“Merkur Gaming is continuing its successful course”

(Exclusive interview).- Merkur Gaming shares plans for ICE London 2018.

Merkur Gaming’s exhibition at this year’s ICE London will prove the company’s leading position in the international gaming market. By showing exclusive content, innovative technology and planning further strategies to conquer this year’s operations worldwide, Merkur will offer ICE visitors a must-attend performance at ExCel, London, from February 6 to 8. Athanasios ‘Sakis’ Isaakidis, Chief Executive of Merkur, shared details about the exhibition with Focus Gaming News.

What can you tell us about the gaming experience Merkur is bringing to this year’s ICE London?

At ICE we are going to be showcasing a number of innovative cabinets and exciting game worlds. We will take our customers on a journey into the world of Merkur. Merkur Gaming is continuing its successful course and focusing on pin-sharp images and game animations in high-quality cabinets such as Merkurstar, Evostar and the ever-popular Avantgarde, available in the Trio Edition with a third high-definition screen and the elegant matt Black Series. We will also be presenting the brand-new G-Box. The new space-saving multigamer specifically targets the needs of the high-street, mass and gastronomy markets. The G-Box is characterised by its ergonomic design and an especially narrow footprint. Our customers can also look forward to a display of over 100 pin-sharp games and a wide range of single games together with native North American content design.

Considering that you already enjoy a strong presence in Europe, what are the main challenges and opportunities offered by the event?

ICE is one of the most important shows in the gaming industry. For us as a manufacturer it is therefore of major importance to be internationally present here and display the latest highlights from the Merkur think tank. Apart from being a simple presentation platform for our products, ICE also offers our customers the possibility to experience Merkur Gaming at first hand and immerse themselves in our gaming world.

The progress that we have made over the last year, particularly in eastern Europe, has been spectacular but Merkur Gaming is also on an expansion trail around the world. In Latin America, for example, our success is growing dramatically and our move into north America is, as we demonstrated so strongly at last year’s G2E in Las Vegas, well on track.

ICE is one of the most important shows in the gaming industry. For us as a manufacturer it is therefore of major importance to be internationally present here and display the latest highlights from the Merkur think tank.

Last year, Merkur hosted a number of in-house exhibitions in Eastern Europe. What is the growth potential you see in the region and how have existing and potential customers reacted to your gaming solutions?

Eastern Europe is, without doubt, already a major market for Merkur Gaming but, as the region’s players become ever more knowledgeable and sophisticated, it is clear that there are considerable areas of expansion still to come. The level of enquiries that we received at the recent BEGE show in Sofia, Bulgaria was hugely encouraging and will undoubtedly lead to significant new business expansion for Merkur Gaming in the future.

What other jurisdictions are you currently looking at for expansion and why?

The simple answer is ‘wherever there is an opportunity for gaming expansion in legally regulated markets then that is where you will find Merkur Gaming’.

The level of enquiries that we received at the recent BEGE show in Sofia, Bulgaria was hugely encouraging and will undoubtedly lead to significant new business expansion for Merkur Gaming in the future.

What will Merkur focus on in 2018? What new products “Made in Germany” can we expect to see from you this year?

In 2018, our customers are sure to be looking for an even broader range of cabinets, games and jackpot solutions. This trend, and how we will address it, will become crystal clear at ICE.