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Bragg Gaming strengthens North America vision via Caliente Interactive igaming deal

Bragg Gaming Group has underlined its ambition of becoming a powerhouse igaming supplier in North America by going live with Caliente Interactive in Mexico.

Heralded as the ‘igaming leader’ of Mexico – where the interactive gambling market is on track to generate $1.09bn in gross win this year, with around half of the revenues deriving from the online casino segment – Caliente Interactive is well positioned to help support Bragg’s objectives on the continent.

Under the terms of the deal, content from Bragg’s Atomic Slot Lab studio – including Egyptian Magic and Fairy Dust – will be made available to Caliente Interactive players in Mexico at www.caliente.mx.

Yaniv Sherman, CEO at Bragg, commented: “Expanding our content to Caliente Interactive is another successful step in our initiative to be a provider of exciting, player-engaging content to leading igaming operators around the world.

“We are excited to feature our newest proprietary and exclusive third-party content with the leading igaming operator in Mexico as this new relationship provides us with a unique platform we can leverage to introduce our innovative games to players in the market.”

As a Toronto-based provider, Bragg has already solidified a strong footing in Canada, having formed agreements with Rush Street Interactive, Kalamba Games and Betsson over the past year.

But the company recently announced that there are further plans in store to expand in Canada and the US, with the overall goal of significant growth in North America as a whole.

Sherman added: “We have already made tremendous progress with our North American growth strategy, and we expect our success will continue to accelerate as we debut our new offerings in additional igaming markets across this region.

“With our RGS capabilities and growing portfolio of proprietary and exclusive third-party premium content, including from our popular Atomic Slot Lab studio, Bragg is favorably positioned to become a leading igaming supplier in North America.”

Real Luck Group drops pursuit of APAC igaming platform

Real Luck Group has pulled out of plans to acquire an Asia-Pacific (APAC) focused igaming platform after ‘conducting the appropriate due diligence’.

The Calgary-based company, owner of the esports betting and sports betting platform Luckbox, announced last November that it had entered into an LOI (Letter of Intent) to ‘acquire a leading APAC-focused igaming platform, with a wholly owned proprietary tech stack’, subject to TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) approval.

Completion of the transaction would have seen Luckbox purchase the vendors’ proprietary platform and technology and gain access to over 6,000 games from 50 game providers and 100 localized payment methods.

However, four months after expected closure of the transaction, Real Luck Group and Luckbox have now announced that the proposed acquisition will no longer be pursued.

The update arrived last Thursday, when Real Luck Group also confirmed another record-breaking month for the company.

Following the $2.8m global betting handle recorded in February – itself a record-breaking month – Real Luck Group has now reported month-on-month growth of 78.57% (March: $5m), mainly driven by the increase in active players, new markets and player revenue.

After six months the group’s registered player base stood at 350,000, but has now risen again to 387,000.

“2023’s first quarter has ended on a very strong trajectory for us,” said Thomas Rosander, Real Luck Group CEO. “Our B2C commitment, and our progress on our new B2B product, are both achieving the strategic milestones that we expected at this time of year.

“We look forward to sharing further progress as both verticals of the business grow and as the company evolves in Q2.”

Real Luck Group’s ‘transformational’ new B2B product, announced in January, has been described as ‘an ultrafast, live micro-betting platform’.

Intralot solidifies Canadian presence via BCLC sports betting extension

The British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) will be supplied with a ‘next-generation sports betting platform’ after extending its agreement with Intralot’s US subsidiary, Intralot Inc.

Under the terms of the three-year deal, which includes an option of three annual extensions, Intralot Inc will provide its sports betting platform ‘Intralot Orion’ – including the Photon X retail terminals and GameStation self-service terminals – to enable the operations and management of BCLC’s retail sportsbook.

Furthermore, Intralot Inc has added its BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) solution where players can view a full betting offering, paper digital betslips and generate a QR code, which can be scanned at retail terminals.

Nikos Nikolakopoulos, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Intralot Inc., commented: “We are excited to extend our partnership with BCLC in the sports betting sector.

“We are looking forward to a close cooperation with the lottery in order to provide an enhanced retail player experience and responsibly drive the lottery’s growth to further benefit the British Columbia community.”

The terminals are expected to be in market ‘this winter’, offering sports and lottery products, with Intralot’s retail sports betting solution to be deployed in more than 700 self-service terminals and 3,400 clerk operated terminals across the province.

Intralot first entered the Canadian market in 2019 when the firm agreed to provide a lottery central system to BCLC, signing terms for an initial five-year period with the option of a further six years.

OLG releases RPFQ in search for Windsor casino operator

The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has begun its process to identify a ‘highly qualified’ operator for its Windsor casino by releasing a Request for Pre-Qualification (RPFQ).

An RPFQ is the first stage in a competitive procurement process where the qualifications of a bidder – as required by the Municipality – are assessed to determine whether they are at a level that enables them to proceed further.

Owned by the Government of Ontario – through OLG – the casino in Windsor is currently operated by Caesars Entertainment and is known as ‘Caesars Windsor’.

“OLG is advancing plans that will support the long-term vibrancy and excitement of the casino experience in Ontario,” said Duncan Hannay, OLG President and CEO.

“Releasing the RFPQ for the Windsor casino is the first step in selecting a highly qualified service provider that will ensure the long-term competitiveness of the site while continuing to generate economic benefits for the local community and for Ontario.”

OLG entered into an agreement to extend its existing contract with Caesars by one year last August, extending the partnership to August 2025.

The crown corporation also included the option to further extend the term for a minimum of six months and up to a maximum of 12 months, ending no later than August 2026.

Caesars can still choose to participate in the RPFQ process, which closes May 25.

The process will enable the crown corporation to prequalify potential proponents based on their previous experience operating a large gaming resort.

Those that prequalify will proceed to the Request for Proposal (RFP) phase of the procurement, where providers will receive documents that outline the opportunity in Windsor and the information required to submit a detailed proposal.

OLG will continue to conduct and manage gaming in Windsor while the winning proponent handles the day-to-day gaming operations of the casino.

AGCO buoyed by player conversion numbers as Ontario igaming market turns one

As a steward of Ontario igaming, there are few better placed to observe the market than Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) Registrar and CEO Tom Mungham, who has delivered an upbeat verdict on its first year performance.

The regulated market launched in the province on Apr. 4, 2022, and has grown to incorporate 45 operators and over 5,000 certified games so far with the approval of the AGCO.

Crucial to its success has been the ability to shift people away from unregulated sites, with a recent Ipsos survey revealing around 85% of respondents who gambled online in Ontario over the past three months did so on regulated sites, compared to the 70% of online gambling that occurred on unregulated sites before.

Via the AGCO’s release, Mungham explained: “A key objective in this first year has been to move Ontario players from playing on unregulated sites to the regulated market, so that they would benefit from high standards of operator and game integrity, fairness and player protections including responsible gambling safeguards.

“Although there’s still much work to be done, we’re pleased to see such a substantial shift towards gaming on regulated sites so far, and everything that it represents for players and for the province.”

Meanwhile, speaking at the Canadian Gaming Association event held yesterday to celebrate Ontario’s first year anniversary, OLG’s Chief Gaming Officer Dave Pridmore revealed that its digital gaming revenue and customer base is continuing to grow.

OLG – whose numbers are not included in the total gaming revenue and wagers revealed by iGaming Ontario (iGO) yesterday – has seen its digital customers number rise to 1.6 million, despite the addition of around 70 other gaming sites.

GeoComply flags 3.3m ‘spoofing’ attempts in Ontario igaming & sports betting market

GeoComply has published its risk number data from the first 12 months of the regulated Ontario igaming and online sports betting market, reporting 3.3 million global ‘spoofing’ attempts.

These efforts at accessing Ontario operators came from several different continents, including Europe, Africa and South America.

Additionally, over 744,000 users attempted to log in 19.9 million times to Ontario operators during the market’s first year, with 54,000 users hailing from within the US who attempted to log in 305,000 times.

Pertinently, GeoComply’s risk data for Ontario operators shows the province is in line with similarly-sized US states that have regulated igaming and/or online sports betting.

Danny DiRienzo, Director of Risk Services at GeoComply, explained: “Ontario is such a large market and the opening of any market results in bonus offerings attracting fraudsters.

“This, coupled with the traditional gray market operations in Canada, resulted in experienced fraudsters hunting bonuses from day one, as anyone with a set of stolen identities could collect bonuses from several operators.

“GeoComply remains vigilant alongside our operator partners. During the last 90 days, a third of GeoComply’s fraud investigations have involved Ontario operators, despite Ontario accounting for far less than a third of our overall traffic.

“The investigations have affected most Ontario operators, so fraudsters are targeting almost everybody.”

GeoComply expanded its Canadian footprint with a new office in downtown Toronto last November, and describes itself as ‘the leading provider of geolocation and anti-fraud services to Ontario’s licensed igaming and online sports betting operators’.

According to the company’s data, GeoComply detected 1,045 fraud rings affecting multiple operators over the past year, and prevented over 219,000 devices from gambling for fraud reasons.

DiRienzo added: “Online fraud is not uniquely a sports betting or igaming problem. Recent data shows that cybercrimes were up 50 per cent in 2022 across all forms of e-commerce.

“However, our industry’s high standards of compliance put us in a strong position to combat it. Because every bettor must verify their location, we have the data to stop fraud before it gets a foothold.”

iGO: Ontario igaming revenue reaches $1.4bn in first 12 months

As the Ontario igaming market celebrates its one year anniversary today, iGaming Ontario (iGO) has shared several striking statistics behind the province’s success story so far.

Since becoming the first Canadian province to launch an open, regulated igaming market on Apr. 4, 2022 – overseen by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and iGO – Ontario has taken an estimated $35.6bn in total wagers and approximately $1.4bn in total gaming revenue (excluding OLG).

According to iGO, these numbers have elevated the province into the top five gaming jurisdictions in North America.

“Today’s numbers demonstrate that Ontario has one of the best online gaming markets in the world,” said Dave Forestell, iGO Board Chair. “Since Ontario opened the market we have seen new investment, job creation, and captured revenue that used to leave the province.

“Ontario is well on its way to becoming the best gaming jurisdiction in the world.”

Additionally, iGO contends that more than 1.6 million active player accounts – where the monthly spend per active player is around $70 – on websites run by over 40 operators, have made the province ‘the most competitive market in continental North America’.

“Ontario’s igaming market has displaced the pre-existing unregulated market and made Ontario a recognized leader internationally in this industry since its launch in April 2022,” added Attorney General Doug Downey.

Delving deeper into the statistics behind the past year, an Ipsos survey (conducted in March) has revealed around 85% of respondents who gambled online in Ontario over the past three months did so on regulated sites.

Meanwhile, basketball emerged as the most popular sport to bet on, accounting for 28% of the market, followed by soccer (15%), football (14%), hockey (9%) and baseball (8%).

Within the online casino category, 48% of all casino wagers were on slots, 32% on table games with a live dealer, and the remainder (19%) on computer-based table games.

Kings Entertainment plots global lottery expansion after collapse of SVH merger

Kings Entertainment has agreed a settlement with Sports Venture Holdings (SVH) over the termination of its proposed merger, and is now looking to expand operations in the global lottery sector.

This latest development comes after news emerged last month that the business combination between Kings and SVH was on the rocks due to the noncompliance of the latter.

Subsequently, Kings was said to be ‘considering all options with respect to the enforcement of the Business Combination Agreement, the loan and its other rights’ and, weeks later, the matter now appears to be resolved.

For its troubles, the Vancouver-based firm will be repaid the full amount of the $2.5m advance it paid to SVH when entering the transaction agreement last May, while SVH has also agreed to reimburse Kings for $1.75m of its costs and expenses incurred in connection with the proposed merger.

After announcing the termination of the proposed business combination with SVH, Kings further shared that it is ‘now positioning its operations for expansion in the burgeoning global lottery sector’, following consistent growth and a surge in jackpots.

“The global lottery market has made a huge comeback this year and we’ve positioned ourselves well to take advantage of this renewed interest,” explained Steve Budin, CEO of Kings.

“We’ve built a strong foundation for growth, by cutting costs throughout our operations, and will now leverage the strong presence we’ve built to accelerate our growth globally, both organically, and if the right opportunity comes up, through complementary acquisitions.”

Aiming for profitability by the end of 2023, Kings affirms its cash position is ‘even stronger’ than prior to the proposed merger with SVH, and the firm is now exploring entry into the emerging AI market.

BCLC inks tri-party deal to launch new slot via Light & Wonder

ReelPlay has made its first play on the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) platform after launching ‘Hypernova Megaways’ via Light & Wonder.

The online slot was first released in 2018 and has since become a ‘global smash’ according to Light & Wonder, which is delivering ReelPlay games to BCLC for the first time after forging a new agreement with its long-time partner.

Hypernova Megaways is the first of a number of scheduled ReelPlay deployments to BCLC’s content portfolio.

Steve Mayes, Digital Partnerships Director at Light & Wonder, commented: “Having worked closely with ReelPlay for many years, we fully expect their extended distribution into BCLC to be a success for all parties and look forward to future ReelPlay releases across our network.”

Light & Wonder’s OpenGaming ecosystem – which also powered Fantasma Games’ entry into the Canadian gaming market last year – delivers more than 3,500 games from a global network of in-house and third-party game studios, all supported with a ‘comprehensive’ range of responsible gambling tools to help deliver a ‘safe and enjoyable gaming experience’ for players.

“Hypernova Megaways is one of the top performing slot games across the regulated North American markets,” explained David Johnson, CEO at ReelPlay.

“Proudly first to market with innovative and inspirational concepts, ReelPlay is very excited to see the game arrive in another regulated market via our partners at Light & Wonder and expect the tri-party relationship to really flourish after this debut release.”

Meanwhile, BCLC was recently named as the newest member of United Lotteries for Integrity in Sports (ULIS), the organization formerly known as the Global Lottery Monitoring System (GLMS).

Pariplay adds Ainsworth content to solidify standing in Canada

Pariplay has signed a new agreement with its partner Ainsworth Game Technology to deliver the supplier’s online content in Canada.

The deal further strengthens Pariplay’s presence in the Canadian market after launching its Wizard Games content – via Caesars Sportsbook & Casino – in Ontario last month.

The NeoGames subsidiary also went live in Alberta last year with content from its Fusion platform as the company continues its drive for expansion in Canada.

Shivan Patel, Commercial Director of North America at Pariplay, commented: “Our partnership with Ainsworth has been a great one with their content performing well in the markets where we have rolled it out.

“Extending the deal to launch their portfolio into Canada is a testament to the success of our collaboration and sees us further boost our offering to our operator partners in the region.”

The partnership is an extension of a collaboration between the two parties with Ainsworth’s content already live in Latin America via Pariplay.

Jason Lim, General Manager of Digital and Online Gaming at Ainsworth, added: “Pariplay has been an important partner, enabling us to rapidly bring our content to market in a streamlined manner.

“Collaborating to further our reach in Canada was an obvious choice and we look forward to strengthening our partnership.”