"G2E offers Merkur the chance to gain a complete overview of the industry trends"

Have your expectations been met at G2E?
We are very satisfied with the result of this year’s G2E Las Vegas. We presented our highlights to a broad international audience over the 600 square metre stand and furthermore gained many important contacts for the future. In addition to this, the G2E offers the chance to gain a complete overview of the industry trends.

What else can you say about the show? 
Our customers’ feedback and visitors to the show in Las Vegas confirmed the company’s development and the importance of our products. The G2E Las Vegas is one of the most important shows in the gaming industry alongside the ICE in London. For us, as a manufacturer it is therefore important to be internationally present and display the latest highlights of the Merkur think tank. The greatest objective of Merkur Gaming is to align customers’ wishes with the corresponding target markets. The company’s presentation at the G2E Las Vegas, which is visited by both international and European customers plays an important role here. The customer contact quality has increased dramatically in comparison to previous shows.

What was the highlight of the Vegas show?
Merkur Gaming focuses on pin-sharp images and game animations in excellent quality in the new cabinets ‘Evolution SL’ and ‘Avantgarde SLT’. The development of the new ‘Ozone’ also underlines the company’s claim of being seen as industry innovator and initiator. The sphere-shaped ‘Ozone’ was seen as an absolute eye-catcher at the G2E Las Vegas. It offers completely new gaming pleasure that has never been seen before, not to mention  its appealing design. The player sits inside the sphere and so can completely dive into the game in an undisturbed way. The game in ‘Ozone’ gains brand new dimensions with its surround sound system and graphics in full HD quality. The development of the ‘Highflyer’ also shows that Merkur Gaming understand the customer. The floating upper monitor enables players to assume a relaxed seating position and to really enjoy the gaming fun. In addition to this, our proven cabinets such as the ‘Privilege Plus’, the ‘Evolution’ and the ‘Vision Plus’ stand out thanks to our outstanding ‘made in Germany’ quality and fascinating gaming fun. 

In addition to this, visitors can also find out more about the new ‘Rain’ jackpot system and also receive information on the Gauselmann Group’s versatile money management portfolio. The successful Merkur Dispenser tool was the main focus here. The latest further development, the Merkur Dispenser 100 Gold, has already set a new standard in the field of money management with its ticket feature and can process a total of 34 individual banknotes each with three separate denominations. Merkur Gaming also presented 18 new games at the G2E, further expanding the company’s multifaceted games library.

What trends did you see? What was the mood like in general?
The exhibition in the player Eldorado Vegas is, as well as the show in London, always a good eventto witness the international gaming industry’s capabilities. Compared to other industries, the business climate is very good. That is mainly because the industry still earns very well. The innovative prowess for new products is correspondingly high.

What are your future plans?
2014 was the year of focus and consolidation. The resulting position of Merkur Gaming has considerably improved. This gives us the chance to invest in expanding our market share in 2015 in our main markets in Europe and Latin America. The flair for understanding the requirements of our customers and the orientation to country-specific interests in the field of hardware and software remain the focus of our strategy. Innovative games as well as our outstanding ‘made in Germany’ quality make Merkur Gaming stand out and these are always being further optimised. Furthermore, the target market in South Africa is also gaining attention after a successfully carried out test phase during this year.

What did you think of the industry in the US? How do you think this market will evolve?
I must admit that I was in no way connected with the gaming industry before joining the Gauselmann Group. Nevertheless, I was quickly able to see that this is an extremely exciting industry. The industry is clearly arranged. Several big players such as Merkur Gaming set the scene. Yet newcomers keep entering the market and asserting themselves strongly. That leads to the conclusion that pure size alone is not key to market success. Companies that stand out due to innovative prowess, creativity and that are predominantly customer-oriented have great chances in the gaming market.

Our customers are anonymous. We do not know why a player plays our games on our machines or why not. Why is a game successful in one country and not in another? We can only explain that when we take a closer look at our players. Our game scouts are tasked with researching these questions on site at arcades and casinos to ensure content optimisation and also expansion together with our numerous game design teams with their qualified reports. The same applies for the further development of our hardware.

Merkur Gaming is currently not active in the US market. Market entry is being planned.