GameCo Picks Gaming Industry Investment Executive to Serve as Its Next CEO

Posted on: March 20, 2021, 11:30h. 

Last updated on: March 21, 2021, 01:11h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More
Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

GameCo on Thursday announced the hiring of Adam Rosenberg as the Las Vegas-based gaming company’s new CEO.

GameCo Rosenberg
Arcade-style gaming developer GameCo announced this week the appointment of Adam Rosenberg as the new CEO of the Las Vegas-based company (Image: GameCo)

Rosenberg comes to GameCo from Fortress Investment Group. He has served as the investment management firm’s global head of gaming and leisure investing. He has a history with the company, as Fortress has invested in GameCo for the past three years. In 2018, he became an observer of GameCo’s board.

He now will ascend to a seat on the board.

GameCo Chairman Robert Montgomery said in a statement that Rosenberg’s gaming industry knowledge was a key factor in his hiring. Before joining Fortress in 2014, he worked 16 years at Goldman, Sachs, and Co. There he worked his way up to become the global head of gaming in the investment banking division.

His deep industry relationships, obvious passion, and innate talent for anticipating what is changing around the delivery of gameplay and regulated gaming experiences make Adam the ideal choice to lead the GameCo team as the Company expands beyond land-based gaming to pursue parallel market leadership in digital,” Montgomery said.

GameCo specializes in developing arcade-style, real-money gaming machines in single-player and multiplayer formats. According to its website, its games are currently available at such casinos as the Park MGM and the MGM Grand.

Nevada Gaming Commission Denial Necessitated Hiring

Rosenberg joins GameCo one month after then-CEO Blaine Graboyes was denied a license by the Nevada Gaming Commission.

That decision happened after commissioners heard from a former executive at Beyond Gaming, an Ohio-based gaming developer where Graboyes worked first as a consultant and then became its CEO.

Justin Yamek testified before the commission that led Beyond Gaming into bankruptcy and then took its assets to GameCo.

Concerns about conflicts of interest were enough for four of the five commissioners to vote against Graboyes, who previously received a limited two-year license. The decision to consider Graboyes unsuitable meant Graboyes had to step down. It also requires him to divest his holdings in GameCo.

GameCo Venturing into eSports Betting

Besides the arcade-style, skill-based machines, GameCo also offers an eSports betting solution for sportsbooks. The company has cited the growth of professional eSports leagues and tournaments and believes betting on competitions involving such video games as CS:GO will draw billions of dollars in handle globally.

The company already has one partnership in place with Colorado’s SkyUte Casino Resort, which offers GameCo’s eSports solution.

In a statement, Rosenberg certainly has bought into that vision.

“Having focused on the evolution of gaming technology companies throughout my career, I am proud to be leading GameCo’s efforts to provide the next generation of games to operating partners and players,” said Rosenberg. “The global demand for differentiated gaming experiences is set for unprecedented growth, and the Company is ideally positioned to lead an exciting new category at the intersection of video games, online wagering, and esports.”

Rosenberg started his career as a product liability and intellectual property attorney before transitioning into banking and investing. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Juris Doctorate from Harvard Law School.