As part of its agreement, White Hat will supply its premium branded titles, such as Ted, Deal or No Deal and Peaky Blinders, along with other slots, jackpots, RNG, table and instant-win titles in its catalogue, to the state of Michigan. 

Andy Whitworth, CEO of White Hat Studios, said: “We’re delighted to see our products go live in the US, starting with BetMGM in the great state of Michigan. Our games are tried and tested, and we are confident our content will thrill US players.

“It’s been an incredible ride getting to this point from a standing start last September. This is a huge milestone to go live, my team has been exceptional to move at such speed, the next step is to launch into all states and get live the 15+ operators that we have signed so far.”

Moreover, White Hat Studios noted that its US debut with BetMGM signifies a “uniquely rapid development”, stating that Michigan will be the “first in a series” of anticipated state entries and “aggressive roll out” of further operators into all regulated states.

Going live with BetMGM continues White Hat’s US expansion following the announcement of  a content agreement with PlayEagle to make its branded slot catalogue available in Michigan.

Moreover, the back end of June saw BetMGM launch a range of live tables on its BetMGM Casino platform in West Virginia, using technology from B2B supplier of live casino content, Evolution.

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“The games themselves are sort of coming from popular TV shows. You’re currently on an offering where you have Deal or No Deal, Monopoly, you know, Dream Catcher and other games, which are on a different level in terms of player engagement.

“It’s more attractive to a wider audience and I think the players feel more comfortable on them because they’re much simpler to players or require a lesser knowledge level to play them.

“It really opened the door for a much wider player profile for live games. I know in the past when we see you know, the specific profiles tend to gravitate towards classical games like blackjack or roulette. But the growth in the last couple of years really came from game shows.”

Ciara Nic Liam, product director games of chance at Betsson Group, agreed with Benetis’ comments whilst also highlighting that game shows in live casinos also came at the perfect time given that the sector was undergoing new regulations.

Nic Liam added: “I think the piece worth pointing out as well is the emergence of those game shows came at a really great time when there was an enhanced focus on due diligence and KYC and people weren’t just trying to bring in large live casino VIPs that wanted private tables.

“People pivoted more to recreational players and their player base to make sure their casino was more sustainable. So people push these games quite heavily. There were live casino players that tried these game shows, and that was to love to buy them. But actually, as we see, even with the streamer community, it’s a lot of predominantly strong, slot players that go on and play these game shows.

“What we then find is we try to up-sell them and cross sell them to other live casino games because a live casino customer in a lot of markets can be more valuable than a slots customer.”

However, whilst OneTouch’s head of product, Madis Raus, agreed with the panellists over the popularity of game shows, he feels that there is still room in the market to attract this new audience whilst also maintaining a strong consumer base for land-based casinos. Especially when land-based venues offer more of a localised feel than their online counterparts.

“I definitely see the game shows more appealing to the younger generation that actually are looking for this excitement, entertainment and also the community feeling,” Raus commented. “I don’t think these game shows will attract those hardcore gamblers very well.”

“What I see is that those, like regular guys playing in land based casinos, one of the things that they definitely might want is the localisation. Probably a Japanese guy doesn’t want to play with an English speaking dealer is one of the things and if we offer them the same local experience that they could get from the local casinos, this might help.”

The panel, which was moderated by Arjan Korstjens, marketing consultant at ExPlayner, also discussed what lessons can be learnt from both industries to ensure that land-based and online can prosper.

Richard Walker, head of digital table games at Rank Interactive, explained that retail needs to look at online offerings and attempt to ‘catch up’ in terms of the technology that live casino’s have.

Walker said: “Obviously there is a lot more technology wise for digital gaming and retail are trying to get there now, looking to use the Dragon Fire roulette multipliers in. We are looking to launch something similar in retail and the demand for it online is massive to kind of retail are trying to catch online with their offering rather than the other way around.”

Moving back to localisation of live casinos, Nic Liam emphasised the importance of ensuring that the correct products are offered to customers in specific regions to create a greater understanding for the customer.

“When we look at places like Asia or the African continent, and like America we definitely see an emergence of different pieces and what we really strive to do is make sure we offer the best regionally diverse content to our customers, whether that’s something in LatAm, specifically, or whether it’s a version of Turkish poker. 

“I think if you want to compete in a region, you need to make sure that you understand and you respect what the local games are and you try and compete on that front rather than just thinking that you know, European games are going to work in every region because we know that’s not always the case.”

SBC Summit Barcelona – Digital takes place over four days this week (8 – 11 September) and features four main zones – Sports Betting, Casino & Gaming, Payments & Compliance, and Affiliate & Marketing – each of which have their own conference tracks, networking roundtables and interactive expo halls. 

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Lauded as “ one of the fastest growing sports betting portals in Italy,” SKS365’s flagship entity has added the entire range of titles from live casino specialists Evolution Gaming to its online games offering for the market.

Francesco Gaziano, chief marketing officer at SKS365 Group, commented on the new partnership: “We are very excited to be collaborating with the market leader in live casino, and to be adding such a rich and valuable set of set live games to our planetwin365 games line-up. 

“We are particularly excited by the potential of Evolution’s game show games, which includes Deal or No Deal live, lightning roulette and money wheel games.”

Going live with the complete portfolio of live casino games, the Evolution suite includes an extensive range of casino titles, such as the native Italian speaking Venezia offering, recently released games such as super sic bo, free bet blackjack and numerous poker variants.

Furthermore, Evolution’s growing set of game show titles are to also be integrated, with all available on desktop, tablet and smartphone at www.planetwin365.it.

Sebastian Johannisson, chief commercial officer at Evolution Gaming, added: “We are extremely proud to be working with SKS365 Group on the further development of their planetwin365 content offering. 

“With planetwin365 being one of the top online sports betting operators in Italy, this is a key customer win in what is a very important European market for Evolution.”

Last week Switzerland’s Grand Casino Baden is continuing its preparations for the country’s new online casino market, after entering into an agreement alongside Evolution Gaming.

The new ‘Money Gaming Act’ was introduced in June of last year, with the country’s authorities setting a July 1 deadline for implementation.

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The company, which supplies a remote gaming server to real money and social gaming operators, states that as a result of the deal it’s to supply a suite of its “most iconic games”.

In turn, this is to see titles such as the Deal Or No Deal series and Oliver Twist be made available to a growing number of tier one operators, who utilise the iSoftBet platform.

Stuart Banks, managing director of Playzido, said: “We’re delighted to work with iSoftbet to enhance the distribution of the Playzido games.

“This partnership will see a considerable number of operators having access to super-brands, such as Deal or No Deal for the first time and we can’t wait to show how well our portfolio can perform.”

The iSoftBet GAP currently offers online casino in excess of 3,000 games, sourced from approximately 50 igaming third party supplier, and comes complete with a “host of advanced marketing and real-time gamification tools,” such as in-game.

Furthermore, the firm also boasts a portfolio of 150 slot and table games titles, including Vegas High Roller, Hot Spin and The Dalai Panda, all of which have been designed, developed and certified for use in 15 major regulated markets.

Michael Probert, chief commercial officer at iSoftBet, added: “We’re thrilled to welcome Playzido into the GAP family. They have an impressive content portfolio and have some of the most engaging brands in the industry.

“This marks an extremely exciting step for GAP and our valued customers, and we look forward to growing our aggregation platform offering further in the future.”

This follows a further European expansion for iSoftBet, after it unveiled a new agreement alongside Lithuanian operator TOPsport last month.

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Under the terms of the partnership Relax is to distribute Gaming Realms’ slingo originals portfolio of games via their gaming platform, adding another partner on the back of similar such deals agreed alongside American Gaming Systems and Leander Games.

Daniel Eskola, CEO at Relax Gaming, commented: “It was an easy decision to sign the agreement with Gaming Realm’s Slingo as we look to take on the most engaging content from third-parties.

“We are building a compelling proposition for operators and providers alike, with a rich portfolio of games delivered on the basis of commercial transparency.”

As a result of the deal Relax Gaming is to provide partners with access to Gaming Realms products, including the hugely popular Deal or no Deal Slingo, Rainbow Riches Slingo and Monopoly Slingo.

Patrick Southon, CEO at Gaming Realms, added: “We are delighted to have signed this deal with Relax Gaming. The opportunity to distribute our games through such a highly regarded platform is a clear endorsement of the potential of the slingo originals portfolio in the world’s regulated markets.

“We are extremely excited to be able to bring our games to new audiences. We look forward to working closely with them in unlocking this partnership’s potential.”

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Placing an emphasis on global growth during the past 12 months, and the US in particular with its North American manoeuvres complemented by the acquisition of Ezugi in early January, CEO Martin Carlesund stressed that the group has “entered 2019 being stronger than ever before”.

After placing a primary focus on preparing the company for continued growth and market leadership for the coming years, Carlesund gave a peak into ambitions laid out for the immediate future in the company’s annual report: “Extending the gap is our top priority. Everything we do is about one thing, to extend the gap to the competition and strengthen our market leadership.

“This perpetual mission is the common thread in our studio expansion as well as in product development, operational excellence and recruitment. I am proud of what we have achieved in 2018, but see no reason to slow down.

“We shall continue to grow, continue to create new gaming experiences and continue to strengthen our global position. I would like to take the opportunity to thank all employees, customers, end users, partners and shareholders for the past year – together we will reach new heights.”

With a new studio to launch in Malta, to meet market demand, Evolution, who secured a 38 per cent rise in revenues to $245.4m (2017: $178.3m) for the past year, are also placing a focus on product innovation.

Carlesund commented: “We have invested great resources in more product launches ahead of 2019. With titles like Monopoly Live and Deal or No Deal Live, we will take the entire live casino industry to the next level.

“Our focus is on providing world-class entertainment, where we see services like YouTube and Netflix as our main competitors.”

A growing customer base, and adding more services to existing licensees, is a further area of success for the company, which highlighted Svenska Spel and ATG who launched dedicated live casino offerings to their players in the new Swedish gaming market.

Building upon several New Jersey based deal, alongside Ocean Resort Casino, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, 888casino and PokerStars Casino, Evolution is to also target extending existing customer deals and entering new partnerships, to meet “the high demand for live casino.”

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Under the terms of the new partnership LeoVegas is to immediately launch a number of titles from the Playzido portfolio across its twelve brands, including Bet UK, Pink Casino and 21.co.uk.

Stuart Banks, managing director of Playzido, commented: “It’s fantastic to get our games live across the LeoVegas Gaming Group’s sites. With our Deal or No Deal suite of games, we have a brand that has enjoyed sustained success in the gaming market for over a decade, and we’re confident that they will perform well on their different brands alongside our broader portfolio.”

LeoVegas, which counts Endemol Shine Gaming’s Deal or No Deal titles and Oliver Twist as part of its own suite of titles, is to also benefit from a range of extra features.

All games delivered via the Playzido platform will benefit from the company’s marketing features, such as the free spins factory functionality, allowing them to promote the Playzido games to their customers in new and exciting ways.

Irena Busic, communications director of LeoVegas Group, added: “It’s really exciting for us to be able to offer the Playzido games to our customers. We’re always on the lookout for the best games in the market, and it’s clear that Playzido games should take a deserved place in our game mix. The quantity and quality of games in their future roadmap definitely makes them one-to-watch.”

LeoVegas recently labelled 2018 an educational year, after recovering from a “challenging quarter” in Q3 to post a 25 per cent rise in revenues for 2018’s final period to €84.5m (2017: €67.8m).

Gustaf Hagman, group CEO, commented: “2018 was the most challenging year in LeoVegas’ history. We bumped into challenges that we have not previously encountered, and saw a slowdown in growth as a result.

“It was also a year in which we carried out a number of strategically crucial projects that have taken us large steps forward on our growth journey.

“There is much left to do, and there’s no doubt we can and will improve in many areas. We have learned a lot, and our position for achieving our long-term vision – to be the global market leader in mobile casino – is good.”

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Returning with a season premiere on CNBC last week after a ten year hiatus, the game show proved to be the station’s most watched night in over two years, as well as coming in at 477 per cent above CNBC prime-time average.

Endemol Shine Gaming, the global creator, producer and distributor arm of the Endemol Shine Group, and iPro have developed the free-to-play Deal or no Deal Live app for play alongside the show, with the offering now available in both the App Store and Google Play.

Mark Woollard, commercial director, Endemol Shine Gaming, explained: “Deal or No Deal is a truly evergreen format, and we continue to grow the brand’s off-air presence through innovative gaming.

“We are delighted to partner with iPro to offer our US fans new ways to engage with the show, and we look forward to exploring opportunities to further this partnership for our Deal or No Deal audiences all around the world.”

Deal or No Deal has been commissioned in 83 territories worldwide with 324 productions internationally, with the US version of the show produced by Truly Original, a subsidiary of Endemol Shine North America.

Returning with 30 one-hour episodes, original host Howie Mandel also makes a comeback, as the show promises everything viewers expect plus “some exciting new twists”.

“iPro could not be happier partnering with an entertainment powerhouse like Endemol, to bring US viewers the excitement of playing Deal or No Deal Live at home with their phone or tablet while watching the show,” added Robert Melendres, founder and CEO of iPro.

“The popularity of the Deal or No Deal brand combined with the power of iPro’s platform will help usher in a new era in interactive, television entertainment.”

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The partnership with the online gaming platform provider marks the latest development for Playzido, with the firm stating it is “the latest in a series of upcoming launches”.

Stuart Banks, managing director of Playzido, commented: “We’re delighted to announce this deal as we’re great admirers of Bede. Ultimately we share the same ambition of delivering excellent products that address the real needs of operators.

“This deal comes at an incredibly exciting time for Playzido, as we look to make a major impact through a number of significant partnerships lined up over the coming months.”

The partnership is set to see Playzido’s catalogue of branded slots, from a selection of game studios including Endemol Shine Gaming, added to Bede’s flagship gaming platform, Hub, and its aggregation platform, Play.

The deal, which includes a suite of Deal or No Deal titles, will allow Playzido’s full portfolio and innovative platform functionality to be made available to Bede’s customers.

Ross Haselhurst, commercial director at Bede, added: “We welcome Playzido and its game suppliers to our platform. The calibre of the games on the Playzido platform, coupled with some really exciting functionality is a powerful mix that we know will land well with our operators. We look forward to a great partnership moving forward.”  

This latest news comes a short time after Playzido agreed a deal to distribute its full portfolio of titles to aggregation platform Iforium.

Speaking at the time of the agreement Phil Parry, CEO of Iforium, explained: “I am delighted to confirm this partnership, and I welcome the connection of our respective open platforms.

“The opportunity for Iforium to be the first platform to connect to Playzido and Endemol Shine was compelling, as it’s clear they will rapidly become a leading player in the content space.

“I am also confident the addition of Playzido into [Iforium’s platform] Gameflex will be warmly welcomed by our operators, who can instantly access a new range of premium branded content, such as Deal or No Deal.”

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The venture marks the first steps into live casino from Endemol Shine Gaming’s portfolio of brands, which forms part of global content creator, producer and distributor Endemol Shine Group.

Mark Woollard, commercial director at Endemol Shine Gaming, said, “We are always looking at ways to diversify the Endemol Shine Gaming portfolio and the Deal or No Deal format lends itself perfectly to the live casino setting.

“As market leaders in this space, Evolution Games are the best partners to bring this first of its kind merging of TV and gaming entertainment to a live audience, for a unique Deal or No Deal experience”

Evolution Gaming are to develop the brand-new game which is slated for release next year, with the deal covering the European and North American markets.

The firm is to also have the option to extends its Deal or No Deal provisions, with BlackJack and Roulette games a distinct possibility in the future.

Todd Haushalter, chief product officer, Evolution Gaming, added: “We have been pushing the innovation boundaries and what it means to be a live casino provider for some time now, and particularly in the last year we have started introducing game show style games, which has been a huge success.

“We all love watching game shows and why shouldn’t you be able to play along at home for real money? We are going to make this possible and we could not be more excited to bring this to online gaming.”

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