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Trueplay’s tokenised loyalty programs target user retention and help platform owners earn more by boosting key metrics.

The role of loyalty programs in iGaming is undeniable, as they have proven to boost retention rates and make players love your brand. How can you make loyalty programs even better? By tokenising them through a blockchain solution. This is exactly what Trueplay does.

Blockchain-based gaming platforms are not new on the market. But creating them from scratch is quite challenging and requires huge investments. Trueplay’s iFrame widget takes 48 hours to install and doesn’t cost anything to implement, while it brings all the perks of blockchain to platform owners. In this article, we will explain how exactly our tokenized loyalty programs work.

Issuing your own token
To open the world of crypto tokens to your players, you first need to create your unique digital asset.

According to the company, for the first three months, this token will have a stable price. After that, the token will be listed on a decentralized exchange and it will become your own cryptocurrency. Users can receive tokens in many different ways, for example:

Token sale
Token airdrop
Bonuses for registration, for bringing a referral, etc
Loyalty programs
The last option is the most interesting for platform owners because this is what makes your KPIs grow and brings you more income.

Play To Earn
It’s a unique bonus model where players are automatically rewarded for making bets. Every time the user bets, a tiny per cent of your GGR pool arrives at a player’s balance.

Players are rewarded regardless of the game’s outcome, so, even if they lose they still will receive this reward. This is great for user retention and motivation, especially for those cases when players are constantly losing and get demotivated. Always having something on the balance, players are more prone to come back to the platform and play more.

People can customise the reward per cent, change it whenever they want to, or even put a different percentage of reward to certain game providers. In this way, you can use Play To Earn as a marketing instrument to promote certain games when needed.

Hold To Earn
It’s like a classical crypto staking, but way better. Players can deposit their crypto earnings and get a chance to multiply them. Users can choose from three time periods and freeze their tokens.

After the holding period is over, a certain percentage of the GGR pool arrives in the player’s account if the platform’s GGR was positive on this day. If it was negative, players receive their staked amount of tokens back. There’s no way users can lose in this game.

All the periods in Hold To Earn are adjustable. We recommend using these timing slots:

Short: 5 minutes to 1 hour, so that players can get familiar with holding and see how it works
Medium: 8 – 12 hours, so that players can put their tokens overnight and have an incentive to come back in the morning
Long: 1 – 3 days, so that players may receive a more significant reward and fall in love with your brand
The Hold To Earn program is a massive tool to boost retention, as players need to come back to the platform each time they want to pick up their reward and deposit again.

What’s the value of tokenized loyalty programs
According to the company, Trueplay’s loyalty programs’ benefits are truly great as they allow platform owners to boost their KPIs and user engagement. With Play To Earn and Hold to Earn from Trueplay, you can increase your:

Average Deposit per Player
Because players receive token rewards each time they make a bet through Play To Earn, the more users bet the more crypto they get.

Bets Turnover
This KPI grows since players find out that tokens exist on the platform. Players, staking through the Hold To Earn program, do tend to spend more.

See also: Retention fight under new EU regulations on free bonuses

Time Spent on a Platform and Retention
Tokenized loyalty programs are more interesting than usual bonus systems, moreover, both of Trueplay’s platforms are aiming for users to stay longer or come back more often.

To wrap it up
Trueplay’s tokenized loyalty programs target user retention and help platform owners earn more by boosting key metrics.

Five provincial gaming corporations in Canada have formed a coalition to call for the federal government to take action over illegal gambling operators.

Canada.- A coalition of five provincial gaming corporations in Canada has called on the federal government to work with the provinces and regulators to clamp down on illegal gambling websites in the country.

The Provincial Lottery Corporations coalition comprises the British Columbia Lottery Corporation; Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis; Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Corporation; Loto-Quebec; and Atlantic Lottery Corporation.

Commercial gambling is illegal in Canada unless controlled by a provincial government, but offshore operators are active and promote their websites by advertising mirror “free-to-play” sites, in particular during popular live sporting events. The coalition said this blurs the line between provincially regulated gaming sites and illegal operators.

Due to the concern over the rapid increase of such advertisements, the coalition will work to raise public awareness. It will advise media platform owners of their duty to comply with existing laws and regulations by refusing to accept misleading ads for illegal sites. It said it will also encourage the federal government to enforce laws and regulations to shut down these operators.

Atlantic Lottery Corporation president and chief executive Patrick Daigle said: “Research shows that the majority of players are unaware of whether an online site is legal in their province or not. This is a significant amount of money that could be staying right here in our region to fund public services, but instead continues to be taken away from helping our communities to the sole benefit of illegal operators.”

Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Corporation president and chief executive Manny Atwal added: “The members of our coalition return their profits back to the province in which they operate. These profits help fund important programs and services like healthcare, education, and community programs. Illegal gambling websites advertise to Canadian players but often operate outside of Canada, taking the profits with them.”

Pariplay partners with Atlantic Lottery in Canada
NeoGames subsidiary Pariplay has expanded its presence in the regulated Canadian market through a partnership with Atlantic Lottery. The deal enables Pariplay to offer online casino content from its in-house studio Wizard Games, as well as a wide variety of aggregated third-party games, to players across Atlantic Canada through its Fusion platform.

Pariplay has a B2B gaming licence in Ontario, the Canadian province that opened its online gambling market on April 4. The provincial lottery operator is a World Lottery Association (WLA) member and returns all of its profit to the communities of Atlantic Canada.

Betting shops in Bremen have a week to appeal against the closure order.

Germany.- The German Sports Betting Association has blasted an order issued by the city-state of Bremen to close all betting shops. Authorities in the city said it was issuing the order on the grounds that it was not convinced that betting operators were not fronts for money laundering.

The city has rejected applications from 32 high-street betting shops that had applied for new licences under Germany’s new interstate gambling treaty, which came into effect last July. It said that some operators failed to provide written evidence of how they had secured the startup funds for their businesses, while one was located too close to a school. Operators have until August 5 to appeal.

Bremen is Germany’s smallest city state. Authorities highlighted a 2019 report from Germany’s finance ministry and federal police that found that said criminals were using gambling to launder dirty money and also directly investing money to buy betting shops. In some cases, gambling was simulated.

In Germany, betting shops are often not run by large chains but by smaller businesses that buy a franchise licence.

The Guardian quoted Bremen senator for internal affairs, Ulrich Mäurer, as saying: “At its core, this is about checking the reliability of these operators. We also want to guarantee that no money from dodgy businesses like drug dealing or human trafficking is being laundered here and thus flows into legal money cycles.”

A “politically motivated” decision
The German Sports Betting Association (DSMV) has claimed that the decision to reject the licence applications was “politically motivated”. It said authorities were seeking to move attention away from “urgent domestic political problems”.

It says that documents were submitted to Bremen authorities to prove operators’ financial resources, and says this evidence was validated by money laundering experts. It’s also questioned why authorities have suddenly decided to reject all licence applications on the same day, months after the applications were made.

DSMV President Mathias Dahms said: “The members of the German Sports Betting Association have nationwide permits as organisers of sports betting. The reliability of the providers has already been tested and, of course, the legal origin of their equipment was also proven.”

He added: “The fact that, after months without any response from the authorities, all 32 applications for permits were suddenly rejected on the same day suggests that this is an arbitrary, legally questionable and completely disproportionate act that only serves to achieve political goals. This has nothing to do with proper administrative procedures.

“By wanting to close all betting shops, Senator Mäurer is undermining the 2021 State Treaty on Gaming, which the Bremen Senate and the Bremen Parliament have approved.”

Dahms warned that the state’s move would harm consumer protection and push customers to the black market. However, a spokesperson for Bremen authorities suggested that other states may follow its lead.

Rose Gerdts-Schiffler said: “Other states in Germany are looking with close interest at what we are achieving by taking this step If we are successful, I expect many of them will follow suit.”

German regulator wants ISPs to voluntarily block unlicensed gambling sites
The new federal gambling regulator Glücksspielbehörde (GGL) has proposed a system under which it would ask internet service providers (ISPs) to voluntarily block unlicensed gambling websites. The proposal comes after the GGL took its first enforcement action last week by ordering IP blocks against Lottoland.

The GGL is due to officially begin its full capacity as Germany’s new federal gambling regulator from January 1, but it began its enforcement action against unlicensed gambling this month. It revealed that IP blocking would be one of the tools in its arsenal and has already ordered blocks against Lottoland’s www.lottoland.com, www.lottohelden.de and www.lottohelden.com.

The GGL has the power to impose penalties against internet providers who do not comply with its IP blocking orders. However, it’s now proposed that ISPs voluntarily block unlicensed sites without waiting for a formal order subjecting them to a legal obligation.

Based in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the GGL was created under the federal treaty on gambling, which established a federal regulated online gambling market last July. It was not due to be fully up and running until January 1, although it launched the GGL website in February.

The responsible gambling charity has added to calls for the government to think again about leaving loot boxes out of its review of gambling legislation.

UK.- Earlier this month, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport announced that it would not be proposing legislation on loot boxes as part of the government’s review of the 2005 Gambling Act. However, a growing number of stakeholders are asking it to think again.

Last week, the children’s commissioner for England, Dame Rachel de Souza, criticised the decision and called for loot boxes to be included within the definition of gambling. Now the industry-backed responsible gambling charity GambleAware has added its view, calling for measures to limit young people’s access to the products.

GambleAware said it had “long been concerned about loot boxes”, adding that they are “used by 40 per cent of children who play video games” and cause “the normalisation of gambling-like activities”.

It said: “We are therefore encouraged to see the government recognising these risks in the response to the call for evidence on loot boxes in video games. However, we hope that going forward, the new government may consider legislative action on their use, particularly with regards to limiting the access of children and young people to these products.

“Research has shown that loot boxes are psychologically akin to gambling, and therefore more adequate protection would help to prevent future gambling-related harms.

“We look forward to the publication of the ‘Video Games Research Framework’ later this year, which we hope will guide and inform legislation to protect children and young people from gambling-related harms through video games.”

Epic Risk Management, a consultancy specialising in gambling harm minimisation, also said it was disappointed that the government would not recommend legislation for the sale of loot boxes to minors.

While the UK review of gambling legislation appears to be on hold until a new prime minister is chosen, culture minister Nadine Dorries announced last week that a ban on loot boxes would not be part of the delayed gambling white paper.

She said the UK would not follow countries like Belgium, which banned loot boxes in 2018, and Spain, which plans to ban them for minors. Dorries said the government would instead pursue tougher “industry-led” protections.

She said that imposing restrictions or an all-out ban through legislation could result in “unintended consequences”. Instead, a working group comprising games companies, platforms and regulatory bodies will seek to develop industry-led protocols to protect players and reduce the risk of harm.

Expected measures will include parental controls and increased transparency. A Video Games Research Framework will seek to improve evidence on the positive and negative impacts of video games.

Last month, the Betting Control and Licensing Board said the majority of betting and gaming firms had not complied with licensing requirements.

Kenya.- The Kenyan gambling regulator, the Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB), says it has cleared 11 companies to receive operating licences for the 2022/2023 financial year. BCLB chairman Cyrus Maina sent the names of the companies deemed eligible for licences in a letter to Ezra Chiloba, director general of the Communications Authority of Kenya.

The firms that have now been deemed eligible to receive licences are reported to include Betika, Odibets, Dafabet, Bangbet, Kilibet, Kwik Bet, Sportika, Betviva, Scorepesa, A Kick-off Sports Bar and Betafriq.

The news comes after the Betting Control and Licensing Board reported last month that the majority of betting and gaming firms had not complied with licensing requirements.

The Communications Authority of Kenya ordered mobile network operators to stop issuing ICT platforms and services, including USSDs, shortcodes, and paybill numbers to betting, gaming and lottery operators who had not renewed their Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB) licences.

General Chiloba said the directive was in line with licence conditions on the provision of the licensed services. Gaming firms require their licences to be renewed by the BCLB.

However, new requirements imposed by interior cabinet secretary Fred Matiang’i require clearance by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), the Financial Reporting Centre, CA and the Interagency security team as well as the Communications Authority. The majority of the betting, gaming and lottery firms reportedly did not meet those criteria.

Matiang’i has ordered a crackdown on unlicensed gambling, asking the BCLB to create a list of unlicensed sites that the Communications Authority will then be instructed to block.

In May, the BCLB began an investigation into money gaming operators invest in the sponsorship of sports clubs and community projects amid rumours that betting companies were channelling funds to political parties rather than CSR activities. Chief executive Peter Mbugi ordered all gaming operators to disclose the activities, amounts, and beneficiaries of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) spending.

The two regulators plan to work together on the supervision of gambling and lottery operations.

Lithuania.- The Gambling Supervisory Authority in Lithuania and the Commission for the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries (KRAIL) in Ukraine have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The agreement will see them work together on certain aspects of the supervision of gambling and lottery.

The regulators will exchange information, ideas and best practice with the intention of expanding their knowledge of the industry, improving each country’s gambling sector, and ensuring the optimum implementation of relevant laws.

Experts from each regulator will also collaborate on the exchange of legal information, details of regulatory practice and other issues. They will also take part in joint seminars, lectures and staff exchanges.

Virginijus Daukšys, director of Lithuania’s Gambling Supervision Service, said: “We are ready to share with Ukrainian colleagues our experience in areas in which we already have considerable expertise and practice, such as in the field of problem gambling prevention, measures against entities providing illegal remote gambling services and technical requirements for gambling devices.

“We are very happy with this agreement and the fact that our new partners are colleagues of this persistent, unyielding and proud state institution. We hope that this cooperation will be mutually beneficial, and we will help our Ukrainian colleagues as much as we can in their needs according to our competence.”

Earlier this month, the Lithuanian legislature, the Seimas, approved new amendments to the country’s gambling and lottery and gaming tax legislation. The changes will allow the national regulator, the Gambling Supervisory Authority, to offer a specific licence for remote gambling.

The move will allow the government to split the requirements for remote gambling and land-based gambling, which are currently tied. Online gambling operators currently need municipal consent to tie in with a land-based gaming operator.

Meanwhile, the regulator has been very active in enforcement action against operators for breaches of Lithuania’s ban on promoting gambling. It has issued several €25,000 fines to operators in recent months.

In Ukraine, gambling businesses in some areas have begun reopening amid Russia’s continued attack on the country. Some operators that were located in heavily bombarded areas in the east have relocated to the west of the country. Venues have been allowed to open but must respect the ongoing curfew.

Many gaming businesses have donated funds to charities working to help alleviate suffering in Ukraine during the conflict.

Ohio Casino Control Commission has approved BMM to test and certify sports gaming equipment.

Press release.- BMM Testlabs, the world’s original gaming test lab and product certification consultancy, is pleased to announce that the Ohio Casino Control Commission has authorized BMM to test and certify sports gaming equipment.

Melissa Shuba, VP government affairs, commented, “BMM is very pleased to have been approved for issuing certifications for sports gaming equipment in Ohio. We look forward to utilizing our decades of experience to provide testing services for the state. We value our ongoing partnership with the Ohio Casino Control Commission and would like to thank their staff for their continued cooperation and diligence during this process.”

BMM Testlabs is now accepting supplier submissions for testing and certifying sports gaming equipment in Ohio.

The firm has confirmed the launch date for the rebranded Mirage Hotel & Casino after MGM Resorts.

US.- Hard Rock International has confirmed that the rebranded Mirage Hotel & Casino will open in 2025. It reached an agreement to buy the resort from MGM Resorts for $1.07bn in December.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida, owner of Hard Rock, will transform the resort into Hard Rock Las Vegas in the company’s iconic guitar-shaped structure. The venue will close for construction later this year.

Until 2020, Hard Rock was present in Las Vegas with the Hard Rock Hotel. However, the company did not own or manage the hotel and it has since been rebranded as Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, now operated by Mohegan Sun.

Hard Rock chairman Jim Allen said: “We are honored to welcome The Mirage’s 3,500 team members to the Hard Rock family. When complete, Hard Rock Las Vegas will be a fully integrated resort welcoming meetings, groups, tourists and casino guests from around the world to its nearly 80-acre center-strip location.”

In June, Hard Rock International and GEK Terna Group announced more details for their construction and operation of an integrated resort and casino at Hellinikon, the former airport in the Greek capital of Athens. The 5-Star luxury resort is scheduled to open in 2026.

Construction of the project is expected to begin within the first few months of 2023 and will last around three years. The development will include a casino with 200 tables and 2,000 gaming machines and a tower with more than 1,000 guest rooms and suites overlooking the waterfront and views across Athens to the Parthenon. The project includes an entertainment venue, the highest outdoor rooftop terrace in Athens and a spa.

Las Vegas’ Silverton Casino Hotel to undergo $45m renovation
The Silverton Casino Hotel in Las Vegas will undergo a $45m renovation to mark its 25th anniversary. The hotel and pool will close during the work. The Sway pool deck will be closed starting in August and is scheduled to reopen in early 2023. The casino, restaurants, aquarium, Veil Pavilion, Johnny Rockets, Starbucks and Bass Pro Shops will remain open.

Some 300 guest rooms and suites will be transformed into “rustic-luxe” rooms, with their “own design stories”. Some of the themes include Cowboy Kitsch Collection, Rustic Modern Collection, and Livin’ Lodge Collection. The move is inspired by sister property Hotel Drover, which opened in 2021.

The European Advertising Standards Alliance has recommended more clarity in some areas but described the EGBA code as a “solid basis for responsible advertising”.

Belgium.- The first independent monitoring of the European Gaming and Betting Association’s (EGBA) pan-European responsible advertising code has found that it provides comprehensive and detailed content and that EGBA members already correctly apply most measures.

The monitoring was conducted by the European Advertising Standards Alliance (EASA), a Brussels-based association that represents European self-regulatory organisations for advertising. It found that the EGBA code provided “a solid basis for responsible advertising”. It also found that EGBA members already applied most of the code’s measures.

EASA suggested some improvements to strengthen the code and its application. It suggested more clarity in responsible gambling messages in adverts (both in terms of legibility and speed), the explicit mention of legal age requirements for online gambling and the use of age-gating mechanisms on social media profiles.

The pan-European responsible advertising code for online gambling was established by EGBA in 2020 and covers advertising content, social media, minor protection, and responsible gambling messaging. Monitoring is an integral part of the code and EGBA members have their compliance periodically monitored by an independent third party to improve the code’s effectiveness and ensure it is kept up to date.

EGBA commissioned EASA to monitor the code during the Euro 2020 football tournament in 2021. EASA was assisted by the advertising analytics company Nielson, which collected 1,240 adverts from EGBA members in four countries (Greece, Ireland, Romania and Sweden). EASA then assessed these adverts, which included TV ads, online pre-rolls, static and animated online banners, along with the social media accounts of EGBA members.

In its conclusions, EASA gave positive feedback about the code, stating that it provides a solid basis for responsible advertising, due to its comprehensive and detailed content. It noted that EGBA members had been particularly successful in correctly applying measures on content moderation.

As a next step, EGBA members will discuss how to utilise and implement the feedback from EASA to further strengthen the overall effectiveness of the code.

EGBA secretary general Maarten Haijer said: “We’re pleased with the monitoring results and the progress our members are making in promoting responsible advertising. We thank EASA for its critical but constructive approach. Advertising is an essential tool to inform the public of which gambling operators are licensed and regulated – and it can be done responsibly.

“We encourage other operators to sign up to the code and join our efforts to raise responsible advertising standards. The industry must get serious about responsible and measured advertising, especially with the World Cup coming up later this year, otherwise the pressure of advertising restrictions will continue to pile on.”

In March, the EGBA welcomed a reported 55 per cent decrease in advertising from major gambling brands being placed on websites that breach intellectual property rights in the EU. The figure comes from a new study by the European Union’s Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).

The study analysed the amount and type of online advertising found on IPR-infringing websites and apps in the EU, including streaming sites for sports, movies and TV shows. It found that advertising from major gambling brands, including EGBA members, on such sites fell by 55 per cent in 2021 despite advertising from all sectors increasing by 26 per cent.

The association also launched a new expert group on cyber security to facilitate information sharing on cyber threats and attacks among its members and to promote cooperation to track and resolve incidents and identify and solve security vulnerabilities.

The group will comprise cyber security experts from EGBA member operators, with a Memorandum of Understanding to allow for data sharing between the different operators. Participation will be open to all members. The group will also seek to research and implement best practices on cyber security.

The tax hike will go ahead but at a lower rate than initially proposed. Land-based and online gambling operators will have to apply the new rates from August 1.

Romania.- The Romanian parliament has ratified a new rule in the country’s Fiscal Code that will impose a big increase in the tax charged withdrawals of gambling winnings. All licensed Romanian operators, both land-based and online, will have to apply a new tiered withholding tax structure on winnings across all verticals from August 1.

Gambling operators licensed by the national regulator ONJN will have to apply a withholding tax of 3 per cent on winnings of under RON 10,000 (€2,000) 20 per cent on winnings of between RON 10,000 and 66,750 (€13,600), and 40 per cent on any winnings higher than that.

That compares to the current rate of 1 per cent on player winnings below RON 66,750, 16 per tax on winnings between RON 66,750 and 445,000 (€110,000) and 25 per cent on winnings over RON 445,000. It does, however represent a concession on the original hikes proposed, which would have seen 10 per cent charged on winnings of under RON 3,000.

Meanwhile, operators will also face heftier fees for licence renewals. The ONJN will more than double its current fee from €120,000 to €320,000.

The government intends the changes to raise the tax contribution from Romania’s gambling sector, although operators have argued that the change could have the opposite effect if it drives players away from licensed operators.

The Romanian Remote Gambling Trade Association AOJND has called on the government to hold the changes to allow time to discuss possible alternatives with operators. It warns that the change would severely threaten Romania’s 90 per cent channelisation rate of players to licensed operators.

It also claims that the new tax bands constitute a penalty on recreational players with low winnings since 80 per cent of winnings were below RON 1,000 (€200).

AOJND president Odeta Nestor said: “Before adopting such a fiscal measure, a number of factors must be taken into account. Firstly, online gambling is primarily entertainment, not a source of revenue for players.”

He added: “Basically, we are mostly talking about cases in which the player does not pursue the win at any cost but the pleasure of competing. In this way, online gambling is a source of reducing daily stress.

“I have often emphasised that Romania is a success story in terms of gambling legislation. But this situation depends on the ability of the authorities to maintain an attractive legislative and fiscal framework.”

In March, Romania’s National Gambling Office ONJN blocked another 26 unlicensed gambling sites. The Romanian regulator has been regularly updating its list of blocked sites since it began in 2015 ahead of the introduction of regulated igaming.

The latest list of blocking orders featured Sloty.com and a1xSlot.