Author: Charles Shephardson

FanDuel has pushed back against calls from three US lawmakers to shut down its VIP programme following concerns over customer protection and responsible gambling. The operator responded on 14 August in a letter seen by journalist Bill Speros, insisting VIP customers face the same safeguards as all other users and actually receive additional oversight. The letter was authored by SVP of public policy and sustainability Cory Fox and addressed Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Reps. Paul Tonko of New York and Valerie Foushee of North Carolina. The lawmakers had written to FanDuel four days earlier, raising concerns about a…

StarGames.de has become the latest platform to host Swintt’s suite of Premium slots, marking another significant step for the software provider in Germany. The popular online gambling brand StarGames.de is part of the Greentube Group and has built a strong reputation as one of Germany’s favourite online betting destinations. The platform has achieved this status through a carefully-curated collection of slots, which has now been enhanced by the addition of SwinttPremium titles. SwinttPremium games are already being enjoyed by players in 14 regulated markets worldwide and successfully replicate the thrill of land-based slot machines in an accessible online format. The…

Gibraltar’s Gambling Commissioner Andrew Lyman has raised serious doubts about whether Andy Burnham can revoke the ‘aim to permit’ rule without a sweeping overhaul of UK gambling legislation. The ‘aim to permit’ principle is a cornerstone of the 2005 Gambling Act, and Lyman believes removing it is far more legally complex than the new Prime Minister may have anticipated. Lyman served at the UK Gambling Commission in the immediate aftermath of the 2005 Act and recalls the considerable parliamentary time and policy work required to deliver that legislation. He has been unequivocal in his assessment of the difficulty involved, stating…

ICONIC21 has officially launched Wild Tornado Ranch, a new online slot blending a rural farm theme with high-volatility mechanics built around expanding wilds and escalating multipliers. The five-reel game places players on a storm-battered ranch where tornadoes sweep across the reels, powering increasingly rewarding combinations with every spin. At the centre of the title’s mechanics is the High Wild Tornado feature, which drives multipliers as high as 1,024x for players chasing significant wins. During the Free Spins feature, persistent Tornado symbols remain active on the reels and continue moving with each successive spin, keeping the tension high throughout. Those multipliers…

Entain has left the door open to additional portfolio restructuring after completing the first stage of its planned exit from Central and Eastern Europe. CFO Michael Snape indicated the group is not committed to maintaining its current business structure, raising expectations of further strategic moves ahead. In June, Entain agreed to sell a 20% stake in its CEE joint venture to existing partner EMMA Capital as part of its wider capital allocation strategy. The company confirmed at the time that it intends to fully exit Entain CEE eventually, with the initial disposal representing the first step in that process. Speaking…

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has named betting shops among high street businesses his government intends to actively discourage, igniting fierce industry backlash. The anger centres on licensed betting shops being grouped alongside what Burnham separately described as “dodgy businesses,” a phrase widely understood to refer to criminal fronts. Betsmart Consulting founder and CEO Kirsty Caldwell told reporters: “I’m absolutely livid about it, and I think everybody in the industry is and should be.” Jeremy Godden, MD of The Godden Gaming Organisation and Bacta vice president, expressed his own frustration with the prime minister’s framing and choice of language. Godden…

Live dealer content has fundamentally shifted its position in the casino lobby, moving from a secondary offering to a core vertical for operators worldwide. In several markets, live casino titles already lead visibility rankings, signalling a structural change in how operators approach their game libraries. Data from Blask, an AI-powered iGaming market analytics platform, tracks visibility scores from zero to 100 percent based on which operators feature a game and at what lobby positions. Among the top 20 live titles measured in July 2026, Crazy Time from Evolution leads the field with an impressive 620 brand listings across global operators.…

Swintt has launched Grillmaster Garry, a new addition to its SwinttPremium portfolio that combines barbeque-themed fun with serious prize potential. The game plays out across a 5×3 reel set featuring five fixed paylines, giving it a classic structure that keeps the focus firmly on its unique feature mechanics. Symbols include barbeque tools, corn cobs, succulent sausages, and traditional playing card values, all adding to the summer cookout atmosphere the developer has crafted. Players must watch for special grill and steak symbols during base gameplay, as these two icons are the key ingredients for triggering the slot’s main attraction. When steaks…

The UK government’s plans to give councils greater control over gambling premises have reignited fierce debate about the future of betting shops on the high street. Prime Minister Andy Burnham appeared to shift the focus of the plans by including betting shops in a video highlighting businesses he suggested local communities had not asked for. Writing in The Spectator, author Rupert Hawksley questioned why the government was targeting an industry already experiencing dramatic decline across the UK. There were 8,882 betting shops in the UK in 2015, falling to 5,872 by 2025, with Betfred recently announcing plans to close 132…

The UK Gambling Commission has found that consumers participating in social media lotteries are more focused on whether a draw looks genuine than whether it is legally operated. The regulator’s intelligence team recorded an increase in reports of suspected illegal lotteries and raffles on TikTok during 2025 compared with the previous year. In response, the Commission commissioned Yonder Consulting to examine why consumers take part in these draws, how they encounter them, and how operators run them. Key findings revealed that lower ticket prices, informal presentation and familiar payment methods could reduce consumers’ perception of risk when engaging with these…