Interactive MOBILE/ONLINE/LAND-BASED
Networking every aspect of the gaming business
GameAccount Network specialises in recreating land-based gaming offerings in the online space, something it describes as Simulated Gaming. G3 speaks to GameAccount’s Daniel Lindsay about the opportunities available to all operators whatever size and scale
What are the benefits for a retail operator in recreating its casino/brand/environment/player experience in the online space?
The battle for the consumer entertainment spend has never been more fierce. Pretty much every TV advert you care to watch will make some refer- ence to products being available ‘in store, on line and on mobile’, so clearly it’s about offering a seamless experience for a casino customer no matter what their location is. It’s generally under- stood that player behaviour revolves around mobile play in the mornings, desktop during the day, and twin screening on tablets or mobiles in the evening. That means the potential benefits to the retail operator who commits to an online product offering are very clear. It's about allowing your customer to ‘remain’ on your premises and interacting with your brand even when they are not on property.
How close can a retail operator get to achieving a recreation of their land-based offer online?
The simple answer here is as close as they want to. Luxury is not the preserve of offline opera- tions, it’s possible to re-create an opulent envi- ronment online in the way that you interact with your customers. VIP customers would already receive closer attention, but in terms of the over- all look and feel of an online offer, then anything is possible.
What are the practical steps in creating an offline/online seamless gaming experience for the player?
It's quite straightforward. The most obvious single existing marketing channel that a land based operator has is the customer database. With GameAccount’s Simulated Gaming solution and patented iBridge technology, an integration between the Internet Gaming System and the land based Casino Management System can be
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achieved quickly and efficiently providing a large online customer acquisition opportunity. However, how players can be taken through the registration process (either via a lite or full regis- tration or made even easier by the use of their land based casino loyalty card) is the challenge. Experience and evidence shows that by offering the right content that players know they enjoy playing and also incentivising (where allowed) players with rewards they can redeem in-venue, we know our customers can monetize players from registration to deposit at upwards of 18%. That’s an awful lot better than general social gaming.
What scale of gaming operation is this suitable for - ie. Multi-chain, single-site?
What’s important for a land
based casino license holder is that they do nothing to jeopardise that land based license and so we work with
the operators and regulators to ensure Simulated Gaming complies with any harm minimisation measures.
There’s no right or optimum business size to drive the decision to move online, it’s purely strategic. Simulated Gaming offers the opportunity for land-based operators to move into the online space now, without regulations needing to be in place. Not only does this provide an incremental revenue stream, it’s proven to drive lapsed land based players to re-engage with the bricks and mortar venue not only spending on gaming activi- ties but the associated verticals within the venue,
Daniel Lindsay, Commercial Director, GameAccount Network
including accommodation and F&B. The accelera- tor effect achieved is remarkable.
Are there any additional regulatory factors that should be considered when considering this solu- tion?
Currently, social gaming is an unregulated market that’s currently estimated at being worth over US$2bn a year. And, depending on what shape regulations take (or not), this could grow to in excess of US$19bn within five years. What’s important for a land based casino license holder is that they do nothing to jeopardise that land based license and so we work with the operators and regulators to ensure that Simulated Gaming is fully understood as a proposition and also comply with any harm minimisation measures which need to be included in the offering. What’s critical to remember with Simulated Gaming is that it is ‘Gaming’, not ‘Gambling’ and there’s a fundamen- tal difference there.
What should operators focus upon in the creation of their online equivalent?
A few things must be achieved in our view. Firstly, a seamless offering of the brand whether in venue or online. Players need to feel the same experience wherever they are, and that includes the level of customer service they receive. Secondly, content is critical. We’ve said it many times and it’s always worth repeating ‘Content is King’. People want to play games they recognize,
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