Tag Archives: egaming

Germany’s strict sports gambling rules pushing more to illegal sites

Sometimes, it doesn’t necessarily pay to be right. The Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics asserted last month that Germany’s proposed tax structure for online gambling activity could lead to more gamblers turning to illegal or offshore sites and it seems that’s already happening in a big way. Sports gambling, in particular, is watching a transitional move toward the alternative options, propelled by new, controversial regulations and a massive halt in sports last year because of COVID-19.

Germany’s legal sports gambling market saw revenues last year of €7.8 billion ($9.45 billion), according to the country’s Federal Ministry of Finance. This was 16% below what had been seen a year earlier, when the market recorded €9.3 billion ($11.27 billion). The period from March to May was the worst, corresponding to the time that the world essentially shut down sports activity everywhere, but began to pick up in June. Since September, sports gambling revenue in the country has continued to perform better, but it is still much lower than it was a year earlier.

As a result of the downturn, sports gambling operators couldn’t contribute as much to the government’s coffers as they had a year earlier. In 2019, they gave €464 million ($562.7 million), but this dropped to €389 million ($471.78 million) last year. However, despite the drop, some believe the German Sports Betting Association (DSWV, for its German acronym) profited from the pandemic, an assertion the organization emphatically denies.

According to DSWV President Mathias Dahms, “The exact opposite is true. During the first lockdown in spring 2020, when all European leagues had ceased their gaming operations, the German sports betting market collapsed completely: in April by 90 percent compared to the previous year, in May by 75 percent. Without sport there can be no sports bet, of course.”

Lloyd Purser looks to blockchain to draw in new generations of customers

FunFair Games COO Lloyd Purser has one eye on the future when it comes to audience engagement. Purser is keen to engage generation Y & Z as the next level of customers for the future and he believes that building community could pay off in the long term for operators. Purser took some time out to explain his strategy to our CalvinAyre.com lead reporter Becky Liggero Fontana. 

Purser has been leading the charge in new audience engagement by embracing blockchain technology. Purser explained why FunFair continues to play the long game with the blockchain revolution and why this resonates with a younger demographic.

“FunFair started in in the world of cryptocurrency and blockchain, building a casino platform that operated purely on the Ethereum blockchain,” he said. “Throughout that, we’ve also seen in the crypto space, that there’s a certain different style of content which has been performing very well. We knew from our own data that in excess of 85 of all of our customers were under the age of 40 and the majority of those under the age of 30.”

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQCw-nxCxUM?feature=oembed&w=640&h=360]

WynnBET continues expansion with Tennessee approval

Wynn Resorts hopes to be a major player in the U.S. online sports betting industry by 2022 through WynnBET, and a new approval gets them 1 step closer to that goal. Tennessee has given conditional approval for the operator to allow sports gambling.

The Sports Wagering Committee of the Tennessee Education Lottery Corporation’s Board of Directors approved WynnBET, assuming they fulfill all the statutory and regulatory requirements.

Tennessee is the ninth state to give some sort of approval to WynnBET. The operator is already live in New Jersey, Colorado and Michigan, but also has plans to start in Indiana, Iowa, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Ohio.

Wynn’s overall plan is to become a major sports betting operator by the next Super Bowl. While analysts expect sports-betting to reach as many as 12 new states this year, reaching 35 total, Wynn president and chief financial officer Craig Billings recently noted the company only expects to expand where it makes sense. “Our focus there is making sure that we can achieve market parity in order to do that,” Billings said. “I would say that’s our number one focus. And it consumes 40% of our time on Wynn Interactive.”

New slot sites review site SlotsHawk.com launches in the UK

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the U.K. online gambling market, SlotsHawk.com has launched with the intention of providing as safe a space as possible for U.K. slots players as possible.

Sharing more details about their guide to U.K. slot sites, the creators told Calvin Ayre that they are currently reaching out to safe gambling groups and advocators to “offer them the opportunity to write unrestricted guest news posts on SlotsHawk“ and they will “only promote casinos that offer a reliable and fair experience to U.K. slots players.”

Promoting Only Safe UK Slot Websites

The U.K. government is expected to make wide sweeping changes to the U.K. gambling market once the call for evidence ends on March 31 2020. Earlier this week, the UKGC announced that all casinos offering their services to U.K. players must remove the autoplay features from their online slot games. The small team behind SlotsHawk believe that a safer gambling space is not something that affiliates should be afraid of.

New slot sites review site SlotsHawk.com launches in the UK

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the U.K. online gambling market, SlotsHawk.com has launched with the intention of providing as safe a space as possible for U.K. slots players as possible.

Sharing more details about their guide to U.K. slot sites, the creators told Calvin Ayre that they are currently reaching out to safe gambling groups and advocators to “offer them the opportunity to write unrestricted guest news posts on SlotsHawk“ and they will “only promote casinos that offer a reliable and fair experience to U.K. slots players.”

Promoting Only Safe UK Slot Websites

The U.K. government is expected to make wide sweeping changes to the U.K. gambling market once the call for evidence ends on March 31 2020. Earlier this week, the UKGC announced that all casinos offering their services to U.K. players must remove the autoplay features from their online slot games. The small team behind SlotsHawk believe that a safer gambling space is not something that affiliates should be afraid of.

New slot sites review site SlotsHawk.com launches in the UK

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the U.K. online gambling market, SlotsHawk.com has launched with the intention of providing as safe a space as possible for U.K. slots players as possible.

Sharing more details about their guide to U.K. slot sites, the creators told Calvin Ayre that they are currently reaching out to safe gambling groups and advocators to “offer them the opportunity to write unrestricted guest news posts on SlotsHawk“ and they will “only promote casinos that offer a reliable and fair experience to U.K. slots players.”

Promoting Only Safe UK Slot Websites

The U.K. government is expected to make wide sweeping changes to the U.K. gambling market once the call for evidence ends on March 31 2020. Earlier this week, the UKGC announced that all casinos offering their services to U.K. players must remove the autoplay features from their online slot games. The small team behind SlotsHawk believe that a safer gambling space is not something that affiliates should be afraid of.

New Jersey Super Bowl volume catching up to Nevada with mobile options

Nevada and New Jersey provide two very different stories of how the Super Bowl went this year. One state reported their first drop in volume in several years, while the other more than doubled its volume, and the difference could have been having an online option.

You’d probably guess the state that didn’t fair as well is Nevada, and you’d be right. The state’s 184 sports books saw $136.1 million in wagers, their lowest volume since 2016’s $132.5 million. Based on Tampa Bay’s 31-9 win over Kansas City, the books did well enough, taking in $12.6 million in profit.

“If there was no COVID, we would’ve broke the all-time record,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “People love coming to the Super Bowl parties here in Nevada. COVID knocked it out. It’s that simple.”

NGCB senior research analyst Michael Lawton also blamed Covid restrictions for the drop:

New Jersey Super Bowl volume catching up to Nevada with mobile options

Nevada and New Jersey provide two very different stories of how the Super Bowl went this year. One state reported their first drop in volume in several years, while the other more than doubled its volume, and the difference could have been having an online option.

You’d probably guess the state that didn’t fair as well is Nevada, and you’d be right. The state’s 184 sports books saw $136.1 million in wagers, their lowest volume since 2016’s $132.5 million. Based on Tampa Bay’s 31-9 win over Kansas City, the books did well enough, taking in $12.6 million in profit.

“If there was no COVID, we would’ve broke the all-time record,” William Hill sportsbook director Nick Bogdanovich told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “People love coming to the Super Bowl parties here in Nevada. COVID knocked it out. It’s that simple.”

NGCB senior research analyst Michael Lawton also blamed Covid restrictions for the drop:

PAGCOR proposes double-wide tables to increase poker volume

With vaccines yet to roll out, the Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is turning to creative solutions to get people back to the poker table. The regulator has published a new memo, allowing an increase of players allowed seated at a poker table.

The February 8 memo amends the Health and Safety Standards for Resumption of Operations of Gaming Sites.

Philippines gaming regulator PAGCOR has issued new guidelines to operators across the Philippines that allow for an increase in the number of players allowed to be seated at poker tables. While no new maximum is stated, the memo sets out a handful of steps operators can take to get as many people at the table as they can.

Most of these would be shocking to someone following what other territories, namely American operators, have bene implementing. Players still must be at least 1 meter apart and wear Personal Protective Equipment, namely masks and face shields, but operators can now install acrylic walls and barriers between each seating position.

PAGCOR proposes double-wide tables to increase poker volume

With vaccines yet to roll out, the Philippines Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) is turning to creative solutions to get people back to the poker table. The regulator has published a new memo, allowing an increase of players allowed seated at a poker table.

The February 8 memo amends the Health and Safety Standards for Resumption of Operations of Gaming Sites.

Philippines gaming regulator PAGCOR has issued new guidelines to operators across the Philippines that allow for an increase in the number of players allowed to be seated at poker tables. While no new maximum is stated, the memo sets out a handful of steps operators can take to get as many people at the table as they can.

Most of these would be shocking to someone following what other territories, namely American operators, have bene implementing. Players still must be at least 1 meter apart and wear Personal Protective Equipment, namely masks and face shields, but operators can now install acrylic walls and barriers between each seating position.

New Slots Announcements – February 10, 2021

Online casino sites need to stay on top of the hottest slot offerings to keep up with the competition. We’ve got the newest slots released in the past week, so you can check them out and decide if you want them on your site.

Don’t miss out on all of the latest announcements. Our Press Release section is updated constantly. We also roundup the latest slot game releases for you every Wednesday.

Gift yourself a chance to win with Cupid!

Endorphina is delighted to introduce you to the one and only Cupid. He is an ordinary guy, living his ordinary life. But just once a year, everything changes and he becomes famous with his arrows of love. Do you want to fall in love this February with this new game?

Karamba enters Pay N Play market with launch of Griffon Casino

Griffon Casino opens initially to Finnish players and is the first adventure-based pure Pay N Play online casino in FinlandCreated In-house, Griffon Casino is a unique, all mobile product that includes the most advanced engagement tools the industry has seenThe new Finnish site is the first Pay N Play offering from Karamba, with big plans to expand across the Nordics in 2021

Karamba, the B2C division of Aspire Global, has launched its first pure Pay N Play casino. Griffon Casino has been launched today around the world but initially as a pure Pay N Play exclusively in Finland.

Griffon provides world class mobile entertainment, with a fast-loading site, refined search and resume play functions, and many adventurous promotions that bring players even closer to their favourite games for valued rewards.

The new state-of-the-art site has been built specifically to enable the benefits of Trustly, the leading global payments provider. This partnership delivers an extensive range of payment services, industry-leading KYC, enhanced fraud protection, and a frictionless gaming experience. As a platform custom-built from the ground-up, Griffon integrates the best technology and products in the market today, with no legacy systems to negatively impact a player’s experience.

Best of frenemies – Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi face off for La Liga glory

Battling for the La Liga title is tough enough when you’re a player at Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla or Barcelona and will do anything you can to prevent your opponents succeeding. But when one of those opponents is a close personal friend who you’ve been on the same team as for years, it’s even more difficult.  

In this most bizarre of full European football seasons, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona are going head-to-head in a fascinating title race where either side could win glory. At the centre of the battle, however, are two best friends in Atletico’s Luis Suarez and Barcelona icon Lionel Messi.  

Playing together in the blue and red over the last six seasons, Suarez and Messi were at the heart of a period of domestic if not European domination for the Catalan club. Torn apart by a new manager at the Nou Camp, Suarez was sold while Messi was told to remain and see out his contract, which finishes this season.  

Which man is likely to go off into the sunset as the top goalscorer in La Liga and which – if either – could lift the La Liga trophy at the end of this campaign? Let’s take a look at the current sportsbetting markets around this fascinating battle.  

Bonomo, Petrangelo and Yan all chase Super MILLION$ victory

The 35th GGPoker Super MILLION$ will see some of the best poker players in the world gather to battle it out for the latest title of winner and over $430,000 as a top prize.

The weekly tournament on GGPoker, which costs $10,300 to enter, features some terrific talent this week, including Justin Bonomo, Nic Petrangelo and David Yan… but who is chip leader heading into the final ? Read on and find out.

It is the Russian player ‘RRomashka’ who goes into play with the chip lead, and it’s a big one too. With 5.2 million chips, the Russian will be hopeful of winning the Super MILLION$ after some consistent performances in the event in recent weeks.

With 213 entries this week, it is American high roller and Upswing Poker coach Nick Petrangelo who will kick off second in chips. He’s a considerable distance behind, however, starting the final with only 3.6 million chips. Petrangelo is marginally ahead of another Russian heading into play, with Artur Martirosian, one of the players of 2020, beginning with 3.2 million.

Betsson 2020 profit up one-quarter on Rest of World acquisitions

Nordic online gambling operator Betsson AB closed out 2020 with a solid showing in the final quarter, resulting in a more than one-quarter rise in annual profit. 

Figures released Tuesday show the Stockholm-listed Betsson generated revenue of SEK1.76b (US$211m) in the three months ending December 31, 37% higher than in Q4 2019. Earnings jumped 40% to SEK410.5m and net income rose 36% to SEK277.8m. 

Online casino remained Betsson’s bread and butter in Q4, as gaming revenue rose one-third to SEK1.28b, although sports betting revenue spiked 47% to SEK459m as a half-point rise in betting margins added fuel to a 23% rise in turnover. 

On a geographic basis, all four regional segments reported solid growth in Q4, with the biggest percentage gain coming from the ‘Rest of World’, which nearly tripled to SEK215.6m. The gains reflect Betsson’s 2019 acquisition of Brazilian race betting operator Suaposta and a 70% stake in Colombia-licensed Colbet, as well as the December launch of its Betsafe brand in Kenya. The RoW gains doubled the segment’s share of Betsson’s overall Q4 revenue to 12%. 

First speakers of RGW 2021: Experts in gambling law, marketing and advertising

On April 27, Moscow InterContinental hotel will host Russian Gaming Week 2021 conference. Event will be organized by Smile-Expo.

Event is intended to consolidate the gambling community in Russia and bring together outstanding experts in different areas of gambling business to discuss current prospects for market development.

Specialists will focus on aspects of legal regulation in the field of gambling, online marketing tools and ways to attract customers.

Introducing the first six speakers of Russian Gaming Week 2021

AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am betting preview

Odds courtesy of OddsShark.com

After a weekend pit stop in the Phoenix area for the Waste Management Open won Sunday by former world No. 1 Brooks Koepka, the PGA Tour returns to California for this week’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, at arguably the most picturesque course in the United States: Pebble Beach Golf Links. Hey, it’s a public course so any hacker can play there, but be prepared to pay up big-time.

There are a couple of changes with this tournament in 2021. Because of the COVID pandemic, no fans will be allowed to attend, the pro-am portion has been eliminated and the tournament will be played over Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill only; Monterey Peninsula Country Club’s Shore course is out of the rotation this year.

So instead of a 54-hole cut, it’s back to a usual 36 holes. Players will split their first two rounds at Pebble and Spyglass Hill (both are par 72s) and then play only Pebble on the weekend. That historic track has hosted six U.S. Opens, last in 2019 and won by Gary Woodland.

Gambling Industry Announcement and Partnership Roundup – February 9, 2021

In the fast-moving world of gambling, sometimes you might miss news that could be important to you. To make sure you’re all caught up on gaming industry news, be it online or brick and mortar, we’re rounding up the some of the announcements and partnerships from the last week that you might have missed.

Don’t miss out on all of the latest announcements from the gambling industry. Our Press Release section is updated constantly, and we publish roundups of the latest partnerships twice a week.

Greentube acquires esports platform provider Hero

In a move that will see Greentube enter the esports sphere, the NOVOMATIC Interactive division has acquired esports betting provider and blockchain pioneer HERO.

Caesars may put for sale sign in front of Vegas Planet Hollywood

In Las Vegas, rumors are a part of everyday life. However, some have more validity than others. The latest to surface in Sin City is the prospect that Caesars Entertainment might be ready to ditch its Planet Hollywood casino on the Las Vegas Strip. If it’s true and if Caesars moves forward with the sale, it could potentially mean a huge windfall of cash for the casino operator, despite the slower market caused by COVID-19.

The rumor was announced by Vital Vegas, which apparently has bugs on all the important walls around the city. It always seems to know what’s happening before anyone else, and stated recently, “Rumors about a potential sale of Planet Hollywood have circulated for some time now. But a source who asked to stay anonymous says he was recently laid off and an impending sale was given as the reason.”

The new-and-improved Caesars, born of the marriage between the old Caesars and Eldorado Resorts, had discussed reducing some of its Vegas operations as the two operators combined forces. A sale of Planet Hollywood, according to some industry analysts, could save Caesars as much as $1 billion, as well as help it fulfill its Vegas plans. Prior to purchasing Caesars, Eldorado had mentioned that one or two Strip properties previously owned by Caesars could be put on the market.

If the property does become available, it probably won’t be hard to find someone willing to snatch it up. One potential candidate might be Hard Rock International (HRI), already looking for somewhere in Vegas to make a return. HRI purchased the Intellectual Property rights for Vegas from Hard Rock Las Vegas in May of last year and has indicated that it is anxious to get something going in the city. After losing a chance to introduce a Hard Rock-themed venue to Greece last year, the company has a little extra spending money to use on any Vegas ambitions.

Mattress Mack wins Draft Kings bet on the Super Bowl

When you wagered on the Super Bowl, we’re betting that it was only you and a few friends who knew if you’d win or lose. Perhaps only close family members knew that those sweats you were getting during the game weren’t the meat sweats but whether Tom Brady could lead the Buccaneers to their first Super Bowl in 19 years.

They did, of course, because Tom Brady is the GOAT and he did what Tom Brady always seems to do in the Super Bowl. Tampa Bay Buccaneers took down the first Super Bowl title to be won in the winner’s home stadium in history.

https://youtu.be/Gz5-NQROQGwVideo can’t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: Chiefs vs. Buccaneers | Super Bowl LV Game Highlights (https://youtu.be/Gz5-NQROQGw)

It goes without saying, then, that as a sportsbettor, you wanted to have Brady and the Bucs in general on your ticket, but no-one had them bigger than ‘Mattress Mack’. So-called due to the Houston-based betting legend giving away offers on his matteresses in conjunction with his massive sports wagers, Mack took The Buccaneers to the tune of $3.46 million after travelling to Colorado to bet on the DraftKings mobile app in the newly-legalised state.