“People’s response at SAGSE has been terrific”

What products did you present?
For the first time, PokerTek presented its products in South America. We have eight years of experience in the business of electronic poker, but we had never arrived to South America, and this is the first time we exhibit with a partner we chose, who knows the market very well, Sielcon, and we’ve been very successful so far. The interest on the table is terrific and, from now on, we need the electronic approval and we already have two or three casinos ready to receive our tables.
We are presenting Texas Hold’em as people know on live tables, with all its rules and all the instincts that a real poker player has, but in an electronic table. It means that it is not a slot that plays poker; it is an electronic poker table, which is something very different.

Why have you decided to associate with Sielcon?
Basicalle, the market to which we are oriented is comprised by electronic casinos only, because we give them the option to offer electronic table games when they cannot offer live games. Obviously, in Argentina there are many bingo halls, which for us are electronic casinos that do not compete with live gaming, so it would be a great option for them to be able to offer poker. We see the demography of the City of Buenos Aires, which has million of inhabitants, and the only option they have for playing poker are two places: Casino Puerto Madero and Trilenium, 30 poker tables for 12 million people. We will be very successful in this market.

Which has been the response from visitors?
Luckily, it has been great. They have seen these products previously, two or three years ago, local companies entered in Argentina, but there were slot manufacturers, and they saw that it was a market for Texas Hold’em. So they created a table that was a combination of slots in which they put poker, but they did not involve the rules and the poker knowledge. That’s why the produc did not last much. It started very strong, but it was not the adequate product. We know the market: to bring a precedent in Latin America, in a year and a half we managed to place 80 electronic poker tables in Mexico, which is a very similar market to the Argentine bingo.

Which is the largest market for PokerTek?
Two markers that are very similar: Mexico, and we have 70 tables in the cruises Carnival and Princess.

What analysis can you make of SASGE?
I have been coming to the events from almost the first edition with different companies, and I’m glad that it continues growing and has more exhibitors year after year. The South American industry also has grown. It is the third most important event, after London and G2E.

How do you see the South American market?
Growing, maturing. Each country has its different ways to assess and regulate, but the new ones will bring a better advise because they are learning. Argentina has always been a very good market, but, from my point of view, it needs to adapt. South American market economy has not been damaged as it happened in Europe and North America.

What are the plans of the company for 2012?
We will penetrate the Argentinian market for the future six months with our poker table, and after that, we have another platform whose first game will be electronic blackjack. That will be the second product we will introduce through Sielcon in electronic bingos in the country.
The release of blackjack is estimated in three or four months, and the reason is that we are homologating the product with GLI and it takes a few months, but Argentina will be one of the first markets.
And with regards to the other markets, we will penetrate in Peru, which, for obvious reasons, has the peculiarity that there is not enough offer for players wishing to play in a table. We will also reach Colombia, which is a very similar market.