Month: October 2021

Under the deal, all major CEV men’s and women’s competitions across indoor, beach and snow volleyball will be powered by Genius’s suite of scoring, coaching and competition management solutions.

As part of this arrangement, Genius has developed its e-Scoresheet, the preeminent live scoring solution specifically for use in beach and snow events, providing CEV with official match scoresheets.

Genius will also use its Bet Monitoring System to analyse 24/7 betting activity on all CEV competitions, cross-referencing real-time odds movements with predictive algorithms to automatically flag any potentially suspicious activity. 

“The partnership with Genius Sports is a pivotal piece of our long-term vision to modernise Volleyball and its governance,” CEV president Aleksandar Boričić said.

“We wish to innovate at all levels and the latest solutions provided by Genius Sports will be playing a key role in supporting our efforts to engage with our passionate fans even further and to provide a standardised, high-quality digital experience across all of our competitions

Genius chief executive Mark Locke added: “Providing sports with cutting-edge solutions to maximise the value of their live data and streamline the running of their competitions has been a central part of our business for more than 20 years. 

“This approach is more important than ever for us and our partners and we are proud that our partnership with CEV will drive the growth and digital transformation of European Volleyball across indoor, beach and snow.”

BetDEX is a platform which aims to marry cryptocurrency with sports, branding itself as the world’s first decentralised sports betting exchange.

The company’s ambitions are to  “deliver a global sports betting protocol that enables users to trade bets at high speed and minimal cost with zero counterparty risk”.

Eccles said:  “Starting a company means getting to pick who you get to hang out with for next 5-10 years. Because of that I’m really excited today to share I’m founding a new company, BetDEX Labs Inc., with two of my favorite former FanDuel colleagues, Varun Sudhakar and Stuart Tonner.

“In addition, we are excited to have Andy Murray, Pawel Witek, Drew Alexander Baird Spencer and Ewan Meldrum join us. It is going to be one incredible journey.”

Eccles stepped down as FanDuel CEO in 2017, with Matt King stepping in as his replacement. He went on to take legal action following Paddy Power Betfair’s acquisition of the company, in a deal that created Flutter.

Eccles claimed that the $465m (£367m/€411m) valuation of FanDuel in the acquisition did not take into account the potential impact of the legalization of sports betting on the company. A December 2020 deal in which Flutter acquired an additional 37.2% stake in the business suggested FanDuel was worth more than $11bn at the time.

Holland Casino become the first Dutch operator to incorporate Greentube’s games into its offering after the Netherlands gaming market opened up on 1 October.

The operator was among the first ten to be granted an online gaming licence in the country. A host of other operators that did not receive licenses – including Kindred, 888, Casumo and Betsson – put a stop to their Dutch operations after the market launched, with the hope of resuming service in 2022.

The games made available to Holland Casino players include titles such as Book of Ra and Sizzling Hot. The company obtained the required game certifications through its Dutch supplier licence.

Markus Antl, head of sales and key account management at Greentube, said: “We are happy to team up together with Novomatic’s long-term partner Holland Casino and go live in the Netherlands, which is a market we see holding plenty of potential. This is definitely a milestone for us and we are looking forward to a successful partnership.”

Greentube strengthened its presence in the Netherlands earlier this year after acquiring slot developer Eurocoin Interactive.

Holland Casino’s digital transformation director Jeroen Verkroost added: “Dutch players have long relished the opportunity to play their favourite games online in a safe, controlled and secure environment.

“By offering them classic slots including Book of Ra and Sizzling Hot as well as a wide selection of popular AWP titles, we are sure that this partnership with Greentube will mark the latest chapter in our long history of success with Novomatic.”

The Netherlands launch comes in the same week that Greentube expanded in the Spanish market, reaching an agreement with Casino Barcelona.

Issued in consecutive days by the Michigan Gaming Control Board and the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the new licences will allow DWG to supply its content to licensed online operators in each state.

DMG, which also holds a New Jersey licence, last month announced its entry into the North American market via an agreement with the SG Digital arm of Scientific Games.

This partnership is set to commence with a first-of-its-kind dual pilot launch in New Jersey with Golden Nugget and Resorts Casino.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

The appointments come days after SIS announced the launch of its new subsidiary, SIS Content Services, in the US to target market growth.

Laila Mintas, who is currently CEO of PlayUp USA, was announced as one of the appointments. Previously, Mintas was deputy president of Sportradar USA. She has over 15 years of experience in the betting and gaming industry.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

The proposal was brought about by Sweden’s Ministry of Finance, which announced a consultation on reforms to gambling advertising in June this year following the Gambling Market Inquiry in November 2020.

The proposals included a new rule to treat gambling advertising in the country with “special moderation”, meaning that it would be treated like alcohol advertising.

The law currently simply calls for “moderation”.

Hofbauer stated that Svenska Spel supports the idea behind the proposal, particularly the implications for consumer protection, but are curious as to whether further restrictions on gambling advertising are necessary.

“We question whether the proposed proposal would, in practice, lead to any increase in consumer protection,” said Hofbauer.

“Even today, marketing of games is already limited.”

Hofbauer commented specifically on the proposed change in wording in the law from “moderation” to “special moderation”, claiming that it could lead to “unwanted consequences.”

“At first glance, it [the change in wording] may seem like a small difference, but special moderation is very restrictive for marketing.”

“Based on how the requirement is applied in alcohol legislation, special moderation means very limited opportunities to convey, for example, moods and emotions in advertising.”

Hofbauer listed a number of potential consequences, beginning with Swedish sports.

“The proposal would limit the possibility of sponsorship and have very significant consequences for the financing of sports,” said Hofbauer.

Svenska Spel estimates that sports sponsorships from gaming companies adds up to SEK800m (£67.5m/€79.9m) per year.

“There will be less money for both elite sports and grassroots sports, which would be felt in everyday sports.”

Hofbauer also drew attention to the economic impact of the restrictions, emphasising how Svenska Spel supports local shops through agreements with operators. He also commented on the potential increase in illegal gambling from unlicenced operators.

As an alternative, Hofbauer suggested a clearer definition of “moderation”.

“A better alternative is to have current requirements for moderate marketing clarified through practice, in order to then evaluate the need for a restriction on gambling advertising based on risk classification.”

The changes in advertising are set to come into effect in June 2022.

Last month, the Swedish Gaming Inspectorate (Spelinspektionen) spoke out in support of the proposal.

NSUS Malta was confirmed as one of 10 operators to secure a new online gambling licence in the Netherlands ahead of the launch of its regulated market on 1 October.

The GGPoker.nl site went live earlier this month on a limited basis, allowing for the operator to resolve any delays encountered by players during the soft launch. 

Now that the account set up and funding processes have been streamlined, GGPoker has commenced a full launch, offering Dutch players unlimited access to its site.

“The online poker landscape has changed a lot since the closure of the Dutch market, several years ago. Arguably, the biggest difference is that GGPoker is now the largest poker site in the world and the place where everyone loves to play,” GGPoker’s head of Europe Marco Trucco said.

“We’re really excited to welcome Dutch players to GGPoker to compete for the most prestigious poker achievements or just to have some fun at the tables.”

Bet365, UK-based bingo operator Tombola and Play North Ltd are among the other brands to have secured online gambling licences in the Netherlands, alongside Dutch land-based operator Holland Casino NV and state lottery Nederlandse Loterij with its TOTO Online betting brand

The Janshen Hahnraths Group with FPO Nederland, Italy-based Betent, Belgian brand Bingoal and sports media and betting business LiveScore Malta also secured licences.

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Under the agreement, the NBA and TAB will work together to deliver gambling experiences to Australian fans during the 2021-22 season.

TAB branding will feature across the NBA’s digital platforms, including the league’s official website and social media channels, while the operator will serve as the presenting partner of a localised version of the NBA Pick‘Em free-to-play prediction game.

In addition, the NBA and TAB will produce a localised version of NBABet Stream, the NBA’s betting-focused alternate telecast, marking the first such execution outside of the US.

TAB’s parent company Tabcorp in 2019 announced a deal with the NBA to bring the NBA TV 24-hour television network, to Tabcorp’s Sky Channel in retail and entertainment venues across Australia. 

“Fan engagement is the core of our partnership with TAB, a proven leader and innovator in the wagering space,” NBA Asia executive vice president and managing director Scott Levy said. 

“This NBA season is primed to be yet another thrilling basketball showcase, and together with TAB, we will deliver the best possible gaming experience to deepen our engagement with the many passionate NBA fans in Australia who are interested in gaming.”

Tabcorp’s wagering and media managing director Adam Rytenskild added: “The popularity of the NBA in Australia continues to grow, particularly amongst younger audiences.  We have a strong focus on Racing and this partnership strengthens TAB’s sport offering which will enable us to introduce new customers to wagering and to racing.  

“We look forward to working with the team at the NBA to provide our customers with a unique offering through outstanding products, promotions and content.”

yesterday, TAB owner Tabcorp revealed that revenue for its entire business came to $5.68bn for the year, an 8.8% year-on-year increase, as it prepares for a demerger of its lottery operations from the rest of the business.

In a preliminary results announcement, Catena Media said revenue for the three months to 30 September is expected to reach an estimated €33.1m (£28.0m/$38.5m), which would be 33% higher than the third quarter of 2020.

Revenue from the North American market is forecast to increase by approximately 124% year-on-year and account for 51% of total group revenue for the period.

Catena Media also said it expects to see organic growth of 23%, though this would be 34% when excluding the now-regulated German igaming market, where revenue was down by 62% and accounted for 4% of overall revenue in Q3.

Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) is forecast to increase by 33% year-on-year to an estimated €16.0m, corresponding to a margin of 48%.

However, the business added that operating profit will be negatively impacted by a non-cash impairment of intangible assets in accordance with IAS 36, resulting in an estimated write down of €49.4m. Some €42.8m of the write down pertains to German sports assets acquired between 2016 and 2018, and €6.6m for French sports assets acquired in 2018.

“Q3 was an exceptional quarter with September revenue breaking our monthly all-time high,” Catena Media chief executive Michael Daly said “This was the result of our strategic investment in organic development, particularly in North America, and was supported by two recent acquisitions in the US and the opening of the igaming market in Arizona. 

“The impairment charge adjusts our European business to new market realities following a review by the management team and our focus on transforming the business to reach maximum potential.”

Catena Media plans to publish its full results for the third quarter on 17 November.

Parx Casino was the best performing casino, generating $57.2m. Penn National’s Hollywood Casino was next with $55.9m, followed by Rivers Casino Philadelphia with $47.9m. Philadelphia’s Live! Casino recorded revenue of $19.6m, after having only opened earlier this year.

Retail slots were the largest contributor to the overall revenue total with $198.9m – up from $157.4m in 2020. Parx Casino’s slots were the most lucrative $33.5m, followed by Wind Creek in Bethlehem with $23.3m.

Retail table games generated $84.1m, while online slots raised $68.6m. The increase in retail revenue can be partly attributed to venues returning to full capacity in the wake of the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

Read the full story on iGB North America.