elsewhere are valuable, proven assets the payments businesses can adopt and embed in their models for the operators. The journeys develop dynamically, as a player’s details and behaviours are understood rapidly and intuitively. This ensures that any sign of vulnerability is fully explored, as well as potential issues such as geolocation vs where they should be living.

This range of tools is now available for use by payment providers to deliver unique behavioural insights, granular tracking, predictive outcomes, risk controls and commercial controls.

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INSIDERS

JOHN CONNELLY

ETGs: Continued momentum Interblock Global CEO John Connelly discusses the supplier’s “aggressive” online strategies, labour plans and what’s on the horizon for the firm in the coming months

"Casinos are seeing a new player category enter the casino floor, which is, as a result, driving incremental revenue and providing operational efficiencies" only increased. At Interblock we will be releasing several new products, features and functionality to help operators address this financial burden. The focus will be to help optimise the number of employees needed to run a casino floor, while utilising technology to increase the decisions per hour and house advantage for casinos globally.

How is 2022 progressing compared to Interblock’s expectations so far?

The initial indications for 2022 are positive and show continued momentum within the Electronic Table Game (ETG) segment.

North America has led the global recovery from Covid-19, while the international regions around the world are finally showing positive trends we have not seen since 2019.

We are also experiencing a new level of interest from casino operators to expand their ETG footprints, with the objective to address both labour shortages and increased labour expenses. This combines with operator desire to yield up traditional table games and utilise ETGs, to increase handle and house advantage.

As a result of this migration towards live table game technology, casinos are seeing a new player category enter the casino floor, which is, as a result, driving incremental revenue and providing operational efficiencies.

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How are your plans for online developing?

Entering the B2B online business is one of the highest priorities for our company in 2022. We are aggressively working on various strategies to take the product portfolio and unique play actions to the online community.

However, I prefer to talk more about this once we are live.

We have noted a number of new hiring events from within the industry. How is the sector more widely in the US looking to address labour shortages?

Without question, this challenge has helped fuel the growth of ETGs within the North American Region. This trend seems to be becoming more relevant each year and, with the indications of inflation becoming more of a reality, the demand for automation and new forms of product offerings has

What is on the horizon for Interblock over the coming months?

The culture of Interblock is very much dedicated to innovation and, therefore, we spend a considerable portion of our time concentrated in this area. This combined with the need to scale our company on a quarterly basis due to the considerable growth we are experiencing within the ETG segment has been a necessary focal point. The ability to support our customers in a more economically diverse manner is driving many of our decisions heading into 2022.

This obviously encompasses our desire to go online and expand our product offering to new demographics within the gaming industry on a global scale. Interblock will continue to find new ways to help casino operators find incremental revenue, reduce operating expenses and remain competitive against new forms of entertainment. 2022 will be a great year for our industry and we hope to make Covid a distant memory in the months to come.

ARSEN BARSEGYAN

INSIDERS

Atmosfera: The market has adapted Atmosfera Studio Director and Senior Partner Arsen Barsegyan speaks to Gambling Insider about the company's goals for 2022, while also reflecting on how the industry has changed in 2021 interacting with our team or a person reading a publication about us.

What are Atmosfera's biggest goals and targets this year?

There is an axiom that 80% of revenue is generated by 20% of partners. It works for us today as well. I see the remaining 80% as a huge point of growth and boost for the company.

"I think this is one of the few industries where the market is growing so accurately and steadily"

How does Atmosfera reflect on 2021?

2021 was a great year for us. We’ve grown as a team, improved our expertise and increased the number of partners. We have succeeded in every aspect of the company’s development; in some more, in others less, but in practice we are on the right track. Our company has a very well-trained system. We know how to endure and overcome difficulties: they make us stronger. We learn to admit failures, make conclusions and let go of what pulls us down.

As a result, last year we deactivated a number of ineffective products.

How much did the gaming industry change in 2021?

It seems like the market has adapted to the consequences of Covid. The competition in the leading positions has increased. I like the way Pragmatic Play is developing.

The upward trend continues from year to year. I think this is one of the few industries where the market is growing so accurately and steadily.

What are the biggest challenges you face now that we are into 2022?

The main challenge for us this year is to develop our own pool of marketing instruments to attract and retain end users.

Starting in March, we have launched a series of tournaments, both local for big partners and our network. At the end of the quarter, we are preparing and planning a unique tool in the live casino sector for attracting players. These are the interesting hypotheses we believe in.

I want Atmosfera to fill its niche of positive emotions in 2022 and everyone to have a great feeling mentioning it, whether it be a player enjoying our products, a partner

I understand how business can move and grow when you work with a big partner from a different field. Now we are communicating with some big players in the market. I admit that the vector of this communication will determine the development of Atmosfera in the future.

Finally, if you were granted one wish to improve the gaming industry, what would it be?

About 3-4 years ago gambling was driven by a certain set of emotions, such as the synergy of excitement, openness, people who support it from the inside, some kind of freedom in the good word sense, craziness that encouraged me to be here right now. I notice from various events, exhibitions, publications, how it is being more regulated, depriving its unique spirit.

I want to live and develop in the way that I used to a couple of years ago. Hopefully, in 2022 I feel it again.

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FEATURES

PRODUCT REVIEWS

WHAT’S NEW ON THE MARKET As the land-based industry slowly but surely finds its feet again, Gambling Insider takes a close look at some of the exciting products that are now available on the casino floor INTERBLOCK: DIAMOND GOLDEN BALL ROULETTE The Diamond Golden Ball Roulette adds an exciting twist to a classic table game favourite with an additional Golden Ball released from the generator at random intervals that is tied to a side bet!

Bolstered with never-before-seen patented technology, this exciting game provides Roulette players with an opt-in side bet designed to increase entertainment, time on device, and the hold percentage of this traditional game.

The product is dressed up in a new golden outfit and supplemented with an additional golden ball released from the generator at random intervals. This is a unique, standalone product where the regular Roulette game is played in a more exciting way. With the Lucky Number and Golden Mystery side bets, a lucky winner can vastly increase their earnings.

Playing the Golden Ball Roulette game with the Lucky Number side bet, the player is given a chance to select their lucky number along with playing the Roulette game the regular way. If a lucky number is selected and a golden ball is released onto the rim, the side bet automatically wins with a 3 to 1 payout, regardless of where the ball lands. If, additionally, the golden ball lands on the chosen lucky number, the payout increases to 350 to 1.

Interblock is a worldwide leading developer and supplier of luxury electronic table gaming products. Its multi-player gaming devices set industry standards and provide the ultimate luxury interactive entertainment experiences.

The Interblock brand is globally recognised

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for diamond-quality gaming solutions and technical support in more than 258 jurisdictions.

Interblock’s exclusive collection of fully and semi-automated electronic gaming tables and

Diamond Golden Ball Roulette

video gaming solutions provide casinos, arcades, and gambling halls with superior product performance and their guests with an unforgettable gaming experience.

PRODUCT REVIEWS

Triple Sparkle, DIMENSION 49

KONAMI GAMING: TRIPLE SPARKLE, DIMENSION 49 Operators are seeing special success with Konami’s new Triple Sparkle games on DIMENSION 49.

Imperial Wealth Triple Sparkle, Majestic Moon Triple Sparkle, and Lotus Land Triple Sparkle are Konami’s latest Triple Sparkle games, and all three are currently ranked in the industry’s top indexing new games, for core video reel titles.

“For years, players have enjoyed Konami’s sparkle feature, which first debuted on Solstice Celebration. Now that we have expanded this proven mechanic to include three sparkle transformations and the chance at an instant progressive jackpot, the mechanic has resulted in an industry-leading new game series,” said

TRONIUS GAMING AND GAMEART: ARGO THREE-SCREEN MULTI-GAME MACHINE Tronius Gaming in collaboration with GameArt, an independent online casino software provider, has developed a new, high-quality, three-screen multi-game machine called ARGO. Featuring popular slot titles that players around the world already know and love, the ARGO cabinet offers the perfect solution for casinos, arcades, gambling halls and other gaming environments.

The Tronius multi-game machines, powered

by GameArt, are developed by gaming professionals with more than 20 years of industry experience and are well known for their technical perfection and innovation.

ARGO slot cabinets are created to be flexible and configurable. They can be installed individually or arranged in groups of several slot machines, according to the available area at the casino floors and the specific operators’ requirements. Operators can easily configure their machines with a choice of GameArt’s high-quality slots from their extensive portfolio of games.

The combination of the cabinets’ high quality with GameArt’s best performing game titles is what makes these machines unique and appealing to operators. They also deliver the best experience possible to players as they contain

Eduardo Aching, Vice President of International Gaming Operations at Konami Gaming, Inc. “We’re very happy to offer these Triple Sparkle games to properties and players in Europe and Latin America.”

Solstice Celebration Triple Sparkle and Riches with Daikoku Triple Sparkle were the first Triple Sparkle progressive games to arrive to players, by way of Konami’s Concerto line of cabinets. Triple Sparkle’s proven betting structure incentivises higher bets for a greater chance of a higher jackpot. Whenever framed Action Stacked Symbols undergo a third transformation, players can win a Mini bonus, Major bonus, Mega progressive, or large Maxi progressive.

All Triple Sparkle games can link compatibly, or can be placed as standalone progressives.

These top slots are featured on DIMENSION 49, a flat screen version of the award-winning DIMENSION 49J. DIMENSION 49 shares nearly all the same key elements of the premium DIMENSION 49J curved machine - including its sleek design, 4K ultra-high-definition (UHD) graphics, and custom-engineered button interface.

Konami’s DIMENSION 49 and latest Triple Sparkle slots are arriving now to markets around the globe.

FEATURES

ergonomic features that ensure maximum comfort.

The ARGO multi-game machines come packed with features including one 27’’ PCAP main monitor with touch screen, two 27’’ non-touch PCAP monitors, a high-quality stereo sound system, and ambient LED illumination along the cabinet.

ARGO also accommodates GameArt’s Mystery Jackpot (three different Mystery Jackpots – Bronze, Silver and Gold). Each of the Mystery Jackpots can be individually set up. The formation of the Mystery Jackpot values is based on the stakes placed on all machines during the game, and each Mystery Jackpot can be won randomly by each gaming machine.

GameArt is ISO 9001-certified and has also obtained GLI11 certification for its multi-game machines.

ARGO three-screen multi-game machine

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FEATURES

PRODUCT REVIEWS

ZUUM: BASKETBALL ROULETTE ZUUM Basketball Roulette is an attractive extension of the roulette game featured on the new Grand Crystal 2 machine.

It adds a side bet to the roulette game which lowers the player’s RTP, brings additional players to the table and extends time on device. It especially attracts younger players to the classic game of roulette due to high dynamics and great visual appeal. The game is available as an extension for either single zero or double zero roulette game.

The players can participate in the side bet and win up to 500:1 in an exciting basketball match. When the match starts, the topper screen entertains the players at the machine with premium 3D animations showing the basketball arena with the crowd cheering and action occurring on the court. Powerful music with an excellent commentator is added to additionally build the excitement at the machine.

All this is presented on the new Grand Crystal 2 machine which features luxury design, premium sound system and unparalleled 4K graphics on the player stations and the topper screen. The King topper adds additional appeal with the exquisite lines and the LED ring making sure that the players can quickly spot the

machine in the casino.

With more than 15 years of experience, ZUUM has developed several specific electronic table games to provide customers with numerous attractions for players.

In addition to Roulette, it has in its portfolio other classic table games including Blackjack, Baccarat, Sic Bo, Craps and some Bingo variations. All machines are available in different configurations from standalone stations, round and oval compact tables to ZUUM Coliseum Theatre with custom number of stations and games connected.

This ensures extreme flexibility putting ZUUM machines on the floor.

“Our vision is to offer our clients products which are competitive and exclusive both in quality and technology.

Customers praise the reliability of our machines, and we are really proud of that,” says Mitja Kolman, President of ZUUM.

ARUZE GAMING: LUCKY ROULETTE Aruze Gaming, the company known for pushing the boundaries of the traditional casino experience, continues to elevate the fun with fan favourite, Lucky Roulette. The hybrid virtual and physical take on this beloved game continues to dazzle casino goers and firmly secures Aruze Gaming’s place as the premier provider of innovative casino products that players everywhere love to play.

Lucky Roulette is a “hybrid roulette” that combines classic mechanical elements with state-of-the-art projection mapping technology.The HD projector displays high-resolution graphics of the roulette wheel onto the large, spinning mechanical wheel.

The result is a beautiful, crisp,

Lucky Roulette

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Basketball Roulette hyper-realistic 3-D visual experience that melds the appeal of a traditional roulette wheel with vibrant graphics that significantly enhance the gaming experience. Interactive graphics track the spinning physical ball, punctuated by a variety of fantastically changing game scenes designed to uplevel the player experience. Players bring their friends to enjoy this interactive game and its exciting JackPot Chance bonus.

The extra-large spinning wheel further adds to the player engagement. To meet property and player demand, Lucky Roulette can be configured in stations ranging from 8 to 50.

Aruze Gaming is the leader in delivering unique and engaging gaming entertainment.

Utilising the latest technologies and designed specifically with the player in mind, Aruze delivers on the promises of fun, innovation and quality.

Aruze’s foundation is also built on servicing its operators and partners at the highest level. Operating in nearly 40 countries, the company is licensed in more than 194 gaming jurisdictions.

Aruze Gaming was established in Nevada in 1983.

FEATURES

PRODUCT REVIEWS

NOVOMATIC: DIAMOND X™ 2.32 Captivating design, incorporating a black metro finish contrasted by a dynamic LED lighting concept that creates a visually enclosed framework for the crisp presentation of game content.

All that meets ergonomic exterior design, comprising all the best angles plus ample foot space. The DIAMOND X™ 2.32 presents an exceptional accomplishment in cabinet design, presented by NOVOMATIC for brilliant performance and suitably complementing NOVOMATIC’s market-leading portfolio of games.

The new cabinet’s most intriguing visual elements are certainly the facelift of the grill on the front door panel as well as the indirect silhouette lighting concept,

DIAMOND X™ 2.32

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featuring LEDs for the intelligent game-synched colour effects. Main monitor features are two large 32” full HD game screens with PCAP touch on the bottom screen plus a sophisticated, integrated topper that blends in perfectly with the machine.

The standard player interface signals a return to a purist approach with a straightforward button deck. The discerning operator can optionally choose to specify a 15.6” TouchDeck™ that is complemented by two extra-large physical buttons for familiar reel spin haptics. Player convenience is further catered for by an XL footwell, an optional USB charger and an integrated high-performance sound system. Floor staff will value the maintenance-friendly door

concept that grants excellent access to the key components.

Jakob Rothwangl, VP Global Sales NOVOMATIC AG, said: “The DIAMOND X™ 2.32 perfectly exemplifies our very focused approach for 2022: future-focused, business-oriented and committed to our customers’ demands.

This cabinet is the product of intensive R&D efforts, meticulous discussions with customers, distributors and regional units as well as in depth research of market requirements – all with the one purpose to create a future generation gaming cabinet that sets the new standard for what is yet to come. We aimed high, but what our engineers came up with, was even beyond our expectations.”

CONNECTIONS

FOR SALES TEL: +44 (0) 207 729 6279

A

EveryMatrix

www.everymatrix.com T: +40 3 7104 2222 E: info@everymatrix.com

Aruze Gaming

www.aruzegaming.com T: +1 70 2361 3166 E: sales@aruze-gaming.com

Evolution

www.evolution.com E: asrealasitgets@evolution.com

AstroPay

Elys Game Technology

www.astropay.com

www.elysgame.com T: +1 62 8258 5148

B

Exacta Solutions

BBIN

www.exactasolutions.com T: +356 2134 4249 E: info@exactasolutions.com

www.bb-in.com E: service@mail.bb-in.com

bet365

www.bet365.com T: +44 80 0028 8365 E: support-eng@customerservices365.com

F FastTrack

Betradar

www.betradar.com T: +41 7 1517 7200 E: sales@betradar.com

BtoBet

www.btobet.com E: sales@btobet.com

T: +44 113 320 2245 E: letsgo@fasttrack-solutions.com

G Gaming Arts

www.gamingarts.com T: +1 702 818 8943

BetConstruct

www.betconstruct.com T: +44 20 3709 9010 E: sales@betconstruct.com

C

Global Payments Gaming Solutions

www.globalpaymentsgaming.com T: 702-822-7000 E: tiona.petty@globalpay.com

Greentube

Continent 8

www.greentube.com T: +43 1 90 171 E: office@greentube.com

www.continent8.com T: +44 16 2467 8888 E: sales@continent8.com

D Digitain LLC

H Habanero

www.digitain.com T: +3 74 6070 0400 E: info@digitain.com

I

E EvenBet Gaming

www.evenbetgaming.com T: +3 56 2776 1655 E: sales@evenbetgaming.com 80

www.habanerosystems.com E: sales@habanerosystems.com

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IGT

www.igt.com T: + 1 702 669 7777 E: info@igt.com

FOR SALES EMAIL: SALES@GAMBLINGINSIDER.COM Interblock

www.interblockgaming.com E: info@interblockgaming.com

CONNECTIONS

R Raven Track

www.raventrack.com T: 07799 898 175 E: adam@raventrack.com

K

Relax Gaming

Kambi

www.relax-gaming.com E: sales@relax-gaming.com

www.kambi.com T: +356 21315514 E: sales@kambi.com

S

L

Suzo Happ

www.na.suzohapp.com T: 888-289-4277 E: sales@suzohapp.com

LeoVegas Affiliates

leovegasaffiliates.com T: +356 27780258 E: affiliate@leovegas.com

Lightning Box

www.lightningboxgames.com E: info@lightningboxgames.com

T Trustly Group AB www.trustly.com E: sales@trustly.com

M MERKUR GAMING

www.merkur-gaming.com T: +49 5741 2736 9301 E: sales@merkur-gaming.com

N NEOSURF

www.business.neosurf.com T: +44 1483 3630 91 E: sales@neosurf.com

V VallettaPay

www.vallettapay.com T: +44 151 947 0483 E: info@vallettapay.com

W World Match

www.worldmatch.eu T: +39 049 785 1905 E: sales@worldmatch.eu

NOVOMATIC

www.novomatic.com T: +43 2252 606 0 E: communications@novomatic.com

P

Y Yggdrasil Gaming

www.yggdrasilgaming.com E: sales@yggdrasilgaming.com

Pariplay

www.pariplayltd.com T: +3 56 2756 3725 E: info@pariplayltd.com

Pragmatic Play

www.pragmaticplay.com E: sales@pragmaticplay.com

Pronet Gaming

www.pronetgaming.com T: +44 (0)20 3814 8084 E: sales@pronetgaming.com

Z Zitro

www.zitrogames.com T: +352 266 33 E: info@zitrogames.com

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FINAL WORD Gambling Insider spoke with 1X2 Network CEO Kevin Reid for an inside perspective on the state of iGaming Could you tell us a bit about your background and, given your earlier career in the financial sector, why the pivot into gaming?

Gaming seemed a natural fit for me as my family had been involved in bookmaking for a long time. When I entered the industry, online gambling was really taking off, and driving growth for our business and across the wider sector was a challenging but appealing prospect.

Moving from finance to online gambling might seem like a very different career path to take, but both have a fast-paced, cut-throat environment mixed with a sense of old school trust in business relationships. I really enjoy that part of it.

I’ve been in gaming a long time now and I love almost every second of it (maybe not 9am on day three of a conference!) and I won’t be pivoting anywhere else again.

1X2 Network was an early iGaming business, so how have things changed overall in the past two decades?

As a company, we’ve been through many different iterations and had lots of different lead products – virtuals, 3x3 slots, fruit games, premium slots, branded games and more. I’m not sure anybody at 1X2 Network would have predicted a couple of years ago that we’d be about to release a multiplayer crash game, but we are and that shows just how quickly this industry moves.

Over the years we have professionalised and added processes, we’ve doubled headcount in a short space of time and we’ve added new offices in new locations.

1X2 Network has changed from the outside but also internally and that always leads to new challenges, new opinions and new strategies; which means at times it feels like a completely different business than when I joined. Luckily,

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we’ve retained the experience from all those years and that’s what makes us a unique and strong proposition.

Following on from that, as a new generation comes through and is able to gamble, what are companies, including yourself, doing to capture this audience – especially given how tech-savvy it is compared to older demographics?

The new generation is coming through at a time when we’ve also seen the biggest ever move from land-based gaming to online due to the pandemic. With competing audiences, we’ve focused on diversifying our content; having multiple studios allows us to do that.

For that new generation mentioned, we’re looking at games that have a lot happening but also make it clear to the player what they’re trying to achieve. The sense of community gaming they have traditionally enjoyed is definitely linked to the rise of crash games.

We try to keep games, whether they’re slots or alternatives, looking sharp, fresh and modern – even if they’re a retro-themed title.

Collectable mechanics often come up when we talk about the new generation that has transitioned from console gaming, but I believe that barely scratches the surface of how games will keep evolving to meet their needs.

While we’re discussing design, how much do responsible gambling considerations influence your design choices?

We’re very keen to adhere to all responsible gambling regulations and the spirit of those rules. Age gating or keeping games behind a login in markets such as the UK tends to see a game’s performance drop, so there’s also a commercial reason to make sure we get those games right.

Responsible gambling is something that we consider from an early stage, starting with

the game concept. Of course, there are other regulations like the spin speed that impact a game and we’ve tried to think about those elements with our UI, as well. It’s a constantly moving industry so we have to be mindful at all times or we’ll fall behind.

"We’ve seen the biggest ever move from land-based gaming to online" Staying on that topic, what else does 1X2 do, more broadly, on the responsible gambling front; and how has the industry’s approach to social responsibility changed?

Our focus on regulated markets is a key way in which we support responsible gambling.

In my opinion, it’s the best way to tackle gambling-related harm and so going into these markets as early as they become available is an important step to support this.

There are other initiatives that we are involved with, too. This includes Responsible Gambling Week, which we take part in and promote over our social media. Being involved in panel discussions and talking about it in industry press is another step that's important, as it allows us to show other companies within the industry that we are committed to safe gaming.

This ultimately grows the movement and that’s important, as we need to hit the critical mass of suppliers and operators working for responsible gambling changes – to enact the right level of change required.