Interviews
Exclusive Evoplay interview on Italy: “We’re creating high-quality games that can really appeal to Italian players.”
Italy is arguably Europe’s second biggest gaming market and the most interesting when it comes to retail vs. online – with 80% or more players still part of the land-based scene.
We caught up with Evoplay CCO Vladimir Malakchi to hear the latest on their plans for capturing the market, as well as how the award-winning studio’s games are proving to be a real asset for their latest Italian partners.
Congratulations on Evoplay’s multiple deals as you expand into Italy! Can you tell us a bit more about your recent partnerships and your plans for further growth in the market?
Thank you! We’re very excited about our recent partnerships and our plans for further expansion. We entered Italy back in 2020, and, over the past three years, we’ve ensured constant growth in players’ interest, trust and openness towards trying out our latest titles.
I truly believe that the key to any commercial success is the partnerships and connections we build with the operators we work alongside. As a result, we are very proud to work with some of the country’s biggest brands. Last year was by far our best yet, securing deals with the likes of Tuko Productions, Scommettendo and Sportbet. Our award-winning slots and instant games have proven to be a real differentiator, and we’re delighted that the feedback has been so positive.
On plans for further growth, we’re strongly focused on building our partner relationships even more, as well as creating high-quality games that can really appeal to Italian players. Our unique gamification tools will no doubt be key to this and are a strong factor in our focus on boosting engagement. So, in short, we’re very excited about Italy’s potential, and we’re confident that our unique approach will continue to resonate with players and partners alike.
What has been the principal driver behind Evoplay selecting Italy as a key market for growth? How would you summarise Italy’s online audience and demographics?
Our main drive here is the increasing adoption of online gaming from land-based. The numbers are clear to see; the online market revenue is projected to grow by 6.69% annually between 2023 and 2027, reaching a total volume of €3.68bn. On audience and demographics, the country is incredibly broad and diverse – which means significant opportunity. There’s a potential market of up to 20 million people for online, with a ratio of approximately 60:40 of male vs. female.
Given that near-parity, we can pursue plenty of creative options. The 25-34 age group is the largest segment, so demand for innovative entertainment is on the rise – which is a gap that Evoplay is serving well! It’s also good to note the level of smartphone penetration – with over 80% of the population using new generation smartphones, game content should be heavily mobile-optimised.
As well as being one of Europe’s biggest gaming markets – Italy also has a unique retail heritage with as much as 90% of gaming still happening offline. What strengths can you offer to operators to provide a platform for conversion into the online world?
Italy’s land-based gaming heritage certainly sets it apart from the rest of Europe. Online gaming holds distinctive benefits such as convenience, a greater variety of games, and of course, bonuses and promotions such as tournaments and quests. I believe that in-game and out-game gamification tools can effectively drive player engagement and improve conversion efforts for sports bettors and offline players. And, of course, those in-game and out-game gamification features add to the whole thrill of playing online, creating a community.
At Evoplay, we pride ourselves on our ability to create immersive and engaging games offline with strong visual and audio elements that can create an experience as exciting as a real casino. We believe that this is particularly important in the Italian market, where players are accustomed to the sensory experience of playing offline and improving conversion efforts for sports bettors and offline players. As a result, we focus heavily on our unique range of gamification features and incentives for our partners.
In addition, we also work closely with our partners to ensure that our games are integrated seamlessly onto their platforms, making it easy for players to access and play them. We understand that trust is a key factor in Italy, so we emphasise ensuring that our games are secure and reliable.
Onto slot types – what gaming trends are you seeing for Italian players and how are you catering to that demand? Which of Evoplay’s games is performing the best?
It’s common knowledge that football is Italy’s favourite sport, and it’s a huge industry with millions of people betting on it. This has had a significant impact on gaming trends in the country. Instant games have become particularly popular, providing a nice contrast to the wait for live sports fixtures when betting. Players love the instant results they get from these games, and it’s a refreshing change of pace. So of course, football-themed games work perfectly for this. Another trend we are seeing is that Italians love to play chicken-themed titles, so this is certainly an avenue we’re continuing to develop!
We are always looking to stay ahead of the curve and provide our Italian players with the latest and most innovative gaming experiences. Classic slots, video slots, in-game gamification elements, out-game gamification, tournaments, and quests are trending heavily, and we’re actively catering to that demand. Our current top-performing games in the Italian market are Penalty Shoot-out, Fruit Super Nova Game Collection, Elven Princesses, and Hot Triple Sevens. These games are loved by players for their engaging gameplay, stunning graphics, and exciting bonus features.
As a truly innovative studio, how can you help online operators improve their conversion efforts for sports bettors and offline players? What can you offer that’s different?
Sports, and indeed sports betting, is an essential part of the Italian fabric. We understand that importance, and we’re proud to offer RNG-based games that provide a unique sports betting experience.
Our games are also designed to be integrated seamlessly with sports betting platforms, which means that players can quickly switch between gaming and sports betting, with the same action enjoyed across both. Evoplay’s RNG-based Football Pack is a vital component of this commitment as it offers a unique and exciting experience that adds to the overall thrill of the betting experience.
Testament to this is the success of our Penalty Shoot-out. This instant game is unique because it features an innovative betting method that keeps players engaged and excited. As players navigate through the game, they experience a realistic penalty shoot-out where they get to choose the nation they want to represent and aim for goal.
Last but not least, what’s Evoplay’s vision for Italy 2023 and 2024? What are your plans for growing even further in the market and entertaining players?
Our vision for Italy in 2023 and 2024 is focused on growth and continued innovation. The market is a core part of our European strategy, and we’re committed to providing the best gaming experiences possible for players here.
To achieve this, we’re launching new games of different types that are tailored to local audiences. Especially exciting is that players can expect another game in the Penalty Shoot-out series. Additionally, we’re also preparing our next flagship game, which is truly fresh and unique, and we’re confident it will be a real hit with players here.
We’re also providing our partners with different game packages that include marketing activities and engagement opportunities. We also see plenty more opportunity in transitioning land-based players to online, which gamification will be a key driver towards achieving. We make calculated data-driven moves, so we will be gathering all the data and feedback from our operators and based on the collected information, we will prepare our next steps and make predictions for 2024.
Fast Track, the leading SaaS technology company and CRM provider in the iGaming industry, has unveiled the second instalment of its Inside Out video series.
Titled “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked” the interview features CEO and Co-founder Simon Lidzén in a candid, behind-the-scenes discussion about the company’s growth, challenges, and vision for the future.
In the 30-minute video, Simon reflects on Fast Track’s nearly ten-year journey: “Success to me is about setting goals and achieving them. This year has been intense, but incredibly rewarding. From scaling Fast Track to launching groundbreaking products like Rewards, we’re just getting started.”
The conversation explores the launch of Rewards, Fast Track’s promotional ecosystem that integrates CRM with gamification to deliver engaging and personalised player experiences. Simon also discusses the company’s rapid global expansion and the challenges of scaling leadership within a fast-growing organisation. Looking ahead to 2025, he highlights Fast Track’s focus on leveraging AI to redefine CRM and customer engagement.
Simon’s reflections also touch on the company’s culture: “Fast Track is built on relentless innovation and a team that thrives on solving challenges. Seeing how much we’ve grown and how far we’ve come makes this journey so exciting.”
For those unfamiliar with Fast Track, the company is a high-growth SaaS leader, known for pioneering the use of AI to deliver personalised experiences to customers. Its software empowers companies to automate marketing and operational workflows, enabling teams to focus on strategy and innovation. Fast Track is reshaping CRM for iGaming, setting a new standard for customer engagement.
Watch the interview here: https://2ly.link/23JyZ
The post Fast Track CEO Shares Honest Reflections in New Interview: Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
As we enter 2025, what unique opportunities do you see for WA.Technology in the LatAm iGaming market?
The iGaming market in Latin America is experiencing rapid transformation, and this dynamic shift presents considerable opportunities for companies with the right strategy and adaptability.
We are witnessing a shift from informal, semi-professional operations to a growing demand for a formal, structured, and professional gaming industry that can meet the higher expectations emerging from both regulators and consumers.
At WA.Technology, we are perfectly positioned to leverage our extensive local knowledge to achieve just that. Our team has been working across the region for years, from Mexico to Brazil, Colombia, and beyond, which gives us a unique edge in navigating the regulatory complexities and unique behavioural dynamics of this evolving landscape.
This authentic regional understanding not only allows us to stay ahead of market trends but also empowers us to innovate in a way that aligns with global best practices while being sensitive to local cultures, customs, and regulations. As the LatAm gaming market continues to mature, we are ready to support operators in a more structured, regulated, and growth-oriented environment.
How does WA.Technology plan to maintain its progress across the region in 2025?
Our approach to sustained growth in Latin America is driven by the expertise of our team, who bring years of experience from across the region. The team at WA.Technology has collectively worked across a variety of LatAm gaming markets, gaining firsthand knowledge of local regulations and consumer preferences. This wealth of experience enables us to navigate the ever-changing landscape with agility and precision.
As the region continues to evolve, we will continue to integrate global best practices while remaining flexible enough to address the unique needs of each local market. Our strategy at WA.Technology largely focuses on building close relationships with various local stakeholders, refining our offerings based on real-time feedback and ensuring our presence continues to make a long-lasting difference in the region.
We are committed to driving long-term growth, building strong partnerships and providing the best possible value to our clients across Latin America.
For operators looking to enter Latin America in 2025, what are some of the key trends/nuances they need to be aware of? And how is WA.Technology helping them to navigate these?
Entering the Latin American market in 2025 presents a variety of opportunities for growth. However, operators looking to make the most of what this region has to offer must carefully consider local regulations, consumer behaviour, and cultural differences in each country. After all, LatAm is not one homogenous region – each country has its own unique dynamics at play.
Regulatory frameworks continue to evolve rapidly, with each individual regulator in the region setting its own rules, meaning that operators must be highly adaptable and well-prepared for any future legislative changes. But regulations aren’t the only challenge.
Understanding local consumer habits, preferences, and cultural nuances is equally critical to building a successful operation. For example, the products players enjoy in Brazil are likely to be completely different to those favoured by Mexican bettors.
At WA.Technology, we help operators navigate these complexities by offering solutions that are fully compliant with local laws and tailored to meet the diverse needs of Latin American consumers.
We don’t see ourselves as just a technology provider; we want to be a trusted partner, supporting operators in their journey to understand the regulatory environment and local market dynamics, ensuring they’re well-positioned for long-term success.
With Brazil now live, how does WA.Technology plan to gain an edge in what is likely to be a highly competitive market?
Brazil is undoubtedly the flagship market in Latin America, and we’ve been preparing for this moment for some time. With a market of such size and potential, competition is bound to be hard. However, we are confident that our extensive local presence and tailored approach will give us a distinct edge unmatched by any other provider on the market.
We’ve made significant investments in Brazil, building a team that is highly knowledgeable about the local market and deeply embedded in the regulatory landscape. I am proud to say our team has worked extremely hard to ensure we were ready in time for the new regulations in Brazil and that we are in a position now to grow even further in this market as a result. With dedicated local offices, a strong team of regulatory experts and seasoned professionals with operational expertise, we are well-equipped to navigate the complexities of Brazil’s rapidly growing iGaming market.
Our extensive knowledge of the local market and commitment to delivering innovative, market-specific solutions allows us to provide licensed operators with the tools they need to succeed in this competitive space.
How will your approach to Brazil differ from that of the wider LatAm market?
While Brazil is undeniably one of the largest and most significant markets in Latin America, our approach to the region as a whole is both comprehensive and tailored to the unique characteristics of each country.
We recognise that Latin America is a highly diverse and dynamic market where each country presents distinct opportunities, challenges, and regulatory landscapes.
At WA.Technology, we adopt a market-specific strategy across our entire business, ensuring that we provide localised solutions that meet the unique needs of each country while maintaining a strong, responsive presence in all key markets.
Our team brings extensive experience from working in countries such as Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, and Mexico. In fact, we recently expanded our footprint by opening offices in Mexico City, which allows us to stay closely connected to local developments and offer even more tailored support to our partners in this market.
Mexico is particularly important to us in terms of future growth, and we view it as a key focus for WA.Technology alongside Brazil. Our integrated, flexible approach ensures we can remain agile across the entire region, responding effectively to each market’s specific demands while maintaining a cohesive regional strategy.
What are your goals for expanding WA.Technology’s footprint in LatAm over the next 12 months? And how do you plan to achieve these?
Looking ahead to the rest of 2025, our key goals for expanding WA.Technology’s footprint in Latin America is rooted in two fundamental pillars: extensive market knowledge and strong local presence.
As the region evolves at a rapid pace, staying ahead of market shifts requires constant attention. Our strategy is to maintain a physical presence in every major market, fostering relationships with local stakeholders, regulators, and operators. By doing this, we are able to anticipate changes in the wider market and position ourselves as a proactive, solutions-driven partner, ensuring that our partners can retain their competitive edge.
We aim to further solidify our relationships with key players across the region and remain highly engaged in local markets, adapting our solutions in real-time to meet emerging needs.
Our focus on continuous engagement ensures that we’re always in tune with the evolving landscape, positioning WA.Technology to lead the way in driving innovation and delivering value in Latin America.
The post Patricio Molloy: WA.Technology is ready to raise the bar for LatAm in 2025 appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Tom Walton, Director at technology consultancy, Burendo, shares how operators can achieve sustainable profitability with learnings from other sectors
Operators who are merging and acquiring other businesses, launching new products or even integrating third-party technologies, can find themselves navigating complex internal processes. It is a complex large-scale challenge. Where M&As are commonplace, brand consolidation can be critical when securing sustainable profitability while planning for higher returns in the future. Within the emerging LatAm and US markets, acquisition remains a key focus. A common issue, regardless of geography, is the challenges presented by outdated or fragmented platforms and systems, a major obstacle in the growth trajectory.
In many cases, fundamental changes in how the organisation functions: its people, processes and technology holds the key to better value, higher profits, operational efficiency and reduced risk. By addressing these complexities with proven experience, technology consultants can support operators to be successful in their strategic initiatives.
Agility in competitive markets
To remain competitive in an ever-changing market, operators must move fast and with agility to refine their offering. A constant eye on retention, acquisition and regulatory changes is paramount to avoid financial impact. Despite this risk, research conducted by Accenture in 2022 found that 95% of B2B and B2C C-level executives believe their customers are changing faster than they can change their business, indicating most operators risk falling behind. This poses the question of how this can be supported.
The value of technology consultancies is in enabling businesses to extract greater value from existing resources through a confident understanding of what good looks like. Bringing external ideas gathered through experience, exemplary resources from process to people, can demonstrate what good looks like. More importantly, it shortens the timeline to achieving real goals in the organisation. Being under resourced or lacking the skills needed across these challenges makes it difficult to gain an overarching perspective particularly within a siloed approach.
At Burendo, we leverage more than 40 years of cross-sector experience. We are not only working with some of the biggest operators in betting and gaming, but partner with other highly regulated industries including finance and healthcare. We have helped operators across many initiatives helping them to realise cost savings or increased revenue in a matter of weeks. We pride ourselves in ensuring we leave a lasting positive impact on the culture, enabling our partners to be empowered to carry on our work.
The retention battle
Many operators are too busy with day-to-day tasks or overwhelmed with where to start when it comes to transformation and building a cutting-edge user experience. An example of the gap between capacity and demand is the rising popularity of in-play betting. During live sports, the speed in which players can find and place their bet is critical. Here, streamlined processes that allow for quick innovation will correlate with customer satisfaction, resulting in higher retention rates.
A fresh perspective for lasting change
A successful approach to optimisation requires taking the challenge and viewing it from an experienced and innovative angle. Our partners truly benefit from best practice and valuable lessons derived from other sectors. Through experience we have found that these challenges are not exclusive to betting & gaming and so the ability to apply these learnings drive success.
Managing complex systems and large volumes of data is a common obstacle. By applying these cross-sector principles through working with technology consultants, operators can gain valuable insight into re-engineering platforms and the skills needed, to meet both current and future demands.
Building exceptional, scalable and adaptable architectures ensures that businesses can continue to grow and evolve as the industry changes. This forward-thinking approach positions operators ahead of the curve, meaning they are poised for success in the years to come and have the agility to address any challenges or opportunities that arise.
Creating lasting change requires more than just solving immediate problems. Our goal for our clients is to maintain high levels of efficiency long after an initial transformation is complete. By empowering teams to implement and sustain improvements, operators can maintain continuous growth and unlock growth worth tens of millions of pounds, far outweighing their cost of delivery.
The focus must now shift to building stronger, more Agile organisations that can adapt to changing market conditions. Sustainable efficiency enables operators to optimise time-to-market, improve platform performance, and manage resources more effectively, creating a foundation for long-term growth.
About Burendo
Founded in 2018 and with offices in Leeds and London, Burendo is an award-winning, consultancy delivering stand-out products and services through technology. We partner with organisations to accelerate organisational value delivery and transform customer experiences.
We are pragmatic thinkers and doers who understand the operational world of organisations and customer demands. We work as a partner to give our clients the latest ideas, tools and techniques to deliver effective results that build long-term value.
For more information, you can visit the Burendo website: www.burendo.com
If you have any questions, please contact Kate Smith, Senior Digital Marketing Executive by email: [email protected]
The post Consolidating brands efficiently to achieve high growth appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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