Industry News

“Against All Odds” – Will sound be the key to future winnings for betting and gaming brands?

Published

6 years ago

September 9, 2020

George Miller

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Max De Lucia, Co-Founder and Client Director of specialist sonic branding agency DLMDD.

There are few brands and businesses across the world that haven’t been in some way affected by the current global climate. But as lockdown restrictions are eased and marketplaces begin to return to their “new normal”, betting brands and their marketers now have an even greater issue to navigate.

With momentum gathering in the UK Parliament for a “total ban” on all gambling advertising, brands need to think fast about the role they play in consumers lives and how they can communicate if traditional media channels are further plastered with red tape.

However, as many of you reading this will know, these aren’t new challenges. A ban on gambling advertising during live sport came into effect in the UK from August last year, restricting advertising within a “whistle to whistle” period beginning five minutes before the start of a match and ending five minutes after. These limitations will have already forced marketing departments to think very carefully about how to gain competitive advantage and win attention in these moments. However, and somewhat surprisingly, no brand has dominated when it comes to sound.

Think about it – I can reel off the names of every betting and gaming brand out there in the market, and you’ll instantly be able to tell me what they look like; what colour the logo is, what the slogan says and which celebs they use in their ads. But what do any of them sound like? Well, nothing.

This seems bonkers to me. Earlier this year, Marketing Week highlighted a powerful learning from IPSOS’ marketing study ‘The power of you’. Put simply, the research shows that the use of distinctive sonic cues can have 8.5x the power of visual stimuli. So why is sound so untapped across the sector?

Let’s be frank, underneath the visual brand and the corporate slogans of any betting organisation are odds and chance. You might get slightly better odds and slightly better chances by shopping around but at the end of the day, odds are odds.

As punters, we make our choices on the brands we associate with based upon how we feel about them. And music and sound offer the world’s most powerful shortcuts to human emotion if we know how to handle them right. If expertly managed, they can fulfil every part of our pleasure and reward psychologies garnering effects that can only be rivalled by good food, love and drugs.

What is particularly unique about betting and gaming is that their audiences want and demand to feel something about the brand they’re playing with. This is quite unlike most other sectors and industries. Do I want to feel something about Shell? I’m sure their Brand Director wants me to but no, quite frankly I just want to fill my car up with petrol from the nearest station to me and get the hell out of the forecourt as quickly as possible.

Conversely, emotion is at the forefront of the experience of all bettors and gamers and it’s the responsibility of the brands and their audiences to manage and control how that emotion manifests itself in a safe manner. If all parties get it right, music and sound have the ability to heighten the entire consumer experience at every moment that an audience interacts with their chosen brand.

Historically, the betting and gaming industries have looked at sound through a fairly primitive lens; famous psychological studies have highlighted the use of music and sound in slot machines that reinforce the sensation of ‘winning’ with jubilant sound effects, flashing lights and winning coins dropping down on metal surfaces.

It doesn’t take a genius to work any of that out and along with questionable morality, this doesn’t exemplify the true power of music and sound. When it’s done right, we allow music and sound into our minds. They can stay with us forever and evoke our emotions at the flick of a wrist.

In a world and an industry where the way the consumer feels is the difference between them choosing to play with brand X over brand Y, the first player in the market who can cement their identity in music and sound will have the odds sounding firmly in their favour for many more moons to come.

Ainsworth Game Technology

AGEM Announces Board Of Directors Elected at 2026 Annual Meeting

Published

14 minutes ago

March 17, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

agem-announces-board-of-directors-elected-at-2026-annual-meeting

The Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM) announced that its membership elected a new Board of Directors at its 2026 Annual Meeting. AGEM Board Chair Ryan Comstock, Acting Chief Executive Officer at Ainsworth Game Technology, was not up for election as he transitions into the second year of his two-year term as Chair and led the meeting which approved one-year terms on the Board of Directors for:

• Elaine Hodgson, DIRECTOR (President / CEO, Incredible Technologies)

• Lauralyn Sandoval, DIRECTOR (Vice President of Gaming Strategy & Business Development, Aristocrat Gaming)

• Phil O’Shaughnessy, DIRECTOR (Vice President, Global Communications, Government Relations & Sustainability, IGT)

• Steve DiMasi, DIRECTOR (Senior Vice President of Global Government Affairs & Business Development, Light & Wonder)

• Randy Gilbert, SECRETARY (Chief Executive Officer, TableTrac)

• Thomas Jingoli, TREASURER (President & Chief Operating Officer, Konami Gaming).

The AGEM Board of Directors also approved one-year terms as ex-officio/non-voting members on the Board of Directors for:

• Cassie Stratford, EX-OFFICIO DIRECTOR (Senior Vice President, Legal Operations & Compliance–Boyd Gaming Corporation; Global Gaming Women Advisory Board Member)

• Bob Parente, EX-OFFICIO DIRECTOR & ASSISTANT TREASURER (Executive Vice President & Chief Business Development Officer, Light & Wonder).

The post AGEM Announces Board Of Directors Elected at 2026 Annual Meeting appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

Industry News

QTech Games recruits banking and AI leader Jonny Youssef as CTO to drive next phase of its growth journey

Published

1 hour ago

March 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

qtech-games-recruits-banking-and-ai-leader-jonny-youssef-as-cto-to-drive-next-phase-of-its-growth-journey

QTech Games, the leading game aggregator for emerging markets, has appointed Jonny Youssef as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) to lead the next phase of the company’s technology organisation, innovation and technology strategy as QTech accelerates its global expansion. Jonny will lead the continued development of QTech’s platform architecture and engineering organisation, focusing on scalability, AI-driven capabilities and next-generation tools designed to support operators and content partners across fast-growing markets. Jonny brings more than 20 years of technology leadership experience across banking, fintech, SaaS platforms and AI-driven innovation. His background combines enterprise-scale infrastructure expertise with hands-on experience building and scaling digital platforms and emerging technology systems. Previously, Jonny served as Head of Innovation for Swedbank Group Lending & Payments, where he led digital initiatives across lending, payments, APIs and digital channels within one of the Nordic region’s largest banking groups. He has also held senior technology leadership roles at Entercard Group, overseeing technology infrastructure and mission-critical production environments supporting large-scale payment operations across Nordic markets. Alongside his enterprise leadership experience, Jonny has founded and scaled several technology ventures and digital platforms. As a technology founder and CTO, he has led the design and development of international platforms operating across Europe and Asia, building distributed engineering teams and scalable digital infrastructure.

In recent years, Jonny has contributed to the development of next-generation AI and sustainability technology initiatives, including work with Circular Living and Biotonomy, where advanced AI, IoT and Edge AI systems are used to power intelligent environments, autonomous infrastructure and real-time operational insights. Beyond his commercial initiatives, he is also a board member and early contributor to The AI Community of Sweden, a national innovation network connecting professionals, enterprises and academia to collaborate on AI innovation. At QTech Games, Jonny will focus on strengthening the company’s technology foundations as it continues to scale globally, enhancing AI-driven functionality, automation and analytics capabilities that enable partners to unlock greater value from the platform. He will also oversee QTech’s engineering and technology teams to ensure continued innovation while maintaining the speed, reliability and integration flexibility that have become hallmarks of QTech’s aggregation platform.

QTech Games’ CEO, Philip Doftvik, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Jonny to QTech at an important moment in our growth journey.

“He brings a rare combination of enterprise technology leadership, platform-building expertise and forward-looking innovation in AI and automation. His experience across banking infrastructure, global digital platforms and emerging technology ecosystems makes him uniquely positioned to guide us through its next phase of technological evolution.

“As we continue to expand across emerging markets, Jonny’s leadership will help ensure we remain at the forefront of innovation — delivering scalable infrastructure, AI-driven insights and powerful technology solutions that help our partners grow.”

Jonny Youssef added: “QTech Games has built a strong reputation as one of the most innovative and reliable aggregation platforms serving emerging markets.

“What impressed me most is the company’s focus on speed, simplicity and partner success — combined with a clear ambition to continue evolving the platform through technology. I’m excited to join the team at a time when AI, automation and data-driven capabilities are creating new opportunities to deliver even greater value to operators and game providers.

“My focus will be on strengthening the platform architecture, scaling our technology capabilities with AI and supporting the next phase of QTech’s growth.”

The post QTech Games recruits banking and AI leader Jonny Youssef as CTO to drive next phase of its growth journey appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

GameOn

GameOn Expands Fractional CMO Division with Appointment of Roxana Nazalu

Published

1 hour ago

March 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

$gameon-expands-fractional-cmo-division-with-appointment-of-roxana-nazalu$

GameOn, the specialist iGaming marketing and PR agency, has added Roxana Nazalu to its growing GameOn CMO team.

Roxana joins as a Fractional CMO and in a consulting capacity. She will be responsible for supporting clients across campaign strategy, creation and implementation.

Roxana is one of the most experienced iGaming marketers in the industry, having worked for some of the biggest names in the business.

This includes the likes of Las Vegas Sands, Casimba Gaming, Aspire Global and Pragmatic Play.

This experience led her to launch Orange Synapse, a specialist agency serving iGaming providers in markets across the world.

Roxana’s appointment as a Fractional CMO Consultant marks a deeper collaboration between GameOn and Orange Synapse, allowing each to offer a wider range of products and services to its respective clients.

GameOn’s Fractional CMO service has gone from strength to strength since launching back in October 2024.

Led by Alex Wilson, it allows clients to unlock the benefits of a full-time CMO but on a fractional basis, making it the perfect option for start-ups and smaller organisations in growth phase. It’s also a great option for established organisations, allowing them to embrace marketing as a revenue engine and not just a support function, but with board-level accountability.

Alex Wilson, Head of Marketing Division at GameOn, said: “We are delighted to welcome Roxana to the GameOn CMO team at such a pivotal moment for our agency. Since launching our fractional service in 2024, the demand for high-level strategic leadership, without the overhead of a full-time executive, has exploded.

“Roxana is a powerhouse in the iGaming space and her track record with global giants like Pragmatic Play and Las Vegas Sands speaks for itself.

“By bringing her expertise into the fold, we’re not just adding a consultant, we’re significantly deepening our strategic offering and ensuring our clients have access to the very best marketing minds in the business.”

Roxana Nazalu, Fractional CMO Consultant at GameOn, added: “Joining forces with GameOn is a natural evolution for me and a fantastic opportunity for Orange Synapse.

“I’ve always admired GameOn’s reputation for delivering clear, results-driven PR and marketing within the iGaming sector. This collaboration allows us to offer a truly holistic service, bridging the gap between high-level strategy and technical implementation for slot studios, operators, affiliates, payment providers and other industry stakeholders.

“My focus will be on helping clients navigate complex markets and scale their brands with the agility that the fractional model provides. I look forward to working alongside Alex and the team to drive meaningful growth for our partners.”

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