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Malta Gaming (MGA)

Short contests<br>Malta at a Glance<br>iGaming Jurisdiction Overview<br>Interview With Silvio Schembri, Parliamentary<br>Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy & Innovation<br>Interview with Ivan Filletti<br> Head of Operations and Business Development of the GamingMalta Foundation<br>Growing Creatively<br>More <a href="https://50-spins.com/">casinos free spins</a> you will find here.

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Malta Gaming (MGA)

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  1. CountryProfiler GAMINGMALTA 2019 Edition www.countryprofiler.com 50 Free Spins

  2. mEEt thE tEAm Garvan Keating CEO keating@countryprofiler.com CountryProfiler Ltd is a specialist publisher of country information that assists corporations managing operations across national borders with trade, investment and relocation decisions. CountryProfiler is recognised by senior business executives, government representatives, institutions and global organisations as a leading provider of informative, insightful and actionable country intelligence. CountryProfiler GAMINGMALTA 2019 Edition www.countryprofiler.com 2 01 9 EDIT I ON Malta: The World’s iGaming Capital Sonja Lindenberg Editor lindenberg@countryprofiler.com EuropE 64, St Anne Court, Suite 2, Bisazza Street, Sliema SLM 1642 - Malta T: +356 2034 2034 North AmEricA Suite 21-2123, Walkers Line, Burlington, Ontario L7M 42Z9 - Canada Tel: +1 905 645 1130 Melissa Puglisevich Office Manager puglisevich@countryprofiler.com Email: info@countryprofiler.com Website: www.countryprofiler.com coNtriButor Rachel Rigby photogrAphy Viewingmalta Alina Anisimova Journalist alina@countryprofiler.com DESigN & LAyout Ramon Micallef - ram@box-design.net priNtiNg Gutenberg Press, Malta Giulia Desogus Editorial Assistant giulia@countryprofiler.com puBLicAtioN DAtE November 2018 All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or part is strictly prohibited without the written permission of the publisher. Opinions expressed in Gaming Malta are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. All reasonable care is taken to ensure truth and accuracy, but the editor and publisher cannot be held responsible for errors or omissions in articles, advertising, photographs, or illustrations. Ramon Micallef Art Director ram@box-design.net

  3. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 6 Malta at a Glance ....................................................................................................................................... 8 iGaming Jurisdiction Overview ............................................................................................................... 10 Interview With Silvio Schembri, Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy & Innovation ................................................. 22 Interview with Ivan Filletti Head of Operations and Business Development of the GamingMalta Foundation ...............26 Growing Creatively .................................................................................................................................. 28 Contents iGaming Perspectives The Regulator .................................................................................................................................... 30 The Operator ...................................................................................................................................... 35 The Affiliate ........................................................................................................................................ 38 The Investor ....................................................................................................................................... 40 The Start-Up ...................................................................................................................................... 42 The Lawyer ........................................................................................................................................ 44 The Data Protection Commissioner.................................................................................................. 52 The Blockchain Expert ..................................................................................................................... 60 The Influencer Marketing Agency ................................................................................................... 66 The Payment Specialist ...................................................................................................................... 72 The Stock Exchange ........................................................................................................................... 76 The Esports Integrity Commissioner ............................................................................................... 82 The Games Developer ....................................................................................................................... 86 The Titan ............................................................................................................................................ 96 Trends & Topics Compliance ........................................................................................................................................ 48 Marketing............................................................................................................................................ 55 Technology ......................................................................................................................................... 64 Payments ............................................................................................................................................ 74 Investor Relations .............................................................................................................................. 79 Human Resources .............................................................................................................................. 80 Affiliates ............................................................................................................................................. 84 New Markets ....................................................................................................................................... 91 New Products .................................................................................................................................... 94 Responsible Gaming ......................................................................................................................... 98 Creating Synergy in Malta – Mark Attard of BDO Malta ...................................................................... 78 3 Questions with Reuben Portanier, Director of Caledo ...................................................................... 88 3 Questions with Simon Wykes, CEO of Jackpotjoy Group ................................................................. 90 Interview with Russell Mifsud, Associate Director & Head of Gaming at KPMG Malta ................... 92 Growth Through Simplicity .................................................................................................................. 102 Playing by The Rules .............................................................................................................................. 105 Closing the Gap ....................................................................................................................................... 116 Interview with Enrico Bradamante, Chairperson of iGaming European Network (iGEN) .............. 118 Interview with Roger A Strickland Jr., Director of CSB Group .......................................................... 120 iGaming Events ....................................................................................................................................... 123 iGaming Calendar ................................................................................................................................... 130 My Malta in 3 Words .............................................................................................................................. 132 Sliema is Not The Limit- Edward Agius and Michaela Tabone of RE/MAX ..................................... 134 Director’s Guide ..................................................................................................................................... 137 Malta Business Profiles .......................................................................................................................... 147

  4. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 8 Malta at a Glance GOZO Located in the centre of the Mediterranean, between Europe and North Africa, Malta is the European Union’s smallest member state. Famous for its 7,000-year history and 300 days of sunshine, Malta has emerged as one of the most remarkable success stories in the Eurozone. Recognised for its pro-business attitude, state-of-the-art infrastructure and modest costs of doing business, it has become the go-to country for growth-minded entrepreneurs and multinational companies. Location: Southern Europe Official Name: Republic of Malta Area: 316 km2 MALTA Capital: Valletta Memberships: European Union, Eurozone, Schengen Area Malta’s Economy 2017 GDP Growth: +6.6% 2018: 5.4% (est.) 2019: 4.9% (est.) 2017 Unemployment Rate: 4.2% 2018: 3.9% (est.) 2019: 4.0% (est.) 2017 Inflation: 1.3% 2017: Surplus 3.9% 2017: Debt to GDP 47.1% Source: European Economic Forecast, Autumn 2017 The Maltese Islands were once best known as a holiday destination. However, over recent years, the country has sought to diversify its economy beyond tourism by promoting a range of sectors and activities, including financial services, tourism, iGaming, construction & real estate, manufacturing, life sciences, maritime and aviation. 300 days of sunshine/ year Temperature average: Winter 12ºC Summer 31ºC Time: Annual rainfall: 600mm 460,000 population of which: Maltese: 94% - Foreign: 6% GMT+1

  5. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 9 Malta’s Gaming Sector GDP Contribution: 12% GVA Contribution: 13% Gaming Tax Revenue: €59.1m Full time Employment: 6,673 Number of licences (Sep ’18): 282 iGaming companies in operation (Sep ’18): 279 PLAyEr ProfiLE: 18-24 years: 22% 25-34 years: 39.5% 35-54 years: 31.4% 55-64 years: 5% 65+ years: 2% Male: 70% Female: 30% METHOD OF PAYMENTS: Credit / Debit Card: 40% E-wallet & Online Account 17% Bank Transfer: 31% Other: 12% International Dialling Code: +356 Religion: Roman Catholic Voltage: 240V Currency: Euro Languages: Maltese & English

  6. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 12 F expansion of the sector over recent years shows no sign of slowing down. The first EU country to regulate online gaming, Malta today has an outsize influence in the world of iGaming. In spite of its modest size and numbers, the island is just over 316 square kilometres in area and is home to 460,000 people, Malta is regarded as the most prestigious address for gaming operators. iGaming has grown into one of Malta’s most important economic contributors. Today, the industry accounts for 11% of the island’s GDP and employs more than 6,600 people directly, with an additional 3,000 to 4,000 providing ancillary services such as web hosting, security auditing or legal work. Malta, in essence, serves as the backbone of the industry, attracting the largest gaming operators and suppliers, as well as some of the hottest start-ups. “Malta’s new Gaming Act addresses conflicts of laws, paving the way for and 888 that are looking to plant a flag on the island. But it is not just the major gaming companies that have been beating a path to Malta, the island has also found fans amongst the large group of B2B suppliers and service providers. Today Malta offers a thriving gaming ecosystem, where gaming companies can find everything and everyone they need to do business with, ranging from game developers and solution providers such as NetEnt, Play ‘n Go, Aspire, Microgaming, Betconstruct and Greentube, to affiliate marketing firms such as Catena Media, Raketech, MatchingVisions and Gambling.com. ew countries in the world have a vision for iGaming as defined as Malta’s. The rapid technology convergence and games neutral forms of licensing activities. While the revamp of Malta’s iGaming regulations will ensure the sustainability of the industry in the years to come, iGaming companies will operate in a well-regulated ecosystem that will allow space for further growth and investment.” roger A. Strickland Jr Director of CSB Group 20 yEArS iN thE gAmE Malta has an impeccable 20-year track record in regulating iGaming companies. The first online gaming operators arrived on the island in the late 1990s, well before the dotcom boom. Blazing a new trail, Malta, unlike many other countries that sought to protect their monopolies, allowed commercial operators to set up and enter the gaming market. The government quickly recognised the need for a dedicated regulatory framework and set up a regulatory authority for this young industry just before Malta joined the European Union in 2004. The past 20 years have left Malta with a legacy of know-how and experience that it has put to work in developing what the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) refers to as next generation legislation. A corporAtE LovE AffAir Malta’s open-arm companies has seen major corporations and household names flock to the Mediterranean island. Malta plays heavyweights, such as Betsson, Paddy Power Betfair, GiG, GVC, Kindred, Stars Group, SKS365, DraftKings, LeoVegas, Evolution, and Tipico. Brexit is creating interest from other big league companies like William Hill, bet365 attitude to iGaming host to industry

  7. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 14 “Malta has been at the forefront of the iGaming industry since 2004 and today is a leading jurisdiction, attracting international companies to relocate to the island. Malta has the relevant resources, legislation, experience, and infrastructure to support iGaming businesses with their operations and real estate needs.” michael J. Zammit Director and Joint Owner of Malta Sotheby’s International Realty Soar to new heights. AN iNtErNAtioNAL LicENcE Malta continues to impress as a leading iGaming hub, despite the fact that the global regulatory landscape for the sector is in flux like never before. Malta’s industry had for many years enjoyed unrestricted access to all EU member states, and many had expected that the island would lose some of its market dominance as more and more countries introduced their own national licensing regimes. Although companies now have to hold separate local licences in all regulated markets that they are operating in, the mass-exodus of gaming companies did not happen. Instead the island has emerged as one of the big winners having attracted record numbers of operators and service providers. Big-name operators and start-ups are lining up to receive their licences from the MGA. But why are they coming? The country’s competitive corporate tax system certainly helps, however, companies insist that this alone is not enough to convince them to move to the island as other EU countries offer lower rates. The primary attraction of the Malta licence is that it is an international one that does not restrict an operator to the Maltese market but gives companies the opportunity to exploit white and grey areas in the rest of the world. a whole new set of rules and regulations that would provide the gaming industry with the platform it requires to respond to today’s realities and future developments. The new Gaming Act entered into force in August 2018 and has radically transformed the way the sector is regulated. The new law simplifies and streamlines processes, avoids duplication and speeds up time to market for operators. One of the major changes was the introduction of just two licence categories: a Business-to-Business and a Business-to-Consumer licence. A new set of licence fees and compliance contributions has also been introduced, while licences are now valid for 10 years instead of a 5-year period. career.jackpotjoygroup.com Big iN Support Regulation is only part of the reason for Malta’s global role in the iGaming industry. The island’s main draw-card is the ease of doing business. The presence of data centres, online payment processors, security auditors, gaming software developers, and platform providers contributes to a tailor-made environment that is conducive to growing a successful business. Consultants with technical expertise are always on hand to support critical operations in areas such as search engine optimisation and affiliate management companies. Equally, the island’s lawyers and accountants have a wealth of experience, ensuring that a vibrant and creative cluster of talent and know-how is in place to help companies manage and grow their operations. This is unique in Europe and goes a long way towards explaining Malta’s identity as the world’s iGaming capital. rEwritiNg thE ruLES The iGaming industry is today facing technological disruption and change like never before. The increasingly maturing industry demands smoother processes, as well as better regulation for new forms of gaming. The government set itself the task of crafting

  8. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 16 from StArt-up to ScALE-up The power of rapid scaling is a huge competitive advantage for companies setting up in Malta, which is positioning itself as a key innovation hub for the sector. The start-up and creative culture is being channelled into a vast array of products and services such as analytical tools, games development, fantasy sports and esports. Meanwhile, others are developing virtual and augmented reality products, cloud platforms based on artificial intelligence; as well as new and innovative payment methods. Gaming start-ups find Malta a particularly attractive place due to the concentration of industry players, talent and suppliers on the island. Many of Malta’s first arrivals have grown from small start-ups to global giants. In more recent times, the island has seen the emergence of a new generation of start-ups. They aim to scale fast and enjoy the backing of some of the most experienced and wealthiest investors in the industry. Well-funded and with great ambitions, they are hoping to make a big splash, and many are already on the acquisition trail themselves. Technology and service innovation go hand-in-hand, and the island is carving out a niche for services that are not on offer in other iGaming jurisdictions: Malta can be a disaster recovery site, a base for payment companies and back-office activities. Malta’s success as an iGaming hub is also having the knock-on effect of enticing other industries into establishing a presence of their own. Case in point: video game developers and publishing companies, “The major trends that are characterising the industry revolve around three streams. as well as gamers themselves, have relocated to the island to take advantage of business incentives and high quality of life. BLockchAiN rEvoLutioN Malta is also turning heads in the iGaming industry for its willingness to embrace innovative and emerging technologies. Calling itself the ‘blockchain island’, Malta has introduced the world’s first holistic regulatory framework for Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLTs). The framework initially captures DLT platforms and smart contracts only, but the government is now working on extending its reach to other platforms and technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies. The rise of emerging technologies like AI, machine learning, big data and blockchain offer the iGaming industry great opportunities to tackle a myriad of transparency issues, automate processes and completely re- design its business model. Malta’s innovative drive has made the island appealing for DLT innovators. Despite its minuscule size, the island has attracted a host of innovative companies, including crypto exchanges, ICO platforms and developers of blockchain-based tools and applications, which have either relocated or established new offices on the island. This opens up exciting opportunities for iGaming companies. They can work with some of the brightest names in the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry to develop, test and scale innovative products and solutions. The first being the continuous movement in M&As, the second being how to cope with multijurisdictional compliance which does not only relate to gaming regulation but also to VAT, AML and GDPR, while the last but most exciting one relates to blockchain technology within gaming. On the latter, Malta is uniquely positioned.” reuben portanier Founder of Avviza Advisory and Afilexion Alliance

  9. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 18 A BrExit pArtNEr Malta is now preparing for a new influx of companies that are packing their bags ahead of Brexit. Although Malta is not pitching as aggressively as other nations for UK business, the island’s co-location, not relocation, approach has resonated with operators seeking an address in the European Union. William Hill, bet365 and 888 are reportedly among the companies that are moving operations to the island should the UK leave the European Union. “The regulatory overhaul saw games which were previously provided by entities not include a 15% tax cap on the salaries of highly qualified foreign professionals in the gaming sector, as well as a fast-track service for work permits of highly specialised third-country nationals. However, given the time it can take to recruit the right candidates who are willing to relocate, many companies are rethinking their approach to talent acquisition. Many of the larger companies are reverting to opening offices in other locations where tech talent is more widely available. To avoid outward investment flows and produce more home-grown talent, Malta is putting in place upskilling initiatives. A new gaming academy, the European Gaming Institute of Malta (EGIM), has been launched as a joint venture between the Malta Gaming Authority and the Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology (MCAST) to fill some of the gaps. licensed by EU/EEA authorities, but which were nonetheless offered on websites authorised by the MGA, being phased out. Licensees that operated shared wallet setups or similar platform arrangements with non-EU/EEA licensed games and gaming services providers also moved key operations to more reputable jurisdictions. These measures were introduced by the MGA in an effort to improve the quality of gambling services offered to consumers while also delivering a more competitive framework in comparison to well-established and upcoming gaming jurisdictions.” A tALENt-DrivEN worLD While the arrival of new companies and gaming executives will further cement Malta’s position as a leading iGaming jurisdiction, it will most likely amplify the challenges that companies operating out of Malta are already facing. There are signs of a strain in the talent pool given that the industry often requires specialist knowledge that cannot be sourced locally. Although Malta’s iGaming workforce is incredibly international and diverse, and the island has attracted people from all corners of the world, demand for top talent, particularly tech and product, outstrips supply. While this has created an upward pressure on wages, the skilled labour shortage doesn’t seem to be hurting the continued inflow of new entrants to the sector, at least not yet. To keep the talent rolling in, and the innovation levels up, iGaming companies have long turned to foreign labour markets to fill gaps in the local workforce. Today, two-thirds of those employed in the sector are foreign expats. Efforts to attract the best and the brightest SwitZErLAND iN thE mEDitErrANEAN Ultimately, the aim is to make Malta a centre of excellence for iGaming-related companies, where executive decisions are made that drive global gaming businesses and where start-ups and innovative ideas are nurtured. However, the sector’s fast expansion, in tandem with many other sectors that are experiencing similar growth rates, and an influx of companies and expat workers are also putting pressure on Malta’s infrastructure and the cost of living. The high demand has driven up rents for both offices and apartments, and many say Malta needs to be careful not to outprice itself. To enable the iGaming sector to attract kris Baron Partner at ARQ

  10. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 19 around the world. This has resulted in a desire to show a high level of corporate governance. Stricter anti-money-laundering laws and new data protection regulations are also being viewed as important steps towards improving the sector’s relationship with the banking sector and its overall reputation. the best talent to the island, Malta urgently needs to address certain capacity constraints in terms of schooling and kindergarten facilities, which reduce the island’s competitiveness. The island’s transport network has also failed to keep pace with the exceptional growth the economy is enjoying. Quality of infrastructure is a decisive factor when businesses plan investments, and Malta’s future prosperity is linked to the way infrastructure will be deployed. A thorough infrastructural overhaul will place Malta in a better position to compete and challenge other countries for the highest value investment. For Malta to become the ‘Switzerland of the Mediterranean’, many emphasise that a stronger focus on green areas and recreational opportunities is required, which would add to Malta’s emerging status as a magnet for talented professionals who are seeking dynamic careers outside of the world’s largest business hubs. LEADiNg thE pAck Malta is Europe’s undisputed centre for iGaming companies. It is home to CEOs and start-up founders, investors, support professionals and entrepreneurial talent. The island saw strong growth on the back of its regulatory framework that has lured the sector’s strongest companies to the island. However, the future will be written by the level of regulatory, financial and technology innovation that the country can bring to the table. The island’s success will also be built on its ability to constantly attract new entrepreneurs; Malta needs to accommodate global players while acting as a magnet for start- ups. To ensure that Malta fits into the business plans of the world’s largest companies, the country is working hard to have all the right elements in place. Malta has the opportunity to be a truly global centre for the iGaming industry, similar to what New York, Hong Kong and London are to the finance industry. The gaming industry in global terms is still in its infancy and expected to expand significantly in the coming years. Malta now pushes itself towards a more innovation-driven economy, and there is increasing awareness that raising productivity and increasing efficiency are critical if growth is to be sustained. n foreign executives BuiLDiNg coNfiDENcE The negative outlook of the international banking sector on gaming continues to present one of the biggest challenges to gaming companies in Malta. There are only a handful of banks servicing the sector. Paradoxically, while the industry is experiencing difficulties with basic banking services, iGaming companies are coming into view of the global investment banks due to the sector’s increased funding needs to support their M&A activity. Many companies have grown significantly in size and scope, and are today listed on major stock exchanges

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  13. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 22 Silvio Schembri, Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy & Innovation Home of innovation From gaming to blockchain and artificial intelligence, Junior Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, Silvio Schembri wants to make Malta a powerhouse of innovation.

  14. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 23 how would you describe the recent performance of malta’s igaming industry? Our iGaming sector has performed exceptionally well. Malta has seen licensed operators reach record numbers, and we can proudly say that now most of the sector’s major companies have operations on the island. Malta today offers the complete gaming ecosystem. We have the resources, the people and the culture to give iGaming professionals and entrepreneurs the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals. In 2018, we launched our new Gaming Act, which further cemented our position as the world’s iGaming capital. It has eliminated unnecessary bureaucracy, simplified the licensing process, and more importantly, speeded up time-to-market for operators. It has also paved the way for the further enhancement of best- in-class player protection standards and responsible gaming measures. regulatory framework for AI, and in the coming months, a national strategy will be launched for this sector to explore the opportunities it holds, attract new investment and incorporate it into our ecosystem. We have set-up a task force made up of entrepreneurs, academics and experts in the field, who will devise a holistic approach towards the industry. We know that AI is already playing an important role in the gaming industry. Our main focus will be on how to position AI to drive our economy, and intersecting it with other industries and technologies such as blockchain, telecoms and gaming. what are your plans to further strengthen the infrastructure and ecosystem that Digital malta requires? Malta has long been sensitive towards connectivity and digitalization, which have transformed our country and brought about new opportunities, quality jobs and growth. 5G is now becoming a reality in Malta, and is the next step towards enhancing our digital infrastructure. Malta has to be at the forefront of this technology, which is an enabler for innovative applications, new business models and investment. We are not resting on our laurels and are partnering with international companies. We are also offering red carpet treatment to companies – both big and small – wanting to set up in Malta to grow our digital ecosystem. But we know that it is equally important to attract talent to the island. Our economy is nearing full employment, and we are aware that, at times, firms find it difficult to source the right talent. Attracting foreign talent will remain one of our key priorities, and we want to make sure that onboarding new professionals is as uncomplicated as possible. our position as the number one gaming jurisdiction. ” “in terms of gaming, i believe that the initiatives we have taken, including our new gaming law, will help us maintain and strengthen malta is getting serious about esports. can you tell us more about your strategy? Esports has steadily grown in popularity over the years, giving rise to a booming industry. We are currently working on a strategy to form a cluster of esports companies and attract large- scale esports events to the island. We want to attract not just competitive games, but also videogame designers and become a destination for digital media companies. malta is being coined the “Blockchain island”, what can you tell us about this development? Our three DLT laws came into effect in November 2018, providing a holistic regulatory framework within the cryptocurrency space. The newly established Malta Digital Innovation Authority (MDIA) will certify DLT platforms and smart contracts, while handling the voluntary registration of technology service providers. The Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) has been tasked with the supervision of ICOs, virtual financial assets and cryptocurrency exchanges. Both have started to receive licence applications from companies. We see more and more companies moving into Malta, joining those that have already set up on the island such as Binance, OKEx, DQR, Bittrex, Neufund and ChilliZ. blockchain and how do you expect malta to develop in the coming years? Our aim is that the entire digital economy will flourish in Malta. In terms of gaming, I believe that the initiatives we have taken, including our new gaming law, will help us maintain and strengthen our position as the number one gaming jurisdiction. But we must continue challenge ourselves and keep innovating if we want to retain the top spot. We will continue building on the ecosystem, and this also includes cryptocurrencies and blockchain. The plan is that DLT will account for 10% of GDP by 2027. We want Malta to become a powerhouse of economic innovation. The AI sector is expected to underpin US$15.7 trillion of global economic growth by 2030. The opportunity is too big to be missed. This is why Artificial Intelligence and a best in class regulatory framework are high on our agenda. Establishing a regulatory framework for AI is expected to impact every economic sector in Malta, transforming current job roles, as well as creating many new ones. n what’s next on your agenda? Now that the blockchain related laws are in effect, and our vision of making Malta “The Blockchain Island” is becoming a reality, we can start looking at other innovative areas such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), quantum technology and big data. We are working on developing a

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  16. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 26 Ivan Filletti, Head of Operations and Business Development, GamingMalta Foundation “You come, you settle, y ou succeed” Some of the world’s biggest and smallest iGaming operators have set up shop in Malta, making the island as important to online gambling as London or New York are to finance. It comes as no surprise that the island’s success as iGaming hub is having the knock-on effect of enticing related industries into establishing a presence of their own, says Ivan Filletti of the GamingMalta Foundation. Malta is increasingly one of the most advanced and respected online gaming jurisdictions in the world, as well as having the most licensed operators. We want to keep it that way and continue to narrate this success story. Joining and connecting the dots within the ecosystem is a vital component of our game. Our networking events and international roadshows serve as a platform for this. These also help to attract investors to the iGaming industry. We also support and promote start-up events so that entrepreneurs are giving an opportunity to present their business models. Our strong economy, EU member state credentials and resources, people and culture, as well as a strong presence of B2B and B2C companies and an affiliate cluster, give any operator an immediate plug into the gaming sector. To this, add the lifestyle on this sunny Mediterranean island, which is so special. Our mission is to engage with all the key stakeholders and ensure we connect with the different parts of the ecosystem to promote, strengthen and accelerate the growth across all gaming sectors. Business gets done here. Malta is the place where ingenuity and determination pay off. You come, you settle, you succeed.

  17. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 27 About Gaming Malta “You come, you settle, y ou succeed” GamingMalta is an independent non-profit foundation set up by the Government of Malta and the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA). Tasked with promoting Malta as a centre of excellence in the digital and remote gaming sector globally, it is responsible for liaising with local authorities to improve Malta’s attractiveness as a jurisdiction and enhance the ecosystem surrounding the gaming industry. gamingmalta is committed to: u Promoting ownership of the Malta brand among all stakeholders to strengthen Malta’s position with the gaming industry; u Engaging with stakeholders and providing business support to ensure that Malta is the most attractive environment for the gaming industry to thrive; u Standing out through innovative ideas and leading the iGaming industry through research and promotion of the Maltese jurisdiction so as to be a proactive, dynamic catalyst for change; u Accelerating growth in the gaming sector by creating a dynamic marketing mechanism anticipating market changes; u Bringing stakeholders together and ensuring close cooperation while creating business and networking opportunities for firms working in the sector; u Establishing the necessary expertise and foresight to future-proof the gaming sector in Malta; Remote gaming is only a part of this marvellous world of gaming. So we are working on three other verticals – Daily Fantasy Sports, esports and Video Gaming. This all boils down to a talent game. We want to work closely with the sector in order to attract key talent to Malta. u Supporting the MGA in implementing the brand strategy and road map development for the gaming industry; u Collaborating with other Maltese sectorial promotion bodies to promote the overall image of Malta. We already have successful video gaming companies here, and we want to ensure that structures are built to give further and sustainable impetus to this sector. Contact: GamingMalta FoundationBuilding SCM 02-03, Level 3, SmartCity, Ricasoli SCM100, Malta T: (+356) 2247 3000 • E: ivan.flletti@gamingmalta.org W: www.gamingmalta.org

  18. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 28 Growing Creatively Home to IT, gaming and film industries, Malta is now setting out to win the favour of games development and digital media companies. H is inviting content producers and digital publishers to join its other thriving tech and entertainment industries. Malta has already built the largest iGaming centre in Europe, attracted a host of IT and software development companies, and is a popular location for the international film industry. The island now wants to offer an alternative to global entertainment hubs such as London, Berlin, Paris and Montreal. In its effort to become a pillar of the digital world, Malta is creating a stimulating environment for producers, animators, game developers, 3D artists, VFX professionals, digital painters and illustrators. world or augmented reality, Malta presents itself as a viable hub for VR and AR game studios. The sheer number of digital companies operating on the island creates opportunities for game studios and start-up developers to test and scale their products. ome of Gaming Excellence, Malta is unleashing its potential as a global creative hub for interactive entertainment. The island gLoBAL proDuctioN huB The driving force behind Malta’s creative industries is skills transfer. Companies operating out of Malta could benefit from expertise gained in the iGaming sector, such as player-behaviour analytics, data mining, personalisation and customer experience, as well as the monetisation of games and other digital content. The talent and the companies behind the growing dominance of mobile gaming applications have also found Malta a fertile ground to conceive, develop and market their products. A host of tech firms, coders and programmers are already on the ground servicing the increasing needs of the gaming operators. Malta also offers a significant for innovators with the next disruptive tech in areas such gAmiNg mALtA The industry has built an impressive base of companies operating from the island. The country’s strong foundation in IT, iGaming and film provides a sound technical infrastructure media production, which is being further enhanced by a dedicated iGaming academy called the European Gaming Institute of Malta (EGIM). A pioneer in the iGaming sector, Malta has acquired a wealth of knowledge and experience in areas such as digital content production, software development and game publishing. Esports is one of the green shoots that is gaining traction and could well become a significant pillar of Malta’s gaming ecosystem. The country’s creative track record in the film industry also speaks volumes, with major blockbusters, such as Assassin’s Creed, Captain Phillips, World War Z, Munich, Troy, and Gladiator, being shot on the island. for digital opportunity as fintech and blockchain. Most of the major players in the blockchain and cryptocurrency space are relocating to Malta on the back of the island’s new regulatory initiatives. This development is being warmly welcomed in particular by game publishers to deliver solutions for licence verification, game token monetisation and the management of what can be millions of assets within the game. Added to this are the global tech labs that have Malta on their radar, as regulators place greater demands on safe and secure IT solutions to protect consumers. viDEo gAmiNg cLuStEr The video gaming industry is the newest member of Malta’s growing creative industries. There are some high-profile game studios operating in Malta ranging from AAA to Indie game developers. 4A Games and Exient are two of the most well-known companies, producing major games for desktop and mobile, as well as Xbox and Playstation. Investment in this sector is expected to rise in the coming years: the gaming industry, as well as Malta’s growing international film industry, are fuelling demand for production houses, including motion capture studios, sound stages and animation facilities. As the global entertainment industry pushes ever more into a virtual growiNg EcoSyStEm The positive reception by industry leaders at this year’s Gamescom has further strengthened Malta’s reputation in the sector. Testament to Malta’s creative potential has been the relocation of Trojan Horse was a Unicorn (THU), a week-long gathering of digital artists. THU, which previously took place in Portugal, brought more than 1,000 creatives and creators from all corners of the world to the island, including executives from the world’s leading entertainment companies Disney, Netfix and Ubisoft. THU is set to become a vital showcase of Malta’s digital creative ecosystem, which is expected to grow and gain further global recognition in the years ahead. n

  19. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 30 Heathcliff Farrugia, CEO of the Malta Gaming Authority Navigating Change the Regulator Heathcliff Farrugia, the new CEO of the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), shares his thoughts on Malta’s brand-new Gaming Act, the MGA’s test environment for blockchain and cryptocurrencies, as well as the need for greater international cooperation on crime prevention and gambling addiction. As the new cEo of the mgA, what are your priorities for the coming years? 2018 was a milestone year for the MGA, with the introduction of the new Gaming Act in August. From a supervisory perspective, our priority is now to ensure that licensees implement their new obligations and comply with the new requirements, especially those relating to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) activities. I think it is becoming increasingly important to make sure that regulators are properly equipped to conduct their work and are able to enforce regulations. The new Gaming Act has increased our regulatory powers, placing a stronger emphasis on the compliance and enforcement function, while allowing us to further raise the bar in player protection. Over the past five years the MGA has done a lot of great work, and I definitely want to keep building on our past achievements. While we are one of the largest iGaming jurisdictions in the world, we don’t consider the size of the sector as a measure of success. We look at our effectiveness in ensuring that players are protected and that the sector is kept free from crime. At the same time, we are focused on the future, and we want to ensure that innovation does not dry up – both from a regulatory perspective but also within the industry itself. Technology advancements related to blockchain technologies and cryptocurrencies have promising potential, and it is certainly one of our priorities to position the MGA on the forefront of regulatory innovation in this space. channels. Previously, we managed over 600 licences; we now have close to 300 licences with the same number of operators. Some operators returned up to 18 licences and received one or a maximum of two in return. At the same time, the decision to move towards a risk-based approach to regulation has helped us become more efficient and effective in our supervisory function. We are now rating operators in different risk categories, which are subject to different levels of compliance checks. This allows us to allocate resources where they are needed and respond better to problems as they arise. We believe that a one-size- fits-all approach to regulating the industry doesn’t make sense any longer. The sector has evolved quite a bit since Malta’s first gaming law was introduced in the early 2000s. The overhaul was much needed. Overall, I would say we had very few teething problems because the transition was very well planned. However, while 1st August 2018 was the day the Gaming Act came into force, it doesn’t mean that the work stopped there. Operators still require support and technical guidance, and we are currently working to make sure there is more clarity about the new rules and regulations. what other changes did the new framework bring about for operators? Beyond the changes in the licensing structure, a key change was the phasing out of the key official role. Licensees are now required to identify the persons responsible for the key functions within their companies. Such persons are, in turn, required to undergo the MGA’s scrutiny in order for us to assess their fitness and propriety. We are now looking at a number of individuals such as the CEO, CFO, CTO, CMO, legal and compliance officer, and of course, the Money Laundering Reporting Officer. Other important changes relate to new obligations that have arisen under the Fourth Anti-Money Laundering Directive given that in 2018 iGaming companies became subject persons. how would you describe the transition to the new gaming Act? It was quite a smooth transition, especially with regard to the streamlining of the licensing structure from a multi-licence system to a two-licence system: a business-to-business licence and a business-to-consumer licence. These two licences now cover different types of activities across multiple distribution

  20. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 31 “While we are one of the largest iGaming jurisdictions in the world, we don’t consider the size of the sector as a measure of success.” how are you ensuring companies adhere to their AmL obligations? We set up a new Anti-Money Laundering Unit, which is conducting on-site and off- site inspections and reports any findings to the Financial Intelligence Analysis (FIAU). Our officers have received extensive training by local and international experts in Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CFT) activities in order to make sure that they have the necessary capability, skill and capacity to conduct effective assessments. heathcliff farrugia was appointed CEO of the Malta Gaming Authority in April 2018. He holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Leicester, UK, and is specialised in business management, operational efficiencies, strategic planning, and regulation. Throughout his professional career, he held various senior executive positions both within the private and the public sector. In 2014, he joined the Gaming Authority in the role of Chief Operations Officer (COO) and was appointed Chief Regulatory Officer in 2016. Prior to joining the MGA, he spent the largest part of his career in the telecoms industry, specifically with Vodafone Malta, where he occupied various managerial positions. Unit BIO Through inspections, which are conducted together with FIAU, our job is to ensure that operators have all the necessary policies and procedures in place to comply with the AML regulations, including proper due diligence checks and reporting of suspicious transactions. Final inspection reports are then sent to the FIAU, and they will take further action where needed. Several igaming companies were accused of suspected links to the italian mafia, and the mgA has been criticised for not cooperating with the italian authorities. what’s your opinion about such criticism? The prevention of criminal infiltration is one of our top priorities. However, I’d like to point out that the MGA does not normally receive cooperation requests from Italian authorities other than its counterpart gambling regulator in Italy. Requests from law enforcement or financial intelligence units are sent to the corresponding authorities in Malta. Naturally, we provide any relevant information to the Maltese authorities. I can say that our due diligence checks are of a very high standard, and in fact, a Based on your past inspections, how are igaming companies performing in terms of AmL checks? Most operators take this very seriously and are doing all the required checks. However, there were some operators who weren’t prepared enough; at least not to the levels expected by the MGA. The Fourth AML Directive and the implementing procedures outline exactly what is required from subject persons, hence we expect full and proper compliance.

  21. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 33 “overall, our mission is to be at the forefront of gaming regulation while embracing innovation, but we have to ensure a safe operating environment and assess risks and implications properly.” number of applicants are refused a licence on the basis of failure to meet fitness and propriety standards. Others are detected as part of on- going checks, and we take immediate action if something comes up. Our international cooperation efforts are ongoing, and in fact we are currently in the process of establishing a stronger relationship with Italy’s Guardia di Finanza, with the help of Malta’s police, which will see us working even closer with Italian agencies. We are not excluding exploring similar agreements with other law enforcement agencies in future. received feedback from more than 70 operators. A number of operators were keen to explore the acceptance of cryptocurrencies as a method of payment, while others were assessing the use of DLT as a technology, perhaps by partnering up with existent blockchain providers. Overall, our mission is to be at the forefront of gaming regulation innovation, but we have to ensure a safe operating environment and assess risks and implications properly. Hence, we decided to implement a sandbox framework, which would involve introducing blockchain technologies within a controlled environment. We made it very clear that proper KYC checks are required in the sandbox. We cannot accept anonymity. We will be working hand in hand with the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), who will regulate virtual financial assets and exchanges, as well as the Malta Digital and Innovation Authority (MDIA) that will be approving technology service providers. We envisage that this framework will run until end of October 2019, although it could be extended. while embracing cryptocurrencies and responsible gaming is another area of concern. how are you planning to improve player protection? We are working on a new self-exclusion system for players, which would give players the possibility to block themselves from all Malta- licensed iGaming operators. Today, iGaming operators licensed by the MGA are already obliged to offer self-exclusion tools to their players; however, there is no unified system in place, and an excluded player can seek the services of different operators, while being excluded from some others. We are aware that this is a gap in the protection offered within our regulated environment, and we are committed to working towards a system which will give the possibility to players to self-exclude across all licensed gaming channels, be it land-based or remote. It is an ambitious and complex project, and we have already seen some interesting technology solutions that could support such a project. We are also open to collaboration with other countries, and ideally, we will come to a stage where we have a unified self- exclusion system for all of Europe. the industry highlights hr and banking as the biggest challenges of operating in malta. is there anything the mgA can do to help the industry resolve these issues? In terms of human resources, I think demand will keep exceeding supply. We have kicked off a number of educational initiatives and partnerships to nurture more local talent, but the solution for the time being is importing talent and attracting foreign professionals to work in Malta. The situation with banking is a bit more complex as the banking issues are not exclusive to Malta. Gaming companies using an MGA licence are allowed to use both licensed credit institutions, as well as licensed financial institutions. you had a number of other big projects planned to make the way you regulate more efficient, including automated reporting. what’s the status of these projects? In January 2019, we will start rolling out our enhanced automated reporting platform for land-based operators. In 2020, we plan to introduce this for the iGaming sector too. Another important project we worked on is the sandbox for cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies, which was published in October 2018. As of 1 January 2019, we will start accepting applications for the use of cryptocurrencies as a method of payment by our licensed operators and also allow the use of DLT as a technology. Looking to the future, where do you want malta’s igaming industry to be positioned? We want to continue to be seen as a well-regulated jurisdiction that does not stop innovating. The iGaming industry is being influenced by blockchain technologies, which could turn out to be the industry’s next big thing. Hence, I think Malta’s drive to position the country as the ‘blockchain island’ will pay off in the near future. I also believe that in the coming years video gaming, eSports and traditional iGaming will keep converging more than ever before. New generations of players are interested in new forms of games, which might require new forms of regulations. I am confident that Malta will remain a forward-thinking gaming jurisdiction that responds to new realities. We will periodically review the regulatory performance of the sector and our new Gaming Act, and if needs be, we will make adjustments to ensure that consumers and the integrity of the industry are protected. n can you tell us more about the sandbox for DLt and cryptocurrencies? Do you see big demand from the igaming industry? Yes, there is strong interest. When we started working on this project, we issued two public consultations and were impressed by the large number of operators who wanted to help us. We

  22. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 35 Jesper Svensson, CEO of Betsson Group back to the operator Growth Mode Product innovation and a right-sizing exercise put Betsson back on track, says CEO Jesper Svensson. “We are excited about this development, as we believe that an open, competitive and controlled gaming market is positive for customers, operators and shareholders.” what issues are currently high on your agenda? We are currently working on what we call the ‘back on track’ plan, an initiative we launched a year ago to make the company perform better. In the last few years, Betsson’s organic growth was lower than anticipated. We had acquired several companies, which resulted in quite a few duplicate positions. At the same time our organic growth slowed down, and we weren’t fast enough in bringing out new products. So we decided that we needed to take a step back and restructure our operations. Part of this plan was to stop acquiring companies and focus on the core platforms by making them stronger from a product point of view. We also started to implement a number of improvements on the marketing side. As part of our right- sizing exercise, we had to make a number of people redundant. While this was painful, it was unfortunately inevitable. Betsson is now in a much better position than it was a year ago. Beyond our restructuring exercise, as a Swedish company the new regulatory regime in Sweden is very high on our agenda. We are excited about this development, as we believe that an open, competitive and controlled gaming market is positive for customers, operators and shareholders. much the name of the game these days. Today, we have regional and country teams, which means we are very efficient in our marketing. We are a data-driven company, and we track our return on investment for different brands and markets. I would say that this hybrid business model brings a lot of new opportunities. Our research shows that the average customer plays on 2.5 gaming brands, so with several brands there are higher chances to attract customers. The mix of a strong flagship brand and smaller localised products offers a strong mix for us. consolidation has been a major industry trend. how do you expect this trend to develop in the coming years, and are you planning to get back into the m&A game? For the time being, Betsson has been putting acquiring more companies on hold, but I think consolidation will remain a major trend. Various operators are successfully launching more brands, so I don’t think we will see fewer brands. However, in markets where regulations are coming into force, it will become very expensive to build a brand. In those cases, we might see a reduction in the number of competing brands, which will likely lead to further consolidation. Sweden is a very good example of this development. Today there are hundreds of companies targeting Swedish players, but not all of them have applied for a licence with the Swedish regulator. how would you describe your strategy and business model now? We aim to deliver the best customer experience in the industry. That’s our vision. Strategically we focus on three core areas to deliver on our vision. Those areas are Talented People, Quality Products and Operational Excellence. From a brand perspective we are leveraging a multiple brand model, which means we can focus on a larger number of client segments and localise our offering. While Betsson is the leading brand of the group, our smaller local brands are delivering good results by having a greater consumer attachment. Localisation, and local regulations, is very the Swedish gambling commission will not allow operators to give bonuses to players, other than on the first sign-up. what effect do you believe this will have on the market? will bonuses disappear? I don’t think they will; they will remain an important tool. However, in markets that limit the use of bonuses, operators need to make sure that their products stand out, which is a healthy development. I think we will see a lot more creativity from a product point of view in the future.

  23. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 37 Are you looking at bringing new products to the market? We control a large part of our technology ourselves, and we are constantly updating it and adding new features to enhance the customer experience. 2018 was also a great year for our sportsbook, which has seen significant growth on the back of the World Cup. what’s your opinion on the growth of esports? I think esports offer a great opportunity for the future. However, compared with traditional sports betting, it is still a relatively small, but fast growing market. I think it will be a very nice add-on for the industry, and I also think that the interest in mainstream sports will remain. the mgA is launching a sandbox for Distributed Ledger technologies. Are you looking at adopting blockchain technologies and virtual currencies? We are operating under licences in Malta and ten other jurisdictions, with a new licence from Sweden to be added in 2019. While we are interested in it, and are looking at what the MGA is doing, unless the other regulators are open to DLT and virtual currencies, we can’t adopt them and use them across all markets. Jesper Svensson has been in the gaming industry since the mid-2000s. Over the years, he worked in senior positions in several gaming companies in Europe and Asia. He joined Betsson in 2013 as the managing director of its flagship brand, betsson.com. In 2015, he became Betsson’s Chief Commercial Officer and was then made acting CEO in September 2017. Just three months later, he was appointed CEO for Betsson Operations. Jesper holds a Master in International Business from EAE Business School (Barcelona) and a Bachelor in Marketing from BI Norwegian Business School (Oslo). Jesper is passionate about sports and gaming. compliance – from player protection to marketing and AmL – has become more important these days. how do you believe the industry should react to these developments? International operators are complying with very diverse requirements, which adds to the operational complexities and costs they have to manage. We should obviously follow the regulations, but they should also be reasonable. We need to protect consumers, but we also need to protect the business. I don’t see these two as opposites, it is possible to combine them and grow the business in a sustainable way. We take responsible gaming very seriously and offer players a wide selection of responsible gaming tools. We were the first company to recruit a responsible gaming manager 10 years ago. As an industry, we have not always been good at communicating what we do, but we see these increased compliance requirements, including GDPR and AML obligations, as an opportunity to improve the industry’s perception. BIO where do you see the industry in five years time? I think we are going to continue to see a lot more consolidation in the future, but the success of operators will depend largely on their ability to offer high quality, innovative products. I am also expecting some disruption; after all, this is a digital industry and things can spread quickly when someone comes up with something new. For instance, last year we saw ‘no account’ casinos pop up everywhere, which allow customers to play instantly by linking payments and signups to a BankID. It goes to show that an improvement to your product can have a strong impact. I also believe that the industry will experience more regulation; so obviously, it will be challenging to continue to invest in new product development while absorbing additional tax and compliance costs. However, those who continue to innovate will have a better chance of success. We, at Betsson, are working hard to improve operations, efficiency and products. So we are entering this new phase with confidence. n malta is your main base; does it still remain attractive for you? Malta is a great business location with a strong pro-business environment. We set up in Malta in 2004, and we intend to stay. However, the talent pool in Malta is quite limited in some areas. While it’s not currently much of an issue to find staff on the marketing or operations side, tech-related roles such as engineers and developers are much more difficult to fill. That’s why we have offices in more tech-friendly cities such as Stockholm, Budapest, Kiev and Tallinn. In addition, the reality is that Malta really needs to keep pace with its own economic growth. If not, we will have more overcrowded schools, congested roads and high housing costs. I believe this is the time for Malta to invest in these areas if it wants to attract the right talent and facilitate future growth.

  24. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 38 Charles Gillespie, CEO of Gambling.com Group Plc A Golden opportunity the Affiliate Charles Gillespie, CEO of Gambling.com Group Plc, talks about changes in the affiliate space and how he has made his mark in the industry. gambling.com group plc is one of Europe’s fastest-growing performance marketing companies. how did you get started in the affiliate marketing industry and why? I started in the industry while still at the University of North Carolina in 2003. I could see the online gaming industry was booming but didn’t have the money to start a fully licensed online gaming operation, so I took the low-cost path and became an affiliate. I taught myself how to program and personally built my first casino affiliate website. I formalised the business in late 2006 with an initial strategy focused on East Asia. We shifted focus to the regulated European markets in 2010. Then in April of 2011, we managed to secure the domain name Gambling.com and have grown the business steadily from there. and regulations weren’t as sophisticated as they are today. Just keeping up with compliance can be a full-time job for smaller affiliates. regulators now hold operators responsible for the actions of their affiliates. how have you reacted to the changing regulations? The changing regulations really affect two kinds of affiliates: the small ones and the dodgy ones. The large affiliates on the other hand, generally speaking, have grown to be large because they don’t do anything that would be perceived as a compliance risk. They also have the resources to continually update their websites and marketing campaigns as requests from their clients come in. It’s the small fly by night rogue affiliates that skirt regulations who expose the affiliate industry to negative publicity. have you achieved any milestones recently, and what are the main brands and markets that you are active in? Gambling.com Group Plc passed another milestone this year by winning EGR’s Affiliate of the Year award, which I think is very well deserved given how far we have come in the past two years. The Group currently operates around 40 websites, mostly in the UK with its second largest market in Sweden, closely followed by rapid expansion in the USA. Our premier brand is Gambling.com but we have other websites with top-tier branding such as Bookies.com, which will be relaunched shortly with a US first focus. We have a number of other premium domain names in the stable, many of which we acquired earlier this year. We will be putting them all to good use in time. The group is headquartered in Malta but most of its 100 employees are in Dublin. We also have an office in Tampa, Florida since 2011. how has the recent wave of mergers and acquisitions in the sector impacted the affiliate landscape and what role do you seek to play in this scenario? We have seen a lot of consolidation of affiliates, and now there are four or five affiliate companies that control a meaningful portion of the regulated EU and US market. If you are one of the four or five companies, then this is not necessarily a bad thing, and you can participate in the consolidation. However, if you are a smaller affiliate, it is only going to become more and more difficult to compete with the big boys in terms of product, compliance management, HR and technology. Gambling.com Group Plc is constantly evaluating a regular stream of acquisitions. We have not been the most acquisitive of our peers, but we have done four deals since the start of 2017. It has been a positive experience for us and has enabled us to better leverage our core technology across more and more websites. For our more acquisitive peers, there are some open questions about how they will maintain the pace of acquisitions they have established over the past several years. They face new challenges in terms of financing and finding acquisitions that are large enough to actually move the needle in terms of their current scale. We are happy to have less pressure on ourselves to acquire, meaning we can be more discerning and tactical in our moves. Are there any trends or difficulties that are currently affecting the affiliate industry? It is much harder to launch an affiliate business today than say 10 years ago. To get into the game, you now need a lot of resources to fund product, technology, media, and to hire skilled, well trained people. It takes a lot more resources than it used to in the early days of the industry when the affiliate product offerings

  25. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 39 how do you see the affiliate revenue model evolving? To be fair, it doesn’t change regularly and has been more or less the same for 10-15 years, and I don’t expect to see any meaningful change moving forward, at least in terms of the European markets. The regulated US market is a brave new world, and affiliates applying for licenses is certainly a new evolution in the model. In terms of commercials, we see more and more operators and affiliates gravitating toward hybrid deals as it offers value for both parties. It gives the operators more levers to pull on to entice affiliates to promote their brands, and the affiliates I think increasingly appreciate the positive cash flow aspects of getting some guaranteed cash through the door per new depositing player (NDP). “We have a fast-growing technology business in europe that is growing organically by healthy double-digit figures, before we even think about the Us.” what will be the next big thing in affiliate marketing? In terms of the future, changes in the gaming industry in the US are the next big thing. On May 14, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). Following the revocation of PASPA by the Supreme Court, there are no federal barriers to legal sports betting in the United States. Attention has now turned to the individual states as it is now their decision to regulate sports betting within their own states’ borders. New Jersey has a major headstart as they were the ones that brought the case to the Supreme Court in the first place. They immediately pressed forward with getting their local operators up and running with sports betting and are poised to overtake Nevada in terms of total sports betting in months, not years. The key difference about the US market is that affiliates require licences. Regulators are much tougher, and affiliates’ relationship with the operators are far more structured in the US than in Europe where you don’t need a licence to be an affiliate, except in places like Romania. It is our view that the repeal of PASPA is the greatest opportunity in the history of the regulated online gambling industry, emphasis on regulated. charles gillespie is the founder and CEO of Gambling. com Group Plc. He started out as a software engineer and developed the Group’s first websites himself. Charles graduated from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He lives in Monaco since 2011. BIO Do you plan to expand anywhere else in the world? For now we have no plans to invest anywhere other than the US and Europe, where we see more than enough opportunity for us. We have a fast-growing technology business in Europe that is growing organically by healthy double-digit figures, before we even think about the US. That said, the US situation has really captured our attention, and we expect to see the US business eventually overtake the European one. n

  26. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 40 Mark Blandford, Partner at Burlywood Capital All eyes on New York the investor Mark Blandford was one of the first offline bookmakers to recognise the potential for sportsbetting on the internet. He has seen the rise of London as the industry’s power base and witnessed the success of Malta in attracting iGaming companies, but he believes that the sector’s next epicentre will be New York. can you tell us how you got involved in the gaming industry? I am a farmer’s son, but both my parents were interested in horseracing and they knew some of the leading trainers and jockeys of the day. I naturally inherited their interest and loved studying the odds. When I finished school, I studied business with a focus on marketing. Then I had a couple of jobs in B2B marketing but I found these jobs very frustrating as I realised that it will take me a long time to progress. I was always very entrepreneurial in nature, and at the age of 27 when my wife began talking about starting a family, I realised that if I want to start my own business it was now or never. The industries I had worked in were difficult to start up in, and the only other industry I knew something about was bookmaking. At the time, I had a friend who owned a betting shop and was kind enough to train me how to be a bookmaker. I then bought my first betting shop, and in the years that followed I built a small chain of betting shops. In the 1990s, one of my neighbours introduced me to the internet. I looked up sportsbetting and bookmakers – not much came up, and I suddenly realised that the internet could provide an additional distribution channel for betting products. how would you describe the current sportsbetting landscape – online and offline? When I sold my betting shops to set up Sportingbet, I was convinced that the future of sportsbetting was online because it allowed for greater operational efficiency. But I still thought that there was a market for betting shops. However, today I believe the outlook for offline is pretty poor, and betting shop owners have to accept that they are running a mature business. We are seeing significant changes in customer behaviour – today’s customers prefer to bet online. In addition, high street is under pressure with footfall, and you’ve got a regulatory regime that amplifies costs. We have gone from too light-handed regulation to heavy-handed regulation. I am absolutely in favour of protecting vulnerable players, but I think we have gone too far and this is not healthy for business. By the way, the same applies to the online world, and I do believe that the high regulatory costs could actually drive businesses offshore again. the igaming industry appears to be facing an increasingly restrictive and hostile regulatory environment in many countries. what are the reasons for this? For a long time, the industry has not invested sufficiently in PR and lobbying. That’s why we now have a large number of politicians who would rather look the other way instead of standing up in favour of the gambling industry. It is ironic that this is occurring at a time when the industry is larger than ever. where did you go from there? I was quite taken by the internet’s potential. It was the absolute beginning of this industry, and only a few bookmakers had an online presence. I sold the betting shop chain at the end of 1997. I went all in on online gambling and founded Sportingbet. In 1998 I got a licence from the Isle of Alderney, which gave us a competitive advantage. While UK-based companies were required by law to add a 9% tax to all bets, Alderney was betting-tax free. The first years were quite exciting but also challenging as there wasn’t any suitable sports betting software available compared to today. At the time, mentioning online gambling and credit card processing together was also a very easy way to get thrown out of a bank, but we battled through. Let’s talk about your third life in gambling. As a venture capital investor with Burlywood capital, where do you see the industry right now? As the online industry has matured, funding streams have grown in tandem. The industry is huge today. It is entrepreneurial in nature, which attracts angel and seed investors in greater

  27. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 41 numbers. We are now also seeing private equity – not just venture capital – flowing into the industry. While some 20 years ago the businesses were just not big enough to attract private, equity, we now have huge profitable businesses that private equity is interested in. If you need €1 million these days, it is probably much easier to get it today than it was five or six years ago. At Burlywood Capital, we are seeing interest not only from European but also American investors. what does the ideal candidate for venture capital look like these days? There is no such thing as the ideal candidate anymore. An interesting candidate could be active in a particular segment. For instance, interest in eSports has exploded. But from time to time things become the flavour of the month. I remember a time when everyone wanted to become a Bingo operator, followed by a period where Poker was big. Then we moved on to social gaming. The reality is that we have seen a few gold rushes. The most recent one was the hype around blockchain, which is currently tailing off. To offer every vertical is the hardest for an early stage business. It is nearly impossible to compete with today’s gambling industry conglomerates. However, we see a lot of business plans, and I can say that there are still a lot of creative minds out there coming up with new ideas. To be successful in raising money, ones need to have a clear plan on how to use the capital, while projections have to be realistic. mark Blandford was the owner of a betting shop chain from the early 1980s to the mid 1990s. When he recognised the potential of the internet, he founded Sportingbet PLC, at one time the world’s largest bookmaking operation and a pioneer in online gambling. After stepping down from the board of Sportingbet in 2007, Mark has become one of the most active and successful investors in the digital pay2play entertainment space. He also formed Burlywood Capital, a corporate finance advisory business focusing on gaming and support industries. BIO we have seen a number of gaming icos in 2018. what’s your view on icos as a fundraising method and on blockchain technology in general? There are surely a lot of overrated and hyped ICOs. I have seen many ICOs, where what was on offer and what was promised was disconnected from reality. In my opinion, the situation is comparable to the times of the dot.com bubble. The price of investment into that sector is running ahead of the returns. It doesn’t mean that the technology is not working; in fact, the underlying technology is great. We will undoubtedly see a number of blockchain applications that will be developed in the coming years. However, I am also sceptical about the cost- effectiveness of crypto payments. In some cases the transaction fees that cryptocurrency exchanges charged were higher than those that would have incurred when using more traditional payment channels. quite attractive and investors understand the industry. I also believe that the industry should look to the US. We are already seeing American investors wanting to put money into the sector. At Burlywood Capital, we have registered interest from US firms with investments in the physical casino industry and who now wish to invest in online betting. This trend is just emerging, and US investors will have to be educated about this industry, but I believe the potential is there. in your opinion, what is the most attractive place for igaming companies wanting to do an equity listing? The London Stock Exchange is strong and an attractive market for iGaming. Companies with international, and in particular Scandinavian exposure, should consider Stockholm. The valuations for companies at the Nasdaq Nordic Exchanges are what’s your outlook for the industry? I believe that New York will be the next big hub for the industry. We have seen the growth of London and the success of Malta, but I truly think that New York will define the next five to ten years. n

  28. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 42 Kent Staahle, CEO of RiveriGaming A Different Kind of start-Up the start-Up Kent Staahle is heading one of the iGaming industry’s most ambitious start-ups: River iGaming is looking at big acquisitions and a complete new product offering. can you briefly introduce river igaming and your business model? It all started when our founders Ketil Skorstad’s and Kristian Lundkvist’s, who both head Norwegian investment companies, got in contact with Cherry’s Morten Klein. The idea was to build a Norwegian iGaming venture, and we sought a listing on the Stock Exchange in Oslo. We opened our operational headquarters in Malta, but we also have small offices in the UK and in Norway. Our vision is to become a strong market player though acquisitions and organic growth – not just in the Norwegian market but globally. River iGaming enjoys strong financial backing, which means we were able to build a structure that has the power and resources to invest and acquire fast-growing companies. During our first months of operation, we have already acquired a number of businesses in the iGaming and media industries. Our aim is to invest in all areas connected to the sector of iGaming, particularly technology and business intelligence. As a young company, how do you seek to differentiate yourself? We want to find a new take on the market. These days, a generic one-size-fits-all approach is just not enough. Personalisation and customer engagement are the most important elements in attracting and retaining players today. That’s why we are developing the business intelligence side of the company. River iGaming has invested heavily in technology, which does the heavy lifting when it comes to remembering customers and their game preferences through big data and managing it in the best possible way. For us it is important to offer the customers something new and unique, make them feel at home in our casinos. Maybe even offer them something they want before they even know they want it. So now our Vegas Casino features personalised architecture including, for instance, content offers. Then there is the gamification element, which we want to focus on. Even in an online casino, players today seek an experience – it is not just enough to add some sound and nice pictures. can you tell us more about your first acquisitions? Our first acquisition was Vegas Casino. We have completely reinvented its format and managed to diversify the customer base beyond the Norwegian market. From there we proceeded to the acquisition of Mediafusion, a content production and affiliate marketing company built around Norwegian and Swedish customers. This company specialises in digital marketing, content and visual production. The third acquisition was Gaming Realms, a B2C company based in the UK. Gaming Realms gives us access to four new well-established brands, two of which are connected to TV shows: Britain’s Got Talent and X Factor, which also appeal to a new player demographic with the majority of players being female and under 35. what criteria do you look for when choosing a company to invest in? We are on the lookout for companies that complement our current portfolio. We are seeking companies that we can develop further; not companies that we need to clean up. The brand must be attractive, and it must boast innovative ideas that require money to come to fruition and grow. We would like to see the founders stay in the business and continue growing it with us. But we are not only targeting start-ups, we also have the ability and resources to handle bigger acquisitions.

  29. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 43 kent Staahle is the CEO of River iGaming. He has extensive experience in the finance industry and has previously worked at SpareBank1, Nets and ODIN Forvaltning. He holds an MSc in Marketing and Economics from BI Norwegian Business School. BIO how are investors looking at the gaming industry and at river igaming? Many people ask me why we are listed in Oslo and not in Stockholm or London. The reason for this is that we want to be a Norwegian company. It is true that Swedish investors are much more accustomed to the iGaming industry than investors from Norway, but there is increasing interest for iGaming companies in the Norwegian investor community. In Norway we still have much more explaining to do, while with Swedish investors we can already talk strategy. However, our investors are pretty much seated among Norway’s top 5% in terms of their net worth. We also feel that our connections into the Norwegian financial industry and institutions are one of our strong advantages. I also believe that it is attractive for investors to add iGaming to their portfolio. Although at the moment the margins and figures are going down, the long-term outlook is still good because developments such as consolidation and re-regulation offer significant growth opportunities for the larger players. how do you see the gaming industry evolving in the next three to five years? There will always be a place for proper there is also an increasing demand for more gamified products. We need to give our customers the ultimate gaming experience, and in order to do that, we should focus on new “our ambition is to become one of the top industry leaders in a couple of years.” casinos, but technological solutions. I expect this to be a real driver in the future. That’s why we are now working on a new project that we are going to launch in 2019. It is a game-oriented casino with a completely new product offering. how do you believe regulations will evolve and what new markets are on your agenda? Sweden will become a licensed gaming market in January 2018, and I believe that Norway will follow Sweden’s lead, it always does. So it’s likely that in three to five years Norway will move towards a licensing regime for gambling. Many companies are now rushing to enter the regulated US market, but we are in no hurry to follow the crowd. It is an attractive market, but there are still many regulated markets in Europe that are of interest to us, and we are also looking at other markets in Africa and South America. river igaming enjoyed an impressive growth in a short period of time. where do you want to go from here? For the foreseeable future, there will be many smaller companies that are coming up with new ideas and innovative products. Some of them might even be outside the regulatory fold. As a company, we are looking to invest in these companies and bring them onto the regulated side. We are not interested in short-term wins, and we want to develop long-term relationships. Our ambition is to become one of the top industry leaders in a couple of years. n

  30. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 44 David Gonzi, Managing Partner of Gonzi & Associates beyond tick- box Compliance the lawyer Regulatory compliance has become more than a tick-box exercise, says David Gonzi, Managing Partner of Gonzi & Associates, while, at the same time, the industry is entering a risk-averse period in its evolution as concerns over grey markets grow. “embracing new technologies in payments is for sure the right thing to do, and i believe that the recent developments in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector will give Malta the edge over other jurisdictions.” can you give us an overview on the performance of malta’s igaming industry and the transition to the new gaming regime? 2018 was an interesting year because the new Gaming Act finally came into force, which is seen as a very positive development. The legal framework has been streamlined, and it has become a lot easier to apply for a new licence. The established operators like it because there was a lot of duplication before, so they see the new regime as an improvement because it simplifies the process. Instead of multiple licences, they now only require one or two. In terms of the sector performance, I can say that despite the fragmentation of the European market, there is still interest in Malta as a jurisdiction. Malta is being seen as the European iGaming hub, boasting some of the most knowledgeable and skilled people within the industry. This is attracting new business, and big companies as well as start- ups are relocating or setting up in Malta. €25,000 to €30,000, and that is without any professional fees or set up costs of the company. Then there are other costs associated with getting the business off the ground and hiring all the required people. On the positive side, the licensing timeframe has been reduced, and we can say that within four to six months of establishing contact, clients usually have their licence in place. how has the industry’s attitude towards, and understanding of, legal and compliance matters evolved? I think companies are aware that there needs to be a strong compliance function; not having one would have a negative impact on the brand. The regulatory and supervisory authorities want to see how iGaming companies onboard clients and how exactly they perform their checks. Most companies have implemented the required Anti-Money Laundering procedures and internal compliance audits. Based on our contact with the industry, we can see that the law is not only on paper; the requirements are now being translated into action. The culture you have many years of experience in assisting igaming companies set up in malta. how would you describe the process today compared to a few years ago? Substance is the name of the game today. Clients need to have proper structures and substance in Malta. Substance has to be proportionate to the economic resources and to the profits that the company is making, and clients need to have employees on the ground. Some years ago, all these details were not so important, and setting up an iGaming company has become a lot more expensive than it was in the past. It’s a market that is not easy to get into, and the nature of start-ups coming into the industry has also changed. Many of them are well funded, which is necessary considering that the financial barriers for entry are much higher today. The licence fees are now higher, coming in at

  31. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 45 David gonzi is Managing Partner of Gonzi & Associates, Advocates. David has assisted various companies with obtaining Malta licences for the provision of investment services, financial institutions, online forex/binary options, e-money, payment services, funds, collective investment schemes and remote and land-based gaming. He has a Masters (MA) in Financial Services from the University of Malta, a Masters in IT and Telecoms Law (LLM) from the University College of London, a Doctorate of Law from the University of Malta and a Diploma in Taxation from the Malta Institute of Taxation. change in this respect is happening. While we see a strong commitment from the iGaming industry to bring its practices and procedures in line with the highest AML standards, I believe we can continue to improve Malta’s international reputation if all stakeholders – operators, service providers and government – put a strong emphasis on good governance. BIO from an operational point of view, what are the big challenges today? Banking is one of the biggest challenges when setting up a company as very few banks are open to iGaming companies. We very often work with e-money institutions, which are becoming a real alternative to traditional banks. Market fragmentation is also an issue, and concerns over the many grey markets are growing. There is legal uncertainty in the industry, and risk management has become all the more important. Authorities around the world are now taking a harder stance against individuals of companies that are targeting these markets without appropriate authorisation. From our experience, iGaming companies as well as their executives are less willing to tolerate market risk than they were a few years ago. our partner network. However, today the licence application is just a small part of our work. The legal and compliance landscape is constantly evolving; and we are keeping our clients up to date on all developments. in your opinion, what does the future hold for malta’s gaming industry and what should companies be concentrating on? Embracing new technologies in payments is for sure the right thing to do, and I believe that the recent developments in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sector will give Malta the edge over other jurisdictions. In terms of regulations, it is unfortunate that European countries cannot agree on a common regulatory framework, but I think it is important to place greater focus on the harmonisation of player protection measures and standards in Europe and beyond. n how do you work with companies that are interested in getting a licence in another jurisdiction? First and foremost, we are experts in Maltese law, but throughout the years we have gained a good understanding of other regulatory regimes too. In the UK for example, we are assisting clients through the entire licence application process. The UK Gambling Commission is also very approachable and answers our questions very quickly. In some other markets, we usually assist clients in collecting all the required documentation; if more specialist advice is required, we can also reach out to law firms in

  32. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 46 tReNDs &toPiCs We run through the stories that mattered the most in 2018 and explore what will likely shape the iGaming industry in 2019 and beyond.

  33. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 48 tReNDs &toPiCs COMPLIAnCE From Paper into Practice while in 2018 the chinese were welcoming the year of the Dog, igaming companies were welcoming the year of compliance. C Today, gaming companies are enjoying the attention of a whole host of government agencies, departments authorities, all wanting to ensure that gaming companies are living up to their expectations when it comes to KYC, AML, GDPR, advertising standards, measures to prevent underage gambling, right down to consumer protection agencies scrutinising every line of the terms and conditions. Further adding to the complexity of compliance is the lack of harmonised rules in many of the countries that operators are working in, with each country wanting to add its own flavour to the rules and regulations that companies need to abide by. 2018 will go down as the year in which compliance rocketed up the agenda of every iGaming company, and the impact should not be underestimated. New compliance requirements have heavily impacted the bottom line of many companies and have significantly increased the headcount in compliance departments that have been tasked with moving compliance off paper and into practice. ompliance today is a very broad church; just a few short years ago the gaming regulator was the only actor in town. and regulatory The new normal Regulators around the world are determined to drive crime out of gambling. The industry had grown to such a size that it has become a target for criminal organisations, which in some cases managed to infiltrate and gain control of gaming companies and use them as a money-laundering tool. Measures to combat money laundering and the financing of terrorism had predominantly been the domain of banks and financial service companies. This changed in January 2018 when EU regulators widened the net in terms of the number of sectors that need to implement money- laundering measures, one of them being the iGaming industry. The industry was perhaps slower to realise the actual implications that this would have on their business. While the investment has been significant in terms of time, money and resources to comply with the new regulations, doing nothing has also proven to be an expensive option, with regulators doling out fines ranging from hundreds of thousands of euro to many millions. Enhanced KYC, due diligence and AML checks are now the new normal. Both companies and regulators need to pull on the same rope to ensure that criminals cannot use the industry for nefarious purposes.

  34. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 50 tReNDs &toPiCs The new Kid on the Block Most people probably didn’t know that data protection commissioners even existed before the introduction of GDPR. The new regulations sent shivers done the spine of gaming executives due to the heavy fines (4% of annual global turnover or €20 million, whichever is greater) that could be imposed in case of non-compliance. GDPR has certainly had a major impact on the iGaming industry, bringing about stricter requirements for all companies that process personal data of EU citizens and imposing greater scrutiny on the way operators communicate with their customers. As a tech-driven industry, the iGaming was perhaps further ahead than others in managing the new requirements. From a risk point of view, GDPR had the potential of wiping out iGaming companies’ databases given that customers now have to give their consent. On the positive side, the new regulations have forced companies to be more customer centric by recognising their customers’ preferences of how they want to be contacted and the types of message they want to receive. The implications of getting this wrong can be very significant, but the rewards can be equally valuable. Opt-out rather than Opt-in Responsible gaming is now the number one item on everyone’s agenda. With an estimated 10% of players being at risk of gambling harm and 1% actually developing a gambling addiction, player protection is now too big an issue to be ignored. All major gaming companies are rolling out new initiatives, testing new tools and promoting responsible gambling. Given that gaming companies are operating in a data-rich environment, in which every action by a player can be tracked practically in real time, the industry has no excuse of not being able to detect problem gamblers. Initiatives that are ensuring players have the same level of information available that operators have on a player’s online activity are to be welcomed. To really ensure mass-adoption of new responsible gambling tools, a competitive playing field needs to be established, whereby player protection tools should become ‘opt-out’ rather than purely an ‘opt-in’ measure. Sharing is Caring Player protection is probably the single most important issue that is impacting the awareness initiatives are all well and good, the industry is increasingly being to expand the research capabilities of the industry. Gaming operators, regulators producing research on responsible and problem gambling. Creating a responsible professionals and anyone else interested in researching and conducting studies the right direction. It would send a signal that the industry is serious about its industry and will continue to impact it going forward. While responsible gambling viewed as a public health concern with many believing the time has now come and policy-makers need to champion a “partnership model” for funding and gambling innovation fund to attract scientists, researchers, academics, health on identifying ways of preventing gambling addiction would be a major step in commitment to developing a sustainable industry that does not have a negative impact.

  35. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 51 c-Suite insight Compliance is a Journey, not a Destination “Some 10 years ago many gambling executives and founders thought compliance meant getting a licence. However, the landscape has changed completely. Compliance is not a one-off activity. It is a journey more than an end; it is continuous. Compliance today has to feature in every aspect of business, which means compliance professionals need to understand the law as well as the business. They need to be able to translate the regulations into very practical processes and procedures that can be applied in the day-to-day running of an operation. We cannot underestimate the importance of the compliance function today because regulators can impose heavy fines and shut down operators that do not follow the rules. From a business perspective, the fragmentation of the European market is obviously the biggest challenge. While there are many similarities in regulations, there are some small but important differences. Reputable operators are not after light-touch regulation; all we require is clarity. I think we still have a long way to go until we get to a common European regulatory framework. Many countries only recently introduced regulations; they are still in the process of finding out what works and what does not work. I am confident that they will soon start learning from each other’s best practice, which could lead to a joint approach in regulating the industry. However, it is crucial that they first gain their own experiences in managing a regulated market, then they would be in a better position to agree on common standards.” “Demand for post-licensing services has more than doubled as companies struggle to cope with increased compliance requirements. Some have handled their compliance obligations mostly in-house but most have resorted to external assistance to some degree or another. Pressures on compliance teams have increased, and expertise is not readily available for recruitment, and, as everyone knows, regulators and deadlines don’t wait. Hence outsourcing, in many circumstances, is the only feasible solution available.” Alan Alden Managing Director of Kyte Consultant Ewout Wierda General Counsel of Videoslots

  36. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 52 the Data Protection Commissioner Saviour Cachia, Information and Data Protection Commissioner Malta setting the Record straight The EU’s data protection laws are fast becoming a global standard, but six months after enforcement many iGaming companies still have work to do, says Saviour Cachia, Malta’s Data Protection Commissioner. how would you describe the transition to gDpr, and what have been the main challenges for companies? There has been a lot of hype before the introduction of the GDPR and this could be mainly attributed to the fact that infringements can carry hefty fines of up to 4% of a company’s global turnover or €20 million, whichever is greater. We usually receive around 80 official complaints per year, of which, 75% are related to data protection issues while 25% concern freedom of information requests, which we handle as well. In addition to the official complaints, we deal with enquiries, but I have to say that before the 25th of May this year, we received hundreds of emails enquiring about the new regulation. We noticed a lot of uncertainty. Companies from the iGaming industry particularly enquired about retention timeframes, as they now have to inform the players how long they are going to keep their data. There was also a lot of confusion about newsletter signups. Many Maltese companies asked their clients to verify their newsletter subscriptions, which was not needed if they had already collected valid consent from their subscribers. GDPR, we recorded some 70 data breaches, 15 of which related to iGaming companies. We also notice that proper email encryption is missing, for instance, on laptops that employees take home. This becomes an issue should the laptop be stolen or lost. Beyond the technology aspect, iGaming companies, especially operators, need to look into the relationship they have with their affiliates since, in certain instances, they should assume a level of responsibility for the actions of their affiliates. can you elaborate a bit more on your stance towards affiliate marketing and the affiliate’s role in handling personal data? We know that responsible advertising and affiliate marketing are hot topics in the gaming industry. We already dealt with those issues pre-GDPR. In fact, we had a high-profile case: some 9,000 individuals had complained to the UK Information Commissioner that they had received spam emails from an iGaming affiliate. The affiliate was promoting a gaming company in Malta, hence, the complaints were referred to us. Had this case occurred under the GDPR, it would have been a co-decision making process with the UK Information Commissioner and subject to the administrative fines regime of the GDPR. In this particular case, we ruled that the iGaming company was responsible for the unsolicited emails sent by its affiliate. The case is not yet closed because the gaming company appealed our decision, and we are still awaiting the outcome of the appeal. We are aware that the relationship between an affiliate and an operator can be complex given the industry structure and the fact that there are affiliate networks, affiliates and even sub-affiliates, and we acknowledge that there might be cases where both parties should be responsible from a data privacy point of view, as well as cases where only one of them is responsible. The outcome of the appeal will be important in clarifying and confirming responsibilities further. from your experience with the igaming industry, what are the main shortcomings that you notice within the sector? Notwithstanding having been subject to data protection rules under the Directive 95/46/EC for a good number of years, many companies do not seem to have enhanced their systems with the capabilities to facilitate access to data subjects’ rights, including providing sufficient information to ensure fair and lawful processing. Furthermore, companies might have also overlooked the recent increase in cybersecurity risks and, as a result, are currently striving hard to ensure that the necessary technical measures in their systems are in place to, inter alia, detect and prevent data breaches. In fact, since the onset of

  37. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 53 there are more than 250 igaming companies in malta with international operations. how do you respond to cross-border data protection issues and how do you ensure regulation of companies in malta with an international footprint? GDPR provides for greater co-operation and information sharing between European data protection authorities. Cross-border incidents that substantially affect users from a number of EU member states will generally be investigated by a lead supervisory authority. We are the lead authority if the company has its main establishment in Malta, which is the case for most iGaming companies. But we don’t work in isolation as other authorities can offer their view and recommendations on which actions should be taken, particularly when individuals in their own jurisdiction have been adversely affected by processing operations. We can also ask for assistance during an investigation, for instance Saviour cachia has experience in Systems Development and Data Management activities. He sat on inter-ministerial committees to draft a legal framework to regulate and enable information practices, covering data protection regulations. He articulated and implemented a strategy to set up the Office of the Commissioner and to facilitate compliance within the Public Service. On 16th April 2014, Saviour Cachia took oath of Office as Commissioner for Information and Data Protection. Apart from representing Malta in the Article 29 Working Party/EDPB, he was also the national expert to discuss the proposed data protection framework at DAPIX. in cases where we may lack technical expertise. appropriate, we conduct joint investigations and joint enforcement action. In this scenario, we will enter into a co-decision making process with other supervisory authorities data subjects affected by the violation. “i believe the landscape will further evolve in the coming years.” Where can BIO also representing how do you expect privacy laws to evolve in the coming years? I believe the landscape will further evolve in the coming years. One reason for this is new technology in the form of blockchain, which was not taken into consideration when GDPR was written. The GDPR requirements apply also to blockchain processing. One of the major concerns relates to the concept of a ‘retention period’ given that no data on the blockchain can be deleted. These issues need to be addressed, and they are on the agenda of European Supervisory Authorities. Looking outside of Europe, we also see that Europe’s privacy laws are fast becoming a global standard, with many countries around the world updating their data protection legislation to mirror the GDPR model because they fear their companies and service providers could be shut out of the European market. Do you have a final message that you’d like to share? We feel awareness has increased significantly especially this year in the run up to the GDPR. A lot of companies have done a lot of work to make preparations to comply with the GDPR. However, organisations still need to ramp up their data protection efforts to conform to the GDPR. All European data protection authorities are willing to bite, if required, and we are no exception. However, we certainly prefer to engage and educate people including data controllers and processors. Everyone who has a question can reach out to us, and we are committed to replying within a reasonable timeframe. Sound data protection gives companies the competitive edge in this digital age and data-driven economy. n

  38. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 55 tReNDs &toPiCs MARKETInG the Mixology of Marketing The new Rules Regulators as well as advertising and consumer protection authorities have compliance has become a hot topic over the last year, with companies being adverts that might attract underage gamblers. Governments are bringing in a during live sports events as children might watch them, as well as restrictions gaming companies are taking all of this very seriously and are looking to get Marketing teams now have their own dedicated legal teams that regulations, which makes marketing a very complex task. This has also seen which companies are removing from their portfolios because they cannot #sponsored or #advertising could get an operator in trouble. he industry’s marketing practices are that the frequency of gambling adverts attention of regulators, policy-makers and that the industry has gone a step too far needs to re-asses what it is doing. They more acceptable before politicians make outright. The move by Sky TV to limit the break is a reflection of the changing attitude under siege, but the sector is recognising T on TV and other channels is attracting the politicians. There is a general recognition in the intensity of its marketing and now need to come up with practices that are the decision for them and ban advertising number of adverts to one per commercial of the media industry towards the gambling sector. also been casting an eye on the output of marketing departments. Advertising brought to task for small omissions, right up to fining them heavily for whole suite of laws, including a watershed from dawn till dusk, no advertising on themes and characters that might appeal to minors. On a positive note, ahead of the curve in complying with these regulations. are advising them of what each country requires in terms of advertising certain channels being cut out completely, for instance SMS marketing, control who reads the message. Even a simple tweet that doesn’t include c-Suite insight towards Zero-Risk Marketing “Marketing compliance is one of our top priorities at the moment, especially in certain regulated markets such as the UK, where restrictions and penalties on gambling advert violations are much tougher than ever. I am quite certain that other countries will eventually follow suit. The regulatory landscape is still in flux and changes frequently. Before we launch a new marketing campaign, we are always asking for legal advice. We want to take zero risk. Affiliates are an important driver of traffic for us. I personally think they should be regulated, too. Right now, in some regulated markets, we as an operator are responsible for the actions of affiliates and even sub-affiliates. We check every single affiliate to make sure they comply with the regulations in the markets they operate. If we have any doubt about their integrity, we stop working with them, even if this means we will lose business. We want to be sure that we are always compliant with the regulations. Given the challenges around player acquisition, we are also placing a stronger focus on retention marketing, which is becoming ever more important to create engaged customers.” Ali Atam CMO of Videoslots

  39. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 56 c-Suite insight entering the era of smart Marketing “The general challenge, especially for a PLC, is finding the right balance: balancing long- term versus short-term goals, growth versus profitability, and brand building versus direct marketing. Changes in regulation and some of the underlying market fundamentals in some jurisdictions make forecasting and ROI analysis more difficult, and require a greater reliance on judgment calls. I firmly believe that marketing is becoming ‘smarter’. This trend has already started and will only continue. Great strides in machine learning and AI mean that we can now optimise campaigns to a much greater degree and can reduce human ‘judgement calls’. This also means great personalization, and ultimately, getting closer to the ‘holy grail’ of marketing: right customer, right message, right time, right channel. Netflix is not only adapting the type of content it shows its users, it is also adapting the imagery it uses in the content titles it recommends. They may recommend the same title to two different users but may advertise it with different visuals. I am excited to harness these concepts in our industry and am looking forward to a time when we can offer our customers a fully personalised experience.” Change is in the Air Authorities are not only taking a fresh Operators are now responsible for to them. There was a time when with the referral network than with There is already price pressure from might see companies get more involved customers from affiliates still represents not a channel they can disregard easily internal marketing. Bonuses and free spins have been marketing approach for the last 10 see a curtailing of these elements as a to look at other ways of attracting and look at operators but also at affiliates. anyone who is referring business marketing was more about working the customer. This is about to change. affiliates to up the revenue share, which in direct acquisition. However, buying 50% of gaming companies’ traffic, so it is without investing heavily in their own the cornerstone of the industry’s entire years. The reality is that we will probably marketing tool. The industry will have retaining customers. irina Cornides CMO of Jackpotjoy Group

  40. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 57 tReNDs &toPiCs c-Suite insight Navigating a Challenging landscape “We are pushing hard to improve our product. The iGaming industry has become much more competitive, and if you really want to stand out, you need to offer a top-notch product and a great customer experience. product is not good, you will never get a good return on your marketing investment. On a global scale, we practically use all marketing channels. Affiliates are still an important driver of traffic for us, but we have changed the way we work with them. We put a lot more effort into building the relationship with the affiliate, and the entire process has also become a risk management exercise. There are restrictions in some markets, and for us it is important to find the right marketing mix. Marketing compliance and advertising restrictions have become much stricter, and we want to emerge as a leader in best practice. For instance, there are markets where a certain marketing technique is not illegal, but it might backfire on our reputation. Unless we are more proactive, I think the iGaming industry could follow the same restrictions that other industries face today. We need to be more vocal about our intense efforts in responsible gaming and get the message across that gaming is entertaining as long as it’s within limits.” ronni Hartvig Chief Commercial Officer of Betsson Group If your The Rise of Marketing Tech 2019 will probably be a big year in marketing tech. The advancements in this area have been significant, and the applications now very much allow companies to be more targeted in delivering the right message to the right customer. Artificial intelligence (AI) allows companies to offer highly customised content and to market their products based on player preferences. Many operators are currently exploring ways to grow their market share on the basis of content personalisation engines. Personalisation becomes even more important with the growth of ‘In-Play’ markets and players desire to be able to bet in real-time on in-play events. recommendation and

  41. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 58 tReNDs &toPiCs c-Suite insight let’s learn from Netflix “Improving retention has become a full 360-degree exercise, involving positioning, promotions and much more. Acquisition is simple in comparison. Personalisation Responsible Gambling are the two most important trends affecting our marketing decisions at the moment. Customers expect to be presented with relevant product offerings connected to promotions tailored to their preferences. Netflix and the likes are doing a fantastic job in this area and are raising the bar for what people expect also from other services. As an industry, we are still far behind I would argue. It is equally important to build a unique brand. While a performance- based strategy with a focus on high affinity, like affiliates, can work for start-ups to establish a profitable business, it is important to invest in brand- and awareness building if you want to grow the business into something bigger. Marketing compliance has also gained in importance, and we have tightened up the terms and conditions with our affiliates. We have also implemented a monitoring system with which we can keep on top of the creatives being used by affiliates, and we have even stopped working with a number of affiliates who did not want to comply with our requirements.” customer brand, product, Challenges and Opportunities and The marketing landscape for gaming marketers has never been so complicated, but on the other side there is a clear determination by the industry to pull up its socks and deal with areas of sharp practice. The tools that are being developed have never offered marketers so many possibilities to be innovative in their marketing campaigns and product positioning. Many companies are looking to online retailers and streaming networks in the way they are executing their marketing and personalise their content. Personalisation of content is going to be one of the key differentiators between the winners and the losers. macro Magnus Alebo Managing Director Brands of Mr Green Ltd

  42. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 60 the Brock Pierce, Chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation Gold 2.0 blockchain expert Brock Pierce believes blockchain will be an evolution, and not a revolution, where the old doesn’t have to die for the new to win. why is blockchain important? In the same way the industrial revolution gave America and the West its prosperity, the invention of the internet created all sorts of activity around the world. Blockchain in my view is going to be bigger than the internet itself. The right way to think about the blockchain is that it’s going to replace the entire internet. The internet was the mechanism for democratisation of information. It has given everyone the ability to access information wherever they are in the world on whatever device they choose to use. When the internet was first being developed, we didn’t have the computer processing capability to actually secure the internet. By the time we got the processing ability to implement the necessary cryptography to secure it, the foundation had already been laid. how long do you think it will be before we see this technology in our everyday lives? I’m an optimist, so I’m focused on the positive. I believe it’s going to happen faster than anyone would think, because in the same way that it used to take 10 years to get to a billion users, then five years, then three years… We are soon going to see technology impacting a billion lives in a year. Everything is going faster and faster. cryptocurrencies have been the most visible use of blockchain; does the volatility worry you? Most of the utility we see today has been around speculation. But that speculation is also important. Until you have a sufficient amount of liquidity in the system, most of the other big ideas that we often talk about can’t happen. Americans for many years would come to me and ask “Brock, why would I want bitcoin?” because they’ve read some news story that was sensationalised. I’d be like “You shouldn’t, it’s not for you. You have a piece of plastic in your pocket that allows you to pay for things. You’ve rule of law, you’ve got faith in the system. This isn’t going to change your life”. Is bitcoin a good currency? No, it’s too volatile. People want stability. Bitcoin is a better store of value. Bitcoin is gold 2.0. Precious metals were the primary form of money for 2,000 to 5,000 years. We are still at the beginning of this journey. Look at the internet. In 1995, the internet was only used by criminals, and in 2000, after the bubble crashed, everybody said there is no business to be had on the internet. Big ideas and changes like blockchain and cryptocurrencies take time to happen. We are now just getting into the phase where these systems are going to be easy for everyone to use. what impact do you see blockchain technology having? The world now wants a lot more than just information. Information plays a critical role in the world in which we live, but with an insecure system we cannot do much with it. Blockchain is a security layer amongst other things. It’s going to operate the internet and deliver what I call the new internet. Take the internet that you have right now and add security, trust and transparency, you can now do anything you want with it, you can run elections on it, you can manage financial systems, and the list goes on. The internet has affected everyone’s lives and every business on the planet, this will do the same and so much more. Today, a lot of it is still theoretical because the technology is still a prototype; we are just leaving that phase now and starting to see scalability. The internet wasn’t useful to people until they had an internet browser, search engines, sufficient content, things to buy and stuff to do. It took more than 20 years until the internet was actually useful to people. Things are going much faster now, and I think we are now entering that phase where real impact is going to happen. Do you see blockchain as an evolution or revolution? I aspire for evolution because it’s not chaotic. I want to see change that’s beneficial to everyone. It’s going to happen in one way or another, but let’s do it in the right way if we can. And the right way is inclusiveness. Obviously, innovation is always disruptive,

  43. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 61 but you can include people in disruption, and you can allow the old systems to be a beneficiary of the change. In reality, if you want to affect change thoughtfully, it needs to be inclusive. The old doesn’t have to die for the new to win. If you want to affect change quickly, it has to happen from the inside, it has to be inclusive of everyone. Otherwise, they’re going to fight it. what role do governments have to play in this new decentralised world? Governments and regulators have a big role to play. Regulators move slowly and so should they. That is their job, and most of them are intent on doing their job right, which is to protect consumers. If you want to see a real change in the world, you have to have buy-in from all the major participants. I spend a lot of my time educating governments and regulators because if you want sensible and good regulation, it requires well-informed regulators. If you want governments to make good decisions, need a well-informed government. Governments now competing around the world; recognising the potential of the technology and the benefits it provides to their constituency and their people. They are embracing technology some cases, taking two steps forward and one step back because new “blockchain is democratising the global financial system; every human being on the planet is going to have equal access, and the least fortunate billions of people are going to be the biggest beneficiaries.” you are they are Brock pierce is an internet entrepreneur turned crypto billionaire who is listed as number nine on Forbes Richest People in Cryptocurrency. He is Chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation, Founder and Managing Partner of Blockchain Capital and advisor to many of the most influential players in the blockchain world. BIO the in and, things are always confusing, and it’s hard to know what to do. But you know when it’s right, when you understand that you can do something that can positively impact the lives of others. Who wants to be the person who said no to improving the lives of billions of people? malta has been coined the Blockchain island. what’s your impression of the country? Malta is the equivalent of a start-up nation. It’s one of those countries that embrace change, but Malta is not alone. Malta is demonstrating that it is ahead of the pack. But then if Japan and other large countries were not taking any steps back, there wouldn’t be any room for Malta to jump in. The technology is indisputably game changing and is beyond proven by every major academic and institution. The only question is who will be the winners? It will be determined by those people that choose to be leaders, and Malta is taking a leadership position. who will blockchain technologies impact the most? The status-quo is working for those on top, but I believe the developing world is going to be the biggest beneficiary. What most people don’t realise is that billions of people on this planet have limited or no access to financial tools whatsoever. They don’t have their basic human rights or needs being met to live a prosperous life. Blockchain is democratising the global financial system; every human being on the planet is going to have equal access, and the least fortunate billions of people are going to be the biggest beneficiaries. These applications will raise the poorest out of poverty, or at least give them the tools to do so, which they haven’t had up to now. Today, the only way they can do this is by winning the lottery. what’s the final message you would like to share? Give, share, love. The world needs people now that are doing more than looking after themselves. If you have been blessed with abundance, you’re living a comfortable life, it’s time to give a shit. Give and take go hand in hand, just taking doesn’t make the world sustainable. You need to give more than you take. n

  44. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 64 tReNDs &toPiCs TECHnOLOGY oN the Race is the cEo right up to the board of directors are going to have to get a lot more tech savvy to manage the digital minefield coming down the road. As tech on both sides of the betting equation advances at lighting speed, the race is now on to ensure the one rule of gambling remains true: the house Always wins. The Future of AI While Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) have been permeating many aspects of the gaming industry for a number of years, it is only now that the full potential of the technology is starting to be harnessed. iGaming operators’ drive to automate as many operations as possible to reduce staff costs and provide a more quality service is increasing the adoption and application of this technology. The use of AI in the gaming industry is pretty much unlimited and can in time potentially automate the whole betting cycle. The advances in machine learning techniques now provide the ability for AI to manage large volumes of data and monitor games, price odds, accept bets and settle payments in real time 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The technology allows companies to spot problem gamblers and detect fraudulent behavior automatically. AI has allowed companies to provide players with personalised experiences and to adapt their content on an individual level while delivering it simultaneously across multiple channels, and in so doing, creating a better all-round gaming experience. But much like financial markets have come to learn from high frequency trading, technology is a two way street. These same technologies can be used by players to their advantage through automated betting. Investment in AI is set to soar in the coming years as both operators and players seek to exploit its numerous advantages to make faster and more informed data-driven decisions. “Datacentres are just one aspect of a complex ecosystem comprising the whole managed infrastructure environment, and obviously cloud services. Two trends are more prevalent than others: the demand for managed IT services, and the increasingly hybrid nature of the set-ups being deployed, not just in the data centre but also on the customers’ premises, private or hybrid cloud setups, as well as on public clouds. As BMIT and Kinetix, we are approaching these requirements through a series of initiatives. Gaming customers are interested to understand how these two realities can work seamlessly. To address this we have developed MultiCloud Connect, providing a seamless and easy to set-up dedicated, international connection between infrastructures or systems within one of our data centres to public clouds such as Azure, but also Amazon AWS, Google Cloud and many other global cloud platforms.” Christian Sammut CEO of BMIT

  45. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 65 c-Suite insight Bullish on Blockchain Many hail blockchain technology as the best innovation for the gaming industry since the invention of the internet. Blockchain technology has become one of the hottest topics within the industry, and many operators agree that the blockchain tech revolution has only just begun. More than just a distributed database for bitcoin, the technology’s ability to send, receive and store information has the underlying power to truly disrupt the status quo of the iGaming industry in the years ahead. The implications of decentralised ledger technology mean the industry could address a myriad of transparency issues and completely re-design its business model. While the technology is still in its early days, it still offers a myriad of technological solutions for the iGaming industry. Regulatory compliance, instant payments, identity verification, fraud detection, fund raising through ICOs, smart contracts for affiliates, random number generation verification are just the tip of the iceberg, and we can expect further applications that can be implemented across the entire business operation to come online in 2019 and beyond. Blockchain technology brings new challenges for regulators who are voicing concerns regarding the anonymity and stability of the systems. Many authorities have adopted a ‘wait and see’ approach to distributed ledger technology in order to gain more clarity on the technology, its implications and risks in a gaming environment before they fully analyse what needs to be regulated and how they will go about applying regulation. It is positive that the Malta Gaming Authority will allow the use of DLT in a sandbox environment from January 2019, accepting games that are hosted fully or partially on a blockchain environment. However, for blockchain technology to really take off in the iGaming industry, regulators around the world will need to adopt a positive stance on its use. Many within the industry believe that blockchain’s relevance will only continue to grow in importance. The intelligent adoption of blockchain could well prove to have the biggest non-product impact on iGaming companies in the coming years. A Quantum leap for Ai “Although industries have incorporated Artificial Intelligence with huge success – take Google as a prime example – the iGaming industry is still lacking behind from this perspective. So on the short to medium term, I do envisage that there will be quantum leaps forward in truly harnessing all the potential from this form of disruptive t e c h n o l o g y . One should also expect major developments from the industry in terms of the blockchain technologies. One of the major problems that the online industry has had to face concerns data: gaming results, winnings and payouts have never been available for public scrutiny. The integration of blockchain technology is expected to resolve these and other issues, and has the potential to revolutionise the gambling industry for players, operators as well as regulators. Not only will operators be provided with a much needed decentralised aspect to their operations, but the transparency surrounding blockchain can break the cycle of mistrust that sometimes taints the industry, assuring players fairness each and every time they decide to wager their money.” other entertainment technology “Gaming companies place great emphasis on efficiency, innovation and technology as they continue to grow and mature. We see greater investment and initiatives in the automation of operational processes, thus reducing cost and increasing efficiency. Not surprisingly, understanding customers through business intelligence and data analysis play a critical part in product innovation, personalisation and optimisation. The application of AI to big data and the development of predictive analytics to daily operating environments are areas that we believe will attract interest and investments.” Alan Craig Business Advisory Partner and iGaming Sector Leader of Mazars Malta Alessandro Fried Chairman and CEO of BtoBet

  46. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 66 the influencer Marketing Agency Emilie Tabor, Co-Founder and CMO of IMA Under the influence As iGaming brands are looking for people with strong social media followings to promote their brands, micro-influencers, and not virtual characters, will define the future of influencer marketing, says Emilie Tabor, Co-Founder of Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA). can you tell us a bit about your company and the growth of influencer marketing? It all started in 2010 when Maddie Raedts and I were building up a fashion-inspired platform called Fashiolista. We started using bloggers to reach a wider audience for the products on our platform. Within no time our platform had three million unique users, and other fashion brands started contacting us to see how they can use our network. This is when we realised that we were onto something big. We then launched Fashiolista Agency, helping fashion brands to communicate effectively through influencers. The market grew exponentially, and we eventually sold Fashiolista and founded the Influencer Marketing Agency (IMA). Today, we advise brands from all sectors, ranging from food, travel and lifestyle to fintech, crypto and gaming, and we have a network of 35,000 influencers. The company has grown to around 100 people, including a team of in-house developers designing tools that analyse and measure influencers, their followers as well as the success of our campaigns. it is not all that long since brands thought that they would need to build a relationship with a celebrity to be successful. Does this still hold true? While in the industry’s early days a large following was everything, we have now seen the rise of the micro-influencer. A micro-influencer might have 500,000 followers, instead of 5 million, but those 500,000 might be much more of interest to a brand if they want to target a niche audience. Micro-influencers have audiences that are more targeted and people find them more trustworthy. Their content is often more personalised and authentic, which results in higher engagement. In fact, micro- influences have an engagement rate – the percentage of likes, shares or comments to a post – that is 65% higher than those of traditional influencers. what is a good engagement rate and how much does an influencer cost? A post of an influencer with 3 million followers on average reaches 10 million impressions because some people might see the content multiple times. But the number of people that actually interact with the content will be much lower. It is not unusual that the engagement rate is between 1% and 3%. For our campaigns, we target an engagement rate of 5% to 10%. Influencers typically receive between €10 and €30 for every 1,000 interactions. how has the industry evolved in recent years and what role does your agency play in developing an influencer marketing strategy? In 2010, influencer marketing only worked via blogs. Today blogs hardly work anymore. Depending on the sector, we are looking at other platforms such as Facebook and Instagram for travel, and Youtube and Twitch for gaming. Overall, I would say that the industry has become a lot more transparent when it comes to paid contributions. Influencers remain credible when only one in four posts is sponsored, and they also need to properly disclose that. For our clients, we work on a fully tailored content strategy. We create a full production schedule so that the brand partners know exactly what happens and when. The process is quite scripted, not in terms of content creation but in terms of the timing. influencer marketing is already utilised by many gaming brands. what should gaming companies pay attention to when working with influencers? Gaming is the only sector with more male than female influencers, and compared to other industries, micro-influencers in the gaming sector have a larger following than micro-influencers in other industries. When it comes to targeting gamers, one has to devise a rock solid strategy. Gamers have a very short attention span, and you need to get their attention within the first six seconds otherwise you lose them.

  47. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 67 “Gamers have a very short attention span, and you need to get their attention within the first six seconds otherwise you lose them.” what are the most common mistakes? Most brands make the mistake that they want to exercise a certain level of control over the influencer. Brands need to trust that their influencers know what their audiences want. Influencer marketing might also not be effective if brands are working with the wrong influencer they haven’t done their data research properly. Companies need to look at an influencers’ engagement rate and their growth rate while making sure that the influencer does not work with any competitors. because Emilie tabor has nearly a decade of experience in influencer marketing and co-founded IMA at the age of 24. Born in Arnhem and of dual Dutch and American nationality, she oversees the agency’s client relationships and global profile in her role as CMO and Founder. Throughout her career, she has secured many partnerships with leading brands including NIVEA, Tommy Hilfiger, Unilever and Estée Lauder. Emilie oversees client relationships and the daily management of IMA, whilst broadening global operations such as the expansion of IMA offices into new markets. Emilie was recently featured on Forbes’ 2017 30 under 30 Europe: Media list, alongside fellow co-founder Maddie Raedts. She was also mentioned in The Drum 2017 ‘50 under 30’ list. BIO It is also important to be transparent when it comes to paid contributions, which need to be marked with #ad or #sponsored. Brands also need to pay attention to special advertising guidelines. We work with a lot of alcohol brands, where 80% of the followers of an influencer have to be over 18 years, otherwise we are not allowed to work with that influencer. We have a similar situation when it comes to gaming and gambling. Technology plays an important role in this regard, and today there are tools that allow us to measure the age of the followers. Brands are now creating virtual influencers. is this a segment that will grow? I don’t believe that virtual influencers are the future. They are simply not real and people cannot identify themselves with them. I believe it’s the authentic, human-to-human reviews that resonate with followers. n

  48. GAMINGmalta 2019 EDITION 69 tReNDs &toPiCs c-Suite insight evolving the User experience The Automated Player Account KYC platforms are set to make a big impact on the on- boarding process of iGaming operators in the coming years. One of the great breakout products of the past year has been the no account casino, using a BankID to verify and authenticate player account opening information. This development has heralded the expectations of players to be able to instantly open an account, deposit funds and withdraw winnings without having to go through a lengthy account authentication process of registering, verifying account information, scanning utility bills and uploading passports, which have left players frustrated with their on-boarding experience. New blockchain identity platforms are now offering operators and players a much more efficient and effective way to automate the account opening process. The platforms allow operators to perform the same KYC checks as they are currently doing manually in a fast, reliable and regulatory compliant manner. While the BankID may have broken the ground on this development, it is certainly one development operators will be keen to embrace as they push for greater automation of compliance functions and fulfilling players’ quest for instant entertainment. “The iGaming Product experience is trending towards becoming more and more bespoke to the customer. World leaders such as Google, Facebook and Amazon are setting the standard in terms of user experience, and, as a result, customers expect the same high quality design and ease of usability from all their web interactions. It becomes extremely important to invest in these areas, and especially to stay on the cutting edge of website design and development. Technology is moving at a screaming pace; cutting-edge technology today already looks and feels old and outdated in just six months. Looking to the future, I believe virtual reality and augmented reality will take the user experience to a whole new level. Artificial Intelligence will gain a lot more traction overall, and help us in areas such as responsible gaming, fraud, customer service, security, and operational stability. In terms of the backend, new technologies have enabled us to greatly simplify our architecture, while at the same time provide portability and agility. We are constantly working on improving our systems, and dealing with legacy. Some of our challenges include the large variation of technical requirements associated with each different regulated jurisdiction, so we need systems that can easily be tweaked and adapted to comply with new requirements. Bad architecture can be very costly, especially from a maintenance point of view, and it is very important to get it right. Cyber security is very important as attacks constantly increase in sophistication, for example DDoS Layer 7. Having a strong security focus for our systems and especially our customer data is imperative. Partnering with the right industry experts in security is key to sustainable protection.” “The Maltese government is attempting to regulate the blockchain/DLT virtual environment in a holistic manner but wants to ensure that the regulation is strict and secure. Malta’s reputation has to be protected at all costs. New opportunities are being created for service providers who are willing to engage in these new technologies. We now have to wait and see how the industry reacts to the regulatory framework. There is definitely a lot of interest, and if expectations are met we can expect another boom similar to the remote gaming one.” George Adamson Acting Chief Technology Officer of Betsson Group Trevor Axiak Director and Co-Founder of Contact Advisory Services

  49. EXPERTISE TO MEET ALL YOUR BUSINESS NEEDS e-Volve Consultancy Limited provides a range of corporate services, offering experience and expertise to meet all your business needs when relocating or establishing your business in Malta. We offer a comprehensive licensing support service to remote gaming operators which which want to set up shop in Malta. We can assist you from the inception of your business plan through to the licensing and implementation of the same. Our executives have, over the past years, garnered experience in this sector making them well placed to guide you th through the myriad of technical, financial and practical issues involved in the successful launching of a remote business based in Malta. e-Volve Consultancy Ltd +356 21 228 535 info@evolvemalta.com www.evolvemalta.com

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