Insight ITALY UPDATE (Right) Martin Lucas,


Managing Director - Betting and VLT, Inspired Gaming Group.


"Sisal has invested in our platform to


make a difference in the Italian VLT market. Sisal is


directly changing the menus to its


games to appeal to different players in different locations. While we manage the content and menu


management for other


concessionaires, Sisal use these


tools themselves, integrating our data mining into


their own systems with a very


sophisticated


consumer goods marketing team


ensuring that they bring all these


disciplines to bear with best practice in the


marketplace." Martin Lucas,


Inspired Gaming Group.


legislation, but rather than just accept the inevitable, operators are seeking to exploit the technology to its full potential. “There are operators that really understand what server-based can deliver,” says Mr. Lucas, “It enables operators to move and react to the market in real-time, pushing content, analysing data, market direct to players etc. All these aspects are obvious in principle, but the architecture of your platform must enable all these tools and functions, which means building these systems from the ground-up. Each icon, menu, game, attraction, marketing message; these are separable objects, configured within the database, all of whose arrangement can be manipulated.”


The Italian operator has bought into Inspired’s gaming platform because of the flexibility and tools it gives the operator to be innovative with the product. “Sisal has invested in our platform to make a difference in the Italian VLT market,” states Mr. Lucas. “Sisal is directly changing the menus to its games to appeal to different players in different locations. While we manage the content and menu management for other concessionaires, Sisal use these tools themselves, integrating our data mining into their own systems with a very sophisticated consumer goods marketing team ensuring that they bring all these disciplines to bear with best practice in the marketplace.”


There are markets in Europe in which server-based is set down as part of the


“We’re not talking about one big lump of code,” explains Mr. Alvarez. “Everything has to be built to accommodate these functions from the very start. We see our competitors attempting to propagate this type of diversity, but this level of functionality can't be bolted on. It has to be part of your fundamental choice determined by your ‘deep techies’ right from the outset.”


Inspired has expanded its original two cabinet offer, Storm and Prospero, with the addition of a slant-top cabinet, giving the widest range of platform options on the market. Currently, Inspired is No.1 in terms of income and No.2 by volume in the Italian VLT market. Merkur Inspired has just launched Cash Fruits to be placed in 800 VLTs with Sisal, as the joint venture with the Gauselmann Group, literally, bears fruit. As a privately owned business, Inspired is prospering from a focus on growth and expansion, as the company expands into new markets outside of the UK.


“We are not looking to be in every market around the globe, stretching ourselves too thinly,” states Mr. Lucas. “We are positioning ourselves in a number of high growth markets, Italy, Mexico, Colombia and China, while at the same time following the economic crisis around Europe, which seems to creating lots of opportunities.”


next year will see even


Greater roll out in italy, with new


opportunities in Greece.


At present Inspired's UK business accounts for two-thirds of the company’s revenue, though the short-term growth plan is to see this switch to two-thirds export through aggressive expansion. “Italy has proved incredibly helpful in terms of growth and recognition of Inspired as an international supplier,” states Mr. Lucas. “Next year we will see even greater roll-out in Italy, with expected growth from new opportunities in Greece. We know that we have the best technology for the VLT street and small to medium sized casino sector. We are not precious about operators using our cabinets or games, we will fit to their requirements. Our partnership with operators revolves around the benefits delivered by our platform. Like Intel, it’s all about having Inspired Inside.”


December 2011 Page 49


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