GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 45 - October 2019

I’ve always been a bit of a techiekindof guy , and workingwithwebsites is a goodfit forme . I think it’s often surprising for people how lucrative it canactuallybe if done successfully . But you could easily say this is all par for the course in our industry. German and British players seem to love “free” offers, while also leaning toward brands they know and trust. Speaking as a Brit, I know that there’s definitely this mentality of wanting to hunt down the best offer – whether it’s in the supermarket or the online casino. What are your thoughts regarding the newly regulated markets in the U.S.? It’s an exciting opportunity for any- one working in English-language gambling affiliation, us included. What makes your sites unique? We just relaunched with a brand new design, actually, and with it added the functional- ity for visitors to be able to filter our lists of casinos. Another big change was to our review pages, which are now much more data-driven, detailed and informative. How do you decide what casinos to promote? We have a dedicated account management and business intelligence team that makes these decisions, as well as multiple reviewers specializing in the various aspects of online casinos. Tell us about your current employer. I am employed full-time by Highlight Me- dia, an affiliate company of over 15 years. They are the owner of CasinoGuide and Pokerlistings, among several other suc- cessful affiliate brands. Highlight is part of Net Gaming Europe AB, which is listed at Stockholm Nasdaq First North Premier. There are three freelance writers who assist me in producing content for CasinoGuide, and I have several colleagues within the company working on it with me too who specialize across various fields, including content, design, development and SEO. Do you gamble? I’ve played now and then in brick-and-mortar casinos, but it’s certainly not a regular thing. How often do you get to see and interact with other people in the industry? Do you attend confer- ences? I work in an office full of people in the industry, but I attend conferences less than I should. I intend to make amends by attending SiGMA in Malta this coming November. What traits do you look for in an affil- iate manager? Cooperative and flexible. Why did you join the GPWA? How did you first find it? When I first started as Project Manager of CasinoGuide, I was very new in the affiliate industry and it was good to find a forum of people helping each other out and sharing knowledge. What do you like about the industry? It’s fast-paced, lucrative, constantly evolving and full of very interesting people. If you could change one thing about the industry these days, what would it be and why? I would prefer it if more markets were regulated as well as the U.K. one is – I’m not a fan of the government there, but the Gambling Commission does at least seem to do a good job of protecting players while allowing the industry to flourish. I think that regulation will be more prevalent in five years, as more governments seek to benefit from the lucrative iGaming industry through taxation. What do your family and friends think of your work as an affiliate? They’re just happy I’m doing something I enjoy – I’ve always been a bit of a techie kind of 51 G P W A t i m e s . o r g