Videoslots CEO Alexander Stevendahl on reviving the PKR software
Stevendahl explains how he plans to create the ‘fishiest’ poker room in the world
Online casino operator Videoslots.com announced plans earlier this month to launch a 3D poker product after purchasing the old PKR software.
Videoslots said a downloadable application will be available for PC early next year, with a mobile and web version to be developed soon after.
Below, Videoslots CEO Alexander Stevendahl explains why the firm is launching poker when other operators are abandoning the vertical, and how Videoslots can succeed where PKR failed.
EGR Intel: Why did you decide to launch a poker product when the vertical is widely perceived to be struggling?
Alexander Stevendahl (AS): In the land based world, I believe every great casino has a great poker room and I don’t see why it would be any different online.
It doesn’t mean we are going to challenge PokerStars but we can create a unique concept. PKR was the only 3D poker site, so we don’t really have any competition. We don’t aim to be the biggest room in the world, but the fishiest. We want loose players, those who want to play for entertainment.
EGR Intel: How will you keep the sharks away from your fish?
AS: We’ll charge a higher fee to play and we’ll distribute it how we want in terms of rewards. Essentially we’ll reward the players who pay loose and who keep our network alive and functioning how we want it.
EGR Intel: Do you expect to turn a profit or is this an acquisition tool?
AS: We don’t necessarily need to make a profit on the poker. Our goal is acquisition but also retention for casino players. We want to make poker fun again. Poker today, you have to be almost professional, but we want to take it fun and loose again.
EGR Intel: Was it just luck that the PKR software became available as you were planning to get into poker?
AS: We were planning to build our own poker room, but when PKR went into administration we wanted to try and get that instead. It’s a great platform I used to play there myself and I loved it. I looked at it the other week and its fantastic still. So we put in a bid for it and we won it.
EGR Intel: So the 3D aspect wasn’t necessarily a game-changer?
AS: 3D is a huge benefit. It’s the right time for a product like that. Poker is too strict and professional, and a product like that makes it more fun. We are trying to become more social on Battle of Slots, so the avatars work hand in hand. It matches our profile perfectly and I couldn’t see a better platform for us.
EGR Intel: So why do you think PKR was unable to make it profitable?
AS: There are many answers to that. The biggest problem with poker is making money off it, if it’s your living, your core product. It won’t be our living. As with Battle of Slots, it is a way of increasing the entertainment value for our players, and poker is another retention tool like that. That wasn’t the case for PKR. They needed to make money on it and realised too late it was hard to do. Looking back, they acted in the product’s best interest but joining Microgaming was the final straw for them. That was just the wrong decision for them.
EGR Intel: It’s been speculated before that PKR is ideal for virtual reality. Would you consider that in the future
AS: We have actually already been contacted by people who want to develop this with us. So that might be happening at a later date.