Industry News
Is Microgaming About to Kick Off a Franchise Trend in Slots?
Online slots have served to expand movie and TV franchises for some time, with the popular iGaming titles often helping to bring more viewers to a certain entertainment release on the big or small screen. Microgaming has wide experience of boosting franchises after creating slots like Game of Thrones and Bridesmaids, but now it appears as though the Isle of Man-based developer is looking at boosting its library by extending one of its most popular games into a series. Could this be the beginning of a new trend in the industry?
Mega Moolah is Iconic
Mega Moolah is one of the most iconic and influential slots on the market and has paid out over $1 billion since its release over ten years ago. It put the progressive jackpot subgenre of slots on the map, and has been in the news numerous times because of the staggering wins it has awarded. Indeed, Mega Moolah has broken jackpot records on a number of occasions as it has tussled with NetEntâs Mega Fortune for the top spot. The Microgaming title currently holds the crown for the highest payout after one lucky player claimed âŹ18,915,872 in September 2018.
The prize money has reached such incredible amounts, due to the fact that all the Mega Moolah slot games are linked, and the money invested in them accumulates. Eventually, it is paid out to one winner randomly like a lottery. Each year, there are huge wins reported in the news. Despite some of these wins being numerically higher, the Guinness World Records recognizes British soldier Jonathan Heywoodâs ÂŁ13.2 million win in 2015, as the biggest jackpot won on any online slot game in internet history.
New Games are All About the Huge Wins
The first new title that expanded the Mega Moolah franchise was Atlantean Treasures: Mega Moolah, which was released more than a decade after its predecessor. The game features a completely different theme to the original, with this one being set underwater rather than on the plains of the Sahara. But the games are connected in that the progressive jackpot from the new game, is linked to the main jackpot prize of Mega Moolah. This means that there is the potential for the wins from either of the games to be even bigger than those that have already come before.
Because of the popularity of this new instalment, Microgaming has decided to bring out another game to extend the series. This is Absolootly Mad: Mega Moolah, which is also linked to the progressive jackpots on the Mega Moolah network. Just like Atlantean Treasures, this title has its own unique theme. It takes inspiration from Alice in Wonderland and features fantasy elements. The regular game can dish out wins of up to 2,343 times your stake, but there is the potential for much more if you hit the progressive jackpot.
Other developers may be forced to follow in Microgamingâs footsteps and extend their progressive slot franchises. Otherwise, they may not stand a chance of beating the industry powerhouse for the biggest jackpots. With NetEnt and Playtech in a fierce scrap with Microgaming to be the top iGaming developer, it would be reasonable to expect them to release sequels to their most popular games as well.
Industry News
Dutch Mental Health Care Calls for Total Ban on Online Gambling Advertising
The Dutch mental health service is calling for a total ban on online gambling advertisements in the Netherlands.
Although a ban on untargeted gambling advertisements and a ban on the use of role models has been in effect since 2023, a recent research by KRO-NCRVâs Pointer shows that (illegal) gambling companies and sports tipster platforms are still enticing young people via social media such as TikTok and Snapchat.
By using influencers and terms like âfree moneyâ, they try to attract a young audience and thus lower the threshold to start gambling. This concerns both legal online casinos and online casinos that do not have a license in the Netherlands. The Gaming Authority has started an investigation based on Pointerâs findings.
Pointerâs research shows that part of the gambling industry deliberately targets young people who are often susceptible to promises such as âfast moneyâ and the influence of role models. Ruth Peetoom, chair of the Dutch mental health service, compares this approach to that of the tobacco industry, where similar marketing strategies were used to get young people to smoke.
Despite the existing advertising ban, gambling companies continue to explore the boundaries of the law, according to Peetoom. The Dutch mental health and addiction care associations in the Netherlands therefore push for a total ban on online gambling advertising and stricter rules for the duty of care of gambling providers.
With the call for a total ban, the Dutch mental health care sector hopes to prevent further normalisation of gambling behaviour among young people and to protect them from the temptation and consequences of online gambling.
Compliance Updates
UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024
The Gambling Commission has published further data on the gambling industry in Great Britain.
This data, sourced from operators, reflects the period between March 2020 and September 2024, inclusive, and covers online and in-person gambling covering Licensed Betting Operators (LBOs) found on Britainâs high streets.
Comparison should not be made with the industry statistics dataset, as this dataset may include free bets and bonuses and does not include data from all operators.
This release compares Quarter 2 (Q2) of financial year 2024 to 2025, with Q2 of 2023 to 2024, looking at how the market has changed in comparative periods over a year.
The latest operator data shows:
- online total Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) in Q2 (July to September) was ÂŁ1.32 billion, an increase of 11 percent from Q2 the previous year. The overall number of total bets and/or spins increased 12 percent Year-on-Year (YoY), reaching a new peak for the third consecutive quarter of 25.2 billion, whilst the average monthly active accounts2 in the quarter increased 8 percent
- real event betting GGY increased by 6 percent YoY to ÂŁ453 million. The number of bets decreased 10 percent, while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 9 percent
- slots GGY increased 16 percent to ÂŁ680 million YoY. The number of spins increased 13 percent to 23.3 billion while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 16 percent to 4.4 million per month. Although this is a new peak for GGY in this dataset for the slots vertical, it should be noted that one operator has re-classified some of its products into the slot vertical this quarter, which has had an impact on the vertical data
- the number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour increased by 9 percent YoY to 10 million. The average session length remained at 17 minutes. Approximately 6.1 percent of all sessions lasted more than one hour compared to 6.6 percent in Q2 the previous year. The number of spins per session has fallen from 147 to 142 YOY, whilst the GGY per session has fallen from ÂŁ4.20 to ÂŁ4.13 in the equivalent timeframe
- LBO GGY decreased by 1 percent to ÂŁ533 million in Q2 2024 to 2025, compared to the same quarter last year, while the number of total bets and spins decreased by 0.1 percent to 3.1 billion.
Industry News
Petra Maria Poola Joins Xace as Group Commercial Director
Xace has announced that Petra Maria Poola has joined the company as Group Commercial Director.
Petra brings a wealth of experience from the iGaming industry having formerly held roles at several iGaming companies such as Yolo, Relax Gaming and SiGMA. She will lead the commercial growth of Xace and its group companies, including crypto and iGaming focused xda.io, helping to drive strategic initiatives across banking, fintech and iGaming solutions.
In her new role, she will mainly oversee the growth of the groupâs sales, marketing and account management functions, ensuring a cohesive strategy that supports Xaceâs ambitious expansion plans.
âI am incredibly excited to start this new chapter with Xace, and work alongside such a talented team and management. Transitioning into the fintech space, while still connected to iGaming, presents an exciting opportunity for growth and learning. Iâm looking forward to applying my expertise to help Xace and its group companies achieve new heights commercially, while gaining deeper insights into the fast-evolving world of fintech,â said Petra Maria Poola.
Reuben Abel, CEO of Xace, said: âPetraâs extensive background in the iGaming sector, combined with her commercial acumen, makes her a valuable addition to the Xace team. She will play a crucial role in expanding Xaceâs market presence and enhancing its suite of services tailored to the specific needs of the iGaming and fintech industries.â
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