888bets has launched in Malawi, expanding the online operator’s presence across Africa.

The brand, which is a joint venture between 888 owner evoke and 888Africa, unveiled a television advert to support its entry into its latest market.

888Africa co-founder and CEO Christopher Coyne said: “Delighted to announce that 888Africa has now launched into our seventh African market with Malawi. We are live from today [Friday, November 29].

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“I’m so proud of the work of the outstanding 888Africa teams, too many to mention in the run to get us live, but I will note Alex Rutherford [888Africa chief growth officer] for his work on licensing, and I’ll mention also Andrew Lee [chief revenue officer], Steven McIntosh [VP product] and Zeljka Perkovic for their massive contributions on the project side.”

EGT is proud to announce one more large-scale installation in Africa. Now, the Caesars Casino in Kinshasa, Congo, owned by the leading operator Gaming IQ, is entirely supplied with gaming equipment from the Bulgarian manufacturer.

The guests of the establishment have the opportunity to enjoy top-performing developments from EGT’s portfolio, including the well-known Premier Series slot cabinets P 24-24 Up, P 27-27 St Slim, P 42 V St Curved, as well as the G 27-27 St model of the General Series, for which this is the first installation in the country. The company’s rich gaming variety is represented by the multigame mixes of the Collection Series. In addition the players can hit even bigger winnings by trying their luck with the jackpots Premium Link, Lady’s Cards, as well as the absolute bestseller Bell Link. EGT’s casino management system Spider is also implemented to ensure that the organization of the daily activities on the casino floor will run smoothly.

“I am very happy that we have carried out this installation, which is the largest we have done so far in Congo,” said Lilia Georgieva, Director of EGT’s office in Tanzania. “I would like to thank Gaming IQ for once again placing their trust in us and accomplishing together another ambitious initiative that allows the gaming audience in Kinshasa to have access to state-of-the-art casino products with a proven reputation on a global level. I believe that we will quickly establish ourselves as leaders in the local market, given the excellent performance of our machines and games to date and especially the impressive results of Bell Link. By the end of the year, we plan to make installations in two more establishments of Gaming IQ in Uganda and Angola, and we will continue with more in 2025.”

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Delcho Petrov from Gaming IQ also shared his positive evaluation regarding the collaboration with the Bulgarian company: “We are very happy that EGT has provided us with their top-notch gaming solutions for another of our establishments. I am confident that Caesars Casino will now unfold its enormous potential and become a preferred location for both the gaming audience in Congo and for players coming from other countries. Inspired by the magnificent outcome of our partnership to date, together we will continue to contribute to the modernization of the African gaming landscape and the transformation of local gambling facilities into world-class casino floors.”

The Competition Tribunal (“Tribunal”) has issued an interim order directing Google Ireland Ltd and Google South Africa (Pty) Ltd (collectively, “Google”) to permit Lottoland South Africa (Pty) Ltd (“Lottoland”) to access its advertising services known as “Google Ads”, for so long as Google permits any firm in South Africa to utilise Google’s Ads Services to advertise fixed-odds betting on the outcome of lotteries. The Tribunal’s order applies for a period of six months from its date, or the conclusion of a hearing into the prohibited practices alleged by Lottoland, whichever is the earlier.

This platform enables advertisers to display ads to users who utilise Google search, with Google Ireland acting as the service provider for Google Ads in South Africa.

The Tribunal’s order follows an interim relief application by Lottoland, a licensed bookmaker, which, inter alia, offers fixed-odds bets on the outcome of various lotteries around the world, including the South African national lottery, sporting events and other betting contingencies. Lottoland competes with other licensed bookmakers in South Africa such as Hollywood Bets, World Sports Betting, Betway, Betfred (which owns Lottostar) and Netbet (which trades as Sportingbet).

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In summary, Lottoland alleged that Google terminated its access to Google Ads without justification while allowing access to its competitors, causing it financial harm and distorting competition in the market that Lottoland operates in, to the detriment of consumers.

Google contended that Lottoland’s offering of fixed-odds bets on the outcome of the national lottery in South Africa contravenes sections 57(1) and 57(2)(g) of the Lotteries Act. It submitted that in terms of its online advertising policies, which are designed to protect users, restrictions are placed on the promotion of certain gambling activities. Of particular relevance, the promotion of lotteries is limited to state-licensed entities and that this restriction is in place to ensure compliance with the provisions of the Lotteries Act.

Reasons for Decision

A non-confidential version of the Tribunal’s reasons will be published in due course once any confidentiality claims in relation to the reasons have been finalised with the parties involved. In deciding the matter, the Tribunal considered the following three factors holistically, balancing each factor against the other to determine what is reasonable and just:

• Evidence relating to the alleged prohibited practice;

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• The need to prevent serious or irreparable damage to the applicant (Lottoland); and

• The balance of convenience.