INDUSTRY INTERVIEW: GREENTUBE


very optimistic about North America. It’s a large and established gaming market with considerable potential.


You launched several new games in 2024; can we expect this to continue in 2025? We aim to maintain, or even exceed, our game release cadence this year, targeting at least four monthly games. Our focus will be on introducing new mechanics to our portfolio. Specifically, we’ll launch at least three games featuring the globally popular cluster pay mechanic.


We’re also excited to introduce a series of three-pot games. Following our first release in Q1, we’ll launch several more throughout the year. These games have seen significant success in land-based casinos, and we’re confident they’ll translate well to the online market. We’ll continue to build on the success of our US-style stepper series, which performed very well last year. In addition, we’ll be exploring innovations on our platform and with more crash games built on the Capecod platform. Overall, we have a hectic year planned with many exciting releases.


We’ve also seen Greentube’s popular online slot games transition to the land-based sector. This is a new phenomenon for the iGaming industry, so do you have plans to continue this strategy? We plan to expand this strategy by bringing more online games to the land-based sector. We began this process last year with Piggy Prize Wand of Riches, showcased at the G2E Las Vegas and ICE. We will continue introducing online content via


our Plurius server-based gaming solution using our land-based machines for the lottery in Luxemburg. This smaller market provides an excellent testing ground for online games before a wider release. Developing for Plurius is faster than a full native reimplementation on Novomatic platforms. Despite this, we remain committed to native implementations of Novomatic games on its machines, a strategy we also pursued last year. For example, we brought three online games to land-based casinos in the Netherlands. These Dutch-specific titles, such as Random Runner and Imperial Crown, have already been implemented in the Dutch market and will likely be rolled out in other major European markets.


Finally, we are developing a technical solution to streamline the implementation process, making our online games available to land-based casinos faster and more efficiently.


You had a strong presence at ICE in Barcelona this year; how was the show for you? ICE Barcelona was a tremendous success for us. The city was a big draw – everyone appreciated the pleasant change of weather and how easy it was to get around, attend the show, and attend evening events. This made the whole experience much smoother for our team.


This year, we had our own dedicated Greentube booth for the first time rather than being housed within the main Novomatic presence. This followed the same concept as our booths in Amsterdam and Lisbon, but we significantly increased the stand size compared to the latter. This proved incredibly beneficial, allowing us to build much stronger brand awareness.


Our prime location on the central aisle ensured high foot traffic, and certain features, like the tunnel, were particularly popular, driving social media engagement from our visitors and passers- by. This boosted our brand recognition among both players and, importantly, our customers. Overall, ICE Barcelona was a very successful show for Greentube. We’re now focused on preparations for the rest of the year, which includes attending London, Lisbon, and Vegas before returning to Barcelona for ICE 2026.


What are the major challenges for the future of the iGaming industry? How will further developments in AI affect it, for example? The biggest challenges facing the iGaming industry are over-regulation and taxation. Increasingly restrictive regulations are driving players to the black market, particularly those impacting design elements like player engagement, win/bet limits, bonus features, and even specific mechanics like progressive jackpots. We’ve seen this in Germany, which has a substantial illegal sector, and we anticipate similar issues in the UK, which will have upcoming stake limitations and stringent KYC/AML requirements. This shift to unregulated platforms is the worst-case scenario for regulated market suppliers like us and our operator partners.


Regulators need to reconsider their approach of ever-tightening product restrictions. Operators also need to evaluate their strategies regarding marketing suppliers who operate in the black market.


Regarding AI, I see it as an opportunity, not a challenge. It can increase efficiency and speed in developing graphics, audio, and other assets. This could lead to focusing on better game mechanics rather than simply more games. While the market’s direction remains to be seen, AI is a trend we must embrace. From a marketing perspective, AI’s ability to streamline text, graphics, and software creation, as well as other marketing assets, makes it invaluable. We cannot and will not ignore it.


What are Greentube’s plans for the rest of this year and beyond?


Greentube’s primary focus for the remainder of this year is launching in Pennsylvania and South African markets, initially targeted in 2024. Successfully entering these jurisdictions will pave the way for exploring future US and wider North American opportunities, including Alberta. The United Arab Emirates will also be considered once


regulation occurs there, though no final decision has been made.


Expansion in Brazil and South Africa will involve increasing the game portfolio and ramping up marketing efforts. Capecod’s wider rollout, including Brazil, is a key part of the strategy. At the same time, we aim to build on its incredible success in Italy, where it has significantly grown its market share and revenue.


During the development process of an online slot title, is there any consideration for its potential to debut in the land-based market? Our slots are primarily designed for the online market. We prioritise their success in that arena. If a game performs exceptionally well online, we consider its land-based deployment potential. While we can certainly propose a successful online title to Novomatic for land-based adaptation, the final decision rests with them. They assess the game’s online performance and determine whether it suits the land-based market.


Is the decision to take a slot from online to land-based based purely on numbers? What other considerations are there? Performance metrics primarily drive the decision to transition a game from online to land-based. Meeting specific numerical targets online is a prerequisite. A land-based version won’t be considered if a game doesn’t perform well online.


However, exceeding those online thresholds is just the first step. We then evaluate the current land-based market and what other studios are producing. We ask: Is this game a valuable addition to our land-based portfolio? Does it resonate with our target markets? A game won’t move forward if it doesn’t fill a need.


If a game meets the numerical requirements, aligns with Novomatic’s land-based strategy and if it fulfills technical specifications it becomes a viable candidate for land-based development.


About Michael Bauer


Michael Bauer joined Greentube in February 2015, moving from the Novomatic Group. His extensive experience in corporate and structured finance, as well as his strong project management background made him perfect for the dual role as Greentube’s chief gaming officer and chief financial officer. Within this dual role, Michael is responsible for group finance matters, as well as steering the strategic direction of the game portfolio, game production, operation, sales and corporate marketing departments.


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