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Latino America
Ricki Chavez-Munoz brings the latest news from Latino America
October celebrates The Lord of the Miracles festivities in Lima, Peru. Buenos Aires, however, celebrated two gaming shows in a tumultuous month, with Sagse Buenos Aires 2008 on the one hand, and Magia on the other, but both on the very same dates. And this was no coincidence.
What was a coincidence was the celebration of Brazil's Copag de Amazonia, celebrating its 100th Anniversary in the legendary City of Manaus, and also on the same days. The three day party affair could not be changed owing to timetable arrangements for both partners: Belgium's Carta Mundi and Copag. They tell me there will not be three days like those for another 100 years!
In its welcome message to the Sagse Buenos Aires show, Giorgio Gennari, president of organizers Monografie S.A., makes the point that for an expo to be called as such, the event must list at least 100 participating companies exclusive of friends and relations.
While we respect everyone's opinion, we believe that quite simply industry expos must be representative of a particular business sector, and be able to have as participants clients first and friends and relations last. The point is that if a business venture is the result of a whim, and this compromises the success of the business, then let the businessman suffer the consequences of his whim, but under no circumstances should such venture threaten anybody else's resources. Whimsical ventures are the result of great egos, and these should have no place in business.
It was with the criterion that respects a sector's representation in an expo that Datateam, with more than 24 years in B2B media, publishing and event organizing, amongst other business ventures, decided to enter into a strategic alliance with Mexico's GAMMEX 2009 organizers. Datateam made their decision at the end of the second day of Sagse Buenos Aires after nearly four weeks of negotiations.
GAMMEX 2009 is an event for the amusement sector in Mexico, which is the principal recreational activity in the country. Owing to the nature of current public demand, GAMMEX has decided to address its event to what is known as the amusement & gaming sector that groups kiddies rides, amusement halls, bingos and even betting and lottery operators, as long as they are within the regulatory framework of Mexico's laws.
Looking at the great entertainment sector in Mexico as a pyramid, the new gaming and lotteries permit holders are just the top of the iceberg in a country with more that 100 million people, who are for the most part amusement end users. With more than ten years in Mexico's amusement sector, GAMMEX 2009 organizers anticipate thousands of attendants at the event that will take place at the World Trace Center Conference and Conventions venue in the City of Mexico on April 1 and 2.
In Datateam we are aware that the expo ELA 2009 will take place in May, also in Mexico City, and as an industry supporter, we will be pleased to back the great effort made by the organizers of such an outstanding event, just as we do with all other events worldwide.
For some time now, we have heard comments from gaming business people that there are too many expo events in the industry. On the matter of diverse offer, we have also heard from gaming operators, who repeat almost verbatim, that there are increasingly more and newer products from new manufacturers bringing out new games from many countries worldwide. All we can say is that as long as there is a semblance of business endeavour in people, new products are going to be made available to end users for ever more.
In such cases, the purchasing criteria for the decision makers will be a matter of the right choice as to whether one product or another gets the thumbs up, because in the market place there are no monopolies, oligopolies or exclusive territories for anyone. Like other gaming products, gaming shows have been, are and will be on offer on double bills in places such as Las Vegas, Buenos Aires or London.
That there are gaming shows on the same days is a matter for extreme competition, and in this case, everyone will suffer in one way or another. In Mexico, we expect to be able to live each one in its own little ranch, with each event keeping a respectful distance. At Datateam, we will ensure that harmony is the byword to support the growth of the amusement, gaming and betting sectors in Mexico.
See you all in Las Vegas! Cheers,
Ricki.
Bolivia to liccense 15 gaming properties per city
Early in October, the Bolivian national lottery organization Lonabol published an administrative resolution to suspend licensing of gaming operations until a new gaming law is enacted. Lonabol director Marco Antonio Cardenas said that Bolivia could not stop casinos and slots operations from functioning and that in about a month, Lonabol would present a white paper seeking to control the issue of gaming licences that would restrict cities to a maximum of 15 licences each, based on demographic lines.
According to Cardenas there is little time left for those companies operating without regulation that applies to lotteries only: "For this reason, there are no clear regulations for gaming businesses, enabling informal operations in the country. Lonabol's legal department is at present preparing the white paper to bring some order into Bolivian gaming".
According to new licensing rules, gaming licensing for private or public entities will be subject to a public tender, where candidates will have to present viable projects based on location, entertainment, gaming activities and number of gaming devices. As a set number of gambling premises will be allowed in each province, there will be no more licences once all the licences have been granted.
There will be three categories of licence according to the number of machines and the type of gaming establishment. The first category will be exclusive luxury properties with more than 160 gaming devices. The second category is for operations with more than 100 gaming machines and the third category licence will allow between 60 or less machines. There is a provision for tourist destinations to participate in the luxury end of the gaming licensing process to attract foreign visitors.
The Monticello Grand Casino opens south of Santiago
Chile’s largest casino opened its doors to the public early in October. The Monticello Grand Casino has a licence to operate for fifteen years and is in a prime position, being the casino closest to Chile’s capital city Santiago. The consortium that owns the entertainment complex is the French company International Group of Gaming & Resorts (IGGR), and the company NovoSun which is a 50-50 joint venture of Austrian Novomatic and South African Sun International, under the name of San Francisco Investment S.A.
Whilst the casino is now in operation, construction continues on other parts of the development, and by the end of 2009 the full complex must be finished with a 5-star 155-room hotel with spa and gymnasium, a convention centre and two business centres, a theatre, restaurants and bars, craft centre, children’s park, sports facilities and more. Monticello Grand Casino has 80 gaming tables and 770 slot machines, a number that will rise by 1,500, with a minimum 85% payout. There is also a 300-seat bingo.
International companies sign up to organize AGS 2009
The dynamic duo organizing the Aruba Gaming Show has reported that twenty-five international companies have already signed up to exhibit 12 & 13 March 2009, just one month since the event was launched. Elizabeth Leiva and Patricia Alarcon have offered a warm welcome or Bon Bini, in the local Creole language of the Netherlands Antilles, to companies such as Casino Technology, Eurogames and not forgetting show sponsor Bally Gaming and the industry media.
According to the organizers, Aruba was chosen because of its strategic position between South and North America and Europe and has direct air and shipping routes. The island is also outside the hurricane belt that plagues much of the Caribbean and has a pleasant year-round climate. Aruba is no stranger to the gaming industry, with 12 casinos and some 3,500 slot machines. It boasts a modern infrastructure and is easily accessible to global commerce.
ALFASTREET DICE GAME WILL CHANGE THE GAME!
Alfastreet has been known for its multi-player machines for more than ten years, setting standards in gaming all around the world. Now Alfastreet is presenting the new Dice Game, a machine that allows Casino operators to offer a completely new gaming experience on their gaming floor.
The heart of the game is the turning wheel with four dices, which is placed in the center of the machine. This configuration allows players to have a perfect visibility of the game and a possibility of interaction between players. The game is based on a reliable Alfastreet gaming platform which is world known for its player friendly interface and high profitability.
Yeshua Martinez Segala, Alfastreet's Latin America Sales Director told us during Sagse Buenos Aires expo, last month: "Our Dice game has been created to service the demand of the Mexican market and it complies with all local regulations and parametres set up from federal to municipal levels. Our game is a supremely versatile machine with betting combinations that include from bingo to keno selections"
We asked Yeshua whether Alfastreet had had enquiries on their Dice game from other markets, and with his customary smile he explained: "Right now, everything we produce in Europe is being shipped to Mexico owing to the great popularity of Dice in the Mexican gaming rooms".
Alfastreet’s Dice Game machine has an automated wheel with four dices, eight player stations and can be customized for any expansion solution giving the operator greater efficiency on the use of its gaming inventory. All gaming stations can be equipped with Bill Acceptors, Ticket printers, as well as various Cashless systems.
The new Alfastreet Dice game operators are benefiting mainly from a 24/7 operating machine with easy maintenance, which eliminates negative effects caused by the human factor for its automated functions with minimal use of personnel. The system is provided with remote surveillance for distance online supervision enabling a high security level. And as a final sweetener, Dice game performance has been reported to produce "3 to 5 times greater profits in comparison to live gaming".
Damijan Plecko, Director of sales and operations for Latin America, who has led Alfastreet’s successful entry and development into the Mexican market, said that the coming year will also be very productive for his company. The Slovenian company will exhibit his new products at G2E in Las Vegas, during 18-20 November.
