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Virtue Fusion CEO Bob McCulloch On The Online Bingo Summit - Old News Archive

Posted On: Wednesday, 03 March, 2010

Keeping things Online Bingo Summit related, Bullet Business sent over this interview with Bob McCulloch, the CEO of the recently purchased Virtue Fusion, for my money one of the top 3 bingo solutions out there. He talks about the growth in the market, the future of the industry and what makes the event so important.

With the online bingo industry set to yield nearly $2 billion by 2012 the future looks bright for operators in this lucrative segment of the online gaming sector. With so much M&A activity occurring during the late months of 2009 and the first months of 2010, the industry is set for another year of growth and potentially more consolidation activity on the horizon.

Just look at the hugely successful platform and network provider, Virtue Fusion and the very recent news of their sale to Playtech. One message is becoming clearer and clearer as the industry evolves? the big are getting bigger!

Bullet Business asks Virtue Fusion CEO Bob McCulloch to give his thoughts on what 2010 will bring for the industry. "After the developments we have seen over the past few years, it is somewhat inevitable that industry commentators are questioning if the UK market has started to reach maturity" comments McCulloch and continues "It might now be worth hundreds of millions of pounds but there is still room for growth for online bingo. There is certainly more scope for new licensees on the network, though it is likely this will be at the expense of some of the smaller and less creative operators."

McCulloch, who will be participating as a Platinum sponsor at the forthcoming Online Bingo Summit, London in June continues by noting the important factors that will continue to deliver growth in 2010 "As we move into a new decade, there are a number of essential components for success. The first is liquidity, which can only come from a very major network of operators and users ? such as the one we have built at Virtue Fusion. This will grow even further when we combine the Playtech and Virtue Fusion Bingo liquidity pools in the very near future. Companies are also going to have to innovate or else they will undoubtedly be left behind. Bingo will continue to present itself as an attractive and complementary business proposition to online sports book, casino, and poker operators as well as land-based firms too, but they need to be presented with new and interesting products."

Speaking on the importance of creativity McCulloch comments "We are constantly innovating to keep ahead, which is why you have recently seen deals such as ours with Endemol and the launch of our groundbreaking integrated social networking feature, and there are plenty more to come. Playtech are similarly focused on innovation and the deal also brings huge benefits to our network with the largest library of side games in the gaming industry.

Of course striking the right balance between player acquisition and retention is key and McCulloch points out the role that segmentation will play "market segmentation will continue to bring new target groups and partnerships that enable further market growth, but it should not be achieved at the expense of ignoring customer retention. This should be maximised by consolidating and not forgetting about those that already rely on you."

With one eye firmly on the future McCulloch describes the booming potential of the online bingo market. "Despite all the talk of growth and maturity, it's also fair to say that we have only tapped into a very small part of the global bingo market. That said, it is important to tread carefully in newly regulated markets ? and it's also good to have a polished crystal ball! Thanks to our new colleagues at Playtech, we now have the benefit of their expertise and the support of the largest and most sophisticated B2B provider in the industry, making that crystal that much clearer!"

Speaking about the Online Bingo Summit & Awards this June in London, McCulloch says "For us, this is probably the most important of all the bingo exhibitions and conferences. While we participate at many of the others, to varying degrees, the Bingo Summit is the only dedicated conference to online bingo so it provides us with a stage from which we can present our products to the rest of the online industry. We look forward to being here this year and, hopefully, for many more to come."

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