Monthly Archives: June 2017

ReKTGlobal Announces new Leadership team and Business Ventures

by: Tanner Simkins

ReKTGlobal, launched in 2016 as an advisory business in the eSports space, Monday announced an impressive business expansion with the official launch of three new ventures for the business community; ReKTVenues, ReKTLive and ReKTMedia.

These new ventures are designed to help bridge the gap between the multi-billion-dollar business of traditional sports and the burgeoning business of esports and competitive gaming. The new extensions will meet the growing demand of existing businesses in professional sports and entertainment, from teams and venues to brands and media companies, looking to expand and attract millennials and gamers. They will help companies interested in creating authentic media content for esports fans, and festival and convention producers who want to bring unique esports experiences to their events.

“My vision is that every city will have an esports venue and every professional sports team will have an esports strategy,” said founder Amish Shah in a release. “ReKTGlobal has the solutions to help them navigate through the ecosystem,” continued Shah, an early investor in the esports space with Gameco, the “First Video Game Slot Machine,” professional esports Team EnVyUs and Drone Racing League before finding the sweet spot of esports infrastructure building with ReKTGlobal.

“We view ReKTGlobal as a Rising Tide to Lift all Ships; an infrastructure business in support of the esports and broader gaming marketplaces,” added co-founder and CEO David Bialek. “ReKTGlobal will make it easy for anyone to enjoy, participate or work in esports anytime and anywhere.”

The ReKTGlobal executive team includes founder Shah, also a founding partner of venture capital firm SierraMaya360, who was joined in 2017 by co-founders Bialek, a 25-year sports marketing veteran and Sports Business Journal 40 Under 40 recipient; Christopher J. Steele and Christopher Golden of Sterling Select, a venture development and investment platform affiliated with Sterling Equities; and Counsel Charles Baker, a top sports, media and entertainment attorney.

“We at Sterling Select, considered partnering with Amish in his investment in Team EnVyUs in early 2016 but ultimately decided it was too nascent and unchartered at the time,” said managing partner Christopher J. Steele. “However, when Amish came to me and shared his vision for ReKTGlobal and esports infrastructure, I determined that it was a better fit for the Select platform. Given the estimates of the growth of the industry, Select’s sees ReKTGlobal as being in the right space, at the right time with the right team, which we are excited to be an integral part of as co-founders.”

Also joining the team is Vice President of Esports Kevin Knocke, an industry go-to who has led content and events for partners like Blizzard Entertainment, IGN, SiriusXM, Sony, SXSW, E3 and many more.

Specific plans and partners are expected to be announced in the coming months.

Negreanu Books 100th WSOP Cash, More POY Complaints, ‘Gamble’ Wins $1,500 PLO Hi-Lo, and Brrrr It’s So Cold During Vegas Heat Wave

Every year, the World Series of Poker seems to come and go so quickly. It’s hard to believe we’re already well past the midway point and just 12 days from […]

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Melco-Hard Rock give up on Spain casino, double-down on Cyprus

Casino operators Melco International Development and Hard Rock International (HRI) officially closed the door on a Spanish integrated resort project while confirming their Cyprus joint venture.

On Monday, the Melco-HRI tandem formally signed a contract to build Europe’s largest brick-and-mortar casino in the Limassol region of the Republic of Cyprus. The operators, who have teamed with local land concern CNS Group, were awarded the sole Cyprus casino license late last year after the other two casino tender finalists bowed out of the race.

The Melco-HRI resort isn’t expected to open until 2019 at the earliest, but the contract allows them to open a temporary facility in Limassol, as well as four satellite slots-only venues in Nicosia, Larnaca, Famagusta and Paphos. Both the temporary facility and the Nicosia satellite venue are expected to open later this year.

Once complete, the integrated resort will boast 136 gaming tables, 1,200 electronic gaming machines, a 500-room luxury hotel, plus a conference hall and the usual assortment of dining, shopping and leisure options. The €500m+ project is expected to net the government an estimated €100m in annual tax revenue.

Bede Gaming powers The Rank Group’s digital uplift

26th June, 2017 – The Rank Group recently reported 13% digital revenue growth, with a 35% uplift in its Grosvenor Casino brand’s digital performance, and credited Bede Gaming with enhancing its digital platform to generate these significant gains.

Having switched to Bede in 2016 from OpenBet, Rank has not only seen strong growth in the digital field but has also achieved greater operational efficiency, due to Bede’s front line operator tools.

Rank needed a solution to fit with its ambitious online plans, and one which provided the group with flexibility and efficiency to control their own digital objectives.

After migrating to Bede’s gaming solution, the operator looked to introduce a sportsbook to its other successful offerings. Bede completed the integration of the Kambi sportsbook in just 10 weeks. The speed of the integration, combined with the quality of Bede’s live data, enabled Rank to have a particularly successful Cheltenham Festival.

BetConstruct Partners with Booming Games

June 26, 2017, London, UK: BetConstruct is delighted to announce their recent partnership with Booming Games.

BetConstruct are expanding their games catalogue and looking to inject some boom with unique slots by Booming Games. Just some of the acclaimed titles to be added are Booming Seven Deluxe, Classico, Monster Munchies, Cherry Bomb Deluxe and Desert Drag, all of which are available on desktop and mobile devices.

“We look forward to being able to offer Booming Games portfolio. Packed with slots configured to a multitude of volatilities, backed by solid mathematical foundations, and set within a diverse selection of unique and classical themes, they are sure to satisfy our diverse client base,” says Satenik Danielyan, BetConstruct’s Head of Gaming Operations.

Booming Games Head of Business Development, Frederik Niehusen added: “BetConstruct has an impeccable track record in providing software solutions for the gaming market. We look forward to working with such accomplishes experts in the iGaming industry and making our games available to their extensive and dedicated customer base.”

KamaGames announces partnership with internationally renowned poker night in america™ show

Dublin, Ireland – June 27, 2017 – Global developers and publishers of social casino games for mobile platforms the KamaGames Group, today announced their partnership with Poker Night in America, the high stakes poker television show, that premieres every Monday & Sunday on CBS Sports Network in  North America.

The partnership will see the release of a standalone branded Poker Night in America app which will leverage the KamaGames technology platform and global liquidity of players. Previous white label partners include the messaging platforms Viber and Tango.

Daniel Kashti, KamaGames’ Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer said, “As part of KamaGames’ ongoing expansion and development of its partnerships business we are opening our gaming platforms to a number of selected partners. Given their unique and passionate approach to the game of poker, we are very happy to announce our latest partner in Poker Night in America. This new partnership leverages KamaGames’ best in class gaming platform, backend tools, and community of millions of poker enthusiasts to help deliver the best social poker experience for those following the Poker Night show.”

The Poker Night in America app will feature many of the popular Pokerist features including Sit N’ Go and Shootout tournaments, scratch cards, a virtual goods store, a simple to use tutorial, Daily Quests, Daily Bonuses and achievements.

ManBetX announced as the new shirt sponsor of Crystal Palace Football Club

LONDON, ENGLAND (26th June 2017) – Newly appointed Crystal Palace manager Frank de Boer today welcomed ManBetX as the Club’s new front of shirt partner in a record breaking multi-year deal in one of his first official acts in his new role.

The partnership, believed to be the 8th biggest club deal by value in the Premier League, will see ManBetX’s logo featured across the Club’s shirt at all competitive home and away games, pitch side LED and other branding at Selhurst Park as well as across online and social media channels in the UK and internationally.

ManBetX are an international gaming company who provide customers with sports betting and casino products. The partnership will enable Crystal Palace to engage with a wider global audience and grow their international fan base while giving ManBetX exposure in the most watched league in the world.

The betting brand join at an exciting time for the Club as The Eagles embark on their tour to Asia, starting with the Premier League Asia Trophy in which they play Liverpool on July 19th in Hong Kong.