Roundtable – What is the state of play in the Romanian market?
Game inspiration at your fingertips: Ludo.ai goes mobile
The customer is always right
Allan Phang Departs From Galaxy Racer
2022 Commonwealth Esports Championships: ESFI gives grand send-off to Indian contingent
BMM Testlabs South Africa’s Zeena Rossouw Wins SBEA+ Outstanding Woman Award
Start of MSSA’s NWU Online School League delayed to 1 August 2022.
Moobifun signs deal to digitise Grupo Pefaco’s casino operation in Africa
BetConstruct Takes Harmony to Africa
Reallocation of prize money to the FIFA esports title.
2022 Commonwealth Esports Championships: ESFI gives grand send-off to Indian contingent
PAGCOR POSTS 68.11% REVENUE INCREASE IN FIRST HALF OF 2022; CONTRIBUTIONS TO NATION-BUILDING UP BY 62.69%
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GEMS to Launch on Top Launchpads
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GTG Network signs stats, content and insights deal with NTD Pty Limited (NTD)
Gaming Laboratories International Expands APAC Team in Australia
Sydney’s Crown Casino to Reopen to VIPs in August
Lotterywest Contributes Record-breaking Return to Western Australian Community
What is the Future of Gambling Sites in Canada?
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CANADIAN GAMBLING SITES AND THEIR LATEST PROVISIONS
Planet Sport expands coverage into Canada with French Canadian services
Bojoko doubles down in the US and Canada
Vivo Gaming upgrades live casino offering in Uruguay and Bulgaria
Pragmatic Play Goes Live with Pálpitos in Tucumán, Argentina
Greentube strengthens presence In Latin America following Solbet deal
Santander enters esports as a main sponsor of the top League of Legends competitions in Europe and Latin America
Betway Signs Multi-year Partnership with Playtech
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Finding Casino Games To Play This Summer
Pragmatic Play Goes Live with Pálpitos in Tucumán, Argentina
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Betcris Gold sponsor of the 1st Aliadas Congress in Colombia
SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator Partners with Pipa Games
BMM Testlabs welcomes Jon Stuckey as Senior Vice President of Business Development for Europe and South America
SoftGamings Set to Attend SiGMA Balkans/CIS Summit in Belgrade, Serbia
iSoftBet reinforces its presence in Bulgaria with Alphabet Gaming agreement
Meridianbet Becomes Sponsor of First Montenegrin Football League
Vivo Gaming upgrades live casino offering in Uruguay and Bulgaria
Wazdan expands Serbian reach with SoccerBet partnership
Crypto SNACK Secures $50M Investment Commitment from GEM Digital
Altenar makes waves in Latvia with Casino 777 partnership
Lithuanian and Ukrainian Regulators Sign MoU
Breaking into the Baltics: APIgrator is certified in Lithuania
Lithuania Approves New Lottery & Gaming Tax Law Amendments
ZEAL Partners with Nect to Implement AI Age Verification
German City to Shut All Betting Shops Amid Money-laundering Allegations
Gauselmann Group Becomes Official Gambling Partner of VfL Osnabrück
Playson reinforces presence in Germany with PlatinCasino deal
Wazdan extends Swiss reach with 7 Melons partnership
Roundtable – What is the state of play in the Romanian market?
Comtrade Gaming Announces a New iCore Deal with Stanleybet Romania
Lithuanian and Ukrainian Regulators Sign MoU
AOJND: The Romanian government is only taxing winnings of online gaming platforms, gaming operators are to contest
Interblock Installs New Stadium at Grand Casino Bucharest
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Svenska Spel Posts 1% Revenue Rise in Q2 2022
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ParlayBay agrees to supply FINNPLAY with innovative sports betting content
Riot Games Announces the Return of the LEC Summer Finals in Malmö
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Scientific Games Named Best Betting and Gaming Employer in Greece
Highlight Games Announces Partnership With SuperSport
OPAP strengthens its position in online sports-betting in Greece through the acquisition of Stoiximan Group’s Greek and Cypriot business
OPAP Updates Coronavirus Impact on its Business
KSA Warns Dutch Lottery Operators After “Risky Games of Chance” Offerings
FDJ Announces its Financial Results for H1 2022
Bojoko launches sports betting in the UK
Greentube grows presence in Netherlands and Belgium through Carousel deal
Provider of premium live dealer content makes major play in fast-growing market with suite of localised games
Parimatch Completes the Franchise Withdrawal from Russia on Legal and Technical Levels
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European State Lotteries and Toto Association (EL) Suspends Members in Russia and Belarus
NagaCorp to Suspend Russian IR Project Indefinitely
Haval and Virtus.pro extend their partnership to all of the club’s first rosters
KSA Warns Dutch Lottery Operators After “Risky Games of Chance” Offerings
ESports Premier League (ESPL) Season 2 Important Announcement
German City to Shut All Betting Shops Amid Money-laundering Allegations
International sports betting operator Pinnacle joins integrity body IBIA
Sydney’s Crown Casino to Reopen to VIPs in August
Game inspiration at your fingertips: Ludo.ai goes mobile
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2022 Commonwealth Esports Championships: ESFI gives grand send-off to Indian contingent
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Roundtable – What is the state of play in the Romanian market?
Thought Leadership/Q&A with Thomas Aigner head of business development at Ibex.ai discussing the future of CRM
European Gaming Q&A with Thomas Wendt, Co-founder and Director of Apparat Gaming
Interview with Ksenia Igolkina, Lead Designer at Turbo Games
Exclusive Q&A with Warren Russell CEO/W2 Global Data
CEEG Awards 2022 voting session is now live – Check out the new rules, nominees and vote for your favorites!
Post-Event – Prague Gaming Summit 2022 brings back the great vibes
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Crypto SNACK Secures $50M Investment Commitment from GEM Digital
OddsGecko launches crypto betting odds comparison site
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BGaming and Duelbits Collaborated to Create Game for Crypto Casino Enthusiasts
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2022 Commonwealth Esports Championships: ESFI gives grand send-off to Indian contingent
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EGBA Welcomes EC Commitment to Improve Digital Single Market
European Commission Criticises Third German State Treaty on Gambling
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Bojoko launches sports betting in the UK
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Yggdrasil and ReelPlay have joined forces to launch the latest release by Hot Rise Games, Monsters VS Gigablox™.
The title sees an epic battle of monstrous proportions taking place across a devastated city and features huge creatures fighting across the 6×6, 50-payline grid.
As with all games incorporating the popular Gigablox™ Game Engagement Mechanic (GEM), an oversized symbol will land on every spin, which can be anything from 2×2 to 6×6 in size.
A Golden crown acts as wild, while the ‘VS’ symbol is a scatter. Five or more of these are required to trigger the free spins, while it also acts as a paying symbol.
Up to 40 spins can be awarded, where huge wins await. The monster symbol that appears most on the reels during the triggering spin becomes the chosen champion, and if none appear, Kongo King is automatically chosen.
All Gigablox™ symbols in the bonus are Monsters only, while all wins containing wilds or the champion are paid double.
In certain jurisdictions, players can purchase the bonus via the buy feature for 75x their stake.
Monsters VS Gigablox™ is the latest Hot Rise Games title to be produced as part of the YG Masters portfolio, following Legion – Hot 1. As with all YG Masters titles, the game is powered by GATI, Yggdrasil’s state-of-the-art technology enabling partners to employ the preconfigured, regulation-ready, standardised development toolkit to consistently produce cutting-edge content followed by rapid distribution.
Stuart McCarthy, Head of Product & Programs at Yggdrasil, said: “Monsters VS Gigablox™ brings an exciting, apocalyptic environment to the reels as great denizens of the dark fight it out in a destroyed city.
“Packing in our Gigablox™ GEM makes for another thrilling addition to the YG Masters offering as we strive to create dynamic, unique content.”
David Johnson, CEO at ReelPlay, said: “ReelPlay have partnerships with many independent studios which allow us to showcase varied approaches to game development. We’re proud of our partnership with Hot Rise Games and our ability to enable them to contribute exciting products to the YG Masters offering.”
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Yggdrasil and ReelPlay collaborate for Hot Rise Games launch Monsters VS Gigablox™
Get ready to max out multipliers in Aztec masterpiece MexoMax! MultiMax™
Yggdrasil and Reflex Gaming roll out Emerald Isle-inspired hit, Dublin Up DoubleMAX ™
Yggdrasil powers ReelPlay’s latest creation Professor Clank’s Combinator
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
Romania is an evolving market, with a slew of operators making moves and bringing the weight of their expertise to the market. There are also Romania’s established operators who continue to lead there and push the market in the right direction.
Romanian players have strong influence from land-based casino content, but they are clearly moving through the trends we’ve seen time and again at a similar rate to the players of other markets, if not even faster
We can already see a number of iGaming concepts doing well over there, Megaways obviously is popular across any market, and hold and win titles perform as well, so we’re looking forward to getting our own hold and win series live with our Romanian clients!
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
Romania is a thriving market based on solid regulations with both operators and affiliates having to secure a licence to get in on the action. In addition, the tax structure is clearly defined both for operators, suppliers and affiliates as well as players. Romania was rather slow to legalise online gambling which was technically neither legal nor illegal because no legislation existed up until 2010. The government then made online gambling legal, but no regulatory body existed to grant online licenses. The National Gambling Office was then created in 2013 to oversee the country’s gambling industry, and it continues to rule over the industry up to this day.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
The Romanian market is still in its early days with online gambling having only been legalised back in 2015, but it is a market with an incredibly bright future ahead. The market is regulated with both online sports betting and casino available, with oversight provided by the Romanian National Office for Gambling. The country’s online gambling market continues to grow at a steady pace with around 30 licensees including PressEnter Group now active in the market. There is still a lot of untapped potential in Romania, and we have ambitious plans to be a driver of growth over the coming months and years as we continue to deliver a superior player experience via our UltraCasino brand.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
The market just keeps growing and growing with the new operators joining every month. Spribe is already currently live with Superbet, FEG (eFortuna, Casa Pariurilor), Superbet, Stanleybet, Betano, Princess Casino and Favbet Romania, with Unibet soon to follow. The last operator on that list is currently pending approval from the ONJN, but once they get the green light from the regulator to enter Romania, we’ll be able to go live with our games there too.
What are your thoughts on the regulations in place? Has the regulator done a good job of creating a viable market?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
Any and all regulation takes time, its a vital process and one that obligates a degree of rigour. Even by this standard – as I’m sure the other contributors will attest – Romania presented particular challenges and has been in the works for some time. The regulators have done a fine job, their implementations seem highly effective while not being too draconian, and they’ve facilitated a viable market; it’s growing, and we’re excited to play a part in that growth.
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
The regulations in place combined with the hard work of the National Gambling Office have led to a market where operators, suppliers and affiliates can enjoy great success. During the nine years it took to bring regulations into force, the average gambling spend per player in the country more than doubled. Each year, it became increasingly clear that players were willing to spend money in land-based casinos and online. Post-Covid, the balance has shifted more towards online operators. The market continues to grow at pace, which indicates the regulations in place are appealing to operators and allow them to generate a sizable ROI for their activity in the region while still ensuring players are properly protected.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
I would say that the regulations in Romania are up to the same standard as those in other European markets and provide an environment in which players are protected while also enabling operators, such as PressEnter Group, and suppliers to run viable, successful businesses. The regulator has done a fine job of blocking illegal, unlicensed brands so the channelisation rates to licensed brands is high. Good regulations are all about balancing the need to prioritise responsible gambling and safe gaming but within a framework that does not put so many requirements and limits on operators and suppliers that the market becomes unviable – as we have seen in Sweden and most recently Germany.
One area of improvement would be in the regulator’s approach to social casino operators. These brands are not covered by the country’s gambling law but as we all know there is a fine line between real-money online casino and social casino. These brands undoubtedly take market share and player spend away from licenced operators so maybe in the future it is something the regulator can and will take a closer look at.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
The regulator has done incredibly well in creating a viable market in Romania, with the current monthly growth speaking volumes about the job they’ve done so far. In particular, their efforts to block and blacklist unlicensed casinos targeting players in the country is commendable. In May 2020 the National Gambling Office added a further 16 sites to their blacklist, taking the total number of blocked operators to over 70 and ensuring Romanian players could continue to play safely at licensed operators. The regulator’s commitment to responsible gaming is also impressive, with just 0.5% of players considered “problem gamblers” compared to 0.7% in the UK, which is considered the gold standard for regulation.
Is it a market that offers significant potential to operators and suppliers? Why?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network.
Absolutely, the Romanian market has some fantastic potential. Simply put, it’s big, and it’s going to get bigger. Romania is a developing country that continues to see powerful economic growth. Their economy has bounced back since 2021 with significant force.
They have a strong affinity with gambling, and with increasing mobile coverage we’re seeing more people shift to online gaming. And with a host of tier one operators at the wheel, the iGaming market segment there has an exciting future.
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
Online gambling has been the driving force behind the overall growth that Romania’s gambling industry has enjoyed in recent months and years. Indeed, the online gambling threshold increased by around 90% in 2020. While the pandemic certainly helped push the sector forwards, it is being sustained and this, in turn, is seeing more operators and studios enter the fray. Right now, there are around 30 licensed operators in the market with a growing number of land-based brands on the cusp of launching their own online casinos and sportsbooks.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
Absolutely. As I mentioned above, it is a new market that is only just six years old. The market is performing well to date with online accounting for a sizable share of total GGR already. There is a history of gambling in the country with an appetite among consumers for online casino and sports betting, and as internet infrastructure continues to improve and smartphone penetration rises the size of the addressable market is only going to grow. That means that Romania could become one of the most significant regulated online gambling markets in Europe over the next three to five years.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
Yes, we see a big potential in the Romanian market. Between 2017 and 2019, the market more than doubled in size to be worth over 70 million per year – and while recent growth has not been quite so explosive, this figure continues to climb steadily. Of particular importance is the fact that approximately half of Romania’s population is currently between the ages of 18 and 50, which gives operators an audience of around 9 million to target. Not only that, but this young-ish demographic has consistently demonstrated a progressive attitude towards casino gaming, with many players keen to embrace new game formats. This allows us to tap into the psyches of millennial players with innovative new releases such as our Aviator game.
What is the competitive landscape like? Is the room for operators to enter and claim solid market share?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
As a supplier in the industry, I can’t speak for the operators themselves. Although it’s clear as always that some of the huge operators already control swathes of the market. Operators of any size who understand the region and its players will be able to share in the market’s success.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
With around 40 brands active in the market, including PressEnter Group’s NitroCasino, it is already fiercely competitive. That being said, there is always room for operators that strive to bring innovative and new technologies and experiences to the market to succeed. When this is combined with smart and engaging marketing activity and campaigns, operators can quickly build a significant share of the Romanian market, as they can in any regulated jurisdiction.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
There’s definitely room for new operators to enter Romania and claim a solid share of the market, but in order to do so, they must be prepared to arrive with a packed library of video slots from a wide range of developers as well as innovative titles that offer never-seen-before gameplay. This is exactly what players in the country are looking for, and operators that can provide this will be able to capitalise on the huge potential offered in Romania, particularly while some of their rivals may be distracted by other breakthrough markets such as the U.S.
What are some of the challenges being faced? How can they be overcome?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
As with any market Romania certainly presents challenges. We can see some operators for whom the country is a top market, and others where it’s an add-on. At times it’s tricky to manage our resource allocation between operators with different levels of attention focused there.
It’s important to understand that the market is founded on its players, so truly understanding the Romanian iGamers must be a priority for operators and suppliers alike. Players are afforded a wealth of choice, so it’s not merely a case of right place right time, operators need to act smartly and in a targeted manner.
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
One of the biggest challenges is taxation. The Romanian Ministry of Finance has published its latest Fiscal Code draft featuring a massive 40% tax on casino withdrawals. According to the new Fiscal Code, withdrawals of up to 3,000 RON ($623) would be taxed at 10% while cashouts going over that amount without going over 10,000 RON ($2,079) would be hit with a 20% tax in addition to a 3,000 RON fee. Withdrawals going over 10,000 RON would be taxed at 40% in addition to a 1,700 RON ($353) fee. This may force many players to shift to unlicensed brands to escape these huge taxes on winnings and withdrawals. This will have a domino effect with licensed brands losing players which in turn will hit their profits and ultimately the tax revenues that are returned to the Romanian government.
This is yet to be approved, giving the opportunity for all participants to discuss this new tax framework and to potentially reach a better outcome that wouldn’t harm the gambling industry, the protections that are afforded to players by licensed brands and ultimately the tax revenues that are generated by the sector.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
The challenge for new online casino brands is that there are established land-based operators that moved into the digital space as soon as the market opened. They have been able to leverage their heritage, brand equity and trust among players to build substantial player bases that are loyal to them. However, new online casino brands that deliver a superior player experience can encourage players away from these established operators and to their online casinos and sports books. If they not only meet but exceed their expectations, they will likely continue to wager with them and not return to the incumbent brands.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
The regulator is obviously very diligent when it comes to researching brands and deciding who will be permitted to operate in the country. This is – of course – an important and necessary step for any recently-opened market, but initially we faced some challenges with them being a bit slow with the approval process for some of our games. That said, with the market continuing to grow and the regulator gaining more experience from every approval granted, this process is becoming more streamlined and should provide fewer barriers in the future.
Do player preferences differ from other markets? What does localisation look like in Romania?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
As you’d expect, Romanian players do adhere to some of the same trends that we see across other iGaming Markets, however they do have a distinct set of preferences. They have a strong affinity for classic games, low hit rates and a land based feel but at the other end of the spectrum, games with huge potential from low stakes also drive a lot of traffic. There are very few themes that fall completely flat, which means a lot of our content is finding a home and the players are also willing to try out innovative titles. Whilst the pick up for games that are very ‘out there’ is varied, if you find a winner it quite quickly gains market share.
Branded offerings have a growing presence there, we have some fantastic deals lined up to deliver our Branded concepts, which we’re on the cusp of having signed for the market. And we’re seeing newer concepts like crash games and arcade style mine games already resonating with the Romanian player base.
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
One important feature of Romanian culture is its collectivism. As such, the group is highly important and protection and loyalty towards the group are greatly appreciated. This trait is mirrored in the business world; strong bonds between different members of a group will play an important role and, consequently, feelings will often go beyond rationality. Like any other business, gambling is not very far from being a victim of this custom. Players will often choose certain games, operators or casino brands based on the preferences of the group they are a part of, without even comparing features, benefits, etc.
With a vast history of wars and various occupations of the country, there are also some important figures that are strongly embedded in our culture, like Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler), Stefan cel Mare (Stefan the Great) and more recently Nicolae Ceausescu (the most famous communist leader of the country). Some operators have had great success by exploiting historical characters, as we can see with Vlad Casino. This can be a difficult thing for operators from outside of the market to understand and leverage, handing a slight edge to those from Romania.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
Every country has its own DNA and unique player preferences, and Romania is no different. Localisation to PressEnter Group is all about delivering the products and experiences that our players want and that sit perfectly within the country’s culture, language, etc. This covers everything from the games and payment methods available to customer support agents being fluent in Romanian and being available in the local time zone.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
Unlike in other Eastern European markets where classic slots continue to dominate operator game lobbies, players in Romania tend to favour modern video slots and newer game formats. The average age of the casino demographic plus their willingness to embrace innovation means suppliers have far more freedom to be creative with the titles they’re developing and can use elements from video games and social media in their products. The success of the “increasing curve” format used in Aviator is testament to this fact, with the game frequently seeing 300-350 bets per round during peak periods at many of our casino partners. In terms of localisation, we offer the game rules and our “how to play” video in Romanian, but the straightforward nature of Aviator itself makes it easily accessible to all players in the country.
How will the market develop over the next 12 months?
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network
The beauty of a market like Romania is that we know it’s going to grow, but it’s difficult to predict how, or in what manner. One thing’s for sure, we’ll be seeing some new faces from both the operator and supplier sides who disrupt things, gaining market share quickly. 1X2 Network has started well but we’ll be looking to grow that presence quickly as we continue to build on what we have learnt.
As we see across other European markets we’ll see the same popular mechanics grow, and their associated gaming concepts expand. What will be interesting is seeing how they clash with themes and mechanics already popular over there.
Bonuses present a particularly interesting area, operators who can capitalise on its popularity and work within the regulations have a lot of opportunity.
Andrei Beu, Commercial Director at Gamingtec
Market changes have evolved to include technological advancements. With the rise of cryptocurrencies and their popularity in the online casino space over the past 12 months, many forecast another year of new trends that will redefine and transform complete areas of the industry worldwide, and this includes in the Romanian market.
Cryptocurrencies will keep making their mark, with more and more online gambling brands accepting crypto this year. Many people enjoy and prefer to deposit, withdraw and play with Bitcoin and other digital currencies because of the security and anonymity they provide. Given the new taxation proposed in Romania, it is very likely we’ll see the appetite for crypto rise even higher.
There has also been an increase in F2P (free-to-play) game products worldwide. This shows that people are willing to spend on entertainment, even if something that is free is not free at all. Both online sports and casino operators are hard at work leveraging this data to their advantage because these F2P players are potential paying customers.
Players are showing a preference for online casinos that deliver a realistic live casino experience from their homes. For many, live dealer is what has allowed them to transition from land-based to online play. Land-based casinos are feeling the burn from their online brands and are facing a sizeable decline with the recent popularity of online gambling sites – this is a trend I expect to continue.
Iulian Bontea, Country Manager at PressEnter Group
I believe that momentum will continue to build in Romania and the market will keep growing at pace. New brands will undoubtedly enter, and the competition will increase, but competition breeds innovation and operators like PressEnter Group that can deliver a best-in-class player experience will be able to claim the lion’s share of the market. That is exactly what we plan to do in Romania and remain committed to the market for the long term.
David Natroshvili, Managing Partner at Spribe
It will continue to grow as the regulator grants more Romanian licenses, which will in turn lead to further innovation as suppliers and operators seek to offer games that meet players’ expectations as to what constitutes a fun and thrilling entertainment experience. Given the success of Aviator and other Turbo Games in the country, this could be a key focus area and we may see Romania distinguish itself from neighbouring regulated markets by moving away from the traditional slot-dominated casino model in favour of something a bit more varied
Rory Kimber, Account Management and Marketing Director at 1X2 Network.
Just that 1X2 Network is raring to go with our Romanian expansion, and excited to make our mark.
Ludo, the only AI-powered creativity platform for game developers, is now mobile-friendly, making its revolutionary platform more accessible to developers than ever before. Widely adopted for its innovative game ideation and research features, Ludo can now be used by creators ‘on the go’. Ludo gives developers everything needed to research and ideate their next game on their chosen mobile device, including its popular, must-have tools: Game Ideator, Image Generator, Top Charts, Daily Trends, as well as its new Top Charts Blender tool.
A must-have platform for developers to have in their kit, Ludo is both useful and intuitive. The ideation stage is crucial for game developers, with pressure to come up with the next hit game. Ludo enables developers to regularly use its trend feature to identify popular themes and topics that resonate throughout their target audiences. Since the website became available on mobile, developers have been able to access these features from anywhere to get a headstart on their ideation process. The platform includes an incredible amount of data and a wide array of tools to use whilst on the move, which means a developer’s idea for a game never needs to pass them by.
Ludo is constantly evolving, with new state-of-the-art features being added regularly. Its unique tools also include the Game Ideator, which allows users to base their searches on their favourite games and build inspiration for their next project. The Game Elements feature can reduce game design time by 50% by generating an array of game elements in minutes, such as NPCs (non-player character) and gaming items. Ludo also contains research tools such as Daily Trends and Top Charts, which provide data on the latest trending games and gaming topics from a multitude of storefronts. A brand new feature, the Top Charts Blender, lets users combine aspects of their favourite ideas with the Game Ideator to make entirely new game concepts. This is an incredibly exciting addition that will help developers to produce games that are fresh and distinctive, but also connect with gamers by drawing inspiration from previously successful titles.
Tom Pigott, CEO of Jet Play, the founder and CEO of Ludo, said: “The gaming industry is incredibly fast-moving, and time is very much of the essence for studios during the game ideation process. It is crucial for developers and studios to have quick and easy access to data, insights and creativity tools, to speed up this process while also giving the most recent insights. Ludo is the only platform that offers a range of inspiration and research tools for game developers.
“Since launching our new mobile-friendly website, we have seen an uptick of 80% in new signups from mobile devices. We continue to believe in the ability state-of-the-art AI has in empowering and supporting game developers. In launching this new mobile version of the platform, Ludo continues to save developers time and make the game creation process more efficient than ever before.”
Carl Degiorgio, COO at PressEnter Group, says that customer service is a powerful differentiator that most operators are not currently taking advantage of
Online casino operators such as PressEnter Group go to great lengths to ensure their brand delivers more value than those of their rivals. To do this, many focus on areas such as marketing, bonusing and the slots and games stocked in their lobbies.
But one of the most powerful ways to differentiate is also one of the most underestimated, and that is customer support.
Customer support is one of the most vital departments when it comes to the success of any company but especially an online casino. In an industry where creating a unique yet sustainable competitive advantage is challenging, this can be a key differentiator.
Customer service is so important because it is often the first point of contact for customers. It is where they go when they are considering signing up for the first time but have a question, need assistance during their time at the casino or if they have had a bad experience and are going to close their account.
This makes it a fundamental part of the overall player experience, and if run correctly can be used to convert more players, boost retention and drive cross-sell.
A blueprint for top-level customer support:
At PressEnter Group, we believe that good customer support comes down to providing the right information at the right time, but gold standard customer support requires going a step further.
At a minimum, players expect to be able to speak with agents at all times so this means offering 24/7 customer support across all channels – live chat, email, telephone, etc. Agents must be highly trained, and not only meet but exceed customer expectations always.
The philosophy of doing whatever it takes to ensure the player is happy and to make them feel valued needs to be embedded in the company culture and be applied to all departments and not just customer support.
Delivering the highest level of customer support is not without its challenges:
Just like any department within an online casino operator, customer support has many challenges to face and overcome. The main hurdle is hiring the right people for the job – customer service can be testing at times and to be a good agent requires talent and training.
For global operators, it is important to hire agents that speak different languages – as we all know, localisation is key to the success of an online casino. But it is just as important to train agents and to continue to help them develop and grow.
The only way to ensure agents meet the standards set by the company is to employ the best talent in the industry, and again that can be easier said than done. But by providing the right working environment, training and incentives, it can be done.
This is vital for operators that are active in multiple markets, as they have additional complexities to contend with. The greatest of these is the need to hire talent that can speak the local language and ensure that agents are available at all times despite the different time zones.
This is why PressEnter Group has hired a scheduling coordinator who is responsible for managing customer service agent rotas based on the expected traffic at different times of the day, on different days and in each of the jurisdictions where we are active.
While having a talented and trained team of agents is key to customer support, so too is the technology used to deliver the service to players. In most cases, operators will use a third party for this, and, in our experience, it is vital to undertake due diligence prior to entering an agreement.
Operators need to ensure their chosen partner is robust and reliable and that they can scale in line with their own growth plans.
The latest technologies need to be combined with seamless processes and training. Beyond covering the basics, training should be wide in scope and granular in execution if support agents are to achieve the highest possible standards of service and reflect the brand’s image and core values.
Having the right processes in place ensures there is organisation within the department. This is especially important when scaling rapidly as PressEnter Group has – without clearly defined processes, there is a risk of generating chaos which in turn will negatively impact customer support.
PressEnter Group puts such importance on processes, organisation and training that we have a dedicated training coordinator as well as a QA specialist.
Customer service and responsible gambling:
Customer support is not only vital to acquisition, retention and delivering a superior player experience, it is also a powerful responsible gambling tool.
While licensed operators such as PressEnter Group offer the tools and information that players need to stay in control of their play, nothing beats the direct line of communication that customer support agents have with our customers.
They are able to observe playing patterns, monitor communications and make interventions as and when required. And they can do this with a personal touch.
The basics of customer support are the same for all operators, so to use this aspect of online casino to stand out they need to dare to do things a bit differently. You might not get it right the first time around, but over time it will lead to stand-out customer service.
At PressEnter Group, we have learned to master the basics and now put our own unique twist on customer support. This sets us aside from our rivals and is reflected in our customer satisfaction scores, which are way above the industry average.
There is minimal differentiation when it comes to games and payment methods being offered by operators, yet the customer service delivered by staff members simply cannot be replicated by other brands and this must be capitalised on.
Those that do will not only elevate the customer experience, but they will take player acquisition, retention and loyalty to the next level.
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