Akamon completes product reorganisation; acquires stake in Tel Aviv studio

Social casino operator Akamon Entertainment has appointed Alex Cohen as the company’s new chief product officer, while also bolstering its development capabilities with the acquisition of a stake in a Tel Aviv-based studio.

Cohen joins from Stockholm-based slots developer Quickspin, where he served as head of game design for the past two years. Prior to that, he previously spent more than six years as a game designer for International Game Technology.

In his new role, Cohen will report directly to Akamon chief executive Vicenç Marti, and will take charge of optimising the company’s portfolio of 40 games and handle all new development which will be focused on creating new mobile products.

His appointment completes a reorganisation of Akamon’s product teams, all of which will be managed by Cohen.

Commenting on his appointment, he said that joining Akamon, with its strong geographical footprint in Latin America and strong customer base, was an exciting new challenge.

He added that he would strive to develop “world-class games [for] the loyal user base Akamon has created.”

In related news, Akamon has acquired a 25 per cent stake in a Tel Aviv-based social casino studio previously known as Xpinator to complement its existing offices in Barcelona and Valencia. The studio has already worked with the company on the development of its Akamon Slots product.

Akamon has the option to fully acquire the studio in a series of phases, with an option to up its stake to 51 per cent, then 100 per cent, if it is happy with the results of the partnership.

The studio will be renamed Akamon Israel and headed by Zvika Alon, who has been appointed chief executive of the division. Alon previously spent a decade as chief technology officer and head of product for Gibraltar-licensed operator 888.

Alon commented that he was proud to be joining Akamon, adding that he already felt a part of the business through the publishing agreement between the companies that was active throughout 2013.

He added that the business would “continue with the development of fun, competitive social slots games to be enjoyed by all Akamon users.”

He will report directly to Cohen in the role, who said it was an honour to work with Alon and the “small but dynamic team of game designers and engineers at Akamon Israel.”

“[Together] we will aim to deliver a top-tier social slot experience to the Akamon user base,” Cohen added.

Akamon CEO Martí said the reorganisation and acquisition were “the most profound changes” to be implemented in the company’s existence to date.

He said he was proud to have people of Cohen and Alon’s calibre joining the business, predicting that the quality of the products “will reflect the phenomenal addition of talent Alex and Zvika´s leadership will bring.”

Martí added that the company had been working on the two deals for over six months, adding that “it has been worth it and today is an excellent day.”