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A new era for Pixel Federation: CEO moves across the organisation to take the Creative Lead

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An outstanding year of growth for Slovakian based game development studio Pixel Federation, has led to impressive investment back into the company and a forward-thinking restructuring. After over a decade as CEO, Simon Sicko now steps away from directing and into a newly defined creative role. In turn, the leadership of Pixel Federation will enter a new era of team management. Taking on the challenge of leading the Research and Development team, which he himself launched in 2019, Simon is determined to get back to his roots with conceptualising new innovations within the development process.

“After many years as CEO, representing the company, I’ve grown from the ground up, I’ve found myself craving a move to roll up my sleeves and immerse myself back into the creative process.” said Sicko. “With a fantastic team at my disposal, I can get back to the roots of Pixel Federation creation and trust in the brilliant leadership to continue progressing Pixel; we are already working on a new ‘Build Tycoon’ game which we can’t wait to launch very soon.’

As an innovative, pioneering and successful CEO, Simon’s leadership saw the company grow from a small group of game enthusiasts to one of the biggest free-to-play mobile game development studios in Central Europe. Starting as just 4 founders, and a dog, in a leaky warehouse, to now boasting more than 230 employees, the company reached a cumulative turnover of more than €50 million for the year March 2020 – March 2021. However, determined not to let its success spill over into its ideology, Pixel Federation is turning its revenue inwards and focusing on games for its incredibly dedicated community, building the creative processes and research and development teams further: all in the name of creating games, from players to players.

Simon’s move away from CEO will not leave Pixel Federation lacking stability: in fact the company’s growth has meant a shift towards a multi-person management team at the top tier. Pixel Federation’s strong belief that community and transparency are the key to success will now be reflected all the way through the company, with three of the current top managers working together to lead the studio collaboratively. This new era of leadership comes with an ambition to increase the company’s performance twofold within just a few years, and the experience and motivation of the new leadership team will strive to do just that. With excellent financial and cultural conditions to drive change at the moment, Pixel Federation is expected to go from strength to strength as the year continues.

Awarded various prizes during his time as CEO, including The Most Respected CEO in Slovakia of 2020, Simon’s true passion for game creation has remained strong. With the ethos of community and dedication that Pixel Federation upholds at the core, Simon’s vision now is to dedicate his time to innovation and creative development. His first step will be immersing himself in building a new hit game that could earn €20 million annually in revenue for Pixel Federation. Leading the graphics teams, Simon will draw on his experience as an architect and his detailed eye for aesthetics to pave the way forward for Pixel Federation game designs.

‘I am looking forward to the challenge of delving deep into the culture of Pixel Federation with a small team and driving the creative process again. I have every faith and trust in the new management team and I am excited to continue bringing value to a company I believe has so much potential in the future of game development.’ concludes Simon, former CEO.

With a number of games in development for launch later this year, Pixel Federation will continue going from strength to strength, driving change in the gaming world and beyond.

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Central Europe

Turnover of Legal Gambling Market in Hungary Increases

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The Regulated Activities Supervisory Authority (SZTFH) has announced that the turnover of the legal gambling market in Hungary has increased.

The SZTFH and its predecessor have been blocking illegal gambling websites since 2014, preventing them from being accessible to Hungarian players. Thanks to the more than two thousand blockings ordered so far in 2024 and 2025, the traffic and turnover of the legal market is sharply increasing compared to the total market, which can be considered a significant improvement compared to the illegal market presence in previous years.

One of the main goals of the SZTFH is to take action against websites offering illegal online gambling that are not licensed in Hungary and the prohibited advertising sites that promote them, and to whitewash the Hungarian online gambling market. In the past two years, several legislative changes have come into force that have resulted in the acceleration and extension of the blocking procedure to advertising and contributing sites, and have created the opportunity to track and immediately block illegal sites that are constantly jumping to new domain names every day in order to evade the authority’s measures. Thanks to the change in the legal environment and the intensive action of the Authority, the number of visits to illegal gambling sites has now decreased significantly.

In the case of services offered by organisers who are not licensed to organise gambling in Hungary, the Authority has no possibility to oblige the gambling organiser to comply with the guarantee rules protecting the interests of the players, and the claim for the payment of the prize cannot be enforced before a Hungarian court. Gambling organisers who are not licensed by the Authority also violate the interests of the Hungarian State in the economic activity of organising and operating gambling. In addition to the above, by not joining the player protection register kept by the Authority, which prevents players who have been excluded from gambling voluntarily or by a court from participating in gambling, they also constitute an obstacle to the effective enforcement of goals related to player protection.

The SZTFH is committed to the elimination of illegal gambling and the whitening and increasing the competitiveness of the Hungarian gambling market in order to protect the interests of Hungarian players, and therefore will continue its intensive blocking activities with great effort and the use of innovative solutions in the future. Players can find out about the gambling organizers licensed in Hungary and the illegal sites blocked by the Authority on the Authority’s website.

The post Turnover of Legal Gambling Market in Hungary Increases appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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German Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär to open gamescom 2025

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Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär will take part in the official opening of gamescom on 20 August. This was announced today by Koelnmesse and game – The German Games Industry Association. The minister responsible for computer and video games in the German government will give a welcoming address at the opening of the world’s largest games event. Hendrik Wüst, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, has also already been confirmed for the opening. During a tour of gamescom, they and other political guests of honour will gain an impression of the latest developments and trends in the games industry.

gamescom is the world’s largest and leading event for computer and video games. It brings together the international gaming community and entire games industry in a unique way, both in person in Cologne and digitally. gamescom 2025 will take place from August 20 to 24. The event will kick off on August 19, 2025 with gamescom Opening Night Live. gamescom is jointly organized by Koelnmesse and game – The German Games Industry Association.

The post German Federal Research Minister Dorothee Bär to open gamescom 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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FC Bayern and Betano Sign Partnership Agreement

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Premium Online Sports Betting and Gaming Brand Betano Joins Forces with Football Giant FC Bayern in a Landmark Three-Year Agreement

FC Bayern, the 34-time champions of Germany and six-time champions of Europe, has entered a three-year partnership with Betano, the leading international online sports betting and gaming brand owned by Kaizen Gaming. This strategic alliance designates Betano as an Official Partner of FC Bayern starting from the 2025-26 season and extending until the 2027-28 season.

Michael Diederich, FC Bayern Executive Vice Chairman commented: “We are delighted to have Betano as a new Official Partner of FC Bayern. Betano stands out as a global market leader in its field – highly innovative and always pushing forward – qualities that we hold in high regard and also claim for ourselves. With Betano at our side we have gained another reliable partner to help us reach our growth objectives and continue to strengthen our innovative edge”.

George Daskalakis, Kaizen Gaming CEO, stated: “Today marks an exciting new chapter for Kaizen Gaming and Betano, as we proudly join forces with FC Bayern. When we first set out on our journey, we could only dream of partnering with one of the most iconic clubs in world football. They stand at the top of the game and this partnership reflects just how far we have come as a company, with Betano now recognized among the top online gaming and betting brands worldwide”.

Julio Iglesias, Kaizen Gaming Chief Commercial Officer added: “Germany has always been one of the most important markets for us, the second where Betano ever launched. Now, we are announcing our biggest partnership in the country and we double down on our commitment to creating innovative, safe and responsible gaming experiences for German fans. Of course, FC Bayern exceeds the borders of Germany, with millions of fans across the world. As Betano expands its international footprint, this partnership empowers us to connect with people globally”.

The post FC Bayern and Betano Sign Partnership Agreement appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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