Interview
NOVOMATIC utilises challenging times as an opportunity for innovation The COVID pandemic not only provided a strong tailwind to developments in the online sector, but also drove innovation in the terrestrial sector, Ryszard Presch and Johannes Gratzl confirm after another pandemic year. In an exclusive interview with THE WORLD OF GAMING, the Members of the Board of NOVOMATIC AG talk about the impact of the pandemic on the market, trends in gaming and their expectations for future developments.
THE WORLD OF GAMING: The pandemic has been prevalent for almost two years now, putting the entire global economy to the test. Which developments have been the most lasting?
Executive Board of NOVOMATIC AG: Ryszard Presch (l.) and Johannes Gratzl (r.).
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Ryszard Presch: Last year’s restrictive COVID regulations and prolonged lockdowns in all our key regions have inevitably left their mark on gaming operations. This not only affected NOVOMATIC – the entire industry has recorded massive losses, especially in 2021. However, we are seeing very different levels of impact regionally, due to the variation in pandemic measures implemented by governments. The Central and Eastern European region is a good example: In the Baltic markets, prolonged closures in the first half of 2021 have resulted in marked declines in sales, while some other markets have shown a resilience in maintaining solid sales figures.
Johannes Gratzl: This is especially apparent in the great success of our new products in core markets such as Germany, the UK, CEE and Spain which led to a significant increase in sales in the Gaming Technology segment. The solid performance of the Australian Ainsworth Group also successfully counteracted the Corona-related decline in sales to our international customers and the subsequent significant reduction of customer orders in the Gaming Technology division. A very significant business development was recorded in the online segment, although our physical gaming venues had to remain closed due to the pandemic, the online gaming market was able to grow at an exceptional rate. TWOG: After another year of the pandemic, how do you deal with uncertainties in the market?
