Inside Asian Gaming

IAG JAPAN JAN 2020 92 INDUSTRY PROFILE Oscar Guijarro (OG): Can you tell us a bit about your background? Nelson Cheung (NC): I’m a Macanese. I was born in Macau and then went to Australia to study when I was 15. I spent almost 10 years there and completed both high school and university in Australia. After study, I decided to come back to Macau in 1999, just before the handover to China. I was working in an IT company and travelling to China for about seven years doing IT, marketing, sales and technical. I sort of joined the gaming industry in 2008 when I started working for a company called PGIC, which was acquired by IGT. So I was originally with IGT 10 years ago. Then I went to work for Galaxy and helped during the opening of Galaxy Macau Phase 1. A few years later I decided to leave and join the vendor side again. In 2018 I rejoined Galaxy for about a year and then decided to go back to the vendor side. So, my background is more in IT and I like to look at how technologies can help the gaming industry. OG: What changes have you witnessed in the city as a local since you returned to Macau? NC: In 1999 Macau was like a very small town, very peaceful, quiet, with less infrastructure, buildings and people. For the last 20 years the gaming industry has pushed up Macau’s economics. It has brought Macanese to the next level economy-wise and also lifestyle-wise. However, personally, I love the Macau of 15 or 20 years ago. Macanese enjoyed life a bit more, if you compare to Hongkongese. They rush a bit. The con is that Macanese don’t have the old Macau anymore.