How do you make your products available to markets where there is poor internet connectivity?
We show the transmission of our games by using single-board computers with integrated SD cards. All the games are already saved on the SD card, so we only need 1-2 mbps internet connection to synchronise the games with the server. The ones who visited us on our stands at the exhibitions have seen that our games are running on seven TVs, one POS terminal, one computer, three mobile phones and one self-service terminal with only 5 mbps internet. We have extensive experience with markets with bad internet connection and, if you think internet is the only problem, then let me tell you we are also successfully working in markets with poor electricity...
Can you explain how DS Virtual Gaming’s Random Number Generator (RNG) works and how it makes a fair playing ground for bettors?
As you know, our RNG has been certified by many regulators in different markets because we support only regulated operations. There is no possibility for the players or for us to know the result of the round before it’s over. We offer bets according to the statistics of the previous rounds, then the random number generator chooses a random transmission out of 8,000 for racing products and 14,000 for kickboxing products. The whole success of our games comes from the odds and from the bonus engine. One player recently wagered €8 ($8.73) on one position and won over €2,352, when the multiplier bonus popped up. The winning of the player was multiplied by three. I imagine we made his day then.
What does DS Virtual Gaming do to distinguish itself from competitors?
First of all, we don’t copy others. We never develop already existing games. We are one of the pioneers of the virtual gaming segment with our title 'RacingDogs.' In many markets, we introduced RacingDogs with eight greyhounds, harness racing, kickboxing and kart racing. Plus, we are the only ones who don’t use animations. All our videos are pre-recorded in HD quality. Our future games will meet the same standards unique with pre-recorded footage.
How successful has your virtual roulette been compared with your virtual sport offerings?
Virtual roulette has its audience and this audience is unique. We have operators where 95% of the income is generated by roulette. However, you can imagine that these operators are national lotteries, which means the players are already used to number games. Roulette is popular, but still 75% of our income is generated by our racing games. Racing products are the classical games in our vertical. Now our goal is to bring something to the industry that will be the new classic. However, greyhound racing and horseracing will always have high demand.
The Covid-19 pandemic naturally saw an increase in player betting on virtual sports. But how much has the industry grown or fallen since then?
I wouldn’t link our success to Covid-19, to be frank. However, there has been a total change of the main field in thevirtual betting industry, which is the land-based betting market. If we compare pre-pandemic numbers with 2023 of the same locations, then we grew by 83% in Europe, 96% in Africa and 127% in LatAm (I am speaking about the same locations which existed then and now, without taking into consideration that our clients have got more locations at present). This growth comes from the technological upgrades we constantly perform.
The connection becomes more and more stable; we have reduced the gap from the moment we stop accepting bets to the moment we show the transmission to just one second. The games work 24/7 without any interruptions – no matter where the betting shops are. All of these factors create trust in our games, which in turn translates into long-term success.
Do you ever see a time where virtual gaming will completely replace real-life horseracing and greyhound racing, especially considering falling betting volumes in recent years?
We believe that each segment has its players and admirers. I saw simulcast racing in different markets, like LatAm, Europe, United States, etc... We do not compete with real-life racing. We just complement each other. This industry is pretty wide, but only the best get their place under the sun.
