As SAGSE Buenos Aires opened its doors yesterday, exhibitors remained upbeat about opportunities within Latin America, despite continued import restrictions in Argentina.
Stanislav Stanev, director for sales and marketing at Bulgarian-based Euro Games Technology, said the import issues had adversely affected the number of exhibitors at the show, but remained positive about the prospects for Latin America as a whole.
He said Latin America, Central America and the Caribbean region remained EGT’s strongest market outside of Europe. “We have recently had installations in casinos in Saint Martin, Jamaica and Curacao. We are also currently in negotiations with Hipica in Uruguay.
“Progress hasn’t advanced much in Argentina because of the import ban but I strongly believe that next year it will be easier to import machines into the market.”
Brazilian casino card manufacturer COPAG had brought a slimmed down selection of its casino cards to SAGSE as a result of the Argentine import restrictions but said that the show was still proving to be a good place to meet its customers in the south of South America.
Rafael Lisboa, international key account manager at COPAG, added that some casinos were now successfully applying to the Argentine government for permission to import.
Overall he was positive about prospects within South America, compared with the European and US markets, which he described as ‘flat’.
SAGSE exhibitor Gaming Laboratories International said opportunities within the region were growing year-on-year as more countries within the region started to regulate their gambling activities.
Luis Marrone, co-director for GLI South America, said he was not expecting any big changes, but that recent regulation would increase activity in Colombia. He added that regulatory progress in Bolivia meant that pending certifications for online systems that control machines could now be actioned.
Marrone said: “We have performed certifications for manufacturers in Peru, Colombia and Bolivia.” He added that GLI was currently certifying the random number generator and platform for an i-gaming operator in Argentina.
