With or without COVID-19, the casino industry is alive and kicking. The industry has seen several developments lately, and here you will find the hottest news in the gambling arena.
Relax Gaming Secures License from Gibraltar
We know that Relax Gaming launched a partnership with Paddy Power and Betfair recently. Now, the game aggregator has finally secured a license from Gibraltar Licensing Authority, thus giving it an expanded reach in its operational territory.
The application for a license is part of the company’s thrust for growth. It allows the company to focus its efforts on regulated markets like the United Kingdom. The expectation now is that Relax Gaming has something prepared in its expansion for the rest of 2020.
According to the CEO of Relax Gaming, Mr. Tommi Maijala, the approval of the Gibraltar Licensing Authority is an important pillar for the company’s success. They are happy that all their products and services were approved and that they can now extend their reach and offer their services to third-party suppliers.
This new license is going to allow Relax Gaming to push their agenda at full speed. This new license is the company’s fourth certification. Now, they can branch out of Latvia, Estonia, Sweden and Denmark. Relax Gaming, a Maltese company, has consistently grown its business in the past years. They now have access to more than 1,000 games from various game developers.
Rulings for Foxy Games and Betfair Ads Now Out
Game developers and online casinos like Vulkan Vegas cannot grow their businesses without ads. However, there are legal requirements that they have to comply with, and these companies were embroiled in legal battles recently because of their ads.
The UK Advertising Standards Authority decided that ElectraWorks was in violation of responsible marketing protocols. Specifically, the company used a paid Google ad for one of its brands, Foxy Games. Furthermore, the tag of the ad of Foxy Games used the line “Earn Money Online.”
This phrase is a violation of advertising standards because gambling institutions should never make it look like gambling is a way to earn money. The ad was seen on July 11, and they violated one rule, which stipulates that gambling must never be advertised as a solution to financial problems.
This legal issue surfaced after a complainant came forward, suggesting that the video ad of a person gambling before a flight in the airport made it look like it is more important than other priorities in life. The final ruling is that ElectraWorks must never use the same kind of messaging in its ads.
No More Scratch Card Games in Brazil for IGT and Scientific Games Corporation
Both IGT and Scientific Games had plans to release scratch card games in Brazil, but this plan has been withdrawn already. The agreement between the two companies was finalized a year ago, but the discussions about the distribution failed.
To ensure the success of the plan, IGT needed to understand how Caixa Economica planned to distribute the games. It is this phase of the planning that caused the whole business partnership to get botched. It took seven months of diligent discussions, but Scientific Games got frustrated because their local partner failed to execute its duty with a deadline of September 21.
According to IGT, there are 13,000 lottery retailers for Caixa Economica. These retailers are crucial to the distribution success of the scratch cards. Without a distribution network, all the parties involved cannot move forward.
All these processes have a legal deadline. And IGT said that they requested an extension, but this extension request was denied by the Supreme Federal Court. As a result, even if IGT was prepared to fulfill all its obligations, they said that it was more prudent to hold-off from this deal and then re-evaluate whether this will still prove to be a profitable business in Brazil.
Grand Korea Leisure Loses Significant Earnings
The Grand Korea Leisure Company recently announced that its earnings fell by 76.5% this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This loss translates to about $8.12 million USD.
South Korea is one of the first few countries that got hit with the pandemic. So far, the country has recorded 425 deaths.
The company also said that their machines have declined in sales by 69.8%, and their gaming tables fell by 77.5%. The sales performance was blamed on the increasing fear of the people about the pandemic. People are apprehensive about entering gambling institutions for fear of getting the disease.