The internet betting industry has been evolving for a number of years now and there are many changes that have come to the business and it’s a sure bet there will be many more as it matures. The content arrangements that certain companies have made have created a comprehensive group of products that gives consumers a great deal of choice that satisfies every gambler’s needs.

One online gambling operator of premium slots and table games Habanero has agreed to a deal with Oriental Game, considered the fastest-growing live dealer platform available in the Asian betting market.

Habanero has created many quality slots and table games for both the online and terrestrial gambling industries. The versatile location offers multi-language, multi currency HTML5 gaming which are perfect for any target market.  Habanero has its own platform and is made available at a competitive rate. Games are tailored to a wide variety of devices, allowing operators in multiple jurisdictions to maximise income.

Licenced by PAGCOR, Oriental Game has become one of the largest live dealer suppliers in Asia.  Operation Director at Oriental Game, David Chua commented, “Habanero boasts some of the best games in the industry and we are really excited to have formed a partnership with them.” Chua added, “They are eager to expand their name throughout Asia and the deal looks like a match made in heaven as we too push to become the number one supplier in the market.”

Chief Commercial Officer at Habanero, Daniel Long, also commented, “Asia is an important market for us and this partnership with Oriental Game marks a big step in our growth in the region.” Long continued, “Oriental Game has quickly become one of the standout names in Asia and continues to grow month on month. We look forward to growing with them as we push ahead.”

The recent changes in the USA regarding betting on sports has developed some growing pains as the public and operators get up to speed offering and accessing products. During negotiations for the changes some sports organizations saw the potential to earn revenue from sports betting which has now become legal in the States.

According to a report commissioned by the American Gaming Association (AGA) the National Football League could gain as much as $2.3bn (£1.78bn/€1.98bn) per year from regulated sports betting activity. The study was conducted by Nielsen Sports and reviews the revenue streams that legal sports betting could generate for the football league. The funds from the spend betting operators apply to adverts, data and sponsorship including revenue generated from the increased consumption of the football league’s media and buying of other products.

The NFL’s total annual revenue from media rights, sponsorships, merchandise and ticket sales could increase by 13.4%, producing $1.75bn in new revenue. An additional $573m in revenue could be realized by the wagering operators and data providers. Gaming operators could spend $451m on advertising, directly increasing the league’s rights fees by approximately same amount.

Sara Slane, Senior vice-president of public affairs for the AGA, commented, “Legal, regulated sports betting will create huge new revenue opportunities for sports leagues – and the NFL could be the biggest winner of all,” Slane, continued, “Once legal sports betting expands across the country, the NFL could take in more than $2bn a year, reinforcing how much sports leagues stand to gain from increased viewership and private partnerships with sports betting operators.”

The other major sports leagues such as the National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Baseball (MLB) and National Hockey League (NHL) were concerned about the integrity in the sports industry but have since realized the changes to the law will benefit them in many ways. Since the changes the NFL has requested that a federal law be put in place to create a “core regulatory framework” for legal sports betting in the USA.

The American Gaming Association and organizers Reed Exhibitions are proud to announce the Global Gaming Expo 2018 (G2E) in Las Vegas USA. Considered the North American continent’s top international gaming trade show and educational event. This October 8th to the 11th Las Vegas will reveal the Innovation Lab line up featuring the latest cutting edge innovative technology affecting the future of the gaming industry. Artificial intelligence will place prominently at the event.

Allie Barth, Vice President of industry relations for the American Gaming Association spoke about the event, “The first two years of the Innovation Lab have been met with positive feedback as a space for innovative concepts for the gaming industry to come to light, and we’re excited to bring it back for G2E 2018,” Barth continued, “This year’s Innovation Lab will feature a wide array of perspectives on how the industry can advance into the future both through gaming and broader resort management.”

The multi-faceted event has many features worth exploring one of which is Data Science which is now a major sector of technology investment driven by the impact it can have. A easy access data science platform helps data scientists be more productive while enabling more contributors. All of Tuesday,  October 9th at the G2E Big Data & Analytics will be the subject for exploration.

Part of that day also includes Dr. James McCaffrey, senior research software engineer,from Microsoft who will explain what deep neural networks are and how they work in the simplest terms. Participants will leave with a solid understanding of the capabilities of deep neural networks and insights regarding cutting edge efforts applied to sports betting to identify new business opportunities and communicate with subject matter experts.

This event goes beyond most similar conferences and expositions with in depth educational and innovative revelations. Not to be missed the Global Gaming Expo is telling the industry how it will look in the future that gaming will grow and that’s a sure bet.

The history of online wagering is not very long but as with most things digital it has been downloaded reloaded and now it has exploded. The United Kingdom has been a pioneer in the internet betting industry and it has always strived to be ahead of the curve.

The industry operators have benefited from easy going rules and the attitude, if it isn’t broken don’t fix it. The U. K. Gambling Commission however foresees the cracks in the online betting regulatory foundation they have created.

The UK Gambling Commission has launched a research website focused on improving age and identity verification procedures for casinos. Consumers, gambling operators, and members of the public are being invited to voice their opinion on proposed changes aimed at further protecting children and keeping gambling fair and safe states the press release.

Restating the survey goal UKGC Programme Director Brad Enright commented, “Our aim is to protect children, reduce gambling-related harm and keep gambling fair and crime-free. We would encourage anyone with an interest in gambling matters to read our consultation and ensure they have their say on these proposals.”

The survey began September 5 and will end on November 27 2018 and the survey also states, “We are also keen to hear from identity verification solution providers, in particular where they can provide details of technological and information capabilities.”

The regulatory body is seeking information to formulate changes to the ‘license conditions code of conduct’ which will require gambling enterprises to verify the age and identify of customers before the punting takes place or funds are deposited. The other proposed changes include verifying the age of customers before access is granted to play-for-free versions of gambling games. The name, address, birthdate,  email of the player before wagering is allowed and of course consumer the usual payment status requirements before betting takes place.

Slovakia has recently announced it will introduce a new draft legislation to the European Commission with a focus to introduce major changes in the way the country regulates the gambling industry. Liberalising the Slovakian gambling market is the aim of the new legislation making it possible for offshore gambling firms to enter the market in the jurisdiction. The Slovak Ministry of Finance submitted the draft to the European Commission in July of 2018 has a delay period of three months while the draft is reviewed.

The legislation will let the monopoly provider Tipos to maintain its hold in sectors of the industry such as online lottery and bingo. Offshore operators will be able to offer online casino games with a regulated authorised license. The regulators have been using models that other jurisdictions have found to be successful with the authorities saying they have reviewed, “the technological progress and the findings of regulatory authorities in other European countries into account more fully.”

A new authority The Regulatory Office of Gambling is expected to be created to control the industry and issue the appropriate licenses to international operators of gambling services. Commenting on the recent changes The chief of the Association of Betting Companies of the Slovak Republic Peter Papanek said, “The state began blocking illegal companies. But that was only the first step. Now comes the second, clear rules for everyone – anyone who wants to offer online casino games will be able to do so if they meet the prescribed conditions.” Papanek continued, “Experience from abroad shows that, if the state wants to intervene against tax evasion and illegal gambling, it must go through the liberalisation of the market and the setting of fair conditions, inter alia, to motivate operators to operate legally.”

The Remote Gaming Association is critical of the draft with Pierre Tournier, RGA’s director of government relations saying, “We argue that this provision is discriminatory against European companies, is not based on sound public-policy objectives, and is effectively aimed to protect local sports betting licensees from competition,”

The internet can be a place to find the very latest gambling products that claim to be revolutionary and new but in some cases the offerings are really old ideas regenerated to appear disruptive.

The new online gambling site VSODDS.BET which is licenced in Curaçao is focused on changing the way punters look at online wagering. The intent is to provide only pre-match, fixed odds to consumers in established markets around the globe.

Founder Dalius Dabashinskas said that it will be focusing on regulated markets in the Commonwealth of Independent States and Europe.

Mr. Dabashinskas described what their intent will include,  “VSODDS.BET is all about offering players the best odds in the market. Our team of highly-skilled traders combine the dark art of bookmaking and state-of-the-art data feeds to crunch the numbers and offer our players odds that are more competitive than our rivals.

“When it comes to having confidence in our brand and proposition, we believe that players are becoming more and more savvy, and that bonuses with hidden terms and conditions offer little value compared to properly calculated odds.

“In some ways it is about going back to basics, but with a platform and brand that is modern, sleek and easy to use. The online sportsbook market is fiercely competitive, but we believe 100% that we have what it takes to stand out from the crowd and deliver a superior player experience.”

Dabashinskas added, “Our USP is very much our market-leading odds, so we have built a highly-skilled trading team to ensure we always offer the best value while also managing risk from our side. We have also launched with a simple and easy to use design and website, which we will fine-tune over the coming months based on player feedback.

“In this regard, we are taking a slow and steady approach to our launch and roll out while we tweak our product and proposition to meet the demands of our players.”

In the online gambling industry competition among operators is like a price war at the gas pumps the savvy consumer can reap benefits. In the United Kingdom the major gambling services and products providers are fiercely competitive especially when it comes to horse racing. Sky Bet for example became the latest and largest online bookie to offer a partial ‘minimum bet’ guarantee recently to its loyal customers. Sky Bet said it will now lay any horse to lose at least £500 in a Class One or Class Two race from 10 AM on the morning of the race.

Sky Bet’s guarantee is similar to offers introduced by Betfair’s Sportsbook, BetVictor and William Hill’s online offerings in recent weeks. Players, including those whose racing bets have been restricted in the past are now able to place win single bets to win up to £500, or a maximum of £500 at even money, or £50 at 10-1.

The offer does have a few catches of course as the guarantee only covers the win section of each-way bets and does not extend to multiples. It is limited to a small number of contests on most days. The banning of winning players by operators also has some controversy attached.

An activist for punters’ rights who operates the website Justice For Punters, Brian Chappell said that while he welcomed Sky Bet’s move, it was up to the Gambling Commission, which regulates the gambling industry, to ensure that all online operators adopted similar rules for bets on all racing and sporting events.”

“Bookies are slowly waking up to the unfairness and bad publicity that surrounds banning every savvy punter,” Chappell added. “Crucially, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and the Gambling Commission haven’t, thus punters will have to wait a long time for truly fair trading, despite a few bookies making limited progress.”

The novice online gambling participant has a lot to learn about the rules of this form of entertainment before falling for one of the oldest lures in the gambling business, Bait and switch or the shell game does spoil the real fun of winning when the fine print on the ‘requirements’ is read.

Not to discourage venturing into the online casino jungle for some breathtaking excitement on a winning slot there can be complications at payout time.  One casino and bonus review website describes the situation. A wagering requirement is a multiplier that indicates the number of times you have to play a bonus before you are able to withdraw any winnings. Wagering requirements can vary dramatically among the many different online casinos. For example, it is not uncommon to see very high wagering requirements set as high as 25 times.

To begin playing at an online casino a player must look for the reality check before registering for the advertised action. Precautions can result in real money being won not the frustration of losing before you can cash out. The important part of playing responsibly is to do a little research and read all of the fine print for the play through requirement. These bonus requirements are detrimental to the average player who is being tricked into thinking a bonus doesn’t have a catch such as having to play 25 times the bonus in order to cash out.

The old saying you don’t get something for nothing rings true in the online casino world but there are those that don’t practice the roll over method of getting hold your funds but looking for them takes some time. When forced to play the money multiple times the funds will be quickly gone even if the player receives an average payout.

Winning online gamblers make informed choices please don’t be disappointed or lured by empty promises of quick riches.

One of the fastest growing software providers of desktop and mobile digital casino games for online gaming Pragmatic Play has announced it will be providing its platform for the Portuguese market in a recently signed agreement with Casino Portugal.

Founded in 2015 Pragmatic Play has introduced a gaming portfolio of over 100 games. Utilising the latest HTML5 technology, its content is readily available on all platforms including games such as Hot Safari, Mighty Kong, Bee Land, Grave Grabbers, Sugar Rush, Black Diamond, Magic Crystals, and others.

Speaking about the arrangement Melissa Summerfield, Chief Commercial Officer at Pragmatic Play, said,  “We are delighted to have agreed this deal with Casino Portugal, one of the market’s most respected operators.

“This represents the first time video slots fans will have access to our products in the Portuguese market, and we are looking forward to making the most of the opportunities this agreement presents.”

The deal comes just after Pragmatic Play has expanded into regulated markets in Europe with the announcement of a deal with Kindred in Italy. The developer also  recently entered into the live casino sector through its acquisition of Extreme Live Gaming from Novomatic Group with an agreement that has expanded its product portfolio which now includes video slots, scratch cards and online bingo.

Co-CEO of Casino Portugal, Dr Antonio Laranjo also commented on the deal saying, “It is very exciting for us to be hosting Pragmatic Play’s industry-leading content, and for Casino Portugal to be Pragmatic Play’s first Portuguese partner.

“This is another positive move for us as we expand our offering, and progress further with our goal of giving our players access to some of the most innovative and appealing games around.”

Pragmatic Play’s Games Library is supported in 26 languages and all major currencies. The software is known for its unique qualities and top flight award winning innovation.

An international gambling company like Novomatic founded by the billionaire entrepreneur Johann Graf back in 1980 has set strategy standards for betting enterprises looking for a model for success for a number of years. The company has offices in 43 countries and also operates a number of casinos in locations such as Berlin Germany and Santiago, Chile. The Novomatic Group is made up of three holding companies. The firm has been utilizing acquisitions to facilitate its tremendous growth. As an example in June of 2016, Novomatic bought the UK gambling company Talarius from Australian company Tatts Group.

From its headquarters in Austria Novomatic has recently gained regulatory approval for the purchase of approximately 52% of the Australian gaming company Ainsworth Game Technology Limited (AGT). The purchase was carried out with the approval from authorities, including the Nevada Gaming Commission in Las Vegas, Nevada USA.  Novomatic is now one of the few European Union located firms to have passed strict compliance checks from the international authorities. For this reason, a variety of independent licensing boards underwent long probity investigations into the acquisition deal.
Novomatic Chief Executive Officer Harald Neumann commented, “This pleasing result confirms our strategy of consolidating our market leadership in existing markets and of opening up new markets and technologies through acquisitions… The focus is on optimising internal processes and structures across borders.”

Neumann said this about the deal, “Our shares in Ainsworth are strategically very important for Novomatic. After all, the joint plan is to increase market share in the US to about 10% over the next five years. In the long-term, Novomatic may become the world market leader in the area of gaming.”

It is clear that Novomatic Group has its sights set on growth through strategic purchasing and the global approach to regulatory compliance. In a trading update, Novomatic said it is “noteworthy” that its earnings before tax, “despite investment-intensive regulatory challenges in Germany and Italy”, had increased by 23% to €148.4m.