• About Us
  • The Team
  • Advertise with Us

The latest news on the gaming industry in Asia

() () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () () ()
  • Home
  • Macau
  • Philippines
  • Singapore
  • Japan
  • Rest of Asia
  • World
  • Features
  • Industry Talk
  • Trends & Tech
  • follow
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • RSS Feed
    • LinkedIn

Electronic tables good fit for Japan market: JGC panel

May 17, 2019 Newsdesk Japan, Japan Gaming Congress 2019  


Electronic tables good fit for Japan market: JGC panel

Electronic table games (ETGs) – a casino game segment now popular with players across Asia-Pacific – could also be a good fit for the Japan market, heard a Japan Gaming Congress (JGC) panel dedicated to equipment suppliers.

That might especially be the case if players in the Japan market were not yet used to a live-dealer version of such games, the Friday panel heard. ETGs also offered the prospect of moderate overheads in a Japanese jobs market with high labour costs.

The panel was moderated by Dave Kubajak, senior vice president, sales, marketing, and operations at casino printer and bill acceptor specialist JCM Global.  The panellists included: Scientific Games Corp’s vice president and managing director for Asia, Ken Jolly;  gaming consultancy firm 2NT8 Ltd’s managing director Alidad Tash; senior vice president and chief systems product officer at Konami, Tom Soukup; and shareholder in law firm Greenberg Traurig, Mark Clayton.

Electronic table games have proven to be popular with operators and players in the Macau market. Analysts have linked this respectively to rising labour costs for table dealers; the Macau government’s cap on new live-dealer tables in the market; and the ability for operators to offer lower minimum bets compared to traditional table games – albeit that ETGs typically can churn through more games per hour than live-dealer tables, due to electronic betting and bet settlement.

“Electronic table games run on lower bets. And they are also a way to introduce table games to uneducated players,” said Mr Jolly during the panel.

“…I think you’ll see quite a lot of that happen in Japan as well, because…in Japan there are pachinko halls which have seen a big take-up in electronic gaming, but obviously table games haven’t been in this market, so one introduction will be through what we call electronic table games,” Mr Jolly noted.

“And as the market develops – we’re talking about these stadiums – it is creating more atmosphere of everybody enjoying and playing together. That is driving those development,” the Scientific Games Asia executive added. He has also highlighted during the panel that a challenge that a gaming supplier could encounter in Japan is to understand the themes, graphics and maths that could appeal to the local population.

The efficiency and cost-effectiveness of a so-called “stadium” arrangement of electronic table games: being able to serve a big crowd with only a handful of live dealers, could be appealing to a market where table game resources are precious, Mr Tash remarked.

“Macau has something called the table cap, or the maximum number of tables, which is very similar to what Japan will be facing. The most precious item in the casino is the table games, and you need to maximise that,” Mr Tash said.


  • tweet
Related articles
  • Sci Games says ‘Singing Cats’ nodded in 9 APAC markets
    Sci Games says ‘Singing Cats’...

    Jan 27, 2021  

  • Sci Games sees quarterly loss narrow sequentially in 3Q
    Sci Games sees quarterly loss narrow...

    Nov 05, 2020  

More news
  • Mohegan teams with Oshidori for Nagasaki casino tilt
    Mohegan teams with Oshidori for...

    Jan 28, 2021  

  • Yokohama announces RFP timeline for casino bid
    Yokohama announces RFP timeline for...

    Jan 22, 2021  


Latest News

Macau has 77 junket rooms, 1,566 VIP tables says govt

Macau has 77 junket rooms, 1,566 VIP tables says govt

Jan 28, 2021  

Macau’s current VIP gambling sector – involving 85 licensed gaming promoters – has “77 gaming rooms” and “1,566 gaming tables”, said the Macau government official with oversight of the...
Read More
Dec hotel occupancy highest since Jan 2020: Macau govt

Dec hotel occupancy highest since Jan 2020: Macau govt

Jan 28, 2021  

Studio City may seek fresh liquidity says research firm

Studio City may seek fresh liquidity says research firm

Jan 28, 2021  

Sign up to our FREE Newsletter

UB8V5.qr.16(Click here for more)

Partners

Pick of the Day

"I believe that when Macau makes a decision, there is going to be a requirement to invest more"

Robert Goldstein

Chairman and chief executive of Las Vegas Sands



Most Popular

  • China said to be expanding blacklist for overseas gamblingChina said to be expanding blacklist for overseas gambling January 27, 2021
  • China diplomats warn nationals not to gamble in CambodiaChina diplomats warn nationals not to gamble in Cambodia January 27, 2021
  • Digital yuan eventually for Macau mass bets mulls BernsteinDigital yuan eventually for Macau mass bets mulls Bernstein January 22, 2021
  • Okada Manila warns against online casino, sale rumoursOkada Manila warns against online casino, sale rumours January 25, 2021
  • Cotai expansion to aid Macau EBITDA to 2019 level: CICCCotai expansion to aid Macau EBITDA to 2019 level: CICC January 26, 2021
Copyright 2014-2020 TEAM Publishing and Consultancy Ltd / All rights reserved
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Useful Links
  • Contact Us