Latest News
Exclusive Q&A with Paul Sampson, CEO of Lickd
One quick thing that came to mind after conducting the interview was: this man knows the industry. So Ladies and Gentlemen, meet Paul Sampson, CEO of Lickd.
For starterrs, Lickd is a micro-licensing and music solutions company that caters to the creator economy. If that sounds obscure, jump straight to the interview, where Paul Simpson talks in simple terms about Lickd and the present and future of the online music industry.
Q. Let’s start with a brief personal profile. Tell us about your background and career?
A. I’ve been working in music licensing since 2005. I’ve worked specifically with stock music, commercial music, and more recently, exploring ways of strengthening the creator economy.
For around five years, straight out of university, I worked in television at a small production company, climbing through the ranks. Throughout this time, I encountered the difficulties of licensing music several times, and so began to take an interest in understanding the nuances and problems that needed solving.
I’d gotten to know several renowned music licensing companies, and in 2005, one of them, Extreme Music, offered me a job in New York and with that, I followed my passion and began my career jump into the music industry. Within about two and a half years in the role, they relocated me out to Los Angeles as the Head of US.
In 2010, a new role brought me back to Europe and I was a key figure in launching the European arm of another U.S. music licensing company. This time, it was not just stock music, but a focus on more commercial music, and unsigned independent acts.
After this, I knew it was time to start acting on the music opportunities that were becoming more prevalent with the boom of the creator economy, and so following that channel, Lickd was born in 2017.
Q. Now let’s move on to Lickd. What led you to found Lickd?
A. Two words led me to found Lickd: Creator Economy. As social media became more prevalent in everyday life in the late 2000’s, the opportunities for music and creators were plentiful and so Lickd was born. A few years later, as the effects on the media landscape following the pandemic have increased the creator economy twofold, we see even more opportunities to continue to seize the moment, and the market.
Lickd is the first music company to ever develop a major music solution for content creators of all kinds. We licence music from major labels and publishers, including current music that’s in the charts and make it available for licensing, legally. Our unique software protects our users on the platform that they place music on, for example, YouTube and Instagram. Platforms like YouTube have built in music recognition software that identifies popular music being used in content, and presumes that all music uses are some sort of infringement of copyright, therefore, persecuting the creator and attempting to police them out of earning revenue.
Lickd’s software is really the magic solution that the platform sits on top of to ensure that not only can creators licence the music but that they’re taken care of and we’re protecting their revenue all the way through to the end of the content journey.
Q. What is Lickd’s specialty?
A. What sets us apart is that we are unique in our offering. We’re working with 10,000+ labels and publishers that are linked to the Lickd platform, including Universal, Warner, Sony, BMG and Kobalt. To engage labels and publishers like that and to preclear their music for any content vertical is something that was once largely thought impossible, but Lickd has made it happen and is helping to secure new revenue streams for creators globally.
Q. Could you talk about your work with key gaming powerhouses?
A. Gaming is obviously an enormous industry, bigger than music and film combined. Any content vertical with that sort of reach has a huge platform, a huge audience to work with and promote music too.
In terms of how Lickd got together with Fortnite and Epic Games; essentially music became part of their engagement strategy, and they started paying more attention to it. Senior teams were asking key questions like: ‘how can we work with artists’ and ‘what sort of artist does our audience want to hear within a game’?
With this comes complexities around licensing and demographics. Gamers who are also content creators often live stream their content or create highlights videos for YouTube. At Lickd, we already know that in-video music on YouTube is an issue and so we collaborate with Fortnite to bridge that gap so that gamers can enjoy the wonderful events that are put on for them, while also being able to then promote and share that content in the ways that they normally would.
Whether this is for ancillary income or additional income on top of a salary, if content creation is a full-time job, Lickd protects creators on those platforms, to enable a more effective creation and lifecycle process for the content they’re publishing.
Q. Could you briefly narrate the content deals you have with music companies and bands?
A. Over the past five years we’ve built a platform that is made up of popular music from 10,000 labels and publishers, including Universal, Warner, Sony BMG and Kobalt. We also work with lots of independent distributors. There’s around 1.4 million songs on Lickd, and another 6 million delivered and waiting to go live. The vast majority of them would be emerging acts and we certainly do our best to help and encourage discovery on the platform.
Q. In what ways does Lickd help creators to monetise their content?
A. I think it’s important to outline that wherever there is opportunity for the music industry online, it will require some sort of micro licensing commercial model, and some sort of proprietary tech, either to enable the licensing or to protect the end user.
That’s where Lickd is perfectly positioned. Our mission is to democratise music for the world’s creators. Our first product looked at creators as video content creators, but as the world changes and the digital landscape evolves, creators will also include builders in the metaverse and big brands on social platforms.
Q. How do you see the possibility of an AI text-to-background-music generator?
A. There’s various ways that AI will impact music. It’s something we’re following closely and it would be foolish for anyone to suggest that any part of the music industry isn’t already seeing some element of business being affected directly by AI. So far we’ve seen AI generated songs, well known songs of one artist being sung in the AI voice of another, and the fact that chords and melodies can be created by simply inputting into an AI, and we’re always expecting more.
The uptake of AI in music creation won’t be instant, but at some point, creators will become of faith with smart tools that allow them to generate music through these new means for use in videos. Although, once created, that music will still need to be licensed, and there will be commercial models that give users access to the tools and/or licensing opportunities for the music created by said tool.
In the metaverse, there will be music collaboration spaces and music production event areas or venues. Generative AI is useful for creating ‘music stems’, and building a sort of catalogue of music elements that can then be used by people collaboratively to start making an entire song – something that was not happening in the past.
An AI can continuously keep churning out new beats and new melodies and new riffs and new instrumental sounds, and people will get together to create music on the fly, and that will require AI generative tools at some scale. I think you’ll see things like musical skins, where Avatars might want their own soundtrack or music identifier. How do I know someone entered the room? Well, I just heard their music handle to signify they’re here. Like boxers have ring walks, there’ll be a version of that somewhere in the metaverse.
We know that there are music metaverses and venues, and metaverse platforms based around music creation already, and there are others on the way. A good example of this is Pixelynx, Deadmau5’s music based metaverse platform. He founded the platform, one that was completely based around the music, but then was acquired by Animoca Brands, a brand with a broad portfolio of web3, blockchain and traditional games, which is a huge web3 holding company, so from launch to exit, Deadmau5 did very well out of the partnership.
N1 Partners will celebrate the finale of the global N1 Puzzle Promo for partners – running from April 21 to December 31, 2025 – and award the grand prize, a Robinson R22 Beta II helicopter, at an exclusive party in Barcelona during the ICE and iGB conferences. The special guest of the event will be Tommy Cash.
Registration for the party is now open.
Participants – especially those at the top of the leaderboard – still have the final two weeks to influence the results and break into the prize-winning top three. After all, the grand prize – a Robinson R22 Beta II helicopter – is something no one in the industry has ever given away before…
The main motto of the exclusive final show-event of N1 Puzzle Promo will be “Because we can” – a philosophy of high achievement and top performance by the promo leaders, running like a red thread throughout the entire event.
This is more than just a party – it’s a community and a private club for top N1 Partners affiliates and guests, industry leaders, media, and influencers, accessible only to the select few. “Because we can” is about limitless opportunities for scaling, the ability to achieve top results together, and creating experiences unmatched in the industry.
N1 Partners reveals long-awaited event details 👇🏼
Date: January 20, 2026
Time: 20:00
Location: Barcelona, Spain
What highlights are planned for the guests?
- award ceremony for the top 3 and presentation of the grand prize – the Robinson R22 Beta II helicopter
- exclusive prizes raffle among all guests
- a performance show, DJ set and additional surprises
- activity zones (red carpet, photo area, bar, VIP lounge with hookahs, and much more)
And, of course, the long-awaited special guest of the evening… 🥁
Get ready for the unforgettable performance of edgy Estonian rapper and musician – Tommy Cash!
Register now for the N1 Partners show-event via the link: https://n1puzzle.promo/en.html
After all, why drive when you can fly?
And be number one with N1 Partners?
News source: N1 Partners
Latest News
Vegangster Gives Operators Real-Time Jackpot Control and a New Revenue Stream with Sharedluck’s JackpotX
Platform provider Vegangster has completed the integration of JackpotX, a flexible jackpot engine developed by Sharedluck, giving operators a new way to run scalable jackpot campaigns across brands and game catalogues. The integration focuses on player-contribution jackpots, creating an additional revenue stream for operators.
JackpotX provides more granular control than traditional jackpot tools. Operators can configure several jackpot tiers, define custom triggers, and adjust campaign parameters in real time without downtime. This makes it easier to launch targeted campaigns quickly and align jackpots with specific retention or promotional objectives.
With the integration, Vegangster clients can manage jackpots directly inside their existing back office. Campaigns can be linked to selected brands, game groups, or specific player cohorts, with real-time performance insights available through Sharedluck’s dashboards. This helps teams monitor engagement, track contribution levels, and optimise campaigns while they are Running.
For players, jackpot values update in real time across all touchpoints, including lobby displays, game interfaces, and promotional banners, creating visible momentum as prizes grow. This transparency drives catalogue exploration and extends session time, giving operators a practical tool for supporting both short-term promotional bursts and longer-term engagement Strategies.
Michael Oziransky, Chief Product Officer at Vegangster, said:
“Jackpots remain one of the clearest levers for engagement in online casinos. Sharedluck built an engine that offers operators the level of precision and flexibility they expect from modern tools. With JackpotX inside Vegangster, teams can run customised jackpot campaigns at the speed their operations require.”
The partnership brings Sharedluck’s jackpot engine directly into Vegangster’s ecosystem, giving operators a straightforward way to deploy contribution-based jackpots and track performance through real-time analytics.
Chris Scicluna, Co-Founder at Sharedluck, said:
“We are excited to bring JackpotX to Vegangster operators. In successful campaigns, we have seen higher retention, longer session times, stronger conversion from casual to regular play, and clear uplift in VIP-focused promotions. We look forward to seeing Vegangster clients achieve similar results.”
The integration is now available for all Vegangster operators. Existing clients can enable JackpotX through their account manager, with configuration handled inside the Vegangster back office and supported by Sharedluck’s analytics dashboards. New operators can access the module during onboarding as part of their standard setup process.
Operators can get a closer look at JackpotX at ICE Barcelona, Fira Barcelona Gran Via, 19–21 January 2026, with live demos available at stand 1E20.
About SharedLuck
Sharedluck builds engagement infrastructure for online casinos. JackpotX, its flagship product, provides flexible jackpot creation, multi-brand management, real-time analytics, and tools built to increase player retention and overall casino revenue.
About Vegangster
Vegangster provides a full-stack iGaming platform engineered for speed, scalability, and operator control. Its turnkey, white-label, and sweepstakes solutions integrate casino and sportsbook content, payments, CRM, compliance, and social features into a single mobile-first system. With Vegangster, operators can launch quickly and scale with confidence.
Press contact
Romans Kozlovskis
Senior Content & PR Manager
The post Vegangster Gives Operators Real-Time Jackpot Control and a New Revenue Stream with Sharedluck’s JackpotX appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry Newsroom.
Latest News
Vegangster Gives Operators Real-Time Jackpot Control and a New Revenue Stream with Sharedluck’s JackpotX
Platform provider Vegangster has completed the integration of JackpotX, a flexible jackpot engine developed by Sharedluck, giving operators a new way to run scalable jackpot campaigns across brands and game catalogues. The integration focuses on player-contribution jackpots, creating an additional revenue stream for operators.
JackpotX provides more granular control than traditional jackpot tools. Operators can configure several jackpot tiers, define custom triggers, and adjust campaign parameters in real time without downtime. This makes it easier to launch targeted campaigns quickly and align jackpots with specific retention or promotional objectives.
With the integration, Vegangster clients can manage jackpots directly inside their existing back office. Campaigns can be linked to selected brands, game groups, or specific player cohorts, with real-time performance insights available through Sharedluck’s dashboards. This helps teams monitor engagement, track contribution levels, and optimise campaigns while they are Running.
For players, jackpot values update in real time across all touchpoints, including lobby displays, game interfaces, and promotional banners, creating visible momentum as prizes grow. This transparency drives catalogue exploration and extends session time, giving operators a practical tool for supporting both short-term promotional bursts and longer-term engagement Strategies.
Michael Oziransky, Chief Product Officer at Vegangster, said:
“Jackpots remain one of the clearest levers for engagement in online casinos. Sharedluck built an engine that offers operators the level of precision and flexibility they expect from modern tools. With JackpotX inside Vegangster, teams can run customised jackpot campaigns at the speed their operations require.”
The partnership brings Sharedluck’s jackpot engine directly into Vegangster’s ecosystem, giving operators a straightforward way to deploy contribution-based jackpots and track performance through real-time analytics.
Chris Scicluna, Co-Founder at Sharedluck, said:
“We are excited to bring JackpotX to Vegangster operators. In successful campaigns, we have seen higher retention, longer session times, stronger conversion from casual to regular play, and clear uplift in VIP-focused promotions. We look forward to seeing Vegangster clients achieve similar results.”
The integration is now available for all Vegangster operators. Existing clients can enable JackpotX through their account manager, with configuration handled inside the Vegangster back office and supported by Sharedluck’s analytics dashboards. New operators can access the module during onboarding as part of their standard setup process.
Operators can get a closer look at JackpotX at ICE Barcelona, Fira Barcelona Gran Via, 19–21 January 2026, with live demos available at stand 1E20.
About SharedLuck
Sharedluck builds engagement infrastructure for online casinos. JackpotX, its flagship product, provides flexible jackpot creation, multi-brand management, real-time analytics, and tools built to increase player retention and overall casino revenue.
About Vegangster
Vegangster provides a full-stack iGaming platform engineered for speed, scalability, and operator control. Its turnkey, white-label, and sweepstakes solutions integrate casino and sportsbook content, payments, CRM, compliance, and social features into a single mobile-first system. With Vegangster, operators can launch quickly and scale with confidence.
Press contact
Romans Kozlovskis
Senior Content & PR Manager
Registration Open: N1 Puzzle Promo Show & Winner Announcement in Barcelona
Vegangster Gives Operators Real-Time Jackpot Control and a New Revenue Stream with Sharedluck’s JackpotX
Vegangster Gives Operators Real-Time Jackpot Control and a New Revenue Stream with Sharedluck’s JackpotX
Big Daddy Gaming® signs with Yolo Group’s Hub88 to accelerate European distribution
Games Global and Fortune Factory Studios wrap up 2025 with supercharged sequel Gold Blitz Express™
QuinnBet Expands Racing Offering to include Derivative Racing Markets
Yggdrasil adds to YGG Masters roster with Slightly Edgy adopting next-generation Game in a Box™ technology
ENJOY Gaming turns up the heat with Hotfire Diamonds 2: Hold and Win 3x5x3
Traffy Expands Its Global Impact in Mobile Performance Marketing
Wazdan strengthens US footprint with launch on Caesars Entertainment’s online casino platforms in West Virginia
-
Latest News3 months ago
Announcement: 25th September 2025
-
Latest News1 week agoSCCG Announces Strategic Partnership with Yellow Elephant Studios to Expand Multi-Channel Gaming Content Worldwide
-
Latest News1 month ago
JioBLAST Launches All Stars vs India powered by Campa Energy: A New Era of Creator-Driven Esports Entertainment
-
Latest News3 months ago
The Countdown is On: Less Than 3 Months to Go Until The Games of The Future 2025 Kicks Off in Abu Dhabi
-
eSports1 month ago
CS:GO Betting Gains Momentum in the iGaming Sector
-
Latest News2 weeks ago
THE 2025 PUBG MOBILE GLOBAL CHAMPIONSHIP GROUP STAGE WRAPS UP WITH LAST CHANCE IN SIGHT
-
Latest News3 months ago
Leading The Charge! Euronics Group Joins LEC As Official Electronics Retail Partner
-
Latest News3 months ago
Evolution launches Sneaky Slots — a Bold New Slot Studio
You must be logged in to post a comment Login