"BMM is hosting more than 40 senior managers and executives from around the BMM world at G2E"

The Global Gaming Expo (G2E) is set to take place this month at The Venetian in Las Vegas, October 9 -12, and among the companies that have confirmed their presence at the event is BMM Testlabs, which will be exhibiting at Booth 4408. Ahead of the expo, BMM Chairman and CEO Martin Storm spoke to Yogonet in an exclusive interview and shared the company’s plans for the expo.

In the conversation, Storm discussed BMM’s journey to expanding its footprint to 16 locations worldwide and threw light on emerging trends in the sector, in addition to speaking about BIG Cyber and RG24seven as BMM’s first business adjacencies. He also touched upon the company’s recent appointments and partnerships with the American Gaming Association (AGA).

What does this participation at G2E mean for BMM Testlabs?

BMM Testlabs has been an integral part of the gaming industry since 1981, testing innovative gambling software and hardware products to ensure compliance. The Global Gaming Expo (G2E) in Las Vegas has remained the premier destination to launch gaming technology innovations, and BMM is pleased to attend every year.

Our leadership and key staff have attended G2E from our businesses across Australia, Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, and North America since 2002, and we continue to invest significantly to ensure BMM’s presence is strong throughout the event.

Our major investment in attending G2E annually for over 20 years has been the springboard for BMM’s growth from a small domestic lab in Australia into a global gaming laboratory powerhouse, servicing more than 1,000 customers from our 16 locations worldwide.

What will BMM’s presence at the event be like, and what will the company focus on at the expo?

BMM is hosting more than 40 senior managers and executives from around the BMM world in Las Vegas with a range of internal business conferences at the G2E. We will also be hosting the BMM Innovation Group (BIG) in our booth, 4408, presenting our industry-leading gaming lab for digital and land-based gaming products, our cybersecurity defense solution BIG Cyber, and our free-to-market virtual training solution RG24seven. 

Each of these efforts is central to BMM’s commitment to support and strengthen the gaming industry and to protect the public who enjoy gambling as entertainment. We will also host our annual BIG G2E Party at the Venetian for invited guests. In the past, we have had up to 300 attendees.

At BMM, ‘care’ is our 1st core value. We care deeply for our staff, for customers, for regulators, for the public playing these games, and all industry stakeholders. G2E has been a foundation stone where we can show that care. The real value of attending G2E has been in the culture we have built, and the relationships we have developed with the wonderful people in the global gaming industry, both internally as the BMM team and externally.

BMM sets itself apart not just as a compliance product testing company in gaming, but as the company that invented pre-compliance testing and then QA testing for the gaming industry. We wrote the first gaming standards for land-based slots and systems, and the same for the online market. We know our performance and leadership have transformed our competitor’s efforts across the world, from the United States to Africa, from Europe to Australia, and from Asia to South America, which has benefited the whole industry. 

BIG really delivers ‘Better, Faster, Cheaper!’ We have been the quiet achiever and the real test lab benchmark for more than a decade globally. But none of these things are important or of use unless we are helping a regulator or customer move forward successfully. That is how we achieve our mission, the reason for our existence. Caring and helping. They are the real reasons ‘why’ we are here at the G2E.

BMM Testlabs is pleased to announce that BMM has been approved as a testing and certification laboratory for the games and lottery industry by Paraná State Lotteries!#BMMTestlabs #Certified #Brazil #Lottopar https://t.co/jDuD02ldhH

— BMM Testlabs (@BMMTestlabs) September 18, 2023

As we see new products and technologies hitting the market, would you say regulations are keeping up with this evolving landscape?

Keeping up with new technologies and regulations from a regulatory perspective can be difficult. We have built relationships over 40 years with more than 500 gaming regulators. We understand the challenges and we navigate our customers through those challenges, in each unique jurisdiction, and that is why the industry relies on us for that guidance and support. In that effort, we recently were accredited in the State of Parana, Brazil, building on our industry leadership of more than 40 years.

Digital products are constantly evolving and new challenges are emerging in areas such as blockchain, cryptocurrency, Web 3.0, and AI technologies. For the regulator and the industry, this means new technology to consider and understand, new regulations to write, old regulations to update, and potentially new definitions of gambling within them – presenting a regulatory challenge. Luckily, BMM has been actively supporting regulators to think through these issues, based on the world’s best practice, and that filters through to our customers through our advice.

While land-based gaming in the United States has more recently focused on specialty segments, digital gaming growth exploded through the pandemic when casinos were closed. That momentum is continuing with new markets opening in the United States, South America, Africa, and Asia. 

As a truly global gaming lab, BMM is growing faster than ever in response to these new opportunities, especially with customers who have used other labs in their first go-around and now want better services and support, and those customers who wish to take their products overseas.
 
What will BIG Cyber and RG24seven focus on at this year’s G2E?
 
BIG Cyber and RG24seven are our first business adjacencies to BMM. As highly specialized businesses focused on gaming, they both leverage BMM’s trusted advisor status in the global gaming industry. The goal of both is to provide gaming industry personnel with the best technology solutions the market can offer. 

BIG Cyber offers defense-grade, 24-7 Security Operations Center (SOC) monitoring services with proactive threat hunting, penetration testing and vulnerability assessments, incident response, virtual CISO (vCISO), and fully managed cyber awareness training services, training and certifying staff to protect business operations and customers. 

RG24seven offers a free-of-charge, best-in-class, video-based education/training for all stakeholders in the gambling industry. RG24seven offers subject-matter expertise from the industry’s leading experts across key content areas to educate and train every member of our industry to strengthen it for the public’s enjoyment.

BMM Testlabs, BIG Cyber, and RG24seven approach the market and its customers with humility and the mindset of a challenger brand. This mindset differentiates how we listen and react to our customers’ needs and generates the desire to create sustainable value for our customers.
 
One issue set to be discussed at G2E and that has been gaining momentum in the industry is AI. How does BMM leverage artificial intelligence in its processes? Another key topic for the industry at the moment is cyber security. What are the important things that new operators should keep in mind in this regard?
 
Innovation and disruption have driven the online gaming market in recent years, with modern technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and Web 3.0 impacting the industry even further. These technologies are reshaping the way betting and gambling are conducted online. At BIG, we are researching how AI can benefit our internal business processes, systems, and products that we offer to the market. That is an ongoing development.
 
Regarding cyber security, the intrusion is not a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’. Intrusion is very likely no matter what companies do. So, what is crucial is how you mitigate that intrusion when it arrives. Firstly, do you know your network and systems have been breached? And secondly, how can you mitigate the damage they might do? That is where BIG Cyber shines. 

We offer defense-grade intrusion mitigation via a special SOC capability, and our service has hundreds of users worldwide. Other critical strategies beyond implementing 'business as usual' client-server-network security software products include real-time, automated risk assessments, regular penetration testing, and world-class training of staff regarding security because up to 47% of all intrusions are accidental access provided to an intruder by a staff member. BIG Cyber offers all these critical solutions.

 
What should we expect from BMM for the remainder of the year? Are there any new plans or announcements you could share with us?

BIG is growing very quickly, so managing growth is a challenge. Just prior to the G2E, BIG recently announced three senior executive hires of outstanding capability, reputation, values, and leadership. Kara Matthew has taken on the role of COO (Chief Operations Officer), Brian Wedderspoon the role of CRO (Chief Revenue Officer), and Laura Olson Reyes the role of CMO (Chief Marketing Officer). These world-class appointments speak to our intentions, our momentum, and our success. People really make a difference. Only the best talent and team players will do.

 
RG24seven recently partnered with the AGA (American Gaming Association) to offer a comprehensive virtual AML (Anti-Money Laundering) training course free of charge to the gaming market. The training is based on the AGA’s Best Practices for AML Compliance, the formative guide on AML within the casino environment developed by the country’s top compliance professionals. The course offers 16 chapters with interactive tests, providing insights into identifying suspicious activities, reporting requirements, and the procedures necessary to remain compliant with regulations.
 
BIG Cyber has some key announcements to make around the time of G2E. Stay tuned. 

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