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A building with weak or cracked foundations is a disaster waiting to happen. Eventually the building will fall apart – and no fancy mouldings or shiny new roof will be able to hide it. 

Likewise, hosting is the absolute foundation of your business structure, and iGaming operators especially should keep that in mind when choosing a provider. Because, at the end of the day, if your website is down due to a DDoS-attack and lack of customer support, what difference does everything else make? What’s the point in having the best games and a fantastic looking site, if no one can access it?

Internet Vikings is an established provider of advanced digital solutions, boasting a long history of deep involvement with the online gaming industry. So, here are 5 key reasons why iGaming operators really should consider Internet Vikings as their hosting provider. 

We’ve deliberately left out all the complicated tech talk, because for a premium global HSP, it’s a given. Of course, if you want to find out more on that side of things, everything is available at the Internet Vikings’ website. But, for now, we’ll focus on the iGaming side of the question.

1. Experience in the industry

Internet Vikings have been focused on iGaming as their primary market since 2015. Over the past 5 years, the company has identified the most important areas for iGaming providers regarding hosting, and consistently excelled in them. Here’s what the Chairman of Internet Viking’s board, Jesper Kärrbrink says:

“An iGaming operator is like a bank. If players don’t trust it, they  don’t use it. So as a hosting company, we can’t be down and can’t let down our partners. Then there is also flexibility, the ability to move with the customers into new markets. Being innovative in finding new solutions for our customers to grow and to reduce the cost. I think we have our strengths in all those areas.”

2. Global presence 

As a company focused on iGaming, Internet Vikings has offices in key industry hubs, like Stockholm and Malta. The company also has branches in Germany, South Africa, and Ukraine. Even better, their state-of-the-art data centers can be found on every continent (except Antarctica), in carefully chosen locations, that allow the Vikings to reduce latency to key markets to minimal values. Co-founder and CTO Victor Jerlin explains:

“If you have customers in Asia and hosting in Sweden, it adds 250 ms just because of the speed of light – it can’t go faster. That’s why we opened up in Taiwan, that is why we opened up in Amsterdam, that is why we are going to open up in other strategic locations for iGaming.”

3. Regulatory compliance

There’s no doubt that regulatory compliance is a very hot topic for the iGaming industry. The Vikings certainly have their house in order in that regard – all their data centres have ISO 27001 certification. But there’s more. Because the ‘Privacy Shield’ framework for transatlantic exchanges of personal data has not been valid as of July 16, 2020, using US-based cloud service providers can become a major security issue for companies. This is because US authorities now have the right to demand personal and other data from US-based providers. Given this, migrating to a European provider ASAP could save your company a whole lot of hassle and potential liability. As a European provider Internet Vikings is 100% compliant with, and fully protected by, GDPR.

4. Compatibility 

This is something that is often overlooked by iGaming operators. Perhaps no one can explain the significance of compatibility better than the co-founder and CCO of Internet Vikings Rickard Vikström: 

“There is an issue in working with giants of the hosting industry such as AWS, GCE, or Microsoft Azure. It works well when everything is good, but if there is a problem you don’t want to work with a player that is so much bigger than your company. Internet Vikings is specialized in hosting for the iGaming industry and as we are on the same level with our customers and care about them. I would say that this is one of the main things.”

5. Trust from operators and game developers 

Operators and developers all over the world trust Internet Vikings to handle their most valuable data and support their demanding operations. The client portfolio of the company includes Green Jade Games, BetHard Group, GameLounge Ltd, and many other companies related to the industry. This is no surprise when you consider that Internet Vikings have consistently demonstrated stability throughout their history. In the words of Peter Ekmark, Internet Vikings CEO: 

“This company has a legacy. It didn’t start just yesterday. It has been growing slowly but surely for 12 years. In a nutshell that means, we were there yesterday and we’ll be here tomorrow.” 

Special Offer for All New Cloud Hosting Accounts

Considering Internet Vikings as the HSP for your websites? You might like to check out the special offer they’ve prepared for all new cloud hosting accounts. You can find out more about how the Vikings can help you protect your business by getting in touch with one of their expert account managers today. 

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AYO.NEWS says:

The Internet Vikings have raised some interesting points there. Latency, especially, is becoming a major issue for iGaming, and even more so video gaming and esports, companies. Never underestimate how long a split second can seem to an impatient customer, or how annoying a fraction of a second lag can become. And, of course, as data demands grow, latency issues will only get more critical. So, having your customers served by local data centres can be a very wise investment. 

Likewise, the US issue deserves serious consideration. Though the European Union has often been criticized for over-regulation, its laws, like GDPR, actually afford a much greater degree of privacy protection than those in the US, and handing over the data of European customers to US authorities could potentially land operators in all sorts of hot water – even if they are legally obliged to stateside. Considering this, it’s probably smarter to just avoid those headaches all together. 

‘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.

Crypto casino and sportsbook Cloudbet has added support for the Link, Pax, and Dai.

The latest additions bring the total number of cryptocurrencies added this year to six, meaning customers can now bet with nine cryptocurrencies. 

Commenting on the news a Cloudbet spokesperson said:

“We’re making good on the pledge we made back in April when we introduced Tether: To add features and coins that matter to our customers and the crypto community. That’s our main priority, and we’re not done yet.”

Earlier this year, Cloudbet added USD Tether, USD Coin, and Pax Gold in quick succession, coinciding with a new website and range of new features including esports, politics betting, virtual sports, social media bet sharing, and credit-card coin purchases. 

The site has also been localised into more than seventeen languages, and a new Argentina-focused service was launched just last month. 

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

XLMedia has expanded its presence in the US sports market, with the acquisition of sports gaming and betting business CBWG. 

The deal will see XLMedia pay an upfront consideration of $12M USD in cash, new XLMedia shares representing an aggregate value of $3.5M, and a potential future contingent consideration of up to an additional $9.5M. 

Based in the northeast US, CBWG is a successful digital media publishing group, producing in-depth, online content focused on professional and college sports, sports gaming, and sports betting. 

The company owns and operates popular sports websites CrossingBroad.com and EliteSportsNY.com, and sports betting and gaming focused sites PASportsbooks.com, BetNewJersey.com, ActionRush.com, and PromoCodeKings.com.

In addition to having agreements in place with some of the largest sports betting operators in the US, CBWG also has its own agency arm, which partners with leading sports media brands to drive user acquisition in the regulated betting markets of Colorado, Illinois, and Tennessee. The company is registered as a sports gaming affiliate in six states, including New Jersey and Pennsylvania. 

The acquisition will see CBWG founders Kyle Scott and Jason Ziernicki stay on in new roles leveraging their background and expertise in US sports. 

Commenting on the acquisition CEO of XLMedia, Stuart Simms, said:

“It is great to have acquired such an attractive set of assets during an inflection point for the U.S. Sports betting market. On some estimates, almost 60% of the U.S. population is set to have legal access to Sports betting by the end of 2022 – this could include New York, where one of the key assets, EliteSportsNY.com, is focused.”

While Ziernicki added:

“The strategic vision XLMedia has for the U.S. is a big reason why we decided to join forces with Stuart and his team. By combining our resources, I believe we have a collective vision that will take XLMedia to new heights here in the U.S. underpinned by strong affiliate-based growth to ultimately build a major media brand.”

AYO.NEWS says:

London-based XLMedia has had its fair share of difficulties in 2020, being hammered by a Google deranking in January, which had a significant impact on H1 revenue. But, after staff cuts, a move to automation and outsourcing, and a refocusing towards regulated and high-potential markets, including the United States, it’s good to see the company is once again focused on major expansion.

‘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.

Top-tier Italian football club SS Lazio is the latest team to join the partner program for Konami’s eFootball PES franchise. 

The partnership will see Konami’s eFootball PES feature a fully-licensed, authentic virtual recreation of SS Lazio, with the developer enjoying rights to the team name and crest, team kits, select club legends, and a various marketing activities.

Commenting on the news President at Konami Digital Entertainment B.V., Naoki Morita, said:

“Through our new partnership with SS Lazio, it is our strong belief that we can reach an even broader range of football fans and gamers in Italy and beyond. We’re looking forward to a long and successful partnership.”

While President of Società Sportiva Lazio, Dr. Claudio Lotito, added:

“The spirit with which KONAMI has worked in these difficult months to create a collaboration that will be winning is beautiful. We will be happy to work with KONAMI to promote activities aimed at developing and increasing the awareness of the Lazio brand as soon as the pandemic allows it. 

“The values of KONAMI, world leader in games, are fully married to the spirit of the Lazio family by developing together to also benefit the wider community of Lazio fans and video gamers. It is great when two international brands come together to create and develop added value.”

Konami and Lazio are marking the partnership by offering PES 2021 console and mobile players Paul Gascoigne and José Marcelo Salas Melinao as log-in bonuses between 10/12/2020 15:00 UTC and 16/12/2020 23:59 UTC.

Since launching in 1995, the eFootball PES franchise has sold over 100 million copies. 

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

The historic Spengler Cup is the latest sporting event to go virtual in the face of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. 

Held annually in Davos, Switzerland, the international ice hockey competition was cancelled earlier this year due to the pandemic. Now, with the crisis continuing to rage on, the organising committee has announced a virtual version of the event, the eSpengler Cup, will take place this month. 

The virtual version is being supported by Spengler Cup partners UBS, Würth, Schenker Storen, and Škoda, and will use EA Sports NHL 21 on Playstation 4. 

Qualifying rounds are set for 14-16 December, with the quarter-final stage slated for the 19 December, and the grand final for 26 December, playing in the “Spengler Cup mode” of the game. 

Commenting on the news Spengler Cup OC president, Marc Gianola, said:

“I used to re-live the Spengler Cup playing street hockey in our neighborhood, whereas today, with all the digital opportunities, there are new ways of celebrating the excitement around the Spengler Cup.”.

The tournament will be hosted on the GameTurnier platform, and is open to the public, while professional Swiss ice hockey players Davyd Barandun and Yannick Frehner, who play for Hockey Club Davos, will also be taking part. 

1st prize is CHF 6K ($6.7K USD), 2nd is CHF 2,500 ($2.8K), and 3rd is CHF 1,500 (approx. $1.7K). The grand final will be broadcast on SRF Sport’s website, with commentary by Swiss Radio and Television’s Steven Krucker. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Back in March, when the COVID-19 storm broke across Europe, few would have expected sports competitions would still be going virtual in December! But, once again it shows how those organisations, even ones as old as the Spengler Cup (founded in 1923), that are willing to adapt can still thrive while we wait for some form of normality to return to the world. 

‘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.

Online football trading platform Football Index has appointed Mike Bohan as its new CEO.

Previous CEO, Adam Cole, has now been appointed chairman of the company, which is moving into its sixth year of operation. Bohan will be running the daily operations of Football Index, alongside COO Ciaran Rowan.  

The leadership reshuffle came as the company announced a new focus on building a direct rapport with customers, and the adoption of an intelligent strategy that bases key decision making on a deeper understanding of the product offered. 

Commenting on the changes chairman of Football Index, Adam Cole, said:

“As co-founders, both Mike and Ciaran are fully committed to the future success of the platform and focused on taking us to the next level, in what will, without a doubt, be an exciting new chapter in Football Index’s journey.

“After five years of watching the platform grow, I am delighted to be handing over the reins to Mike and Ciaran and look forward to seeing what this new chapter has in store for Football Index.”

While new CEO, Mike Bohan, added:

“As a co-founder, I have been lucky enough to be part of this journey every step of the way, and I am looking forward to taking on a bigger role in the day-to-day management of the business.

“Together with my executive team I thank Adam for his leadership over the past five years – without his vision and passion our company would not have achieved the remarkable level of growth it has.

“This reset will only be as successful as we make it and listening to you, our traders, is more important than ever at this stage in our journey.”

Staying with Football Index, last month the company supported the UK’s Safer Gambling Week by donating its shirt sponsorships for Nottingham Forest and Queens Park Rangers to the Young Gamers & Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM).

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