JUE 28 DE MARZO DE 2024 - 23:23hs.
Marcos Marugan, International Director of R. Franco

"Brazil should open the whole game, the business can not be for just one sector"

Once again, the main Spanish company will be present at ICE. In an exclusive interview, Marcos Marugan, international director of R. Franco, talks about his expectations before the great London fair while analyzing the growth of the online game against the physical, the Latin American role for the Group and what Brazil would generate as a new market: 'The day that government officials understand the money they lose and the jobs they would generate, they will regulate it quickly”.

GMB - Once again present at ICE, what will your company show to the market on this occasion?
Marcos Marugan -
This year we will introduce new math, new games and new cabinets. Under the GLOBAL GAMING SOLUTIONS claim, visitors to the S5-110 booth will learn about the global offer of games, products, solutions and content for the Casinos, Bingos and the Group's hotel (both face-to-face and online). In the face-to-face field, the company will showcase mainly the new collection of bingo and casino games, as well as its new compact roulette (RF Compact Roulette) and the recent RF4000 furniture with three screens and led lighting. Online, we will see the evolution of IRIS (its open and official platform) and IRIS POWER VAULT (module that is in charge of internal control and certification of regulated markets), as well as the online terminal RF ONMIX and its ever-increasing catalog of Online Games.

Which themes do you think will be of greater relevance in this edition of the most important fair in Europe?
There are themes that present themselves at this fair, which in my view do not reflect the restlessness of the sector. There are new market challenges, but in my view we should seek formulas of evolution with society. That is, we must tap into the inputs of new generations and adapt products and legislation to them. If we do not evolve standards and products from beforehand, we run the risk of end up selling shoes. There are problems rooted in our industry that we must attack together.

The online game does not seem to slow its growth before the physical. Do you think this will deepen in 2019?

No doubt. Why? Because it's the way the new player comes in. New players do not form on the traditional face-to-face channel. Whether they form in your home through your competitor or on your mobile phone, the demand and the way you consume it is totally different from what the industry currently offers.

What is the balance that R. Franco makes of its year 2018?
It was a fantastic year of transformation that will bear fruit in the next 3 years.

Can you anticipate projects or products under development for 2019?
We have some exciting challenges that will unfold in 2019.

What is the role of Latin America in the Group?
It's a very important geomarket for us. R.Franco was the first company to establish a factory in this continent and the first to place machines in most countries. We have a Latin history and we are returning with great strength and new products.

Which R Franco Digital products are most successful in the region?
Our slots, no doubt. They are note 10.

How do you evaluate legalization and regulation processes in Brazil specifically?
Especially after the recent legalization of sports betting. I hope that the new administration will open its eyes to the reality of the country. Brazil is one of the largest clandestine gaming markets in the world. The day government officials understand the money they lose and the jobs they generate, they will regulate it quickly. Brazil must open everything: betting, bingo and casinos. Business can not be for a group or just an industry. Must meet all aspects of the game in one go.

Have you considered Brazil as a market and could you put this country as a giant on the side of Europe when it regulates and consolidates itself?
Undoubtedly. If Brazil takes this issue seriously, it will become one of the largest markets in the world.

Source: GMB