Combining his passions for software engineering and gaming, Rob Ambrose introduces Paragon Technology Solutions at G2E
Rob thank you for speaking with us. Can you tell us about yourself and the team at Paragon?I’m a software, design, Esports, and gaming consultant. I’m also a professional gamer, having competed internationally over the past two decades. I began working at Paragon in 2008, while obtaining my undergrad at University of the Arts. Formed in 1997 by our President, Tony Newshel, Paragon includes a team of engineers, architects, business analysts, project managers, and quality assurance specialists.Our primary clientele are financial institutions,payment processors, money service businesses, and loyalty programs. Our staff has decades of financial technology experience serving in executive roles.
They are incredible people, and it’s a pleasure to work with them every day. Our company focuses on custom software for payment processing, merchant integration and point-of-sale systems. We develop web portals, mobile apps, custom reporting and all aspects of back-office operations for financial, loyalty and services industry clients. We have also been heavily involved in data security. This includes financial audits, payment industry compliance, and other information security and compliance considerations.It seems that Paragon’s existing services parallel many of the needs of the gaming industry.
With your experience in gaming, what do you hope to accomplish at G2E?
But my passion for gaming is rooted deeper than my competitive experience. My father, Bob Ambrose, has worked in the casino industry for over 30 years. I’ve always admired his work and professionalism and wanted to better understand his business. In 2010, I became a certified blackjack dealer and began working part time at Harrah’s Philadelphia. After a year of slinging cards, I had a good sense of the customer experience and planned to translate that into my future work. I’ve been contracted on a variety of Gaming IT projects, primarily with Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City. As a Millennial and with your obvious history in casino gaming,
Esports and game testing, can you share your thoughts on the direction the industry is currently taking with the skill based product and Esports?
As millennials become a larger part of the customer base, it’s critical that today’s gaming experiences are more immersive, more challenging, and more rewarding. How do we make the user feel good while playing our game? How can we give the user more control? How can we make the experience relatable and intimate? These are the types of questions we should be asking while developing our games. The skill based games are extremely exciting and have immense potential. There are incredible marketing opportunities for
hosting Esports events within the casino industry. These tournaments congregate teams, coaches, production crews, talent, fans, and families all under one roof. These events are streamed online, but that hasn’t stopped massive arena sellouts. Competitors spend most of their time practicing against each other online and streaming their gameplay to their fans. When these communities come together for an expo, they get “face-time” together. There is clearly niche marketing potential when hosting an event of this magnitude. The entire footprint of the property benefits from the additional customer traffic. This would include lodging, dining, gaming, and retail.
