Tonight, eGR Magazine handed out their 7th annual eGaming Review Operators Awards. The event serves as way for the magazine to recognize their advertisers and a pretty good excuse to wear a tuxedo, drink some champagne and slap the backs of your compatriots.
The event featured a cocktail party and a lavish dinner before the ceremony began. I’m told the champagne was flowing freely and the food was top-notch. Comedian Rufus Hound hosted the event with his own unique flair. Hound joked about the bad economy, which obviously hadn’t hit the gaming industry based on the celebrations going on in the banquet hall.
A man after my own heart, Hound told winners not to bother making acceptance speeches as the room is full of your competitors and they don’t give a shit about what you have to say.
To quote Hound, let’s get to the winners because there were about “2 Million” given out.
Heading into the ceremony, William Hill looked to have a huge night as they were up in 12 categories, followed by Betfair with nine and Paddy Power was up for six of the eGR Advertiser Awards.
Despite the 12 nominations, William Hill were shutout until the final award of the night, then they laid claim to the Operator of the Year. The crowd’s reaction was quite mixed as the Operator of the Year Award should be the culmination of a company that does so many things well. As Hill were denied in every other category, perhaps they were awarded for consistency.
Unlike the Oscars, Golden Globes or even other iGaming industry awards like the International Gaming Awards, the eGR Magazine Awards aren’t peer reviewed or voted on by the industry at large. It would be interesting to see what kind of formula eGR Magazine uses to determine their winners.
Paddy Power, Bwin and Gamesys Jackpot Joy led the winners garnering three awards each. Bet365 took home 2 awards for In-play Sports Operator and Sports Betting Operator of the year, solid choice, Bet365 does great work.
Congratulations to all the winners and good luck at the peer-reviewed IGA awards in January.
Here is a complete listing of the eGR Operator Award winners.
In-play sports operator – bet365
Affiliate programme of the year – Paddy Power
Skill gaming operator – 123 Gaming
Rising Star – mFortune
Casino operator – 32Red
Social networking operator – Paddy Power
Sports Spread Betting Operator – Sporting index
French poker – winamax
French operator – betclic
Bingo operator – Gamesys Jackpot Joy
Innovation in Gaming – Bingocams
Best website performance – Jennings bet
Best mobile performance – Coral
Gaming review site of the year – WhichBingo UK
Innovative gaming site – Racing Post
Gaming community site – pokerstrategy.com
Gaming comparison site – Oddschecker
Marketing campaign – Gamesys jackpot joy
Slots operator – Gamesys Jackpot joy
Customer relations – Paddy Power
Spread betting – bwin.party
Italian operator – bwin.Italy
Mobile operator – Betfair
Poker operator – 888poker
Socially responsible operator – bwin.party
Sports betting operator – bet365
One to watch – wonder bingo
Operator of the year – William hill online
