Online casino software firm NetEnt has been named an associate member of the World Lottery Association (WLA).
On Wednesday, NetEnt revealed its admission into the WLA, a group that promotes state-authorized lotteries in over 80 countries around the globe. NetEnt earned the associate member invite thanks in part to its customer ranks, which include global lottery powerhouses Lottomatica and Denmark’s state-owned Danske Spil.
NetEnt CEO Per Eriksson called the WLA invite “an important quality stamp” and a reflection of NetEnt’s commitment to safe and responsible gaming. Eriksson said the new associate membership status was a “significant step for us as we grow our presence further in this important market segment.”
The WLA wasn’t the only outfit bestowing honors on NetEnt this week. On Tuesday, which was International Women’s Day, in case you misogynist bastards failed to notice, Swedish financial magazine Veckans Affarer named NetEnt’s chief development officer Åsa Bredin (pictured) the seventh most powerful woman in the country’s digital workplace.
Bredin, who joined NetEnt last year, said she was “proud and happy” with the recognition, while Eriksson claimed that the nod reflected the company’s philosophy that “gender balance and diversity delivers better results and increases innovation among employees.”
NetEnt already boasts a 50/50 gender balance among its management ranks and the company has set a goal of achieving this same 50/50 split across its entire payroll – currently 750 people divided between Sweden and Malta – by 2020.
NetEnt is in the process of establishing additional hubs in Kiev and Krakow to further bolster its programmer ranks and Eriksson conceded that the investments in new offices and products could negatively impact margin growth in 2016. But given that the company is coming off record revenue and profit numbers, now appears to be the time to take a bite out of rivals Playtech and Microgaming.
Eriksson recently told Reuters that the company has set a goal of doubling its current global market share of online casino technology to 30%. Not one for self-doubt, Eriksson noted that NetEnt’s European market share was already around 30%, “and that means 70% to take.”
