We are glad to come back to Russia again
At the last December exhibition EELEX-2004 in Moscow a great event for Russian gambling market took place. American company IGT – the world leading manufacturer of slot-machines with money prize – participated in it for the first time. It's natural that our magazine couldn't overlook such an event. So let me introduce you our today's guests -- Director of Game Design Anthony Baerlocher and Vice-President of Game Design Joe Kaminkow.
Has IGT taken part in Moscow exhibition "The entertainment industry" for the first time?
Yes. In 2004 we participated in the exhibition for the first time. However, in order to prepare to it we visited EELEX-2003: met operators, examined the exhibited products to see Russian gamblers' preferences. We understood that there is a large difference between Russian and American markets and decided to change slightly our policy so that we could join EELEX-2004 having learnt the peculiarities of Russian market.
You have mentioned the difference between Russian and American markets. Can you tell me more about it?
First of all, in Russia games with the double up option are wide-spread in contrast to the States. Also, in Russia the videogames market is developed, whereas in the States it is the slot-machines market, that holds the leading positions. Besides, there are differences among gamblers themselves. Thus, the majority of American gamblers are mature women around 50. As for Russia, here young men around 25 – 30 gamble more often.
What conclusions has IGT made examining Russian gamblers' preferences with regard to some particular components of slot-machines, e. g. graphics and mathematics?
We have found out that the Russians and the Americans give preference to different types of slot-machines. Since the average Russian gambler is much younger than the American one, they are mainly attracted by more dynamic games with mobile mathematics and aggressive bonuses, where you can win quickly and more and consequently lose more. That's why IGT has released game "Russian Treasure" with the bonus system interesting mainly for Russian gamblers due to its mathematics as well.
Are there, in your opinion, any peculiarities of the slot-machine design which are preferable in Russia?
IGT company has only entered Russian market. Within the promotion of our products here it'll be clear, which design is most preferable for Russian gamblers. According to it we'll change the appearance of our slot-machines. Now we are going to present Fort Knox and Terminator – the slot-machines for young gamblers. Their design is developed in accordance with the youth taste.
What do you think about the developments of Russian manufacturers?
The specialists in Russian companies are very talented. A lot of manufacturers are too young to judge whether they are competitive or not. But their activities are very promising. Obviously, they will keep developing and improving the projects to reach the level of the companies that have been manufacturing slot-machines for many years. At EELEX-2004 we noticed that even in comparison with the last year a lot of changes in the work of Russian manufacturers have happened. They are improving their developments and making new machines. Not only the number of new games is increasing but also their quality. And even if a new machine does not meet the expectations of its manufacturers, we believe that their work deserves high respect. Designers are some kind of a brotherhood.
IGT machines have been sold in Russia for a long time by direct supplies from the USA and Europe. Why has the company itself decided to enter Russian market only now?
IGT is a large company. That's why we enter any market rather slowly making a lot of preliminary arrangements.
Haven't you entered our market for a long time because of Russia's vast territory, requiring great market research or because of something else?
You are absolutely right. We supply successfully our products to former socialistic states Lithuania and Estonia, but we haven't been ready for cooperation with Russia just because of its territory. Estonia is a small state where it is relatively easy to control and to examine all the operators of the gambling business. Entering Estonian market was much easier than Russian one. But now we have made all the necessary preparations and Russian specialists can make their judgment about our developments. This is a crucial and pleasant event for us. We also shouldn't forget that Russia is not only one of the biggest countries concerning its territory, it is the most multinational state. This factor is very important. Many companies enter Russian market with the ideas that are popular in their countries. IGT goes a different way.
As far as I'm informed now IGT is going to supply to Russia 2500 slot-machines. For the first visit to the country it can be regarded as a good and promising beginning. However, taking into account the territory of the country, this number appears to be rather small. Are you planning to get the leading positions in Russian market? Or will you restrict yourself to small supplies only?
To begin with we should gain the confidence of Russian operators and gamblers showing them the quality of our products.
But there are IGT slot-machines in many Russian casinos. They are familiar both to our operators and gamblers.
Again you are right. But these machines, sold to Russia through a third hand, have become out of date. Now IGT will enter the Russian market without any dealers. We will supply you not out-of-date machines but our latest models specially developed for Russian gamblers. For the last year we have sold to Russia 1 600 machines, mainly to Moscow companies Jackpot and Vulcan. But we are enlarging our cooperation.
How can you estimate the potential of Russian market in comparison with other countries?
The Russian market is only growing and it's rather hard to compare it with, for instance, Las-Vegas where a vast number of casinos with thousands of slot-machines operate. Their number in Russia is much smaller. However, we have just been to Macao: casinos are growing rapidly there. And we expect Russian market to develop in the same way. In our opinion, Russia is one of three largest markets in the world. But it is very difficult to operate here because of a great number of local competitors knowing all the peculiarities of Russian market. Thus, we should work twice harder to strengthen our positions in this country.
All large companies prefer to be only distributors in Russia. Does IGT share this position? Or are you going to open your own representative office in this country?
We have already opened an office in Moscow where we are planning to train the personnel for our slot-machines. The office is opened by IGT-Europe and is located near Paveletskaya metro station. We'll see whether our new developments will be interesting for Russian operators and gamblers. The outcome will influence our subsequent activities connected with enlargement and strengthening of our positions in Russia.
We wish your company good luck at Russian market. Thank you very much for the pleasant conversation.
Thank you for the interest showed to our company. We have traveled all over the world and we are glad we have come back to Russia – this hospitable country with a great potential and wonderful people. This is our first interview to a Russian magazine.
The interview was held by Evgeny Kovtun