GMB - Sirplay had its own booth at BgC for the second time. Which made the company return to the event?
Bart Esposito - This year we came in particular to see in person what are the doubts of the operators that are working in the country, how the procedure of the law is moving forward and knowing that here they are leading a first class entertainment industry. We attended the congress to understand the regulatory process in order to be ready for when the law comes out and hoping it will not take much longer.
About the content of the lectures and panels. Do you think it was enlightening? Which topic has caught your attention?
The panels were very interesting, in particular, the speeches about the taxation; how the sports betting tax rates will apply. I believe that at this point some things must be modified because it can make the business not profitable for the operator. They know this and have already said that they are taking steps to solve this type of problem. It is important that, in the end, the rates are attractive to the operators because otherwise it will be difficult to attract investors to the country.
Do you think the event also provided good networking opportunities to start new business and get information?
Sure. In the sector we are all friends, so we can find friends that we have not seen for a long time and it is always a pleasure to be with them personally as in this event to meet owners, managers and directors to talk and get updated.
After listening to the contents of the sessions and talking with other players of the industry, has Sirplay already defined its next steps to start a project focused in Brazil?
I am now just observing how it will work to fully understand which will be the next steps. Surely, we will have to set up an office in Brazil, hiring Brazilian professionals. The philosophy of Sirplay is to update and customize the platform according to the market. So, who better than a Brazilian engineer to do it.
What kind of products does Sirplay intend to offer to the Brazilian market when it starts its operation in the country?
Our main business is sports betting, so we’ll focus on this product. However, we have been doing this for fifteen years and we have all the products that may interest all the countries of the world, not only Brazil in particular. We have bingo solutions, slots, roulette, online poker, the full range of products that a country may want, we offer all of them. Clearly, we pay close attention to our main product which is sports betting.
As a company that offers other modalities besides sports betting, what is your opinion about the legalization process of the whole gaming sector in Brazil?
We’ve been talking about regulating this industry for three years. It is not easy in any country but in Latin America, now that Colombia has led and regulated such a complicated market, I believe that the main problems, in my view, are to define the details such as taxes and responsible gambling, which are very important issues and will require a lot of time. However, there are already some examples that can be followed. I think it's taking a while. I had hoped last year to be able to find customers who were already ready to get a license. But investors are stuck again because even when you do not have a clear law we can’t make an investment, and that's the way it is everywhere in the world.
Source: Exclusive Games Magazine Brasil
