p44 connective games:p12 nick hawkins 02/03/2010 09:49 Page 34
CONNECTIVE GAMES
A faster route to a wider market…
Konstantin Zubarev, CEO of Connective Games, calls for greater co-
operation between smaller online gaming companies to compete with
the bigger boys…
“I
want to start off this article by gaming, such as, say, live casino or badugi. of the online gaming jungle.
posing a dilemma that I believe
is being faced by those working We know that others do. For instance, we are Because many of our own clients are similarly
at software development currently talking to a mobile gaming developer small or medium-sized businesses – and just
companies, not only in the field at the moment called mGame Solutions from like us, they need and appreciate flexibility
of online gaming, but in other sectors as well: Hungary. They have a very interesting mobile when it comes to their suppliers.
How many times do you think we need to reinvent poker application. We want to add mobile
the wheel? poker to our platform. If we can work with The large providers struggle with one area in
mGame, we can offer them a faster route to a particular: Flexibility. They have a standard
Here at Connective Games we have been wider market than they might achieve on their approach, often developed to deal with their
working in the online gaming sphere for many own, and we do not spend thousands of biggest – and most profitable – clients. You
years, with the company itself having been working hours attempting to develop – pretty know who you are, and your clients will
around now for over three years. much – the exact same product. recognise this.
Much of this time has been spent with our Instead, we will simply add what has already We don’t have a standard approach. We
heads down, busy trying and thankfully been developed to our existing platform and consider the needs of each and every operator
succeeding to build the necessary backend to start offering it to an existing roster of clients. who approaches us, and we tailor the approach
provide our company with the tools to take on as necessary.
the larger gaming platform providers. Both our firms will offer the package to
market, and we will both share in the profits. It is so simple. Clients select the products
It has taken us a long time to build up our that they like; I don’t mind how many different
bank of knowledge; perhaps too long. Of course, it’s not just the product. You will games of poker and casino we offer our clients.
all be aware of the peripheral work that needs The best ones will thrive.
Don’t get me wrong; we are extremely pleased to be done to get a new idea to market. These
with the products that we know we have built. are the other elements involved that do not Now I fully understand that my arguments
We have market-proven poker and casino need to be replicated each and every time a will be countered by others. It is natural. No
products, and have recently added new game is developed, such as the reporting, matter which industry you work in, the owners
backgammon, rummy and are now looking at the player management, the affiliate system, the and founders will always believe they are the
building mahjong and Chinese poker. agents, the accounting, the bonus smartest guys in the room. They will want to
management, plus the infrastructure needed achieve success under their own steam, using
Our clients have been very supportive; they for games and tournaments. I could go on. only their own resources.
have given us the time to develop a successful
and competitive poker and casino offering. It is clearly not necessary for each But often, no matter how determined you are
development company to jump through every and how much you believe you have an edge,
But like many other small- and medium-sized one of these hoops from scratch. you will sometimes find that you simply don’t
companies, we only have limited resources in have the resources to succeed. Doing it on your
terms of people, time and, of course, money. The common ground has already been own is tough; many do not succeed.
covered. Without these basics, a developer can
These pressures force companies to be concentrate on what really counts; that is We are at the beginning of the path towards
creative. In our case, it has led us to conclude bringing to market a game that is truly unique. cooperation. We think our ideas can inject new
that there must be another way; that although blood into the online gaming sector. A lot of
competition is very much at the heart of our We want to work together with similarly companies we meet have exceptionally good
business, there is also a need for cooperation nimble, smaller companies, who like us are ideas, but they are still struggling to present
between developers. fighting for space in a sector dominated by those ideas to the clients. We believe we can
some very large, very dominant names, but who help them to help themselves.
We have gone it alone in the past, and we have the creative development talent to take
know how tough that route can be. them on. Together we can build a unique platform, a
true network of connected and connective
We now have the poker and casino platforms This call for cooperation isn’t simply a games that offers the best to all our clients.
that are now tried and tested, and a success. defensive move, aimed at attempting to protect Collaboration and cooperation truly are the
But we don’t have many other areas of online ourselves from the onslaught of the big beasts way forward.”
44 MARCH 2010
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