During the last edition of GAT Expo Cartagena, in Colombia, Yogonet held an exclusive interview with Victor Arias, Vice President of Operations for Latin America at Pragmatic Play.
The executive spoke about the importance of innovation in the company's entertainment offering and highlighted the players' demands, who are constantly asking for a better experience when it comes to having fun.
What is the company's assessment of the recent edition of GAT Expo Cartagena, and what feedback can you give regarding your presence there?
Taking as a reference what happened last year, where we saw a growth in people's interest in participating in this type of event, we had great expectations before our arrival at GAT Expo. And our visit to Colombia leaves us with a very good "taste in our mouth." We will certainly be attending the next edition of this fair, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary next year, and we will probably have a bigger stand than in this year's exhibition.
How important is this market for the company, and how do you approach it strategically?
Colombia is one of the most mature markets in the region. Latin America, as a continent, is experiencing constant growth, and I cannot say that there is a specific territory that is growing more than others.
Logically, the pandemic led to big changes, and the user had to automatically mature, grow up, and become more professional in the way he chooses his online entertainment.
In this case, talking about our sector, we see a much more demanding consumer, and that demand forces us, technology providers and developers, to constantly innovate.
When it comes to development, innovation is a hallmark of Pragmatic Play, and localization is also a very strong point in our game proposal.
Our new slogan is "your favorite at all times," and I think that phrase says what we are experiencing and what we want to continue promoting: we want to be the user's favorite, always.
Recently, you presented Spaceman to the market, a game with very particular and innovative characteristics in terms of player interaction. What are the results you have seen since its launch?
We have a high-end product and a very high standard of quality when it comes to providing the best user experience.
The demand is rising, and the bar is very high for the player, and the result of this demand is very good for the market in general and for us as a company in particular since it is making our games the most demanded ones in Latin America.
There is a consumer preference for our games, and we are logically proud of that: we are doing well, and the results are with us.
In terms of strategy, Pragmatic Play currently has two axes. One is a very aggressive production, with a large number of title releases per year, and on the other hand, they have a constant presence in industry events. Are you going to continue doing that, or are you going to increase either of them in some aspect?
On our part, there is a commitment to Latin America, which is based on transmitting our interest in the territory.
We want to be present in the market, innovate, and always offer what the market is looking for.
The presence at events is just a reflection of that, and the operator is a partner we work with in Latin America, hand in hand, and whom we always want to meet. And we really consider them partners because if they do well, we do well.
For us, the year is just beginning. GAT Expo was the first big exhibition event we had in Latin America, and now we are going to be present in Argentina at SAGSE. Then we will be in Brazil and Miami, in Las Vegas, Mexico, in Punta Cana, and in all the events where the market requires us to be present.