Players rarely follow a straight path from discovering a brand to registering. They might first hear about it from a streamer, search for it on Google, open another app and register through a different browser. So which channel should get the credit?

In Episode 97 of iGaming Real Talk, our host Surya Palli speaks with Tamara Hovhannisyan, Head of Products at DIGITAIN, in Lisbon about affiliate attribution, tracking technology and the challenges of understanding a fragmented player journey.

Tamara explains why traditional cookie-based tracking is becoming less effective and how DIGITAIN’s AFFILIKA platform tracks activity across different channels. The technology provides operators with attribution data, leaving them to decide whether the first click, last click or another source should receive credit. She also discusses why reporting player lifetime value, NGR and retention data by traffic source can help operators and affiliates better understand performance.

The conversation also looks at the relationship between operators and affiliates, including how hybrid commercial deals can give affiliates more reason to care about long-term player value. Surya raises questions about responsible product development and transparency, before Tamara shares where she sees AI providing practical value today: making reporting and data access easier, alongside helping affiliates produce creative assets such as banners and videos.

Table tennis is still sometimes treated as content that fills the space between bigger sporting events. Maksym Vitushko says that view is already outdated.

In Episode 96, Surya speaks with BETER’s General Manager of Sports about fast betting content, why table tennis has developed into a standalone category and what happened when the 2026 World Cup brought a new wave of bettors into sportsbooks.

Maksym says BETER saw table tennis betting volume grow during the tournament, but the more interesting part came afterwards. Some of those new players continued betting on table tennis even after the World Cup ended.

The conversation also looks at why the format works. A table tennis match is short, settlement is quick and players can move to the next bet faster. Maksym says this behaviour has helped the category move beyond its old “gap filler” label.

Surya also asks what operators still get wrong. Maksym points to two things: perception and visibility. If table tennis is buried inside a sportsbook, players are less likely to discover it. Better positioning can directly affect turnover.

They also discuss different betting behaviour across regions, what younger players want, the role of data and gamification, and where fast sports content could move next.

iGaming is often criticised for being slower to innovate than other digital industries. The SOFTSWISS 2027 iGaming Trends Report points to a very different picture.

In Episode 95, Surya speaks with Alexandra Kavelich, Deputy CMO at SOFTSWISS, about the fifth edition of the company's annual trends report and why SOFTSWISS started producing the research in the first place.

Alexandra says the original problem was simple: iGaming did not have enough structured data for companies trying to build business and marketing strategies. Five editions later, the report brings together surveys, industry experts, media analysis and perspectives from both inside and outside iGaming.

One of the biggest surprises is the report's new Digital Maturity Index. According to the report, iGaming scored 4.67 out of 5 and ranked first among the digital industries compared in the research. For Surya, this challenged something he had said repeatedly before: that iGaming was years behind sectors such as Silicon Valley technology.

They also discuss prediction markets. Alexandra says the subject was one of the loudest trends when SOFTSWISS started preparing the report, but the noise has already reduced. Demand remains strong, yet questions around regulation, liquidity and the right long-term model are still unresolved.

The conversation closes with another sign of maturity. Alexandra says the report expects annual industry growth to slow significantly over time. Rather than seeing that only as a negative, she views it as evidence that iGaming itself is becoming a more established industry.