Canada

GROVER GAMING BETS BIG ON OHIO CHARITIES

Published

4 years ago

February 28, 2022

Grover Gaming announced that it is officially seeking licensure from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office to both manufacture and distribute Electronic Instant Bingo devices to charities, fraternals, and other nonprofit organizations in Ohio.

Grover has made sizable investments already in Ohio. According to Wil Riesgard, Vice President of Operations for Grover Gaming, “We have had a large distribution center here in Columbus for a while and are currently adding another office/warehouse in the northeast part of the state. We will very soon have over fifty employees just in the State of Ohio including a dedicated marketing team.”

“We are already licensed as a Bingo Supply Manufacturer in Ohio, but we have also applied for the separate Distributor license and the Electronic Instant Bingo endorsement to each of those licenses,” said Dorwin “DL” Howard, Compliance and Licensing Specialist at Grover Gaming. “The Ohio Attorney General’s Office, by law, cannot issue any of those licenses until April 1, 2022, but we hope to receive our endorsements on that date or soon after. We do anticipate that they will issue licenses to every manufacturer and distributor entitled to a license at the same time to avoid giving an advantage to one or the other.”

“We cannot offer any proposals to any potential customers in Ohio until we receive those endorsements,” stated Marc Downing, Chief Counsel and Director of Compliance for Grover. “But we do have a plan.”

“We intend to bring the same industry leading software and hardware that has been so successful for our charitable customers in states like Virginia, North Dakota, New Hampshire, and Kentucky,” stated Garrett Blackwelder, President and owner of Grover Gaming. “We are fortunate to be the leader in all those markets by a large margin, and in Virginia and New Hampshire we distribute our products directly to our customers. By distributing our own product, we are able to deal directly with the charities which streamlines our customer service and takes it to an even higher level. This will allow us to further our mission of providing entertaining gaming experiences through a team committed to growth and progress.”

Not only will Grover distribute its own product, but they also intend to place Electronic Instant Bingo equipment and supply Electronic Instant Bingo tickets without requiring any long-term commitments from the charities and fraternals in Ohio. “We will not be requiring contracts of any kind from the charities,” stated Jimmy Forrest, Vice President of Sales for Grover. “We want to earn your business by providing the best performing games and world class service, not because we lock you down with a piece of paper.”

Forrest continued, “another market changing innovation is the integration of our redemption kiosks. With this kiosk a player can just insert their ticket and get cash without having to see an attendant to redeem their winnings. In Virginia, not only has security drastically increased, but we have also seen an increase in net revenue to the charities of over 15% in some locations.” Grover plans to offer those kiosks free of charge along with the biggest selection of custom game terminals.

Grover Gaming develops software, game content, and gaming systems for lotteries and charitable gaming jurisdictions, and is licensed in Ohio, New Hampshire, Kentucky, North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Washington, Ontario Canada, and Virginia. Based in Greenville, NC, Grover Gaming has over 360 employees across nine states including a design studio in Wilmington, NC and a Software Development Center in Chicago, IL.

The company is also a 3-year Inc 5000 award recipient, recognizing the fastest-growing privately held companies in the United States and was recently honored with a Glassdoor Employees’ Choice Award. Glassdoor ranked Grover Gaming Number 2 in its Best Places to Work list in 2022 among companies across the US with less than 1,000 employees.

Canada

St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK

Published

6 hours ago

July 2, 2026

Wladimir P.

st8-expands-octoplay-aggregation-deal-to-ontario-and-the-uk

St8 has extended its content partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK, expanding distribution of Octoplay’s casino games in two regulated markets. The companies announced the move on 2 July, 2026.

Under the expanded agreement, St8 will make Octoplay’s full portfolio available to operators in both jurisdictions through St8’s single API integration.

David Fall, Business Development Manager at St8, said:

“Expanding our partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK is another important milestone as we continue to strengthen our aggregation platform with premium content from leading suppliers.

“Octoplay has built an excellent reputation for developing engaging, high-performing games, and we’re delighted to extend this collaboration into two highly strategic regulated markets. This agreement enables our operator partners to access even more quality content through a single integration while supporting their growth in competitive jurisdictions.”

Ralitsa Georgieva, CEO at Octoplay added:

“We’re pleased to expand our partnership with St8 into Ontario and the UK, making our full portfolio available to even more operators through its aggregation platform. St8 has established itself as a trusted technology partner for regulated markets, and we look forward to building on our successful collaboration together.”

The post St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Canada

St8 extends Octoplay partnership into Ontario and the UK

Published

6 hours ago

July 2, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

st8-extends-octoplay-partnership-into-ontario-and-the-uk

Casino games aggregator and full-service technology provider St8 has expanded its partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK, further strengthening its premium content offering across two of the industry’s most important regulated markets.

Through the extended agreement, St8 will make Octoplay’s full portfolio of casino games available to operators in both jurisdictions, providing partners with seamless access to the supplier’s high-quality content through its single API integration.

The expansion builds on the successful relationship between the two companies and reflects St8’s continued commitment to providing operators with access to leading game providers across regulated markets. By broadening the availability of Octoplay’s portfolio, St8 further enhances the depth and diversity of content available to its operator network.

Octoplay has quickly established itself as one of the industry’s most innovative and fastest growing game studios, recognised for delivering engaging titles that combine premium gameplay with strong player appeal which are now available across 17 jurisdictions. The supplier’s focus on quality and performance aligns closely with St8’s mission to simplify content aggregation while helping operators deliver exceptional gaming experiences.

The latest agreement reinforces St8’s strategy of expanding its premium content portfolio while helping operators simplify integration, accelerate market entry and deliver engaging gaming experiences across multiple regulated jurisdictions.

David Fall, Business Development Manager at St8, said: “Expanding our partnership with Octoplay into Ontario and the UK is another important milestone as we continue to strengthen our aggregation platform with premium content from leading suppliers.

Ralitsa Georgieva, CEO at Octoplay added: “We’re pleased to expand our partnership with St8 into Ontario and the UK, making our full portfolio available to even more operators through its aggregation platform. St8 has established itself as a trusted technology partner for regulated markets, and we look forward to building on our successful collaboration together.”

The post St8 extends Octoplay partnership into Ontario and the UK appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

AGCO

AGCO Fines Great Canadian Entertainment $120,000 for Using Unauthorised Gaming System Software at Four Casinos

Published

9 hours ago

July 2, 2026

Wladimir P.

agco-fines-great-canadian-entertainment-$120,000-for-using-unauthorised-gaming-system-software-at-four-casinos

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has ordered monetary penalties totalling $120,000 against Great Canadian Entertainment (GCE) for using unauthorided gaming system software at multiple Ontario casino sites, a serious compliance failure that bypassed requirements designed to protect the integrity of casino gaming.

Gaming equipment and systems are central to casino operations. They process payments and wagers, support slot-game play and help maintain controls that protect the integrity, safety and security of the gaming environment. When these systems are used or operated without required testing, monitoring and approval, it weakens safeguards designed to detect and prevent unlawful conduct, including money laundering, and can undermine public confidence in Ontario’s regulated casino sector.

The AGCO reviewed 40 instances in which revoked or unapproved bill validator software had been installed across four casino sites between February 20 and March 15, 2025. Bill validators are components within gaming machines that accept and process cash and help support anti-money laundering controls.

The AGCO’s Standards for Gaming require gaming equipment and software to be tested and approved before being deployed in casinos. Bill validators verify the authenticity and value of cash inserted into electronic gaming machines and are an important safeguard. That is why these systems must undergo rigorous testing and approval to confirm they operate as intended, perform critical functions reliably and are authorised before being introduced into a live casino environment.

Casino operators are responsible for ensuring that changes to gaming systems are properly reviewed, tested and authorised before implementation. Using unapproved software in a live casino environment is a serious compliance failure.

A casino operator served with an Order of Monetary Penalty has the right to appeal the Registrar’s action within 15 days to the Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT), an adjudicative body that is part of Tribunals Ontario and independent of the AGCO.

“The AGCO requires casino operators to protect the integrity of their gaming systems by making sure they are independently tested, approved and operating as intended. When unauthorised software is used in a live casino environment, it bypasses critical safeguards that are meant to uphold the integrity of gaming and the public’s confidence in the system. The AGCO will continue to hold all casino operators accountable for meeting Ontario’s high standards of gaming system integrity,” said Dr. Karin Schnarr, Registrar and Chief Executive Officer at AGCO.

The post AGCO Fines Great Canadian Entertainment $120,000 for Using Unauthorised Gaming System Software at Four Casinos appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.