NEXT.io Podcast

🎙 Podcast #91 with Pierre Lindh and Stefan Kovach, CEO at Rarer Things   Stefan Kovach once again joins Pierre Lindh to discuss the growing Metaverse, the changing trends of crypto currency vs fiat, NFTs and how the web3 paradigm shift affects us all. ABOUT STEFAN KOVACH:   Stefan Kovach has been working for internet startups since the late 90s and has worked in the gambling industry for over 15 years, including at PokerStars and Bwin.Party.  He got involved with blockchain technology in 2017 when he became CEO of FunFair Technologies, a first-generation Ethereum gambling dapp.  Since then he has gone on to create RarerThings an independent web 3 advisory that focuses on gaming, sport, fashion and celebrities. _____   This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is hosted by Pierre Lindh, MD/Co-Founder at iGaming NEXT and is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions. – Leading iGaming platform technology.  For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions  Sponsored by:  Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast #90 with Pierre Lindh and Martin Lycka, SVP for American Regulatory Affairs and Responsible Gambling at Entain   Earlier in February, Martin Lycka joined Pierre Lindh to discuss the growing US market, which states may be next to join the world of online sports betting, and how the success of sportsbook could pave the way for online casino. ABOUT MARTIN LYCKA:   Martin Lycka is SVP for American Regulatory Affairs and Responsible Gambling at Entain, overseeing growth of the business across both new U.S. states and into other parts of the Americas, notably LATAM and Canada. He joined the business in April 2018, as Director of Regulatory Affairs.   Martin also serves on the boards of the Entain Foundation, the Entain Foundation US, the German Online Casino Association and the Advisory Boards to the National Council on Problem Gambling as well as RG247, a responsible gaming training provider.   Martin is a regular conference speaker and has (co-)authored more than 80 academic articles and three books on gambling law and other legal matters. He is the 2019 Global Regulatory Awards Head of Regulatory Affairs of the Year as well as a member of the2020/2021 Emerging Gambling Leaders 40 Under 40 Class (a Judge’s Choice). _____   This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is hosted by Pierre Lindh, MD/Co-Founder at iGaming NEXT and is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology   For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions    Sponsored by:   Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com   Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com   Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast with Heidi Lofthus and David Näsström   Heidi Lofthus and David Näsström, co-owner at Refapp, discusses old versus new trends in how references are taken during the recruitment period; how phone calls are outdated, stressing and time costly. Digital solutions continue improving the experience for everyone involved. They also touch upon how reference checking does also come with ethical challenges and the taboo around “backdoor reference taking”. ABOUT DAVID NÄSSTRÖM:  After 10+ years experience of recruiting and responsible for the recruitment process for the largest staffing company in Sweden David wanted to develop the process step that was the most in-efficient - reference checking. Refapp has during the last 4 years disrupted this process step and now digital reference checks are common in Sweden and Norway. After opening a sales office in Dublin last spring Refapp now is represented in 19 countries with aprox 600 customers. _____   This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is hosted by Heidi Lofthus, Project Director at iGaming NEXT and brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions. – Leading iGaming platform technology.  For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions  Sponsored by:  Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast #88 with Pierre Lindh and Paul Leyland, Partner at Regulus Partners   On Friday 18/02/22, DraftKings released their Q4 report for 2021. Paul Leyland joined Pierre Lindh in a livestream to analyse the report. If you missed it, you can catch it again now ABOUT PAUL LEYLAND:   Paul advises on economic, financial and business models in gambling and related sectors, with a focus on regulatory change. He has considerable financial analysis and M&A experience in financial services, industry and as a consultant. Prior to co-founding Regulus in 2013, Paul was Corporate Development Director at William Hill, where he as active in developing an omnichannel strategy, building more effective stakeholder relations and advising on M&A. Between 2000 and 2011, Paul was one of the first Equity Analysts to cover the online gambling sector pre-UIGEA and went on to specialise in the online, retail and supply-chain sectors with global coverage. _____   This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology   For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions    Sponsored by:   Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com   Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com   Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast with Heidi Lofthus and Karl Grech Karl Grech talks to our Heidi Lofthus about what drives motivation and how you can use “wasted time” for something good. Emotional Intelligence focus is on the agenda in many organizations and one way to highlight the various mindsets in a team is by introducing the Lego Serious Play design to optimize brainstorming. ABOUT KARL GRECH:  As a performance coach, Karl helps mid to senior leaders enhance how they inspire, motivate and engage their team. He thrives by supporting individuals to gain confidence in their leadership role, develop habits to manage stress and bounce back from challenging situations, to achieve professional and personal success!   Karl’s coaching style can be described as collaborative, practical, challenging and genuine. He has earned an Associate Certified Coach (ACC) award with the International Coaching Federation (ICF), certified in PRISM brain-mapping, and Genos Emotional Intelligence assessments. Graduated with a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) in Management Consulting with the Grenoble Graduate School of Business.   Karl has also achieved a diploma in Coaching & Mentoring.  When he is not working, Karl can be found enjoying spending time with his family, running, circuit training, and embracing traffic as an opportunity to listen to podcasts. _____   This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology   For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions    Sponsored by:   Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com   Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com   Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast  #89 with Pierre Lindh, Rory Credland and Sam Milliken   We are thrilled to welcome our new Event Director, Sam Milliken who is joining iGaming NEXT. In this podcast, we explore how our habits have changed forever due to the pandemic, and how that has affected the conference industry. We also talk about what the future holds for iGaming NEXT! _____ This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is brought to you by: Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions Sponsored by: Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙In this episode Karolina talks to Michael Brady, Founder Director of Eyas Gaming about his journey in gaming over the past 22 years, on founding and scaling Bede Gaming and the recent sale of a majority stake to the Gauselmann Group. They discuss the key factors for success for a company with ambitions to become the First Choice Platform to enable Operators to maximise their offering. _____ This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is hosted by Karolina Pelc, Founder and CEO at BeyondPlay and brought to you by: Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions Sponsored by: Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast #87 by Pierre Lindh with Alex Pratt, Group MD of Clarion & the Digital Marketing Portfolio   In this episode Alex Pratt joins Pierre to discuss the current status of ICE and what to expect from this years show. We’ve seen some of the biggest exhibitors pulling out from ICE 2022 as a result of the date change. Alex discusses the hardships with all the changes, gives insight on how to organize an event of such extent and shares some of his predictions for ICE 2023. ABOUT ALEX PRATT:   Pratt joined Clarion Events following its acquisition of iGaming Business, since rebranded as iGB, and the iGB Affiliate event series in 2016. He served as managing director of the publishing portfolio for the business before being named Group Managing Director for Clarion Gaming & the Digital Marketing Portfolio in October of 2020. _____  This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology  For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions  Sponsored by:  Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast #87 by Michael Pederson with Martin Nieri, Partner at iGaming Collective  "Brand building is a business strategy for growth" says Martin Nieri. On this episode, Michael Pedersen together with Martin Nieri discuss brand and brand building in the iGaming industry. Martin answers questions what is a brand and, most importantly, what it isn't. The misconceptions when it comes to the necessity of using branding tools and ways to optimize your business through various branding tools, also Martin presents his top 5 iGaming brands and his reasoning behind it.  ABOUT MARTIN:   Martin spent the large share of his career in and running some of London’s most prominent creative agencies helping to build brand and advertising strategies for both start-up and blue chip organisations alike. He made the leap into iGaming in 2018 when he joined The Stars Group as Global Brand and Creative Director with a key responsibility being the over-arching rebranding of the PokerStars brand. In 2020, he joined GOAT Interactive as CMO (and then CEO) to lead the Premier Bet brand to record growth levels across its 19 African markets. Today, Martin is Partner at The iGaming Collective, a strategic advisory consultancy for the global iGaming industry. _____ This episode of the iGaming NEXT #Podcast is brought to you by: Pragmatic Solutions. – Leading iGaming platform technology. For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions Sponsored by: Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com

🎙 Podcast #86 by Pierre Lindh with Tsachi Maimon, CEO of Aspire Global   Aspire Global outperformed the entire iGaming industry on the stock market since the start of the pandemic, and in this podcast Pierre & Tsachi sit back to talk about what made Aspire Global so successful leading up to the recent acquisition by Neogames, and what comes next for the company. ABOUT TSACHI:   Tsachi Maimon has been prevalent in the iGaming industry since 2008, having previously worked at Playtech before joining Aspire Global as a board member and CEO in 2013. Bringing with him a wealth of industry knowledge, Tsachi has played a key role in the major developments the company has seen. Some of these include listing the company on the Nasdaq stock exchange, as well as the acquisition of games aggregator Pariplay and sportsbook supplier BtoBet. His leadership largely contributed to Aspire Global’s solid positioning as one of today’s most prominent iGaming B2B suppliers. _____  This episode of the iGaming NEXT Podcast is brought to you by:   Pragmatic Solutions – Leading iGaming platform technology  For more info, click here: http://pragmatic.solutions Sponsored by:  Pragmatic Play - https://www.pragmaticplay.com Fast Track: https://www.fasttrack-solutions.com Yolo Group: https://yolo.com