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INSIDE THE POCKET LAUNCHES FREE-TO-ENTER $100k PRO FOOTBALL SURVIVOR GAME TO PROMOTE BROADER INDUSTRY ADOPTION

Published

2 years ago

August 22, 2023

inside-the-pocket-launches-free-to-enter-$100k-pro-football-survivor-game-to-promote-broader-industry-adoption

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Inside The Pocket (ITP), the world’s only free-to-play and pay-to-play (F2P & P2P) aggregation platform, has launched Pro Football Survivor, an exciting new F2P game that offers industry professionals a jaw-dropping $100k prize ($50k to the winner, and a further $50k to their nominated charity) ahead of the upcoming 2023/24 Pro Football season, which gets underway on 7 September.

Pro Football Survivor is aimed at engaging all businesspeople at the intersection of sports betting and business, media and igaming, alongside a wider ecosystem – from leagues to agencies, across hospitality providers, caterers and even restaurants.

The popular Survivor format simply asks all participants to pick a non-reusable team to win every week throughout the entire Regular Season and the Playoffs. This ease of play is the reason for its recognised acquisition and retention strengths around repeat visits and improved dwell-time (as players routinely return to check results and their respective standings against colleagues and friends on the leaderboard, which is settled and updated after each game day).

The competition rules are as follows:

Register at: https://itpsurvivor.io/survivor/
Each week during the Pro Football season and playoffs, you must pick the winner of a game.
You can only choose each team once throughout the entire season, including the playoffs and the Pro Football Championship game in Las Vegas.
Only the final results at the end of regulation time will count. If a game you select is tied at the end of regulation, the selection will be deemed to have lost, regardless of overtime.

The game is now open to entries and industry peer-to-peer sharing across an evolving landscape of diverse players and companies which represent a wide spectrum of commercial intersectionality. ITP continues to stand alone in the F2P and P2P content market in that, via a single integration, it opens up an entire market of 20+ free-to-play and pay-to-play content providers to satisfy sports and casino needs around the world, irrespective of the data environment.

Hussain Naqi, Founder and CEO of Inside The Pocket, said: “No matter what Al Pacino said in Any Given Sunday, it’s actually a game of inching along, surviving week-by-week, and outlasting your rivals. So, join us for Pro Football Survivor and stand a chance to win big while also supporting a great charitable cause! It’s a fun way to learn more about America’s favourite sport, or flex your bragging-rights if you know the game well. It takes under a minute each week, and hopefully you’ll be coming back every week to play!”

“We’ve launched Pro Football Survivor to help people understand how we’re different. And it’s a broad church out there whom we want to engage, shining a light on the wide-ranging solutions that our unique platform can provide when it comes to acquisition and retention.

“We’re focused on B2B clients, whether that’s in sports media, the betting and gaming space, the hospitality industry, the restaurant sector or any other party amongst a varied Venn Diagram of interconnectivity. At ITP, we want to house many new potential partners under this same roof, such is our platform’s ability to target specific recreational player-groups and fulfil nuanced acquisition and retention goals.

“At ITP, we don’t view the landscape merely in terms of games. Rather, we think about the space as an entire ecosystem and strategy which we specifically cultivate as a flexible and ever-evolving piece of content for an overlapping and interdependent chain of companies to whom we can now demonstrate the multifaceted solutions of ITP.

“We have content of our own. We have an aggregation layer where we’ll put competitors side-by-side. We offer best-in-class data deals. In short, our unique platform drives new levels in acquisition and retention through its multiplicity of games, bespoke localised strategies and a quick-fire integration which averages just under three weeks in duration. This allows our partners to plan globally but think locally, mitigating regulatory risk from the patchwork quilt of state-by-state regulation in North America to LatAm, Africa and APAC.

“Perhaps our biggest challenge is to make people understand that variety is our touchstone. You can’t just back one horse, lest it become a flogging horse. Instead, companies need to be rolling out a variety of different products. We want our registrants to come to see this Survivor game as a sticky and intuitive free-to-play product that reliably gets people coming back each week. It has that crucial repeat-engagement attribute where everyone can quickly see the value proposition.”

Belatra Games

From ‘Mummyverse’ to Crash Games: Belatra Reviews a Landmark 2025

Published

5 days ago

December 23, 2025

Wladimir P.

from-‘mummyverse’-to-crash-games:-belatra-reviews-a-landmark-2025

Editor’s Take

Why this matters: Belatra has been a steady hand in the slots world for a long time, but 2025 marked a distinct shift in strategy. By entering the Crash vertical with Goose Boom Bang and winning big at SiGMA Africa, the studio is clearly pivoting to capture the high-growth, high-frequency players in emerging markets. They are no longer just a “classic slots” developer; they are diversifying the portfolio to ensure relevance in regions like LatAm and Africa.

The Full Story

Belatra Games, the specialist online slots developer, has issued a strategic review of its 2025 operations, celebrating a 12-month period defined by entry into new game verticals, significant franchise expansion, and high-profile industry recognition.

The year was characterized by a dual strategy: deepening engagement in established markets while aggressively expanding its content portfolio to suit local preferences in emerging territories.

Portfolio Evolution: Crash and Battles 2025 saw Belatra move beyond its traditional slot roots. The company made its debut in the high-demand Crash game vertical with the launch of Goose Boom Bang, a title designed to tap into the fast-paced gameplay preference of younger demographics.

Additionally, the studio introduced a fresh game concept with the launch of Battles, a new format unveiled for the first time in 2025, with further development planned for 2026.

The ‘Mummyverse’ Expands For fans of classic slots, the highlight of the year was the aggressive expansion of the Mummyverse. Belatra nearly doubled the size of this franchise over the year, making it the most extensive game universe in their entire catalog.

The developer also focused on B2B localization, releasing a number of exclusive bespoke games created specifically for selected operator partners to meet specific local market tastes.

Awards and Recognition The company’s strategic shifts were validated by industry accolades. Belatra secured over 30 nominations throughout the year, with standout wins including:

Best Slot Provider (awarded by BitStarz).
Most Played Game of 2025 for Make It Gold at the SiGMA Africa Awards.
Player’s Pick Award.

Management Commentary Misha Voinich, Head of Business Development at Belatra, commented on the studio’s momentum:

“This year has truly defined who we are as a studio – ambitious, creative and focused on building long-term partnerships. We’ve expanded our universes, launched new ones and entered exciting new markets that will all help us carry this momentum into the New Year.”

The post From ‘Mummyverse’ to Crash Games: Belatra Reviews a Landmark 2025 appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry Newsroom.

BMM Testlabs

‘Chaos and Soul’: Ebaka Games Plots Global Expansion After Viral Launch

Published

5 days ago

December 23, 2025

Wladimir P.

‘chaos-and-soul’:-ebaka-games-plots-global-expansion-after-viral-launch

Editor’s Take

Why this matters: The “Instant Game” vertical (Crash, Plinko, Mines) is becoming crowded, but Ebaka Games is cutting through the noise with a distinct brand personality. By securing BMM Testlabs certification so quickly after launch, they are signaling to Tier 1 operators that despite their “chaotic” marketing vibe, the math underneath is solid and compliant. The backing of industry veteran Dmitry Belianin also adds immediate commercial credibility to the startup.

The Full Story

Ebaka Games, the fledgling studio that promises to bring “chaos and soul” to the iGaming sector, has outlined an aggressive growth strategy for 2026 following a landmark launch period in late 2025.

The studio, which officially debuted in November, reports that its initial rollout reached more than five million people worldwide. The launch saw its portfolio go live with the operator Menace, serving as the initial testbed for its mechanics and “Ebaka modes.”

The Product: Instant Games with Personality Ebaka is bypassing traditional slots to focus on the high-growth vertical of fast-paced, instant-win games. Their initial lineup includes:

Plinko
Mines
Tower
Limbo
Crash

Differentiation is achieved through unique mascots and signature gameplay tweaks designed to offer high win potential and distinct visual identities, moving away from the generic interfaces often found in this genre.

Regulatory Milestone Crucially for its 2026 roadmap, Ebaka Games has confirmed it has secured certification from BMM Testlabs. This accreditation validates the fairness and integrity of its RNG (Random Number Generator) and game engines, removing a major barrier to entry for regulated markets. With this certification in hand, the studio plans to launch with a number of “major brands” in the coming year.

Management Commentary Vitalii Zalievskyi, CEO of Ebaka Games, commented on the studio’s unorthodox approach:

“It’s only been a few weeks since we first introduced Ebaka Games to the world. The feedback has been breathtaking, and it vindicates the decision for us to take a different path to the rest of the industry. You don’t need huge marketing budgets to grab people’s attention if you are building something truly innovative.”

Industry Backing The studio describes itself as being “created by players for players” but boasts significant industry firepower in its corner. The team includes Dmitry Belianin, a well-known figure in the sector who is the co-founder of Blask and Menace, as well as Managing Partner at Already Media.

The post ‘Chaos and Soul’: Ebaka Games Plots Global Expansion After Viral Launch appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry Newsroom.

ARC

Racing Meets Nightlife: SBK Backs ARC’s New ‘Friday Night Live’ Series

Published

5 days ago

December 23, 2025

Wladimir P.

racing-meets-nightlife:-sbk-backs-arc’s-new-‘friday-night-live’-series

Editor’s Take

Why this matters: British racing has a well-documented demographic problem; its core audience is aging. “Friday Night Live” is a direct attempt to fix this by blending high-stakes racing with the “experience economy” (DJs, nightlife vibes) that appeals to Gen Z and Millennials. Bringing SBK on board—a mobile-first, app-only sportsbook—is a perfect demographic fit, while the Racing Post adds the necessary credibility to ensure the actual racing product remains the focus.

The Full Story

Arena Racing Company (ARC) has unveiled the strategic commercial lineup for its upcoming Friday Night Live series, confirming SBK as the Exclusive Betting Partner and The Racing Post as the Official Media Partner.

Set to launch in January 2026, Friday Night Live is a new initiative created in collaboration with youth-focused events company INVADES. The series is designed to overhaul the traditional race day experience, featuring fast-paced fixtures under floodlights, DJ sets, and significant entertainment elements sandwiched between races.

The Commercial Deal

SBK: As the exclusive betting partner, the Smarkets-owned sportsbook will take naming rights and on-course branding for all 35 races. Crucially, these races will be broadcast live on mainstream television via ITV Racing as well as Sky Sports Research.
The Racing Post: As the Official Media Partner, the publication will provide content, coverage, and promotion across its digital platforms, aiming to bridge the gap between established racing purists and the new audience ARC hopes to attract.

A High-Stakes Experiment The series is not just a marketing exercise; it carries serious sporting weight. Each of the five scheduled nights will feature over £200,000 in prize money. The fixtures will rotate across three of ARC’s all-weather tracks: Wolverhampton, Newcastle, and Southwell.

Management Commentary David Leyden Dunbar, Group Director of Commercial Strategy at ARC, was clear about the target audience:

“We have been very clear that one of the aims of Friday Night Live is to engage the next generation of racing fans… Both [partners] have shown real enthusiasm to work with us… as well as using the platform that these fixtures will offer them to also engage with more established racing and sports fans.”

Adam Baylis, Marketing Director at SBK, added:

“Friday Night Live [is] a fresh and engaging concept that brings a new energy to British racing. SBK has always been built around sport… our focus is on enhancing the live race day experience in a fun, social and responsible way.”

The 2026 Schedule The series kicks off immediately in the new year: