Zona de Azar UK – Virtual Ampersand Assembly: Final Conclusions Part 3

United Kingdom.- June 17, 2020 www.zonadeazar.com The second edition of the Virtual Ampersand Assembly took place last May 18 to May 29 . It was a must-see event for the industry, the first edition of which took place last April. This new and unprecedented modality consisted of 25 assemblies, which according to Ewa Bakun, Director of Industry Insight and Engagement at Clarion Gaming, intended to be “informal and fluid conversations, very similar to those you would have during a Coffee Break or networking event of the conferences and exhibitions organized by Clarion Gaming”.

As follows Key Take-Aways from the “Women in esports and sports betting” Assembly:

“Women in eSports and Sports Betting”

• By not engaging with more women, the industry is blind to the 50% of the potential revenue. Women sports are already as popular as men sports and women sports viewership is on the rise, yet sports book operators are only targeting 50% of the spectator base which is a commercial oversight.
• Similarly 50% of esports players are women, but commercially operators are ignoring the revenue potential.
• So much of the market is dictated and led by men, hence marketing and product choices are also male oriented; no one is there to notice the opportunity and consider how to tap into it.
• Getting more women into gaming and betting: importance of female gamers and influencers to get into gaming; storytelling in gaming as a way to promote to women; shift towards more gender neutral marketing is happening; millennials pushing for more gender neutral marketing and diversity, so does responsible gambling, with a shift, also promoted by regulators, towards less aggressive, male driven marketing, to a softer approach.
• The stereotypical image of a video gamer is also far from reality. It’s not a young male stuck in their room gaming. The universe is closer to poker, with lots of women playing too.
• If the women in esports are acknowledged and considered, perhaps cyberbullying targeting female gamers would also be addressed more successfully. In the same fashion, if enforcement agencies had more open outlook, not just focused on the stereotype of a male hacker, they would be more successful catching female hackers, who probably get away with their crimes more now, as their profile doesn’t fit the traditional hacker profile.
• The gambling industry is only male dominated at the highest, most senior level only; there is an issue with the progression across the ranks.
• Shift to work from home will help women in more senior positions where they can work from home that allows them more flexibility. But it’s mainly the commercial drivers that will make the difference, e.g. saving on the office real estate, to lead the change and any further shift in working practices that might benefit women.
• Does Denise Coates exists? Lack of visible female executives; perception that women are in gaming for a short period of time to move to another industry – perception of the industry as a male oriented industry and product.
• The issue is wider than gender; we need to look at a broader scope of diversity, also ethnic and race.

Ampersand members have presented more than 90 themes for this event, which have been consolidated in more than 20 assemblies. These were developed with a maximum of 10 members each. The topics covered were be very varied, including: esports, the impact of the pandemic on the industry, game regulation, artificial intelligence, among many others.

Edited: @MaiaDigital www.zonadeazar.com