SBC CIS Editorial Team is happy to present a quick recap of the gambling industry events, news, regulations and partnerships that happened last week.
SBC Media launched a new podcast — iGaming Daily — analysing the industry’s significant stories from all over the globe. Overseen by SBC Multimedia Editor James Ross it features a rotating cast of experts from all of SBC’s vast network of news portals, and beyond. The show switches through industry verticals and geographic regions, from Europe to the US and LatAm, from sports betting to casino and gaming.
In the first instance of the iGaming Daily podcast, its host James Ross joined by SBC Content Director Ted Menmuir and SBC News Senior Journalist Ted Orme-Claye explored the cost of living and affordability issues, the impact of gambling on society, and the challenges that the iGaming industry faces regarding problem gambling, advertising practices, and the relationships between operators and consumers, and operators and regulators.
Viktoriya Zakrevskaya, a Ukrainian gambling reform expert, sat down with SBC CIS for an interview in which she talked about the current state of the Ukrainian gambling market, looming dissolution of Ukrainian gambling regulator and imposing of sanctions on the Ukrainian operators Parimatch and PokerMatch.
In Malta, a bill is being considered to protect local gambling licensees from prosecution outside the country. If the law is passed, offshore operators licensed in Malta will be able to freely accept bets in European markets. The bill, which is being discussed by parliamentarians, is aimed at amending the law in order to free the Maltese courts from the obligation to hold gambling companies liable on the basis of decisions made outside the country.
UKGC is seeking payment from SkillOnNet in lieu of a £305,150 as a financial penalty for breaches of social responsibility and anti-money laundering measures. UKGC explained that SkillOnNet had failed to prevent the use of gambling for, or related to criminal activities, to ensure that gambling is conducted in a fair and open manner, and to protect vulnerable groups from harm and exploitation.
In Lithuania Q1’2023 gambling revenues increased by 26.1%. This growth was noted in both online and land-based segments. For the period from January 1 up to March 31, total gambling revenue in Lithuania amounted to 55.3 million euros, which exceeded last year’s results (43.9 million euros).
888 Holdings reached an agreement to sell its Latvian business to Finnish gaming operator Paf for €28.3 million. Paf says it expects the deal to close in the coming weeks, giving them full control of William Hill and Mr Green’s operations in Latvia through the WilliamHill.lv and MrGreen.lv domains.
Entain is getting ready to increase its footprint in Oceania with the approval of the TAB NZ strategic partnership, backed by the New Zealand Minister of Racing. The terms of the 25-year partnership have already been agreed upon, under which Entain will pay the total consideration amount and receive remuneration based on the current gross profit sharing agreement for the provision of the rate services offered by TAB NZ. The agreement also includes maintenance of two linear broadcasting channels and about 500 outlets.
GR8 Tech developed innovative gaming products iGaming Launch and iGaming Update, offering a personalised solution for growing the gambling operators’ business. GR8 Tech has built each solution on its own platform, which includes a wide range of modules: CRM, payment gateway, PAM (asset management platform), seamless wallet, CMS (content management system) and analytics module. The Cypriot tech company expands its B2B reach by offering casinos and bookmakers two products that can be seamlessly integrated with external platforms as standalone solutions. The package also includes product customization tools, an extensive API, player migration tools, and a high-load platform to handle heavy workloads.
EveryMatrix was certified in Bulgaria. Licensees in Bulgaria, including existing EveryMatrix client Kaizen and aggregation partners including EGT Digital, will gain access to a wide range of SlotMatrix games from EveryMatrix studios Armadillo and Spearhead.
SOFTSWISS was awarded the title of Best Sports Betting Provider in the Baltic States at the Baltic and Scandinavian Gaming Awards 2023. This recognition confirms their leading position in the region. The award is based on the brand’s own software platform for online sports betting, the SOFTSWISS Sportsbook Platform.
MaxBet.ro players in Romania can now try their hand at online slots thanks to a deal with Stakelogic. As part of the deal, MaxBet.ro will add Stakelogic’s content to its gaming lobby for the first time. The integration was carried out with the assistance of EveryMatrix aggregator.
Spinomenal and Novibet announced their new partnership whereby Spinomenal content will be delivered through the EveryMatrix Casino Engine platform. Spinomenal is expanding its presence in the iGaming world through a partnership with Novibet, now offering its extensive catalogue of slot games to players in Ireland and several countries in Latin America. This latest agreement also significantly expands Spinomenal’s presence in the Greek market, following the company’s A1 manufacturer’s licence from HCG earlier this year.
IPPlum joined the Minsk Hi-Tech Park (HTP) as a new resident developing a solution for the gambling industry. IPPlum is currently working on the LiveStream project, which is a combination of hardware and software to transform traditional land-based casinos. The company is developing a solution that will allow gambling establishments to provide services for capturing and transmitting video streams from physical gaming tables and slot machines.
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