Launches and sign-ups 24 April 2013
Launches and sign-ups from the egaming industry in the last seven days (11 April to 17 April 2013)
GameAccount and Foxwoods ink US online partnership
Deal features B2B component allowing Foxwoods owner to offer online gaming platform to US casino operators
The owners of Foxwoods Resort Casino have entered into a partnership with software supplier GameAccount Network to launch B2B and B2C online gaming services in the US market.
The agreement announced on Monday will see Foxwoods owners, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation (MPTN), initially launch a freeplay offering on a Foxwoods-branded site using GameAccount Network’s gaming platform and integrated content. This will be followed by real-money gambling when regulation permits.
GameAccount and MPTN will also collaborate to provide turnkey B2B solutions to other gaming operators throughout the US initially on a freeplay basis, but with the ability to scale up to real-money when regulation permits. The deal will look to build on MPTN’s “leadership role in the US gaming market” to establish the strategic partnership as a key supplier in the regulated US market.
“The Mashantucket Pequot Tribe has long been a leader in brick and mortar casino operations, and with the help of GameAccount we aim to take the same leadership position in regulated online gaming in the US,” Rodney Butler, Mashantucket Pequot Tribal chairman, said. “Our shared vision unites GameAccount’s technical capabilities with our Foxwoods brand and our leadership in casino management.”
GameAccount’s gaming platform comprises skill, casino and mobile games and features third-party content from the likes of IGT and SHFL, with a focus on online versions of popular land-based casino games. It also features an automatic upgrade path for real-money internet gaming.
iPoker to launch mobile offering “within weeks”
Playtech is just weeks away from launching a mobile offering for selected sites on its iPoker network, the software provider has announced.
The mobile offering – which includes native iOS platforms as well as an HTML5 release – will be rolled out with “selected licensees” on the provider’s dot.com and dot.fr networks. A spokesperson for Playtech was unable to confirm which sites will be the first to offer mobile play.
The announcement comes after iPoker introduced anonymous tables last week, with the network currently ranked second for cash game traffic according to Pokerscout. Recent licensees to join the French-facing network include Betclic Everest and Unibet, with the Betclic and Everest brands also sitting on the dot.com network alongside the likes of bet365, Paddy Power and Poker770.
Mobile play will be made available across the iPoker.es network, which iPoker operations manager Asaf Younger said “presents a real growth potential” in a recent interview with eGaming Review, at a later date. A dot.it mobile offering will also be “gradually added” according to Playtech head of poker Roei Gavish.
Playtech is also preparing wider software changes, including the introduction of shootout and heads-up tournaments, as part of the release of what it refers to as ‘iPoker 13.1’.
Seven days in launches and sign-ups:
Bede Gaming licensee first to launch online Bally slots
Bede Gaming licensee IPS Limited has become the first egaming operator to launch real-money online slots from Bally Technologies.
IPS, which is licensed in Alderney, has launched three five-reel slot titles on its BetUK and pinkcasino.co.uk brands. Bede Gaming chief executive Michael Brady (pictured), who set up the company with Joe Saumarez Smith and Dan Smyth after leaving bwin.party last year, described being first to market with Bally Games as “a massive achievement”.
“IPS Limited going live with Bally Games so soon after our partnership announcement is a great opportunity for us to showcase to the gaming industry our ability to quickly integrate games into our platform and seamlessly integrate into our operator’s platforms,” he explained.
Jackpot Party launches in Belgium
Williams Interactive has ‘hard launched’ its belgian online casino site, JackpotParty.be, through a partnership with Group Partouche, the largest land-based casino operator in Belgium and France.
The regulated site is backed with a major TV advertising campaign and is the first full B2B launch using Williams Interactive’s managed services gaming solution. Orrin J. Edidin, President of WMS Industries and CEO and President of Williams Interactive LLC, said the site was “tailored to the Belgian player”, with localised payment solutions and multi-lingual support.
“As our first iGaming B2B execution, the launch of JackpotParty.be in association with Groupe Partouche is an important milestone in the execution of our online gaming strategy and expansion plans,” Edidin said.
Media Corp announces GoalMillions launch
Media Corp will launch its football-based skill game GoalMillions today following a successful beta trial. The game features two variants, giving players the chance to win a £1m jackpot. In the Quick Fire game, the player who successfully picks the six teams to score first wins, while Golden Goals sees the person to correctly predict the six to score the last goal in their games scoop the prize.
Media Corp CEO Phil Jackson described the launch as “a positive step forward” for the business after it decided to “dispose of its non-core assets” including advertising business Eyeconomy.
INTRALOT Italia, a subsidiary of INTRALOT Group in Italy, has launched its new i-Bingo Platform in Italy. Commenting on the new launch, Mr. Bruno Lener, Managing Director of INTRALOT Italia Interactive Business Unit, said: “The iCasino products and the new i-Bingo Platform complement a number of relevant initiatives that will be unveiled during the course of the next couple of months, to include further optimization and additional services to our players. A key pillar of growth is expected to be the mobile channel planned for the second half of the current year.”
Jack Gold Casino has launched of four new slot games from the Microgaming Quickfire platform following a deal struck by parent company Locus Gaming. Among the games in the first release are Lara Croft: Tomb RaiderTM, Thunderstruck, Agent Jane Blonde and Avalon, with video poker game Jacks or Better to follow shortly. Locus Gaming CEO Ed Andrewes said: “We are particularly excited about the development of the HTML 5 range specifically for mobile and tablet devices and will be watching that with interest in the coming months.”
Jumio, the ID document validation firm, has gone live inside Yobetit’s player account creation process. Jumio’s ID document verification service called Netverify is integrated into the Yobetit site so that Yobetit’s customers simply have to hold up their ID document to their webcam to be instantly verified for both customer identity and customer age. Netverify uses computer vision technology to scan and validate passports, ID cards and driving licences from over 60 countries.
Jack Media and MC&C have formally united under the MC&C banner, meaning MC&C is now the 4th largest independent UK media agency. Emmie Faust, founding partner of Jack Media joins the MC&C board with immediate effect. Mike Colling, MD of MC&C said: “Jack is a rare asset: a digital team, like us, focused solely on creating profitable sustainable long term growth for clients. They give us global digital reach and a talent pool that compliments and mirrors our own. “
Sports betting and casino operator Tipico, has selected Paris-based Dictao as its hosting partner and provider of the digital vault to meet the requirements described in the Schleswig-Holstein regulations. Dictao, a security software company and service provider for egaming operators, has developed a core IT component that ensures Tipico’s compliance with these IT requirements. The two firms also worked together on Tipico’s Danish licence.
Topjack Games has added Cake Poker to its list of partners this week, with a suite of Topjack mega jackpot games available on the Cake Poker brand and due to be released across all network brands in the coming weeks. Topjack CEO Nick Lynes said: “In addition to playing for $£â¬4M jackpots with real money, Cake players can use their loyalty points to play the jackpot games.”