Industry News
Yggdrasil wins Innovator of the Year at International Gaming Awards 2020
Pioneering provider claims trophy for fourth year in a row
Gaming solutions supplier Yggdrasil has won the Innovator of the Year award for an unprecedented fourth consecutive year at the prestigious International Gaming Awards (IGAs) held at London’s Savoy Hotel.
The award recognises the year’s best-in-class supplier that has broken boundaries to disrupt the industry with ground-breaking innovation.
Yggdrasil has achieved this with the launch of its game-changing Publishing division, offering customers ‘the keys to its kingdom’ with all tools they need to build, create and offer a complete B2B gaming business.
It is also introducing a series of transformative game mechanics including Splitz™, offering never-before-seen win potential. Aztec-themed Temple Stacks: Splitz™ was launched in January this year giving players the first view of Yggdrasil’s revolutionary mechanic, which transforms a 3×5 slot grid into reels of infinite potential, offering up to 248,832 pay ways.
As part of Yggdrasil’s new strategic approach, it is franchising its entire business, from its current and future content portfolio and industry-leading gamification to its advanced platform technology and new GATI (Game Adaption Tools & Interface) product. This will enable partners to instantly create their own unique, end-to-end iGaming offering supported by, and in partnership with, Yggdrasil Publishing.
Future customers will be able to license any, or all elements, of Yggdrasil’s gaming eco-system with all technology, functions and content already proven after being live in the most developed iGaming markets for the last six years.
The three core value propositions for the Publishing arm will be: YG Franchise (platform IP licensing) YG Masters (game development and distribution program), and YG Game IP (game IP licensing).
Fredrik Elmqvist, CEO, Yggdrasil, said: “Winning this award for a record fourth year in row is an amazing achievement. It is testament to the huge effort the entire Yggdrasil team has put in to launch the game-changing Yggdrasil Publishing and the investment we put into slot innovation and new mechanics.
“This is a ground-breaking global licensing business that significantly changes our and the industry’s approach to content creation, publishing and distribution. In a very short space of time we have become well-known for our highly innovative online gaming content, platform and software solutions but we are now taking this to another level altogether.”
To find out more about the new Publishing division, visit stand N3-140 at ICE London 2020 between February 4th to 6th.
Industry News
Dutch Mental Health Care Calls for Total Ban on Online Gambling Advertising
The Dutch mental health service is calling for a total ban on online gambling advertisements in the Netherlands.
Although a ban on untargeted gambling advertisements and a ban on the use of role models has been in effect since 2023, a recent research by KRO-NCRV’s Pointer shows that (illegal) gambling companies and sports tipster platforms are still enticing young people via social media such as TikTok and Snapchat.
By using influencers and terms like “free money”, they try to attract a young audience and thus lower the threshold to start gambling. This concerns both legal online casinos and online casinos that do not have a license in the Netherlands. The Gaming Authority has started an investigation based on Pointer’s findings.
Pointer’s research shows that part of the gambling industry deliberately targets young people who are often susceptible to promises such as “fast money” and the influence of role models. Ruth Peetoom, chair of the Dutch mental health service, compares this approach to that of the tobacco industry, where similar marketing strategies were used to get young people to smoke.
Despite the existing advertising ban, gambling companies continue to explore the boundaries of the law, according to Peetoom. The Dutch mental health and addiction care associations in the Netherlands therefore push for a total ban on online gambling advertising and stricter rules for the duty of care of gambling providers.
With the call for a total ban, the Dutch mental health care sector hopes to prevent further normalisation of gambling behaviour among young people and to protect them from the temptation and consequences of online gambling.
The post Dutch Mental Health Care Calls for Total Ban on Online Gambling Advertising appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Compliance Updates
UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024
The Gambling Commission has published further data on the gambling industry in Great Britain.
This data, sourced from operators, reflects the period between March 2020 and September 2024, inclusive, and covers online and in-person gambling covering Licensed Betting Operators (LBOs) found on Britain’s high streets.
Comparison should not be made with the industry statistics dataset, as this dataset may include free bets and bonuses and does not include data from all operators.
This release compares Quarter 2 (Q2) of financial year 2024 to 2025, with Q2 of 2023 to 2024, looking at how the market has changed in comparative periods over a year.
The latest operator data shows:
- online total Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) in Q2 (July to September) was £1.32 billion, an increase of 11 percent from Q2 the previous year. The overall number of total bets and/or spins increased 12 percent Year-on-Year (YoY), reaching a new peak for the third consecutive quarter of 25.2 billion, whilst the average monthly active accounts2 in the quarter increased 8 percent
- real event betting GGY increased by 6 percent YoY to £453 million. The number of bets decreased 10 percent, while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 9 percent
- slots GGY increased 16 percent to £680 million YoY. The number of spins increased 13 percent to 23.3 billion while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 16 percent to 4.4 million per month. Although this is a new peak for GGY in this dataset for the slots vertical, it should be noted that one operator has re-classified some of its products into the slot vertical this quarter, which has had an impact on the vertical data
- the number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour increased by 9 percent YoY to 10 million. The average session length remained at 17 minutes. Approximately 6.1 percent of all sessions lasted more than one hour compared to 6.6 percent in Q2 the previous year. The number of spins per session has fallen from 147 to 142 YOY, whilst the GGY per session has fallen from £4.20 to £4.13 in the equivalent timeframe
- LBO GGY decreased by 1 percent to £533 million in Q2 2024 to 2025, compared to the same quarter last year, while the number of total bets and spins decreased by 0.1 percent to 3.1 billion.
The post UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Industry News
Petra Maria Poola Joins Xace as Group Commercial Director
Xace has announced that Petra Maria Poola has joined the company as Group Commercial Director.
Petra brings a wealth of experience from the iGaming industry having formerly held roles at several iGaming companies such as Yolo, Relax Gaming and SiGMA. She will lead the commercial growth of Xace and its group companies, including crypto and iGaming focused xda.io, helping to drive strategic initiatives across banking, fintech and iGaming solutions.
In her new role, she will mainly oversee the growth of the group’s sales, marketing and account management functions, ensuring a cohesive strategy that supports Xace’s ambitious expansion plans.
“I am incredibly excited to start this new chapter with Xace, and work alongside such a talented team and management. Transitioning into the fintech space, while still connected to iGaming, presents an exciting opportunity for growth and learning. I’m looking forward to applying my expertise to help Xace and its group companies achieve new heights commercially, while gaining deeper insights into the fast-evolving world of fintech,” said Petra Maria Poola.
Reuben Abel, CEO of Xace, said: “Petra’s extensive background in the iGaming sector, combined with her commercial acumen, makes her a valuable addition to the Xace team. She will play a crucial role in expanding Xace’s market presence and enhancing its suite of services tailored to the specific needs of the iGaming and fintech industries.”
The post Petra Maria Poola Joins Xace as Group Commercial Director appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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