Gambling News, Conferences & iGaming News Analysis

MAY JUN 2022

Editors Letter

Gaming tradeshows are like London buses! No ICE for over two years, then this year's ICE London was followed the very next week by IGA 2022 in California.

Gambling Insider was in attendance at both shows and, in this upcoming issue, as well as in our sister publication Gaming America, we bring you plenty of review content after the industry came 'back together again.'

The two weeks back to back provided a very rounded experience of the sector: ICE London was essentially an iGaming show, while IGA (formerly NIGA) was a land-based, tribal event. There were key takeaways from both, as we evaluate in our review article (as well as on the Gambling Insider website).

While this magazine is our flagship product, we are proud of the strides we have made in terms of video coverage – something we showed off at both ICE and IGA, where our video teams interviewed exhibitor after exhibitor (all of which you can find on LinkedIn), as well as the debut of our live GI Huddle booth.

Most of all, we were delighted to bring the Global Gaming Awards London back to the Hippodrome Casino, where our Marketing & Events Manager Mariya Savova did a fantastic job hosting the industry's most prestigious Awards ceremony. You can read our full winner's round-up.

However, neither the Global Gaming Awards nor ICE London are all that have taken place within the UK gaming industry so far this year. Indeed, in a potentially momentous decision, the Gambling Commission ruled against Camelot and handed the UK National Lottery licence from 2024 to new contender Allwyn. With an appeal process still looming, we explore the episode in our cover feature.

Back to the topic of the Global Gaming Awards, though, our recent announcement that we are launching a Global Gaming Awards Asia emphasises the size of the Asian market. And, to that end, we have an exclusive interview with the CMO of Hoiana Integrated Resort, Jit Ng.

Elsewhere in our May/June issue, we feature in-depth interviews with Lightning Box and Novomatic, while we boast a strong Insiders section including David Williams, Anna Sainsbury and Björn Krantz. The team at Exacta Solutions also talks us through the latest iGaming recruitment trends, while our product review section is filled with brand new products that hit the tradeshow fl oor at ICE London. Like Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool squad, at Gambling Insider we are off ering you nothing but strength in depth.

In The Magazine

REVIEW: GLOBAL GAMING AWARDS LONDON 2022

After spending a year in the virtual space, the Global Gaming Awards London 2022 were back at London’s Hippodrome Casino

WILL CAMELOT LOSE ITS CROWN?

Gambling Insider Editor Tim Poole reviews the seismic change at the helm of the UK National Lottery, as incumbent Camelot Group is dethroned in favour of a new champion

LIGHTS. CAMERA. ACTION.

Gambling Insider Editor Tim Poole reflects on ICE London 2022, and the debut of live GI Huddles at the ExCel

THE FUTURE OF ONLINE SLOTS

Lightning Box Operations Manager Michael Maokhamphiou details the changes online slot games have undergone in recent years, and what the future holds for this hugely popular vertical

THE FUTURE OF THE LAND-BASED CASINO SECTOR

Jakob Rothwangl, Novomatic AG, VP Global Sales, provides insight into the post-pandemic evolution of the land-based casino sector, in conversation with Peter Lynch

HOIANA CMO: NEXT-LEVEL INTEGRATION

Gambling Insider speaks with Hoiana Integrated Resort’s new CMO,Jit Ng. He discusses his reasons for signing on to the Hoiana project; how he is finding his new role; his plans for the future of the resort and its position within the Vietnamese market as a whole

Big Question: How popular are branded slots in today’s marketplace

We spoke to Joey Hurtado, Managing Director, Wizard Games and Doug Fallon, Group Director of Content at Bragg and Founder of Wild Streak Gaming.

ROUNDTABLE: INNOVATION IN PLAYER RETENTION

Industry leaders from Enteractive, Ziqni, Galaxsys and Soft2Bet discuss the importance of player retention, and how this crucial aspect of gaming can be improved

THE IGAMING INFORMATIONAL CONUNDRUM

Gamblineers Owner Adam Gros discusses the flow of information within online gaming

RECRUITMENT TRENDS IN IGAMING

The team at Exacta Solutions analyses the rapid globalisation of the iGaming industry, and how emerging markets are influencing recruitment trends in the 2020s

WHAT MAKES A RESPONSIBLE AFFILIATE? PART II

Malcolm Darnley of BestOdds gives more tips to end users when picking out a good affiliate

Exploring the process

The Rank Group’s Director of Public Affairs, David Williams, speaks to Gambling Insider on the upcoming Gambling Act review and the current state of land-based casinos in the UK

Border control: Geolocating customers

GeoComply CEO Anna Sainsbury discusses the importance of geolocation technology at ICE London, while looking forward to the rest of the year with Gambling Insider

A new face at the helm

We sat down with Yggdrasil’s new CEO Björn Krantz, then Chief of Global Marketing Operations, at ICE London

PRODUCT REVIEW: BETCONSTRUCT - HOORY

“Hoory is an AI-powered assistant, designed for businesses to automate their customer interactions,” noted Hoory Product Owner Hamlet Arakelyan at ICE London 2022.

PRODUCT REVIEW: SWINTT - THE CROWN

Swintt presents The Crown, a new branded title in collaboration with ex-footballer and actor Vinnie Jones.

PRODUCT REVIEW: GALAXSYS & FASHION GAMING GROUP

Speaking at ICE London 2022, Galaxsys Sales Team Manager Teni Grigoryan said: “The game was launched this month, in cooperation with Fashion Gaming Group, it’s a very engaging game with real models

PRODUCT REVIEW: GALAXY GAMING - RICOCHET POKER

Speaking at ICE London 2022, Galaxy Gaming presents Ricochet Poker, a poker variant.

PRODUCT REVIEW: EVOLUTION - DIGIWHEEL - DREAM CATCHER

As noted by a DigiWheel spokesperson at ICE London 2022: “DigiWheel Dream Catcher is one of the branded Evolution online games, now available for land-based casinos.

PRODUCT REVIEW: EZUGI

Ezugi embraces multipliers and launches Ultimate Sic Bo. Pang Goh, Business Development Director at Ezugi, comments on increasing the thrill of the Sic Bo game by providing players with an extra feature.

PRODUCT REVIEW: NETGAMING - SHELBY ONLINE VIDEO SLOT

Speaking at ICE London 2022, NetGaming Head of Product Nat Ovchinnikova noted: “The Shelby Online Video Slot is our collaboration game with the Shelby brand.

PRODUCT REVIEW: ALFASTREET - LUCKY 8

The Alfastreet Lucky 8 has been rapidly climbing the ranks of the most successful products since its introduction in 2016. Considered an alternative to the recognised R8, it was conceived as a more space-efficient and economical interpretation of an eight-station automated electronic roulette cabinet.