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Q&A with Lana Meisak, VP, Business Development and Marketing, Gismart

Published

4 years ago

May 25, 2022

George Miller

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Give us a quick overview of your entrance into the games industry and what made you decide to join it?

Before entering the gaming space, Gismart had earned a name as a top music entertainment app developer for an array of popular gamified music products such as Beat Maker Go, Piano Crush and many others. Looking for ways to grow and diversify our company portfolio, in 2019, we decided to add another business vertical and established an internal studio called Flime by Gismart. We dived deep into the development and publishing of mobile lightweight games, focusing on trendy hyper-casual genres and instant games for social platforms. The hyper-casual market was on the rise, not that saturated yet, so we saw it as a good opportunity to utilize our expertise in hypothesis testing which is crucial for this genre. Besides, we appreciated the simplicity of its mechanics and relevantly quick production so we had more room for trial and error. Within two years, we released a couple of dozen games for mobile and social platforms with many of them reaching the top gaming charts (ex. Cool Goal!, Body Race, Foil Turning 3D, etc.) and generating over 450 million downloads overall. Working in the hyper-casual market, the team built effective processes in a very short time, as well as tested a large number of hypotheses. In 2021 we made our next step moving towards the casual genre and decided to explore puzzle games. It is a busy and challenging market with some strong competition. However, we have had success with our first game Cross Logic and are now actively working on new titles. We consider puzzle games to be a better investment in the long run. We also recently established a new business related to blockchain gaming projects and NFTs.

What does your role as VP of Business Development and Marketing at Gismart entail?

I focus on sourcing, negotiating and executing strategic partnerships across Gismart business verticals mainly related to product branding and marketing. I also build and develop long term and quality relationships and lead communications at Gismart. My role includes mobile product marketing and monetization, app distribution partner management (Apple App Store, Google Play, Facebook Instant Games, Snap Gaming, TikTok Gaming), product branding, PR and HR branding. Some of my proudest milestones include nurturing flagship partnerships between Gismart and household name entertainment brands such as UMPG, Sony/ATV and Warner Chappell, as well as the collaboration between The Chainsmokers and Gismart’s hit Beat Maker Go music app.

Women remain largely underrepresented in the global games industry. How does Gismart approach this, and what advice would you give to women who want to work in the industry?

It is an issue especially if we talk about senior ranks of companies. I am glad that this subject is constantly raised in the media as it helps the change to happen faster. I believe there are two things to fight – stereotypes and company practices. However, speaking of the Gismart gender ratio it is very balanced. The ratio between males and females is 1:1.

Gismart is perhaps best known as a publisher of mobile games. What’s the recipe for a hit mobile game in 2022?

I can’t give a recipe but I can say how we approach building high-potential products at Gismart. We have an expert R&D team to explore global trends and conduct in-depth marketing research. Understanding the niche to find a gap for something fresh and exciting for users is an important task. After making sure that the game concept is relevant, we move on to creating a basic game prototype and perform a market test to understand the metrics. There are three key factors that most likely indicate that a game has a high potential – low CPI, high LTV and product scalability. The data-driven approach is what we stand by. Gismart has several analytical tools for in-depth market research, quick idea tests, and advanced product analytics that help us make a final decision.

How did Apple’s changes to marketing on iOS in 2021 affect Gismart?

Similarly to the rest of the market, we have been affected by the changes related to IDFA. This has significantly affected the traffic buying on iOS, and it has certainly become more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. It also made it harder and more expensive to run product tests on Facebook. On the positive side, these changes forced us to delve into other purchasing channels, and change and improve approaches to testing new product ideas. We also definitely go for more technological experiments on the marketing side related to user acquisition through web traffic.

Many of your games are available on social media sites such as Snap and Facebook. Why do social networking apps want gaming content in general?

Social platforms have an undeniably huge audience and games are a new form of communication. We saw an opportunity for growth in this business and some of our team members who are now leading Flime by Gismart had the experience of building one of the first games for Facebook. Today we have over ten social platform games available on Facebook and Snapchat. Color Galaxy on Snap Games became one of the most successful games on the platform quickly after its launch and after two years still holding its position.

In general, social platforms see games as one of the instruments to entertain and retain the audience, increasing the time they spend on the platform. Besides retention, having quality games provides the platform with other benefits, such as improved user experience, new forms of communication and interaction between users, and, of course, additional monetization for social platforms.

Gismart also makes and publishes wider entertainment apps such as music and wellness. Why did the company decide to diversify its focus from mobile games?

We started with entertainment music apps. Alex, one of the company founders’ is a self-taught guitar player and the first Gismart app was a guitar app. After the successful launch of the first product, our portfolio of music entertainment apps has grown to over 15 different apps over time. Then came our expansion to games. Wellness, as well as the pet care vertical with flagship product Woofz, was established about a year ago. Both businesses are relatively new but already established their name on the market and have a substantial number of users. All of the verticals operate as independent businesses and Gismart provides them with consulting and mentorship, all kinds of resources and tools and infrastructure. So in a way, today Gismart operates as some sort of business incubator with some of the verticals having already outgrown the startup stage.

Last question – what can we expect to see from Gismart and from yourself during the remainder of 2022?

Gismart has very exciting and challenging plans across all verticals. Speaking of casual games, we’ll continue expanding our portfolio of HTML5 games on Facebook Instant and Snap Games. We also plan to introduce our mini-games on new major social platforms. Also, we plan to soft-launch our new blockchain project.

Speaking of apps, we will continue to upgrade and develop our products in music entertainment. We are working on expanding our music partners’ circle to bring more unique, fresh music to the table. As for wellness and pet care verticals – the focus is on product and working on features to enrich the user experience and facilitate product growth. We hope to see a few new products earning their spot on the top chart.

Boomerang Partners

Overtime begins: Boomerang Partners launches the final stage of the Golden Boomerang Awards 2026

Published

15 hours ago

July 23, 2026

Wladimir P.

overtime-begins:-boomerang-partners-launches-the-final-stage-of-the-golden-boomerang-awards-2026

The Golden Boomerang Awards 2026 by Boomerang Partners is moving into its decisive phase. The third and final stage of the tournament – titled “Overtime” – will run from 20 July to 31 August. It marks the last opportunity for participants to reshape the leaderboard and compete for the season’s main prize – an exclusive private dinner with a football legend in September 2026.

Overtime mechanics: points allocation

To intensify competition during the final stretch, Boomerang Partners is introducing an updated scoring system. From now on, affiliate teams will earn 3 points for every FTD generated on any partner brand from the Agency’s clients’ portfolio. In the previous stage, participants received 3 points for each sports FTD and 1 point for each online casino FTD. Now, the value of all FTDs is identical.

Overtime mechanics: performance boosts

Within the Overtime stage of the Golden Boomerang Awards 2026, a set of performance boosts remains active. These mechanics give participating teams the opportunity not only to catch up but also to overtake the leaders.

Welcome Boost – x2 points for the first 14 days after entering the stage
Lucky Five – +5 points for achieving 10 Casino FTDs per week
Last Minutes Winner – x3 points during the final 7 days of Overtime

Martin Černý, CEO at Boomerang Partners said: “Overtime brings the Golden Boomerang Awards 2026 to its most competitive stage. At this point in the tournament, every result can influence the leaderboard, and teams still have the opportunity to improve their positions. We expect the final weeks to bring strong competition and determine the final standings.”

A final stretch where every day counts

With fewer than 40 days left in the GBA 2026, the competition enters its most volatile phase. The leaderboard remains open, and even small performance shifts can significantly alter final standings. Participants are now entering a stage where strategy, timing, and consistent activity define the outcome – and where the final push may determine the season’s ultimate winner.

Overtime has begun. TIME TO WIN THE TITLE.

About Boomerang

Boomerang Partners is a rapidly growing global marketing agency offering a wide range of services. In 2024, it launched the inaugural Golden Boomerang Awards – a global tournament for affiliate teams. More than 400 affiliate teams participated in the second season of the tournament in 2025. Martin Černý – Boomerang Partners’ CEO since June 2025.

The Agency’s clients’ portfolio contains brands offering affiliate and entertainment services across multiple markets in compliance with local regulations. These products provide incentive programs and 24/7 multilingual support.

The post Overtime begins: Boomerang Partners launches the final stage of the Golden Boomerang Awards 2026 appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

GR8_TECH

The World Cup Is Over. GR8_TECH Opens “The Locker Room” to Count What It Was Worth

Published

15 hours ago

July 23, 2026

Wladimir P.

the-world-cup-is-over.-gr8-tech-opens-“the-locker-room”-to-count-what-it-was-worth

The trophy has been lifted. Now comes the most interesting part for operators: counting the revenue, assessing what worked, learning from what didn’t, and deciding what to change before the next betting event.

On Thursday, August 20, at 4:00 p.m. CEST, GR8_TECH will host “The Locker Room: World Cup Numbers”, a closed-door benchmarking session created to help operators make sense of their tournament results and see how their performance stacked up against the room and the wider market.

Led by Dinos Doxiadis, Head of Sportsbook Business at GR8_TECH, the session will combine anonymized benchmarks with in-depth post-World Cup platform data on margin, player behavior, retention, and peak-load performance. It isn’t a tournament recap, but a working session built around deeper analysis than GR8_TECH releases publicly.

A First Look at the World Cup Numbers

Initial aggregated data from the GR8_TECH platform shows an average tournament margin of over 12%, alongside a significant increase in staking during the knockout stages.

Average stakes during the play-offs were 53% higher than during the group stage, while the average stake on the final was 89% above the tournament average.

Player interest was highly concentrated. Matches featuring Spain, Argentina, England, or France generated 42% of the total World Cup turnover. Argentina was the tournament’s most-bet-on team, accounting for 12.5% of all bets, although Spain finished only 0.09 percentage points behind Argentina by turnover.

The final also created one of the tournament’s most demanding operational moments. Within one minute of the final whistle, GR8_TECH’s platform settled more than half a million bets, demonstrating the level of processing performance required when a global audience reaches the same outcome simultaneously.

Inside The Locker Room, participants will examine what happened across:

Live betting and bet builders
Margin and staking dynamics
Peak-load and settlement moments
Acquisition compared with player reactivation
Retention beyond the final whistle
Unexpected geographic performance
Operational, product, and campaign failures
Priorities for the next major event

“The World Cup generates a huge amount of data, but the value comes from understanding what sits behind it,” said Dinos Doxiadis, Head of Sportsbook Business at GR8_TECH. “This session is about identifying the patterns operators might miss in their own reporting, challenging assumptions, and turning one month of World Cup activity into better decisions for future events.”

See How Your World Cup Stacked Up

Leave the session with anonymized benchmarks, exclusive GR8_TECH platform insights, and a clear view of where your World Cup performance led—or lagged—the market.

Turn the lessons into your next strategy. Join The Locker Room: World Cup Numbers on Thursday, August 20, at 4:00 p.m. CEST.

GR8_TECH. Platform for Champions

GR8_TECH is an award-winning provider, delivering high-performance sportsbook and iGaming solutions that empower operators to lead and win in competitive markets. GR8_TECH’s comprehensive portfolio includes the GREAT_TURNKEY and GREAT_CRYPTO TURNKEY solutions, GREAT_SPORTSBOOK, and GREAT_CASINO AGGREGATION.

With a geo-specific approach to solutions, a focus on practical innovations, and an operator-first mindset, GR8_TECH helps its clients achieve measurable results in their target markets quickly and efficiently. Trusted by top operators worldwide, GR8_TECH has over 100 successful cases and earned multiple recognitions, including the title of Platform Provider of the Year by SBC Awards 2025.

The post The World Cup Is Over. GR8_TECH Opens “The Locker Room” to Count What It Was Worth appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

ELA Games

ELA Games launches Age of Cleopatra slot with Hold & Win bonus

Published

15 hours ago

July 23, 2026

Wladimir P.

ela-games-launches-age-of-cleopatra-slot-with-hold-&-win-bonus

ELA Games has released a new slot, Age of Cleopatra, adding another ancient-Egypt theme title to its portfolio. The studio positions the game as a medium-volatility release and says it is available to demo now.

Age of Cleopatra runs on a 5×3 reel set-up with 25 paylines. ELA Games lists RTP at 93.75% / 95.73%, with Buy Bonus RTP at 93.8% / 95.9%. The maximum win is x5000, according to the company.

In the base game, a Collect Symbol gathers coin prizes visible on the screen, while “colored coins” charge pyramids that can unlock additional value, ELA Games said. The slot’s Hold & Win Bonus Game awards three respins by default (or four in an “Extra Respin” version), with modifiers tied to collected coins.

Features named by the studio include Multipliers, Extra Respins, and an Expand Grid mechanic that increases the layout from 3×5 to 5×5. ELA Games also states that multiple features can trigger at the same time.

“You can’t do justice to a legendary theme with just background art. Building a world around Cleopatra meant it had to feel truly authentic, a standard we apply to all our releases. At ELA Games, we consistently look beyond the visuals to craft an original universe, keeping storytelling through the mechanics at the center of our titles.” Marharyta Yerina, Managing Director at ELA Games.

The post ELA Games launches Age of Cleopatra slot with Hold & Win bonus appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.