‘Dare to be different’: Matthias Ciappara joins CompetitionLabs as CCO

Matthias Ciappara on Wednesday announced that he has been named Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) at CompetitionLabs.

His new role comes as his chapter with Entain in the role of Director of Gaming Innovation – Gamification came to an end on Tuesday after almost two years. He remarked that it was an “absolute pleasure” to be able to “lead a massive project and worked with such a large team of incredible individuals” over his time there. “Especially when its products are very close to my heart,” he said.

Mr Ciappara proceeded to thank his former colleagues at Entain, as together they “truly managed to create something special” that they “should be proud of”.

Speaking about his new position at CompetitionLabs, he remarked that it is important to “dare to be different”, before adding that the iGaming industry has expertise in “incremental innovation”, yet lacks “radical innovation”.

“Especially when it comes to player experience, compared to other forms of entertainment, this may feel lacking to some. When considering the massive strides forward in technology and innovation in other forms of digital entertainment, such as gaming – app store, console, PC – in mechanics, visuals, and how emotionally connected players can get with a product, we are behind,” he explained.

However, Mr Ciappara remarked that this does not mean that the industry is “less successful” or good at what it does, but individuals in the industry should “always look at ‘what if?’” and continuously “strive to create something special and unique” for customers. This is the primary reason as to why he joined CompetitionLabs.

There he will also be joined by Simon Zammit, a former Entain colleague that will now work as Head of Product at the gamification solutions company.

Mr Ciappara also revealed that together with Mr Zammit and Co-Founders Julian Steinwender and Alex Bernotas, who are CEO and CTO respectively, the company will be setting up a new innovation lab to help its partners “create new captivating player experiences that feel alive”. “Experiences that players will remember and form a deeper connection with,” he added.

Established in 2015, CompetitionLabs is a gamification transformation consultancy firm, combining insight into the benefits of cross-portfolio gamification with a “world-class technological platform”. Its headquarters are in Birkirkara, Malta.

Mr Ciappara has a wide range of experience when it comes to gamification and product management, through his experiences at Entain, XperiencePlay, Swintt and RUSH Gaming. He holds a Postgraduate Diploma on Strategic Management and Leadership, Business Administration, Management and Operations from Chartered Management Institute.