People news 5 September
The latest people moves from the egaming industry in the last seven days (30 August to 5 September 2013)
Ladbrokes makes second round of redundancies
A further 75 roles could go as Ladbrokes staff enter second consultation in four months
Up to 75 jobs at Ladbrokes’ Rayners Lane head office could be made redundant as the firm embarks on a second round of jobs cuts.
Employees from departments including HR, IT and trading will enter a consultation period this week, a company spokesperson confirmed to eGaming Review.
This second set of job cuts adds to the initial 90-day redundancy consultation which was announced in May after various key roles were shifted to its Ladbrokes Israel subsidiary formed as part of the operator’s licensing agreement with Playtech.
Around 100 roles, mainly related to product, marketing and customer support, were made redundant following the first consultation period, however around 50 are understood to have been redeployed elsewhere within the company.
A source told eGR that staff involved in the redundancies will begin their consultation with an initial meeting with Ladbrokes management.
Seven days in people news:
Unibet head of poker Cutler leaves
Unibet’s head of poker development Steve Cutler has left his role after six years at the operator, eGaming Review has learned.
Cutler, who left the Swedish-listed company on 12 August, has been at the operator since 2007 and has been replaced by Martin Stalros.
Speaking with eGR, Cutler said that his reasons for leaving were “purely personal” and had nothing but praise for Unibet where he had previously held roles including poker product and projects manager and head of poker operations.
“Unibet is and always has been a fantastic company to work at, but after six and half years I felt it was time to focus on some other projects that have been waiting in the aisles for some time,” he said. “I am spending time over the next few weeks doing the feasibility studies and will start with some consulting work in a couple of months’ time too.”
Former Betclic Expekt CEO joins Landry’s as online boss
US casino group Landry’s has appointed former Betclic Expect CEO Thomas Winter as its new vice-president of online gaming, eGaming Review has learned.
The Houston-headquartered firm, which owns the famous Golden Nugget casino chain, has already taken steps towards launching its US egaming proposition, having entered into a platform supply deal with Bally Technologies.
It has obtained an online poker licence in Nevada, where it will use Amaya’s Ongame software through Bally’s platform, and is in line to be one of 12 operators in New Jersey when the state goes live as planned later this year.
BTwiice appoints former Boylesports CEO Richardson
UK Gambling Commission-licensed BTwiice has announced the appointment of Lee Richardson as a non-executive director.
Richardson, who is currently CEO of gaming consultancy specialist Gaming Economics, has over 15 years’ experience in the online sports betting industry and has previously held senior positions at Tote, Coral-Eurobet, Boylesports and ONEworks.
Speaking with eGaming Review, BTWiice co-founder Julien Cunze said that Richardson would be an important addition to the company as it looks to bring its new sports betting insurance initiative to the market.
Churchill Downs to hire 50 staff in egaming push
Kentucky-based horseracing operator Churchill Downs is to hire up to 50 new employees as part of a $4m expansion as it eyes a move into online gambling.
The group received approval from the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority last week for $1m in tax incentives to create the positions, which will predominately relate to software development.
The Courier-Journal reports that the hires will handle increased online gambling activities at the company, with Churchill Downs preparing for state and federal legislation that would allow online gambling.
EveryMatrix has hired Ian Sherrington to head up its new office in Manila as the software provider looks to expand its online gaming presence in Asia. Sherrington was previously a technical director of Intertops Sportwetten, where he created the first online sportsbook in 1996, and also founded Mahjong Mania in Montreal in 2003. Mahjong Mania was later sold to a publicly traded company and became Dynasty Gaming.