Original Article: https://focusgn.com/short-term-savings-long-term-risks-by-igp
By Inesa Glazaitė, CCO at iGP
If you’ve been following the industry news these days, you’ll have seen a pattern. Migrations that lose players. Promises of “premium” performance unravelling under pressure. Compliance violations followed by damage control. Entire platforms going out of business and leaving operators to scramble for new homes. All too often, these stories begin with a platform selection driven by speed, charm, and affordability.
Operators seeking quick, budget-friendly solutions are discovering that
low upfront fees can come with unexpected trade-offs. Like a thirty percent loss of player base resulting from poor migration rollout. Or lost SLAs and “surprise” service cuts after a mid-year acquisition. Some
operators have faced even direr situations, such as when platforms go completely under and leave their partners looking for new homes, mid-operations. Others, having cut corners on due diligence, have faced significant churn and unexpected revenue loss as a result.
Each of these stories is a case study in decisions driven by appearance rather than depth. Glossy pitch decks and attractive introductory offers may look good on the surface, but they can mask structural gaps that only become visible under pressure.
The sleight of “value” is a recurring trap. There’s something tempting about the prospect of low upfront costs, shiny UIs, and bundled features, and fast launch timelines. But affordability isn’t the same as sustainability. When the underlying investment doesn’t match the complexity of the market they claim to serve, the cracks eventually show.
You’d think, by now, the lesson might have landed. But time and again, the same mistakes repeat.
Many operators still reach for the cheapest option, still fall for the deck with the smoothest transitions, and still confuse a discounted onboarding fee with long-term value. The hard questions about resilience, transparency, and proactive compliance are too often asked only after the problems start. If there’s a shift coming, it’s slow. And too many are still caught in the loop of believing the last cautionary tale won’t be theirs.
The shift the industry needs is bigger than cosmetic. It’s a rethinking of how operators approach platform partnerships, from seeing them as cost centres to recognising them as growth engines. From seeing platform partners as providers, to recognising them as co-architects of performance and trust. It should be a realignment of priorities that values control, insight, and durability over short-term cost savings and superficial attractiveness. Too often, it remains the exception, not the norm.
Of course, that would take more effort. It would entail digging further than shiny credentials, and demanding evidence on uptime, on scalability, on regional delivery. It means moving beyond generic promises and into documented plans, detailed reporting, and sensible service frameworks.
But the payoff is clear. Because in the rush to capture market share, the true victors aren’t the ones who are spending the least. They’re those that are staying live, staying compliant, and staying trusted when it really counts.
Short-term savings can be tempting but they often come with long-term risks. Every platform failure, migration mishap, or compliance issue highlights the importance of asking the right questions early. What’s at stake goes far beyond launch speed or initial costs, as it should always be about ensuring stability, enabling scalability, and supporting long-term growth.
