Latest News
Breaking News: Therese Hillman resigns as NetEnt CEO
NetEnt CEO Therese Hillman has announced her departure from the online gaming supplier effective immediately.
In a LinkedIn post from 28 February, Therese Hillman wrote:
Today is my last day at NetEnt and and it is time to say goodbye, thank you and good luck to all colleagues, ex-colleagues, customers, competitors and partners that I have had the pleasure to meet and get to know during my years with NetEnt & Red Tiger.
I would lie if I would say that my 3 years as the CEO have been easy and fun. It has truly been a challenge from day one and a lot of tough decisions had to be made. We have had our highs and lows and I am very thankful for the hard work that was carried out with exciting game releases, new market entries, the Red Tiger acquisition and much more, and at the same time, going through savings programs and re-organizations.
Now, our group has been integrated to Evolution and is in the best of hands. I am excited to see how the business will continue to develop and I am also looking forward to see the product innovations that will be offered to operators and players around the world!
Special thanks to Henrik for great co-operation, Gavin for being the best co-CEO, Rob & Andy for the customer focus, Lara & Aditya for your huge efforts, Lasse for the Red Tiger acquisition and support, Andres R. & team for the grind, Lotta for everything and everyone else (you know who you are).
Latest News
Crypto Sportsbook, Sportsbet.io’s player wins huge $3.2m jackpot from $5 spin
A lucky Sportsbet.io player is celebrating the win of a lifetime after turning a single 5 USDT spin into a 3.2 million USDT jackpot on a popular slot game.
The huge winner was playing Midnight Marauder Dream Drop with perfect timing, with their spin triggering Relax Gaming’s Dream Drop Mega Jackpot of more than $3 million in the USDT stablecoin currency.
Alex Haig, Director at Sportsbet.io, said: “Another day, another multi-million dollar jackpot dropping on Sportsbet.io. We’re quickly gaining a reputation for jackpot wins, and this latest player is truly living the dream by turning $5 into $3.2 million. With one of the best collections of premium games to choose from, it won’t be long before more life-changing jackpots are won on Sportsbet.io.”
It isn’t the first time Sportsbet.io players have landed multi-million dollar paydays on the site.
Earlier this year one sports bettor landed $3 million on an ambitious, seven-way multibet.
And at the end of last year, another player won the largest slots jackpot in history, turning a single $50 spin into an incredible $42 million prize with Games Global’s WowPot!™ progressive jackpot.
Asia
Savvy Games Delegation Joins More Than 30,000 Fans for Tencent and Hero Esports’ Honor of Kings Grand Finals in Beijing
The inaugural King Pro League Grand Finals 2024, the biggest esports event in China, drew more than 30,000 fans to a sold-out Beijing Workers’ Stadium on Nov 16. A delegation from Savvy Games and the Esports World Cup Foundation also joined the iconic event hosted by Chinese tech giant Tencent and the largest esports company in Asia, Hero Esports (formerly known as VSPO).
HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, Vice Chairman of Savvy Games Group (Savvy); Brian Ward, CEO of Savvy; and Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation, attended the tournament where two top Chinese esports teams competed for the inaugural Holy Dragon Cup and a record prize pool.
A total of 70 million rmb ($9.8 million) was awarded to the top 12 teams who advanced through the rounds of the six-week-long tournament. The final showdown was between Chengdu All Gamers and Chongqing Wolves, where Chengdu All Gamers emerged victorious in a best-of-seven series and took home 22 million rmb ($3.1 million) in prize money.
King Pro League, the premier esports league for Tencent’s hit game Honor of Kings, is the biggest esports league in Asia. Honor of Kings is the world’s most popular mobile game with more than 100 million daily players. Hero Esports has been the organizer of KPL tournaments since the league was first launched in 2016.
This year marks the inaugural KPL Grand Finals, which replaces the Honor of Kings International Championship for Chinese Honor of Kings competitors and features the top teams from across China, one of the biggest esports markets in the world with the most players. Events were held at arenas in Chengdu, Hangzhou and Changsha, with the Grand Finals event being held in Beijing.
The popularity of esports is growing rapidly around the world, encouraged by government support in a number of countries and new products and technology. According to a Frost & Sullivan Report, the market size of the esports gaming industry has experienced a significant increase at a CAGR of 15.2% from US$29.8 billion in 2017 to US$52.6 billion in 2021, and is expected to increase further at a CAGR of 12.1% from US$57.9 billion in 2022 to US$102.4 billion in 2027.
The report also shows that the number of gamers globally has experienced a significant increase at a CAGR of 7.1% from 2.3 billion in 2017 to 3.1 billion in 2021, and is expected to further increase at a CAGR of 5.5% from 3.3 billion in 2022 to 4.3 billion in 2027.
Danny Tang, CEO and Co-Founder of Hero Esports, commented: “Hero Esports is proud to have been a part of the first King Pro League Grand Finals, which is an example of the high calibre esports tournaments that fans and players everywhere deserve. The strong enthusiasm we’ve seen for this event in its first year is a testament to the significant growth of interest in this sport and the support of our high-profile sponsors. The atmosphere in the arena was electric and we congratulate the Chengdu All Gamers in winning the inaugural Holy Dragon Cup.”
Hero Esports, formerly known as VSPO, is a leading player in the global esports industry, collaborating with major game developers and global brands and organizing tournaments for players and fans across the world. It is the biggest esports tournament operator in Asia, having hosted 86 tournaments in the region in 2023, of which 62 were in China, compared with a total of 77 tournaments in 2020, of which three were overseas. The company recently announced the Esports Asian Champions League (ACL), Asia’s new premier international esports tournament featuring multiple titles.
Sponsors of the King Pro League Grand Finals 2024 include Meituan, Snapdragon and SAIC Volkswagen and iQOO.
Industry Awards
Casino Guru Awards introduces “iGaming Changemaker of the Year” category
- The Fairest Bonus Policy
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- The Most Impactful Social Responsibility Initiative
- The Best Implementation of Responsible Gambling Tools
- The Most Transparent Casino
- The Most Effective Handling of Complaints
- The Most Ethical Approach to Marketing
- Players’ Choice
- iGaming Changemaker of the Year
- Voice of the People
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