G2E Asia 2024, held at the iconic Venetian Macao, brought together the major players in the Asian gaming and entertainment industry. This event, considered one of the most important of the sector in the region, was attended by leading casino suppliers and operators.

Attending the event, Ian Payne, JCM's General Manager for Asia Pacific, highlighted the firm's line of award-winning technologies, including the iVIZION and UBA Pro note validators, the ICB Smart Cashier System, the FUZION system and the BlueWaveDX portable firmware upload tool: "this collection of products has proven to be the best defence against counterfeiters, speeding up processes and increasing efficiencies, crucial in today's gaming industry," explained Payne.

Although attendance was down compared to other years, Payne commented that the visitors and assistants were high-level decision makers: "all the casino licensees and operators, as well as the big five suppliers, were present." This allowed JCM to establish valuable contacts and hold productive meetings, strengthening relationships and reconnecting with people in person, in order to discuss about current business needs.

Regarding the above point, we asked him to comment on the opportunities and challenges of the current Asian market, and he analysed the following: "Chinese mass market players are increasing and GGR numbers are growing; however, in Macau, table market is predominant. Payne, explains that JCM addressed this challenge by discussing how to attract these players to slots through rewards, highlighting that “operators can benefit from our TITO/coupon CouponXpress desktop printer solution, which can be used to print TITO tickets at the tables offering players free play on slots or other promotions.”

As for the future of the Asian market, Payne noted that JCM differentiates itself from other providers thanks to "the iVIZION's ability to accept banknotes and other gaming/betting media, which can enhance the gaming experience and add value to any transaction." 

He further added that “there was customer interest in iVIZION for FUZION for AML compliance, cash drawer fill monitoring and firmware download scheduling.”

Payne also explained how JCM is preparing for future changes and challenges in the industry. The company has global development teams that continually work to stay ahead of trends and technologies, delivering leading products that provide high levels of protection and compliance, while enhancing the guest experience. "Our sales teams are in constant contact with customers to understand their issues and needs, ensuring that our products are aligned with market expectations," he said.

Finally, Payne highlighted the importance of new technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR), in the future of the gaming industry. "AI has been used in the gaming industry for decades. Our iVIZION banknote validator employs this technology to verify the authenticity of banknotes," he stressed. He further emphasised that JCM's advanced and responsible use of AI is crucial to its security technology, ensuring it is aligned with customers' needs.