“The most innovative product launched by Konami and its distributors was Synkros”

What is the evaluation of this year?
This year was very good for Konami and its Distributors. We were able to increase our presence in all markets we are currently selling our products. We have also received a very positive feedback from our customers related to that, and also to the high level of service and support provided to them. This gives us a lot of confidence that we are in the right track. 

What were the main challenges that you had to face within your major markets?
The competition is increasing every day. Besides our tradition competitors, we have seen in the past year the increase of new companies trying to enter in the gaming industry. But that does not stop us. In fact this makes us to be better and better every single day.

In your opinion, what was the most outstanding novelty (positively or negatively)?
In my opinion, the most important news this year was the new importation rules in Argentina. This affected all operators and manufactures, and we are still trying to absorb the impact of it.

What was the most innovative product or service launched this year by your company?
The most innovative product launched by Konami and its Distributors this year was SYNKROS, Konami’s brand new Casino Management System.

SYNKROS is the result of significant product development efforts, SYNKROS enables new products and features to be displayed on such a scale that the system is evolving beyond the casino management system and into a fully integrated gaming enterprise management system. Casino operators will benefit from the multitude of new products, features and functions available with SYNKROS, such as entertaining floor-wide bonusing games, automated player-on-demand or group-start tournaments, and a full library of animated bonus award games deliverable to specific players right at the game during play. The focus of SYNKROS is clearly to provide marketing tools that operators can use to drive business.

In your opinion, what is the country with the highest growth potential for next year and why?
I believe it is Peru. The economy in Peru has been growing at a range of 5% to 6% in the past years. We can also see this reflected in the gaming industry, as it was one of the areas we grew the most in 2012.

What are your company's plans for 2013?
Konami and its Distributors will continue to invest our resources to offer to our customers the best products and services. This has been our focus in the past few years. We were able to set a very good standard, but we will not stop investing in improvements.

How do you picture the gaming industry in 2013? Will it be similar to this year? Will there be a growth or slowdown?
I believe in 2013 we will see a slight growth compared to 2012. Although a few countries are still suffering from the economic crisis, some others have recovered. Several operators are already investing in their business, as they know that if they stop, it will only make it worse.