GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 35 - June 2016

H as it really been 10 years? As the old saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun! The last 10 years really have been a blast. This will be our 35th issue of the GPWA Times Magazine , and our cover story takes a look back on what we’ve done together over the last decade at the GPWA. Of course, the GPWA dates back five years before Casino City’s ownership. The three years of leadership by our organization’s founder, Cindy Carley, and two years by John and Marlene Derossett set the bedrock principles upon which the GPWA was founded: collaboration, relationship-building and trust. It was these principles that piqued my interest when I learned the GPWA might be up for sale in summer 2006. It is a decision that I have never regretted. I can’t imagine being part of this industry without the GPWA, and I have all of YOU — our GPWA affiliate members and our GPWA sponsors — to thank for it. This is an incredible community, and it is humbling to be celebrating 10 years together. This issue of our magazine brings together some of the very best of what the GPWA has to offer. In addition to our 10th anniversary retrospective, written by Aaron Todd, we get the latest insights on SEO from Martin McGarry of WhichBingo. We also learn about the effect of PokerStars’ entry into the New Jersey online poker market in an article by gaming lawyer Christopher Soriano and get the details on an emerging gaming vertical, betting on eSports, from Gary Trask. And of course, we also learn about a diverse range of affiliates in our Affiliate Interview Series, and get the latest from two great affiliate programs in our Affiliate Manager Interview Series. If you enjoy this issue and you’re not already a subscriber, sign up today! Visit GPWAtimes.org/subscribe to learn how to sign up — and the best part is it’s free! Sincerely, Michael A. Corfman GPWA Executive Director LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR GPWA Executive Director: Michael Corfman Program Director: Anthony Telesca Program Manager: Jim Keith Membership Manager: Nancy Troy Member Services: Loriann Sheridan Marketing Director: Andrea Mullaney GPWA TIMES MAGAZINE Managing Editors: Aaron Todd, Gary Trask Copy Chief: Clare Fitzgerald Designer: George Choi SUBSCRIPTIONS For a FREE subscription to the GPWA Times Magazine, visit GPWAtimes.org ADVERTISING To advertise in the GPWA Times Magazine, please e-mail: sales@gpwa.org ISSN 1941-9872 DEPARTMENTS 8 Quotables 9 Webmaster News 10 By the Numbers 12 Photo Gallery 38 Affiliate Interview Series 60 GPWA Sponsors 64 Affiliate Manager Interview Series 70 Event Calendar 72 APCW Hall of Fame 20 COVER STORY: Celebrating our 10 th anniversary Aaron Todd looks back on the GPWA’s last decade under the leadership of Executive Director Michael Corfman — aka the “Friend to the Village Idiot.” 26 All about those links, ’bout those links, no-follow Martin McGarry, WhichBingo’s SEO strategist, says affiliate links may be hurting the SEO efforts of some of the U.K.’s most reputable online bingo brands. 30 Video games may be the next big thing Gary Trask investigates one of the newest and fastest-growing verticals in the iGaming space: betting on eSports. 34 PokerStars and the New Jersey online poker market Duane Morris’ Christopher Soriano says that New Jersey’s decision to allow PokerStars to enter its regulated online poker market is already paying dividends. Photo by Przemek Tokar Shutterstock.com