As the leading supplier of online slot games to regulated markets finally gets set to embark on its maiden voyage to America, CEO and Co-Founder Johan Törnqvist sat down with Gaming Intelligence to talk about how he has steered Play’n GO through the choppy waters of European regulation over the past 15 years and what he hopes to discover when landfall in America is achieved.

Play’n GO recently announced its first license awarded in the USA, in Michigan. How significant a step is this for the company?

When we started out more than 15 years ago, the idea of regulated online gaming in the US felt like a very distant prospect. Fortunately, states like Michigan, New Jersey, and others across the country are realizing that sensible regulation is the only way to build a sustainable sector.

It’s no secret that Michigan is one of the most exciting online gaming markets in the world right now. That’s both as a market in its own right, and also as a launching pad into other regulated states like New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

This brings with it significant competition. We know that our history and reputation won’t guarantee us success, but we strongly believe that our experience, our games, and our approach position us well to replicate what we’ve achieved in Europe.

Where does expansion in the US fit into the next chapter of the Play’n GO journey?

Entering the US is a significant milestone. We’ve been a globally minded company from the very beginning and boast a presence in more than 25 regulated jurisdictions. It has been a remarkable journey so far; I think it is fair to say that there is now an expectation from players in regulated markets to see our content in whichever online casino they choose.

People often ask me for the “secret” of our success, but I don’t think we have one. We’ve always been very open about how we work. We focus on building great games, we don’t take shortcuts and we think long-term.

But we do have significant experience to bring to the table too.

As the market leader in Europe, we’ve had to adapt as jurisdictions went on their own regulatory journeys – and those regulations continue to change all the time placing a premium on the ability of suppliers to adapt quickly.

Now that the same regulatory process is underway in the US, we aren’t making any assumptions. We’ll draw on our experience, but we approach every new challenge just the same as we’ve always done – with Trust, Energy and Quality.

How is the Play’n GO team evolving as it expands into new markets such as the US?

We’ve always prided ourselves on being a progressive business when it comes to our people, and the challenges posed by the global pandemic have really accelerated our development in this area.

Our philosophy is simple: we believe that to get to where we want to go, we need great talent. And great talent is always going to be in demand. Our offer to world-class people must be compelling.

This is part of the thinking behind our digital-first model, which is now implemented across all areas of our business.

Ultimately, we want people who buy into our vision and share our values, and we know we have the tech infrastructure in place to reap the benefits of a truly global team.

One focus for us now is to find similarly-minded people in the US to expand upon the big plans we have in markets across the country. I think it’s fair to say there’s never been a more exciting time to join Play’n GO.

Against this backdrop of newly regulated markets around the world, how is Play’n GO adapting the way it creates and delivers content?