People news 13 November 2014
The latest people news from the egaming industry in the last seven days (7 November to 13 November 2014)
Gala Coral merges online sportsbook and gaming teams
Coral Interactive MD John O’Reilly stands down as Gala Coral Group COO Andy Hornby takes reins of combined Gala and Coral Interactive divisions
Gala Coral has announced a major restructuring of its online business after deciding to merge the management teams of its Gala Interactive and Coral Interactive Gibraltar-based businesses.
The move will see Coral Interactive managing director John O’Reilly stand down from his role with Gala Coral Group chief operating officer Andy Hornby set to take charge of the combined division alongside his responsibility for Coral’s retail estate.
The decision comes after Gala Interactive managing director Per Widerstrom in September announced he was to leave the firm before the year’s end in order to take up the positions of chairman and chief executive at Central European operator Fortuna Entertainment. The restructuring is not expected to hasten Widerstrom’s departure.
According to Gala Coral, the changes mark a “new phase of development for the business” with the combined interactive division to work more closely with retail in order to perfect its multi-channel offer.
BetVictor appoints Andreas Meinrad as new CEO
BetVictor has hired bwin.party’s former chief commercial officer Andreas Meinrad as its new chief executive, bringing to an end the operator’s six-month-long search for a successor to Michael Carlton.
BetVictor staff were informed of the appointment this week, however, Meinrad will not join the firm until 1 February.
In August, eGR revealed BetVictor had appointed London-based headhunter Rosemary Collins to help fill a position vacated by Carlton after owner Michael Tabor assumed full control of the firm in May.
Seven days in people news:
Betdigital appoints Professor Walter Patterson to compliance role
Betdigital has appointed government and technical consultant Professor Walter Patterson to ensure compliance with regulatory frameworks across jurisdictions in which the company operates.
His work for various government bodies is internationally focused and includes analysis of performance data in educational systems.
Betdigital’s newest recruit also holds an Honours degree in Mathematics and Statistics and a Masters in Operational Research. His expertise in statistical process control has been called on by clients such as IBM, ICI, Polaroid and 3M.
888 restructures “underperforming” social gaming arm
888’s social gaming CTO Raz Bar Haim has left the operator as part of a broader restructuring of its “underperforming” social gaming business.
The operator has yet to name a replacement for Bar Haim, who left last month to become CTO at digital marketing firm Marimedia, but said it remained committed to improving the performance of it social arm.
Speaking to eGR, 888 COO Itai Frieberger praised Bar Haim’s work during his two-year tenure while also adding that wider changes would now be made to revive its Israel-based social business.
Boylesports’ Gibraltar move inches closer
Boylesports has confirmed it plans to set up an operational hub in Gibraltar and will meet with authorities from the peninsula later this week in order to finalise details of the move.
Last month, eGR revealed the Irish operator was considering relocating and consolidating its respective Isle of Man and Alderney-licensed sportsbook and gaming teams to Gibraltar following a review of its current setup.
And the move is expected to inch closer on Wednesday with the firm due to hold further talks with Gibraltarian authorities to finalise details of the transfer and secure a Gibraltar Gambling Commissioner licence.
New BetVictor CEO to face German and structural challenges
BetVictor’s in-coming chief executive Andreas Meinrad will need to address the operator’s complex management structure and quickly appease Germany’s licensing authorities, according to former employees of the firm.
Speaking to eGR following yesterday’s appointment of former bwin.party chief commercial officer Meinrad, a number of ex-BetVictor and bwin.party staffers detailed the task at hand for Michael Carlton’s successor.
And on top of the agenda is an apparent need to simplify a management structure that has been described as “convoluted” and “a mess” due to unnecessary layers of hierarchy and bureaucracy.
Dutch tax rate will cost “hundreds of jobs”
The decision to implement a dual tax rate for online and offline gambling products in the Netherlands could cost the machine gaming industry “hundreds of jobs”, a trade association for land based slot machines has warned.
The OF Slots Industry Organisation said it plans to issue state secretary of justice Fred Teeven with a petition signed by members of the land-based gaming industry protesting against the country’s remote gambling bill and argue the split tax rate would create an “uneven playing field”.
The organisation has also questioned the feasibility of ensuring land-based operators adhere to same player registration and identification measures as online firms, stating it to be “not only unjust, but [will] also lead to an excessive investment burden”.
GameAccount hires Harris Hagan lawyer for in-house role
GameAccount Network has appointed Harris Hagan partner Tom Grant to the position of head of legal with immediate effect as part of the B2B software supplier’s plans to expand its global reach.
Gaming and commercial lawyer Grant, who trained with law firm Nabarro, joined Harris Hagan in 2012 following seven years as senior in-house counsel with The Rank Group.
He joins GameAccount after having represented the London-listed company on a number of recent occasions and impressed CEO Dermot Smurfit, who described the hire as a “positive step” in its expansion strategy.