Central Europe
Political guests of honour open gamescom 2021
Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. saw the official kick-off: gamescom 2021 was opened by the political guests of honour. The coronavirus pandemic means that this year’s gamescom is being held entirely online, as was last year’s. The official political opening ceremony was also live-streamed. The show lasted around half an hour and was presented from the studio by TV host Katrin Neumann. Ms Neumann spoke to Felix Falk, the Managing Director of game – the German Games Industry Association, which is a joint organiser of gamescom, in between the welcome addresses from the political guests of honour. These included Andreas Scheuer, Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure; Dorothee Bär, Minister of State for Digitalisation; Armin Laschet, Minister-President of the federal state of North-Rhine Westphalia; as well as Henriette Reker, the Mayor of Cologne and Chairwoman of the Koelnmesse Supervisory Board, and COO of Koelnmesse Oliver Frese. In their welcome addresses, the political guests of honour embraced this year’s motto of ‘Games: The New Normal’ as they described the huge potential of games for Germany and explained the need to leverage this even further in future. Despite the extensive online programme of gamescom, the hope was expressed that next year could again be celebrated in Cologne with hundreds of thousands of visitors.
The video of the gamescom 2021 political opening ceremony can be watched on demand on the content hub ‘gamescom now’: now.gamescom.global
Andreas Scheuer, Federal Minister of Transport and Digital Infrastructure: ‘As the world’s biggest games event, gamescom is a valuable showcase. We want to build on that and make up lost ground in future as a development location on the international stage. Last year, at this very place, I gave the green light for the second phase of our games funding programme. Since then, the German government has provided millions of euros to support development studios in the games industry. That’s a real breakthrough. As things stand today, funding of 40 million euros has been approved – and we’re looking forward to receiving more applications. As well as the financial aspect, we have also overhauled our strategy and pooled the expertise to form a dedicated games unit within our Ministry. I am a firm believer that we can benefit from the innovative power of the games industry in many areas – be that the education sector, industry and science or simply in our leisure time.’
Dorothee Bär, Minister of State for Digitalisation within the federal government: ‘The motto of gamescom 2021 sums it up: games are the new normal. They have helped us stay in touch with friends and family during the coronavirus phase. Thank goodness we had games during this period! But games aren’t just the new normal as an entertainment medium, but also in the business, medical and education sectors. For example, increasing numbers of companies are “gamifying” their products– from fitness apps through cars up to videoconferencing tools. The deployment of games in education is particularly exciting: the motivation to play has a direct effect on learning success, not only for children, but also in further education and professional development. Games thus harbour immense innovative power that is demonstrated not least by the digital gamescom itself, and we need to exploit this potential even more rigorously. And that’s why we want to give the games sector in Germany even more support to become one of the best locations in the world. With the new games strategy, we have created an excellent basis for the coming years.’
Armin Laschet, Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia: ‘gamescom is a shining example of the strong social component of computer and video games, which has helped many people around the world through the coronavirus pandemic. This form of community is a fundamental building block of our society. The games industry also has enormous economic and social potential – both in the classical development of games and also beyond. The best example of this is in the field of digital education: using fun as a way of learning is part of human nature, which is why we need to be better at exploiting the available opportunities and not be afraid of blazing new trails. Here, too, the games industry will play an important role in future. Because of this huge potential, we need to keep working to improve the framework conditions for the games industry. For that reason, in North Rhine-Westphalia we have set ourselves the goal of wanting to become Germany’s top location for computer and video games some years ago. We also need this clear objective at national level in Germany so we can be the best among the international competition.’
Felix Falk, Managing Director of game – the German Games Industry Association, the joint organiser of gamescom, says: ‘gamescom is finally getting started with days full of announcements, news and shows that the fans are eagerly awaiting. Along with our partners, we are creating an event where millions of players around the world will again be able to celebrate the best games out there. However, at the same time, with the German parliamentary elections on the horizon, we don’t just want to talk about games at this gamescom, but also about what is the right games and digital policy for Germany. For that reason, I am especially pleased that we will be welcoming numerous top politicians not only during the political opening ceremony, but also at the Debatt(l)e Royale on Friday. Our intention with such formats is to give the younger generation above all an adequate opportunity to form an opinion, and to send out a clear message: go out and vote!’
Henriette Reker, mayor of the City of Cologne and chairwoman of the supervisory board of Koelnmesse: ‘I am really enthusiastic about what the entire Koelnmesse, the gamescom team, the association game and all partners created together for the second time in a row. This is exactly the innovative spirit and courage we need to move forward as a society in these challenging times. At the same time, I can hardly wait to see the numerous gamers back in town. First, because they always bring a very special flair with them and the whole city is infected by their enthusiasm. Second, because Cologne benefits from gamescom and its fans on many levels: Gastronomy, hotels and retail are just a few of the sectors that get an enormous boost during trade fair times.’
Oliver Frese, COO of Koelnmesse: ‘For the second year in a row, gamescom 2021 will take place purely digitally. But of course we have not been idle since last year and have made huge progress with gamescom 2021 and its digital offerings! Whether it’s our shows, our content hub gamescom now, or community activities like gamescom EPIX – everywhere we’ve taken advantage of the experiences of the last year and a half and further improved our program. Because our objective is clear: We want to be in pole position not only in the trade fair business in general, but also with regard to digital events in the future!’
For the 21st time, the European Brand Institute has presented the most valuable and sustainable brand companies in Austria. The international gaming technology group with more than 25,300 employees worldwide and activities in more than 120 countries secured the top positions in both the EBI’s Brand Value and Sustainable Brand Ranking.
With a brand value increase by +8.7% to EUR 3.745 billion, NOVOMATIC took an excellent second place in the brand value study and also recorded the largest increase in value within one year among the country’s top 10. Once again this year, only Red Bull ranks ahead of the Lower Austrian global player.
Significant factors for the brand value assessment were not only the high level of innovation, but also the international expansion course, sales growth and the comprehensive corporate responsibility and ESG programme, which is confirmed by international ESG rating agencies. Against this background, NOVOMATIC was also able to impress in the Sustainable Brand Ranking, in which the company took third place for the first time. This ranking underlines NOVOMATIC’s contribution to sustainable economic development in Austria.
“The renewed top position in the Brand Value Ranking 2024 is confirmation of the long-term success of our global brand strategy, which has enabled us to sustainably consolidate our leading position on the international markets. The rise to third place in the Sustainable Brand Ranking is particularly pleasing and shows that we are also setting new standards in the area of social and ecological responsibility with our comprehensive ESG commitment,” said NOVOMATIC Executive Board Member Stefan Krenn.
The Austrian Brand Value Study, which is based on the annual “trend-TOP500 of Austria’s top-selling companies” and identifies those Austrian corporate brands with more than 45% of their shares in Austrian hands, evaluated a total of 180 Austrian brand companies from 16 sectors in 2024. The brand value is determined in accordance with the international standards ISO 10668 and ISO 2067.
The top rankings in the Austrian Brand Value Study and in the Sustainable Brand Ranking confirm NOVOMATIC’s position as one of Austria’s leading brand companies. The gaming technology group is thus once again setting a strong example for sustainable business practices.
The post NOVOMATIC is Austria’s Second Most Valuable Brand Company appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Central Europe
Bragg Gaming Continues Global Expansion, Powers Kingsbet.cz Launch with an End-to-End iGaming Solution
Bragg Gaming Group has launched its full turnkey solution with Czech land-based casino operator Kings Entertainment A.S. (Kings). Kings will operate their online business in the Czech Republic under the brand Kingsbet.
Under the terms of the agreement signed between the two parties, Bragg will provide Kingsbet with Player Account Management (PAM) technology, exclusive content from Bragg studios, aggregated online casino content via the Bragg HUB and a fully localised sportsbook integration in partnership with Altenar.
Bragg provides Kingsbet with an all-in-one solution with powerful automation and marketing tools to seamlessly run its casino and sportsbook operations.
Bragg’s FUZE player engagement toolset for casino and sportsbook is also included, helping boost acquisition, conversion and retention with tools such as Free rounds, Missions, Quests, Journeys, Recommendation engine and Jackpots.
Kingsbet will additionally be supported by managed marketing and operational services delivered by Bragg.
The agreement and subsequent launch is the latest in a string of deals that Bragg has struck to provide its technology solutions to operators across global regulated iGaming markets, and is the Company’s second PAM and turnkey partner in the Czech Republic.
Bragg Group Chief Executive Officer Matevž Mazij said: “We are proud to be chosen to support Kings Entertainment, a leading European entertainment, casino and poker brand with our full-service turnkey solution as they transition their market leading Czech operations online.”
“The new regulations make this an exciting time to be in the Czech market,” Mazij added.
David Vaněk, Chief Executive Officer of Kingsbet, said: “Over the past 8 months, both teams worked very hard to prepare the launch of “kingsbet.cz” ahead of the EURO championship. I’m proud that we are the first licensed betting and gaming operator in the Czech Republic who have undergone a rigorous and very demanding licensing process and are currently the sole operator fully compliant with the new Gambling Act, effective as of January 2024.
“Kingsbet will offer players ‘The King’s experience’ in sports betting and casino, and we plan to launch a Live casino product by the end of this year. Bragg’s platform will enable us to enter the Czech market with powerful tools and a highly competitive product offering.”
Founded in 2003, Kings Entertainment operates three land-based casinos: the Kings Rozvadov, Admiral Rozvadov and Hilton Prague properties. At Kings casino in Rozvadov, known as the biggest poker arena in Europe and a premier gaming destination, a variety of poker tournaments including W.S.O.P. are held attracting more than 500,000 visitors per year.
Kings has a 40% share of the Czech land-based casino market and now has ambitious plans to expand into online gambling, an expansion which will be supported by Bragg technology and expertise.
The Czech online casino market is projected to achieve approximately $1 billion in gross win in 2024, according to H2 Gambling Capital. This figure represents growth of 30% on a year-over-year basis from 2023’s figures.
Under previous Czech gambling regulations, operators were only able to offer online RNG games explicitly licensed under the Czech Gambling Act.
Following pressure from operators, this list was widened to include live dealer games (live casino), an amendment which came into force on January 1, 2024.
The inclusion of live dealer games was one of a number of amendments made to existing Czech gambling laws, the most wide-ranging of which was the introduction of a new streamlined licensing regime for operators.
The post Bragg Gaming Continues Global Expansion, Powers Kingsbet.cz Launch with an End-to-End iGaming Solution appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
An award-winning iGaming platform provider, GR8 Tech, opened its newest hub in Warsaw, Poland, on June 6, 2024. As a company committed to a remote-first model since the pandemic, GR8 Tech continues to support its diverse international staff by offering flexible and comfortable working conditions. In addition to assisting in home office arrangements, the company also provides local hubs in target locations where employees are concentrated and hiring activities are underway.
These hubs, available in several locations across Europe, including Cyprus, the Czech Republic, and, from now on, Poland, offer employees the opportunity to work in an office-like environment if they choose. This initiative is part of GR8 Tech’s ongoing efforts to ensure that its employees have the best possible working conditions in any location they choose to work from—efforts that have been recently recognized with the “Best Workplace 2024” title by SiGMA Americas Awards.
The new Warsaw hub will serve as a convenient workspace for the 80+ specialists already located in Poland and all new employees joining the company. It will also be available to any GR8 Tech employees traveling internationally who require a professional environment to work from.
The opening of the Warsaw hub aligns with GR8 Tech’s broader strategic activities across Europe and specifically in Poland. Recently, GR8 Tech participated in the largest Polish IT festival, Code Europe, held on June 10-11 in Krakow, as the technology partner, with GR8 Tech’s Chief Talent Officer, Tetiana Davydova, holding a talk on “Mastering the Science of Negotiation: Secrets to Successful Dialogue in Tech” at the event. GR8 Tech will also participate in the Devoxx conference in Krakow on June 19-22 as a partner. The company’s Deputy CTO, Pawel Grzegrzolka, will hold a talk on “Integrating quality gates in IaC”.
To learn more about GR8 Tech and its upcoming activities, visit the company’s website and join its communities on LinkedIn and Facebook for business-related topics or Instagram for the highlights of the GR8 work environment.
About GR8 Tech
GR8 Tech is an international iGaming provider of high-performance Sportsbook and Casino platform. Holder of the “Best Workplace 2024” title by SiGMA Americas, “Best Online Sportsbook Provider 2024” by SiGMA Eurasia, and, most recently, “Rising Star Provider of the Year” by Affpapa iGaming Awards.
GR8 Tech’s flagship product, GR8 Sportsbook, renowned for its exceptional event coverage and robust feed, manages heavy user loads with real-time anti-fraud processing and advanced margin management capabilities. Complementing the Sportsbook, GR8 Tech’s portfolio includes the GR8 Casino platform and vital standalone products like CRM, payment gateway, player account management, etc.
Focused on the personalized approach and lifetime partnership, GR8 Tech perfectly alleviates iGaming operators’ challenges by delivering customized, scalable solutions that evolve with business growth.
The post GR8 Tech Opens New Hub in Warsaw, Poland appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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