Industry Awards

iGB Digital Awards celebrate “best in class” digital partnerships

Published

3 months ago

February 12, 2024

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Clarion Gaming hosted the inaugural iGB Digital Awards on the last day of ICE (8th February), with a quartet of business partners celebrated for the innovation, strategic vision and “best in class” marketing practice they demonstrated in 2023.

Winners from Play’n Go, GR8 Tech, EveryMatrix, and Kambi were each presented with a trophy and bottle of champagne by digital growth director Sophie Webster during a lunchtime ceremony at the iGB Digital Lounge. The Awards highlighted the diversity of campaigns run by Clarion Gaming over the past 12 months.

The iGB Digital Awards are set to become an annual tradition at ICE, acknowledging the ongoing work that marketing and PR teams undertake to deliver the best results for their organisations.

Sophie Webster, iGB Digital Growth Director, said: “As the leading premium growth partner to the Gaming industry, iGB wants to recognise the clients that are delivering cutting edge marketing strategies through their iGB partnership.”

“A huge thank you to all our digital clients for your partnership and collaboration throughout 2023. Your dedication to excellence fuels our mutual success, and we’re honoured to be part of your journey. Here’s to another year of innovation, growth, and shared achievements!”

Matthew Hutchings, Global Head of Campaign Marketing added: “The iGB Digital Awards are a celebration of the very best innovation, creativity and talent we see across our client marketing campaign partnerships. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners – you and your teams’ dynamism and originality have been a joy to work with and we’re excited to see what you do in 2024 and beyond.”

Robin Harrison-Millan, iGB Global Content Director B2B, stated: “Over the past year Clarion Gaming Digital has built up its capabilities to offer an enhanced range of marketing services products, with content delivery led by our global head of commercial content Kat Holmes. To make this work, we need buy-in from our partners, and these awards recognise those that have bought into our vision. Congratulations to all our winners.”

The Best in Class award was presented to the marketing and PR team from PLAY’N GO, in recognition of their advanced approach to marketing services, and the team’s energy, effort and diligence in building compelling and informative stories.

Andrew Pink, head of brand & communication, at Play’n GO noted: “At Play’no GO we try and infuse quality into everything we do, so it’s a really fantastic honour to receive this award: it’s really a reflection on the partnership our marketing and communications teams at Play’n GO enjoy with IGB and Clarion.”

The Rising Star award was presented to Maria Meshkova, PR and Content Manager at GR8 Tech, in recognition of her strong work ethic, high standard of output, and the skill shown throughout 2023’s content partnership. Maria Meshkova, confirmed: “IGB provides an invaluable platform for us to develop our brand.”

The Pushes the Boundaries award was presented to the team at EveryMatrix in recognition of their openness to new ideas that excite and delight audiences and their integrated approach to marketing, while delivering insight that is critical to operator success. Marie-Jeanne Baciu, online marketing manager at EveryMatrix explained: “The campaign was something new, something we’ve never tried before, and we went all in. Everyone on the team was very supportive, collaborating and sharing ideas. So it was like a partnership, and we did feel that we were heard and our ideas were implemented.”

The Business Vision award was presented to Kambi in recognition of the fact that its marketing team had the clearest view of business vision and strategy, allowing for both companies to make the most of a highly effective PR partnership. Gerard Starkey, SVP marketing and communications at Kambi stated: “We are really excited to win the award. Our partnership with IGB has enabled us to tell our story through different marketing tactics.”

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Baltics

HIPTHER Announces the BALTIC & Scandinavian Gaming Awards 2024 Shortlists

Published

1 day ago

April 30, 2024

George Miller

HIPTHER Announces the BALTIC & Scandinavian Gaming Awards 2024 Shortlists

Reading Time: 2 minutes

HIPTHER, the leading event organizer for Gaming and Technology industries in Europe, is excited to announce the Shortlists for the Baltic & Scandinavian Gaming Awards (BSG Awards), that will honour iGaming industry excellence in the Baltics and Nordics regions for 2024.

Hosted under HIPTHER’s Pioneering GameTech Event in the Baltics, the MARE BALTICUM Gaming & TECH Summit, the BSG Awards recognize and celebrate the achievements of the very best of the iGaming industry, as voted by their peers.

The Final Vote will be cast at the MARE BALTICUM Gaming & TECH Summit by the participants of the conference, and the Winners will be crowned at the BSG Awards 2024 Ceremony that will take place during the event on 4 June 2024.

HIPTHER is thankful to all the esteemed industry professionals who voted online and decided the Shortlists across a series of streamlined Categories covering iGaming Operators, B2B Providers, and Connected Services such us Testing Laboratories and Payment Service Providers.

View the Baltic & Scandinavian Gaming Awards Shortlists

Baltic & Scandinavian Gaming Awards – BSG Awards 2024 Categories

Baltics: Operators Categories:

Best Online Casino in the Baltics
Best Sports Betting Operator in the Baltics

Baltics: B2B Categories:

B2B Providers (Sports): Best eSports Service Provider in the Baltics
Best Fantasy Sports / Virtual Sports Provider in the Baltics
Rising Star in Baltic Fantasy Sports / Virtual Sports
Rising Star in Baltic Sports Betting Technology
Best Sports Betting Provider in the Baltics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Online Casino Provider in the Baltics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Slots Provider in the Baltics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Live Casino Provider in the Baltics
B2B Providers (Casino): Rising Star in Baltic Online Casino Technology
Connected Services – Best Payment Service Provider in the Baltics
Connected Services – Best Testing Laboratory Provider in the Baltics

Nordics: Operators Categories:

Nordics: Best Online Casino in the Nordics
Nordics: Best Sports Betting Operator in the Nordics

Nordics: B2B Categories:

B2B Providers (Sports): Best eSports Service Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Sports): Best Fantasy Sports / Virtual Sports Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Sports): Rising Star in Nordic Fantasy Sports / Virtual Sports
B2B Providers (Sports): Rising Star in Nordic Sports Betting Technology
B2B Providers (Sports): Best Sports Betting Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Online Casino Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Slots Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Casino): Best Live Casino Provider in the Nordics
B2B Providers (Casino): Rising Star in Nordic Online Casino Technology
Connected Services – Best Payment Service Provider in the Baltics
Connected Services – Best Testing Laboratory Provider in the Baltics
Connected Services – Best Hosting Provider in the Baltics

Congratulations and best of luck to all the Shortlisted Companies!

See you in Tallinn & the MARE BALTICUM Gaming & TECH Summit 2024 – Register Now

Industry Awards

Gibraltar Gambling Commission Attends International Olympic Committee and UEFA Workshop

Published

6 days ago

April 25, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: < 1 minute

A representative from the Gibraltar Gambling Division, who specialises in sports integrity matters, has attended a high- level workshop hosted jointly by the International Olympic Committee and UEFA at Olympic House in Lausanne Switzerland. The cost of the trip was funded by the international sports governing bodies.

With both the Olympics and the Euros being held later this year, the meeting was an opportunity for all stakeholders, including gambling regulators in a number of jurisdictions (including Gibraltar) to discuss a coordinated strategy to identify suspicious betting activity and to prevent match (competition) fixing on a proactive basis.

In 22/23, the Gambling Division received 42 betting integrity reports from gambling operators, 13 requests for assistance from the Olympic movement Unit of the Prevention of Manipulation of Sports competitions and was involved with a large number of disseminations to domestic and international sports governing bodies (including FIFA and UEFA); as well as engagement with law enforcement authorities.

Last month, the GFA hosted a UEFA Seminar on match fixing in Gibraltar which was also attended by representatives from the Gambling Division.

Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner Andrew Lyman said: “Sports integrity work and liaising with stakeholders on match fixing is an important, but often unseen part of our work. Operators are obliged to report suspicious activity in this area and the Gambling Division applies its expertise to enhance intelligence and support the lawful flow of information to the appropriate authorities, including sports governing bodies, for further investigation.

“The manipulation of sports competition by spot fixing or match fixing undermines the very essence of fair and unpredictable sporting outcomes. The forthcoming Gambling Bill will introduce a criminal offence of cheating at gambling which will serve to further deter such activity.”

Industry Awards

SiGMA Group Acquires Majority Stake in iGaming Academy

Published

1 week ago

April 24, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: 2 minutes

SiGMA Group has announced it has acquired a majority stake in iGaming Academy, which offers vocational and compliance training in over 25 jurisdictions, to more than 60,000 gaming professionals yearly, for an undisclosed figure.

This acquisition is set to greatly complement their current portfolio by embedding various forms of industry education throughout SiGMA’s global event schedule and online network.

Eman Pulis, Founder of the SiGMA Group, said: “The acquisition comes at a perfect time for us. We’ve been working closely with iGaming Academy for many years now. I love what Jaime and the Conexus Group have built and look forward to supporting this growth with new initiatives and a wider offering of educational programs globally. The industry is crying out for more talent and regulatory insight, with new markets continuing to regulate. As a result, we want to be very active in this business.”

Robert Dowling from Conexus Group said: “Conexus will remain actively involved in the iGaming Academy and our clients will continue to receive the outstanding training they expect from this brand,” said Rob Dowling, CEO of The Conexus Group. “We are confident that this strategic acquisition by SiGMA will allow the iGaming Academy to expand and improve its services offering to better serve the evolving training needs of the iGaming industry.”

Jaime Debono said: “This acquisition marks a major milestone for iGaming Academy – our mission has also been to educate the industry – both on key regulatory compliance topics as well as vocational training for existing and new markets. With the support of SiGMA Group, we will be able to accelerate this strategy through their global event calendar, enrich both training and event content and reach a much wider audience than ever before.”

Vinicius Moraes de Carvalho, Investment Partner at Ikigai Ventures, said: “The acquisition of IGA is another important milestone for SiGMA’s vision. IGA’s extensive training library rounds up our offer of services for the igaming industry by allowing us to be at the forefront of educational and regulatory tools for the market. We have strong confidence in Jaime and his team and are thrilled about the next chapters.”

iGaming Academy will continue to work in their current organisational structure with Jaime Debono remaining as company CEO and continuing to work alongside his team.

The deal will continue to see the management at iGaming Academy at the helm, with SiGMA’s corporate governance and marketing arm supporting the business to go from strength to strength.

Following the acquisition, the iGaming Academy is setting up an office in Cyprus to build its online offering and content development. In addition, its revenue streams will also be bolstered through new affiliate partner deals. More courses will also be made available in multiple languages, thus meeting the global demand for training.