Canada

Prophet Exchange recruits from Caesars, Compass and Action Network ahead of New Jersey launch

Published

4 years ago

May 31, 2022

Prophet Exchange, the New Jersey-based peer-to-peer sports betting exchange, has today announced several new hires as it builds towards its much anticipated launch in The Garden State. Prophet Exchange will be the first U.S. sports betting operator enabling peer-to-peer betting, which gives users the ability to name their own price. Following its market access agreement with Caesars Entertainment in 2021, Prophet is on track to launch in New Jersey this summer.

Prophet Exchange has hired Matt Stolarz as Director of Technical Product. Matt has been a Software Engineer for over a decade and brings a ton of Sports Gambling industry experience with him. Prior to joining Prophet Exchange, Matt was a Senior Software Engineer at Caesars Entertainment. Leading up to Caesars’ acquisition of William Hill in 2021, Matt was also a Senior Software Engineer at William Hill, where he and his team were responsible for launching the sportsbook in New Jersey and expanding it across the nation.

“I am beyond excited to join Prophet Exchange to help guide and build the first and best sports betting exchange product in the United States,” said Matt Stolartz. “I am also looking forward to working alongside a brilliant and talented team of fellow sports betting industry experts. You couldn’t dream up a better product or a better team to come into.”

Prophet has also hired Zhifeng Shi as Director of Software Engineering. Previously, Zhifeng built large scale data ingestion pipelines in 1010DATA to provide business insights into near real-time data for industry leaders, including the New York Stock Exchange. Most recently, Zhifeng was a Software Engineer at Compass, where he was pivotal, joining the company in its early stages. His team designed and built an end-to-end transaction management platform from scratch within 8 months, and the platform is already powering more than 6% of annual U.S. real estate transactions since its initial release less than a year ago.

“I am very excited to have the opportunity to join Prophet to work with the product and engineering teams and to build the most reliable and trustable platforms to power the next revolution in U.S. Sports Betting,” Zhifeng Shi said. “I am looking forward to being a part of Prophet’s challenging and exciting journeys ahead.”

Additionally, Prophet has hired Casey Halpern as Director of Social Media & Content. Casey joins from Action Network, where he managed and oversaw their social media channels. Casey has a wealth of experience working in the sports media industry as a producer and researcher for NBC’s Football Night in America for the past five NFL seasons, where he was nominated for multiple Emmy awards. Casey has an extended history working with athletes and media personalities on their content, and building their social media profiles and audiences.

“I am thrilled to join Prophet Exchange,” said Casey Halpern. “This is an incredible opportunity to help scale an important and innovative product that will be the first of its kind in the U.S.

“I firmly believe that Prophet Exchange will solve a plethora of problems that everyday sports bettors currently face. I am looking forward to the exciting, yet challenging times ahead as we build a best-in-class Sports Betting Exchange.”

affiliate marketing

SEOBROTHERS’ Aleksandra Drigo flags higher barriers for affiliates in regulated Alberta

Published

9 hours ago

July 6, 2026

Wladimir P.

seobrothers’-aleksandra-drigo-flags-higher-barriers-for-affiliates-in-regulated-alberta

SEOBROTHERS Chief of Business Development Aleksandra Drigo says Alberta’s move toward a regulated online gambling market is likely to raise the cost and complexity of affiliate acquisition, reshaping competition for SEO-led publishers. Drigo shared the view in an exclusive interview with SiGMA News focused on Canada’s affiliate landscape.

Drigo said regulation can bring more transparency, but also higher compliance demands and tougher economics for smaller players. “Many affiliates, especially independent SEO players, may decide not to enter fully regulated markets and instead focus on regions with more predictable economics and lower regulatory pressure,” she said.

She added that regulated markets typically advantage well-funded affiliate groups with the ability to invest in legal and compliance support and tracking infrastructure. “Regulated markets tend to favour larger players. Big affiliate companies have the resources for legal support, compliance teams, advanced tracking infrastructure, and long-term investment without expecting fast ROI.”

On partner selection, Drigo said affiliates are increasingly weighing operators on operational quality and regulatory readiness, not just commercial terms. “We pay close attention to how consistent an operator is in terms of reporting, responsible gaming policies, speed of communication, and local regulations compliance. Reputation risks affect both sides. If an operator lacks transparency or fails to follow compliance standards, it directly impacts the affiliate business as well.”

Drigo also pointed to communication and access to performance data as major friction points in operator-affiliate relationships. “Financial disagreements can usually be resolved quickly if there is trust and clear communication between both sides. Whereas, when affiliates do not receive timely information, face unclear reporting, or get no explanation for performance changes, tensions escalate very quickly. In regulated markets, communication and transparency become just as important as the financial terms themselves.”

Looking ahead, Drigo said affiliates targeting regulated North American markets will need stronger localisation, trusted brands and more diversified traffic strategies as search behaviour changes. “With AI and online search ecosystem changes already transforming the SEO landscape, affiliates need to become much more flexible and technology-driven than before. And compliance-friendly SEO strategies and diversification beyond traditional search traffic are becoming increasingly important.”

The post SEOBROTHERS’ Aleksandra Drigo flags higher barriers for affiliates in regulated Alberta appeared first on EE Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Affiliate Industry

SiGMA exclusive: Aleksandra Drigo on traffic shifts, transparency, and the future of SEO affiliates

Published

12 hours ago

July 6, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

sigma-exclusive:-aleksandra-drigo-on-traffic-shifts,-transparency,-and-the-future-of-seo-affiliates

In an exclusive interview for the SiGMA News, Aleksandra Drigo, Chief of Business Development at SEOBROTHERS, shared her perspective on the future of affiliate marketing in Canada.

She discussed how Alberta’s upcoming market launch could reshape competition, why transparency has become a cornerstone of operator-affiliate partnerships, how compliance is changing the way affiliates choose partners, and why localisation, trusted brands, and data-driven decision-making will define the next generation of SEO affiliates.

Regulation will reshape Alberta’s affiliate landscape

As Alberta prepares to regulate its online gambling market, affiliates are entering a more challenging environment. While regulation brings greater transparency, it also increases compliance demands, acquisition costs, and competition – particularly from larger, well-funded companies.

“Many affiliates, especially independent SEO players, may decide not to enter fully regulated markets and instead focus on regions with more predictable economics and lower regulatory pressure,” Aleksandra said.

Bigger brands gain the advantage

According to Drigo, regulated markets naturally favour established affiliate businesses, whereas smaller publishers face much higher barriers to entry despite niche opportunities still existing.

“Regulated markets tend to favour larger players. Big affiliate companies have the resources for legal support, compliance teams, advanced tracking infrastructure, and long-term investment without expecting fast ROI.”

Compliance is now a deciding factor

Operator selection is no longer based solely on commercial terms. Affiliates increasingly assess partners by their transparency, reporting quality, responsible gaming standards, responsiveness, and ability to meet local regulatory requirements.

“We pay close attention to how consistent an operator is in terms of reporting, responsible gaming policies, speed of communication, and local regulations compliance. Reputation risks affect both sides. If an operator lacks transparency or fails to follow compliance standards, it directly impacts the affiliate business as well.”

Communication matters more than financial disputes

Drigo believes that most partnership conflicts arise not from payment issues, but from poor communication and limited access to performance data.

“Financial disagreements can usually be resolved quickly if there is trust and clear communication between both sides. Whereas, when affiliates do not receive timely information, face unclear reporting, or get no explanation for performance changes, tensions escalate very quickly. In regulated markets, communication and transparency become just as important as the financial terms themselves.”

The future belongs to trusted brands and localisation

Looking ahead, Drigo expects meticulous localisation, brand authority, first-party audiences, and community-driven products to define success in regulated North American markets. As AI reshapes search, affiliates will need stronger technology, diversified traffic sources, and compliance-friendly SEO strategies to remain competitive.

“With AI and online search ecosystem changes already transforming the SEO landscape, affiliates need to become much more flexible and technology-driven than before. And compliance-friendly SEO strategies and diversification beyond traditional search traffic are becoming increasingly important.”

The post SiGMA exclusive: Aleksandra Drigo on traffic shifts, transparency, and the future of SEO affiliates appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

Canada

St8 expands Octoplay aggregation deal to Ontario and the UK

Published

4 days 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.