Innovation is the key to growth, no matter what the industry. Gambling enterprises are hyper aware that they must keep ahead of the curve, as the number of bettors grow – and competition for their attention intensifies – worldwide.
The stakes are high for gaining an edge in this 24/7 sector. The global gambling market is projected to hit $477.30 billion in 2025, with online casinos expected to account for over half of that figure at $245.4 billion. 900.8 million users are projected to be gambling by 2029, with a market volume projected to grow to $543.1 billion.
Gambling software pioneer Newton has already established a firm foothold in its home country of Romania, where it monitors nearly half of that nation’s slot machines. Their presence is also rapidly expanding in online betting, as its recent white-label partnership with pioneering online casino 888 increases their global reach.
Powered by its one of a kind all-in-one system – providing key functions from jackpot to monitoring, security, loyalty, and more – Newton has built its reputation on an excellent in-person and digital gambling experience. Equally important, they’re focused on actively contributing to a more robust legal framework for players and operators alike.
It’s an enterprise that’s committed to looking ahead. Before Newton could accelerate its growth, however, a serious bottleneck appeared: The ability to scale their data infrastructure was at a standstill. The problem was their original PostgreSQL database, which could no longer keep up with Newton’s increasing needs for:
scalability
data consistency
automatic failover
Their core database challenges were complex, but not insurmountable. For Newton, the winning bet was on CockroachDB, the high-performing distributed SQL database that’s made to scale.
Early Challenges: Scale Struggles, Unreliable Data
Just like every business vertical today, gambling is increasingly data-driven. Companies like Newton, with major clients such as Winner’s online casino, face immense challenges in maintaining reliable, scalable, and consistent data environments.
As data volumes and transaction counts increase, so do the complexities involved in ensuring smooth operations. Newton’s data architecture journey was difficult, one which saw them grappling with deep database issues, then adopting CockroachDB as the optimal solution for their scalability and consistency needs.
Before adopting CockroachDB, Newton faced significant challenges in scaling their data infrastructure. “As our company expanded and transaction loads grew, maintaining system performance became increasingly difficult,” says Dragos Buriu, CEO of Newton. “Our previous database solutions struggled with horizontal scaling, which was a critical requirement for Newton’s distributed operations. Furthermore, ensuring data consistency and managing failovers in a distributed environment required substantial manual intervention.”
“The absence of native clustering capabilities in our existing system made these processes cumbersome and prone to failure,” adds Claudiu Stanciu, CTO of Newton. “These operational bottlenecks led to increased downtime and compromised user experiences — issues that became a serious concern for our business.”
Meanwhile, reliable data wasn’t just a technical consideration for Newton; it was the backbone of their daily operations and a key to customer satisfaction. Maintaining high uptime and delivering a seamless experience for users were top priorities. However, without robust consistency mechanisms, Newton often faced synchronization issues and transaction errors, putting customer trust at risk.
Prior to adopting CockroachDB, Newton relied on an architecture built around PostgreSQL databases and deployed in an on-premise environment.
“PostgreSQL provided a solid foundation," says Mr. Stanciu, "but the lack of native cloud functionalities and clustering capabilities created significant challenges in scaling across multiple regions and maintaining consistency in a distributed setup. While downtime was not a major issue, the lack of scalability needed to support our growing operations was a key factor, and choosing CockroachDB from the start allowed us to address these challenges effectively.”
Enter CockroachDB: Seamless Scalability and High Performance
The shift to CockroachDB was transformative for Newton. By adopting a self-hosted version of CockroachDB, they immediately experienced a significant boost in system scalability and performance. CockroachDB’s ability to handle distributed environments natively, along with its support for ACID-compliant transactions, addressed Newton’s long-standing issues with data consistency and transaction reliability.
Not only did they require ACID compliance – they also needed a new database solution that delivered native clustering, and automatic scalability across distributed regions. Additionally, high PostgreSQL compatibility was essential to ensure a smooth transition from their existing infrastructure.
CockroachDB checked all these boxes. It provided the resilience and horizontal scaling Newton desperately needed – while offering compatibility with their PostgreSQL-based applications. This combination made CockroachDB the ideal solution, ensuring minimal disruption during the migration process.
“We recognized CockroachDB's potential early on, adopting it when it was still a fledgling open-source project, because we believed in both its pioneering technology and the vibrant community behind it,” Mr. Stanciu states. “This decision wasn’t just about keeping up with trends — it was about investing in a vision that aligned with our values of scalability, resilience, and innovation. Our early commitment allowed us to shape our ecosystem with confidence, knowing that CockroachDB would continue to evolve and support our ambitious goals.”
Migrating from PostgreSQL to CockroachDB was a critical step in Newton’s database overhaul. Thanks to CockroachDB’s compatibility with PostgreSQL, the transition was smoother than expected. While some minor challenges arose, the overall process was efficient, enabling Newton to integrate CockroachDB without significant operational downtime.
The New Era: Future-Proofing Data Architecture with Multi-Region Deployments
Newton’s new architecture revolves around a self-hosted CockroachDB setup. Looking ahead, the company is preparing to leverage CockroachDB’s capability to deploy across multiple regions, ensuring high availability and low-latency access for users worldwide. This native clustering feature has significantly improved Newton’s ability to scale while maintaining resilience automatically.
The move to CockroachDB has successfully addressed Newton’s core database challenges. Scalability, data consistency, and automatic failover — previously significant pain points — are now managed seamlessly. CockroachDB’s distributed ACID compliance has bolstered Newton’s transaction reliability, leading to enhanced system performance and a more robust customer experience.
For organizations considering CockroachDB, Mr. Stanciu offers this insight: “Evaluate the specific needs of your application — particularly the trade-offs between consistency and latency in multi-region setups. CockroachDB excels at simplifying global distribution while optimizing performance to suit your application's demands.”
What’s Next for Newton: Fueling The Future with CockroachDB
As Newton continues to innovate, they plan to explore hybrid deployments to further enhance system resilience, reduce downtime, optimize costs, and meet compliance requirements. With CockroachDB now at the core of their data strategy, Newton is well-positioned to tackle future challenges while delivering exceptional service to its customers.
“With our adoption of CockroachDB, Newton has taken a significant step forward in overcoming the challenges of scaling and consistency in a distributed environment,” Mr. Stanciu concludes. “By future-proofing our infrastructure, Newton is now primed for continued growth and success in the competitive world of online gaming.”
Ready to learn how CockroachDB can drive your application to new heights of performance and scale? Visit here to talk to an expert.
