Canada
THE ESPORTS AWARDS UNVEIL THE FIRST WAVE OF FINALISTS
The Esports Awards announces a return to a live event on November 20th with Dr Disrespect, G2 Esports and Hector ‘HECZ’ Rodriguez among the first wave of the finalists in the community award categories
Voting for the community categories is open now at www.esportsawards.com/vote
The Esports Awards, the most prestigious night in the esports calendar, is pleased to present the first set of finalists for this year’s awards with Team Liquid, PUBG MOBILE, Sjokz and Valkyrae all being named. The Esports Awards is also happy to share that it will officially be returning for a physical award ceremony at the Esports Stadium Arlington, Texas on Saturday 20th November.
The first set of finalists were announced in the Esports Awards’ second Spotlight Show of the year which was hosted by Thom ‘F.’ Badinger with co-hosts Soe Gschwind and Mitch ‘Uber’ Leslie. The show was packed full of exciting content and interviews including Nyvi Estephan interview with Brazilian Free Fire player Bruno ‘Nobru’ Goes and FDot talking to streamer sensation and Twitch record-breaker, Ludwig.
The full list of community awards finalists are:
Esports Apparel of The Year
- 100 Thieves
- Team Liquid
- G2 Esports
- Cloud9
- FaZe Clan
- Ateyo
- Fnatic
- Spacestation Gaming
- Fallen Store
- Team Vitality
Esports Content Creator of The Year
- HECZ
- LS
- Ashley Kang
- Thorin
- Macie Jay
- UpUpDownDown
- BananaSlamJamma (BSJ)
- Musty
- Sunless Khan
- iFerg
- Coconut Brah
- NadeKing
Esports Mobile Game of The Year Presented by Verizon
- PUBG Mobile
- Free Fire
- Brawl Stars
- Clash Royale
- LoL Wild Rift
- CoD Mobile
- Arena of Valor
- Mobile Legends
Esports Personality of the Year
- HECZ
- Ocelote
- Sjokz
- Nobru
- Nadeshot
- FalleN
- Interro
- Perkz
- Goldenboy
- Baiano
- JohnnyBoi_i
Streamer of The Year
- Valkyrae
- XQC
- MortaL
- Ludwig
- Nickmercs
- TheGrefg
- LOUD Coringa
- Summit1G
- Dr Disrespect
- Ibai
- Shroud
- CouRage
“I am really excited for us to share the first set of finalists for this year’s awards which I am delighted will be returning to a live event format at the Esports Stadium in Arlington, Texas. We look forward to safely crowning this year’s winners and celebrating 12 months of resilience, growth and innovation. Get ready to witness the biggest night in esports celebration.” said Michael Ashford, Managing Director, Esports Awards
Throughout the year the Esports Awards will be bringing you Spotlight Shows packed with the best content and interviews hosted by the biggest faces from the esports industry. The Esports Awards 2021 key campaign dates are:
- June: Finalists for the Industry Awards
- July: Finalists for Creative Awards
- September: Finalists for the Pro & On-Air Talent Awards
- October: The Go-Home Show building up to the main event
- End of Year: The Esports Awards 2021 Ceremony
The Esports Awards is excited to welcome Matrix Keyboards back as a partner for the 2021 awards. Matrix Keyboards will be sponsoring both Esports PC Player and PC Rookie of the Year awards. Cementing its commitment to supporting mobile esports, Verizon will also be back as the sponsor for Esports Mobile Player of the Year & Esports Mobile Game of the Year. Other sponsors for the Esports Awards 2021 include Koyo Store, Sizzle Creative, Touch of Ginger, SCUF, Arlington CVB and SecretLab.
Nominations for all other categories are still open over at www.esportsawards.com/nominate. The Industry Awards nominations will close in June, Creative Awards nominations close in July and Pro & On-Air Talent Awards nominations conclude in September.
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Canada
IAGR announces Toronto as host city for 2025 conference
Hot on the heels of its most attended conference in history, the International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR) is excited to announce that its 2025 conference will take place in Toronto, Canada, from October 20 to 23, 2025.
The event will be held in partnership with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) at the Westin Harbour Castle, offering stunning waterfront views and a premier, downtown Toronto location.
‘Fresh off the success of our Rome conference, we’re thrilled to continue the momentum with next year’s event in Toronto,’ said Ben Haden, IAGR President.
‘The IAGR 2025 conference promises to be another unparalleled opportunity for our global community to come together, collaborate and shape the future of gaming regulation. We’re looking forward to working with AGCO to bring it all together.’
AGCO CEO and Registrar Dr. Karin Schnarr, added, ‘We’re excited to welcome IAGR and its members to Toronto. This partnership provides a great opportunity to share Ontario’s innovative regulatory practices and foster meaningful discussions that drive positive change in the industry.’
Stay tuned for registration details early next year.
Bombee Global Entertainment Ltd
ESE Entertainment Completes Acquisition of Gaming Production Company, Bombee Americas
ESE Entertainment Inc., a gaming company that provides a range of services to leading video game developers and publishers, has announced that it has acquired Bombee Global Entertainment Ltd. (Bombee Americas), the North American arm of Bombee Event Production AB, (Bombee), a global production company specialized in live production, special effects, broadcast, and event management for the gaming sector.
Bombee has successfully collaborated with ESE to bring its premier event production services and world class customer service to North America and beyond. The North American arm of Bombee, Bombee Americas, will continue to grow and scale in this new organizational structure under ESE, while maintaining its entire team and global support.
Konrad Wasiela, CEO of ESE, said: “Today marks the next stage of ESE—a 2.0 version of our company. With the acquisition of Bombee Americas, we are not only solidifying our presence in North America but also paving the way for growth and innovation in the gaming industry. This is a major step, positioning us to deliver even greater value to our partners and elevate the gaming experience for our clients globally. We’re thrilled about the opportunities ahead and the exceptional talent joining our team.”
Transaction Terms
The Acquisition was completed by way of a share purchase agreement (the SPA) among the Company, Bombee Americas, and the shareholders of Bombee Americas (the Vendors). Pursuant to the SPA, ESE acquired all of the outstanding shares of Bombee Americas in exchange for: (i) $750,000 in cash paid on closing, (ii) $375,000 in cash to be paid six (6) months following closing, subject to customary adjustments based on the working capital of Bombee Americas on closing, (iii) $375,000 in cash to be paid twelve (12) months following closing, and (iv) 30,000,000 common shares of ESE (the Consideration Shares), issued at a deemed issue price of $0.10 per share.
In connection with the Acquisition, the founders of Bombee Americas have signed three-year service agreements and will continue to run the business following the closing, along with the rest of the personnel of Bombee Americas who will remain in place, ensuring a smooth transition of operations. As part of the Acquisition, the Company has acquired the liabilities of Bombee Americas, mainly consisting of customary current obligations incurred in the ordinary course of business for Bombee Americas, which are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s operations or financial position.
No finder’s fees were paid or payable in conjunction with the Acquisition.
The Acquisition was an arm’s length transaction within the meaning of the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange (the Exchange) and constituted an “Expedited Acquisition” in accordance with Exchange Policy 5.3 – Acquisitions and Dispositions of Non-Cash Assets. The Acquisition remains subject to the final approval of the Exchange.
Canada
Suspected Digital Fraud Coming from Canada Up Nearly 11% Since H1 2023, Reveals New TransUnion Analysis
In the first half (H1) of 2024, Canada saw a significant increase in suspected Digital Fraud attempts, with nearly 5.74% of all attempted digital transactions where the consumer was located in Canada involving suspected Digital Fraud, revealed a new TransUnion® (NYSE: TRU) analysis. This is nearly an 11% year-over-year (YoY) rate increase from H1 2023, and TransUnion also documented an 11% increase in the volume of suspected Digital Fraud from Canada during this period, despite a less than a one percent (0.7%) YoY increase in the volume of transactions.
According to a recent TransUnion survey,1 more than half (54%) of Canadians said they were recently targeted by email, phone call or text message fraud attempts. Phishing was the most common scheme type (45%), followed by smishing (42%) and vishing (39%).
The increasing use of digital transactions, combined with rising suspected Digital Fraud attempts are also impacting businesses as they potentially face revenue losses and increased operational costs due to fraud. According to a TransUnion business survey for the H2 2024 Update to the State of Omnichannel Fraud report, 200 Canadian business leaders said their companies lost approximately 6% of equivalent revenue – representing $78 billion – over the past year due to fraud. The most prominent causes of fraud loss cited by them were:
- Scam/Authorized fraud (31%): Dishonest scheme intended to trick a person into giving up something of value (e.g., account access, money, information)
- Account takeover (19%): Unauthorized individuals taking over someone’s online account (e.g., bank, social media, email) without their permission
- Synthetic identity fraud (18%): Use of a combination of personal information to fabricate a person or entity to commit a dishonest act for financial or personal gain
TransUnion also found that suspected Digital Fraud attempts – where the consumer was transacting in Canada and targeted businesses globally – increased on average by 10.5% YoY in H1 2024 compared to H1 2023 and impacted all industries.
Top Three Industries Globally with Highest Rate of Suspected Digital Fraud Attempts Coming from Canada in H1 2024
- Gambling (online sports betting, poker, etc.) – 9.6%
- Retail – 9.2%
- Government – 7.7%
Top Three Industries Globally with Highest YoY Increase (H1 2024 vs H1 2023) in the Rate of Suspected Digital Fraud Attempts Coming from Canada
- Logistics – 172.9%
- Gambling – 79.3%
- Video gaming – 67.8%
“Protecting customers and their businesses from fraud is essential to enabling safe and tailored consumer experiences. These findings reveal that despite the good-faith efforts that are being undertaken by companies to identify and prevent fraud to date, fraudsters continue to evolve and it’s vital that fraud prevention methods keep up with the changing times,” said Patrick Boudreau, head of identity management and fraud solutions at TransUnion Canada.
“Businesses that aren’t already doing so should ensure that they are taking advantage of fraud prevention technologies such as identity verification, IP intelligence, device reputation and synthetic identity detection as critical components of their fraud prevention programs,” he added.
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