Crank It Up

About Crank It Up

The two sides reached a settlement in 2014, but that agreement also fell apart, and the casino companies renewed their claims.

Ultimately, the gamble backfired.

Arbitrators found against the companies and ordered them to pay millions of dollars toward Laos’ legal costs and expenses.

What is Crank It Up?

Announced on Thursday, the strategic partnership will grant Spotlight’s network of global sportsbook operators access to Engage Games’ bespoke games, each built collaboratively with Spotlight’s partners.

It marks Spotlight’s first expansion into gaming, combining the company’s global product and content distribution with Engage Games’ platform and track record in free-to-play and pay-to-play games.

Spotlight said the decision to enter the gaming sphere comes as operators increasingly turn towards free-to-play games as a means of “engagement, retention, reactivation and acquisition”.

How to play Crank It Up

Cyprus is not the first market to consider whether to block its welfare recipients from using their benefits to gamble, Brazil introduced a similar ban in 2025.

During a session of the House Audit Committee last Thursday, members of parliament (MPs), the Data Protection Commissioner and representatives from the Welfare Benefits Administration Service (WBAS), the Gaming & Casino Supervision Commission and the National Betting Authority (NBA) convened to discuss ways to identify and restrict gambling activity among GMI beneficiaries, as reported by Cyprus Mail.

While the intention is to protect vulnerable households and ensure welfare is spent on essential needs, proposed measures are being complicated by legal, technical and privacy obstacles.