GGRAsia – Lone play offers fun amid stadium game boom: Interblock

Lone play offers fun amid stadium game boom: Interblock

Nov 13, 2019 Newsdesk Latest News, MGS Entertainment Show 2019

Users of electronic table games (ETGs) are showing increasing interest in playing such products singly, not just as part of a communal “stadium” setup.

So states Michael Hu (pictured), president Asia-Pacific for Interblock, a Slovenian casino games maker.

“I would say that as the [casino] properties take more and more stadiums, the [player] demand is less than the supply” of such product configurations, Mr Hu told GGRAsia.

“But the cake”, in terms of the addressable consumer market for electronic table games, “is still there,” he added.

The executive was speaking to GGRAsia during the MGS Entertainment Show 2019, a casino trade exhibition and conference held in Macau from Tuesday to Thursday.

“With new properties we can see the trend [among the consumers] is individualism, even on the ETG side,” he added.

On stadium games – as well as live-dealer tables – gamblers “have to wait” for other players to finish their betting, Mr Hu noted.

Interblock’s answer to this situation is its Universal Cabinet – or “UC”. As the name suggests, it provides a common single-unit platform, but with a physical rather than virtual or video game on the top depending on the casino venue’s requirements.

“Individual units mean players can start and finish at their own pace – which can mean more handle for the casino operator,” Mr Hu noted. “It’s a win-win”.

The UC is available in a roulette version (pictured); sic bo and craps; and baccarat and blackjack versions.

The product has been certified by Gaming Laboratories International LLC, known as GLI, and has been approved under the standards of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (Pagcor), the regulator in that country.

The first regional installation will be in a Philippines venue “by the end of December,” said Mr Hu.

He added that the approaching launch of Grand Lisboa Palace, SJM Holdings Ltd’s foray into the Cotai resort market in Macau, should provide general sales opportunities for Interblock. The casino resort is expected to open in the second half of 2020.

The Grand Lisboa property brand was “traditionally an Interblock market, so we are working hard with the slot team [at SJM Holdings] to see how we can bring Interblock innovative products to the new property,” Mr Hu told us.