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UK igaming pay up 20% despite Brexit uncertainty, finds sector’s definitive salary survey
The UK igaming market saw average salary growth of 20% in the year to June 2019 despite ongoing uncertainty over Brexit, according to the sector’s largest salary survey compiled by Pentasia Recruitment.
Pentasia’s Andrew Cook said this reflected the underlying health of the sector “despite the continuing uncertainty over the UK’s departure from the European Union”. Decentralisation away from London also became clearly evident in the period, he added, with strongly growing demand for talented iGaming professionals in the Midlands and northern cities such as Manchester and Leeds.
In North America, the average salary dipped 2% to £82,895, reflective of a significant increase in junior (mainly operational) roles this past year. Pentasia’s Marwa Mitchell said that while demand for sports betting and digital talent had increased exponentially post-PASPA, the difficulty of securing US visas “for even those with exceptional industry talent” meant operators were struggling to scale up operations to keep pace with growth.
The Gibraltar average also grew 13% from £69,427 to £83,441, indicative of a decline in overall jobs in the jurisdiction as licensees prepare for potentially losing single market access when the UK leaves the EU, with the remaining roles in the British overseas territory of a more senior level.
A short supply of top talent in the Asia Pacific region also pushed up the average salary there by 20%.
Product and commercial roles saw the most significant uplift, up 21.8% and 25.6% respectively, which Pentasia managing director Alastair Cleland said “reflects the high level of investment in new technology, emerging markets and business units”.
Compliance salaries also saw an above-average increase of 9.7%, indicative of the increasing value of this expertise in a time of rising regulatory pressure in core markets such as the UK and the emergence of more locally licensed markets.
Across the sector, igaming pay grew by 8.5% in the period. Cleland said: “This is an indicator of both increased investment in igaming professionals worldwide and heightened competition for a limited talent pool.”
The data for the survey was based on placements within Pentasia’s global network in the period July 2018-June 2019.
The iGB-Pentasia salary survey provides the most comprehensive insight into recruitment trends in the online gambling sector, with three years of benchmarking data.
Part 1, an overview of the headline trends in the period by Pentasia MD Alastair Cleland, and Part 2, the regional analysis, are now available to read for free at iGB, with the breakdown of salary trends by department and role to be published later this week.
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SIS and Premier Greyhound Racing reveal improved greyhound race time schedule
Sports Information Services (SIS), the leading multi-content supplier of 24/7 live betting services, and Premier Greyhound Racing (PGR), the media rights company supplier of greyhound racing to the betting industry and direct to viewers, have collaborated to offer a revised race time schedule starting from 20 May.
Designed to protect the long-term future of UK greyhound racing, the new schedule will see morning fixtures start slightly later – moving from 10.47 to 11.01 and 10.54 to 11.09. Additionally, there will also be a slightly later start time for some evening fixtures aimed at a retail audience, with the first evening fixture now starting at 18.08.
Commenting on the improved schedule, Terry Mahoney, Head of Business Development at ARC, said: “The new race times will help make it easier for customers to navigate busy racing schedules as well as improving operations trackside. We will continue to listen, monitor, and adapt schedules where and when needed as we move forward to deliver the best service possible for betting operators as well as punters.”
Paul Witten, Managing Director at SIS, added: “We are passionate about delivering a greyhound racing service that benefits all of the sport’s stakeholders. Together with Premier Greyhound Raxing, we have introduced a revised racing schedule that benefits operators and their customers.
“Our approach to greyhound racing is grounded in sustainability and flexibility. This collaboration with fellow service providers allows everyone to enjoy all the high-quality action produced on a daily basis from tracks across the UK and Ireland.”
SIS has long-term agreements in place with bet365, William Hill, Paddy Power and Betfred to deliver its greyhound content across UK and Irish retail and digital channels. SIS also promotes this content across dozens of leading international operators, as well as through SISRacing.tv.
PGR offers greyhound action, cards, video replays, results, news and info on greyhounds.attheraces.com, and regular live broadcasts on Sky Sports Racing. Premier Greyhound Racing is a joint venture between Arena Racing (ARC) and Entain, the global sports betting, gaming and interactive entertainment group. Between them, the two companies own nine of the 20 licensed British greyhound tracks and ARC manage the media rights for five independent tracks.
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PRAGMATIC PLAY HITS THE SWEET SPOT WITH FRUITY TREATS
Pragmatic Play, a leading content supplier to the iGaming industry, has added Fruity Treats to its collection of clusters pays Slots.
Five or more fruit symbols must connect horizontally or vertically to award a win in this vibrant 7×7 title, which features a variation of the popular multiplier spots mechanic.
At the start of each spin, four marked spots of different colours take up random positions on the grid. If a win forms over a marked spot, a starting multiplier of 5x, 10x, 15x or 20x (depending on the spot colour) will be activated. Each time a winning combination lands on a marked spot after a tumble, the multiplier is applied to the win and then increases by its starting value.
Hitting at least three candy scatters on a spin awards entry to the bonus game with 10 free spins. During the feature, which can be retriggered with five additional free spins, activated multipliers from marked spots do not reset between free spins, potentially leading to massive wins.
Fruity Treats is the latest cluster pays Slot in Pragmatic Play’s multi-award-winning range, joining recent hit Sugar Rush 1000.
Irina Cornides, Chief Operating Officer at Pragmatic Play, said: “The roaming multiplier spots feature in Fruity Treats sets it apart from other successful cluster pays Slots in the Pragmatic Play portfolio, with marked spots staying sticky in the bonus game for even greater win potential.”
Pragmatic Play currently produces up to eight new Slot titles a month, while also delivering Live Casino and Bingo games as part of its multi-product portfolio, available through a single API.
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Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook returns for fourth year
Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook returns in June with registrations now open for a two-day content series featuring speakers from across the Kambi Group and insights covering the full breadth of the industry.
Taking place between 4-5 June, the Festival will be comprised of online sessions taking in topics ranging from UX optimisation and harnessing AI to maximising a summer of soccer featuring both UEFA Euro 2024 and the Copa América.
Erik Lögdberg, Managing Director of Kambi Sportsbook, will open the Festival with a session entitled ‘Exceptional, everywhere: meeting the increasingly high standards of an evolving market’, discussing how operators can develop their sportsbook to navigate changing consumer habits and fragmenting markets.
Kambi’s Head of Legal and Regulatory Compliance, Victoria Fernandes, will also be joined by Partner Success Manager Sabrina Andrade for a Portuguese language session delving into Brazil and how local operators can compete in the soon-to-be-regulated market.
Gerard Starkey, Kambi Group’s SVP of Marketing & Communications, said: “We are excited to once again be welcoming the industry to Kambi’s Festival of Sportsbook, and we look forward to sharing the sportsbook insights and knowledge the event has become known for. As ever, the agenda features a broad range of sessions hosted by experts from across the Kambi Group, providing plenty to interest those working in or with the sports betting industry today.”
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