Founded in 2009, Singular provides gambling products and services to both the online and land-based markets. We were lucky enough to get an insider look at the company and its offerings via our chat with Singular’s Chairman of the Board of Directors, Darko Gacov. How does the company remain competitive in today’s market? Which of their products are most in-demand right now? Gacov answers all these questions and more in this LCB Exclusive Interview! Browse straight through to the end to learn about the provider’s upcoming plans and more!
Q: What was the company’s main focus when it was founded in 2009 and how has it evolved since then?
Singular opened their first office in Tbilisi, Georgia on 17 December, 2009. The first focus of the business was social gaming for marketing purposes, but the company’s real take-off happened with Adjarabet, a Georgian leading casino operator. At that time, I started heading Adjarabet.com and leveraged the retail brand for taking the operations online. Backgammon and fantasy football were the first applications to assess the compatibility between the two companies. What started as a collaboration on project basis grew into strategic collaboration which successfully took Adjarabet’s business online and shifted Singular into the iGaming business. During my engagement with Adjarabet I acted as a knowledge transfer for Singular. My experience in the gabling industry proved crucial for the development of a wider product portfolio. As both companies grew, focusing on one or the other was a necessary development, so in 2015 I stepped out of Adjarabet took the Director’s position of the Skopje Office which was operational since 2012 and started heading the Business Development of the group.
Q: Tell us about the products and services Singular offers.
I would say that it is more than isolated products and services, since combined we try to deliver an experience through a whole gaming ecosystem. Today, Singular’s Product portfolio offers highly innovative products including one of the most powerful Gaming Platforms on a global level, Sportsbook Solution with innovative management and unique features, as well as 8000+ casino games through a vast number of integrations with 3rd party providers. We create flexible and scalable solutions customized to the specific needs of each operator. Furthermore, the modular and flexible architecture of the products enables seamless integration and one of the shortest delivery times. One development which confirms our dedication to helping our partners grow and the quality of our solutions is this year’s Paddy Power Betfair acquisition of Adjarabet. I am proud to say that they are continuing to use Singular’s whole gaming ecosystem thanks to the continuous innovation of the solutions and the product-to-operator-fit business model that we have.
Q: Which is more in demand at this time, land-based or iGaming services?
This really depends on several components. First, we have the territory where the operator operates, the market maturity, market behavior and the habits of the players. Second, the regulative framework in that respective territory. Some regulative frameworks open a window of opportunity for retail operations which can be leveraged for growth and act as a complementary catalysis for the online development. Third one would be the strategy of the operator based on the market knowledge, partnerships and assets that the operator would have to achieve certain targets on that particular market. The short answer to the question would be both, even though one thing is for certain, the demand is almost never retail-only.
Q: In terms of stand-out products or services, what makes your offering competitive? Also, which markets are the main focus?
We have a tailored approach for each client, there is no one-size fits all. In the iGaming industry, our solutions amongst many other things needs to cater for multiple currencies, local languages and product customizations. At the same time, the solution must be compliant with different regulatives and flexible to the specific dynamics of each business. Ultimately each delivery of ours is unique in its nature and we are delivering a partner-centric solution, as one of our clients says “You guys are truly a boutique supplier”. The challenge is even bigger when a company with an existing system wants to upgrade. But we take on the challenge and aim to address the unique requirements of each client. This may not always be the best commercially viable business model. Most of the suppliers strive for more operators rather than to focus on the growth of fewer number of partners. However, this is what sets us apart. This is also what makes our business successful in the long run, as we are looking to repeat the success achieved with Adjarabet. For the upcoming period we are focused on Asia, Africa and LATAM as our target markets.
Q: The platform supports tournaments, right? Does this work for any slot game or is it only compatible with certain software providers?
Our platform supports all the functionality that the software providers extend. Meaning, if one provides free spins and the other tournaments, we will support both. Since we are dedicated to innovation, we keep a close eye to the new features of the market and enable those on our gaming platform so that the operators can leverage these novelties for their marketing differentiation.
Q: We’ll turn it over to you to tell LCB’ers about future plans or other pertinent information you’d like to share.
In the short-term, we are releasing a completely new sportsbook that will take the product on another level in the industry. One of the motivations behind this move is the changing players' demands. But, we also believe there is a big opportunity in changing the experience as well. On the business development side, apart from opening new offices in strategic places, we keep a close look on the newly regulated territories and already are discussing big potential corporations. In the long term, we are looking at innovation across the product portfolio leveraging big-data and machine learning to create personalized player journey at a higher level. We started designing the concept back in 2013 with the ultimate goal to empower operators with opportunities to offer each player a unique experience. We have a lot of modules and services that provide tools that enable this, starting with our segmentation engine, and continuing with our CRM. This approach also spreads across the rest of the Singular products like the sportsbook and casino integrations, so that personalized experience is also applicable to the content delivery. However, segmentation and personalization are not “one-time - we did it” thing. It is perpetual work in the direction of improving the approach and experimenting with new and better technologies, constantly.
