Online sportsbook and casino operator 777.be has extended its contract with Belgium’s most famous Hollywood star, Jean-Claude Van Damme, through 2022. 

The operator will be launching a new campaign featuring Van Damme later this week, across national television, plus YouTube and other digital channels. In keeping with today’s socially responsible climate, the new campaign casts Van Damme as a “benevolent hero” on a mission to teach customers about knowing their limits.

Commenting on the news Head of Gaming at 777.be, Jean-Christophe Choffray, said:

“We are delighted to have Jean-Claude Van Damme on board to help us educate our players about responsible game play. Moderation is essential, and with this campaign Van Damme very effectively combines his talents and humour to get this very important message across to our players.”

Van Damme originally teamed up with 777.be back in March 2019, starring in two TV spots, and becoming the face of the online casino and sportsbook. According to the company, the ads featuring the martial arts legend have racked up 13 million views on YouTube alone.

AYO.NEWS says:

777.be are demonstrating that the power of celebrity can also be harnessed to deliver advertising that also educates about responsible gambling – something the UK’s Committees of Advertising Practice (CAP) might want to pay attention to, given their conviction that celebrities should be banned from gambling advertising. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Digital gaming product provider GameArt has partnered with Stakelogic to take advantage of its Greenlogic® program.

The partnership means GameArt will now have access to more than 500 operators around the world, through the developer’s partner platform, significantly expanding the provider’s global reach. 

Stakelogic’s Greenlogic® partner platform offers access to some of the biggest names in the industry, including Mr Green, EveryMatrix, Pokerstars, and Betsson, and has attracted both established and startup providers. 

Using ‘The Enriched Wrapper’, the Greenlogic® program allows game studios to easily add their slot content to Stakelogic’s portfolio, allowing them to instead focus on game development. 

Discussing the partnership CEO of Stakelogic, Stephan van den Oetelaar, said:

“Our Greenlogic® partner program has been an unparalleled success to date, and this is only emphasised by GameArt becoming the latest studio to sign on.

“It is our aim at Stakelogic to provide the very best gaming content available, either through our own talented in-house studio or via the impressive capabilities of  independent studios who may be finding it hard to gain a foothold in such a competitive market place.

“GameArt is a stellar signing for Greenlogic® and we look forward to working with their team for many years to come.” 

While CEO of GameArt, Stefano Picone, added:

“This is a pivotal moment in GameArt’s history and one which demonstrates the level of excellence our dedicated team have reached in the art of game development.

“Being able to offer our extensive library of games to even more operators across even more markets is a very exciting prospect, and one which we intend to grasp with both hands.” 

Staying with Stakelogic, last week the Dutch developer entered the Estonian market with operator partner Optibet, while in September the company announced it was expanding its presence in the Isle of Man.

The huge potential of the betting and gaming markets in Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Georgia is set to be a central theme of SBC Digital Summit CIS on 4 – 5 November.

The virtual conference and exhibition comes as many operators are seeking new opportunities away from the fierce competition in Europe’s established regulated markets, while at the same time some governments in the CIS region have identified gambling as a potentially lucrative source of tax revenue. 

SBC and its local partner, Sports Media Holding, have compiled an agenda that will see 75 senior executive speakers examine what the rapidly-changing market conditions mean for operators and suppliers, where the largest opportunities are located, and how to make the most of them.

Georgia is the example that many in the industry would like to see the rest of the region follow. It has regulated land-based casinos, betting shops and gaming halls, with licence holders also permitted to offer equivalent online activities. 

As a result, the gambling industry has become a vital part of the Georgian economy, accounting for 8.4% of the country’s total business revenue in 2017. Operators generate more than GEL135 million (€35.3 million) a year in taxes, while the thriving casino resorts are an important driver of income for the tourism sector. 

The potential of the online market, which has achieved a 40% compound annual growth rate since 2016, has already caught the eye of major international operators. Flutter purchased a controlling stake in Georgia’s largest online sportsbook and casino Adjarabet last year, to follow GVC and Betsson, owners of Crystalbet and Europebet respectively, into the market. 

The Georgia – The Gaming Hub of CIS? panel at SBC Digital Summit CIS will provide an in-depth examination of how this success was achieved, what can be done to further improve the model, and what opportunities exist for potential new market entrants. 

Georgia is not the only established regulated market in the region; its southern neighbour Armenia, for example, also has a licensing regime that permits online sports betting and casinos. However, both nations have populations below four million, and there are some significantly larger markets set to open up in the region over the next 12 months. 

In Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government has passed legislation to end the country’s 11-year prohibition on all forms of gambling other than lotteries. The new law means licences will be available for land-based and online casinos, retail and online sports betting, gaming machines, online poker, and totaliser contracts, opening up a country of 42 million people to a wide range of operators.

The development has turned Ukraine into one of the global gambling industry’s biggest opportunities. The illegal gambling market in the country is thought to be worth more than €1 billion, and both the government and operators expect the regulated market to be significantly bigger. 

Details of the regulations, taxes and licence fees in the Gambling Act are now being carefully scrutinised by both CIS-based operators and competitors from further afield. Parimatch has already stated its intention to bid for a licence in its home territory, and it seems only a matter of time before others reach the same decision, despite some concerns about the increased licence fees that will be levied during the transition to a regulated market. 

SBC Digital Summit CIS’s Welcome to Ukraine panel will assess the opportunities for those international operators considering entering the market, and take a detailed look at the legislation and what it means for the industry. 

Uzbekistan is another nation that has recognised the potential economic benefits of establishing a regulated gambling industry. President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s government has unveiled plans to legalise both online and retail sports betting in 2021, in order to raise funds for the development of football and other sports in the country. At the same time, a review of the lottery sector – currently the only legal form of gambling in Uzbekistan – is underway, with the intention of replacing all existing lotteries with a new national lottery. 

With a population of 33 million, Uzbekistan seemingly offers significant potential to the operators that secure betting licences. However, the full details of the regulatory regime are still to emerge and it is unclear whether applications will be accepted from overseas companies or restricted to local ones. International operators interested in the market can perhaps take some encouragement from the fact the government has opened up the country to foreign investment since the death of the long-serving president Islam Karimov in 2016.  

The Uzbekistan Regulations session will investigate what format the regulated betting market may take and evaluate how big the market opportunity is. 

Further panels during SBC Digital Summit CIS will address issues that influence market development right across the CIS, Ukraine and Georgia, including the evolution of payments technologies in the region, local marketing strategies, and the opportunities created by the growth of esports and the resurgent popularity of online poker.

In addition to the conference, the event will feature an interactive product display area with leading suppliers showcasing the latest sportsbook, casino and payments innovations tailored to local markets, together with a programme of networking roundtables to make it straightforward for delegates to connect and talk business. 

Click here to register for a free pass for SBC Digital Summit CIS.

Online casino and sports betting operator Marathonbet has launched the complete portfolio of MGA Games in Spain.

The full range of MGA Games’ content, including over 80 slots, is now available at marathonbet.es. Players can now enjoy titles including Mina de Oro Plus, Popeye Cazatesoros, and CSI Miami, and more titles are released every few weeks. 

Commenting on the development CEO of MGA Games, Joan Sanahuja, said:

“Marathonbet is a highly active international brand that operates in many markets, offering the best service to its clients. Our association will provide a varied and unique product offering, tailor-made for the Spanish domestic market.”

In addition to its Spanish license, acquired in 2018, UK-based Marathonbet is also licensed in the United Kingdom, Italy, Belarus, Curaçao, and Nigeria. 

Barcelona-based MGA Games has made quite a splash over the past year, especially with its Hyperrealism Series, featuring popular social media stars like Jessica Weaver and Abigail Ratchford. 

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German social gaming operator Ously Games has integrated the full range of slot titles from Revolver Gaming.

Frankfurt-based Ously Games is currently offering social gaming, but plans to roll out real-money gaming in 2021 as regulated markets are officially launched in Germany and the Netherlands. 

London-based Revolver’s games will be provided through Ously’s Spin Arena brand, which also carries content from other studios including Endorphina, Microgaming, NetEnt, and ORYX. Spin Arena will be available for play through online and mobile browsers, and through apps for iOS and Android.

Commenting on the news Revolver Gaming CEO, Ryan Lazarus, said: 

“We really think that Ously Games is onto something with their Spin Arena brand. Getting our games on offer with them now is sure to pay further dividends when they go live in real money in Germany and the Netherlands next year. I’m sure this will be a big brand in those markets.”

While the  Chief Marketing Officer at Ously Games added:

“We are super happy to be able to welcome Revolver on board Germany’s hottest new social gaming casino and are looking forward our players enjoying Revolver’s engaging content”

Staying with Revolver Gaming, in September the company entered a distribution agreement with Spinomenal.

AYO.NEWS says:

Getting games out there for social-only play prior to a real-money launch is a smart way to build awareness, and is a strategy we’re seeing a lot in places like the United States. However, whether operators will be able to convert social players into real-money players in significant numbers remains to be seen. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

The International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) and International Gaming Standards Association (IGSA) have announced a partnership. 

By working together the two organisations are aiming to maximise opportunities for effective and efficient gaming regulation. 

The initiative will focus on two key priorities over the coming year:

• Discussion and information exchange concerning known and emerging issues impacting regulatory policy and practice;
• Identifying opportunities to leverage standards and technology to advance efficient and effective gaming regulation;

Commenting on the collaboration, IAGR President, Mabutho Zwane, said:

“As regulators, we recognise that dialogue with industry is fundamental to both understand the sector and make informed decisions which can advance efficient and effective gambling regulation.

“This is particularly important at this time where there is opportunity to leverage technology to drive innovation in regulatory practice.”

While IGSA President, Peter DeRaedt, added:

“IGSA is the single technology standards setting organization in the gaming industry. We strongly believe that collective dialogue with regulatory authorities on an international level is crucial to enhance regulatory oversight while driving efficiencies for operators and suppliers. 

“Our collaboration with IAGR is an enormous step forward towards the betterment of the gaming industry as a whole.Our organisation is very excited about the opportunities this new collaboration presents.”

IGSA members include Aristocrat, IGT, Microgaming, Novomatic, Playtech, and Scientific Games. 

IAGR members include dozens of regulators from across Africa, Asia, Oceania, Central America, the Caribbean, South America, Europe, and North America – including the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta Gaming Authority, and the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.