Gaming Intelligence is an important publication for the online gambling industry. It has just released its Hot 50 list, which it claims is a “celebration of the most talented, innovative and inspiring individuals working in the online gambling industry”. These individuals have shaped the industry in 2011 and are likely to play an important role in 2012. Gaming Intelligence has said that the Hot 50 list will be an annual feature henceforth. Many individuals associated with the online casinos rated highly by TopCasinos figure in this list.

Denise Coates has been named in the Operator Icons category. She is the Founder and Joint CEO of Bet365. The citation says that Coates’ greatest strength is a complete focus on making the customer experience better. Her strategic vision, investment sense and informal management style have also been praised. This year Denise also earned a CBE in the Queen’s honor’s list. Her brother, John Coates, who is also Joint CEO of Bet365 has been named in the marketing category. John has been responsible for the successes in the new markets that Bet365 has ventured into. John is also the chairman of the Remote Gambling Association.

Party Casino is a TopCasino rated online casino. Today it is a brand of bwin.party. Jim Ryan the co-CEO has been named in the Operator Icons category for his B2B deals in Denmark, France and the United States. Joachim Baca, the COO of bwin.party, has been named in the Backstage Heroes category, which essentially deals with operations. He was the man who managed the merger of Bwin and Party Gaming in a smooth manner without any hiccups.

Ed Ware, the CEO of 32Red, has been named in the Operator Icons category. 32Red online casino has been rated 5-star by TopCasinos. 32Red is a smaller company than Playtech and William Hill. But Ware took on these Goliaths of online gambling when he saw them infringing on his rights. He fought them in the media and the courts and ultimately won his due. He represents the smaller interests in the online gambling industry. His citation says, “Casino games are in the ascendancy and Ware is leading the charge”.

A number of TopCasino rated online casinos are powered by Playtech. They include Mansion Casino, Omni Casino and William Hill. Mor Weizer, CEO of Playtech, has been named by Gaming Intelligence in the Superstar Suppliers category. Weizer has literally unleashed a strategy of acquisitions and partnerships since he took over the chief’s role. And each acquisition has a canny rationale, which is Weizer’s genius. Weizer has “positioned the company pretty well for any eventuality”. Shay Segev, COO of Playtech is also on the Hot 50 list. He has been named in the Backstage Heroes categories.

Gareth Edwards, Director of Marketing and Strategy of the 888 group, has been named in the marketing category. 888 Casino has been rated by TopCasinos. Edwards turned the receding fortunes of 888 by reestablishing the brand equity of the group. He was responsible for getting Shane Warne to be the brand ambassador of their poker product.