Industry News

LeoVegas Mobile Gaming Group: Ardalan’s pyrrhic victory risks torpedoing Swedish gambling regulations

Published

6 years ago

May 1, 2020

Zoltan Tundik

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Open letter to Minister for Public Administration Ardalan Shekarabi

Ardalan’s pyrrhic victory risks torpedoing Swedish gambling regulations

– If players leave, companies will follow suit

On January 1, 2019, new gambling regulations were introduced in Sweden. Minister for Public Administration Ardalan Shekarabi spearheaded the reform, with cooperation from the opposition, resulting in broad support in the Swedish Parliament. The overall mantra was that the state should regain control of the gambling market after decades of gambling moving to companies that operated in Sweden without a license. Parliament’s preferred method of effective gambling market control is what is known as channelling, i.e. regulating what percentage of Swedish consumers choose to play with Swedish-licenced companies.

As expected, this resulted in a crossroads where companies, with the aim of maintaining a long-term business model, welcomed more insight into operations and greater control over players’ behaviour in exchange for a well-functioning and sustainable gaming market. In order to ensure responsible gaming, companies were required to implement a number of measures, such as age verification, bonus limits, limits on deposits and time played, as well as extensive processes to prevent money laundering and unhealthy gambling habits. This became a matter of importance for the 90 companies that chose to apply for a Swedish gaming license and together laid the foundation for a new Swedish gaming market that focused on strong consumer protections.

But not everyone jumped on the Ardalan train. Many companies felt there was more to gain from staying out of the system and continuing to offer games beyond the reach of taxes, controls, and other responsible gaming measures – the so-called black market.

Today, only a year later, it turns out that the “package” that the licensed companies chose to buy and sign onto has changed character completely and thus risks losing all its appeal, benefitting companies that chose to operate on the black market. We must remember that it is the customers who choose where the best product is. In a digital world, that power does not lie with the state, or with us as corporations for that matter.

We operate in a digital world and have direct access to all the relevant data needed to evaluate what measures can help strengthen our players’ safety and security while still providing attractive offers and products. The sad thing is that the government, with Ardalan Shekarabi at the forefront, does not want to talk to us about how we can work together and, with help from the insights we possess, develop a well-functioning Swedish gambling market. This became especially clear when the Minister, on April 23, proposed new emergency restrictions, proclaiming that, “The Government sees major risks in the gambling sector right now.” But the overall gambling industry (private and state) doesn’t see the same pattern at all. Instead, we see how gambling has diminished compared to what it looked like before the covid-19 crisis struck.

This week, the independent research firm Copenhagen Economics published a report describing how more and more players are choosing to spend their time with companies operating on the black market. This can be seen as nothing other than a failing grade for the government, which has completely failed to defend its own licensing system. The biggest drop was among online casinos, where approximately every fourth krona gambled goes to an unlicensed company instead of a company with a Swedish license.

Minister Shekarabi knows about this; he also has access to statistics that reveal a reduction in channelling. But for some inexplicable reason, he doesn’t seem worried that more and more players are going to the uncontrolled black market. The purpose of the re-regulation, which had broad support in the Swedish Parliament, was to create a more sustainable gambling market that functioned well in the long term. Now the minister is about to create a “Wild West 2.0” in the gambling market, and he’s doing it in the name of consumer protection. It is now clear to us that Ardalan Shekarabi does not share our ambition to create a sustainable and safe gambling market since his latest proposal is perhaps the best advertisement yet for players to abandon licensed companies in favour of the black market.

Every company, regardless of industry, wants to be where the customers are. If the customers leave, the companies will follow suit. The Swedish gambling market not only provides safety and security to players but also contributes billions annually in much-needed tax revenue and investment in sports. By slowly eroding the Swedish gaming market month by month, the government risks bringing about major cuts in security, tax revenue, and societal investment.

We can only be left to wonder why Ardalan Shekarabi wants to torpedo his own gambling regulations.

Stockholm 2020-04-30

Pontus Lindwall, CEO, Betsson AB

Henrik Tjärnström, CEO, Kindred Group

Gustaf Hagman, Group CEO, LeoVegas

Therese Hillman, CEO, NetEnt AB

Ulrik Bengtsson, Group CEO, William Hill Plc

Source: leovegas.mynewsdesk.com

complaint resolution

Casino Guru CRC returns $5.3m to players in Q1 2026

Published

24 hours ago

April 21, 2026

Wladimir P.

casino-guru-crc-returns-$5.3m-to-players-in-q1-2026

Casino Guru’s Complaint Resolution Center (CRC) published 3,986 complaints in Q1 2026 and says it resolved 1,321 cases, returning $5,304,894 to players during the quarter.

Casino Guru said March was one of the CRC’s most active months on record, with the second-highest number of published complaints to date. The company added that ongoing cases exceeded 1,300, pointing to rising demand for third-party dispute mediation.

By volume, the most active complaint markets were Germany (657), the United Kingdom (270), Canada (240), Italy (207) and Australia (194), according to the CRC update.

Delayed payments remained the most common player-reported issue. Casino Guru also reported a March shift in complaint mix, with self-exclusion-related complaints rising to the second most frequent category for the first time in CRC history. KYC-related issues and blocked accounts were also among the most common complaint types, often linked to withdrawal delays.

Casino Guru said the quarter’s results reflect the increasing role of independent mediation as players look to third-party platforms to resolve disputes.

The post Casino Guru CRC returns $5.3m to players in Q1 2026 appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

branded content

RubyPlay launches Firerose studio for operator-specific casino games

Published

2 days ago

April 20, 2026

Wladimir P.

rubyplay-launches-firerose-studio-for-operator-specific-casino-games

RubyPlay has launched Firerose, a new studio aimed at building operator-specific casino game experiences, as suppliers and operators push for more branded content to stand out in crowded markets.

The company said Firerose is designed to let operators combine RubyPlay’s existing game catalogue with the studio’s technology and creative resources, using operator-led insight to shape games around an operator’s brand identity rather than standardised supplier content.

RubyPlay said Superbet is among the first operators to launch Firerose-powered titles. The supplier did not disclose game names or specific performance figures, but said early results showed “strong engagement metrics”.

Firerose becomes part of RubyPlay’s multi-studio structure alongside Koala Games, Mad Hat Games, Ruby Studio, and Xslots, which the company said share technology, infrastructure and distribution.

Dima Reiderman , Chief Commercial Officer at RubyPlay, said: ”Firerose represents a deliberate shift in how we think about content creation and partnership. The market is no longer driven solely by volume, but by identity. Operators want experiences that feel native to their brand and help them clearly differentiate in increasingly competitive casino environments.”

Dr. Eyal Loz, CPO at RubyPlay, added: “Firerose was created to put the operator’s voice at the centre of the creative process. Every game starts with their brand, their audience and their story, and our role is to bring that to life through the full weight of RubyPlay’s creative capabilities.

“We’re shaping experiences that players immediately associate with the operator itself. That level of ownership is what allows operators to stand out in increasingly crowded casino environments.”

The post RubyPlay launches Firerose studio for operator-specific casino games appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Expanse Studios

Expanse Studios Launches Proprietary Jackpot and Tournament System

Published

5 days ago

April 17, 2026

Wladimir P.

expanse-studios-launches-proprietary-jackpot-and-tournament-system

Expanse Studios, a subsidiary of Meridian Holdings Inc., announced the deployment of proprietary jackpot and tournament mechanics across its portfolio, providing B2B operator partners with engagement tools designed to enhance player entertainment value.

The system introduces two jackpot formats—Happy Hour Jackpot and Mystery Jackpot—alongside four tournament competition variants. Operators can control prize structures, scheduling parameters and promotional configurations through platform interfaces.

Happy Hour Jackpot provides scheduled jackpot events aligned with operator promotional strategies, enabling coordinated marketing campaigns and player communication around jackpot opportunities.

Mystery Jackpot delivers multi-tier progressive prize mechanics integrated into gameplay, with operator-configurable prize values and event parameters that support diverse promotional objectives.

Tournament mechanics include four competition formats:

• Bonus Buy tournaments create competitive environments for players who choose to engage with bonus purchase features, with scoring designed to reward strategic gameplay decisions.

• Spin Count tournaments track player activity across gameplay sessions, offering multiple entry opportunities and achievement-based progression that accommodates different play styles.

• Combo tournaments combine multiple competition elements, enabling operators to design promotional events that appeal to diverse player preferences and gaming behaviours.

• Time-based tournaments operate within defined promotional windows, allowing players to participate according to their own schedules while competing for tournament prizes.

“Content providers increasingly compete on operational capabilities, not just game quality. This positions our portfolio as solutions-oriented infrastructure that helps operators execute diverse promotional strategies while maintaining control over player engagement parameters,” said Damjan Stamenkovic, CEO of Expanse Studios.

Tournament formats integrate with game interfaces through standardised promotional systems designed to enhance entertainment value while providing operators with promotional flexibility.

For Expanse Studios, the deployment strengthens competitive positioning in B2B partnerships where operators increasingly evaluate content providers based on promotional feature capabilities in addition to game performance metrics.

The post Expanse Studios Launches Proprietary Jackpot and Tournament System appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.