Interview with Paris Smith, CEO, Pinnacle

What do you think about the new opportunities that are opening up in the new US market?

I think it’s very, very interesting times at this stage.  We have to see how it all settles and I think you have to do some ironing out of some of the regulations and make some clarifications.  The next two to three years are going to be very, very interesting.

What can you say about Betting on Sports 2018?

It’s been fantastic.  I just love to see the energy.  It’s nice to see a concentrated group of people that we all have the same interest.  We all have the same passion and I think for other people outside that are trying to get a better understanding of the sports betting, this is the perfect conference for them.

Why is it such a key event to attend?

It’s the focus.  The focus that they have, the operators that are here.  It’s a lot of seed level people that you wouldn’t see walking around at other conferences and I just think they do such a great job of managing it.  The content is very solid.  I’m actually going to head over to one of the conference rooms in a minute but it’s just very relevant.

You are in the Hall of Fame. How much of an honour is that?

It’s a great honour to be recognised by the peers that I adore and respect but it’s also a nice accomplishment for the team because Pinnacle has come a long way in the last few years.  We have a long way to go and we’re really excited about some of the upcoming changes that we’re going to be releasing.

How important is it for people to be recognised?

You grind every day, you do your thing and all of a sudden, you can actually just take a minute, stop and appreciate how far you’ve come or what your company has accomplished.  It’s very fulfilling, it’s a nice compliment.