Walter Bugno is one of the most experienced figures in the gaming industry, and presides over one of its most recognisable brands. GI sat down with IGT's CEO, International to hear about his plans for expansion into new markets.
What initially drew you to a career in the gaming industry?
My first exposure to the gaming industry goes back nearly 20 years when I was contacted to join the board of Star Games, a gaming machine manufacturer in Australia which was eventually bought by Shuffle Master. I was in a completely different industry at the time, working in fast-moving consumer goods, and it exposed me to a new world.
Not long after that I was headhunted to join a casino group as the CEO, at the time known as Tabcorp Casinos but now under the heading of the Star Entertainment Group. It was one of those industries that seemed to really appeal, and I’ve been part of it ever since.
What are the major changes that have occurred in the business since the completion of IGT’s merger with GTech in April 2015?
It’s been two years since we became a merged entity, and the biggest change is that we have developed a singular focus on innovation as our core driver of growth. Everything we do – the way we have structured ourselves, and the manner in which we choose to invest – is all aimed towards achieving our growth ambitions, while at the same time bringing a whole series of innovations to market. This is true of the products we have available now and the products we are developing for the future, and in short, it’s an exciting time.
What are your short and long-term targets for IGT?
To talk specifically about the international side of the business, we define IGT International as two distinct regions, alongside two sub-regions, these being EMEA, LatAm, Asia and Australia. Within those we have varying positions in terms of market share and growth potential. The European market is very stable and mature on the casino gaming side, and our goal there is to continue to offer our great content and innovations to build on our strong market share position. We are also very focused on growing our lottery business in European markets, which affords us a number of opportunities as lotteries begins to move from the more traditional channels into innovative channels through the growth of online. We now also have many more European governments looking at VLTs as an opportunity, and we are of course very well positioned globally to take advantage of that.
LatAm is a very significant market, and we are well placed in both gaming and the lottery business. There is a world of opportunity there. Growth rates are significantly higher than in European markets, and there are also some markets that are now starting to open up to gaming from a regulatory perspective. Across the LatAm region we are seeing new casinos being opened and new licences being granted, and the prospect of online opening up in various jurisdictions. Our team in LatAm has a very busy few years ahead of them.
What are the main issues that you have had to tackle in the last 12 months, and do you expect to face the same ones in 2017?
When you operate in as many jurisdictions as we do, you always need to be aware and knowledgeable of the intricacies of each regulatory environment. There is no standardised process or requirements, and we constantly need to be aware and ready to adapt as a result.
Of course, with social pressures present all over the world, the issue of responsible gaming is always something that we need to be very cognisant of and well-attuned to, to ensure that we meet our responsibilities as a provider in terms of what the market and regulators are expecting.
Aside from that, I would say the inherent competitiveness of the market presents a concerted challenge – there are so many great operators and suppliers in the global gaming industry, and everyone tries to chip away at our market share, which keeps us on our toes in terms of the products that we are developing and the service that we provide to our customers. We have to be fit to keep on succeeding.
