In an exclusive conversation with Yogonet, Fabián Grous, General Manager of OCTAVIAN de Argentina and NOVOMATIC Argentina, highlighted the recovery of the regional market after the shutdown imposed on the gaming halls due to the pandemic, and assured that “the company accompanied its clients throughout this process, providing support, training and launching new products on the market, which helped significantly in this process of returning to normalcy”.
NOVOMATIC is a company that, historically, has an outstanding presence in the casinos of Argentina, but the process of casino closures due to the pandemic slowed down, for a long time, the investment of operators in new equipment. Fortunately, these investments have gained new momentum in the last months, once the gaming halls started to operate normally throughout the country. Have you seen, as a company, a local reactivation in terms of investments and renewal of gaming equipment?
The recovery of the market has been extraordinary and far exceeded our expectations. We believe that this is due, mainly, to the high level of professionalism of the companies that operate the casinos and gaming rooms, and the support that the suppliers have given them.
The market, and mainly the gamblers, ask for more and new products, games that meet their expectations and offer the possibility of accessing large prizes, and as always, NOVOMATIC develops new games and cabinets to satisfy the demand of the public and operators.
I would like to emphasize that our company accompanied its customers throughout this process, providing support, training, and launching new products to the market, which helped significantly in this process of returning to normalcy.
We have developed an intense promotional activity at the local and regional levels. Our Regional Director, Max Bauer, strongly promoted these activities and actions, which included promotional campaigns in gaming halls, the implementation in Colombia of the NOVOMATIC Club, and the technical training days in Peru, which were well attended and very successful.
What have been the most recent agreements reached with local operators? Could you list the main ones, to know which casinos or chains are involved, and what kind of products and investments they have included?
NOVOMATIC Argentina installed its linked progressive jackpots Thunder Cash Link and Cash Connection throughout the country, obtaining an excellent response from the public, placing NOVOMATIC in the top positions in the gaming halls.
I want to name just a few of our customers, especially the latest installations of our Panthera, VIP Lounge Curve 1.43, and FunMaster 2. 27 in Casino Club, Casino Buenos Aires, Casino Victoria, Bingo Pergamino, Bingo Ramallo, Bingo Godel, Bingo Quilmes, Bingo Avellaneda, Bingo Begui, Grupo MAC, Bingo Pilar, Casino San Rafael, Casino Central Fuente Mayor, Hotelera Emprender, Bingo Bahía Blanca and the new room Alberdi, which opened its doors in the city of Salta a few days ago. These are just some of the venues, as we have installed our cabinets all over the country, in more than 50 casinos.
Based on these experiences, which products are more attractive in this stage of market reactivation for national operators?
The strongest trend in all the casinos of the country is the progressive linked games, which allow the gambler to participate in bonuses, free games, and attractive jackpots, although many players opt for the traditional games, such as our prolific Impera platform, which includes a complete library of NOVOMATIC’s classics.
The gaming halls’ public demands more attractive games and more impressive cabinets, and NOVOMATIC is already giving an immediate response to this, making available new games and spectacular cabinets, of proven quality, in the market. Thunder Cash Link and Cash Connection are already our most successful products in the Argentinean market.
What can you tell us about the tender you recently won in the province of Salta? What are its characteristics and how important is it for the company?
Octavian de Argentina, a subsidiary of NOVOMATIC AG, was the winner of the public bidding for the provision of an online control system for E.N.R.E.J.A., the entity that regulates and administers gaming in the province of Salta.
I want to highlight the renewed impulse that Dr. Aníbal Caro and his vice-president, Adrián Amen have given to the gaming activity in the province, looking for technical excellence in the controls and the transformation of the gaming halls into integrated entertainment centers, which give national and international tourism, and the local public, the possibility not only to play but also to enjoy the cultural and gastronomic attractions of the province of Salta.
E.N.R.E.J.A. contributes with its actions, and now again with Octavian’s myACP online control system, to control the normal operation of slot machines, from which the monthly fee paid by the casinos arises, and whose funds are directly directed to social welfare actions. That is why we are very proud to continue supporting the province of Salta once again with our online control system for casinos myACP.
How is the company’s casino management system positioned at a national level? What can you tell us about this topic?
Octavian de Argentina is one of the world’s leading companies in the provision and development of management tools for casinos.
The myACP system is installed in more than 60 casinos and halls in the country, and our main clients are Casinos del Litoral (in the province of Corrientes, with seven casinos), Casinos del Chaco (with 17 casinos), Entretenimientos Saltos del Moconá (with 8 casinos), Bingo Godel in Quilmes, Casino Parque in Tucumán and, of course, all the gaming halls in the province of Salta.
The myACP system has been in the market for more than 20 years, worldwide, and we reach all continents. We have more than 26,000 machines connected, and we produce and export worldwide from Argentina the hardware necessary for its operation, which has international certificates that guarantee its quality.
Our myACP system has the possibility of creating local and cross-room jackpots, such as the MegaCash, the linked jackpot of Grupo AGG Bingo Avellaneda, and the Súper Pozo Multislot of Casinos del Chaco. The system also includes automatic teller machines (ATMs) and self-checkout kiosks, and a complete customer loyalty system, which gives the bettor the possibility of adding points and winning prizes.
Lastly, we have recently seen very strong growth in the online betting segment throughout the region. How does this phenomenon influence NOVOMATIC’s business in Latam? And as other traditional casino gaming equipment suppliers have done, do you plan to offer more online content to your clients, from any of the company’s subsidiaries, focused on this sector in particular?
Greentube, a subsidiary of NOVOMATIC, is a leading company in the provision of online games and has already closed agreements for the provision of its platforms in Argentina. It has a complete library certified for LOTBA and other provinces, and many of its games have been preferred by gamblers. Online gaming is a very important segment with exponential growth, and NOVOMATIC is already offering its products to operators.