2020 has been a year of changes and the EGR B2B awards have adapted to a time of lockdowns and social distancing by taking their awards online. The 2020 awards, which stretched over 3 days, once again gave recognition to leading service providers that power the online gaming industry. Many hopefuls were present to see if they would walk away with accolades but only a few emerged as winners in their respective categories.

Day One

Day one was dedicated to software and affiliate software suppliers.  And Playtech gave proceedings an impressive kick-off, walking away with the Bingo Supplier of the year and Multi-Channel Supplier of the year awards. Evolution gaming came out at the top of the Live Casino Supplier of the year category.

Betgenius also had an impressive day scooping the In-play Betting Software of the year and Sports Data Supplier of the year awards while the Affiliate Software Supplier of the year award was snapped up by Income Access. IWG was thrilled to take the Lottery Supplier of the year award home.

Day Two

The categories for the second day were Services & Innovation and Innovation in mobile. Red Tiger Gaming beat the competition, sweeping both the Innovation In Mobile and Innovation in Slot Provision categories

Magellan Robotech won the prestigious Best Customer service category and the Recruiter of the year award went to Pentasia. The Sports Betting Solutions category prize was won by Sporting Solutions.

Day Three

The final day saw some of the most sought-after titles being handed over. Red Tiger clawed their way to a hat trick of titles, winning the Slot Supplier of the year, Mobile Supplier of the year, and Mobile Gaming Software Supplier of the year awards.

Playtech was recognized with the Poker Supplier of the year award while industry giant, Microgaming was crowned with the Platform of the year award. Relax Gaming won Casino Software Supplier of the year while Together gaming emerged as the White Label Supplier of the year winner.

While the awards were different this year, this did not diminish the prestige of or excitement for this event which has surely boosted all the competitors’ desire to keep rising to the top of their game.

Leading Live casino solutions provider, Evolution Gaming has remarkably received the honour of the Supplier of the Year award at the EGR B2B awards 2020 for the 11^th year running. They have held this record since the awards first launched in 2010.

Evolution faced down 12 other shortlisted suppliers to take the award on the first day of the virtual ceremony which was broadcast on 21 July.

Martin Carlesund, Evolution Group CEO was on hand to comment after the awards, saying “The past 12 months have seen Evolution once again push the boundaries of what is possible in Live Casino. In terms of the way Evolution has continued to develop and introduce ground-breaking new products, it has been a most encouraging year and all despite a very challenging global situation brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Carlesund went on to add, “We introduced a record number of 12 new games in that period. Our exclusive and unique game show games portfolio continued to grow with new titles such as Mega Ball and Crazy Time becoming immediate player favourites and major commercial successes. We also continued to reinvent and reinvigorate classic casino games for the next generation of players, with Lightning Baccarat, Speed Blackjack, and Power Blackjack all joining an already hugely varied and entertaining portfolio of both Live and First Person games.”

“I know I can speak for everyone at Evolution when I say we are extremely proud to have retained this award. Once again, our people have worked tirelessly to extend our position as the number one Live Casino supplier and to deliver an exceptional Live Casino experience for players. Our licensees, meanwhile, have been extremely loyal and always receptive to innovative new ideas that enrich our whole sector. My sincere thanks to everyone.”

The EGR Awards in retrospect
The EGR B2B Awards recognize the online gambling industry’s best service providers, rewarding the achievements of a diverse set of suppliers from across all major eGaming sectors including betting and gaming software, networks, payments, mobile IT & infrastructure, and recruitment. The awards are officiated by Deloitte.

Aussie punters looking to take a break from online gambling, were delighted to see the reopening of Star Sydney on 1 July, despite the expected changes due to COVID-19 regulations imposed by Liquor & Gaming NSW. Transgression of these regulations will naturally result in some form of punishment.

Less than a week after opening, Star Sydney has been hit with one such fine after allowing patrons to stand and mingle while consuming alcohol when the regulations clearly state that they must be seated. This infraction earned the venue a $5000 fine.

Third time unlucky

Liquor Gaming NSW had paid two previous visits to Star Sydney to check on the state of their compliance and members of staff were reminded of the measures they were expected to enforce. Compliance director Dimitri Argeres stated that The Star was “aware of its obligations.”

The fact that staff had to be re-informed during the first two visits suggests that infractions were observed at those times with the third violation ultimately resulting in the regulator taking decisive action and issuing a penalty.

Expensive errors

Fining a casino $5000 is unlikely to cause a huge impact on the business; however, this is only one of many potential penalties rule-breakers could face. Liquor & Gaming NSW have been empowered to conduct surprise and undercover investigations at their discretion with the authority to issue spot fines where deemed necessary.

Individuals can face fines of up to $11 000 and/or six months in jail for defying regulations while businesses can be hit with fines of up to $55 000 per violation and an additional $27 500 fine per day until the issue is resolved.

Infectious patron

Any financial penalties pale in comparison to the prospect of Star Sydney being forced to close its doors again, which became a frightening possibility when a guest recently tested positive for COVID-19. The individual in question, a male patron, visited the casino on 4 July from 19:30 to 22:30 and did not display any detectable symptoms at the time. While he mostly stuck to his group of friends, even casual contact with another individual could have spread the virus to them.

This scare comes in the wake of the venue recently increasing their capacity to 5000 patrons after having only being able to serve VIP clientele as per the rules of their initial, partial reopening.

Sydney’s COVID surge

Australia seems to be on the brink of finally nullifying the coronavirus, however, there are still pockets of infections that flare-up. Sydney’s Picton Hotel had to close to perform a deep-cleaning after discovering that an infected individual had been at the game room on its premises on the 4^th, 9^th, and 10^th of July.

The Canterbury League Club was obliged to reach out to staff and patrons to inform them they may have been infected after a customer who visited the venue on 4 July between 11 pm and 2 am tested positive.

A concerning tale has also emerged from the Crossroads Hotel in southwest Sydney, where a cluster of about 20 cases was traced back to the venue’s pub.  Officials revealed that 10 were infected at the pub itself while a further 11 occurred from people making contact with these individuals. Anyone who may have visited the pub between 3 July and 10 July has been urged to self-isolate.

Australia has done well to prevent large waves of coronavirus outbreaks within its borders.  The curve has been flattened, and talks between the government and the casino industry are paving the way for casinos to possibly open back up in the next few months.

Australia’s Coronavirus battle plan

Many nations find themselves battling to contain the spread of COVID-19, but Australia has somehow emerged relatively unscathed. A series of swift and decisive government measures are responsible for this nation’s successful anti-pandemic campaign.

• On January 23rd, incoming flights from Wuhan, China were restricted.
• On February 1st, Prime Minister Morrison banned all inbound flights from China, closing Australia’s borders to all Chinese nationals 2 days later.
• A $17.6 billion stimulus package was implemented on March 12th.
• By mid-March, Australia had also barred travellers from Italy, Iran, and South Korea.
• On March 15th, all travellers arriving in or returning to Australia discovered that they would have to self-isolate for 14 days.
• Cruise ships were banned from docking at all Australian ports.
• On March 23rd, as per government orders, all pubs, clubs, casinos, hotels, and entertainment venues were closed.
• From March 29th, public gatherings were limited to two people. Leaving home was only permitted for work, shopping, medical reasons, and exercise.

These are the most noteworthy measurements taken by the government, with many others being implemented in the same period. Australia reported its highest number of cases per day at 424.and this number had dropped to 18 cases per day by April 28th. This is a truly impressive feat and other nations would do well to emulate Australia’s example.

Consensus time

The success of these efforts has lead to discussions around exactly when casinos and other gambling-related enterprises can start trading again. The government recently assembled a panel to deal with this issue. Some of the organisations represented include:

• Crown Casino
• Various Pubs
• ALH, the Pokie Sector of Woolworths
• Various Community Clubs
• Assorted Pokie Companies
• Australian Hotels Association
• Tabcorp

This task force is combining efforts with the Department of Justice to address two key concerns, namely, when can gambling venues resume trading and what safety measures need to be implemented once this happens?

The team is collectively wary of rushing into anything so July or August have tentatively been set as the months that will see punters being able to frequent their favourite venues again.

An essential renaissance for gambling venues

When gaming facilities are eventually reopened, many operational changes will need to be made to ensure that the virus remains under control and venues remain safe. These are some of the measures most likely to be implemented across the board.

• Before a customer can enter a casino, club, or pub, they’ll have their temperature taken. If they have a fever, they’ll be denied access.
• To promote social distancing, every second gaming machine will be turned off and have its stool removed.
• Patrons may be required to maintain a 1.5-metre distance between them at all times.
• A maximum of four players will be allowed at table games, with an empty seat between each of them.
• A capacity limit of one person for every four square metres on their gaming floor is likely.
• Customers may be required to wear a mask and/or gloves.

Online gambling picks up the slack

The online gaming industry is one of the few sectors to find growth in the time of this crisis. The average increase in deposits has reached an estimated at 67% since lockdown measures were implemented.  Google searches for terms such as “online casinos” and “online poker” have quadrupled in a matter of weeks.

Land-based casino operators are understandably concerned about this trend. In a post-pandemic world, they may well find that the brick and mortar casino is now second to the virtual pokie.​

Gambling is a very popular pastime in Australia with the average household wagering more money annually than anywhere else in the world.  The Coronavirus pandemic has accelerated this trend, with online gambling revenue skyrocketing in the last month.

Fresh from the trauma of wildfires that recently swept the country, the pandemic has put even more pressure on the collective Australian psyche and many are looking for an escape.  With access to local pubs and casinos cut off by the national lockdown, online gambling’s popularity has exploded with a projected $15 billion expected to migrate to internet sites, a significant percentage of which are unregulated or even prohibited by the government.

Gambling expenditure through the roof

The Sydney Morning Herald published the following data, which shows a breakdown of which sectors have shown growth and which have faltered during COVID-19. The data was sourced from transactions from about 250,000 Australians for the period ranging from March 30th to April 5th.

• Gyms and Fitness Industry -95%
• Travel -78%
• Education -43%
• Cafes -42%
• Restaurants -13%
• Retail & Fashion -6%
• Groceries +15%
• Tobacco & Alcohol +33%
• Online Subscriptions & Retail +61%
• Food Delivery +63%
• Home Improvements +64%
• Online Gambling +67%

Overall spending is down approximately 5% from the same period in previous years, but this is a marked improvement from the previous week where spending was down 13% from the average. The reason for this improvement likely originates from a helping hand from the government.

Government payments

The Australian government recently dished out a one-time A$750 payment to social security recipients and pensioners, a move designed to boost consumer spending. The approach was a success in some respects, but a large percentage of the money has gone towards pokies as opposed to essentials.

Grim figures

1,000 real money Aussie gamblers were recently put through a questionnaire process by Survation, a London-based polling and market research firm, and the results of this survey contain some troubling revelations.

The survey resulted in the following findings:

• 25% of those who regularly wager once a week were still doing so.
• 28% of this same group, admitted to increasing their activity.
• A further 11% confessed to a significant increase in their online gambling activity.
• 41% of gamblers said that they had opened a new online account since the beginning of the pandemic.
• Over a third of polled regular punters revealed that they felt they were spending too much and developing an addiction.

International crisis response

In response to the looming specter of increased gambling addiction, several countries have implemented various measures. Spain has restricted gambling ads during prime-time TV hours and Latvia has temporarily suspended all forms of gambling.

The full membership of the UK Betting and Gaming Council has agreed to the removal of gambling ads for at least six weeks. This move will effectively half of all advertising on radio and television in the United Kingdom.

The bright side

Some positives have emerged in recent weeks. The Alliance for Gambling Reform revealed that the closure of pubs and clubs has brought about a collective savings of $1 billion in less than a month. If you include casino losses, that figure rises to about $1.5 billion.

AGR spokesperson Tim Costello said, “That’s more than $1 billion that can instead be spent putting food on tables, paying for medical bills and utilities, rent and mortgages.”

Gambling reform advocate Anna Bardsley had an anecdote to share about the upside of the closure of casinos and pubs. “’ I was speaking to one woman the other day who used poker machines a lot before they closed. She said for the first time in many years she actually was able to buy Easter eggs for her children, as that money hadn’t been fed into a poker machine. I almost cried when I heard that. That’s how addictive poker machines can be; so addictive that a loving mother would effectively gamble away her children’s Easter eggs.”

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The Queen’s Wharf destination resort’s new casino is presently undergoing construction in Brisbane and is set to have more slot machines than the Treasury Casino; The Star Entertainment Group’s other gambling venue in the city.

Back in the summer of 2015, The Star, along with its Chinese partners, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises and Far East Consortium snagged the contract for the development of the Queen’s Wharf gaming, entertainment, and hotel precinct in Brisbane, Queensland. The resort’s opening is scheduled for 2022.

Geoff Hogg, the Star Queensland’s Managing Director explained that the casino at Queen’s Wharf would hold 2,500 slot machines, 800 more real money pokies than Treasury Casino.

The Queen’s Wharf resort will eventually replace the Treasury casino as the latter venue is set to close once the new one opens. With the Treasury’s license being transferred to a new gaming operation, the venue will be renovated into a department store in 2023.

Mr. Hogg said, “There has been no change to the casino’s licensing conditions” Brisbane would still only have a single casino when the new resort eventually opens.

The Star and its Chinese associates are investing over A$3.6 billion (approx. $2.4 billion) into the project. Construction work commenced last summer after a two and a half year excavation process at the construction site.

Riverside Gardens taking shape

Mr. Hogg, the Queen’s Wharf Project Director, Simon Crooks, and ProBuild General Manager Jeff Wellburn, gave local journalists a tour of the cement base for The Landing, two semi-circular gardens that will extend 50 meters into the Brisbane River, forming part of the multi-faceted resort.

The pair of cement bases will hold up over 6,500 square meters of landscaped gardens just on the river, facing South Bank.

Mr. Wellburn detailed how construction workers drilled pilings 26 meters into bedrock to ensure that the park space could survive a collision with a vessel if a flood ever occurs. Journalists further learned from Mr. Crooks that The Landing would be a standout feature of the Queen’s Wharf precinct.  In contrast to South Bank’s family-friendly reputation, the Queen’s Wharf integrated resort, while still accommodating family fun, would cater more specifically to adults.

The complex will boast a myriad of features, including hotels and residential towers, a casino, multiple food/beverage facilities, retail centers, and much more. All this will be nestled between George and William Street in Brisbane.

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