Brave new markets

In October 2008, Italy was the first country to regulate online gaming, and the Italian market proved itself an instant success. Now with France being regulated, and others on their way, everyone expects to see the success repeated. But do all operators stand prepared to succeed in these new markets?

The most important success factor for operators is time-to-market. The first mover advantage was highlighted when Gioco Digitale launched in Italy and from Day 1 grabbed a big piece of the market. So the challenge for gaming suppliers is being able to present a regionally adapted offering in a cost- and time-efficient way. For Bwin’s Ongame Network, different regulations mean different requirements, so in order to successfully cater to each new market, the technology employed has to be flexible enough to support different set-ups in a sustainable manner.

Currently, most of the larger suppliers have different versions of systems supporting different markets. But if the regulatory trend continues, it could soon be necessary to run five or even ten different local offerings. With each local set-up the complexity increases, and only suppliers with the technology to support such a setup in an efficient way will stay competitive.

For every regulated market comes a new battle for market share. The war is waged on two fronts. The operators are on the front-line where the most important weapon for securing new business is the first-mover advantage. This is where the second front comes into play, the suppliers bringing the technology to make a time- and cost-efficient, regulatory compliant launch possible.

Going into the future, you need to be prepared with a truly modular platform architecture, proven and developed from start to finish, to be easily made compliant with any new regulatory demands or any other requirements. In other words, a future-proof product.