GPWA among winners at iGB awards

The Gambling Portal Webmasters Association (GPWA) won the inaugural Lou Fabiano Award for Best iGaming Community at Thursday's iGB Affiliate Awards.

According to the judges, the GPWA won the award because they were "impressed by their strong reputation and provision of a well-moderated community where members actively contribute to important industry topics."

The judges also liked "how GPWA have increased forum participation and introduced useful tools to help both programs and affiliates."

They concluded that the GPWA was "an authority community for the iGaming industry, which is well-presented and extremely useful."

The award, named after the late Lou Fabiano, was one of 14 awarded at the festive, humor-filled night at The Brewery in London.

James Woods from Bet365 won the award for Best Affiliate Manager. "Woods deserved this distinction because of his commitment professionalism and hardworking attitude," the judges said. They also liked the fact he "constantly looks for innovative and unique solutions for his affiliates."

GPWA sponsor program Bet365 also took home the award for Best Affiliate Program. The judges concluded Bet365 has a "combination of key benefits they offer to their affiliates ranging from a high quality affiliate system to some of the highest conversion and retention rates in the market."

Income Access, another GPWA sponsor program, won the Best Affiliate Network award. The judges in this category said they liked Income Access' "reliable software and clear reporting system."

GPWA sponsor GoWild Affiliates won the award for Best New Affiliate Program thanks to its "responsive affiliate team."

Moneybookers, which is also a GPWA sponsor, won the award for Best Payment System, while Valuechekcer.co.uk won for Best Innovation in the iGaming Affiliate Industry and Dominique won the Outstanding Contribution to the iGaming Affiliate Industry award.

The awards for Best Poker Affiliate and Best Overall Affiliate went to PokerStrategy.com.

The judges particularly liked Poker Strategy's localization efforts and called the site "one of the best educational resources in the industry with unique positioning, quality and potential for growth."

Casino City won the award for Best Casino Affiliate. The judges said they liked "the sheer depth of information and the fact it is constantly being updated."

"Casino City and its network of sites are one of the central 'go to' points for news and updates about the iGaming industry," the judges added.

Oddschecker.com took home the prize for best sportsbook affiliate. The judges said they liked Oddschecker.com's "strong and established brand" and its "constant top positioning in the search engines."

Affiliate Guard Dog won the award for Best Non-Traditional Affiliate. The judges liked Affiliate Guard Dog's unique service and features that protect and assist affiliates. The judges also liked the fact that the "site is built on honesty, objectivity and commitment to making the iGaming industry a better place."

BingoPort.co.uk won for Best Bingo Affiliate and BettingPro.com won Best New Affiliate for its "highly informative site which always features up to date industry news and promotes a great selection of rooms."