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Scientific Games Chief Information Officer Jessie Pack Named Technology Association of Georgia 2023 Tech Leader of the Year

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Scientific Games Chief Information Officer Jessie Pack was named 2023 Tech Leader of the Year by the Technology Association of Georgia, the largest tech organization in the state with more than 30,000 members, including across the metro Atlanta tech corridor. Pack received the honor for a private company tech leader.

Scientific Games CEO Pat McHugh said, “On behalf of the entire Scientific Games family, we are very proud to have Jessie Pack as our CIO. His efforts have truly made him and our company a global leader. Jessie’s hands-on leadership serving our people and our lottery customers personifies Scientific Games’ culture. Jessie has dedicated his entire career to keeping the company and our 3,000 employees and customers running 24/7 on five continents.”

With 100+ team members in eight countries, Pack joined SG in 1986 and is responsible for technology operating Scientific Games and its customers’ systems globally. Following the company’s sale to Brookfield Business Partners in April 2022, he led all activities to stand up the new organization’s technology and ultimately separate from Scientific Games’ former parent company. Pack directed more than 18 months of planning 400+ individual technology projects across numerous platforms, including Oracle, Jira, Confluence, Microsoft 365, SharePoint, Workday, and a suite of software that powers a global business.

In his award acceptance speech, Pack said, I would like to thank TAG for this award. There’s only one name on here, but you can’t be one person and be a leader. I accept this award on behalf of my entire awesome, diverse and dedicated team, as well as all my co-workers. Most people would say they work for a company. We work for a family. And the collaboration in our work at Scientific Games is just a great thing. Thank you all, we appreciate it.”

The former U.S. Air Force Airman leads with a commitment to excellence and perseverance to keep projects on schedule, knows his 100+ employees by name, and never asks someone to do something he won’t do himself.

“The success of our company and our business in 50 countries depends on government lottery customers’ stringent security and compliance requirements, and International Standards Organization information security and data governance frameworks,” said McHugh. “As hundreds of technology projects in our new company’s first year are nearing completion, Jessie’s 2023 Technology Leader of the Year Award is timely and well-deserved.”

Scientific Games provides retail and digital games, technologies, analytics and services to 130 lotteries in 50 countries, including the Georgia Lottery Corporation. The company is the world’s largest creator, producer and manager of instant “scratch” games, with products generating more than 70% of instant game retail sales globally.

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Bragg to Attend the SBC Summit North America, 8-9 May, 2024

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Bragg is going to attend the SBC Summit North America taking place at the Meadowlands exposition center, New Jersey in May.

“See you in the Garden State to discuss how Bragg’s full-service suite of market leading iGaming content and technology solutions can be tailored to suit the demands of the U.S. market. Connect with members of the team to learn ways Bragg can accelerate your business with our technology, content and managed services solutions. Discover more about our award-winning Player Account Management (PAM), which is leading the way across the European market and in multiple regulated markets. Learn how our cutting-edge content aggregation RGS which already integrates a host of casino, sportsbook and lottery operators and is supported by our leading gamification product Fuze,” the Company said.

Participate in an insightful discussion

Join Bragg Group Director of Content Doug Fallon and fellow panelists at SBC Summit North America to discuss how game design can be leveraged to deliver profitable products in the iGaming industry.

Don’t miss this great panel discussion “Game Design 101: Launching a Profitable Product” taking place on iGaming Stage 3 at 16:00 on Wednesday, May 8.

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Lori Kalani to Join Draftkings as First Chief Responsible Gaming Officer

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DraftKings announced the appointment of Lori Kalani as Chief Responsible Gaming Officer reporting to DraftKings’ chief executive officer, Jason Robins. Kalani becomes DraftKings’ first Chief Responsible Gaming Officer committed to the continued elevation and integration of the company’s player safety and protection activities and initiatives across all facets of its platforms and player communities.

“Responsible gaming is one of our top priorities and it is a core part of our mission to build games that our customers can enjoy responsibly. In this leadership role, Lori will further advance our responsible gaming initiatives and uphold our commitment to setting new industry standards,” Jason Robins, CEO and Co-Founder of DraftKings, said.

Leveraging a systems-based approach, DraftKings’ responsible gaming initiatives utilize, among other things, technology, employee training, evidence-based research, collaboration with third parties and advocacy groups, and comprehensive player education to promote responsible play across all platforms and all player communities, and to provide players with tools to help them manage their play responsibly.

“I have long admired DraftKings’ impact as an entertainment and engagement platform that brings a community of gaming enthusiasts together. Joining DraftKings represents an exciting opportunity for me to bolster the efforts of the company and look for opportunities to reinforce our responsible gaming initiatives. I am eager to partner with colleagues, regulators, industry leaders, and community advocates to further demonstrate DraftKings’ commitment to responsible gaming and promote a healthy gaming environment for all customers,” said Lori Kalani.

Kalani’s extensive experience in consumer protection law and proven accomplishments in developing working relationships with regulators, attorneys general and other key stakeholders will enable her to effectively work alongside DraftKings’ Compliance team to further cultivate DraftKings’ dedication to best-in-class consumer safety and protection practices.

Kalani previously was a partner at the Cozen O’Connor law firm and Co-Chaired the State Attorneys General practice. Her extensive background spans diverse industries including gaming, social media, telecommunications, hospitality and healthcare. Kalani’s nuanced understanding of regulatory environments and her expertise in representing clients in industry-shaping challenges that intersected law, politics, and policy make her the ideal leader to advance DraftKings’ responsible gaming initiatives.

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Kutt Secures $1 Million+ in Funding and Surpasses 10,000 Users

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Kutt, the leading social betting platform, announced that it closed the first quarter of 2024 with a successful fundraise of over $1 million and that it has surpassed the 10,000 user mark. The company also commissioned a study of 1000 bettors that clearly defines what social betting is and what users want — further cementing its ownership of the space.

“Betting has been a social activity for thousands of years, so it’s no surprise that consumers want the ability to facilitate and track wagers against their friends. If anything, bettors unquestionably prefer a more curated, social experience — they want to be part of a wider community and to be part of the conversation around sports, entertainment, and important events,” Sim Harmon, CEO and founder of Kutt, said.

While sports betting has boomed across the country since the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) was overturned in 2018, established gambling companies have largely stuck to the tried-and-true format sportsbooks have been using for decades — traditional sports bets against the house. But consumer desire to experience more has increased as the betting industry has matured, with 82% of bettors interested in wagering directly against their friends and other individuals through a decentralized platform, according to Kutt’s recently commissioned survey.

The survey found that, in addition to Kutt’s traditional offerings, an overwhelming majority of bettors (80%) are interested in wagering on non-sporting events, with 77% wanting to bet on entertainment, 62% interested in wagering on politics, and 60% with a desire to bet on life events. Kutt allows users to wager with friends on any event with publicly verifiable results, making it the ultimate “put your money where your mouth is” destination for fans. The survey also shed light on some compelling aspects and trends among current bettors, including:

  • A higher percentage of bettors surveyed placed a wager with a friend in the past year (61%) vs. a sportsbook (60%)
  • More than half of U.S. bettors (54%) have betting group chats with friends
  • A majority of U.S. bettors (60%) text their friends about the progress of a bet while watching a game.

Adding further validity to the findings of the survey and the demand for a real-money social betting experience is Kutt’s recent $1 million+ institutional fundraise, led by Lightning Capital, a firm that invests in digital assets and online communities. The investment will fuel initiatives aimed at growing the Kutt community, enhancing user experiences, and expanding betting markets.

“We look for emerging companies in high-growth industries to invest in. Kutt’s enthusiastic user base, rapidly growing partnership portfolio, and their differentiated product offering were very attractive to us. We are eager to help them continue to define and own the social betting space,” Jock Percy, General Partner at Lightning Capital, said.

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