GMB - This is one of the first interviews that GIG gives for the Brazilian market. Tell us a little more about what services you offer and in which markets the firm operates.
Luc Lebleu - GiG offers a platform for new and existing operators who want to launch their brand online, migrate their current operation to a better platform or benefit from having a physical operation of casinos and betting to launch their brand online with one of the best gambling and betting omnichannel platforms.
We offer our platform for casino, live casino, sports betting, poker and lotteries; but we also have services managed by us for operators. Services such as Media, where we take care of the acquisition of players and even their retention if the operator wants so, or GiG Comply, which is an especially useful tool in regulated markets to ensure that your brand is not unduly exposed on the internet.
Specifically in LatAM, where are GIG’s products present and what is the result of the region according to the firm’s point of view?
This is the first year that we focus on Latin America as one of the regions in which we see a lot of potential to expand. In the beginning, COVID made the plans we had to make a stronger impact a little diminished, however we have worked hard behind the scenes to establish relationships with many groups of all sizes in LatAm in general and the fruits are bearing.
We do not rule out that LatAm may represent one of the most important regions for us in the years to come. There are many groups of land-based casinos that can benefit from our omnichannel platform, our GiG Logic logic and automation engine, and our GiG Data solution as well.
In this context, does GIG have strong expansion in Latin America as one of its main objectives?
Our main objective is to bring traditional casino groups online in the best possible way. There are many very strong groups whose needs are different from one another. And that's where we come in, with our unrivaled experience doing the same for Hard Rock or Sky City. Our company is ready for the transition to be optimal, but also for the cross-selling from online to offline and vice versa to be continuous through loyalty tools that only we have.
GIG has recently signed an agreement with Grupo Slots that operates in 20 jurisdictions in Argentina and aims to obtain an online license in the City of Buenos Aires. What can you tell about it and what long-term expectations does GIG have?
We started talking with the gentlemen of Grupo Slots a few months ago, and this principle of agreement reflects what we want to achieve in the region; sign an agreement with a solid and consolidated group that has years of experience in the physical gaming and entertainment sector through its establishments and casinos as well as hotels, among others. Of course, we are all experiencing a unique situation with the pandemic, but from the beginning the gentlemen of Grupo Slots demonstrated great professionalism, knowledge of the sector and their local 'know-how', and we have corresponded in the same way.
This agreement is the culmination of many meetings, conversations and analyzes of both companies, and a shared vision of where we want to take Grupo Slots in the coming years. We exist by and for our operators; our objective is their growth and consolidation in the market in which they are.
Is Brazil the great sleeping market they are you targeting? Do you already have operators interested in having your products for this market?
Of course, Brazil is of interest. We have had some conversations with different companies and people in the sector, but we still have nothing to announce. This market is undoubtedly the largest in the region and one of the largest potentially in the world, and we would love to be able to bring a little of the Brazilian joy to our platform, it would be a great achievement for one media company or another to enter in the world of online gaming, as happens in another large market such as the Mexican one.
Due to the complex characteristics of the Brazilian market or even the country, is GIG’s idea to arrive in Brazil with a local leg or to do it in a completely independent way?
We do not enter into a partnership scheme per se with our operators. We provide them with the best platform in the sector, with all its tools and all our experience launching casinos and bookmakers for years, but we do not contemplate having 'a local leg'. The platform will always be independent, its agreements according to which market, but our objective is not to be operators, but to provide all our machinery to the operator, so that he can have the success he wants. In that sense, if we can take an operator by the hand and manage many of the services such as acquisition and retention of players, data analysis and CRM among other areas that are key for the proper development of the operator.
Based on your analysis, which of your products could be more successful in Brazil?
I think we will all agree that sports betting and poker are the products that are best positioned in Brazil due to its recent history with respect to gambling and casinos, the operator that has an interesting portion of the betting and poker market has the successful in his hands. But like in all markets, casino games are here to stay.
In case the regulation that is being analyzed is advantageous and due to the size of the country, can a physical installation of a GIG office in Brazil be considered?
We do not rule out anything. The numbers, both financial and customer, will dictate our next steps in this regard.
The pandemic altered the plans of almost all the players in the industry. Did it also happen with GIG? What post-pandemic Latin American and global market do you envision?
The pandemic leaves some more affected than others, this in all sectors. We had to adjust our plans and strategies as we were unable to travel to close deals, for example, or be present at a sector fair. But everything has gone well. Undoubtedly, the physical gaming sector has suffered an earthquake that has affected its foundations, but adversity is when we have to see the opportunities that the world offers us and although it is true that before some physical gaming groups were opposed to online, today I do not know a single group that is not there or is studying or launching their brand online.
Technology is there to take advantage of it, not to get away from it. Everything is at our fingertips, and surely the country that is not yet regulated is contemplating it or will be in the near future. In the end, everyone wins; companies stay alive, create jobs, expand and governments collect taxes and can reinvest in health, as happens in Colombia.
Source: Exclusive Games Magazine Brasil
