Dejan Jović, BlueOcean Gaming: “The competition is no longer about who offers the most games, but who creates the most distinctive experience around them”

Dejan Jović, CEO of BlueOcean Gaming, discusses how GameHub 2.0, gamification and social participation are reshaping casino platforms as operators look beyond content aggregation.

Exclusive interview.- With acquisition costs rising and casino content becoming increasingly commoditised, operators are looking beyond game aggregation for technology that can improve retention, personalisation and player engagement.

In this exclusive interview with Focus Gaming News, Dejan Jović, CEO of BlueOcean Gaming, discusses how the company is evolving GameHub beyond aggregation through its GameHub 2.0 platform, Recommendation Engine and Lucky Wheel. He also explores RideAlong, BlueOcean’s social gaming product designed to turn casino streaming into a more participatory experience.

Ahead of SBC Summit Lisbon, Jović examines the technology challenges facing operators in increasingly complex regulated markets and explains why he believes the next generation of igaming platforms will be defined not by the amount of content they offer, but by how effectively they turn that content into distinctive, engaging and lasting player experiences.

As BlueOcean heads to SBC Summit Lisbon, what are the biggest challenges and conversations you expect to be hearing from operators this year?

I think AI discussion will be impossible to avoid at SBC Summit Lisbon this year – personalisation, customer support, fraud prevention, operational efficiency, it’s threading through every conversation. But underneath that, there’s a quieter shift happening: acquisition costs keep climbing, and operators are finally admitting that chasing scale isn’t the same as building value. Retention is where the real conversation is heading.

At the same time, the ground keeps moving under everyone’s feet regulatorily, as digital products increasingly blur the line between investing, gaming, and sports betting. Add in payment complexity and legacy infrastructure that just wasn’t built for this pace, and you’ve got operators stretched thin.

That’s exactly the environment GameHub 2.0 was built for: faster, more scalable architecture that can absorb higher transaction volumes and handle the complexity of regulated markets without buckling. The wider conversation will therefore be about how operators can use technology not simply to grow, but to grow more efficiently and create stronger player experiences.

Operators have access to more games and content than ever before. Has the industry reached a point where simply adding more content is no longer enough to differentiate an online casino?

Access to a large game catalogue has become a baseline rather than a true differentiator. Most operators can offer many of the same games, so the more important question is what they can actually do with that content once it has been integrated. The advantage now lies in how effectively a platform helps operators understand performance, surface relevant games, promote them and give players reasons to return. This is why GameHub has evolved beyond aggregation into a wider ecosystem of promotional, personalisation and engagement tools. The competition is no longer about who offers the most games, but who creates the most distinctive experience around them.

“Access to a large game catalogue has become a baseline rather than a true differentiator.”

Dejan Jović, CEO of BlueOcean Gaming.

Are we entering an era where the casino lobby itself needs to become more of an entertainment experience rather than simply a catalogue of games?

The casino lobby is becoming part of the entertainment itself, rather than simply a menu of available games. It should guide discovery, respond to the player and create moments of anticipation and reward throughout the journey. Tools such as our Recommendation Engine can make the lobby more relevant to each player, while Lucky Wheel adds an interactive gamification layer around the existing content. When discovery, personalisation and engagement work together, the lobby feels active rather than static. The next generation of casino platforms will not only show players what they can play; it will shape how they experience it.

“The casino lobby is becoming part of the entertainment itself, rather than simply a menu of available games.”

Dejan Jović, CEO of BlueOcean Gaming.

Could the next big innovation in igaming come not from a completely new game, but from changing the way players interact with the games and platforms they already use?

The industry does not have a shortage of games; it has a shortage of new ways to genuinely experience them. When operators offer similar content, innovation has to come from the layers built around gameplay, such as participation, interaction and shared moments. That is the thinking behind RideAlong, our social gaming product that connects casino streaming with active player participation. Instead of simply watching a streamer play, the audience can become part of the experience alongside them. It shows how an existing game can feel completely different when the relationship between the player, the creator and the platform changes.

Multiplayer and social experiences are now central to many areas of digital entertainment. Do you think igaming has been slow to embrace that shift?

Compared with gaming, streaming and social media, igaming has remained a largely solitary experience. Players already watch streamers, react in chat and form communities, but the audience has traditionally remained on the sidelines. RideAlong closes that gap: each session has a Driver, the streamer, and Riders, who choose their own bet and play alongside each spin, with their result linked to the multiplier achieved by the Driver. Live chat and leaderboards turn the session into a shared, participatory experience rather than passive viewing. For operators, this creates a new way to build community, strengthen engagement and reach audiences who expect entertainment to be social.

How do developments such as GameHub 2.0, Lucky Wheel and RideAlong reflect the direction BlueOcean believes the industry is heading?

Think of them as three layers of one strategy. GameHub 2.0 is the foundation — the speed, scalability, and flexibility to carry the next generation of products and handle increasingly regulated markets without slowing down. Lucky Wheel brings the gamified, rewarding moments into the player journey. RideAlong brings in participation, creators, community.

Stack them together and you can see exactly where GameHub is headed — out of pure aggregation and into a much broader technology and engagement ecosystem. The message to the market is simple: access to content isn’t enough anymore. Operators need the tools that make that content actually perform, connect, and feel different from what the competitor down the road is offering.

Looking ahead, what do you think will separate the igaming platforms that simply offer content from those that genuinely create engaging player experiences?

The platforms that stand out will be those that make content work harder for both the operator and the player. Behind the scenes, they will need speed, scalability, automation and simple implementation; on the player side, they will need relevance, interaction and a clear sense of identity. A large catalogue will remain essential, but it will be the starting point rather than the finished product. Personalisation, gamification and social participation must work as one connected experience, rather than as isolated features. Ultimately, the strongest platforms will be those that help operators turn existing content into long-term value and give players a genuine reason to return.