G3 February 2017

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Global Games and Gaming

MagazineFebruary 2017

WWW.G3NEWSWIRE.COM/WWW.G3-247.COMInternational Gaming News / Knowledge / Statistics / Marketing Information / Digital and Print

OFFICIAL MAGAZINEAssociation of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers

WWW.G3NEWSWIRE.COM

The province of Buenos Aires has passed MaríaEugenia Vidal’s new gaming taxation budget argentina P8

The Government of Catalonia has approved theUrban Development Plan for BCN WorldSpain P14

The opening of MGM National Harbor ensuredMaryland’s six casinos broke records in 2016 maryland P30

Three year trial to allow locals to play in domestic casinos could spark investor interest Vietnam P32

SubScribeat G3-247.comRead every G3 magazine, download everymarket report and much more...The latest magazine is available to digitallydownload via G3-247.com or via the App Storeand Google Play Store

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G3 explores the paradoxes and potential in the gaming markets of The Philippines and Vietnam

ASIAN MARKET REPORTS

OppOrtunities arise in the east

February 2017Contents

WWW.G3-247.COM

Market ReportThe Philippines

G3-247.comDomincan Republic

cutting through murky watersReport P56Under new governmentleadership, the Philippines isundergoing significantremodeling of its gamblingindustry this year

Teetering on the brink of expansionReport P76Vietnam’s gambling industry isteetering on the brink ofexpansion with four IntegratedResorts in the pipeline, a projectto permit locals into casinos

be The House:raising The roofInteractive P138In October 2016, Be The Houselaunched its accumulatorroulette product, Cash OutRoulette, with industry giantsBetfair and William Hill

Dance a yard before you dance abroadReports P92Situated just two hours south ofMiami by plane the DominicanRepublic boasts some 50 miles ofthe world’s top beaches and a richcolonial heritage

NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / 247.COM P3

argentina P8The Chamber of Deputies for the province of

Buenos Aires has passed Governor MaríaEugenia Vidal’s new budget for 2017

Spain P16The Urban-Development Master Plan (PDU) forthe tourist and Recreation Complex has beenapproved.

pOrtugal P18The Portuguese government is seeking to raisean extra €25m in tax revenue from opening upthe country to a new online gaming market

Switzerland P20Having introduced its gaming machines intoSwitzerland, APEX gaming has enjoyed someoutstanding results at Barrière Montreux.

chile P10The Office of the Comptroller General of

Chile clarifies the definition of ‘gamblingmachines’ permitted in local casinos

Brazil P12The Secretary for Economic Monitoring has

revealed that lottery revenues have fallen aspart of the economic downturn

geOrgia P28The US state of Georgia is to consider the

introduction of five casinos and a racino aspart of upcoming legislation

Vietnam P34Three year trial to allow locals to play indomestic casinos could spark new interestfrom investors and operators in the country

macau P36As Crown Resorts exits both its Alon Vegasdevelopment and Melco Crown partnership,Lawrence Ho looks to the future flying solo

auStralia P38Australian billionaire James Packer is back onthe board of Crown Resorts having steppeddown as Chairman in May 2015

OklahOma P30The Kaw Nation tribe in Oklahoma is

teaming up with Gene Simmons and PaulStanley of the band KISS

maryland P32The opening of MGM National Harbor

ensured Maryland’s six casinos generated arecord-breaking month in December 2016

EMEASOUtH AMERICA

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CommentFebruary 2017

At the start of every year I pour over the reports streaming from theConsumer Electronics Show in Vegas, devouring news of the latesttechnology for the everyday consumer. The show is often a pre-cursorfor many of the inventions and innovations that I’ll be spotting at ICEthis month, with attention focused especially on screen, mobile tech,smart devices and automated services. At CES you get to see the latestdesigns from giants such as Microsoft, LG, Samsung and Sony, as well asstart-ups; flying to Vegas on a shoe-string with a 3D-printed proof-of-concept held together with, well, a shoe-string. It used to be the case that we’d have to wait years for such inventions tomake their way onto the floors of ICE, and then even longer beforethey’d grace a casino floor. Today, however, we’re seeing new techunveiled at ICE, shown for the first time anywhere at gaming shows andalmost immediately onto casino floors. Such has been the speed of thistransition that the London show now mirrors many of the traits of CES.We have the giants showcasing startling new omni-channel connecteddevices, 4K screens bursting with colour and detail, while we talk toboard developers working on 8K and the newest chipsets from Inteland AMD. There’s no technology ‘lag’ or ‘latency’ in the systemanymore, which is both exciting and at the same time, volatile.

This month’s Interactive section features amazing new concepts,bringing new ideas to roulette; In-Running technology that willrevolutionise the horse racing sector; and Augmented Reality andVirtual Reality in the social gaming space. We see start-ups closingtheir doors and new companies emerging to launch never-before-seenconcepts... even the stories read like those from CES. In keeping with the technology theme and the ‘mobile first’ strategyadopted by the vast majority of our clients, G3 this month launches itsown piece of dedicated-tech, the new G3Newswire App, downloadablefrom the App Store and via Google Play. The App has been developedfrom the ground-up to deliver daily news to our readers wherever theyfind themselves. It’s new, exciting and hopefully the shoe-string won’tbreak as we go live at ICE Totally Gaming 2017!

G3 THIS MONTH LAUNCHES ITS BRAND NEW G3NEWSWIRE APP,DOWNLOADABLE FROM THE APP STORE AND VIA GOOGLE PLAY

lewis pekEditor

P6 NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / 247.COM

G3 Magazine Editorlewis pek

[email protected]+44 (0) 1942 879291

G3Newswire Editorphil martin

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Features Editorkaren Southall

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ConsultantJohn carroll

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International News EditorJames marrison

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Contributorszorair asadour (Betconstruct)

kelvyn gardner (lima uk)Brent dolan (SiS)

Commercial DirectorJohn [email protected]+44 (0)7917 166471

Advertising ExecutiveJames [email protected]+44 (0)7814227219

Advertising Executivealison [email protected]+44 (0)1204 410771

Senior Designergareth irwin Production Managerpaul JolleysSubscriptions ManagerJennifer pek Commercial AdministratorJohn pek

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Calendar

EMEA

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EMEA

ICE Totally Gaming 2017February 7-9, 2017

LOCAtIONExCeL London Exhibition Centre,London, UKORGANISERClarion EventsFulham Green, Bedford House69-79 Fulham High StreetLondon

United KingdomSW6 3JW

CONtACtStuart Dacret: +44 207 384 8114E: [email protected]

London Affiliate Conference 2017 February 9-12, 2017

LOCAtIONExCel, London, UKORGANISERiGaming Business (Clarion)Fulham Green, Bedford House69-79 Fulham High StreetLondon, United Kingdom

SW6 3JWCONtACtAlana Jonest: +44 207 384 7763E: [email protected]://www.igbaffiliate.com/events/london-affiliate-conference

ICE Conferences 2017February 6-8, 2017

LOCAtIONExCeL London Exhibition Centre,London, UKORGANISERClarion EventsFulham Green, Bedford House69-79 Fulham High StreetLondon

United KingdomSW6 3JWCONtACtStuart Dacret: +44 207 384 8114E: [email protected]/con-ferences

Irish Gaming Show 2017March 7-8, 2017

LOCAtIONRed Cow Moran Hotel, Dublin,IrelandORGANISERGaming & Amusement Publications8 South Ring Business Park

Kinsale RoadCork, IrelandCONtACtSusan Feeryt: +353 21 431 6776E: [email protected]

The Cash Handling Show Africa 2017March 7-8, 2017

LOCAtIONSandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South AfricaORGANISERterrapinn Pty Ltd1st Floor, Modular Placeturnberry Office Park, 48 Grosvenor

Road, BryanstonSouth Africa 2021CONtACtBrian Shabangu t: +27 11 516 4015E: [email protected]

February 2017


La Cámara de Diputados de la provincia deBuenos Aires (Argentina) ha aprobado el nuevopresupuesto de la gobernadora María EugeniaVidal para 2017. El aspecto crucial radica en queel nuevo presupuesto también dispone toda unaserie de cambios importantes sobre la forma enque se tributa el juego en la provincia. La nuevaley aumenta entre un 2 y un 3 por ciento losimpuestos sobre los ingresos brutos del juego ylos bingos, con lo que la tasa asciende al 15 porciento. Además, los 46 bingos que operan en laprovincia tendrán que cobrar a partir de ahorauna entrada de 20 pesos por cliente.

La nueva legislación sobre el juego de Méxicoque se está tomando en consideración actual-mente podría permitir los casinos dentro decruceros. Según las normas actuales, los casinosalojados dentro de cruceros tienen prohibido abrirsus puertas a los pasajeros mientras están atra-cados en puertos mexicanos o mientras naveganen aguas de México salvo que reciban por ade-lantado el permiso del Ministerio del Interior.

el gobernador de la provincia de Mendoza,Alfredo Cornejo, ha cerrado un casino ubicado enla ciudad de La Consulta. Dicho casino obtuvouna licencia hace 10 años con el objetivo deatraer el turismo a la zona. Sin embargo, los rep-resentantes públicos han argumentado que elcasino no ha hecho mucho por atraer el turismo yque, en su lugar, ha incrementado el juego en laciudad, que solo cuenta con 8000 habitantes.

el senador José María Martínez, miembro delPartido Acción Nacional (PAN), ha solicitado quela Secretaría de Gobernación de México (SEGOB)remita un informe al Senado acerca del númerode casinos operativos actualmente en México, asícomo sobre el número exacto de solicitudes quese han presentado para abrir más establecimien-tos.

se ha aprobado el plan Director urbanístico(PDU) para el próximo BCN World que se cele-brará en Barcelona (España). Los operadoresHard Rock, Melco y Peralada disponen de tresmeses para presentar sus proposiciones a laGeneralidad de Cataluña.

Las obras de construcción del casino timeSquare de Sun International y el correspondientecomplejo hotelero en Menlyn Maine (Tshwane,Sudáfrica), valorado en 4000 millones de rands,están en plena marcha, con la inauguración delcasino prevista para abril de 2017.

La filial polaca de Olympic Entertainment Group,Casino Polonia-Wrocław, que operó hasta sep-tiembre de 2016 el casino emblemático de OEGen Varsovia, el Olympic Casino Sunrise, ha remi-tido a los tribunales su petición de bancarrota.

La compañía malaya podiumspot CapitalGroup ha iniciado las obras en lo que afirma queserá el mayor crucero con casino del mundo,conocido como Crusino. Según las previsiones, laconstrucción durará tres años. El Crusino tendrá295 m de eslora y 36 m de manga, y ofrecerácapacidad para un máximo de 3200 pasajeros.

SOuth america

In order to prevent, detect andinvestigate the various formsof match manipulation thatmay occur, the SouthAmerican FootballConfederation (CONMEBOL)has formed a partnership withSportradar’s Integrity Services,focusing on a range of thecontinent’s leagues andcompetitions.

The services CONMEBOL willreceive include:

1. Implementation of thecompany’s Fraud DetectionSystem, monitoring theglobal betting market acrossa host of South Americanfootball leagues andcompetitions, in order todetect possible fixes andmanipulations;

2. Use of the Fraud IntelligenceUnit, dedicated to collecting,

processing and respondingto information aboutpossible threats to the sport;and

3. Roll out of the company’sFraud Prevention Services,which focus on educating,training and equippingfootball players, clubs andfederations with theknowledge and toolsnecessary to identify andresist match manipulation.

This partnership is part of thegovernance and transparencydevelopment that has beencentral to the administration ofAlejandro Domínguez sincehis election in January 2016.Pursuing a clear commitmentto reform, the new President ofCONMEBOL has focused on (i)accounting transparency, (ii)seeking justice across SouthAmerican football, (iii)building a new professional,reliable and sustainableinstitution, and (iv) generatingmore value for football andreinvesting those resourcesinto the development of thesport.

CONMEBOL contractsSportradar to supportfootball integrity

latam

The Chamber of Deputies for theprovince of Buenos Aires haspassed Governor María EugeniaVidal’s new budget for 2017.

ArGenTinA GOVERNMENT

new taxes approved in Buenos airesAfter weeks of negotiations the Buenos Aireslower house has approved the initiative set byVidal’s administration in January, meaning thatthe new budget is now law.

The budget, which includes the approval ofexpenditures of more than $522bn, allows thegovernment to borrow $52bn pesos in order toimprove infrastructure and includes a 36 percent increase in property tax. It also includesguidelines for salary increases for state workersof 17 per cent.

Crucially, the new budget also makes a numberof important changes to the way gaming is taxedin the province. The new law increases tax ongross revenue for gaming and bingo halls frombetween two and three per cent, raising it to 15per cent. In addition, 46 bingo halls operating inthe province will now have to charge anentrance fee of 20 pesos per customer.

Half of this amount will be destined to themunicipal governments while the other half isintended to be used in campaigns andprogrammes against gambling addiction. Thegovernment aims to raise $6bn pesos in

additional funding via taxation on the industry.

According to its initial proposals thegovernment planned to impose a fixed tax of$40,000 pesos on the 80,000 slot machinesoperating in the country and charge 0.75 percent on wagers via an indirect tax. Thegovernment agreed to scrap the direct tax onslot machines as the opposition considered itdouble taxation. The 0.75 per cent consumptiontax on bets remains, while it will stand at twoper cent for online gaming.

While under debate the new taxes provoked anumber of protests. Earlier in January, workerswent on strike in response to news that theCambiemos Party, which is led by PresidentMauricio Macri and is also Vidal’s party, plannedto make changes to income tax laws whichwould affect the sector.

As a result 250,000 workers went on strike withthe strike affecting bingo halls, racetracks,casinos and lottery agencies nationwide.Workers from the gaming sector also went onstrike to oppose the new taxes and blockedroads in a number of cities nationwide.

panama

According to the latest reportreleased by Panama’s NationalComptroller’s Office, gamblingin the first 10 months of 2016 fellby almost 10 per cent comparedto the same period in 2015,standing at US$1,866m - aroundUS$192.7m lower. Horse racingsaw a slight upswing with betsincreasing by 0.5 per cent risingfrom US$39.1m to US$39.3m butgambling in bingo halls reachedjust US$2.8m - a fall of 4.9 percent in the first 10 months of2016. Table gaming also saw adecline falling by as much as26.1 per cent - from US$230.3mto US$170.1m. Gambling via type A slotmachines (slots which do nothave a payout ceiling) fell by 7.4per cent and stood at aroundUS$1,628m - the first time it hasfallen in four years. Sportsbetting also declined falling by11.4 per cent to US$25.387m. Thefall is being attributed to the 5.5per cent tax applied to all cashwithdrawals made in casinos,slot parlours, bingo halls andsports betting shops and tracks,instigated in June 2015.


el operador ruso Domain LLC ha inauguradosu primer casino en la Krasnaya Polyana, Sochi,la zona de juego en el territorio ruso deKrasnodar. Conocido como Sochi Casino andResort, este complejo de cinco estrellas haabierto sus puertas en el resort de montañaGorki Gorod con 569 tragaperras y 70 mesas, loque ha supuesto una inversión de 4000 mil-lones de rublos (66,3 millones de dólares).

novomatic ha anunciado que, en virtud de laresolución de la junta general anual de CasinosAustria AG (CASAG), se han cumplido las condi-ciones requeridas para la adquisición de lasacciones de la fundación privada MTB en Casi-nos Austria AG hasta un importe del 17,2 porciento, lo que allana el camino a una adquisiciónefectiva de las acciones.

el senador de Georgia Brandon Beach tieneprevisto presentar una proposición para intro-ducir cinco casinos y un hipódromo en elpróximo período legislativo. Las eleccionesestatales más recientes sugieren que una may-oría de votantes desean la introducción decasinos en el estado.

iGt ha ampliado su contrato de varios añoscon la Lotería de Idaho para seguirsuministrando servicios de impresión para jue-gos de «rasca y gana» hasta marzo de 2019. Setrata de la segunda ampliación de dos años quese ha ejecutado sobre el contrato ya existente, ycontó con la aprobación unánime por parte de laComisión de Loterías de Idaho.

Gene simmons y paul stanley, de la bandade rock KISS, han anunciado una colaboracióncon la tribu The Kaw Nation en Oklahoma paraconstruir un casino en el territorio tribal soberanocerca de la frontera con Kansas, concretamenteen la ciudad de Braman. Las obras del casino,que llevará el nombre Rock & Brews Casino,comenzaron en enero.

Los fundadores y desarrolladores de alonLas Vegas han reafirmado que siguen explo-rando todas las opciones para hacer avanzar elproyecto y optimizar el valor para susaccionistas. Crown Resorts, sin embargo, el prin-cipal socio financiero y estratégico de Alon, hadecidido no avanzar con el proyecto Alon LasVegas en este momento.

Mongolia está estudiando la legalización dedos casinos solo para extranjeros en su intentopor sacar su propia tajada del mercado del juegoasiático. Un comité judicial permanente haestablecido un grupo de trabajo bajo la direccióndel diputado L. Enkhbold para redactar un bor-rador de la ley sobre el desarrollo de resorts concasino.

new silkroad Culturaltainment ha anunciado que su casino en el Jeju KAL Hotel(Corea del Sur) ha sido rebautizado oficialmentecomo «MegaLuck». MegaLuck opera en la actu-alidad una mesa de ruleta, dos mesas de blackjack, 25 mesas de bacarrá y 24 mesas de juegoelectrónicas.

The Office of the ComptrollerGeneral of Chile clarifies thedefinition of ‘gambling machines’permitted in local casinos

cHile GAMING LEGISLATION

new Guidelines Define Gambling Machines

The Office of the Comptroller General of Chilehas issued a statement clarifying the procedurefor the municipal governments when it comes todefining when machines should be classed asgambling machines in so called‘neighbourhood casinos.’

The new guidelines indicate that themunicipalities should ask those interested inobtaining permission to operate electronicgaming machines, to obtain a report from thegambling Control Board (SJC) stating that prizesare not handed out randomly by the electronicmachines on their premises.

The new rules give the SJC the right to determinewhat constitutes random and what constitutesentertainment machines and state that onlycertifications issued by gaming laboratoriesapproved by the SJC will have the capacity toverify conclusively if a machine is either agambling machine or if the result depends on anelement of skill. The new ruling issued by theComptroller General was issued at the requestof the SJC, and in the case that the bodyestablishes that the result of the machine inquestion depends on chance, then themunicipality will not be permitted to grant themachine permission to operate. From this pointonwards the Office of the Comptroller General

now considers that municipal governmentsmust follow the new guidelines as the onlyguide when it comes to how they definegambling and non gambling machines in theirrespective jurisdictions.

The decision comes after the SJC released theresults of its first ever survey into gamingmachines operating outside of casinos in July.The wide ranging study, which was carried outon behalf of the SJC by the Faculty ofArchitecture, Design and Urban Studies at ThePontifical Catholic University of Chile, revealedthat there are now more than 33 thousandmachines operating illegally in Chile. The resultsof the study were delivered to the 88 respectivemunicipalities where these machines werefound to be operating so that appropriatemeasures could be taken to prevent the growthof illegal gambling.

According to Chilean gaming law of 1995, slotsoutside of casinos are strictly prohibited. Thelaw states that slot machines may only beoperated in the seven municipal casinos as wellas the other privately run casinos throughoutthe nation. Furthermore, The SJC has exclusivepowers to award, reject, renew and revokeoperating permits for casinos in the country andlicenses for gambling and associated services.

mexico/chile

Mexico’s new gaming lawcurrently under considerationcould possibly allow casinoson cruise ships. Under currentrules it is illegal for casinos oncruise ships to open theirdoors to their passengerswhile either docked inMexican ports or while sailingin Mexican waters unless theyare given permission inadvance by the InteriorMinistry. Meanwhile, Chilechanged its laws in 2011 afterthe number of cruise shipsarriving in Chile had reducedsignificantly after the 2005Casinos Act, which requiredthat all cruise ships had toclose their casinos when theypassed within 13.8 miles ofChile’s shoreline. After lawswere changed the number ofcruise ships arriving in Chilereached the highest levels inseven years in 2016.

Municipal governments receive guidance defining when machines should beclassed as gambling machines in so called ‘neighbourhood casinos’

Carlos Camaño the Director ofNational Hydrography in Uruguay,a government department thatoversees port activity andmaintains and develops localwaterways, released a statementthat a bill is now being preparedthat would allow for casinos incruise ships to remain open whenthey arrive in both the ports ofMontevideo and the Atlantic resortof Punta del Este. The new law, ifapproved, will also allow cruiseships to remain longer and will, asa result, increase tourist spend inUruguay.

The closing of casinos in cruiseships while docked in Uruguayanharbours is one of the reasons whythey have in the past only stayedfor a few hours in Uruguay,according to the governmentofficial.

The new law would encouragepassengers to spend more inUruguay and also encouragevisitors to explore Uruguay moreextensively. Minister of TourismLiliam Kechichian, confirmed:“This is a proposal that cruisecompanies have been puttingforward for some time. As acounterpoint we are going torequest that ships spend more timein Uruguay: at least one night. Thatextends the area of work andbusiness around a product that isgrowing a lot," she said.

Data provided by the Ministry ofTourism show that during the2015-2016 cruise ship season,196,000 passengers and crewarrived in Montevideo while121,000 arrived in Punta del Este.Spending in Montevideo stood atUS$7.6m, while it contributedUS$3.5m in Punta del Este.Meanwhile, spend per person inMontevideo stood at US$38.9 andin Punta del Este US$29.

SOuth america

uruguay

New law would continuecasinos on cruise ships

The Secretary for EconomicMonitoring in Brazil has revealedthat lottery revenues have fallenas part of the economic downturn

brAzil LOTTERy OPERATIONS

CaiXa Lottery revenues Decline

Last year, funds generated by CAIXA lotteriesreached R$12.8bn a 13.8 per cent decreasecompared to the prior year when the figurestood at R$14.9bn. According to the Secretaryfor Economic Monitoring, which is part of theMinistry of Finance, the decrease is due to thedownturn in the Brazilian economy in 2016.

However, a spokesman said that there was stillroom for significant growth in the sector."Federal lotteries have great potential forexpansion in the country, since, in comparisonto what is happening in the world, few lotterymodalities are explored in Brazil, whichsubstantially affects per capita revenue," theFinance Ministry said.

News of decreasing revenues comes at a timewhen it is looking increasingly likely thatCAIXA could have a major role to play in therunning of online gaming should thegovernment give online gaming the green light.In November it was revealed that new gamblinglegislation under consideration in the Senatewould place online gaming under thesupervision of the Federal government and

Caixa would become the regulatory body and beresponsible for monitoring the industry andgranting licences.

CAIXA is also inestigating plans to operate aunit which will look into ways to expand intothe casino and bingo market and would allowfor a legalised version of the popular Jogo doBicho or Animal Game. At the same time, thegovernment is also looking at ways to createwhat would initially be a state-owned onlinesports betting company. Foreign operatorswould be invited to take part in the venture inwhich CAIXA would remain a minority investoronce the company was privatised.

In order to raise additional cash for state coffersCAIXA’s instant lottery arm Lotex would beprivatised as well. According to governmentsources, the privatisation of instant ticketswould generate revenue of between R$2.2bnand R$4bn a year while annual revenue for thegovernment would stand at around R$1bn.Combined, the sale of both privatised instantsand the right to offer online sports betting, couldraise R$8.4bn for the government.

paraguay

Workers from Paraguay’sNational Ports Authority inCiudad del Este have discussedmeasures which they plan totake against a proposed casinoand hotel in the city.

Workers plan to protest thegranting of a building permit tothe casino which will be locatedin a building belonging to theheadquarters of Paraguay’sNational Ports Authority(ANNP) at the head of theFriendship Bridge (Puente de laAmistad) - an arch bridgeconnecting the Brazilian city ofFoz do Iguaçu and Ciudad delEste. In November 2015, tradeunionists asked a judge to blockthe move arguing that there wasa ban in place that prohibitsfurther development in the area.

Much of the opposition to theproject is being fuelled byspeculation that the hotel couldbe a duty free zone, which willlead to unfair competition forthe other shops and businessesalready established in the area.

The collection of funds generated via lotteries by the largest state owned bank andlottery operator – the Caixa Econômica Federal (CAIXA) - are down

MExICo – Senator José María Martínez a memberof the National Action Party (PAN) has demandedthat the Mexican Ministry of the Interior (SEGOB)submit a report to the Senate regarding the numberof casinos currently in operation in Mexico as well asthe exact number of applications that have beenmade to open more establishments. The Senatorexpressed his concern over the lack of statisticaldata regarding the numbers operating in Mexico.SEGOB must now deliver a report on the issue tothe Senate. Martinez said that according to theinformation available, there are at least 100,000slots operating in Mexico, and 434 casinos inoperation out of a total of 789 licences that havebeen granted so far. This means that a further 364casinos could open. This does not include thenumber of casinos operating on the margins of thelaw via legal protection granted by local courts.

SuRINAME – APEX gaming is now available toplayers in Suriname. The very latest slant-top slotmachines from APEX gaming – the Pinnacle SL –have been prominently placed within theAmbassador Casino in the coastal city ofParamaribo.

The great mix of games on the EVO platform, suchas 3D games Queen Cleopatra, Ocean Tale, APEXNemo, APEX Wonderland among other classics,have proven an instant hit with players. DavidSmith, General Manager at Ambassador Casino &Hotel (pictured), confirmed: “We have been lookingto bring in a new supplier that offers somethingdifferent, that added extra that will offered greaterentertainment value for our customers. The APEXteam is extremely professional and has supportedus 100 per cent in ensuring we can place theexciting Pinnacle slots on our floor.

“Our customers have taken to APEX. Their slotsstand out on our casino floor, they are extremelyhigh-tech. The EVO2 platform is ultra-modern,offering a great selection of games. This was a greatdecision to place APEX slots on our casino floor. TheAPEX slots have been performing outstandinglyhere - and are consistently within the top two fromthe range slots we offer - and that’s from the firstday of installation. The interest from our guests ishuge and it continues to grow!”

Kubilay Özer, Global Sales Director at APEX gaming,is proud to have received such strong praise fromthe team at Ambassador Casino and stated: “Thistruly aligns with our global approach to gaming. Ourgames delight players all around the world. We arehere to make a difference – to take gaming to thenext level. My thanks go to David and his team forrecognising the opportunities to bring enhancedgaming entertainment on their casino floor byintroducing APEX gaming.”

SOuth america

The first major installations ofEGt’s Premier gamingequipment in Mexico arealready a fact.

The Bulgarian manufacturerhas delivered 36 cabinets ofthe P-24/24 Up slot model inseven gamblingestablishments, owned by oneof the most respected localoperators – Caliente, havingover 100 years of experience inthe entertainment industry.

Caliente’s casinos are equippedwith over 6,000 machines andfunction with modernelectronic gaming terminals.The operator also manages thefirst online casino in thecountry, as well as bingo andsports betting halls with livegreyhound and horse racingsimulcast and is constantlyexpanding its presence in

Mexico, as well as in Centraland South America.

The installed P-24/24 Upcabinet is recognised as thebest performing product ofEGt globally, thanks also to itsrich Premier multigame mixesMulti-3, 4, 5, and 6, eachincluding over 40 diversegaming titles, capable ofsatisfying most players.

This is the first delivery of EGtmachines with an operator inMexico and so far the feedbackis more than promising – thegames are now among themost popular in Caliente’scasinos Carrusel, Ensenada,Calimax, Hipodromo intijuana, Morelia, Nogales andRevolution.

First major installationsfor EGT gamingequipment in Mexico

mexico



Das abgeordnetenhaus der argentinischenProvinz Buenos Aires hat den neuen Haushaltder Gouverneurin María Eugenia Vidal für 2017verabschiedet. Ausschlaggebend ist dabei, dassder neue Haushalt auch eine Reihe bedeutsamerÄnderungen an der Besteuerung desGlücksspiels in der Provinz mit sich bringt. Durchdas neue Gesetz steigt die Steuer auf die Brut-toeinnahmen aus dem Glücksspiel und vonSpielhallen von zwischen zwei und drei Prozentauf 15 Prozent. Außerdem müssen die 46 in derProvinz betriebenen Spielhallen jetzt ein Eintritts-geld in Höhe von 20 Peso je Kunden erheben.

Das gegenwärtig im Beratungsverfahrenbefindliche neue mexikanische Glücksspielgesetzlässt möglicherweise Spielbanken aufKreuzfahrtschiffen zu. Nach derzeit geltendemRecht dürfen Spielbanken auf Kreuzfahrtschiffenohne vorherige Genehmigung durch das Innen-ministerium für die Passagiere nicht geöffnetsein, während die Schiffe in mexikanischenHäfen vor Anker liegen oder wenn sie mexikanis-che Hoheitsgewässer befahren.

Der Gouverneur der provinz Mendoza, Alfredo Cornejo, hat ein Kasino in der Stadt LaConsulta geschlossen. Das Kasino hatte seineZulassung vor 10 Jahren mit dem Ziel der Bele-bung des Tourismus in der Region erhalten. Vonoffizieller Seite wird jedoch argumentiert, dasKasino habe wenig dazu beigetragen, mehrTouristen anzuziehen, sondern stattdessen dasGlücksspiel in der lediglich 8.000 Seelen zählen-den Stadt angekurbelt.

senator José María Martínez, ein Mitglied derNationalen Aktionspartei (PAN) hat dasmexikanische Innenministerium (SEGOB) aufge-fordert, dem Senat einen Bericht zur Anzahl dergegenwärtig in Mexiko betriebenen Spielbankensowie die genaue Anzahl der zur Eröffnung weit-erer Einrichtungen eingereichten Anträgevorzulegen.

Der Bebauungsplan (pDu) für das Vorhabeneiner BCN World im spanischen Barcelona istverabschiedet worden. Den Betreibern, HardRock, Melco und Peralada, bleiben drei Monate,um der katalonischen Regierung ihre Vorschlägevorzustellen.

Die Bauarbeiten an dem 4 Mrd. rand teuerenTime Square-Kasino- und Hotelkomplex von SunInternational in Menlyn Maine im südafrikanis-chen Tshwane-Distrikt sind voll im Plan, wonachdas Kasino rechtzeitig im April 2017 eröffnetwerden soll.

Das polnische tochterunternehmen derOlympic Entertainment-Gruppe, Casino Poloniain Wrocław, das bis zum September 2016 dasVorzeigekasino der OE-Gruppe in Warschau, dasOlympic Casino Sunrise, betrieben hat, hat beiGericht einen Konkursantrag gestellt.

new silkroad Culturaltainment meldet dieoffizielle Umbenennung des Kasinos im Jeju KALHotel in Südkorea in „MegaLuck“. Das MegaLuckbetreibt zurzeit einen Roulettetisch, zwei Black-jack-Tische, 25 Baccarat-Tische sowie 24elektronische Spielautomaten.

The Urban-Development MasterPlan (PDU) for the upcoming BCNWorld in Barcelona (now known asthe tourist and RecreationComplex) has been approved

SPAin CASINO OPERATIONS

Catalonia approves BCn Development

Operators Hard Rock, Melco and Peralada, thethree companies interested in the BCN leisureand entertainment complex, have three monthsin which to present their proposals to theCatalonian government.

Josep Rull Minister of territory andSustainability said that the new plan had beenapproved after a six month public consultationperiod and that a number of important changeshad been made when it came to infrastructureas well as the protection of the environment. Healso added that the new version of the PDUaddresses the majority of the issues brought tothe government’s attention by a number ofinstitutions and local councils.

As well as making a number of modifications tothe plan, the government also released aneconomic study which was compiled by theUniversidad Rovila i Virgili de tarragona (Thepublic University of tarragona). According to thereport, additional tourists spend will stand atbetween €860 and €1.145bn per year. Thecomplex could also create 12,000 direct jobs,and once it has been open for a year could leadto 1.7m to 2.1m overnight stays in the area of

Campo de tarragona – a 21 per cent increaseover present figures. Between 3m to5m visitorscould visit the new complex a year.

Work on the complex will begin in the summerof this year. The new project will be far lessambitious than envisaged and will house lesscasinos and hotels than previously announced.However, according to President of CataloniaOriol Junqueras a total of €2.5bn will beinvested in the project which will create 10thousand jobs. Gaming space, however, will bereduced drastically to just 4 per cent of the totalspace of the new project.

Currently there are four casinos in Cataloniaand one or two more large scale casinos will bepart of the newly established tourist andRecreation Complex. Both Melco and Hard Rockare competing to operate a casino each whilethe Peralada Group in partnership with theGenting Group are also competing to be the soleoperator and would run a single large scalecasino in the resort. The three companies havedeposited a bond of €2.5m each committing tobuy land where the hotels, casinos andshopping areas will be built.

South africa

Country’s second largest casino to open in Aprilpoland

Olympic EntertainmentGroup’s Polish subsidiaryCasino Polonia-Wrocław,which operated the flagshipcasino of OEG in Warsaw untilSeptember 2016, OlympicCasino Sunrise, has submittedto the court its bankruptcypetition.

The Baltic-based operator hadinformed back in Septemberthat its bid for a local specificactivity license had beenrejected by the Ministry ofFinance. Olympic CasinoSunrise had been open for nineyears.

Olympic said it would competein the upcoming public tenderfor the local specific activitylicense, but that it would beforced to suspend its Polishoperations with losses totalling€10m. Whilst suspended thecasino said it would carry onemploying 15 of its 39 Polishemployees.

The Government of Catalonia has finally approved the long-delayed UrbanDevelopment Plan for BCN World in Barcelona, Spain

Construction on SunInternational’s R4bn Time Squarecasino and hotel development inMenlyn Maine, Tshwane, is fully ontrack, with the casino due to openon time in April 2017.

This will be followed by the 8,000-seat Arena in September 2017 andthe hotel complex in March 2018.Gaming equipment will startmoving onto the site this month.Time Square – which will be thesecond largest casino in SouthAfrica (after GrandWest) with2,000 slot machines and 60 tables– represents the biggestdevelopment in the hospitality,gaming and leisure industry sincethe construction of SunInternational’s GrandWest Casinoin Cape Town, in 2000.

Sun International’s Michael Farr,Group General Manager of Brandand Communications said: “Thecomplex is now taking shape, withits distinguishing roof now part of

the Menlyn skyline. “About 10,000direct and indirect jobs will havebeen created during theconstruction and the initial fitoutand start-up phase.

The development will also generateconsiderable revenue for bothprovincial and nationalgovernment by way of taxes andgaming levies. It is anticipated thataround R1.7bn in gaming taxes andVAT will be generated in the firstfive years of operation at MenlynMaine and the total estimatedrevenue to Government from theproject over a five year period isestimated at around R2.7bn.”

Time Square will also offer a newconcept in hospitality in that it willoffer a range of hotel staraccommodation in a singlebuilding: 3-star accommodationwith 96 rooms, 4-staraccommodation with 94 roomsand 5-star accommodation with48 rooms and suites.

emea

IGt has signed a contract toprovide Video Lotteryterminals (VLts), a VLt CentralSystem, site controllers, games,and operational services to ABSvenska Spel in Sweden as partof a competitive procurementprocess. IGt, as legacy GtECH,has been providing videolottery products and supportservices to Svenska Spel,operator of the Swedishnational lottery and a WorldLottery Association member,since 1996.

“Throughout the last twodecades, we’ve successfullysupported and enhancedSvenska Spel’s approach toprotecting players whilecreating advanced solutions tomeet their businessobjectives,” said Walter Bugno,CEO, IGt International. “This

contract will help to ensurethat Svenska Spel continues toresponsibly grow and remaincompetitive in a rapidlychanging marketplace. It willhelp to increase playerengagement, ensure the long-term sustainability of theiroffering, and provide a safegaming experience for theirplayers, the cornerstone ofSvenska Spel’s program.”

The contract, whichcommenced on January 9,2017, is for seven years withthe possibility of one-yearextensions for up to threesubsequent years, for amaximum term of 10 years.Under the contract term,Svenska Spel has agreed to aminimum 6,000 Quasar VLts,the INtELLIGEN CentralSystem, a minimum 2,000 IGtsite controllers, and more than60 games. Operational servicesinclude continuous, 24/7operation of the System, VLts,site controllers, and gamesfrom IGt’s market-leadingomnichannel content portfolio.


Der russische Betreiber Domain LLC hat daserste Kasino in der Glücksspielzone Krasnaja Pol-jana, Sotschi, im russischen Gebiet Krasnodareröffnet. Der als Sotschi Kasino und Freizeitanlagebekannte Fünf-Sterne-Komplex wurde in demGebirgskurort Gorkij eröffnet und bietet 569Spielautomaten und 70 Spieltische bei einerInvestitionssumme von 4 Mrd. Rubel (66,3 Mio.USD).

novomatic meldet, dass die auf Beschlussder Jahreshauptversammlung der Casinos AustriaAG (CASAG) für den Erwerb der Anteile der Privat-stiftung MTB an der Casinos Austria AG imUmfang von 17,2 Prozent festgelegten Bedingun-gen erfüllt worden sind, wodurch der Weg für dieendgültige Übernahme der Anteile geebnet sei.

Der senator von Georgia, Brandon Beach,plant die Einreichung eines Vorschlags zur Einrich-tung von fünf Spielbanken und einerPferderennbahn in der kommenden Legislaturpe-riode. Neueste Umfragen in dem Bundesstaatlassen vermuten, dass eine Mehrheit der stimm-berechtigten die Einführung von Spielbanken indem Bundesstaat befürworten.

iGt hat den Mehrjahresvertrag mit derLotteriegesellschaft von Idaho über den Druck vonRubbellosen bis März 2019 verlängert. Dabei han-delt es sich um die zweite Verlängerung desbestehenden Vertrages um zwei Jahre, die von derLotteriegesellschaft in Idaho einstimmiggenehmigt wurde.

Gene simmons und paul stanley von derRockgruppe KISS melden eine Zusammenarbeitmit dem Stamm der Kaw in Oklahoma zur Errich-tung eines Kasinos auf dem Stammesgebietunweit der kanadischen Staatsgrenze in der StadtBraman. Die Arbeiten an dem Kasino, das TheRock & Brews Casino heißen wird, wurden imJanuar aufgenommen.

Die Gründer und entwickler des alon-Vorhabens in Las Vegas haben erneut bestätigt,dass sie weiterhin alle Möglichkeiten ausloten, umdas Vorhaben voranzutreiben und seinen Wert füralle Beteiligten zu optimieren. Allerdings habenCrown Resorts, Alons wichtigster Geldgeber undstrategischer Partner, beschlossen, sich bei demVorhaben einstweilen nicht weiter zu engagieren.

Die malaysische unternehmensgruppe Podiumspot Capital hat mit den Arbeiten an demnach eigenen Angaben größtenKasinokreuzfahrtschiff der Welt, dem „Crusino“,begonnen. Die voraussichtliche Bauzeit soll dreiJahre betragen. Das Crusino wird eine Länge von295 m und eine Breite von 36 m messen und sollbis zu 3.200 Passagieren Platz bieten.

Zu Beginn der neugestaltung der Glücksspielbranche hebt die vietnamesischeRegierung als Teil einer dreijährigenVersuchsphase für vietnamesische Staatsange-hörige das Verbot des Besuchs von zweiSpielbanken auf, die sich in Van Don und PhuQuoc befinden.

The Portuguese government isseeking to raise an extra €25m intax revenue from opening up thecountry to the online ‘social’gaming market

PorTuGAl ONLINE GAMING

santa Casa de Misericordia heads Online

Portugal’s state-run charity, Santa Casa deMisericordia de Lisboa (SCML), is to enter theonline market in Portugal and has created aconsortium specifically to explore onlinegaming called the Social Betting Society.

The new consortium is made up of SCML, aswell as a number of other charities. DeputySupplier and Executive Director of SCML,Edmundo Martinho, stated that the charity willapply for an online licence from the gamingauthority.

The charity will offer sports betting, pari-mutuelbetting and other games of chance and couldlater expand its offer to include a wide variety ofonline games. He also said said that the offer ofonline gaming would in no way negatively affectits core business.

“The games that are to be made available willhave a different nature and models, so that thebelief is that there will be no negative impact onthe revenues made by the other games operatedby Santa Casa through its Gaming Department.”He commented that Gross revenues from

casinos, bingo halls and games operated bySCML increased in the first quarter of 2016 by 32per cent compared to the same period theprevious year. In total, the Portuguese spent€762.5m – €183m more than in the first threemonths of 2015.

Last January sales for games run by the charityincreased by as much as 44 per cent comparedwith the same month in 2015 standing at€243m. The strong performance was influencedby a new fixed-odds sports betting productPlacard, which was launched in September 2015and which accounted for 13 per cent of revenuein the first quarter of this year. Around 12 percent of this figure was achieved with the newsports betting game. The lottery predicts that thegame will generate yearly sales of around€250m.

In 2012 it was revealed that a governmentcommittee was looking into legalising onlinegambling in order to raise cash for state pensionfunds and to aid debt-ridden soccer clubs.Under previous rules only SCML could offersports betting and lotteries.

Santa Casa de Misericordia de Lisboa (SCML), a state-organised charity, will enterthe online market in Portugal very soon with a wide variety of sports-betting,

pari-mutuel and additional games of chance

emea

russia

Russian operator Domain LLChas opened the first casino in theKrasnaya Polyana, Sochi,gambling zone in Russia’sKrasnodar Territory. Known asthe Sochi Casino and Resort, thefive-star complex has opened atthe Gorki Gorod mountain resortwith 569 slots and 70 tablescosting an investment ofRUB4bn (US$66.3m). DomainLLC said: “Sochi Casino andResort is a project with a uniqueconcept for Russia in the spirit ofthe best casinos of Las Vegas.The casino opened on January 5.’The entertainment complexincludes a casino, tworestaurants, cabaret theatre, barand other venues. Its target is toattract 43,000 guests everymonth with projected turnoverfor the year pitched at R4.6bnwith ‘significant growth’ tippedwithin two years. The licence forthe casino was issued by theKrasnodar Krai administration.It is located in the former pressoffice used at the WinterOlympics.

IGT to provide 6,000VLTs to Sweden’sSvenska Spel

Sweden

Having introduced its gamingmachines into Switzerland, APEXgaming has enjoyed someoutstanding results at CasinoBarrière Montreux.

SwiTzerlAnD INSTALLATIONS

enjoying Long Life at Barrière Montreux

The introduction of APEX gaming’s latest slots,powered by its EVO platform, has generatedoutstanding results for Casino BarrièreMontreux according to Hervé Boisteau, DeputyGeneral Director at the casino. Mr. Boisteaucommented: “We have a beautiful casino,wonderfully located on the eastern shore ofLake Geneva. Here we closely monitor our slotmachine performance and the recentintroduction of APEX gaming has broughtexceptional results – indeed the long-standingperformance has been consistently excellent.

“We are used to an increase in GDR when weintroduce a new machine supplier. Yet this isdifferent as the interest has remained – so muchso that APEX gaming is now the most popularinternational slot machine we have on ourcasino floor,” added Mr. Boisteau.

“The APEX machines are very stylish and fitexceedingly well into our casino here. Ourplayers love the APEX games, notes Mr. HervéBoisteau. “These results open the door for APEXto become a major supplier to our entire group.”

Casino Barrière Montreux has already integratedthe VIP solution from APEX gaming – the VIPPremium Lounge, alongside the company’sestablished Pinnacle SL slant tops. Both houseAPEX’s top-performing EVO platform thatoffers proven games with pin-sharp graphics.

Kubilay Özer, Global Sales Director for APEXgaming (pictured above right with Mr. Boisteau)told us: “At APEX gaming we are not a companythat stands still. On the contrary, we investstrongly in research and development andensure that our in-depth market knowledge isput to use.”

“These are exciting times for us. Our thanks goto the team at Casino Montreux who welcomedthe opportunity to trial APEX gaming. Thisopenness has paid off with extremely satisfiedcustomers who truly enjoy playing on APEXgaming slots,” added Mr. Özer.

Casino Barrière Montreux belongs to the casinochain Lucién Barrière, which operates casinos inFrance, Switzerland and Egypt.

wales

Local authorities in Wales areexpected to be granted powers toban fixed odds betting terminals(FOBTs) as part of legislativechanges in the Wales Bill 2016-17, matching powers already inplace in Scotland. Currently,there are over 1,500 FOBTs inWales. Stakes amounting tomore than £1.6bn are beingplaced on FOBTs on an annualbasis in the country. The UKGovernment has confirmed thatit plans such a change at a timewhen the Parliament has beenpreparing one of the finaldebates on the Wales Bill. If sucha change is implemented, thelocal Ministry will becomeresponsible for issuing thelicenses of high-stakes gamingmachines in the region.

The legislation changesconcerning the FOBTs will applyboth to already existing and newgaming machines. Themaximum stake allowed forFOBTs is also expected to bereduced from £10 to £2 as part ofthe changes.

Austria’s APEX gaming has enjoyed a series of outstanding results at CasinoBarrière Montreux in Switzerland, becoming its most popular slot supplier

BELGIuM – Erron Factory (Erron), a Belgium-based producer of gaming machines, has signed athree-year preferred supplier agreement withCrane Payment Innovations (CPI). Under theagreement, Erron will specify the SC Advance noteacceptor on all new and existing games, while alsotransitioning to CPI as its default supplier for allcoin-handling products.

“We’ve relied on CPI products on an ad hoc basis inthe past, having always recognised their superiorquality and performance,” said Patrick de Preter,owner and CEO of Erron. “Now, after havingreceived additional product training at theirBuxtehude production facility, we can confidentlysay that their professional support is just asexceptional. It was therefore a logical choice tointensify our partnership with CPI. This agreementwill not only allow us to enhance service to ourcustomers, but it will also help Erron expand morerapidly into the Belgian and Dutch markets.”

In addition to SC Advance note acceptors, Erron willbe purchasing the v2 colibri 3.5” coin acceptor, thespace-saving h2 nano hopper and the largecapacity Universal Hopper.

“We are very pleased that Erron has selected CPIas its default coin and note supplier for itsEuropean expansion plans,” commented MarcJongerius, CPI sales manager for Gaming. “Bytaking the time and energy to build thispartnership, both of our businesses have gained adeep understanding of each other’s products andequipment, and I am excited CPI will be able to addvalue to Erron’s business for years to come,” statedMr. Jongerius.

emea

Ireland’s Gambling Control Billhas been in legislative limbosince it was first published in2013 by the former JusticeMinister Alan Shatter. Criticismhas since been heaped on theIrish government, particularlyby the Republican Party, FiannaFáil, which has demand actionto push through the parts of theGambling Control Bill thatwould apply age restrictionsand control the marketing ofthe industry.

In response, the Department ofJustice has now indicated itsintention to progress thelegislation through theOireachtas (the NationalParliament) at the earliestopportunity, with especialfocus on a series of safeguardsto protect both children andpeople with gamblingproblems.

The Bill is still being drafted bythe Office of the ParliamentaryCounsel, which has confirmedit will be proceeded with “atthe earliest feasibleopportunity.” The newlegislation is expected toupdate all existing lawsconcerning the regulation ofgambling and gaming, with theexception of the NationalLottery. It will provide for thelicensing of all forms of onlinegambling.

Expected to be included in theBill is the principle of self-exclusion, both at individuallocations and across specificareas for a set period of time,though the implementation ofsuch a system has yet to beoutlined. The Bill has beendelayed for an extended periodof time due to exactly this typeof complexity in itsimplementation. Ageverification similar to thatconducted in the sale of alcoholwill be introduced in gamblingpremises, and ‘young’ peopleare to be banned from workingin betting shops.

Ireland’s GamblingControl Bill shifts intogear in 2017

ireland

GEoRGIA – Synot Group has bought an existingcasino licence in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi. TheCzech-based company has already created afootprint in Georgia, operating a smaller casino inKutaisi in May 2016.

Synot Group Sales Director Roland Andrýsek said:“The country only has a limited number of casinos,concentrated mainly in the capital. Therefore, weare delighted to have acquired a license to operateone of them. We started to operate during this lastyear in Georgia, in cooperation with a local businesspartner. The new casino is a truly greatestablishment, offering more than 200 machines.In the future, we expect the construction of othersimilar casinos in this country, and even in othercities. From a business perspective, we arespeaking about a very interesting location.”

Last autumn Synot opened a new casino inVietnam and is planning further expansion in theAsian region this year.



SIS is now the sole supplier ofcore race day data for Irish horseracing, UK horse racing from 20courses, including UK greyhoundracing

uK & irelAnD SPORTS-BETTING

sis sole provider of its race Day Data

SIS has become the sole supplier of core raceday data for Irish horse racing, UK horse racingfrom 20 courses, and UK greyhound racing, inaddition to its premier international horseracing. The vast majority of the online bettingmarket currently receive horse racing andgreyhound racing core race day data through SISor through contracted data distributors wherelicensing agreements have been in place.

SIS will be the sole exclusive provider of officialcore race day data for Irish horse racing, UKhorse racing (from 20 courses), and UKgreyhound racing (from 22 tracks), as well asproviding official core race day data for premierinternational racing from Dubai, Latin America,Singapore and Germany. This data will no longerbe available through other data suppliers, andcustomers will need to agree supply through SISto continue with these key data services.

As part of SIS’ strategic push to build content inthe online data market, customers now haveaccess to pricing services including early prices,with derivatives available soon, as well as

enhanced data services including form andtipping, and later next year – in-running datafor horseracing, an innovative new developmentfrom SIS, which will open up significant newbetting opportunities.Customers will also have access to SIS’streaming capability via its SIS Stream platform,offering content from UK greyhound racing,Latin America, Singapore, and Dubai horseracing, with Irish horse racing following soon.

Paul Witten, Commercial Director of SIS said:“This is a significant step forward for SIS,enabling more direct interactions with endcustomers and opening the door for new andexciting services. In order to facilitate theinitiative, our commercial and technical teamsare geared up and ready to initiate the newcommercial agreements and the required feedintegrations. We are in discussions with otherdata providers to agree transitionalarrangements to ensure that we minimise theimpact of these changes on affected customers,and that all customers can safely and effectivelymigrate over to the new services.”

Bulgaria

Bulgarian slot manufacturerEuro Games Technology hasbeen ranked as Bulgaria’s mostsuccessful company in the‘electrical equipment andcomponents production’segment and 12th mostsuccessful company overall.

It is the fourth consecutive timeit has been awarded theaccolade in Bulgaria’s TrueLeader awards –which ranks thetop 300 companies in Bulgaria.EGT has outpaced some of thelargest domestic key players inmining, FMCG, electricity supplyand distribution,telecommunications and otherindustries.

The competition is organised byICAP Bulgaria, part of ICAPGroup – the largest businessinformation and consultinggroup in Southeastern Europeand one of the few companiesrecognized as a Credit RatingAgency by the EuropeanSecurities and MarketsAuthority in the region.

SIS has exited licensing agreements with other providers of its horse racing andgreyhound racing data to the online bookmaker industry in the UK and Ireland,

becoming the sole provider of core race day data

CzECH REPuBLIC – GamingLaboratories International (GLI)has been awarded accreditationin the Czech Republic,becoming the first internationalgaming laboratory to earn thishonour. The achievement

further increases GLI’s activity across Europe andallows the company to provide assistance to theCzech Ministry of Finance and Gaming Board.

GLI’s Managing Director of GLI Europe and AfricaMartin Britton said: “We would like to thank theCzech Ministry of Finance and Gaming Board inawarding the first accreditation to GLI, and we wishthem every success. This will allow our valuedclients to move forward in this regulated market,and we would be happy for suppliers and operatorsto contact GLI as we have up-to-the-minuteinformation about the current regulation and variouscertification and audit requirements.

“We see the Czech Republic as a key regulatedjurisdiction for suppliers and operators movingforward,” he said. “Lending our global expertise is avital service we provide in our role as anindependent adviser in driving industry standards,providing a global approach to regulation in order toavoid reinventing the wheel. GLI has alwaysprovided standards across all products in thegaming arena, which are freely available on ourwebsite, to highlight the need for standardization.This is where our internal and international expertiseassists through our compliance teams. OurEuropean Compliance and Quality Assurance teamis headed by Compliance Manager Dennis Byram.”

GLI’s accreditation in the Czech Republic, coupledwith the recently published technical standardsallows current and potential licensees in the countryto begin the process right away.

AuSTRIA – APEX gaming hasannounced the appointment ofRicardo Gröhlich asInternational Sales Managerwith the initial focus being tosupport the APEX gaminggrowth in Europe.

Reporting directly to the Global Sales Director,Kubilay Özer, Mr. Gröhlich brings five years ofinternational sales experience with him that will puthim in good stead to support the sales growth atAPEX gaming.

He said: “Although I am new to the gaming industry,I have taken the time to research this dynamicmarket and have read time and again on thepopularity and success of APEX gaming products.This is a fast-moving company that makes adifference. I am proud to be part of the team. This isa perfect time to join with the most significant showjust around the corner.”

Mr. Özer added: “It is our company motto to take‘gaming to the next level’ and that is exactly whatwe are doing. Ricardo has the right aptitude and isfull of motivation and drive. He is a great fit and wewish him every success.”

emea

France’s tranchant group isrelocating its Pau casinolicence from Palais Beaumont,in the heart of thesouthwestern city to a brandnew building, in an industrialzone north of the city.

The relocation has beenapproved by the Pau(Pyrenees-Atlantiques)municipal council and will becompleted by the end of 2019.tranchant has been given a 20year extension on the licence.The 1,852sq.m occupied by the

present casino in the PalaisBeaumont had become toosmall for the SAS Pau Loisirsand had prevented furtherdevelopment. It also sufferedfrom a lack of parking andaccessibility. The new casinowill be housed in a morecommercial area close tocommunication routes, such asthe A64 motorway, LaPyrénéenne. It will also havetwo large parking areas oneither side of the casino.

The future 5,000 m2 casinowill cost €11m. The city of Pauhas agreed to reduce themunicipal levy from 15 to 10per cent as part of the deal. Construction work will start inApril 2018 and will end inOctober 2019 with the casinoopening in November.

Tranchant to relocatePau licence from PalaisBeaumont

France

The proposed £50m ChelmsfordCasino would be located in thenew five-floor grandstandbuilding of the City racecourse.

uK CASINO LICENSING

Betfred’s Bid for Chelmsford racino

Betfred, Chelmsford City racecourse’s majoritystakeholder, has been given the green light bythe City Council to create a new casino at thecourse that will occupy one floor of around3,000sq.m. ten open air concerts have also beenapproved.

The council’s Director of SustainableCommunities, David Green, said: “Given theplanning history and also the remoteness of thebuilding from residential properties, there is nosound planning reason to limit the hours of useof the casino. Whilst it is recognised that casinosby their nature tend to operate late into thenight, the number of visitors to the site duringunsociable hours is not likely to be high.”

The project will need to secure a casino licencefrom the British Gambling Commission. Oncecompleted it will see Chelmsford become thefirst racino in the UK and the first racecourse inEurope to offer floodlit racing on turf.

Joe Scanlon, racecourse Chairman, said: “This isfantastic news. Over the course of the last fewyears the leading casinos across the world havebeen changing into multi-purpose complexesoffering a full range of facilities to complementtheir gambling options. Here at Chelmsford wewill be the first to offer a fully integratedracecourse ‘resort’ or leisure destination with

entertainment. The grandstand project is asexciting now as it was when first envisaged andhas not dated in that time.

“The racegoers on the upper floors of thegrandstand will have uninterrupted viewing ofboth tracks, being able to look over the top ofthe existing low level hospitality stand.Development can now take place withoutdisrupting Chelmsford City Racecourse’sexisting busy racing schedule.”

Managing Director Phil Siers added: “A leadingdevelopment like this can only lead to biggerand better support for our racetrack. We lookforward to the day we are offering a minimumprize fund of £100,000 per meeting and regularturf and all-weather racing.”

Betfred, the majority stakeholder at theChelmsford racecourse, said, “This is an excitingproject that will create more than 100 jobs.

“It’s a substantial investment in the race track,providing under cover facilities as many racegoers demand. We hope the plans are given thego-ahead and we can bring a higher standard ofraces to Chelmsford.”

Construction work on the new grandstand isexpected to start next year.

romania

BetConstruct has secured aClass II software provider’slicence from the RomanianNational Gambling Office(ONJN). BetConstruct will nowbe able to supply its platform toall online gaming operators inRomania’s regulated market.“BetConstruct views Romania asa significant and forward-looking jurisdiction. With theONJN license we are bringingour powerful betting technologyto local operators enabling themto stand-out in this importantmarket,” said BetConstruct CEOVahe Baloulian. This licence adds toBetConstruct’s licences grantedby the UK GamblingCommission, Malta GamblingAuthority and otherjurisdictions which all allowBetConstruct to help its partnersmeet necessary requirements foroperating in different regions.

Chelmsford City racecourse has been given the green light by Chelmsford CityCouncil to open a casino with majority stakeholder Betfred taking the leademea

Finnish and Austrian gamingbrands RAY and win2day havesigned a ground-breakingagreement to share cross-border poker liquidity onPlaytech’s iPoker-powerednetwork. In an industry-first,the respective Finnish andAustrian gaming brands willjoin forces to launch a jointpoker network using liquidityfrom both player bases. Thiswill instantly double thenumber of customers playingthe widest variety of omni-channel poker products via thePlaytech-powered network.

This is the first time that tworegulated entities have joined

forces to share cross-borderpoker liquidity. Followingwin2day meeting theresponsibility standardsimposed by RAY and theFinnish authorities, theliquidity sharing agreementwas approved by the FinnishMinistry of Interior onDecember 8. RAY haspreviously had to limit itsonline poker to Finnish playersonly.

Playtech has worked with bothbrands for several years. RAY,Finland’s Slot MachineAssociation, has partneredwith Playtech since 2010,setting the benchmark in theNordic region and establishingthe country’s leading gamingoperation, while Playtech hasworked closely with win2daysince 2015, providing theAustrian Lotteries and CasinosAustria-owned brand with anew poker network.

Playtech powersindustry-first RAy-win2day

Finland


ISRAEL – Israel’s High Court of Justice has ruledthat lottery company Mifal Hapayis can turn its slotmachines back on after the Finance Ministry shutthem down.

Justice yoram Danzinger ruled that the company’s650 machines should stay in operation whilst thesector is reviewed. The estate is made up of 500slots and 150 keno machines.

Mifal Hapayis petitioned the High Court, claimingthe machines were shut down without prior noticeand this had seriously harmed their incomes. Alawyer for the operator said: “Bettors continue togamble, but instead of the money going to MifalHapayis, which builds schools, it’s going into thepockets of loan sharks of the underworld. Thetreasury may want to save gamblers, but it’scausing them to sink deeper into the mud withloans from the gray market.”

LuxEMBouRG – Cloud-based gaming solutionsprovider, Certus Technologies,has employed GeorgePaterakis to head up its GlobalSupport organisation. Georgebrings over 20 years of

experience in the gaming industry, both on theoperations and supply side of the business.

Kurt Quartier, Chief Commercial Officer for Certuscommented: “Having worked with George veryclosely over the years, I am extremely pleased tohave him join the team. George will be tasked withtaking care of our most valuable asset, ourcustomers. George’s organisational skills andattention to detail will play a major role in growingCertus to be the leading provider of marketing-driven gaming solutions.”

George Paterakis added: “I am very excited aboutthe potential of our solutions and the positiveimpact they could have for our customers. I lookforward to meeting up with our everyone at ICE2017 in London.”

SPAIN – NMi Gaming hasappointed Andrés Méndez asHead of Penetration andVulnerability Testing Serviceswithin their Business Securityteam.

Mr Méndez, who will be based in Spain, joins NMi’shighly successful business security and auditingteam, who are responsible for contributing to NMI’ssuccess in the field of security, auditing and PCItesting services.

Simon Fowler, Business Security Manager, said: “Aswe journey with our most successful customersthrough a number of challenging regulatorylandscapes, the demand for global standards isclear: regulators do not want to reinvent the wheel.PCI services represent the gold standard oftechnical security assessments and we welcomeAndrés into this key new role which will help ourcustomers and regulators understand the level ofrisk that is associated with offering e-commerceservices on the world stage.”

The latest large casino licence toopen in the UK went live inJanuary in the city of Leeds with24 tables, 140 slots and 75 EGMs

uK CASINO OPERATIONS

spectacular Victoria Gate Casino Opens

The grand opening date for the multi-millionpound Victoria Gate Casino, with its distinct barand restaurant offering, took place as G3 went topress on January 26, 2017. A full report on thelocation, the largest casino in the north ofEngland and Scotland, will follow in the nextissue of G3. However, from first impressions onopening night, the new casino is immediatelyone of the ‘top Three’ casinos in the country.

Victoria Gate Casino, which is operated byGlobal Gaming Ventures, becomes the third-largest casino in the UK. GGV was awarded thelarge casino licence in Leeds back in May 2013.

Patrick Noakes, Venue Director (pictured above)said: “Leeds has never seen an entertainmentdestination like this before. We can’t wait forpeople to step through the doors and see thespectacular space for themselves. It’s a game-changer – not just for casino fans, but for thecity as a whole.

Victoria Gate Casino will strengthen Leeds’already diverse entertainment, dining andnightlife offering and will provide so much morethan just gaming. The £30m split-level build is astunning space, filled with the latest Novomatic,IGt and SG Gaming machines.

“Our three distinct venues – Live Bar, Curve andV Restaurant – will play a pivotal role in that.Live Bar and Curve have attracted partnershipswith Molson Coors and Moët and Chandon toprovide a top quality drinks menu whilst V Restaurant will put the best regional produceat the heart of its offering.”

Live Bar acts as the hub of the casino, with wall-to-wall, state-of-the-art screens displaying thelatest sport action. Meanwhile, Curve is thevenue’s cocktail, champagne and craft beer barthat overlooks the casino floor and offers arotating menu. V Restaurant offers visitors aninformal brasserie style setting with a menu thatshowcases the best produce from acrossYorkshire along with a top quality wine list.

With a capacity of 1,400, Victoria Gate Casinowill be one of the biggest entertainment venuesin the city, with a 100-player poker room, 24 livegaming tables, 140 slot machines and 75electronic gaming terminals.

The casino, which is the first and only ‘supercasino’ in the north of the country, occupies50,000 sq ft and sits alongside the John Lewisdepartment store at the top of the city’s newVictoria Gate development.

austria

Novomatic has ended years ofnegotiations with theannounced that at the resolutionof the Annual General Meetingof Casinos Austria AG (CASAG),the conditions precedent for theacquisition of the shares of MTBprivate foundation in theCasinos Austria AG to theamount of 17.2 per cent havebeen met, paving the way for aneffective takeover of the shares.

Novomatic CEO HaraldNeumann commented on thehistoric moment: “The entry ofNovomatic as a new Austrianshareholder is an important stepfor a stable and sustainable coreshareholder structure for theCasinos Austria Group. As aleading international andglobally recognized gamingtechnology company we areinterested in a valuableinvestment and positivedevelopment of CASAG.”

‘Game-changer’ new casino opens as the first large casino licence to open in theNorth of England, ‘strengthening the city as a whole’

HoLLAND – SUZOHAPP hasappointed Giovanni Milanesi asnew Product Manager forComponents within the EMARegion. With 10 years’experience within the paymentsystem technology, Giovanni

brings to his new role extensive knowledge andvaluable expertise in product management. Hisprimary responsibility will be to work on all aspectsof development of SUZOHAPP components,defining product roadmaps and life cyles. He willinterface between the market and the productteam, leading the effort to understand customerneeds and defining requirements for new products.In addition, Giovanni will assess the market andidentify cross-selling opportunities, in coordinationwith the group’s product management.

Since 2006, Giovanni has held managementpositions as Project Leader and later as Head ofProduct Management and Innovation atComestero, a leading provider of electronicpayment systems and self-service equipment.

emea

The UK’s Revenue andCustoms department, theHMRC, plans to implementnew rules related to free bets,discounted betting andfreeplays in the forthcomingFinance Bill 2017. The changesin tax legislation are expectedto come into effect fromaccounting periods startingAugust 1, 2017.

The changes would seegambling operators required toaccount for duty when acustomer places a free bet or areduced-rate bet. The duty is tobe calculated on the amount ofmoney that would have beenpaid by the customer incircumstances in which thespecial free bet or reduced-rate

bet offer has not been active.

HMRC is also redefining andamending what constitutes asa ‘prize.’ The change willensure that in future operatorscannot use the value of free-plays granted to customers asprizes in order to reduce theprofit that’s subject to dutypayments.

The amendments will applynot only to land-basedgambling operators, but also tothe ones who have theiroperations offered on theInternet, by television, radio,telephone as well as any otherelectronic communication andare subject to remote gamingduty.

The HMRC estimates anadditional £45m will be raisedby the tax changes expectedover the 2017/2018 fiscal yearand £110m by the fiscal2020/2021.

HMRC seeks to imposefree-bets tax changesin Finance Bill 2017

uk

RuSSIA – Stylgame has added anotherprestigious project to its international installations,thanks to an agreement with Sochi Casino &Resort, the first world-class casino in the south ofRussia. Sochi Casino & Resort is the firstentertainment complex of a global scale located inKrasnaya Polyana, Sochi. The new complex hasunique concept for Russia in spirit of the bestcasinos of Las Vegas and Macau, and includescasino with 569 slots and 70 tables, poker club,bars and restaurants, conference facilities, and itsown Velvet theatre.

Stylgame, has always prided itself with its "Made inItaly" quality known throughout the world, anddescribes this top class project as the crown jewelof the mountain resort of Gorky Gorod. “Manycustomers are choosing our company thanks tothe excellent quality and customisation of ourseats," stated Mr. Iulita, CEO of Stylgame. "SochiCasino & Resort selected StylGame for our abilityto quickly develop customisations in line withoriginal idea of their architect, engaging our R&Ddeptment in the study and prototyping of newtailormade projects." StylGame company isworking to further develop the bond with SochiCasino & Resort for its next projects.


AuSTRIA – Bernhard Krumpelhas assumed the position asthe new Head of GroupCommunications forNovomatic. Mr. Krumpel willcoordinate public relations forNOVOMATIC and is responsible

for the corporate image of the NOVOMATIC Group incoordination with the subsidiaries, and reports tothe General Secretary of the Group. In his priorfunction, Mr. Bernhard Krumpel headed GroupCommunications of HyPO NOE Group Bank AG.

Mr. Krumpel succeeds Dr. Hannes Reichmann. Inhis new position as Head of Group OperationsMarketing, Dr. Hannes Reichmann is nowresponsible for the strategic brand alignment of alloperating subsidiaries.


La Chambre des députés de la province deBuenos Aires, en Argentine, vient d'entériner lenouveau budget 2017 du Gouverneur María Euge-nia Vidal. Ce nouveau budget prévoit un nombreimportant de changements dans la taxation desjeux d'argent dans la province. Les taxes sur lesrevenus bruts des salles de jeux et de bingo vont,par cette nouvelle loi, augmenter de 2 à 3 %, pouratteindre une taxation à hauteur de 15 %. Les 46salles de bingo de la région devront en outre main-tenant faire payer un droit d'entrée de 20 pesos àchaque client.

une nouvelle loi actuellement à l'étude auMexique pourrait autoriser l'installation de casinossur les bateaux de croisière. Selon les lois actuelles,les casinos des bateaux de croisière n'ont pas ledroit d'ouvrir leurs portes aux passagers lorsqu'ilssont à quai dans les ports mexicains ou lorsqu'ilsnaviguent dans les eaux mexicaines sauf en casd'autorisation préalable accordée par le Ministèrede l'Intérieur.

alfredo Cornejo, Gouverneur de la province de Mendoza, vient de fermer un casino situé dansla ville de La Consulta. Ce casino s'était vu accorderune licence il y a 10 ans dans le but de développerle tourisme dans la région. Les autorités ont toute-fois affirmé que le casino n'a pas atteint le but fixéd'attirer des touristes mais a favorisé l'augmenta-tion des paris dans cette petite ville qui compte8000 habitants.

Le sénateur José María Martínez, membre duParti d'action nationale (PAN) a demandé au Min-istère de l'Intérieur mexicain (SEGOB) de soumettreun rapport au Sénat sur le nombre de casinosactuellement exploités au Mexique ainsi que sur lenombre exact de candidatures reçues pour l'ouver-ture d'établissements supplémentaires.

Le plan directeur d'aménagement urbain duprojet BNC World Barcelone, en Espagne, vientd'être approuvé. Les opérateurs Hard Rock, Melcoet Peralada ont trois mois pour soumettre leurspropositions au gouvernement catalan.

Le développement du complexe time squareà Menlyn Maine, dans la ville de Tshwane, un projetde construction de 4 milliards de rands mené parSun International, est en bonne voie. Le casinodevrait ouvrir ses portes comme convenu en avril2017.

Le casino polonia-Wrocław, filiale polonaised'Olympic Entertainment Group, qui exploitaitl'Olympic Casino Sunrise, le casino phare d'OEG àVarsovie jusqu'en septembre 2016, vient de faireun dépôt de bilan au tribunal.

L'opérateur russe Domain LLC vient d'ouvrirle premier casino à Krasnaïa Poliana, près de la villede Sotchi, dans la région de Krasnodar, région oùles paris sont autorisés. Connu sous le nom deSochi Casino and Resort, ce complexe cinq étoilesvient d'ouvrir dans la station de ski de Gorky Gorodet compte 569 machines à sous et 70 tables dejeux, pour un investissement d'un montant total de4 milliards de roubles (66,3 millions de dollars US).

The US state of Georgia is toconsider the introduction of fivecasinos and a racino as part ofupcoming legislation

GeorGiA CASINO LICENSING

Georgia assembly to Consider Five CasinosAs Georgia’s General Assembly started a new 40-day legislative session in

January, proponents of bringing casino gambling to the state are hopeful the topicwill be central to the state’s future, with Wynn and MGM lobbying hard

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Carl Icahn has said he will sellthe shuttered taj Mahal casinoin Atlantic City as long as hemakes back the US$300m hehas lost on the casino. AtlanticCity’s mayor Don Guardiansaid that allowing such a hugebuilding to lie dormant on theBoardwalk was the ‘worst ofthe worst.’

The mayor said Icahn should‘sell it, make a profit and moveon.’ “He doesn’t have any faithin the city, I get it,” MayorGuardian said. “But don’t let uslose that building on theBoardwalk. We need thatactivity and those jobs.”

However, Mr. Icahn respondedby saying: “telling us weshould sell the taj and make aprofit is easier said than done.We’ve lost almost $300m onthat investment. If he’s a buyer

at that price, I’d be a happyseller.” He also asked wherethe mayor was last summerwhen the strike forced him toshut the casino’s doors.

“Some help back then wouldhave been nice,” he said.The venue closed on October10 following a strike by itsemployees called by Local 54of the Unite-HERE union.

The New Jersey Division ofGaming Enforcement hasconfirmed that Mr. Icahn hadapplied for permission tosurrender the taj Mahal’scasino license on December22. It coincided with statelegislators looking to punishhim for closing the casino withnew laws that will penaliseany owner who shuts down anAtlantic City casino afterJanuary 2016, withdrawingtheir gaming licence for fiveyears. The new legislation wasput forward by state SenatePresident Steve Sweeney, whois also a union official. Mr.Icahn slammed the Legislatureas being ‘at war with business.’

War of wordscontinues over TajMahal closure

new Jersey

uS

IGT has extended its multi-yearcontract with the Idaho Lotteryto continue providing ScratchGames printing services throughMarch 2019. This is the second,two-year extension that hasbeen exercised on the existingcontract and was unanimouslyapproved by the Idaho LotteryCommission. In addition toproviding Scratch Gamesprinting services to the IdahoLottery, IGT will continue tosupport the Lottery with relatedproducts and services includinggame planning, ticket design,marketing support, andanalytics. IGT currently providesover 70 per cent of printing forthe Idaho Lottery’s ScratchGames, resulting in responsible,incremental sales growth yearafter year. Together, IGT and theIdaho Lottery have workedclosely to deliver a portfolio ofgames with fun, new play styles.In 2016, the Idaho Lottery brokerecords, returning $49.5m toIdaho public schools and thePermanent Building Fund, a 10per cent increase from 2015.

Georgia Senator Brandon Beach plans tointroduce a proposal to introduce five casinosand one horse racing track in the upcominglegislative. The most recent polls in the statesuggest that a majority of voters want casinos tobe introduced in Georgia.

A poll by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution saw56 per cent of registered voters support theintroduction of casinos with only 38 per centagainst them. Senator Beach requires two-thirdsof the House and Senate to agree to then put theissue to voters in a 2018 referendum. He said:“I’m a Republican. There’s nothing morerepublican or conservative than allowing votersto decide if they would like to pursue this.”

His bill will propose a 12 per cent tax on grossgaming revenue although that figure willprobably have to increase to be approved by theGeneral Assembly. Casinos in Maryland aretaxed at up to 67 per cent. Senator Beach hasproposed that the state be split into fourgeographic zones: I-20 to the north, CoastalGeorgia, Middle Georgia and South Georgia. He

said a ‘primary’ license would be granted to aleading casino operator, with a minimuminvestment of $1bn in a new resort casino within25 miles of Hartsfield-Jackson InternationalAirport. It would be allowed an unlimitednumber of gaming positions.

The bill would then offer four secondarylicenses each with a minimum investment of$250m, which would allow 2,000 gamingpositions and a racino horse track license with aminimum $150m investment, giving 1,500gaming positions. The secondary licensed casinowould not be located within 50 miles of theprimary licensed casino. The new gamingvenues would be regulated by a division of theGeorgia Lottery Corporation, which would alsobe in charge of awarding the licenses.

MGM Resorts and Wynn Resorts are lobbyingGeorgia’s legislators to let voters decide on aconstitutional amendment allowing casinos.Supporters believe that the success of MGM’sNational Harbor in Maryland, which opened inearly December, could help sway opinion.


novomatic vient d'annoncer via la résolutionde l'assemblée générale ordinaire du groupe Casi-nos Austria AG (CASAG) que les conditionsdéterminant l'acquisition d'actions de la fondationprivée MTB dans le capital de Casinos Austria AG àhauteur de 17,2 % ont été remplies, laissant ainsiprésager une future transaction efficace.

Brandon Beach, sénateur de l'état de Géorgie, prévoit de présenter une loi visant àautoriser la construction de cinq casinos et d'unhippodrome lors des prochaines élections législa-tives. Les tout derniers sondages effectués danscet état montrent qu'une majorité d'électeurs veu-lent introduire des casinos dans la région.

iGt vient de prolonger son contrat pluriannuel avec la loterie de l'Idaho pour continuerà lui proposer ses services d'impression de cartes àgratter jusqu'en mars 2019. Il s'agit de la deuxièmeprolongation de contrat pour une durée de deuxans qui vient s'ajouter au contrat d'origine et elle aété approuvée à l'unanimité par la Commission dela loterie de l'Idaho.

Gene simmons et paul stanley, du groupe de rock KISS, viennent d'annoncer qu'ils ont établiun partenariat avec la nation Kaw, en Oklahoma,pour construire un casino sur la terre tribale près dela frontière du Kansas, dans la ville de Braman. Lestravaux du casino, qui s'appellera le Rock & BrewsCasino, ont commencé en janvier.

Les fondateurs et développeurs d'alon LasVegas viennent de réaffirmer qu'ils continuentd'explorer toutes les options pour faire avancer leprojet et optimiser sa valeur pour l'ensemble desparties prenantes. Crown Resorts, le principalpartenaire financier et stratégique d'Alon, a toute-fois choisi de ne pas continuer à soutenir le projetAlon Las Vegas pour le moment.

La société malaisienne podiumspot CapitalGroup vient de commencer les travaux de ce quidevrait être le bateau de croisière et de casino leplus grand au monde, le Crusino. Sa constructiondevrait durer trois ans. Le Crusino mesurera 295mètres de long, 36 mètres de large et pourraaccueillir jusqu'à 3200 passagers.

Le gouvernement vietnamien est en traind'entamer un processus pour redéfinir son secteurdu jeu et a ainsi abandonné l'interdiction d'entréequi avait été requise contre des citoyens dans deuxcasinos, l'un situé à Van Don et l'autre à Phu Quoc,après un procès qui a duré trois ans.

La Mongolie souhaite autoriser l'installationde deux casinos étrangers uniquement puisqu'ellevoudrait elle-même obtenir une part du marchédes jeux en Asie. Un comité permanent judiciairevient de créer un groupe de travail dirigé par leparlementaire L. Enkhbold afin de rédiger despropositions de lois pour développer les complexesde casinos.

new silkroad Culturaltainment vient d'annoncer que son casino du Jeju KAL Hotel, enCorée du Sud, vient d'être officiellement renommé"MegaLuck". MegaLuck dispose actuellementd'une table de roulette, de deux tables de BlackJack, de 25 tables de Baccarat et de 24 machinesde jeux électroniques.

The second Kaw Nation casino willbe located in Sooner State near theKansas state line in the town ofBraman.

oKlAHomA OPERATIONS

Kaw nation and Kiss to Build new Casino

Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of the rockband KISS have announced a partnership withthe The Kaw Nation tribe in Oklahoma to build acasino on sovereign tribal land near the Kansasstate line in the town of Braman. Work on thecasino, which will be called the Rock & BrewsCasino, began in January.

Simmons and Stanley are co-founders andglobal ambassadors of the Rock & Brewsrestaurant chain, which recently opened alocation at San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino inCalifornia, the first in Indian Country. Rock &Brews already has more than a dozen restaurantlocations throughout the US and two in Mexico.

Kaw Nation Chairwoman Jacque SecondineHensley said: “The Kaw Nation is announcing anunprecedented opportunity to partner withlegendary Rock & Roll Hall of Famers PaulStanley and Gene Simmons of KISS, famedrestaurateur/hotelier Michael Zislis, and concertindustry veterans Dave and Dell Furano todevelop a first-of-its-kind destination resortcasino & hotel project with Rock & Brews,headquartered in Manhattan Beach, California.

This partnership with Rock & Brews will providethe Kaw Nation with the opportunity to again bethe prime gaming and entertainmentdestination in our market,” she added.

“We are on a very clear and quick path to thelong-awaited, much-anticipated developmentof an opportunity to again become the industryleader in our market for gaming andentertainment. Our ultimate and ever-presentgoal is to provide more direct services for ourKaw tribal Citizens and move forward to a self-sustaining future.

“Although we are proceeding quickly, we areproceeding with the utmost diligence ensuringthe best interest of the Nation and each of itsCitizens is the primary focus,” concluded Ms.Secondine Hensely.

As well as their involvement at San ManuelIndian Bingo and Casino,the band members ofKISS have enjoyed a healthy relationship withthe casino industry having teamed up withWMS Gaming in 2013 to develop a KISS-themedslot machine.

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The International Associationof Gaming Advisors (IAGA)will hold the 2017International Gaming SummitMay 30-June 1, 2017 at the JWMarriott Essex House hotel inNew York City.

As a premier event that bringstogether leaders andregulators from all globalgaming sectors, theInternational Gaming Summitprovides operators, suppliers,attorneys, investors, bankers,regulators and other advisorsan unparalleled opportunity tomeet and discuss the topissues facing gaming today. IAGA President MichaelCohen. “As our Association’sfirst Summit in New York, weare confident that ourinternational delegates willappreciate the opportunity tohear from many of theseleaders on how current trendsin each field will impactgaming.”

The Kaw Nation tribe in Oklahoma is teaming up with Gene Simmons and PaulStanley of the band KISS to build a casino on sovereign tribal land nOrth america

The founders and developers ofAlon Las Vegas have reaffirmedthat they are continuing toexplore all options to advancethe project and optimise thevalue for its stakeholders.Crown Resorts, however, theprincipal financial and strategicpartner of Alon, has elected notto move forward with the AlonLas Vegas project.

Crown’s departure from theproject was described byAndrew Pascal, co-Charimanand CEO of Alon as “A little bitabrupt,” - but also stated thatthe discussions of an exit had

‘been progressing for the betterpart of the last six months.’

The Alon site is one of the mostcompelling new developmentopportunities on the Strip. It ispositioned directly across fromWynn Las Vegas and Encoreand bordered by Fashion Showmall, trump tower and thenew Resorts World Las Vegasdevelopment. Having investedtwo years in the programmeplanning, design, development,pre-construction andentitlement process, the Alonresort project has beenthoroughly vetted and isconsidered “shovel-ready.”

The Alon team is comprised ofan accomplished and diversegroup of industry experts, all ofwhom remain committed tothe project and to realising thebest possible outcome.

Alon Vegas still ontrack despite Crown’sabrupt departure

las Vegas

GGR came in at $133,477,706m.The previous revenue record wasset in May 2016,when five casinosgenerated $104,351,219m

mArylAnD CASINO OPERAITONS

MGM national harbor Breaks state record

Maryland’s six casinos generated record-breaking figures in December, despite the factthat the MGM National Harbor in PrinceGeorge’s County was only partially open duringthe month, having debuted on December 8.However, it generated $41,934,028 from bothslots and tables in just over three weeks. Theaverage daily GGR per slot in December at MGMNational Harbor was $313.59. Each tablegenerated an average of $5,343.76 for bankedtable games and $1,508.57 for non-banked tablegames. MGM National Harbor operates 3,237slots and 165 (126 banked and 39 non-banked)table games.

Bill Boasberg, General Manager of MGMNational Harbor, said: “In a little over threeweeks, our performance exceeded ourexpectations. Clearly the introduction of our$1.4bn resort grew the casino market and wasreceived warmly by our customers.”

Maryland Lottery and Gaming Director GordonMedenica added: “We anticipated thatDecember would be a record-breaking month,and we are tremendously enthusiastic about thefuture of Maryland’s casino programme. MGM

National Harbor is an outstanding facility in anideal location, and we are confident that itssuccess will fuel the continued growth ofrevenue that supports vital state programs.”

The new casino generated $12.6m for theMaryland Education trust Fund. December sawanother three casinos in Maryland; namelyHorseshoe Casino Baltimore, Casino at OceanDowns and Rocky Gap Casino post revenueincreases. Only Hollywood Casino Perryvilleand Maryland Live Casino posted decreases.Whilst posting a decrease compared toDecember’s totals last year, Maryland LiveCasino remained the state’s biggest earner,totaling $48,032,057 from both slots and tablesin December. Horseshoe Casino Baltimoregenerated $29,749,282 whilst Hollywood CasinoPerryville generated $6,094,963.

Horseshoe General Manager Erin Chamberlinsaid; “We’re very pleased with our Decemberresults, particularly in light of the newcompetition within the marketplace. As webegin 2017, we’re confident we are wellpositioned to succeed as the businessenvironment continues to evolve.”

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MGM Resorts has appointedJohn Kilroy, Jr. to the company’sBoard of Directors, which is nowcomprised of 12 members. Mr.Kilroy is the Chairman,President and CEO of KilroyRealty Corporation, one of thelargest, vertically integratedREITs on the West Coast, whoseportfolio spans some of thestrongest, most desirablemarkets in the US. “Mr. Kilroy’ssubstantial experienceencompasses commercial realestate development,acquisitions, construction,leasing, and financing. Hisdistinguished knowledge of realestate, strong business acumen,public company experience andproven track record towardcreating shareholder value bycreating environments thatattract innovators in technologyand media, will bring a uniqueand complementary perspectiveto our company and ourshareholders,” said Jim Murren,Chairman and CEO of MGM.

The opening of MGM National Harbor towards the end of the year ensured thatMaryland’s six casinos generated a record-breaking month in December 2016

uS – Galaxy Gaming hasconfirmed Todd Cravens as itsnew Vice-President ofBusiness Development.Cravens assumes responsibilityfor expanding Galaxy’sbusiness in the US and in

markets around the world, with a focus on coreservices and new products. With over 25 years ofexperience in both the amusement and gamingindustries, Cravens most recently served as ChiefExecutive of the Americas for TCSJohnHuxley.

Robert Saucie, Chief Executive of Galaxy,commented: “Todd’s skills and experience is ideallysuited to the duties, responsibilities and authoritiesassociated with the newly-created position of vice-president of business development. We areextremely fortunate to have someone with Todd’simpressive credentials, expertise and enthusiasmand we look forward to his future contributions.”

uS – Konami Gaming hasnamed Steve Sutherland as itsnew President and CEO as partof a series of key promotionssurrounding its executiveleadership team.

Mr. Sutherland succeeds Satoshi Sakamoto as hetransitions to the role of Senior Executive Director ofthe parent entity Konami Holdings Corporation. Hehas been a fundamental contributor to Konami’sestablishment, growth, and success since he joinedthe company in 2000, and now provides centralleadership to all aspects of the organisation in hisrole as president and CEO.

Long-recognised for their commitment andcontributions to Konami and the industry as awhole, the following executive appointments andpromotions are also announced: Thomas A. Jingoli,Executive Vice President and Chief CommercialOfficer; Kazuya Kozuki, Executive Vice President andChief Financial Officer; Thomas Soukup, Senior VicePresident and Chief Systems Product Officer; andyuji Taniguchi, Senior Vice President and ChiefGames Product and Strategy Officer.

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Atlantic City’s seven casinos collectively posted their first revenue increasein a decade with only two of the remaining casinos posting a fall during2016. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement confirmed that GGRreached $2.6bn in 2016, marking an increase of 1.5 per cent from a yearearlier and the first time the market has increased since 2006 back in thedays before Pennsylvania’s casino market and when Atlantic City had 12casinos. In comparison, Pennsylvania’s Gaming Control Board ispredicting that its 2016 GGR will hit $3.2bn.

Matthew Levinson, Chairman and CEO of the Casino Control Commission,said: “I look forward to this trend continuing in 2017. These are somestrong numbers, especially with all the bad news about Atlantic City’s‘demise.’ There’s a lot of good news here. We have some stronger casinosnow, and Internet gambling continues to increase. The hope is we’reentering a stable environment now. The year 2016 went out with a bang atthe casinos, thanks to a 15 per cent jump in casino revenue for December.Having New Year’s Eve on a Saturday night, and plain old good luck,provided a big boost for the casinos in December. Every casino licenseereported increased revenue – including two that are Internet-onlylicensees. Even when results from the now-closed Trump Taj Mahal areincluded in the figures, December was still up by 8.6 per cent compared tothe year before.”

Internet gambling revenue played its part, increasing in New Jersey overthe year by more than 32 per cent to almost $197m. Borgata led the wayonline with revenues of $47m, followed by Golden Nugget with $42.2m,Caesars with $38.6m,Tropicana with $36.9m and Resorts with $31.7m.

new Jersey

Atlantic City first annual increase in a decade


uS – Everi Holdings hasappointed accomplishedgaming equipment supplierexecutive, Dean Ehrlich, asExecutive Vice President andGames Business Leader,effective January 1, 2017. Mr.

Ehrlich, who will report directly to Everi’s Presidentand CEO, Michael Rumbolz, has served as aconsultant to the company since August 1, 2016.

As Executive Vice President and Games BusinessLeader, Mr. Ehrlich has direct responsibilities for thecompany’s games business, including oversight ofthe game development studios located in Austin,Chicago and Reno, manufacturing and assembly,and Everi’s gaming operations including the Newyork Lottery central system operation. He assumesthese responsibilities from David Lucchese who wasrecently appointed Executive Vice President, Digitaland Interactive Business Leader, a new position atthe company.


Three year trial to allow locals toplay in domestic casinos couldspark new interest from investorsand operators in the country

VieTnAm LEGISLATION

Vietnam trials Locals Casino play

Government green lights casino entry so thatVietnamese citizens may be allowed to enter anew casino at the Van Don SpecialAdministrative-Economic Zone in northernQuang Ninh province on a trial basis.

The Vietnamese Prime Minister, Nguyen XuânPhúc, explained in briefing with Quang Ninhauthorities on December 22, that thegovernment has green lit casino entry forVietnamese citizens as part of a three-year trialat two casinos in the country. The Politburo’sdecision will allow Vietnamese people to enter anew casino at the Van Don SpecialAdministrative-Economic Zone in northernQuang Ninh province and the Phu Quoc casinoon a trial basis.

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) in September saidthat local people should not be allowed to entercasinos, even though the country’s seniorleadership had already given the green light tolifting the ban several years ago.

In its latest draft decree submitted last month tothe government for approval, MoF insisted that

only foreigners and Vietnamese with foreignpassports should be allowed to gamble incasinos in Vietnam.

News of the government finally moving forwardwith gambling regulations for locals will revivehopes for both local business and investors. Figures from Nielsen released in May show thatnearly 60 per cent of Vietnam’s population areunder the age of 35 and the number ofuniversity graduates has increased by 60 percent within the last decade. Boston ConsultingGroup (BCG) forecasts the population of themiddle class and wealthy in Vietnam will morethan double in the 2014-2020 period, from 12million to 33 million.

Recent figures from the Ministry of Financeshow that there are seven licensed casinobusinesses in Vietnam, but most are of small-scale with investment capital under $50m. Onlytwo large-scale projects - Ho tram Strip, with aninvestment of $4bn, which came into operationin 2013, and a project at the South Hoi An Resortin Quang Nam province - are still within large-scale investment plans.

tasmania

A Coalition of 42 church, union,council and community groupshas called for the completeremoval of poker machines fromclubs and pubs in Tasmania.Among them, the CommunityVoice for Poker Reform coalitionwants poker machines totallyremoved from pubs and clubs, afreeze on the number ofmachines in casinos and a $1 betlimit in those venues. It hasproposed that the StateGovernment funds a transitionplan to wean venues off pokiesrevenue. The group says pokermachines take $200m a yearfrom Tasmanians.

In its response to the inquiry, theTasmanian Tourism IndustryCouncil called on the StateGovernment to leave pokermachine licences as they were,or risk disrupting the viability ofvenues. It called for the FederalHotels Group to be given licenceextensions for its two casinosand a third casino licence to beissued to Mona.

Starting the process of redefining its gaming industry the Vietnamese government is dropping its ban on citizens entering two casinos, one in

Van Don and another in Phu Quoc, as part of a three-year trial

MALAySIA – Malaysian company PodiumspotCapital Group has started work on what it says willbe the world’s largest casino cruise ship, called theCrusino. It is expected to take three years to build.Crusino will measures 295m in length and 36m inwidth and will accommodate up to 3,200passengers.

T. Leonard, the CEO of Podiumspot said: “Theconstruction cost is estimated about US$560mand will be either carried out at shipyards in China orVietnam. The project is undertaken by Podiumspot,which is a company incorporated in Malaysia andare the owners of Crusino Cruise Services. A host ofother facilities will also be available on Crusino andincludes a swimming pool, jacuzzi, restaurants,cafés, bars, shopping outlets, a theatre, a library, aspa, sauna and a fitness centre.

Crusino is scheduled to embark on its maidenvoyage in April 2020. The casino, which claims tobe the largest at sea, will be housed on two specialdecks, will comprise slots, table games, live gamesand sports betting. Each stateroom will come with aTV screen dedicated to playing live casino gamesfrom the comfort of the rooms.

INDIA – The third casino in the Indian state ofSikkim was opened on January 14, 2017 by localoperator, Delta Corp, with guests now able to visitthe Casino Deltin Denzong Gangtok, in the capital ofthe state.

The opening ceremony was attended by theMinister of Civil Aviation Hugueney Gyatso, theMinister of Culture and Heritage GM Gurung. DeltaCorp received the license for the casino six monthsprior to the opening. The company operates severalgambling establishments in Goa - the first Indianstate to allow some form of casino games. After thecompany announced the construction of CasinoDeltin Denzong, the value of its shares significantlyincreased .

aSia & Oceania

South Korean operatorParadise Co bounced back in2016 with GGR reachingKRW603.1bn (US $509m) forthe 12 months endingDecember 31, 2016, marking a6.2 per cent increase from2015’s figures.

Paradise, who operates four ofthe 17 casinos in South Korea,reported a 7.2 per cent increasein table game revenue toKRW567.7bn whilst slots fellby 7.3 per cent to KRW36bn.Paradise operates the foursmall casinos; Walkerhill inSeoul, Incheon Casino atIncheon, Jeju Grand on JejuIsland, and Busan Casino inBusan.

Revenue in 2015 had fallen by14.7 per cent on 2014’s figures.

The last month of the year sawGGR increase by 10.3 per centto KRW43.7bn. The currentyear promises to be big forParadise Group as it will openan integrated resort (IR), thefirst of its kind anywhere inKorea, China, and Japan, inpartnership with Sega Sammy.

Paradise Chairman Phil-LipChun said: “Paradise City,Korea’s first large-scalecomprehensive tourism resortscheduled to open in 2017, willbe a milestone in the tourismindustry of Korea. Now, wehave an opportunity to movebeyond a second advance andbecome a global player. to beprepared for such possibility,we are promoting innovationof corporate management tobreak out of the old paradigmand practices across thebusiness structure, businessmethods, and corporateculture. With a vision ofbecoming Korea’srepresentative IR (IntegratedResort) by 2020 through suchefforts.”

Paradise returns toprofit ahead of its IRdevelopment

South korea

CHINA – Despite China’s crackdown on casinopromotional teams working in mainland China, ahost of Macau’s operators are now believed to haveresumed their marketing efforts. Crown Resortssaw 17 employees arrested in October last year foralleged breaches in sales and marketing for casinoactivities in China.

However Galaxy Entertainment, Las Vegas Sandsand MGM Grand have all resumed their marketingefforts in China.

Operators are allowed to promote if the focus is onnon-gaming activities such as theme parks, touristattractions and restaurants.

As Crown Resorts exits both itsAlon Vegas development andMelco Crown partnership,Lawrence Ho looks to the futureflying solo

mAcAu CASINO OPERATIONS

all hail the King as Melco Drops the CrownMelco Crown Entertainment has said it will dropCrown from its name after Melco Internationaltook a controlling interest by buying sharesfrom Crown Resorts.

A spokesperson at Melco said it was ‘lookingforward to a new corporate entity unveiling thisnew chapter of the company.’

Melco agreed to buy 198,000,000 ordinaryshares or 13.42 per cent of Melco CrownEntertainment from Crown Asia Investments, awholly owned subsidiary of Crown Resorts forUS$1.2bn. The deal takes Melco’s shareholdingin the company from 37.89 per cent currently to51.31 per cent. James Packer, a Crown nomineedirector and our Deputy Chairman, resignedfrom the company on December 15, 2016 afterpayment of the deposit by Melco Leisure. Thecompany expects to appoint in due course adirector nominated by Melco to fill the boardvacancy in accordance with its corporategovernance policies.

The company revealed that Crown Resortswould be entitled to payments if any Melco

Crown properties continued using the Crownbrand. It said in a filing: “The transition periodshall be a period of one year following Crown orits affiliate giving notice of termination inrespect of the use of the “Crown” name andother intellectual property rights as part of thebranding in relation to the City Of DreamsMacau and the City Of Dreams Manilaproperties.”

Melco Crown recently celebrated the 10thanniversary of its NASDAQ listing withLawrence Ho, Chairman and CEO of thecompany officiating the Opening Bell ceremonyat NASDAQ MarketSite in times Square, NYC.

There was no mention of the name change at theceremony where Mr. Ho said: “Our 10thanniversary on NASDAQ is a memorableoccasion to celebrate and cherish. The Melcoacquisition is certainly another tremendousmilestone for the company. It demonstrates mypositive outlook and faith in Macau’s long termfuture. taking a majority ownership in MCE willenable us to effectively capture the growthopportunities in Macau and Asia’s markets.”

Vietnam

Vietnamese nationals whowant to gamble at casinos aspart of a three-year pilotscheme will have to meet fourrequirements at a time withfamily members able toprevent their relatives fromplaying. Vietnamese playerswill have to be at least 21 yearsof age and earn a monthly wageof at least US$440. They willhave to pay $44 per day to enterthe casino or $1,100 per month.They will only be allowed toplay if there are no officialrequests from their familymembers, asking the casinosnot to let them play. Thosewhose family members,including parents, spouses orchildren, believe that theyshould not gamble will also bebarred. These family memberscan send a letter to notifycasinos and request a ban.Anyone under legalprosecution or with a criminalrecord will not be allowed toplay at casinos. The Vietnamesegovernment will allow locals toenter two new casinos in twoseparate provinces.

aSia & Oceania

macau

Imperial Beijing Palace fails to meet deadlineImperial Beijing Palace Hotel, the Macau hotel housing the GreekMythology casino on Taipa has relinquished its operating licence sayingthat the government imposed deadline of January 22 to complete upgradeswas ‘unfeasible.’ The Macao Government Tourism Office had forced thehotel to close in July 2016 for six months as a punishment for ‘seriousadministrative irregularities’ and ‘illegal reconstructions.’ Its new ownersMacau Hotel Developers has applied for “a work permit to remove allillegal structures currently encumbering the hotel and to undergo othermandatory refurbishment works.”Macau Hotel Developers said: “As a result of the severe problematicirregularities caused by, and inherited from, the former management ofthe company, namely Chen Mei Huan and Xu Jiaoji, the work permitapplications are still under review and pending approval. In particular,authorities have raised concerns over ownership of the hotel’s land.Considering the imminent expiration of the temporary closure period(January 22, 2017), and the unfeasibility of completing renovation worksbefore then, the company is forced to return its current hotel licence to theMacao Government Tourism Office.”

SAIPAN – Despite operating one of the top earningcasinos in the world, Fitch Ratings has warned thatImperial Pacific could default on its loanspayments.

The operator recently revealed that its VIP tablegames rolling chip had surpassed US$32bn in2016, but that hasn’t stopped the ratings agencyfrom downgrading the Saipan casino group’s ratingto a level that suggests ‘substantial credit risk.’

Imperial Pacific currently operates the temporarycasino Best Sunshine Live whilst building thepermanent venue; Imperial Pacific Resort inGarapan, Saipan, which will offer 300 gamingtables and up to 400 slots.

The Fitch downgrade focussed on the suggestionthat Imperial Pacific does not have enough junketsin place. The casino will be offering commissionrates of 1.4 per cent to VIP players it recruiteddirectly; and 1.85 per cent to junket operators overthe next three years.

“The downgrade of the final ratings reflects thecompany’s need to fund advances to customersand bear customers’ credit risk due to the lack oflicensed junket operators in Saipan,” Fitch said. “Sofar only one junket has been licensed by theCommonwealth Casino Commission of Saipan.Imperial Pacific has been operating its VIP businessthrough third-party introductions and internalmarketing, with IPI granting credit directly to VIPcustomers who are partly backed by guarantors.Fitch believes IPI’s receivable days have expandedwell beyond 100 days in view of the strong VIProlling chips volume in the past six months.

Proposed notes, which will be issued by ImperialPacific International (CNMI) LLC (Saipan), are ratedtwo notches above IPI’s issuer default ratingbecause they are secured by essentially all theassets of the casino and resort under constructionand guaranteed by Imperial Pacific Properties(CNMI) LLC, which owns the lease of the land onwhich the resort is built, and by the parent, IPI.”

MoNGoLIA – Mongolia is looking at legalising twoforeigner-only casinos as it looks for its own slice ofthe Asian gambling market.

A Judicial Standing Committee has established aworking group led by MP L.Enkhbold to draftlegislation for the development of casino resorts.

Legislators are looking at the casino modelscurrently used in Vietnam, South Korea andCambodia where only foreigners are allowed togamble. Mongolia shares borders with Russia in thenorth and China to the south, east, and west.


Australian billionaire JamesPacker is back on the board ofCrown Resorts having steppeddown as Chairman in May 2015.

AuSTrAliA CASINO OPERATORS

packer Back on the Board at Crown

James Packer’s return to Crown Resort’s boardcomes after a profit slump and major problemsin China where 18 Crown employees werearrested on suspicion of breaking gamblinglaws. Crown has since halved its share in Macauoperator Melco Crown. It has also pulled out ofplans to develop Alon in Las Vegas.

Mr. Packer will also be addressing concerns thatCrown’s planned $2bn casino at Barrangaroo inSydney, which has been approved by the StateGovernment, will be adversely affected byChina’s crackdown on foreign casinos targetingVIP players.

James Packer and Robert Rankin have amicablyand mutually agreed that Mr Rankin will stepdown as CEO of CPH effective February 1, 2017.

Mr. Rankin will also step down as the Chairmanof Crown Resorts Limited (Crown) effective 1February 2017, but has agreed to remain as adirector of both Crown and Melco CrownEntertainment Limited Guy Jalland will beappointed as CEO of CPH.

CPH Chairman James Packer said: “Rob is aworld-class Chief Executive who has done avery good job at CPH and Crown. I trust and

respect him as much today as ever and weremain the closest of friends. We have haddiscussions about what makes the most sensefor CPH and Rob personally, since the materialannouncements made by Crown late last year,including its sell-down in Melco Crown and itsincreased focus on its core Australian business.This realignment of corporate priorities, whichRob strongly endorsed and drove, coupled withhis own professional and personal prioritiesbased overseas, made this conversation, like allour conversations, straightforward. I lookforward to working with Rob on the Board ofCrown.”

Robert Rankin said: “Crown Resorts is anoutstanding company and I have relished theopportunity to guide it during a rapidly changingperiod. The next stage of development of CrownResorts will be rightfully more focused on itsoutstanding Australian assets and, led by JohnAlexander, Crown Resorts has a very strongteam in place to do that.”

Mr. Alexander said: “I am very pleased to betaking on the Chairmanship of Crown Resorts atthis time, particularly given our recentannouncements aimed at maximisingshareholder value.”

James Packer returns to the Crown Resorts boardroom as Robert Rankin stepsdown during a financial and politically tense period for the business

SouTH KoREA – New Silkroad Culturaltainmenthas announced that its casino at Jeju KAL Hotel,South Korea, has been officially renamed as“MegaLuck.” MegaLuck currently operates oneroulette table, two black jack tables, 25 Baccarattables and 24 electronic game machines.

After a series of acquisitions, New Silkroad nowcontrols 72 per cent of MegaLuck which owns agaming license on Jeju Island. MegaLuck hasalready started to make contributions to NewSilkroad financially. It has recorded HK$17m inrevenue for the first half of 2016, accounting for14.8 per cent of the company’s total revenue.

New Silkroad formed a strategic alliance with MelcoInternational in May 2016, whereby Melco providesplanning, development and implementationadvisory services for the new casino, as well as thepreparation and marketing events for the casino’scommercial launch.

In addition, the company also took control ofMacrolink Glorious Hill via a capital injection with theobjective to develop the project under Glorious Hillinto a mega integrated resort complex in SouthKorea, within which, a large-scale casino, to furtherexpand the gaming and entertainment business ofthe company.

Paul Ng, Executive Director of New Silkroad said:“New Silkroad will see MegaLuck evolve into aworld-class gaming and entertainmentconglomerate with the highest standards inoperations and internal controls among the industry,at the same time also enabling New Silkroad togrow and enhance its core value while we expandour business into the cultural tourism area, therebybroadening our income sources and enhancebusiness growth.

aSia & Oceania

Imperial Pacific, whichoperates the temporary casinoBest Sunshine Live on theisland of Saipan, said its VIPtable games rolling chipreached US$32.4bn in 2016.

to put that figure intoperspective, VIP gamblingturnover reported in 2015 bythe Venetian Macao, a flagshipproperty of casino operatorSands China Ltd in the Macau,was US$31.02bn. In 2015,Wynn Macau, then WynnMacau’s only casino in Macau,reported annual VIP rollingchip turnover of US$57.89bn

Best Sunshine Live recorded itsbest ever month in Septemberwhen its VIP chip turnover was$3.95bn closely followed by

October when it was $3.84bn.

“The actual gain or loss of thetemporary casino will bedetermined after the review bythe company’s auditors uponfinalisation of the consolidatedfinancial statements of thegroup,” said Imperial Pacific inits filing. The ‘temporarycasino’ in Saipan was launchedin November 2015 initially as atraining centre whilst thepermanent casino ImperialPacific Resort was built. Theinitial plan was to open beforeChinese New Year at the end ofthis month however theoperator has now said it will“open at the end of March”instead on January 28.

“The construction of thegroup’s ‘Imperial PacificResort’ in Garapan, Saipan hasbeen progressing smoothly,with over 2,000 workersworking around-the-clock toensure early completion,”Imperial said.

Imperial Pacificproduces VIP turnoverof US$32.4bn

Saipan

australia

The start of 2017 saw the resultsof Australia’s new InteractiveGambling Amendment Bill 2016taking affect as online casinooperators began to withdrawservices to Australian citizens.Vera&John, which operates anEnglish-language site gearedtowards Australian customers,was the first to inform itscustomers that it was removingAustralian dollar games from itssite. The company emailedcustomers to explain that theiraccounts would be closed withina week as the service was nolonger available in theirjurisidction, clarifying that anyfunds which had not alreadybeen removed could betransferred to a preferredpayment provider within theseven day period. However, asG3 went to press, Malta-basedV&J is the only site to make sucha move. Hundreds of onlinecasinos still operate in Australiaand readily accept AU$ bets.


CHINA – MGM China has announced that its$3.1bn MGM Cotai, an integrated casino, hotel andentertainment resort located in Cotai, Macau, is nowexpected to open during the second half of 2017.The company stated: “Given the complexity of thedesign of MGM Cotai and the company’scommitment to a successful opening that reflectsthe demands of the current market, the expectedopening time of MGM Cotai will be adjusted fromthe second quarter of 2017 to the second half of2017. However, ultimately, the final opening date ofMGM Cotai will also be subject to obtaining therequired government approvals.”

It is the third time MGM has delayed the openinginitially scheduled for the last quarter of 2016.Designed as the jewellery box of Cotai, its casinowill have space for 500 tables, although it’s notknown how many it will be allowed to operate.


InsightbrAzil leGiSlATionGLI

GLI participates in Brazil publicdiscussion on legal framework

on December 13, a Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) representativeappeared before the Camara de Diputados of Brazil for a public audience on the“Legal Framework for Games of Chance in Brazil,” Project of Law 442.

During the public audience that received Diputadosand government and private sector representatives,GLI’s Latin American and Caribbean Director ofGovernment Relations and Business DevelopmentKaren Marcela Sierra-Hughes presented as animpartial technical and consultancy expert. Shediscussed the ways GLI works with global gaming andlottery regulatory entities for the control andsupervision of the industry.

Sierra-Hughes said, “We are honoured and gratefulfor the opportunity that the Camara de Diputadosgranted GLI to discuss the control and supervisionprocesses that are adopted by regulated gaming andlottery jurisdictions around the world.

“We are here today not to take sides on whethergaming should be legalised in Brazil or not,” she said.“We are here to impartially present the ways that GLIworks with gaming and lottery regulatory entitiesthat have successfully implemented laws andregulations as well as technical standards whichallow for the control and supervision of the industry,minimizing the risk of fraud, money laundering, taxevasion, problem gambling, etc.

“GLI works with 475 jurisdictions around the worldthat adopted the certification process – 17 countries inthe Latin American and Caribbean region and morethan 25 jurisdictions, Peru being the pioneer,” shecontinued. “The effectiveness of the controls willdepend on the strength of the technical requirementsestablished by the regulatory entity. technicalrequirements address player protection, accuraterevenue and tax reporting, fraud and manipulationprevention, money laundering prevention andresponsible gambling practices.”

Sierra-Hughes summarised GLI’s background, itscapabilities and unique impartial and independentposition in the gaming industry as well as the

importance of a thorough laboratory accreditationprocess. She also discussed the multiple controls thatderive the adoption of the certification process,including on-site inspections performed by theregulatory entity and the authorisation of importationof gaming equipment. Control and the supervisionprocess were also presented both for land-based andonline gaming operations.

“Monitoring and control systems are a fundamentaltechnical tool for regulators to achieve the objective ofcontrolling and supervising revenue and securityevents,” Sierra-Hughes said. “They are tested to verifythe accuracy of data generated and appropriatecommunication per the technical standardsestablished by the regulator.”

Sierra-Hughes referenced Peru; Colombia; BuenosAires, Argentina; Australia; and New Zealand asexamples of successful implementation of thesecontrols.

She concluded, “The certification process is a globalpractice adopted by regulatory entities to guaranteesecurity, integrity, public trust and player protection. Ifgaming is legalised in Brazil, the fundamentalrecommendation will be to establish a legalframework that is strong and clear and create aregulatory entity with sufficient resources andpersonnel, promoting its constant professionalisation.

“The regulatory entity must be embedded with thecompetency to determine gaming policies andregulations that will allow for a prosperous gamingindustry, and like other jurisdictions, it can becomeone of the most regulated industries and a formal partof the national economy.”

GLI is optimistic for the future of gaming in Brazil andwill continue to offer support to gaming regulators,operators and manufacturers in the region.

Karen marcela Sierra-Hughes Latin American and Caribbean Directorof Government Relations and BusinessDevelopment, Gaming LaboratoriesInternational

“The certification process is a globalpractice adopted by regulatoryentities to guarantee security,integrity, public trust and playerprotection. If gaming is legalised inBrazil, the fundamentalrecommendation will be to establisha legal framework that is strong andclear and create a regulatory entitywith sufficient resources andpersonnel, promoting its constantprofessionalisation.”

“GLI works with 475jurisdictions around theworld that adopted thecertification process – 17countries in the LatinAmerican and Caribbeanregion and more than 25jurisdictions, Peru being thepioneer. The effectiveness ofthe controls will depend onthe strength of the technicalrequirements established bythe regulatory entity.Technical requirementsaddress player protection,accurate revenue and taxreporting, fraud andmanipulation prevention,money launderingprevention and responsiblegambling practices.”


Insightmexico Tech Treffen

Merkur Gaming ‘meets’ its techcustomers and ‘hits’ the mark

Merkur Gaming ‘on tour’ with its Tech Treffen concept, bringing the technicaloperations knowledge and installation expertise of the Gauselmannsubsidiary, to the diverse gaming markets of Mexico, Peru and Colombia

In 2013, Merkur Gaming Peru’s technical Manager,Luis Asmat, devised and produced, as a means ofcommunicating more effectively with a vital segmentof casino operators’ workforce, a technical conferenceand seminar that was titled ‘tech treffen’. The concepthas proved so worthwhile that in 2016 it was extendedbeyond the borders of Peru to include Mexico andColombia; becoming known collectively as ‘techtreffen tour 2016’.

taking in Mexico City, Lima and Bogota and using thesame format and agenda throughout the tour hadMerkur Gaming Product Manager, Hartmut Sanger asthe keynote speaker at all three venues and covered abroad range of topics from product range to initialinstallation through to in-operation technicalrequirements.

With an average attendance of 50 senior techniciansat each venue the tech treffen (tech being selfexplanatory and treffen meaning ‘meeting’ inGerman) had simultaneous Spanish/Englishtranslation and was universally agreed by theattendees to be an extremely useful event; being notjust the providing of key information but also withample time for the delegates to mix with industry

colleagues and to participate in a valuable questionand answer session.

tomas Mieles, sales director for Merkur GamingAmericas, wrapped up the tour by stating: “takingtech treffen on tour and thus being able to capitaliseon the experiences gained over the past three years inPeru has proved to be a fantastic success.

“Each country of course has its own technicalrequirements and our local experts addressed these indetail within the framework of an already provenoverall agenda. In Mexico, we believe that this was thefirst such event ever presented in that country and itsvalue was clearly seen,” says Mr. Mieles.

“Our tour will certainly be on the road again in 2017and, with Merkur Gaming being active in Argentina,we can already see that it will be extended to cover allfour of the key countries in Latin American gamingoperations. I would particularly like to thank all ofour staff involved in the preparation and running ofour tour 2016 and also congratulate the delegates thatmade the three events come alive through theirparticipation and lively interactions during thesessions,” concluded Mr. Mieles.

Merkur Gaming is the internationalsales and development brand of adpGauselmann based in Lübbecke(North Rhine-Westphalia), Germany.In 2015 the business volume of theGroup was more than €2bn andcurrently employs more than10,000 people.

“Each country of coursehas its own technicalrequirements and our localexperts addressed these indetail within theframework of an alreadyproven overall agenda. InMexico, we believe that thiswas the first such eventever presented in thatcountry and its value wasclearly seen.” Tomas Mieles, Merkur Gaming Americas


InsightcAfé De PAriS AnD SuncASino - monAcoEGT

EGT win the Monaco Grand Prize at Café de Paris and Sun Casino

Just a year after its first installation of 18 machines in Monaco in Café de Paris andSun Casino, Euro Games Technology has sensationally added another delivery ofmore 42 slot and 24 multiplayer gaming stations adding to the establishments’ floors

Ranking among the most prestigious in Europe, Caféde Paris and Sun Casino are owned by SBM (Societede Bains de Mer) with majority shareholder thePrincipality of Monaco. According to EGt, this newinstallation at both properties is the largest ever madeby a gaming supplier locally and turns EGt into a keyplayer in the domestic entertainment sector.

The 42 slot machines recently deployed by EGt at SunCasino, are part of the prominent Premier series thatstarted off very strongly in Monaco, when the firstinstalls in December 2015 included P-24/24 Up, P-24/24 St Slim cabinets and the Egypt Quest andLady’s Cards jackpot systems. “The quality, bothhardware and software, of these models and theirgaming appeal took our players by storm andexceeded our expectations, ranking among the bestperforming in our casinos,” shared Alain Assenza andChristian Barilaro from the management team of SunCasino. “The major gaming installation we recentlymade in Monaco grants us the opportunity to launchthe newest models on the market. It is a real success,being very attractive for our customers, so we areconfident that it will reward us with a large number ofclients thoroughly satisfied with the top classentertainment that has always benn provided as partof the EGt brand.”

The EGt slot machines, newly delivered at Sun Casinoinclude the P-27/32H and P-27/27 St Slim cabinets

both linked to Lady’s Cards jackpot including PremierMulti-3, 4, 5, and 6 multigames and the Green, Orangeand Fruits gaming libraries of EGt’s Collection series.Among the installed models are the jackpot systemsDiamond Life in the P-24/32H cabinet, the new 4 Happy Hits, presented in the P-42V St slot machine,and the Chinese-themed Fu Gui Rong Hua, housed inthe P-27/42V. The installation also introduced sixSuper Premier cabinets and their Green, Orange andFruits Collection multigame mixes, which became acenterpiece at Sun, together with the Premier R8automated roulette with eight-player positions andthe eight StORK terminals, having the Rigel Rmultigame mix.

Another multiplayer solution of eight StORKterminals connected to an automated roulette wheelhas been installed in SBM’s casino Café de Paris inMonaco and promises an entertaining roulette gameto the players.

“Our company is gaining speed in the country and Iam delighted to work on projects for Sun Casino andCafé de Paris,” commented Borislav Prokopiev,regional sales manager of EGt for France, Monaco andBelgium. “With this large-scale installation our brandbecomes popular in high class gaming establishmentsand I thank the SBM’s management team for choosingus as their main supplier and for believing in ourmutual success in the future.”

Alain Assenza and Christian Barilarofrom the management team of SunCasino, pictured with BorislavProkopiev, Regional Sales Manager ofEGT for France, Monaco and Belgium.

“The quality, both hardwareand software, of thesemodels and their gamingappeal took our players bystorm and exceeded ourexpectations, rankingamong the best performingin our casinos.”Alain Assenza, Sun Casino


Insight

For the first time, Betting on Football (BOF 2017)will be spread across two days at Chelsea’sStamford Bridge from 3-4 May. Included in adelegate ticket is access to six tracks of industryinsight, food and refreshments, two high endnetworking parties and the possibility to jointours of the stadium.

Stamford Bridge is just one of three venues setfor centre stage at BOF 2017, alongside theRichard Branson-owned Kensington RoofGardens and Roman Abramovich’s Under theBridge nightclub. Kensington Roof Gardens willhost the official networking party on May 3,whilst Under the Bridge will open its doors forthe official closing party on May 4.

During the two-days, SBC Events will beintroducing 100 speakers, split between 35panel discussions and presentations acrossthree conference rooms. In addition, BOF 2017will also offer dedicated meeting rooms andintroduce the product pitching stage, ‘PitchInvasion,’ alongside 30 exhibitors insideStamford Bridge’s 1,400 sqm Great Hall.

Delegates will have the option to arrangemeetings before and during the event via theofficial conference app, which is available onboth iOS and Android and includes the fullconference agenda. Meanwhile, SBC Events willbe organising an exclusive operator networkingevent for 100 C-Level executives, and a separateevent for representatives of the top 40 sportsbetting affiliates.

SBC Founder Rasmus Sojmark said: “We’veworked hard to make this year’s Betting onFootball an essential part of the event calendar.No other conference will have such a highconcentration of leaders, decision makers andspeakers from the betting industry. It’s going tobe a great place to do network and do business.”

tracy Damestani, CEO of the National CasinoForum, said, “The National Casino Forum (NCF)is delighted that GRS has joined as an associatemember; we recognise and value our associatemembers and the services they provide whichare integral to the casino industry.”

Speaking for GRS, Steven Jackson said he wasdelighted to be accepted as an associatemember. “GRS have gone from strength tostrength in the two years since we startedtrading, and while we have placed casino staffand management all over Europe and the world,we felt it was time to approach the trade body inour home country to cement our status as thepremier recruitment partner for online andoffline gaming sector operators in the UK.”

GRS began two years ago when casino operatorPaul Sculpher teamed up with gamingrecruitment expert veteran Steven Jackson,combining years of gaming and recruitmentexpertise and contacts. In the time since, thecompany has placed candidates all over theworld, with the UK online and offline sectorsbeing a particular focus.

Seven UK offline casino operators, fromindependents to multi-site employers, have usedGRS for their management recruitment needs,with repeat business being a key part of thesuccess of the company. The other area whereGRS look to offer value is in experience. WhileJackson has been in gaming recruitment for 13years – and thus not only has a contact booksecond to none but also a solid knowledge ofwhat type of candidate will fit where – the otherowner of GRS is more experienced on theoperational side. Paul Sculpher has been acasino operator for over 21 years, and said, “Webelieve that experience within the industry is agreat help to our recruitment operation – thereare very few roles we have recruited for that Ihaven’t either worked in or worked directly with,and our clients appreciate the industryknowledge that comes with this,” he said.

Both owners believe the partnership with NCFwill help give credibility to the growing business.Sculpher said: “We couldn’t be happier to beofficially part of NCF. Membership gives alloperators the opportunity to veto theinvolvement of a company, and the fact that wewere accepted by all members reflects the tieswe have developed with the industry.”

z uk bEttING ON fOOtball

z uk RECRuItMENt

Betting on Football 2017attracts global operators fortwo-day conferenceSBC Events has committed tomaking the international Betting onFootball 2017 its best conferenceyet, by providing ‘an unforgettablebusiness and networkingexperience’ for more than 800executives from 40+ countries

nCF welcomes Grs as recruitment partner

GRS, the casino recruitmentcompany operated by industryexperts, Steven Jackson and PaulSculpher, have been accepted to jointhe uK casino trade association asan associate member

Betcade, the company that has spent the last 18months developing an Android-based,gambling-focused mobile hub to connectplayers and operators, released a statement atthe start of January from its Founder and CEO,David Chang, explaining that the company wasto close the business in an orderly manner.

Mr. Chang commented: “Start-ups seek topositively influence the industry which they arein, however, this comes with considerable risk as

a business. After evaluating our options, it wasdetermined that the best course of action for thecompany was to close the business and lookafter our people the best we can.”

Betcade had been due to commence its mobileservices following the ICE show in London,having previously launched its Betcade Paypayment function in December and developedits user interface with design agency, Fantasy atthe start of 2016. The reasons for the closurehave not been disclosed, nor has any statementbeen made as to a future ‘home’ for thetechnology developed by Betcade.

Mr. Chang concluded: “I’d like to personallythank all of the wonderful people in thegambling and payment industry that believed inour vision and partnered with us to help providea better gambling mobile experience foreveryone.”

z uS MObIlE GaMING

android mobile gamingstart-up ceases operations

The Android App store, Betcade, hasannounced the closing of allbusiness operations in January


InsightPST 50th Anniversary

PST to celebrate turning 50 atthis year’s ICE Totally Gaming

Seating specialist PST Gaming Furniture will be celebrating its 50th birthdaywhen it attends ICE at the ExCeL in February with various guises of the companyhaving attended every year of the exhibition since its own beginnings in 1990

The company, most famed for its casino stoolmanufacturing, shows no signs of slowing as itapproaches its landmark 50th anniversary with thenext stage of its evolution currently being mappedout. And it could be one of the most transformationalchapters of the company’s story so far.

Established in February 1967 as Plant ServicesGateshead (PSG) the company’s original focus wasrepairing plant and equipment for the shipyards ofGateshead.

Managing Director Steve treharne said: “It’s a hugeachievement for the company to reach the 50th yearmilestone and one we’re incredibly proud of. Thecompany has evolved beyond all recognition since itsinception, although I think it is quite fitting,considering where we currently are, that one of thetwo directors who set up the company back in 1967,left his job as a croupier at a Newcastle casino to doso.”

PSG started life working out of a railway arch inGateshead. As the proud ship building heritage of theNorth East began to wane in the 1970s the company’sfocus, driven mainly by the skill set and knowledge ofthe workforce, turned to manufacturing. Within fiveyears of its birth, PSG had become a recognised forcein the manufacture of chairs and furniture for theshipping industry. By 1972 the company had sixemployees all engaged in manufacturing. This wasalso the year that the current company’s longestserving employee began working for the company. By1977, the company had grown to take up three of therailway arches where it had first set up in Gateshead,employing 12 people still focussing on the

manufacturing side, still growing, supplying more andmore industries with its furniture.

“By the time PSG moved to its existing premises onthe riverside of South Shields, it was supplyingfurniture to the shipping industry, working men’sclubs, bars and restaurants as well as supplying thecouncil with furniture,” Mr treharne explained.

By this time Mr trehrane had set up his own businesssupplying the casino industry with consumableproducts such as playing cards and chips as well asnovelty gift lines. By coincidence the trading name ofthe company was very similar although the origin ofPSt (UK)’s name was entirely different.

Recalling the first time PSt attended the firstInternational Casino Exhibition in London in 1990,Mr. treharne said: “Things were very different backthen. I turned up in a van with a fold-out box thatturned into my exhibition stand. We servedchampagne and pretty soon we were networking withmany of the UK casino operators at the time, such asRainbow, Grosvenor, Stakis and Stanley.”

It wasn’t until 1995 that the foundations of PSt in itscurrent guise were laid. The owners of PSt and PSGmet to discuss Mr treharne buying stools from PSGand selling them onto his growing contacts list in thecasino sector.

“It was around this time that the American stoolmanufacturers entered the European marketreplacing the existing wooden chairs with metalchairs,” Mr treharne explained. “But their designsback then were too big to fit seven stools around a

Prestige Seating Technology is oneof Europe's leading suppliers to theLeisure Industry of chromium andbrass plated metal furniture.Worldwide, many prestigious bars,nightclubs, discotheques, casinosand other leisure establishmentshave benefited from the company'shigh quality furniture. Therevolutionary self-levelling, self-returning gas lifts can be fitted to allstem chairs. Most of the chairs canbe fitted with a swivel or a self-return swivel. The company alsopride themselves in manufacturingbespoke chairs to customers'specified designs.

“Being based in the former‘shipyard county’ meantthere was an abundance ofextremely skilled workers sowe could easily grow ourworkforce as our order booksfilled up. Every material weuse we source ourselves andevery procedure in the entiremanufacturing process fromcutting, shaping, bending,welding, chroming andupholstery takes place in-house. We’re in control ofeverything so can ensureeverything is done to thehighest quality.”Steve Treharne.

InsightPST 50th Anniversary

blackjack table. Several operators said to methat if I could reduce the size of the chair, butkeep it to the high standard of the American’sthere could be a market for me. PSG hadinvested in automated, numerically operatedbending machinery. They were in completecontrol over every part of the manufacturingprocess. This really was the beginning ofeverything for PSG in the casino industry in theUK and soon we were supplying everyone.”

The playing field changed again in 1997 whenPSG’s then owners approached Mr trehrane tosee if he wanted to buy the company whoseproducts he was selling.

“They came in with a price that I couldn’trefuse,” Mr trehrane explained. “The price waslow because the company was solely focussedon manufacturing. It had no sales team and nocustomer base. All it had was contracts for salesagents to sell into various different markets. Thepurchase was completed in 1998 and in no timethe company had been transformed into onesupplying working men’s clubs to one thatsupplied all the best casinos in the UK. Ourcomfort and durability set us apart.”

Next came the export side. In 1998 the companyattended its first foreign show taking part in IMAin Frankfurt. The orders flooded in for the streetmarket in Germany. The company rebranded,still using his former business partners’ initials,but evolving to become Prestige Seatingtechnologies. The company designed chair afterchair for the gaming industry bringing it

mainstay solutions such as The Oxford Chair,The Cambridge Chair, The Cosmopolitan LoveSeat, The Vegas Collection as well asterminology such as memory return swivel andthe self-levelling, self-return gas spring.

The skill set of the local labour force, brought upon decades of building ships in the dockyards,lent itself perfectly to PSt. Mr treharneexplained. “Being based in the former ‘shipyardcounty’ meant there was an abundance ofextremely skilled workers so we could easilygrow our workforce as our order books filled up.

“Every material we use we source ourselves andevery procedure in the entire manufacturingprocess from cutting, shaping, bending, welding,chroming and upholstery takes place in-house.We’re in control of everything so can ensureeverything is done to the highest quality. It alsomeans we’re not limited to anything when itcomes to the design of bespoke furniture. Wecan, for example, provide bases of any size forour stool range. Our lead time is just threeweeks for bespoke furniture.”

With staffing levels reaching 35, the companythen faced perhaps its biggest challenge; therecession of 2008.

Mr treharne said: “Suddenly the big UKoperators, upon whom we had become so relianton for business, weren’t buying at the same rate.They weren’t opening as many new casinos. Thesupply side of the gaming business was hit hard,but particularly the furniture side. The pound

was suddenly very weak and in all honesty Iwas on the verge of closing the factory. Havingconsidered all my options, I decided to fill thevan once more, as I did at that first ICE, andembark on the biggest gaming road trip I couldundertake around Europe. It was one of the bestbusiness decisions I ever made.

“The orders came in from Germany, France,Belgium and The Netherlands. They came infrom all over the continent and suddenlyEuropean casinos were holding the business up.We also managed to strike deals with othermanufacturers taking us all over the UnitedStates, Australia, Macau, Vietnam andCambodia,” stated Mr. treharne.

At this time the company’s export businessaccounted for 70 per cent of its sales. PSt wonthe Export Achievement Award at a ceremonyheld at the Newcastle Gateshead Hilton in 2010.The British casino industry was back on its feetby 2011 with Genting, Aspers and Grosvenor allhelping drive PSt’s business forward, but thecompany’s customer based had changed forever.Mr treharne explained: “Despite business notdropping off with foreign gaming companies,export now only accounts for 35 per cent of thebusiness.”

In 2006, Mr treharne’s son Gareth joined thebusiness to manage the factory. By 2008 he wasOperations Director.

“Gareth has brought a finesse to the company,”Mr treharne explained. “He has overseen ourmove into manufacturing blackjack, poker andpunto banco tables, securing deals with TheHippodrome, Genting, A&S Leisure and PokerStars. We moved into new chair markets in theUK too. Driven by the surge in popularity ofFixed Odds Betting terminals, we entered theLicensed Betting Office market.

“Over the last five years we have grown to nowsupply 55 per cent of the market, includingBetFred, Coral, Boyle Sports and Jennings. We’vemoved into the leisure sector with deals tosupply McDonalds, Revolution Bar, Beer Kellarand Frankie and Benny’s in various parts of theUK. But the casino market is still our mainmarket.”

The company recently appointed Andrew Daviesas Business Development Director looking at aportfolio of products and new marketopportunities for PSt. “We’re currently workingon two huge products, one market related andone product related,” Mr treharne said. “I can’treveal anything about the product we’re lookingat manufacturing at this stage, but in terms ofmarket news, we’re in discussions with localpartners to replicate our manufacturing plant inSouth Shields in China, so that we can supplythe Asian market to the same extent that wesupply Europe.”

If that comes off, it’s probably fair to say thatPSt will be in even better shape when it turns100-years-old.



InsightJAPAnJapan Gaming Congress

Gaming in Japan: should therest of Asia be worried?

The news of Japan legalising casinos (as part of Integrated Resorts) was wellreceived for the majority of the gaming industry. According to Clarion’sCurtis Roach, the incredible opportunities that this new jurisdiction has tooffer will be difficult for any of the major international operators to ignoreIn 2009, a study carried out by the Osaka Universityof Commerce predicted roughly $40bn of annualgaming revenue could be generated if the IR Bill waspassed. The aim was to re-create Macau’s success inattracting Chinese tourists, with Japan’s culturalattractions helping to rake in VIP punters.

However, since then a few new factors have come intoplay. The most influential factor is a bubble in casinosfrom Cambodia to Macau to the Philippines toSingapore to South Korea to Vietnam and even someRussian cities in the general Asian vicinity. Australiaand Malaysia also boast established and capacious

gaming industries. More recent forecasts, includingone by CSLA Investment bank, estimates thatpotential annual income will be up to $25bn. This is ofcourse a lot lower than original estimates, but eitherway this would still firmly place Japan in the top tierof world gaming jurisdictions.

It is no secret that the leader of the Asian gaming pack(and the world) is Macau. Even with revenue losses,caused by the recent regulatory crackdown by theChinese government, they are still well ahead of therest with approximately $30bn in gaming revenueachieved last year.

A key point to bear in mind isthat the first casinos are notexpected to becomeoperational until at least2022 so other Asianmarkets will not feel anyeffects in the short term.However, in the long run, thisbill is likely to help Japan tocompete as a new gamblingtourism destination in Asia.Japan is the third largesteconomy in the world andhas an adult population thatis open to the practice ofgambling.

curtis roach Senior Events ProducerTotally Gaming - Clarion Events

“Japan is a totally different market,where healthy premium mass andmass [market] are abundant.Approximately 80 per cent ofpatrons shall be Japanese.” Whenconsidering these factors it’sprobably fair to say that Macaudoesn’t have too much to worryabout in regards to newly regulatedJapan.”

The Japan GamingCongress,organised by ClarionGaming, takes placeMay 10-12, 2017 inTokyo, Japanwww.japangamingcongress.com

InsightJAPAn

Japan Gaming Congress

The VIP gamblers that travel in from MainlandChina generate a large portion of Macau’sgaming revenue. This could be cause for concernas these could potentially be the same MainlandVIPs that Japanese IRs will target, causingheightened competition for Macau.

Industry analysts believe that mainlandtravellers could be lured away from Macau for aholiday. Especially as Japan has significantlymore traditional and rural attractions that couldpotentially make for a more appealingdestination to Chinese travellers.

It is still, however, tricky to estimate the impactof Japan before the number of casino licenses tobe awarded has been confirmed. If Japandecides to develop its gaming sector on a largescale, other Asian regions such as Singapore

and Macau will experience the significanteffects of heightened competition without adoubt.

A key point to bear in mind is that the firstcasinos are not expected to become operationaluntil at least 2022, so other Asian markets willnot feel any effects in the short term. However,in the long run, this bill is likely to help Japan tocompete as a new gambling tourism destinationin Asia. Japan is the third largest economy in theworld and has an adult population that is opento the practice of gambling.

Although the touristic appeal of Japan isundeniable, Wilfred Wong Ying Wai, Presidentand Chief Operating Officer of Macau-basedcasino operator Sands China has commentedthat Macau and Japan would have different

allures as gaming markets and as quoted bypublic broadcaster tDM – ‘the majority ofvisitors to Macau’s casino resorts are from thesouth and central parts of Mainland China…potential Chinese visitors going to gamble inany casino resort in Japan would more likely befrom mainland China’s northern areas’.

Further research also suggests that Japan isexpected to be more of a locals market than aninbound VIP market so the impact to Macau willprobably be minimal over the long term,although we would expect some short termhiccups in the first year or two after the IRsopen in Japan as VIP customers will want to seethe new facilities.

Even Japan’s Dr. toru Mihara, Director of theCenter for Amusement Industry Studies at theOsaka University of Commerce seems to agreethat Japan will never be a threat to Macaubecause of the gaming mix.

Japan is a totally different market, wherehealthy premium mass and mass [market] areabundant. Approximately 80 per cent of patronsshall be Japanese. When considering thesefactors it’s probably fair to say that Macaudoesn’t have too much to worry about in regardsto newly regulated Japan.

Another thriving Asian gaming region isSingapore. Perhaps they may have slightly morecause for concern? Singapore has the secondbiggest gaming economy in Asia with annualrevenues of up to $7bn (2015). All of its incomecomes from two main resorts, the Las VegasSands owned Marina Bay Sands and GentingSingapore’s Resorts World Sentosa. Again, asignificant chunk of revenue is generated fromtourists coming in from neighbouring regionssuch as Indonesia, Malaysia and China.However, unlike Macau, the middlemen whobring in VIPs are not allowed to lend money togamblers in Singapore, this leaves the casinosdirectly exposed to the risk of lending to itscustomers.

Money that Genting Singapore is owed, buthasn’t collected totalled $787.5m in 2014, morethan double the $369m in 2010. Approximatelyfour times the average at Macau’s six biggestcasino operators, according to a Bloombergreport.

This means Singapore casinos miss out on themainland connections that these junketoperators are known for in the gaming industry.Singapore has only three licensed junketoperators compared around 200 in Macau.Resulting in a smaller and shrinking pool ofgamblers for Singapore casinos.

Paul Bromberg, CEO of Spectrum Asia recentlycommented that junkets exist because they ‘Filla void’ and during his talks with Japaneseofficials, they have clearly shown an interest inthe role of junkets. If Japan does go ahead withthe junket system, as many are expecting, then



InsightJAPAnJapan Gaming Congress

this will mean even less VIP punters for regions likeSingapore and could have a negative impact on theirannual revenues. However, until the implementationbill is passed this is still just guess work.

South Korea is another major gambling region thatcould potentially be affected by Japans’ emergence.This regions model is quite different to the countriesmentioned above because domestic customers arecompletely banned in all but one of their 17 casinos.Investment bank Morgan Stanley said in a note that itviewed South Korea’s foreigner-only casino model as“inherently unattractive and volatile, given the lack ofa local feeder market.”

Late last year it was reported that Genting Singaporehad actually exited their South Korea IR project byselling its share of $1.8bn Resorts World Jeju to re-focus on Japan, seen as a better potential for return.Also, coupled with the fact that in 2015 Chineseauthorities arrested casino marketing representativesof Korean casino operators, Paradise Group and GrandKorea Leisure for casino marketing activities. Thatwas accompanied by an intensified public campaignto discourage Chinese from gambling in Korea. This isa clear sign that perhaps South Korea should beworried about Japan who may now provide an evenstronger incentive for the Chinese not to visit theirfacilities.

It seems the relationship between these Asianjurisdictions and mainland VIP customers plays a

strong role in determining gaming success. But withJapan expecting to have majority domestic customers,perhaps the impact on the rest of the continent will beminimal. Gaming giants such as Macau and Singaporecertainly won’t feel any effects in the immediatefuture, but may notice a slight shift once Japan doesbecome operational as curious tourists travel to seethe shiny new gaming district.

One thing for sure is that there is definitely enoughgaming activity for them all to be successful. It justdepends on the model they wish to go for asdemonstrated in the examples above. A sentimentshared with Nick Santos, Founder and CEO ofproperty consultancy CBRE Philippines. In a recentinterview he explained that ‘Asia’s gaming pie isgetting bigger, not dwindling. Knock-on effects likereal estate demand, conferences, exhibits and artsevents can give casinos a powerful economicmultiplier effect. It’s all about how a city or countrypositions itself’.

If you are interested in Japan and the opportunities ithas offer be sure to attend the Japan Gaming Congresstaking place in tokyo, 11th – 12th May 2017. TheCongress is a three-day educational forum that willoffer a clear, practical insight and understanding intothe casino legislation in Japan. With an expected sixmonths before the first licenses are issued now is thetime to fully understand the potential complex natureof IR Casinos in one of the potential superpowers inAsia.

Gaming giants such asMacau and Singaporecertainly won’t feel anyeffects in the immediatefuture, but may notice aslight shift once Japandoes become operationalas curious tourists travel tosee the shiny new gamingdistrict.

The Japan GamingCongress,organised by ClarionGaming, takes placeMay 10-12, 2017 inTokyo, Japanwww.japangamingcongress.com

AGeM index

The AGEM Index ended 2016 on apositive note with gains duringDecember 2016 largely offsettinglosses experienced during November2016. The AGEM Index reported ayear-over-year increase for the 15thconsecutive month, rising 123.96points, or 62.8 per cent, compared toDecember 2015. During the latestperiod, seven of the 13 globalmanufacturers reported month-to-month increases in stock price, withtwo up by more than 10 per cent.Galaxy Gaming posted the largestyear-on-year percentage gain in2016, increasing over 200 per cent.50-percent-plus gains were postedby: Konami, IGT, Scientific Games ,Aristocrat Technologies and Crane Co.


MeMbership news

AGem Key board of Directors Actionsl The 2017 Election of AGEM Officers took place at the January meeting. The

new President was announced as tom Nieman, who takes up the position forthe next 2 years. He takes over for tom Jingoli, who has done a wonderful jobat the helm for the past 7 years. The other officers voted in are First VicePresident Dan Savage, Scientific Games; Second Vice President DavidLucchese, Everi; Vice President Of Government Relations Steve DiMasi, IGt;Secretary Mark Dunn, Aristocrat; treasurer tom Jingoli, Konami Gaming; Co-General Counsel Harper Ko, Scientific Games, and Co-General CounselDaron Dorsey, Ainsworth.

l The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in America had been considering loweringthe tax reporting threshold on jackpot wins from $1,200 to $600 and alsolooked at tracking play using player loyalty cards. The American GamingAssociation (AGA) had been leading the fight to oppose these efforts, assistedby AGEM. It was announced recently that the IRS has chosen not to moveforward with any changes that were perceived as negative for the gamingindustry overall.

l Kate Chambers, Managing Director of Clarion Events, organizer of ICE totallyGaming, gave a short presentation in the run up to the show. The 2017 showwill be approximately 9.5% bigger than last year, opening up an additionaltwo halls with 112 new exhibitors. Pre show registration is up 50% on thesame time last year. There will be a new format for the Conferences, brandedICE Vox, which will include more panels, roundtables and learning sessions.

l In Japan the first stage of the gaming bill was passed which has cleared theway for parliament to debate a separate bill that will lay out laws that willgovern the way casino licenses are awarded. The government effort at themoment seems focused on problem gambling and is looking to Singapore as apossible model. Realistically, it is unlikely any casinos will open before 2024.Clarion will be hosting the Japan Gaming Congress in tokyo in May, whichwill assist in bringing international operators and suppliers together withJapanese counterparts.

l AGEM will once again be supporting the European Casino Association (ECA)by contributing $15,000. This will be split between the International CasinoConference (ICC) held at the Hippodrome Casino the day before ICE and theEuropean Dealer Championship taking place in May, also at the Hippodrome.

l The Nevada Conference on Problem Gambling will take place at thebeginning of June and AGEM has agreed to take Gold level sponsorship of$6,500 to support the event. The Nevada Council on Problem Gambling is anon-profit organisation whose mission is to generate awareness, promoteeducation and advocate for quality treatment and support resources forproblem gambling in Nevada.events and Activities

l ICE 2017, 7-9 February at Excel London. AGEM will have a presence at theshow and welcomes all members and potential new members to the stand.

MeMber profile

company / tCSJohnHuxleyweb address / www.tcsjohnhuxley.com

agem membership level / Silver Member

description / tCSJohnHuxley is the world’s leading manufacturerand supplier of end-to-end live gaming solutions and services. With

an emphasis on leading edge technology, the product portfoliounderpins the company’s commitment to business partnerships,

innovation and growth. With strategically based offices all over theworld to provide personal service, after-sales service and technical

support tCSJohnHuxley is actively committed to deliveringcustomer focused innovative solutions.

new products for 2017 / tCSJohnHuxley recently launched Qorexelectronic gaming solutions which are driven by the Gaming Floor

Live platform. The Qorex terminal delivers innovative design, anintuitive easy to navigate interface and because it’s modular, it’s

extremely flexible and can be configured to suit any gamingenvironment. Visitors to ICE will see a wide range of configurationsthat illustrate the flexibility of the system, form large scale stadiumlayouts with a live dealer, to self-contained carousel units driven by

the Saturn Auto wheel and back-to-back formations that featurestate-of-the-art curved screen toppers for crystal clear live gamefeeds and multiple winning number results. Other new products

being debuted this year will be HD Blaze Roulette, a new andimproved addition to the Blaze product suite, which now

incorporates even more spectacular animated graphic capabilities toexcite players by adding the wow factor to games. The patented in-

game animations can be incorporated to complement existingthemes or promotions, providing ever more effective ways of

keeping players engaged longer. Demonstrated on roulette at theshow, HD Blaze will also be available for Sicbo and Money Wheel. newsworthy events to share / Qorex terminal installations will be

commencing Q1 in the UK for two major operators and also asignificant installation in Asia.

Forthcoming events / tCSJohnHuxley will be exhibiting at ICE.

AGEM is an international trade association representing manufacturers of electronic gaming devices, systems, lotteries and componentsfor the gaming industry. The Association works to further the interests of gaming equipment manufacturers throughout the world.Through political action, tradeshow partnerships, information dissemination and good corporate citizenship, the members of AGEM worktogether to create benefits for every company within the organization. Together, AGEM and its member organisations have assistedregulatory commissions and participated in the legislative process to solve problems and create a positive business environment.

AGEMmemberSHiP newS


ReportsSouTH eAST ASiA - THe PHiliPPineS

Despite the beautiful Pacific setting with 7,000islands of beach, jungle, volcanoes andmountains, the Philippines is a hard place to livewith high crime rates and crushing poverty.

Colonised by the Spanish, the Americans theninvaded early last century and the country hasnever really emerged from its client-state status.

The country is filled with ‘Americana’ with largechain stores and restaurants, despite the factthat the vast majority of Filipinos live on lessthan $2 a day.

Aside from manufacturing and shipping thereare few major industries. Economic growth hasbeen steadily growing at around 1.8 per centwith an average of 1.2 per cent growth between1998 and 2016. It has a status of an emergingeconomy and due to inflow of foreign directinvestment, it’s currently on the up.

The county is the world’s largest centre forbusiness processing outsourcing and has astrong base for electronics and hi-techcomponents for overseas corporations. NewPresident Rodrigo Duterte is now seeking to

relax business restrictions and cut taxes in a bidto attract more foreign investment and build onthe economic success of President Aquino.

Duterte was elected as the 16th President of thePhilippines in May 2016. The 71 year old was onhis seventh term as Mayor of Davao City whenhe was persuaded to run in the elections forPresident.

He replaced Martin Diño as candidate of thePartido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayanparty (PDP-Laban) and was only in fourth place

Under new government leadership, the Philippines is undergoingsignificant remodeling of its gambling industry with PAGCORdue to privatise its casinos and restructure its entire onlinegambling sector. We take a look at the story so far.

Cutting throughmurky waters

among the Presidential candidates when heagreed to run. However, his opponents laterwithdrew when polls gave Duterte anunassailable lead.

Some 81 per cent of the 54 million Filipinosregistered voters cast a ballot in the electionsand it was a record turnout in the Philippines,with Duterte having about 39 per cent of thevote with a total of 16.6 million votes – some 6.6million more than his closest rival Mar Roxas.He has huge mass appeal and a tough nononsense attitude to crime and drug pushers inthe country. This has made him popular in somerespects, but also earned him titles such as‘Duterte Harry’ and ‘The Punisher’.

He transformed Davao into one of the mostpeaceful cities in the country after he took overas Mayor in 1988. But he is known for his ironfist rule and unconventional methods of fightingcrime in Davao. He has been linked to the DavaoDeath Squad, which is alleged to be behind

several unsolved extrajudicial killings, whilsthuman rights groups documented over 1,400killings by vigilante groups in Davao between1998 and 2016, with victims mostly drug users,criminals and street children.

Apparently there has now been a markedincrease in the number of killings of suspectedcriminals in the Philippines since Duterte tookoffice. In the first three months of Duterte’sterm, some 3,000 killings were attributed to hisnationwide anti drug campaign. The PhilippineDaily Inquirer has since published a list ofextrajudicial killings of suspected criminals whoremain unidentified or only identified by analias.

Duterte is a former law graduate with a politicalscience degree and served as Davao SpecialCounsel then Assistant City Prosecutor in thelate 1970s until the early 1980s.

The outgoing president was Benigno ‘Noynoy’

Aquino and under his regime the Philippines hasseen corruption, poverty and inequality, despiteeconomic growth.

It is said some 40 to 80 per cent of Philippinelegislators are connected to political dynastieswith a vested interest, whilst a handful offamilies control most of the country’s wealth.Around 25 per cent of the population still liveunder the poverty line and this hasn’t changedfor at least 20 years.

The CAsino MArKeTSo what changes are in store for the gamblingmarket under the new Presidential rule?

In August 2016 it was announced that PAGCORcould be forced to offload its casinos when thePhilippines Department of Finance said thecountry’s regulator should not operate publicsector casinos. Back in December 2015 a similarcall was made by the previous government whosaid PAGCOR’s casinos should be privatised



leaving the company to concentrate on theregulation side.

This recent move comes from Duterte andcoincides with PAGCOR’s plans to open themarket to international operators. Duterte hasvowed to use all the earnings from PAGCOR forhealth services and education.

In November, PAGCOR began the process ofprivatising its casinos which is now expected tobe completed by September 2017.

In the Philippines there are 21 casinos including11 PAGCOR Filipino branded casinos and 10additional casinos, which include the largeintegrated resorts of City of Dreams in Manila,Resorts World Manila and Solaire Casino andthe two Thunderbird Fiesta casinos; plus thereare also five licensed casinos in specialeconomic zones. PAGCOR also operates satellitegaming facilities (smaller casinos or slot clubs).

As a regulator PAGCOR oversees and regulates10 private sector casinos, which between themoperate 1,280 gaming tables and 7,205 EGMs.

PAGCOR operates around a third of all the tablegames in the Philippines and nearly six out ofevery 10 EGMs, which equals 608 tables and10,603 EGMs.

Of the P43.3bn gross income received from thecasino sectors last year, PAGCOR’s own casinos

brought in P22.4bn – the remaining came fromregulatory fees from licensed casinos andElectronic Gaming sites.

The sale of the casinos could earn a hefty sumfor the Duterte administration. Funds raisedfrom the privatisation of the casinos areexpected to help support the government’sproposed P3.35trillion 2017 national budget.

The call to privatise came from FinanceSecretary Carlos Dominguez. PAGCOR isexpected to see huge loss of earnings in thefuture, although they aim to recoup throughother gaming projects such as offshore e-games.

The House Bill (HB) 2265 will split PAGCOR’sregulatory and commercial functions andestablish the Philippine Amusement andGaming Commission (PAGCOM).

Although PAGCOR has generated millions ofrevenues and channelled this into infrastructureand social projects it seems there arediscrepancies in past dividend remittances.

Back in 2010 an offer was made by San MiguelCorporation’s President, Ramon Ang, to buyPAGCOR for $10bn, which the Department ofFinance said was too cheap.

In 2012 a Senate Bill 3178 aimed to privatisecasinos with a PAGCOM division to be set up forregulating and collecting fees only. The bill

stated that PAGCOM would collect five per centas gross revenue tax and 50 per cent ofaggregate gross earnings of casino operations.PAGCOM would then give 37.5 per cent of itscollection to the Department of Education basiceducation programme, 2.5 per cent to priorityproject of local government units and five percent to create a trust fund with the Departmentof Social Welfare and Development foraddiction programmes.

pAGCor’s ACTiViTiesPAGCOR currently operates 11 Filipino branchcasinos in key cities of Metro Manila and themajor islands and they are all housed in hotelsin popular tourist destinations.

The Philippine Amusement and GamingCorporation is a wholly government owned andcontrolled gaming corporation which wascreated in 1977 by a Marcos Presidential decreeto curb the influx of illegal gambling.

PAGCOR was given a franchise for 25 yearswhich was then extended for another 25 yearsin July 2008 and at the moment is headed byAndrea Domingo (Chairman and CEO) andAlfredo Lim (President and CEO).

It was originally set up with a three-prongedmandate – to regulate games of chance (casinosin particular), to raise funds for the governmentand to help boost the Philippines’ tourismindustry.



In 2012 a Senate Bill 3178 aimed to privatise casinos with a PAGCoM division tobe set up for regulating and collecting fees only. The bill stated that PAGCoMwould collect five per cent as gross revenue tax and 50 per cent of aggregategross earnings of casino operations. PAGCoM would give 37.5 per cent of itscollection to the Department of Education basic education programme

CASINO DATA 2015-2016CASINO TABLE GAMES EGMS GGR 2015 GGR Q1-Q2 2016

PaGCOR filipino casinos x 11 608 10,603 P30.3bn P15.8bnEntertainment City P70.1bn P40.6bn

City of Dreams, Manila 247 1,642 Resorts World Manila 314 2,081 Solaire Resort and Casino 392 1,839

thunderbird/fiesta P1.6bn P849mRizal 33 243 Poro Point 28 291

Clark freeport P10.1bn P8.2bnCasablanca Casino 36 190 fontana Casino 124 189 Royce Casino 36 264 Widus Casino 52 300 Midori Casino 18 166

tOtal 1,888 17,908 P112.1bn P65.5bn


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In 2007 as the licence was extended it alsopermitted PAGCOR to enter into agreementssuch as joint ventures. The company is thegovernment’s third largest source of revenuesand recorded P32.7bn in assets in June 2016 andP18.1bn in liabilities. In 2015 the companycollected P47.2bn in total revenues, an increaseof P7.2bn on the previous year, of which P43.3bnwas income from gaming operations. From thisamount some P22.8bn went to the governmentas contributions and net profit was P3.8bn.

PAGCOR’s income is distributed with five percent of winnings going to the BIR as franchisetax; 50 per cent of the balance goes to theNational treasury; five per cent of the balancethen goes to the Sports Commission and one percent of the net income goes to the Board ofClaims. Cities hosting PACOR casinos alsoreceived a fixed amount for community projects.

In July actor and tV host Arnell Ignacio, whohas been a vocal supporter of President Duterte,was appointed assistant vice president for theCommunity Relations and Services Departmentat PAGCOR. The PAGCOR casinos are:

casino filipino malate is located in the tourist

district of Manila in the Hyatt Hotel. It wasopened in 1994 and has three floors of gamingwith tables and slots.

casino filipino Pavilion is also in Manila and isthe premiere casino for PAGCOR opened 25years ago in the Pavilion Waterfront Hotel. It hasthree floors of gaming with VIP room. Grosstotal rake collections for this casino in 2015 wereP16.8m.

casino filipino Angeles is a themed casinobased on Kamampangan folklore located inPampanga province. It is set on three storeysoffering table games, slots and bingo. It has beenbased at Cauayan Isabela after the eruption ofMount Pinatubo led to its relocation in 1992. Itwas housed in a new building in 2003. There are489 slots in total. Gross total rake collections forthis casino in 2015 were P26.2m.

casino filipino bacolod is located in a Spanishera inspired hotel in the heart of GoldenfieldsCommercial complex. It began operation 26years ago. There are 264 slots in total, tablegames and bingo.

casino filipino cebu is in Cebu city and is a

primary destination for around 35 per cent offoreign visitors. The casino is located in thecastle-like Waterfront Cebu City Hotel was oneof the first themed casinos in the Philippinesand is based on the 19th century era. There is41,000 sq.m of gaming divided into three areasand a total of 737 slots.

casino filipino Davo is the biggest city in termsof land area and home to Mount Apo. The casinois in the Grand Regal Hotel in Lanang. There are15 table games and slots.

casino filipino laoag – is one of the mostbeautiful casinos in the Fort Ilocandia ResortHotel in Laoag City, a resort know for its sandybeaches and is a favourite with players fromHong Kong and taiwan. There are 14 VIP roomswith different themes and 136 slots in total.

casino filipino olongapo is based in theOlongapo city with its array of bars, duty free,golf course and restaurants the casino is foundin the heart of the entertainment district. Grosstotal rake collections for this casino in 2015 wereP9.3m.

casino filipino Tagaytay is in the city tagaytay

PAGCoR’s income isdistributed with five percent of winnings going tothe BIR as franchise tax;50 per cent of the balancegoes to the NationalTreasury; five per cent ofthe balance then goes tothe Sports Commissionand one per cent of thenet income goes to theBoard of Claims. Citieshosting PACoR casinosalso received a fixedamount for communityprojects.

PAGCOR INCOME 2015DETAILS 2015 2014 Q1-Q2 2016

Income from gaming Operations P43.3bn P29.9bn P26.0bnIncome from related services P1.7bn P8.6bn P796mOther income P2.1bn P1.5bn P38.9mTOTAL INCOME P47.2bn P39.9bn P26.9bn Operating expenses P18.4bn P17.8bn P7.0bn5% franchise tax P2.1bn P1.4bn P1.3bn Contribution to Govt 50% share P20.6bn P14.2bn P12.4bnSports Commission 5% P1bn P710.8m P619.5mSubsidy to host cities P465.1m P497.1m P254mSocio-Civic and other projects P2.5bnboard of Claims 1% P37.9m P32.7m P22.3mIncome tax P32.5m P187m P8.1mCulture and arts endowment P100m P100m P50mChildhood Development endowment P500m P500m P250mOther P10.5m P18.6m P9.4mTOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS P22.7bn P17.3bn P17.4bn NEt INCOME P3.7bn P3.2bn P2.4bn

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country Philippines capital Manila Total Area 300,000 sq.km Population 102,624,209 median age 23.4 years male 22.9 years female 23.8 years ethnic groups tagalog (28%), Cebuano (13%)

Ilocano (9%), Bisaya/Binisaya(7.6%), Hiligaynon Ilongo (7.5%),other (25%)

religions Catholic (83%), Muslim (5%) languages Filipino (official) with eight major

dialects currency Philippine Peso (P) Government type Presidential republic chief of State President Rodrigo Duterte (since

June 2016) Head of Government President Rodrigo Duterte cabinet Appointed by the president with

consent of the Commission ofAppointments.

elections President and vice-presidentelected on separate ballots bysimple majority popular vote forsingle 6 year term. Next electionMay 2022.

Essential information and factsabout Philippines:

just 55km from Manila. It’s a mountain resortfamous for the taal Volcano in Cavite. The casinois located opposite the taal Vista Hotel and wasopened in 1991 and has a gaming area of 4,450sq.m and 551 EGMs in the main casino plus 824additional slots in four satellite casinos inCarmona, Sta Rosa, Biñan and San Pedro.

Casino Filipino Mimosa is located at the MimosaLeisure Estate in the Clark Special EconomicZone, Pampanga this is based on the glitz ofHollywood glamour and houses a golf course,hotel, villas, bars and restaurants. There are 170slots.

casino filipino mactan is a Spanish themedcasino and located very close to theinternational airport in Mactan Island in Cebuand has 414 slots and table games.

A couple of casinos were closed down whenEntertainment City was built including CasinoFilipino Parañaque which was housed at theAirport Ninoy Aquino in Parañaque city. Thecasino shut in 2014 due to losses. MeanwhileCasino Filipino Heritage located at the Grand

Plaza Hotel Group’s Heritage Hotel in Pasay Cityclosed in 2013.

The other casino operations in the Philippinesare:

enTerTAinMenT CiTYEntertainment City is made up of four integratedresorts which will join the fifth resort (ResortsWorld Manila).

The project is housed at the bay area ofParañaque City and on some land at the AseanaBusiness Park and Mall of Asia Complex.PAGCOR insisted that the hotel facilities must bebuilt prior to opening the casinos.

Entertainment City is a huge Vegas like gamingcomplex built on eight sq.km of land in Bay City,Metro Manila. The four integrated resorts are:

Solaire resort (Bloomberry Resorts) whichopened in 2013 and was the first development inthe resort. It includes two five star hotels with atotal of 800 rooms plus a casino with 1,620 slotsand 360 tables.

city of Dreams (MCE Leisure) opened in 2015and consists of six hotel towers with 940 rooms.The gaming area has 380 tables and 1,700 slotsand 1,700 electronic table games. The City ofDreams and Solaire Resorts contributed a totalof P191m in real property tax last year. TheParañaque City government is hoping to reachP300bn over five years in taxes when allintegrated resorts in Entertainment City arecompleted.

resorts world bayshore (Genting and AGI) is dueto open in 2018 and is Genting’s second resort inthe Philippines and builds on the success ofResorts World Manila. This site will have threehotels with 2,800 rooms in total and gamingarea.

Tiger resort leisure and entertainment(Universal Entertainment Corp) is the fourthcasino in this resort and was due to open at theend of December 2016 and will comprise of ahotel made up of two 15 storey wings connectedby a sky bridge. The gaming area will have 3,000electronic gaming machines and 500 tables.The hotel has 993 rooms and suites and villas


PAGCOR INCOME DIVISION 2015-2016PARTICULARS 2015 2014 Q1-Q2 2016

Income from Gaming Operations Winnings – table games

Regular table operations P10.5bn P10.8bn P5.1bnJunket operations P504.2m P221.0m P281.7mMinimum Guaranteed fee P199.4m 0 P100.4mPoker Operations P102.3m P123.7m P48.7m

Winnings – Electronic Gaming Machines

Slot machines P11.0bn P11.1bn P6bnElectronic bingo P6.3bn P4.3bn P4.2bnElectronic Gaming Operations P2.2bn P2.0bn P1.1bn

Winnings – Dollar Pit bingo Operations

In house bingo P158.5m P179.9m P79.3mbingo franchisees P977.5m P984.8m P487.6m

Income from licensed casinos P11.2bn 0 P8.5bn

tOtal INCOME fROM GaMING OPERatIONS P43.3bn P29.9bn P26bn



plus indoor beach and nightclub in a huge domecalled Cove Manila. The project is also known asOkada Manila and is being run by a companycontrolled by Japanese gaming businessmanKazuo Okada.

It is a $2bn project which missed an earlierdeadline in 2015 and has since been given moretime to complete. The opening of the property,hotel and food, drink outlets. Last year PAGCORfined tiger $2.2m and threatened to suspend itspermit citing delays in the casino project.

resorT world MAnilAResort World Manila was born with a bid toboost tourism figures. In June 2008 AGI, throughtravellers International Hotel Group (a jointventure between Genting Hong Kong andAlliance Global Group), received the firstprovisional licence from PAGCOR to develop agaming project.

The first project was Resort World Manila whichis the Philippine’s first integrated tourism estate

and opened back in August 2009. Resorts WorldManila is a US$700m luxury casino resortlocated on an 11.5 hectare site in Newport City,the first tourism economic zone in thePhilippines, and just across from terminal 3 ofthe Ninoy Aquino Airport.

Resort World Manila has four hotels – the fivestar Marriot Hotel Manila; the six star casinohotel Maxims Hotel; the budget RemingtonHotel and the Belmont Hotel. two more hotels –Sheraton and Hilton – are under construction.There is also the Newport Mall including gamesarcade GameZoo, 3D cinemas, 50 plusrestaurants and a 1,500 seat theatre.

The resort also inaugurated the Newport Citytransport terminal which provides round theclock access to and from the airport terminals aswell as to various parts of metro Manila andneighbouring provinces.

The casino is 13,167 sq.m in size and has 311tables, 210 electronic table games and 1,800

slots over three floors and includes a VIP roomand junket rooms.

Net revenues for Resorts World Manila in 2015were P24.6bn of which P24.2bn came from thegaming sector. The resort sees around 18,000visitors per day.

The company is subject to gaming and VIP tax of25 per cent and 15 per cent respectively, in lieuof all taxes, in reference to the GGR. Thischanged in 2014 and PAGCOR reduced the rateto 15 per cent and five per cent respectively and10 per cent of the licence fee was allocated forincome tax on gaming.

ThUnderbird fiesTA resorTsThere are two Thunderbird casino resorts one inPoro Point and a second in Rizal. Poro Pointoverlooks the West Philippine Sea and is basedon a 65 hectare site with a Mediterranean themewith five star accommodation. The Fiesta casinohas 28 tables and 291 slots.

In 2007, PAGCoR was permitted to enter into agreements such as joint ventures.The company is the government’s third largest source of revenues and recordedP32.7bn in assets in June 2016 and P18.1bn in liabilities. In 2015 the companycollected P47.2bn in total revenues, an increase of P7.2bn on the previous year,of which P43.3bn was income from gaming operations. From this amount someP22.8bn went to the government as contributions and net profit was P3.8bn.

CASINOS21

CASINO SlOTS17,908

CASINO TABlES 1,888

CASINO REVENUEP112.1bn

EGM SITES REVENUEP21.1bn

ONlINE GAMINGPermitted under new law

The Rizal location is perched in the mountains inMetro Manila and inspired by Spanish colonialarchitecture. The Fiesta casino here has 33 tablesand 243 slots.

The operations were originally set up by

Thunderbird Resorts which owns and operatescasinos, hotel and restaurants Latin Americaand Asia. They opened their first operation in1997 in Guatemala followed by four casinos inPanama which was the birth of the FiestaCasino brand.

Other casinos followed and Fiesta Casino Rizalopened in 2005 and was later followed by PoroPoint.

The company sold these operations in 2013 toMagnum Leisure Holdings (a division of SolarEntertainment Corporation) for $26.5m.

ClArK freeporTThe Clark Freeport Zone is a redevelopment ofthe former US air base in the province ofPampanga about 60km northwest of MetroManila. today it is a hub for business, industry,aviation, tourism and education and a leisureand entertainment and gaming centre withtheme parks and casinos.

The base was closed in 1991 after a volcaniceruption but in 1995 was cleaned up andtransformed and is now administered by theClark Development Corporation.

It is about the size of Singapore and occupiesover 33,000 hectares of land and is just 3.5hours flying time from Hong Kong, Singapore,Japan, taiwan etc. The CDC posted revenues ofP1.554bn last year with a net income of P697m.

There are six casinos located in the ClarkFreeport Zone (one of which is operated byPAGCOR). The others are:

casablanca casino housed in the HotelStotsenberg in Pampanga and inspired by themovie. The casino has 36 tables and 190 slots.

update - Fontana Hotel and Casino located inPampanga in a 300 hectare property was closedin December 2016 after a government raid. The

RESORT WORlD DATA 2014-2015DETAILS 2015 2014

Net Revenues (total) P27.7bn P31.5bnGaming P24.2bn P28.3bnNon-Gaming (hotel, food) P2.4bn P2.2bnOther income P1bn P922m

Gross Profit P14.1bn P18.3bnaverage daily visitors 18,796 19,026Gaming Units

VIP tables 134 127Mass tables 177 169Slots 1,798 1,868EtG 210 210

Drop volume total drops P505.9m P680.6mVIP tables P367.6m P538.5mMass tables P22.7m P24.5mSlots P114.4m P116.2mEtG P1.2m P1.3m

Win rate VIP tables 2.8% 2.5%Mass tables 24.8% 24.9%Slots 6.9% 7.2%EtG 22.5% 23%




casino has 124 gaming tables and 189 slots.There are also four VIP rooms and one PremiumPlayer’s Pit. The casino, which was shut downdue to lack of permits, legal documents andimmigration papers, is also believed to havehoused the backroom team for an illegal onlinecasino. The raid led to the arrest of 1,316allegedly undocumented Chinese workers.

royce Hotel and casino is an elegant hotel withcasino which has 36 tables and 264 slots.

widus Hotel and casino in Pampanga has a4,500 sq.m gaming hall with 250 slots and 52tables.

midori casino in Pampanga was the first luxuryfive star hotel in Central Luzon with 111 rooms.The casino houses 18 tables and 166 slots. It isthe newest casino in Clark.

The philweb sAGAAs part of Duterte’s battle to tidy up thePhilippines, the company PhilWeb has recentlycome under attack and it’s e-Games venueswere suddenly closed down.

PhilWeb’s licence expired on August 10 and itwas not been renewed by PAGCOR whilstcompany chairman Roberto Ongpin resigned ina bid to save the company.

Roberto Ongpin was elected Chairman in 2000the same year he founded the company. Heresigned as Chairman after making severaloffers to PAGCOR all of which were rejected. Inan effort to save the company and employees heoffered to donate his shares to PAGCOR which

was refused and then put them up for auction.

In September businessman Gregorio MariaAranete III made a tender offer to buy the 53.76per cent stake from Ongpin. The deal wascontractually agreed in October and the P2bndeal involved the sale of Ongpin’s 771.65 millionshares priced at P2.60 per share.

The e-Games network contributed P2.1bn toPAGCOR in 2015 and a total of over P14bn overthe last 14 years.

Ongpin had been targeted by Duterte to beremoved from PhilWeb. Duterte had directed thegovernment to clamp down on online gamblingand also singled out Ongpin as an “oligarch”who he wanted to “destroy”.

Ongpin was a former Minister of trade andIndustry under President Marcos and apparentlythe country’s 18th richest person.

PhilWeb argued at the time that it is merely asoftware provider for PAGCOR for its network ofe-Games outlets and that they are not ‘onlinegambling’ as the software cannot be played fromhomes or offices.

Finally in November Duterte back pedalled alittle and said he made a mistake in notrenewing the PhilWeb licence and has nowannounced that the licence would be grantedbefore the end of 2016.

Apparently a rumour about PhilWeb andOngpin was circulated and relayed to thePresident before he took office and it was this

which led to his decision to not renew thecompany’s licence. It has also been suggestedthat PhilWeb’s contribution to the government istoo ‘considerable’ to cast aside.

There are apparently two restrictions attached tothe renewal – one, that the venues must not belocated near churches and schools and two, thatclients must be restricted to those that canafford it.

New PhilWeb Chairman, Aranete is theChairman and CEO of Araneta Properties. He isthe son-in-law to Ferdinand and Imelda Marcosdue to his marriage to Irene Marcos (the Marcos’youngest daughter whom he married in 1983).He has been a large shareholder of PhilWeb foryears and an independent director since May2014.

When Ongpin left the new management ofPhilWeb re-applied for the continuation of itslicence with PAGCOR for the network of e-Games.


OFFSHORE GAMING lICENSING FEES (US$)TYPE OF LICENCE APPLICATION FEE LICENCE FEE GAMING TAX RENEWAL FEE (ONE TIME FEE) (ONE TIME FEE) (MONTHLY (ANNUAL)

Offshore Gaming licencee-casino $50,000 $200,000 $10,000 per table $50,000

(live deals)

Sports betting $40,0000 $150,000 $40,000 $40,000 $100 per player RNG gamesOffshore Gaming agent $20,000 $20,000accreditationGaming Software/Platform $20,000 $20,000Provider RegistrationGaming Support Provider $20,000 $20,000RegistrationData Streaming/Content Provider $40,000 $40,000bPO $50,000 $50,000



For most political leaders, praisingAdolf Hitler would be inconceivable.But not for Mr Duterte, who hascompared his brutal campaignagainst drug dealers and users to theHolocaust, saying he will kill as manyaddicts as Hitler did Jews. Incomments that sparked globaloutrage, he told reporters he hadbeen "portrayed to be some cousin ofHitler" by his critics. "Hitlermassacred three million Jews. Now,there is three million drug addicts. I'dbe happy to slaughter them," he said.

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Ahead of a meeting in Laos, Dutertedescribed Barack Obama as a "son ofa whore" over suggestions the USpresident might challenge him onhuman rights issues. He succeededin avoiding the topic in one sense, atleast. Mr Obama cancelled themeeting, saying he preferred"constructive conversations.”

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Araneta said at the time: “We at PhilWeb arealso concerned about restarting our operationswithout delay since the network of e-Gamescafes have been out of business for over twomonths now.”

The company had to put 216 of its 700employees on ‘forced leave’ and there were alsosome 5,000 e-Game café operators out of work.

At the time of closure PhilWeb also suggested anew business venture with PAGCOR for amobile phone based lottery called PAGCOR textBonzana which the gaming regulator alsorefused.

Philweb Corporation is a leading gamingtechnology provider in the Asia Pacific regionand listed on the Philippine stock exchange.

It didn’t become an internet company until theyear 2000 when the company restructured from

a mining company and in 2003 received alicence from PAGCOR to launch e-Games cafes.

Back in 2010 PAGCOR’s electronic casinobusiness had 160 e-Games cafes with some4,146 gaming terminals and a total casino win ofP3.3bn. PhilWeb has worked hand in hand withPAGCOR to provide technology services and bythe end of 2015 there were a total of 268 e-Game outlets with over 8,839 gaming terminalsand a total casino win of P5.5bn.

PhilWeb provides products and offerspartnerships with customers and serves 90,000account holders. In 2015 each account wastransformed into a closed loop electronic walletto enable customers to keep their gaming fundsin the account without having to withdraw cash.

This increased marketing opportunities andmade it easier for members to access newofferings at the outlets. One new offering was

sports betting. On the sports betting side totalturnover for 2015 was P2.5bn (a 51 per centgrowth year on year). total company revenue forthe year 2015 was P1.6bn.

The company subsidiaries include:

e-games – licensed by PAGCOR in 2013 tolaunch e-Games stations (internet cafes)dedicated to casino games. technology providedby PhilWeb with more than 300 casino games tochoose from including Baccarat, Blackjack,slots, video poker and sports betting. The e-Games cafes operated 24/7 with 268 in thecountry the majority owned by independentoperators.

Big game – operates 23 e-Game cafes and thesefunction as PhilWeb’s R&D sites where newgames are tested. In 2015 Big Game added sixnew locations to the network and totalterminals were 1,225.

PAGCoR has received a total of 76 bids for its new offshore gaming licencessince applications began in September. PAGCoR will initially grant 25 licencesfor offshore gaming operations under new rules and regulations. The licenceswill each be valid for one year. The rules may possibly change over the first 12months once PAGCoR has assessed the operation of the licensees.

e-magine gaming - is the brand give to thedevelopment and manufacture of PhilWeb’sgaming terminals. These were launched in 2012and there are a total of 578 new Genesis 103terminals deployed in 46 e-Games and BigGame outlets nationwide in 2015. The games aretouchscreen terminals with ticket printers andcard readers and offer multiple games from

casino to sports betting.

mega Sport world (mSw) – 292 MSW sites runwith PAGCOR to offer betting on a range ofsports via PAGCOR’s own slot parlours andcasino and internet parlours. MSW has themonopoly on land based sports betting and theyoffer self service monitors in the big outlets so

bettors can place bets directly. These areavailable at Resorts World Manila, King of SportsResto Bar, Dehadista Sportsbar and CasinoFilipino Angeles for example.

Meanwhile in September PAGCOR orderedLeisure and Resorts World Corporation (LRWC)to close its 53 bingo sites due to their proximity


TOTAl INDUSTRY GGR 2015-2016SECTOR REVENUES 2015 REVENUES Q1-Q2 2016

Casinos (total) P112.1bn P65.5bnPaGCOR non junket P12.1bn P2.7bnPaGCOR junket P5bn P2.7bnEGMs P13.1bn P7.1bn

licensed casinos non junket P34.8bn P20.5bnlicensed casinos junket P23bn P15.6bnlicensed casinos EGMs P23.9bn P13.5bn

Electronic Gaming Sites (total) P21.1bn P12.6bn

EGMs P5.6bn P2.8bnbingo Games P14.9bn P9.6bnSports betting P593m P224m

tOtal P133.2bn P78.2bn



with schools and churches. Under the lawgaming venues must be at least 200 metres fromsuch locations.

It later reinstated 20 licences saying e-bingooperations located inside malls, arcades andhotels are considered exempt from the distancerequirement.

PAGCOR is now studying whether it willpermanently maintain the exemption of malls,arcades and hotels from distance requirements.

Online bingo is one of the most popular forms ofgambling in the Philippines and made up threequarters of internet gaming revenue in the firsthalf of the year according to PAGCOR data.

Under Duterte’s anti online gambling campaignthe ban would have had a big affect on LRWCwhich has a 35 per cent market share of thePhilippines’ bingo market with 8,585 e-bingomachines plus 119 bingo halls.

Duterte was quoted in June as saying: “Onlinegambling must stop. It’s out of control. I wouldsuggest that sometime soon, licences must becut.” He later back tracked and said onlinegaming was permitted providing it was located acertain distance from schools and churches.

PAGCOR initially announced that 36 e-bingosites run by Leisure and Resorts Worldsubsidiary AB Leisure Exponent (ABLE) and 17sites run by another subsidiary total GamezoneExtreme had to close. They also said newlicences would not be issued or expired licenceswould not be renewed.

LRWC acquired Leisure Exponent in 1999 toextend its business into a bingo companythrough Bingo Bonanza Corporation. Thecompany also acquired First Cagayan Leisureand Resort Corporation in 2005 to develop andoperate internet facilities in the Cagayan SpecialEconomic Zone Freeport. The company is nowdivided into four groups – Retail, Online, Casinoand Property.

The online sector for the company saw a totalcontribution to the net income for the companyof P516.1m in 2015, a 19 per cent growth on theprevious year. Gross revenues for the FirstCagayan Leisure and Resort Corporation wasP1.60bn, with the principal growth driver beingthe number of operating locators which grewfrom 111 in 2015 from 84 in 2014.

The retail group comprises of AB LeisureExponent (ABLE) and total Gamezone XtremeInc (tGXI). total contribution to group net

income was P256.2m in 2015. Electronic bingovia the Bingo Bonanza brand is a principal driverof sales with P3.4bn in 2015 with a total of 8,585e-bingo machines in 119 bingo parlours of which47 are traditional bingo sites and 72 are BingoBoutique sites. tGXI contributed P295.1m andoperates 53 PeGS with 1,974 terminals.

LRWC’s casino sector includes a 51 per centshare of the Hotel Enterprises of Philippines(HEPI) which owns and operates a PAGCORsatellite casino at the Midas Hotel.

total contribution of the casino group to netincome was P85.2m and this group consists ofHEPI, Prime Investment Korea Inc and BlueChip Gaming and Leisure Corporation.

Meanwhile PAGCOR has received a total of 76bids for its new offshore gaming licences sinceapplications began in September. PAGCOR willinitially grant 25 licences for offshore gamingoperations under new rules and regulations. Thelicences will each be valid for one year.

The rules may possibly change over the first 12months once PAGCOR has assessed theoperation of the licensees. The licence covers e-casinos offering products based on a randomnumber generator device or live dealer games

and sports betting. The service provider is to bereferred to as a Philippine Offshore GamingOperator (POGO).

An application for such offshore gaminglicences is US$50,000 for an e-casino licenceand US$40,000 for a sports betting permit.Once approved the applicant then has to pay$200,000 for an e-casino licence and $150,000for sports betting licence.

The Philippines also recently set up the CagayanEconomic Zone Authority (CEZA) where theFirst Cagayan Leisure and Resort Corporationlicences Asian online operators who by lawcan’t take bets from Philippine customers.

wild CArd - dUTerTe ‘hArrY’On December 23, 2016, President Duterte threwanother hand grenade into the online gamingdebate by ordering the closure of “all onlinegaming operations” in the Philippines. Sincetaking office in June, the populist President hasvowed to clamp down on online gaming as partof his initial policy concerns.

Rodrigo Duterte stated: “I am ordering theclosure of all online gaming [companies] – all ofthem – they have no use.” This follows atougher stance than in August when he

remarked that online gaming could resume oncea system is implemented to ensure taxes areproperly collected and under the enforcementof strict regulations.

The President cited corruption as a principleconcern as well as the government not receivingtaxes from online gaming. Locals are notpermitted to bet online, therefore, all onlinegaming in the country is outbound, all providedby offshore firms, many with no links to thePhilippines.

A prevalent gray market has been China andhelping to prevent operators targeting Chineseplayers will help positive relations between thecountries.

The day after the President’s outburst (whichcame shortly after Duterte’s revelation that he’dpersonally thrown a criminal from a helicopterin his crime-fighting days), PAGCOR movedswiftly to clarify the position of the government.PAGCOR chair, Andrea Domingo, said that onlyunlicensed online gaming companies would becovered by President Duterte’s closure order.Domingo also said all applications for onlinegaming would go through PAGCOR.

Justice Secretary Vitaliano Aguirre II said

Duterte might only be referring to onlinegaming firms that violated the law when heannounced that he would like online gamblingoperations shut down.

Aguirre cited the case of Chinese gamingoperator Jack Lam and other “outright”violators as examples of those whosecompanies must be closed. Others that arecomplying with PAGCOR regulations “havenothing to fear,” he said.

Aguirre also said Duterte was set to sign anexecutive order appointing him as head of theOnline task Force intended to police onlinegambling activities in the country. The EO willcover the extent of authority and power of thetask force.

While PAGCOR moved quickly to calm onlineoperator and investor fears over the President’smost recent inflammatory comments (the onesabout online gaming as opposed to the moreBatman-like ones), the volatile politicallandscape and ever present corruption, asdemonstrated in the recent closure of theFontana Leisure Parks & Casino in Clark Field,epitomises that of a high-risk market withinnumerable opportunities, but also massivepotential for disaster.



ReportsSouTH eAST ASiA - VieTnAm

Vietnam is the eastern most country on theIndochina peninsula in South East Asia. Witharound 95 million inhabitants it is the 14th mostpopulous country and the eighth most populousin Asia.

Vietnam is located in South East Asia borderingCambodia, China and Laos with water borderswith the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of tonkin and theSouth China Sea.

With its S shape and three distinct regions,which are all different in terms of culture andeconomy, the country is diverse. The north isdominated by its capital Hanoi and influencedby neighbouring China whilst the central region,with Da Nang as its major city, is mostly ruraland serves also as a shipping port, whereas thesouth is dominated by Ho Chi Minh City and theMekong River Delta and is a key commercialcentre and boasts most of the coastal resorts.

Hanoi has been the capital since reunification ofthe north and south in 1975. Vietnam was at onetime part of Imperial China for over amillennium until an independent Vietnam wasformed in 939AD.

Vietnamese royal dynasties flourished as thenation expanded geographically and politicallyinto South East Asia until the Indochinapeninsula was colonised by France in the mid19th century. The French imposed significantpolitical and cultural changes on the societyincluding a western style system of modern

education and Roman Catholicism. The Frenchwent on to develop a plantation economy for theexport of tobacco, indigo tea and coffee, whilstignoring the calls for a self government and civilrights. So a political movement emerged with afight for independence.

The French maintained their full control untilWorld War II when the Japanese invaded. TheJapanese occupied the country in the 1940s andin 1941 the Viet Minh was formed, a communistmovement which sought independence forVietnam and the Vietnamese fought French rulein the First IndoChina War, eventually expellingthe French in 1954.

Vietnam was then divided politically into tworival states – North and South Vietnam andconflict between the two intensified resulting inthe Vietnam War. This war ended in 1975 with aNorth Vietnamese victory and the country wasthen unified under a communist government.After the war the southern Vietnamese weresent to ‘re-education camps’ and enduredtorture and starvation.

today Vietnam, along with China, Cuba andLaos, is one of the world’s four remaining one-party socialist states officially adoptingcommunism. In 1986 the government initiated aseries of economic and political reforms and bythe year 2000 it had established diplomaticrelations with all nations and its economicgrowth rate has been among the highest in theworld.

It still relies on its wet rice cultivation andagriculture, although Vietnam’s economycontinues to been plagued with inefficiency andcorruption. today manufacturing andinformation technology now form a large part ofthe economy and it is also ranked as the eighthlargest crude petroleum producer in the Asiaand Pacific region.

The poverty rate has dropped significantly,whilst the country’s GDP reached US$186bn in2015 with a 6.7 per cent economic growth rateand after simplifying its trade rules in the 1990sthe country says trade now accounts for around150 per cent of GDP. Unemployment is around3.3 per cent.

There has been a huge input into the educationsystem and its 63 provinces are encouraged todiversify into technology.

Since the 1990s Vietnam has also become amajor tourism destination assisted by state andprivate investment in coastal regions.

Popular tourist destinations include World

Vietnam’s gambling industry is teetering onthe brink of expansion with four IntegratedResorts in the pipeline, a pilot project topermit locals into casinos and a new bettinglaw on the cards. It is said Vietnam could bethe next Macau… we take a look at what’sactually happening

Teetering on thebrink of expansion

Heritage sites and coastal regions such as Nhatrang, the caves of Ha Long Bay and MarbleMountains.

total tourism arrivals reached 7.9 million lastyear with an annual growth rate of around 7.8per cent, whilst tourism receipts wereVND337.8trillion (US$15.1bn). The Chineseremain the biggest share of visitors representing22 per cent followed by Koreans and thenJapanese.

GAMblinG MArKeTGambling in Vietnam was completely outlawedby the communist regime, and although fromthe 1990s the restrictions were loosened, theystill remain extremely strict today.

There are hefty fines imposed on gamblingoperators who open up illegally although thathasn’t stopped a somewhat grey area ofoperation and a growing number of Vietnamesewho like to gamble in underground facilities.

The only legal forms of gambling permitted atthe moment are the horse race betting on thestate owned tracks, greyhound race betting atthe Vung tau and the Vietnam Lottery.

Casinos are permitted on the basis that they donot permit locals to enter. These are mostlyoperated by foreign companies around the HoChi Minh City area. Locals merely cross theborder to Cambodia and gamble mostly in thetown of Bavet, which is only an hour drive from


The labour costs in Vietnam are one of the lowest in Asia:unskilled laborers earn on average 125 USD while skilledworkers make an average of 275 USD per month.Regardless of the continually low wage costs, Vietnameseare perceived to have high work ethics and strong qualityawareness. The country has very good basic education, withthe literacy rate of 94.5 per cent. The working population isvery young, hence a great number of school-leavers enterthe labour market every year.

l1 Vietnam's economy is steadily growing with a rate of 5 – 6per cent per year. Even during the Asian crisis (1997), aswell as the recent global recession, the growth trend has notchanged. For the period 2016-2020, the Vietnamesegovernment targets a GDP growth rate of 6.5 - 7 per cent.The increase in industrial production in recent years at anaverage of 10 percent per year (period 2009 – 2015),coupled with rising FDIs and exports offer a particularlyoptimistic perspective.

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country Vietnam capital Hanoi Total Area 331,210 sq.km Population 95,261,021 median age 30.1 years male 28.9 years female 31.2 years ethnic groups Kinh (Viet) (85%), tay (1.9%), Thai

(.18%), Muong (1.5%), Khmer(1.5%).

religions Buddhist (7.9%), Catholic (6.6%),none (82%)

languages Vietnamese (official) plus English,French, Chinese.

currency Dong (VND) Government type Communist state chief of State President tran Dai Quang (since

April 2016) Head of Government Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc

(since April 2016) cabinet Cabinet proposed by Prime

Minister and appointed byPresident

elections Next to be held 2021. PrimeMinister appointed by President.

Essential information and factsabout Vietnam:



Ho Chi Minh City. (see Cambodia market reportin December 2016 G3 issue).

Vietnam’s total gaming market is said to beworth around $300m-$400m, of which halfcomes from the slot clubs sector. Culturally,South Vietnam has the highest presence for legalgambling perhaps due to its background, asgambling was widely accepted in this part untilthe country was unified in 1975. The communistnorth meanwhile banned gambling.

Prior to 2006, only three-star-plus hotels with aseparate area for gaming halls could apply for agambling licence. At this time only twocompanies were given licences to operate horseand dog races and 33 enterprises, mainly bighotels, could be involved in card and machinegames.

Online gambling is also in theory illegal, butmany international sites host games inVietnamese currency and language. Althoughmany of the casinos also run poker tables theseare restricted to foreign players only and onlinepoker is also technically illegal and some sites

are blocked by ISPs and the government.General online purchases are low at the momentand only about two per cent of retail sales areconducted via online channels and are mostlyfor airline tickets.

The biggest gambling sector is currently thelottery, which sees the highest number ofwagers. However, things are about to change.

A new draft decree was introduced at the end oflast year which will see a trial for allowing localsinto two of the integrated resort casinos. Thiscoupled with plans to open four integratedresorts in total means all eyes are watchingVietnam at the moment.

With 90 million plus population and its appealto Chinese tourists due to location and relaxedvisa requirements, Vietnam is fast becoming analternative to Macau

The loTTerYThe lottery in Vietnam is a state-ownedmonopoly and was established in 1999 withthree major lotteries – the Southern Lottery, the

Northern Lottery and Central Vietnam Lottery.

There is no national lottery as such, but 64provincial lotteries made up of 59 provinces andfive municipalities.

In 2010, Malaysian firm Berjaya Group proposeda lottery project to the Vietnamese governmentto set up and provide online lottery and Kenogames in the country.

Six years later this has finally come to fruitionand Berjaya was awarded an 18 year contract tooperate a nationwide computerised lottery withthe Vietnam Computerised Lottery One MemberLimited Liability Company (or Vietlott for short).

The project is due to cost around $210.5m in totaland is being carried out by Berjaya Gia ThinhInvestment technology Joint Stock Company(Berjaya GtI) which is a subsidiary of BerjayaLottery Vietnam Limited.

Vietlott is the only company permitted toconduct a computerised lottery in the countryand Berjaya was chosen over five other


international companies that tenderedproposals. It was incorporated as a state-ownedcompany with the aim of boosting the country’seconomy. tax revenue is channeled to thegovernment budget for education, health andsocial welfare projects.

Vietlott now has two games on offer:

mega 6/45 – a lotto jackpot game were a payoutis 55 per cent with a jackpot for all six numbersand a minimum of VND12bn ($545,000), whichis accumulated if there’s no winner. Mega 6/45players pick six numbers from 0 to 45 plusvariations. There are four levels of prizes andtickets are VND10,000 ($50c). Draws are heldevery Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. ticketsare sold at POS and Flag Stores and in the futurewill be available via telephone and Internet.

Madly, the first draw saw no winners and 39draws later in October last year a farmer in traVinh province held the winning ticket with anaccumulated prize of VND92bn (aroundUS$4.11m). The state takes a 10 per cent cut forincome tax purposes.

max4d – Launched recently this game is playedby choosing a four digit number on a betting slipfrom 0000 to 9999 or players can have anumber randomly chosen. Each betting value isVND10,000 though it’s possible to attain amaximum value of VND1m. Each betting slipshas six columns for multiple bets. First prize forthose with matching numbers in the exact orderis VND15m (or 1.500 times the betting value).There are five total prize fields. Max4D draws areheld on tuesday, Thursday and Saturdays.

Vietlott is a member of the Asia Pacific LotteryAssociation and is governed by the Ministry ofFinance. In July 2016 the company celebrated alaunch ceremony, which also saw the domainvietlott.vn established.

The company has since installed computerisedlottery terminals thoroughout Vietnam andacross 11 provinces after an initial test in Ho ChiMinh City, which began in July 2016 with 400Mega 6/45 terminals. This trial is expected toincrease to 2,000 in total by the end of this yearto cope with the demand.

Some 800 PoS terminals were installed duringthe first month of operation with some 10,000PoS are planned nationwide within the next fiveyears.

There were five agents set up in Ho Chi Minh Citywho can establish subsidiaries with salesoutlets.

In terms of revenues, the lottery market hasseen a steady growth over the last four years andsales were up by 7.8 per cent in 2015. Back in2011 the revenues were VND47,900bn(US$2.1bn) rising to VND63,000bn in 2014($2.8bn) – a growth rate of 32 per cent.

The majority of sales (almost 88 per cent) areconducted in southern Vietnam (VND55,300bn)compared to central Vietnam with VND4,500bnand northern Vietnam with sales ofVND3,200bn.

In 2014 the lottery contributed more thanVND20,000bn to the state budget. Thetraditional lottery dominates the market with 95per cent of sales (VND60,000bn) whilst Lotto is



responsible for 3.4 per cent, computerisedlottery with 0.35 per cent and instant lottery hasa 0.7 per cent share. The other traditionallotteries are operated in the country via thecountry’s 64 provincial governments and aresold via ticket vendors on most street corners.They have shown a decline in sales following thelaunch of Vietlott and have had to increase theprizes offered by a third to compete withcompetitor prizes, and from 2017 are nowVND2bn (US$86,000) compared to VND1.5bn(around $65,000) previously.

These traditional lotteries have predeterminednumbers and don’t permit players to choosetheir own set of numbers. Subsequently, thenumber of tickets sold in Ho Chi Minh City hasdeclined by around 10 to 30 per cent due to thecompetition from Vietlott.

For the next few years the government plans toimprove the legal framework of the lottery andlook at introducing further lottery products,including instant scratch cards.

However, the state lotteries have called for aninvestigation into Vietlott after operatorsaccused the lottery of engaging in illegal anti-competitive practices, although the MoF hasdefended its decision to allow the computerisedlottery to commence operations in the country.

sporTs beTTinGWith key regulatory changes expected the pari-mutuel betting market could be on the brink ofexpansion in Vietnam.

At the moment the only form of betting legally ispari-mutuel betting on greyhound racing andhorse racing. Around $1m in betting handle isfrom dog racing, although if more tracks openthis is projected to reach up to $1bn for horse anddog racing with the predicted growth in theonline betting sector.

With little competition in the market legal sportsbetting has become the sector most arewatching. The new law will also allow wageringon international football matches.

Sports betting is strictly illegal in Vietnam,although the ban and the prospect of harshpenalties doesn’t seem to stop the Vietnamesefrom engaging in sports betting and their love isEuropean football.

The betting sector is currently the smallestsector for gambling with just one facilitycurrently open – a greyhound dog track -although there is a great deal of illegal bettingmade through underground bookmakers andforeign online sites.

Since 1989 the government has encouraged apolicy of foreign investment and development.Most disposable income for the Vietnameseduring this era was spent on improving theirlifestyle with some entertainment activitiessuch as ten-pin bowling, water fun parks andgo-karts. Adult entertainment was limited andmainly offered via bars and karaoke. Gamblingwas not, of course, officially permitted, but on-course betting was allowed at horse and thendog racing tracks.

online gambling is also, in theory, illegal, but many international sites hostgames in Vietnamese currency and language. Although many of the casinos alsorun poker tables these are restricted to foreign players only and online poker isalso technically illegal and some sites are blocked by ISPs and the government.General online purchases are low at the moment and only about two per cent ofretail sales are done via online channels and are mostly for airline tickets.

lOTTERYVietlott & provincial lotteries

lOTTERY REVENUESVND63,000bn in 2014 ($2.8m)

SlOT HAllS22

RACE TRACkS1 – Lam Son Racetrack

CASINOS7

CASINO& SlOT HAll REVENUEUS$300m- $400m

On course betting was around this timeavailable via the horse racing track in Ho ChiMinh City and then the greyhound track whichopened in 2000.

In 2010 the government drafted a decree toformally legalise horse race betting in Vietnamand provide a criteria for businesses to investand operate in this sector. Although this wasgenerally approved, a committee asked for astudy on the pros and cons of horse race betting,which was to include other forms of bettingsuch as soccer.

Soccer betting is a sensitive subject in Vietnamand many fear it simply promotes crime, sportscheats and money laundering.

In 2015 the Ministry of Finance continued towork on a draft based on recommendationsfrom these committees and the final draft wassubmitted to the government in December.

The draft includes the following points:

l Companies will be allowed to pilotinternational football gambling for five years

l Betting companies are not allowed to usepictures or results from international horseand dog racing as a basis for a bettingbusiness in Vietnam

l Minimum age for betting will be 21 years.

l Betting companies and terminals must belocated at least 500m from schools andchildren’s play areas.

l The decree will regulate the hours from whichbets can be taken.

l Enterprises must have at least five yearsexperience to be allowed to distribute bettingtickets through phones or othertelecommunications.

l There are no regulations for Internet ticketdistribution

l The draft decree for horse racing stipulatesthat operators can run horse racing once theyreceive an investment certificate which willsee a minimum investment capital ofVND1,000bn and the project must be put intooperation within four years and VND300bnfor dog racing.

l The decree will permit locals to participateand limit the maximum bet to VND1m(US$45) a day with a minimum bet ofVND1,000.

l There will be no more than three races a weekin each location and minimum payout shallbe 65 per cent of revenues from sellingwagering tickets.

Oliver Massman, General Director at DuaneMorris Vietnam said: “The most updated contentof the draft is not made public, but it seems thatthe government, as in the case of the casinos,will only allow sports betting in selected citiesfor five years. This is because the NationalAssembly is afraid of the negative impacts thatthe allowance of such activities might bring.At the same time it takes into account the fact

that many other countries have made theseactivities legal and there are many recent bigcases where the Vietnamese are caughtgambling on a large scale.”

The history of betting in Vietnam begins withHorse racing, which officially began with theformation of the Saigon Horse RacingAssociation back in 1893 and was a sportdominated by the French military officers.

A racecourse was built in the city centre ,whichwas later replaced by a new track build in 1932in Phu Tho district. At this time it was the firstand only racetrack in Vietnam.

The Phu Tho Racing Ground was founded by theFrench colonists during French Indochina andPhu Tho opened in 1932 as the country’s firstand only horse racetrack.

After the Second World War racing resumed vialocal Vietnamese management and continueduntil Saigon was liberated in 1975. Combinedwith a socialist government, gambling wasprohibited and racing became unlawful. In 1989the racecourse was restored and came under themanagement of Sports and Gymnastics Officeand races ran regularly every weekend.

In 2000 the Phu Tho Sports Club wasestablished and in 2004 the Thien Ma CompanyLimited signed a seven year agreement to jointlymanage the track. Phu Tho closed in 2011 whenthe licence wasn’t renewed.

There were around 150 horses often small farmraised horses and ponies rather than




With a young population of 94.3million people, Vietnam is one of theTOP retail markets in the world. Dueto the dynamic economic growth, thedisposable income of the populationis steadily increasing. Following thistrend, a high-spending middle classis emerging, especially in the largercities. As an example, the averageannual GDP per capita in Ho Chi MinhCity is 4,500 USD, where the youngpopulation is especially asking forforeign brands.

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Many areas of the Vietnamesemarket are still young, and thereforenot densely occupied. Additionally,the local population has strong brandawareness, and Western productsenjoy high reputation.

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thoroughbreds. When Thien Ma Company camealong part of their plan was to introducethoroughbreds and 40 horses were initiallyimported from Australia. One thoroughbred racewas held a week and races increased to around900 a year and betting turnover was aroundUS$11m at the time.

Officially betting is illegal so they play a horseracing lottery for first and second place winners.Jockeys are often children and can start trainingto be jockeys from the age of 14. Races were heldon a direct tack of 1,650m in length.

There is now a renewed interest in opening moreracetracks in the country and there are severalinvestors currently looking at the market and itis anticipated that by 2019 there will be threerace tracks open in Vietnam in total, whichmany say the market can easily accommodate.

One such track is the Dai Nam Joint Stock

Company, which has sealed its plan for theopening of a new horse racing track at the DaiNam tourism Park in the Binh Duong province.The track was due to open at the end of 2016.

The tourism park is a huge resort withamusement park, water park, theme park,temple and zoo.

The race course was due to open at the end of2016 after construction began in July 2016 witha $100m investment. It will occupy a 60 hectarearea at the tourism park and accommodate20,000 people initially increased to 60,000 totalcapacity. It will also host dog racing, motorbikeracing, water motor sports and all terrain vehicleracing. It hopes to attract up to five millionvisitors a year to the park once the track isopened, an increased from the two millionvisitors received at the moment. The 1,600mtrack will offer races three times daily and sixtimes daily at weekends.

Meanwhile South Korean company G.O MaxI&D Company is also pursing a project to build ahorse racetrack in northern Vinh Phuc provincewith an anticipated investment of US$1.5bn. Theproject will also include golf course, sport andentertainment area, housing and equestriancentre and polo club. The company also aims toopen 70 betting shops in 54 cities and provincesand is said to be the largest such project.

In addition, in June 2016 in Phu Yen province theAustralian Golden turf Club company agreed toinvest $100m to build a racecourse on 134hectares of land due to be completed by 2019.The company received permission from the BinhPhuoc province to build a racecourse in thesouthern region as part of the Binh PhuocRecreation Complex Project. However, due todelays in construction it appears this licence hassince been revoked. It was originally granted in2010 to the Australian owned Binh PhuocEntertainment Company Ltd to include race

The Lam Dong province approved a racecourse project from the Thien Ma MadaguiRacing Joint Stock Company in 2014. After a lull construction has just begun andis expected to be operational by 2018. Hong Kong’s Matrix Holding proposed adevelopment for horse racing complex in the city of Da Nang, which wouldinclude horse racing, health care units and betting and entertainment services.

track, villas, shopping mall, hotel and sportsvenues. But six years later construction hasn’tstarted

The Lam Dong province also approved aracecourse project from the Thien Ma MadaguiRacing Joint Stock Company in 2014. After a lull,construction has just begun and it’s expected tobe operational by 2018. Hong Kong’s MatrixHolding Limited also proposed a developmentfor a horse racing complex in the city of Da Nangwhich would include horse racing, health careunit and betting and entertainment services.

So at the moment the only race track open is viathe greyhound racing track at Lam Son Stadiumin Vung tau City with races held twice a week.The track was opened in 2000 and a 25 yearlicence was given to Sports EntertainmentServices.

The stadium has a total capacity for up to 6,000people and SES had planned to open a networkof seven other tracks in Vietnam although therestill remains just the one track.

In mid 2016 Hong Kong’s Success DragonInternational Holdings Ltd entered into anagreement for the provision of outsourcedmanagement services with SES for greyhoundracing in Vietnam. The management deal is forseven years and gives Dragon a monthly

management fee with the aim of ‘identifyingareas of possible expansion’ in the gaming sectorin Vietnam.

The track has on average around 3,000attendees most race evenings and the averagebet is around $3.

Current regulation limits the number of OtBs tofive per track and these must be located in thesame province as the track. This however isexpected to change to six and in any location.

A report suggests that if three race tracks areopen in the next three years the market couldsee around $1bn in total handle by 2019. Onlinehandle could be responsible for at least $87m inannual handle by 2019 as online gaming catcheson with an estimated 10,000 daily players bythis time.

CAsinos & sloT hAllsCurrently the country has 45 registeredgambling businesses of which 15 are in thenorth, six in the centre and 24 in the south.

This sector saw VND10,990bn in total revenuesbetween 2011 and 2015 and profit before tax wasVND2,080bn with VND3,723bn to the statebudget. The highest percentage comes from thesouth with 81 per cent. Although the slot hallsand casinos don’t currently permit locals to

gamble with the increase in foreign citizensliving in Vietnam and the growth of the touristmarket there is a strong attraction for moreforeign investment in this sector plus a changein law to permit locals in two casinos under apilot project.

Slot halls are mostly in urban areas whilst thecasinos are in the resort areas. For theVietnamese who wish to gamble they cross theborder into Cambodia.

The slot halls are only permitted in five starhotels once they have been profitable for at leastone year and can offer one slot per five hotelrooms. They are mainly found in the Ho ChiMinh City area with 12 halls and Hanoi has sixhalls. There are a total of around 22 slot halls inVietnam all run in five star hotels by a 2013government decree.

New rules introduced at the end of last year alsostate a minimum 90 per cent payout for slotmachines.

Success Dragon International is a consolidatedservice provider of outsourced managementsolutions to the gaming industry and hasheadquarters in Hong Kong and offices in Macauand Vietnam.

The company is now keenly looking at




developing its business in Vietnam, developingelectronic gaming services and initially waslooking at two projects in One Opera Hotel in DaNang and a second in Le Meridian Hotel in HoChi Minh City.

Success Dragon also offers It services to thepari-mutuel wagering sector and developed aracing system for greyhound and horse racingcompanies and has entered into an agreementwith three racing enterprises to provide thissystem.

Success Dragon currently helps casino operatorsto manage their gaming machine operations andhave plans for a series of slot hall projects inVietnam involving management contracts tooperate slots and electronic table games.

The Da Nang project was to acquire a 45 per centstake in the five star One Opera Hotel, whichincluded a deal for the electronic gamingmachine club in the premises. The deal was for a70 machine slot hall in the hotel which has 206rooms and two restaurants, karaoke club andconference room. The hotel will also host an

OtB facility. The deal was terminated in June2016.

A second Success Dragon project in Ho Chi MinhCity is for 118 machines in the Le Meridien Hotelwhich is a five star hotel with 343 rooms and 26suites which opened in 2015. It also hasrestaurants, pool, fitness area and conferencehall. The deal is with tien Phuoc and 990Company Ltd, the owners, to set up and operatea slot hall for at least 10 years. The group willreceive a monthly management fee of four percent of total gross revenues for its services.

The company is hinging its plans on changes tothe law to permit locals into slot halls andcasinos to gamble plus the fact there is nosignificant casino in the city at present. If oneopened this would impact on the slot hall plans.

Success Dragon saw a decline in their grouprevenues last year and a drop of HK$26.3m byyear end March 2016 mainly down to a drop inperformance of OBPM services business inMacau. Hence why the company is nowdiversifying and looking at other areas. The

group recorded revenues of HK$153.7m

Meanwhile one of the main slot halls in Da Nangis Club99 which is situated in Furama Resort DaNang which is one of the first five star beachresorts in the city. It offers around 100 state ofthe art machines and is luxurious and targetsKorean clients and Vietnamese with foreignpassports.

Czech-based Synot has also recently opened itssecond slot hall in Vietnam in the province ofNha trang. This hall is equipped with VLts androulettes and follows Synot’s first operationopened at the end of 2015 in Nghe An. Thecompany has plans to open further locations inVietnam in the near future.

Synot Sales Director Miroslav Valenta Jr said:“We are pleased that the expansion to the Asianmarket, for which we have strived for a longtime, has become successful and we cancontinue on it. In the future we would like tofocus on other countries in East Asia.”

In total there are seven licences casinos in

There are seven licences casinos in Vietnam. Gaming is a reasonably strong pastime with manyfrequenting Cambodian casinos or via a blackmarket. The average gaming propensity for Vietnamlocals is from six to 12 per cent according to reports.

Vietnam. Gaming is a reasonably strong pastimewith many frequenting Cambodian casinos orvia a black market. The average gamingpropensity for Vietnam locals is from six to 12per cent according to reports. It has beensuggested that the government loses about$800m in tax revenue per year from locals whogamble across the border.

The accumulated sales of the casinos at the endof 2014 was VND3,425bn contributingVND1,077bn to the state budget.

The casinos offer table gaming, slots andelectronic table games and currently onlypermit those players with a foreign passport,which of course impacts the market. Mostcasinos are located near major cities and acasino licence is only given to those with a fivestar hotel or form part of a larger resort property.

The casinos rely heavily on junket trips fromnearby Asian countries, particularly Chineseand Korean players. Being a country with a‘walk in’ border to China its gambling sector in

reality could be huge. Vietnamese playersmeanwhile flock to the border towns inCambodia, like Bavet or NagaWorld in PhnomPenh, or head to Singapore and Macau which arejust a three hour flight away.

The casinos which are currently open inVietnam are:

hai ninh lOi lai caSinO in Mong Cai foundinside the hotel of same name. This is a threefloor hotel and houses tables and slot machines.


In addition to its extremely strong economic growth,Vietnam is considered a stable macro-economy. Inflation,one of the major economic issues that Vietnam wasexperiencing in recent years is steadily diminishing.

The inflation rate dropped from 18.7 per cent in 2011 to lessthan 1 per cent in 2015, with the average rate of 7.8 per centin the last five years.

l1 Vietnam is a very peaceful and safe country. According toWorld Bank's Political Stability and Absence of ViolenceIndex, Vietnam ranks considerably better than mostSoutheast Asian countries, taking second place afterSingapore. Moreover Vietnam faces very little ethnic orreligious tensions. The crime rate is among the lowest inSoutheast Asia, and violent crimes are extremely rare.Generally, the Vietnamese are law-abiding people.

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It is just a one kilometre walk from the Chineseborder and across the road from Hong VanCasino.

dO SOn reSOrt hOtel is located in the Dosondistrict in Haiphong City and is operated by theHaiphong Joint Venture International touristCorp. The hotel offers 88 rooms plus restaurants,tennis court, swimming pool, fitness centre. Thecasino is located on the third floor and offerstable games and slots.

rOyal halOng hOtel is located in HalongBay in the heart of the Baichay tourist Centreoccupying some 30 hectares of land along thebeach front. Initially the project was a jointventure opened with Royal International Corpand a taiwanese company which was set up in1994. In 2006 it was equalised and listed on theVietnam Stock Exchange and in 2007 the stockwas officially transacting. Kai ChiehInternational Investment now owns theshareholding of Royal International Corporation.The Royal Halong Hotel offers 13 storey five starhotel with 163 rooms and 11 villas with 134rooms. The Gaming Club has table games and 70slots and seven VIP rooms.

phOeniX internatiOnal cluB near Hanoi isoperated by Silver Heritage Group in Bac Ninh. Itbegan with six tables and 53 slots and 38 roomsbut in 2015 moved to a new hilltop resort andnow offers 1,500 sq.m of gaming space with 12

tables, 72 slots and 34 rooms and seven VIPsuites. The Silver Heritage Group was founded in2003 and has grown from a supply and slotmanagement company across Asia todeveloping casinos and resort operations inNepal and Vietnam and is listed on theAustralian Stock Exchange.

ariStO internatiOnal hOtel is a boutiquecasino in northern Vietnam in Lao Cai City, onthe border with Yunnan Province in China. Itwas established in 2002 and is a joint ventureproject with the government and DonacoInternational and opened at the Lao CaiInternational Hotel with just 34 rooms. It latermoved and expanded to a brand new five starresort complex with 428 hotel rooms,restaurants, gym, spa, swimming pool and retailshops with casino with 58 slots and 34 linkedjackpot slot machines and 24 electronic rouletteseats although its licence allows for up to 300EGMs in total. Donaco upped its stake from 75per cent to 95 per cent in 2015 and the companyalso operates the Star Vegas Resort and Club inCambodia. The majority of patrons are Chinesegamblers and 80 per cent of casino revenues arederived from high rollers. Some 34 rooms at thehotel are reserved for junket trips.

It is said to be Vietnam’s most profitable casinoand in the first six months of opening its gamingtables saw revenues of $9m. The Aristo saw148,107 visitors in FY2016. total group revenue

for the Donaco company last year was A$143.3mof which Vietnam’s casino responsible forA$23.2m.

The area of Lao Cai is set to receive a new airportby 2020 which is a huge boost for the city andcasino as it will handle domestic flights fromIndonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, China and Laos.The casino is only 34km from the proposed newairport development. Donaco is listed on theAustralian Stock Exchange.

grand caSinO, hO tram Strip opened in2013 just south of Ho Chi Minh City and offersover 500 slots and 90 table games plus VIProoms. The Grand is a 1,100 room integratedresort with runs alongside the Bluffs GolfCourse. ACDL is developing this $4.2bn resort inphases and the first phase (The Grand) opened inJuly 2013 with 541 rooms with the golf coursefollowing in 2014.

The second hotel tower which will house anadditional 559 rooms is under construction.There are 1,000 restaurant seats and a total of 11food and drink options.. The 13,600sq.m gamingarea is modern and has 24 tables (Mass), 11tables (Pearl Room) and 55 tables (VIP area). ThePearl Room targets high end players and islocated within Mass casino floor.

In South Vietnam is SilVer ShOre reSOrtlocated in Da Nang City which is a US$160m

Vietnam is located in the middle ofone of the fastest growing regions inthe world. ASEAN does not onlyprovide Vietnam with a safety net inregards to regional and globalproblems, but it also constitutes abridge to the wider world and offersits members numerous Free TradeAgreements.

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Vietnam saw more manufacturingand technology-based investmentprojects during the recent years.Companies such as Intel, Samsung,Nokia or LG are some of theenterprises that, with theirinvestments, are showing long-termcommitment to operating in Vietnam.

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resort operating the Crowne International Clubwhich has 12 table games and 100 slots andreceives a lot of Chinese players. There is also aVIP area with another 50-60 tables reserved forjunkets. This casino has one of the highest GGRlevels in the country generating close to $3bn ofrolling chip volume. This casino relies on Macaujunket operators for players.

Meanwhile a new casino development calledhOng Van caSinO in Mong Cai (Quang Ninh)is due to open in early 2017 whilst in January lastyear the law changed to allow cruise shipsdocked in Vietnam to continue with their casinoservices.

Da Nang port became the first port whereinternational cruise ships can continue offeringcasino services whilst docked. traditionally theonboard casinos have had to close down theirservices whilst docked in Vietnamese ports.

Of course only cruise passengers have access

but it is viewed favourably by many who see thegovernment moving in the right direction forencouraging gambling services. It is alsoexpected to boost cruise liner routes to Vietnam.In 2016 Da Nang was expecting 110 cruise shipsto dock in the city.

ChAnGes AheAdThe election in January saw Nguyen Phu trongtake charge as General Secretary of theCommunist Party and he is not a fan of casinoliberalisation so any changes have been slow.But a draft decree was issued in September forthe casino sector and the ruling party’s leadershave made it clear they support the creation of anew gaming industry.

Back in June 2013 the sector received support fora new Special Economic Zone and integratedresort on Van Don Island located in Ha Long Bayin the north. This is now one of four alreadyapproved Integrated Resort projects – Van Don,South Hoi An, Ho tram and Phu Quoc. two more

IR resorts are also under consideration in Hueand Cam Ranh Bay.

total investment for an IR is US$2bn with aminimum of $1bn required before a gaminglicence is issued. Smaller casinos can beexpanded or upgraded so long as they meet therequirements.

The new draft decree includes the followingpoints:

l There will be two levels of casinos – largecasinos with $2bn investment and smallercasinos with investments of maximum $2bn.$10m investment would allow operators onetable and 10 machines with 20 year licencesissued. Previously the investment figure was$4bn.

l Gaming licences will be issued for 20 yearswith a one time non-renewable extension of10 years.


Back in June 2013 the sector received support for a new Special Economiczone and integrated resort on Van Don Island located in Ha Long Bay inthe north. This is now one of four already approved Integrated Resortprojects – Van Don, South Hoi An, Ho Tram and Phu Quoc. Two more IRresorts are also under consideration in Hue and Cam Ranh Bay.



l Local residents will be permitted to gamble intwo casinos – Van Don and Phu Quoc - whichwill be part of a three year ‘experimental’trial.

l This will restrict entry to locals over the age of21, with no criminal record with a monthlysalary of at least $500 and no objections fromany family members. There will be an entryfee for locals of around $45 per 24 hour visitor a monthly pass for $1,100.

Whether the changes to permit locals into thesetwo casinos will have an impact on the market isyet to be seen. Some fear by limiting it there willbe little growth and fear the IR sector may notbe so keen to invest with only a pilot project inplace. Others say that by allowing locals togamble even if restricted will make it moreattractive for investors. The law is due to befinalised by early this year.

Nearly 60 per cent of Vietnam’s population are

under 35, whilst the number of universitygraduates has spiked at 60 per cent over the lastdecade. The middle to affluent class is alsoexpected to double and reach 33 million by2020.

taxes remain unchanged. The effective tax ratewill be about 39-40 per cent although withdeductions for marketing and promotions therate will be more competitive especially in theVIP sector so an estimated 13.8 per cent isprobably more realistic.

tim Shepherd at Silver Heritage said: “Vietnamis taking both a very cautious and very sensiblepath to the liberalisation of gaming havingwatched carefully its neighbours in Cambodiaand Laos struggle – they are forcing foreignhospitality investors to work very hard to createbeautiful resorts along its pristine coastline,dangling the carrot of casinos and better still,local players.”

The two Integrated Resorts, involved in the pilotlocal player project, in Van Don and Phu Quocwill also eventually be linked by new highwaysand international airports and bridges. Van Donis near to the Chinese border and Phu Quoc isclose to Thailand and Cambodia.

Although Grand Ho tram development was onits way to be included in the new ‘local playerentry’ plans when it committed $4bn toestablishing its Integrated Resort, the latestdecree suggests it has been unsuccessful and ithas not been included in the pilot project. It hasbeen rumoured that the company is losingmoney and is down on investment.

The Ho tram Project has been developed byAsian Coast Development through its subsidiaryHo tram Project Company and began in 2008. In2013 ACDL received its gaming licence after aninitial investment of $500m with a commitmentto spend $4bn. Since it opened in April 2013 itcan only receive foreign passport holders and

The fourth IR project is Phu Quoc, promoted by Vietnamese group VinGroup andwill include an 18,800 sq.m gaming floor over two floors, swimming pools, fourand five star hotels, convention centre, spa, theatre and shopping and dining.The casino is expected to have 200-400 tables and 2,000 slots.

The integration of Vietnam into theglobal economy, which started withthe Doi Moi reforms of 1986continues to scale. After Vietnamsigned a bilateral trade agreementwith the US in 2000, and joined theWTO in 2007, the country saw amajor number of new tradeagreements being signed in 2015.Namely, Vietnam signed bilateralFTAs with South Korea and the EU,as well as agreed to participate inthe Trans Pacific Partnershipagreement (TPP). The TPPagreement gathers 12 Pacific Rimcountries, including some of theworld's major economies, such asthe US, Canada, Japan and Australia.

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although management hoped they would bepart of the pilot scheme, this hasn’t happened. Itis thought this is due to fact the project has notreached its full investment level.

The Ho tram Strip was the first IR project inVietnam. This upscale beach resort on the SouthChina Sea is also the only integrated resortproject operating at the moment. The GrandCasino opened in 2013 just south of Ho Chi MinhCity on the Ho tram Strip.

ACDL now plans to add a second tower to itsresort with family friendly entertainmentfacilities, which includes two cinemas, ashopping arcade, sky top lounge, amphitheatre,water park and roller coaster. With 559 rooms itwill bring total room count to 1,100.

The Grand Casino offers over 500 slots and 90table games plus VIP rooms. Ho tram is a smallbeach town and although two hours from thecity, it offers a beautiful coastline and its aimwas to compete with Manila and Phnom Penh.

The province has also agreed in principal to theconstruction of a small airport to be usedexclusively for the IR complex to ferry touristsfrom domestic airports to the Ho tram Strip.

The second IR project planned is Nam Hoi AnCasino Resort, which is located in the QuangNam province in the south. The project is set tobecome the second Integrated Resort in Vietnamafter the Grand Ho tram Strip.

The Nam Hoi An project is a joint venture

between Vietnamese investment banking firmVinaCapital and Macau based SunCity and HongKong’s Chow tai Fook Enterprises.

Previously Genting were investing, but theypulled out in 2012, which has caused delays inthe project. However, first ground was broken inspring 2016 and phase one is luxury apartmentsand villas, golf course, amusement park andcasino. The five year project will also include afive star hotel, eco-park and cable car serviceand marina. It will be the first Integrated Resortin the Central Vietnam region.

The third project is in Van Don, which is adistrict comprising of more than 600 islandswithin the province of Quang Ninh in the northeast area of Vietnam. It includes the famousWorld Heritage Halong Bay. A new airport is tobe built and the idea is to attract tourists to theregion and the promotion of high end tourism,including Integrated Resorts and its SpecialEconomic Zone will concentrate on thiselement. The plans include waterfront homes,marina and seaport initiatives. The casinoproject is being developed by Vietnam’s SunGroup and is due to be open between 2017 and2018 and will include the pilot project for localspermitted to gamble in the casino.

The fourth IR project is Phu Quoc, which is beingpromoted by Vietnamese group VinGroup andwill include an 18,800 sq.m gaming floor overtwo floors, swimming pools, four and five starhotels, convention centre, spa, theatre andshopping and dining. The province of Kien Giangwas given the green light for a casino on thetourist island back in January 2015. The casino isexpected to have 200-400 tables and 2,000slots. Around 600,000 tourists visit Phu Quoceach year of which 55 per cent are foreigners.Again this is highlighted for the pilot localsgambling project.

Meanwhile the two other locations underconsideration for resort projects are Hue andCam Ranh Bay. Hue is known as the most royalcity in Vietnam and located on the bank of theSong Huong river in central Vietnam and is thecapital of the Thua Thien Hue province. Potentialinvestors here include Banyan tree Holdingsfrom Singapore.

Cam Ranh Bay is a deep water bay in theprovince of Khanh Hoa in the south east coast ofVietnam linked to South China Sea. It houses anold military base and is touted as the next bigtourist resort with its unspoilt coast line. HungThinh Real Estate proposed a casino here lastyear.

Oliver Massman at Duane Morris said: “Mid tohigh income people in Vietnam are predicted todouble by 2020. They will have more demandfor high class Integrated Resorts. If theVietnamese are allowed to gamble, developmentin Integrated Resorts with casinos is a smartdecision to make profit in Vietnam. In additionthe government will benefit from tax paymentsfrom these resorts.

“Gambling is a potential sector in Vietnam withlots of opportunities. With the issuance of thecasino decree and sport betting decree, the legalframework in the area is much improved. Thiswill attract investment of big names in themarket in Vietnam.”


In 2015, Vietnam exported goods worth US$162bn, which is an increase of 7.9 percent over the previous year. On the other side, the country imported goods valued atUS$165bn, presenting a 12 per cent increase over 2014. The main exported goodswere telephones and mobile phones ( US$30.2bn), textiles and garments(US$22.8bn), computers and electrical products (US$15.6), footwear (US$12bn)and machine equipment (US$8.2bn). It is also important to notice that the exportsmobile phones and computers, being the higher value added industries, grew on amuch higher rate year on year (28 and 37 per cent respectively) compared totextiles and garments (9 per cent) and footwear (16 per cent).

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ReportscAribbeAn - DominicAn rePublic

Visitor numbers to Domincan Republic areprojected to have reached a very impressive sixmillion by the end of 2016, while governmentofficials announced at last year’s (2016)Dominican Annual tourism ExchangeConference (DAtE) a growth of 5.8 per cent inoverall tourism. This means that The DominicanRepublic is now the most popular and fastestgrowing tourist destination in the Caribbean.

The country already has over 47 casinos, morethan any other country in the Caribbean, withthe existing Hard Rock casino in Punta Canabeing the largest and some of the other mostimportant operators in the world are alreadypresent, including CIRSA. In addition, with theHard Rock Hotel & Casino currently underconstruction in capital Santo Domingo, themarket looks set to expand even further.

However, while tourism continues to expand,the gaming industry faces a number of majorchallenges and obstacles to growth. Oppositionis growing against the opening of the new casinoin Sant Domingo, illegal gaming is still on therise and taxes are high. Shockingly the industrywas also rocked last year by an allegedattempted murder involving one of the biggestoperators in the country.

leGAl bACKGroUnd Gaming is regulated by three major gaming laws.Law No.351 which was passed in 1964, LawNo.96-88 which was passed in 1988 and LawNo.29-06 which was passed in 2006. Broadlyspeaking Law No.315 allowed casino gaming inthe Dominican Republic.

Law No. 96-88 allowed casinos to house slotmachines in order to further boost revenues forthe state and Law No.29-06 significantlyincreased the tax burden on casinos and thegaming industry. It also permitted slot machinesin sports betting shops. Gaming laws are alsofrequently amended primarily in order to raisetaxes on the industry.

Law No. 351, which was the first bill to regulategaming in the Dominican Republic, states that

Situated just two hours south of Miami byplane the Dominican Republic boasts some50 miles of the world’s top beaches, a richcolonial heritage, a thriving outdoor and eco-tourism industry as well as many worldclass-resorts and hotels. It also is the numberone golf destination in the Caribbean andLatin America. It’s big on casinos too...

Dance a yard beforeyou dance abroad

casinos are primarily a way to attract tourists tothe country. As a result, casinos may only bepresent in what it terms “first class” hotels.

The National Casino and Gaming Board(Dirección de Casinos y Juegos de Azar), whichin turn is part of the Ministry of Finance, isresponsible for granting licences and monitoringthe industry. The Board is also responsible foradvising the Ministry on the issuance of licencesfor casinos, lotteries, bingos and slot machines.It also oversees the importation of slot machinesinto the Dominican Republic. Revenuegenerated by the industry is based on thegeographical location of the casino as well as

the number of tables in operation and is payableon a monthly basis.

While applying for a licence the operator mustclearly outline the games it plans to house onthe premises, the maximum bets it will allow aswell as any other descriptions of the differenttypes of gaming it will offer. In addition, theoperator must provide information on itsproposed opening and closing times and anyother information which the gamingcommission say are necessary before it issues itsrecommendations to the Executive branch.Applications must also include a cleardescription of any other entertainment activities

the casino plans to offer such as live shows andalso demonstrate how the casino will helppromote tourism in the area.

TAxATion Gaming law as it relates to casinos has beenamended a number of times mainly in order toincrease gaming tax revenue. This tax isreviewed on a regular basis. Casinos pay taxeson a sliding scale based on how many tables arehoused on the establishment and geographicallocation.

In 2006 taxes were raised significantly for theindustry when the government passed Law


The Hispaniola is the island where the Dominican Republicis located, along with Haiti. It was the first place reached byChristopher Columbus, who originally named it LaEspañola. Santo Domingo is the first capital city of Northand South America and houses the first cathedral, the firstuniversity, and the first hospital in the Americas. TheDominican Republic has fought for its independence fromSpain, Haiti and the United States.

l1 The Dominican Republic is the second largest country in aCaribbean island (after Cuba). Members of the armed forcesand the national police are not allowed to vote. The officiallanguage is Spanish, although English, French and Germanare widely spoken. The main source of income in theDominican Republic used to come from coffee, sugar andtobacco. Nowadays, it comes from the service sector,predominantly, tourism.

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country Dominican Republic capital Santo Domingo Total Area 48,442sq.km Population 10,480,000 languages Spanish religion Roman Catholic currency Dominican peso GDP per capita US$12,098 Hotel infrastructure 723 hotels with a total of

69,816 rooms Tourists 5,599,859 non-residents (2015) Airports Eight international airports Government Representative Democracy Head of Government President, Leonel Fernandez Reyna elections Last elections held August 2016

Essential information and factsabout Dominican Republic:

No.29-06. In 2006 those casinos that werelocated in the Distrito Nacional (the area whichencloses the capital Santo Domingo and theprovince of Santo Domingo) with 1 to 15 tableswere from that point onwards required to payRD$20,000 (U$S630) per month per table whilethose casinos with from 16 to 35 tables paid RD$23,000 (U$S730) per month per table, and thosecasino with 36 tables and above paidRD$26,000 (U$S800) per month.

Those casinos located in Santiago de losCaballeros, Puerto Plata, La Altagracia and LaRomana stood at RD$13,000 (US$280) per tablefor the lowest category, RD$16,000 (US$344)per table for the second and RD$18,000(US$387) per table for the highest tier.

Meanwhile for those casinos located in SanPedro de Macorís, Andrés, Boca Chica andwithin those areas which had a less developedtourist industry the fees stood atRD$10,000(US$215), RD$12,000 (US$258)andRD$14,000 (US$301) respectively. Thegovernment also imposed a tax based on slot

machines on the premises. These fell into twocategories and stood at RD$4,000 (US$126) permonth per slot machines on those casinoslocated in the Distrito Nacional and in theprovince of Santo Domingo while those casinoslocated in the provinces of Santiago de losCaballeros, La Altagracia and La Romana, paidRD$3,500 (US$75) per month per slot machine.

The increased tax burden on operators in 2006was criticised by members of the industry. TheDominican Casino Association (AsociaciónDominicana de Casinos) argued that the fixedtaxes on table and slot machines for its 36members already meant that they paid acombined rate of RD$18m per month(U$S568,527), or a monthly average ofRD$500,000 (US$15,792) in fixed tax ratesalone.

According to a statement released by theassociation at the time the government hadalready raised gaming taxes by decree in 2003,by resolution passed by the Gaming Board in2005 and by National Congress in 2006, the last

of which raised taxes by as much as 18 per centfor the industry.

In addition operators also paid and continue topay a wide and varied array of administrativefees to the government as well as the usual taxespayable by any other business. These fees arealso revised and increased on a regular basis. Aswell as a RD$10m licence fee, additional chargesare incurred if a casino changes its name, oreven if the operators moves a slot machine fromone gaming room to another.

Operators face additional charges if a licence istransferred to another operator, pay additionalfees for importing a slot machine and are alsocharged if a slot machine they own is sold andthen exported. They are also charged a fee ifthey wish to increase the number of table gameson the premises.

In the statement released by the DominicanCasino Association at the time of the tax ratehike: “In order to have some idea of what thismeans and as an example a casino licence costs


RD$10m (U$S315,850), the business paysRD$1m (U$S31,585) for a change inadministration and pays RD$500,000(U$S15,792) for a licence to sell machines.”These fees are still in effect today. The latest feecame in 2015 when the government imposed acharge of RD$150,000 (US$3,235) for thoseoperators wishing to host Black Jacktournaments on their premises.

In 2010 under law 07-2010 casinos as well aslottery agencies and sports betting shops werealso required to charge an additional 15 per centon winning bets. In 2011 taxes on casinos wereincreased again under a new law designed toincrease tax revenue for education. Casinoswere singled out as were sports betting shopsand lottery outlets.

The new law simplified the tax basis for casinosbut raised taxes to RD$32,500 (US$701) for thefirst category of casinos, RD$37,500 (US$809)for the second category and RD$50,000(US$1,080)for the third regardless of thiergeographical location. However, taxes were also

placed on slot machines depending on thephysical location of the casinos with those beingbased in Santo Domingo falling into the highesttier, Santiago the second and the rest of thecountry the third. The government revises thisamount on a regular basis.

According to the latest data available casinoswith 1- 15 tables pay RD$37,803 (US$815) pertable. Those with 16- 35 tables pay RD$43,619(US$940) per table and those casinos with 36tables and upwards pay RD$58,159 (US$1,253)per table.

Casino operators also pay RD$9,972 (US$214)per slot machines for casinos in Santo Domingo,RD$8,477 (US$182) for casinos located inSantiago and RD$7,195 (US$155) per slotmachine for the rest of the country.

In addition according to the 2011 law, slotmachines in casinos must also pay five per centon gross sales for each slot machine regardlessof its physical location.

operATors The largest concentration of casinos is in PuntaCana which has 18 casinos. This is followed bySanto Domingo which has 12 casinos, PuntaPlata which has six and Santiago which has five.The largest casino is the 4,180sq.m Hard Rock inPunta Cana located on the east coast of theDominican Republic.

The casino houses more than 450 slot machinesand more than 40 gaming tables and offersblackjack, roulette, craps and baccarat as wellas many other games. It also houses a 5,000sq.ftsportsbook, which boasts more than 55 HDscreens, making it the largest sports books in theCaribbean. Its sports betting facilities offerbetting on more than 100 different types ofsports and events.

In January 2016, Hard Rock International,revealed plans for its second hotel and casino inthe Dominican Republic, Hard Rock Hotel &Casino Santo Domingo, located in the capital.The full service hotel is scheduled to open in late2017, and will feature 400 hotel rooms and will



be home to a 23,000 sq. ft. casino, screeningroom, and a nightclub opening up to the mainpool. The casino will feature two bars, includingHard Rock’s signature Centre Bar, a race andsports book, high limit slots, 400 slot machinesand 40 table games. A private gaming room onthe exclusive suite floor will also be available forguests with select access.

However, opposition to the new project has beengrowing since February 2016 when a committeeof school staff and residents in theneighbourhood of Piantini asked the Ministry ofFinance to deny a licence for the casino. Thefollowing month a total of 3,000 families joinedforces to oppose the new plans with concernedlocals making the request via an open letter toSimón Lizardo, Minister of Finance.

In July a number of neighbourhood councilsreiterated their rejection due to the negativeimpact that the largest casino in the city wouldhave on what is a primarily a residential zone.There are no signs either that the controversyover the project will ease up any time soon asresidents of the neighbourhood of Piantini andsurrounding areas have filed against the urban

planning department of the National Districtarguing that the project violates local planningprovisions.

Another major operator in the areas is Spanishcompany CIRSA. In 2014 alone CIRSA investedUS$6m in the Dominican Republic. In February2015 it celebrated the opening of its fifth casino:the Casino Napolitano which has 72 slotmachines, and is located in Santo Domingo.

In August 2015 the Spanish operator announcedthat it was set to increase its presence in theDominican Republic even further with theacquisition of the Grand Victoria Casino in thecity of Santiago - the second largest city in theDominican Republic. The casino opened inNovember the same year.

CIRSA also operates the Casino Hispanola inSanto Domingo, which has 200 slot machinesand 27 tables, as well as a restaurant, VIP roomand live shows. Its Casino Almirante,meanwhile, is located in Santiago de losCabelleros and has almost 200 slots plusgaming tables. In addition the company alsooperates the Casino Lina in the Barcelo Hotel in

Santo Domingo. All of CIRSA’s casinos offer awide variety of slot machines including multi-game machines, electronic roulette andprogressive slots. They also all offer a widenumber of table games including roulette, aswell as a wide variety of poker.

While the market is already well developed thecasino market could see a significant boost withthe announcement last year that Grupo Globaliais looking to invest further in the market. to thatend the owner of the company Juan José Hidalgohas created Riverbound Investment, a companywhich will look to invest in casinos as part ofhotels which are already owned by the companyand its partners. It will also look for otheropportunities in casinos not currently owned bythe group. Globalia is Spain's leading touristgroup and Globalia’s investments in theDominican Republic stand at more thanUS$450m.

According to local press, the company is lookingto gain a significant market share as it seeks toexpand. today the company runs casinos in itsBe Live hotels the group’s hotel firm as well asthe only stand alone casino on the island: the

While the market is already well developed the casino market could see asignificant boost with the announcement last year that Grupo Globalia islooking to invest further in the market. To that end the owner of the companyJuan José Hidalgo has created Riverbound Investment, a company which willlook to invest in casinos as part of hotels it already owns or with partners.



Dominicus in Romana on the southeast coast ofthe Dominican Republic, a tourist destinationthat includes the Bayahibe, Dominicus, andCasa de Campo resort areas. The Dominicus,which opened in 2007 and was renovated in2010, provides Las Vegas style gaming and offersnight time entertainment to the many hotels inthe surrounding area.

Another major operator is Canadian ownedDream casinos which owns 12 casinos in theDominican Republic and has also set up a widenumber of sports betting outlets and began itsoperations in 2011. However last year thecompany was hit by a wide reaching scandalinvolving an alleged contract hit put on a casinomanager and allegations that the owners of thecompany, brothers Antonio and FrancescoCarbone and Andrew Pajak, had ties toorganised crime. On the instructions ofPresident Danilo Medina, the National DistrictProsecutor, the Chief of Police, the AttorneyGeneral of the Republic and other state securityagencies have been commissioned withinvestigating the allegations, which revolvearound the operation of the Dream casinos.

According to local press, the company hasinvested US$107m in the island and employs1,000 people locally. The judge overseeing thecase sent Antonio Carbone, for one year in pre-

trial detention on allegations that he hadordered the killing of company administrator ofDream Casino Corporation, Fernando Baez, whothe brothers had fallen out with. According toreports in local press Antonio Carbone wasarrested last year while trying to leave thecountry.

Carbone and his brother Francesco, set up acomputerised betting system that according tolocal sources led to billionaire Michael DeGrooteto invest US$112m in the company. However, in2012, Mr. DeGroote launched a lawsuit againstthe owners arguing that they hadmisappropriated large amounts of the money hehad lent them.

As a result of the revelations that the businessmay have had ties to the mob the Canadianbusinessman Degroote, has chosen not tocontinue to invest in the country or to continueto risk capital as the Carbone brothers,according to local reports, had wanted to seize itthrough illegal methods.

sporTs beTTinG And sloT pArloUrsGaming machines outside of casinos are onlypermitted in sports betting shops. Sports bettinghas been permitted since 1991 when thegovernment placed the industry under thesupervision of the Sports Ministry (Secretaria de

Estado de Deportes, Educacion Fisica yRecreacion) which was granted permission togrant licences and oversee the industry.However, the law was amended in 2006 to rulethat slot machines could only be present in sportbetting shops or in casinos. Before then slotmachines were widely present in grocery shopsand other small businesses. 30 per cent ofmoney generated by slot machines in sportsbetting shops goes to the Sports Ministry.

today, sports betting licences are granted by theSports Ministry in conjunction with the Ministryof Finance. Meanwhile the National Casino andGaming Board is responsible for authorising slotmachines at sports betting shops. Sports bettingshops must be located at a minimum distance of500 metres from one another.

Sports betting is extremely popular in theDominican Republic and the industry has grownat a fast pace. Their number increased by 74 percent from 800 in 2000, to 1,393 in 2006,according to statistics released jointly by theMinistry of Sports and the National Federationof Lottery Betting Parlors (FENEBANCA)

growing at a rate of 30 per year. Indeed growthin the sector was such that changes to thecountry’s gaming law in 2006 froze the grantingof any further sports betting licences until April2009. Due to the upcoming three year ban thenumber of sports betting shops experienced asharp upturn in 2006 and a number of operatorsdecided to expand before the ban went intoeffect.

In 2008 there were 1,385 sports betting shopswith the largest concentration being in in theprovince of Santo Domingo (297), Santiago (274)and the Distrito Nacional, (225). today there arearound 30,000 legally registered sports bettingshops and around 5,000 sports bettingoperators. Around 27 of the largest operators

control over 8,000 sports betting shops.However illegal sports betting has proliferatedrapidly and there could be as many as 20,000additional illegal betting shops in the DominicanRepublic according to data gathered byFENEBANCA.

In the face of the rise in illegal sports bettingFENEBANCA threatened to organise a march onthe seat of the government in 2015. FENEBANCAalso delivered a letter addressed to PresidentDanilo Medina urging him to take action on theissue.

Data released by the Dominican tax Office(DGII) also found that gaming revenues in theDominican Republic are dropping year on year

due to the rise in illegal gambling, tax evasionand an increasing tax burden on the operator. Incommon with casinos from October 2010operators were forced to impose a 15 per cent taxon prizes which discouraged players fromgaming and led to the surge in illegal gaming.The new tax, which was passed by governmentdecree, was designed to to cover thegovernment’s deficit. The DGII also announcedthe closure of more than 8,000 sports bettingshops because they had not withheld thepercentage of the prizes paid out.

In 2015 FENEBANCA reiterated its calls on thegovernment to address the issue of illegalgaming as a matter or urgency and argued thatthe Ministry of Finance as the regulatory body


In 2008 there were 1,385 sports betting shops with the largest concentrationbeing in in the province of Santo Domingo (297), Santiago (274) and the DistritoNacional, (225). Today, there are around 30,000 legally registered sports bettingshops and around 5,000 sports betting operators.



had not met its legal requirements as set out bylaw. In addition FENEBANCA called for thecreation of a new entity which would beresponsible for regulating the industry.

These calls in 2015 led to the creation of astanding committee in the Senate which begandiscussing a new gaming bill in March 2015. Thecommittee established that a new gaming boardwould be created in order to oversee theindustry, as according to the President of theCommittee Dionis Sánchez, gaming wasproliferating “without proper control andsupervision.”

In July 2016 the committee heard the opinionsheld by those involved in the gaming industryover a new bill which aimed to provide strictercontrol over gambling in the DominicanRepublic.

Senators listened to members of FENEBANCA,

as well as the Dominican Electronic Lottery(LEIDSA) – the largest electronic lotterylicensed by the Dominican Lottery andDominican Republic lottery operator Loto Real,who all gave their views on the new bill. The billseeks to regulate gambling, provide strict playerprotection measures, combat fraud and promoteresponsible gambling.

President of FENEBANCA, Wilson de los Santos,welcomed the initiative, arguing that the newbill would help eliminate the proliferation ofillegal slot parlours, which he explained do notpay taxes, and has led to a spate of bankruptciesamongst licensed operators.

Meanwhile the National Casino and GamingBoard has been increasing the number of on siteinspections and closures. In 2013 it closed a totalof 1,782 illegal sports betting shops and closed afurther 4,094 in 2014. These raids continued at afast pace in 2015 and 2016.

horse rACinGWhile sports betting is rising in popularity thehorse race industry has been in decline for sometime. The largest race track is the HipódromoQuinto Centenario. In 2013 President DaniloMedina was forced to order the National RacingCommission to take over the track and all horseracing operations in Dominican Republic, afterreports that the company was about to gobankrupt and the track was closed for a six-month period, after severe losses in revenue.However, while there are signs that the track hasmade some recovery under new administrationthe industry was hit by a scandal in November2016 when a special investigation headed by theChamber of Accounts of the Republic (CCRD)into the Dominican Equestrian Commission andthe racetrack detected a large number ofirregularities in betting sales. A subsequentinquiry discovered a multi million dollarshortfall in bets made for the races at the trackand deposits made by betting agencies in 2013.

While sports betting is rising in popularity the horse race industry has been indecline for some time. The largest race track is the Hipódromo QuintoCentenario. In 2013 President Danilo Medina was forced to order the NationalRacing Commission to take over the track and all horse racing operations.


Due to the seriousness of the discovery thefindings have been handed over to theAnticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (PEPCA), sothat the matter may be investigated further.

binGo hAlls Bingo halls are not widespread in theDominican Republic. Bingo halls pay a monthlyfee of RDS$100 (US2) per bingo seat whileelectronic bingo halls must pay RDS$2,500(US$53) per electronic bingo machine. Theymust also pay as a wide number ofadministrative fees and licences are granted bythe National Casino and Gaming Board.

TAxATion on sporTs beTTinGIn 2006 the government allowed slot machines

in sports betting shops. According to article 36of the new law a tax of RD$180.000 (U$S5,719)was placed per year on sports betting shopslocated in Santo Domingo, the Distrito Nacional,La Vega, San Francisco de Macorís and PuertoPlata. In the other provinces the fee stood atRD$120.000 (US$3.813) a year. This fee is paid tothe Sports Ministry which deposits 60 per centin to the National treasury and uses the rest forgovernment sponsored sports programmes.Sports betting shops also paid a monthly fee permonth per machine between RD$4,400 (U$S139) and RD$5,200 (U$S 165) a monthdepending on where they were located.

In June 2011 the government increased taxesagain under its tax Revenue targeted for Greater

Education Resource Bill. Like casinos sportsbetting shops were singled out for a tax hike inorder to meet shortfalls in the state budget.Again according to the new bill, sports bettingshops had to pay an annual fee depending ontheir location. Those located in the metropolitandistrict as well as the province of SantoDomingo, San Cristóbal, Santiago de losCaballeros, San Francisco de Macorís, PuertoPlata and La Vega, had to pay RD$225,000(US$4.838), per year while all other sportsbetting shops located elsewhere in the nationhad to pay RD$150,000.00 (US$3,225) permonth. In addition they also had to pay 1 percent on gross gaming income payable per monthand new sports betting shops had to pay alicence fee of RD$500,000 (US$10,752).

Over the last two decades, the Dominican Republic hasstood out as one of the fastest economies in the Americas– with an average real GDP growth rate of 5.4 per centbetween 1992 and 2015. GDP continues to hover at 7 percent a year driven largely by construction, manufacturingand tourism. On the demand side, private consumption hasrecently been strong, as a result of low inflation (under oneper cent on average in 2015).

l1 The economy of the Dominican Republic remains closelyintegrated with the US economy; more than 50 per cent ofits exports go to the United States. The CAFTA-DR, a freetrade agreement between the Dominican Republic, theUnited States and several Central American countries, hascontinued to facilitate economic growth and hundreds ofmillions of dollars are being invested in industrial free zonesthat offer special business and tax incentives.

l2


At the ICE totally Gaming 2017 show at theExCeL Centre in London in February, Heber willbe showing two new gaming products. The firstproduct is its latest gaming platform – the superfast Pluto A300. The Pluto A300 gamingcontroller is based on the AMD Embedded G-Series I Family SOC processor (formerlycodenamed “Brown Falcon”).

This processor has been designed for demandingembedded needs and incorporates DualExcavator Cores running at 1.3GHz, an AMDRadeon R7E Graphics engine, dual mSAtAsockets with RAID redundancy and state-of-the-art power management for reduced energyconsumption.

The Pluto A300 is a small form-factor gamingplatform that supports two display ports and upto 32GBytes of DDR4 memory. It also supportsthree USB ports, four serial ports, high definitionaudio 5.1 channels, two Gigabit LAN ports, and aPCIe x 16 graphics expansion slot. In addition,the Pluto A300 provides a Heber-defined I/O

slot connector that will support a range of newUSB and PCIe gaming I/O products.

In addition, Heber will be showcasing a brandnew power supply for gaming systems calledthe Pluto PSU which is targeted at the UKAmusement With Prizes (AWP) market. ThePluto PSU is 100 per cent compatible with thewidely known Sanken SPS SPS077W powersupply that has been in the market for manyyears now. The new Heber power supply willsupport all customers currently using the highlysuccessful Pluto 5 and Pluto 6 embeddedgaming platforms. Heber decided tomanufacture and sell its own equivalent powersupply unit after significant demand fromcustomers. to ensure that the Pluto PSU is bothelectrically and mechanically compatible withthe old power supply, it has been designed bysome of the original designers. The highlyreliable Pluto PSU is a simple direct drop-inreplacement for the old unit and will be fullysupported by Heber with sampling commencingin February and full production in March.

Visitors to Heber’s stand at the ICE show standN1-248 will also be able to see a range of othergaming products, including its hugely successfulPluto 6 embedded gaming controller and the

X10i and X4i USB gaming I/O controllers.

The high performance Pluto 6 has dual videocapability and flexible memory options, and hasbeen a workhorse of the embedded gamingcontroller industry with no other boardspecified in so many machines. It has a widerange of standard options that allows control ofthe application from reel based machines,casino and gaming machines, as well as videogaming machines.

The Heber X10i gaming I/O USB board offers amultitude of I/O and control interfaces togaming peripherals, such as note acceptors andcoin mechanisms. The X10i has numerousmulti-purpose, programmable input sensing,and output control ports, including four that canmonitor activity even when the main power hasbeen removed.

The entry level X4i I/O module complementsentry-level gaming platforms running Linux orWindows by providing four additional serialports and sixteen general purpose inputs andsixteen outputs via a single USB connection. TheX4i is ideal for simple networked gamingmachines or for expanding the functionality ofcurrent systems.

heber launches latestproducts - a300 andpluto psu - in LondonThe Pluto A300 and Pluto PSu, Heber’snew products for 2017, will beshowcased at ICE on stand N1-248

Previewice ToTAlly GAminG 2017

NMi continues to see increasing customerdemand due to its reputation for first classcustomer service, technical expertise and theflexibility to exceed customer needs. A firmcommitment to be at the forefront in emergingregulated jurisdictions, whilst maintainingapprovals within existing markets, ensures thatcustomers have the peace of mind that NMican support their regulatory roadmaps througha partnership approach. Delivering transfers ofApproval (toAs) across all regulated i-gamingjurisdictions means that NMi’s customers canachieve their global ambitions.

With unprecedented demand from UKlicencees to have their RtP monitoring

processes, change management policies anddevelopment practices reviewed ahead of theGambling Commission's deadline for AnnualGames testing (AGt) audit submissions, NMi’scustomers are taking the opportunity toidentify compliance gaps ahead of time andensure successful outcomes.

In addition to AGt pre-audits, multi-jurisdiction ISMS audits, PCI health-checks,gaming- specific application security testing,and Anti-Money Laundering (AML)assessments by ACAMS-certified auditors arejust some of the innovative new serviceofferings with which

NMi is continuing to support existing and newcustomers. NMi are also pleased to discussexciting plans for ISO 27001 certificationservices and General Data Protection

Regulation (GDPR) readiness assessments.

ICE gives NMi the opportunity to talk to newand existing customers on the ground, andsupport them in getting their products andservices into new markets, as efficiently aspossible.

With an expanding Business Developmentteam due to customer demand, NMi has thisyear changed its location at ICE and can befound at stand N4-122, within a larger standspace with more room for private meetings andconsultations.

NMi Director Andrew Rosewarne commented:"Following our expansion in 2016, with morethan a 50% increase in resources, our stand atICE demonstrates our continued commitmentto meet customer's needs. With thetremendous growth we are currently seeing forour services, we are excited to be at the heart ofthe action on the show floor. Our reputation forbeing first to market in newly regulatedjurisdictions has seen NMi gain increasedaccreditations in 2016 including, Colombia,Peru, Panama, Lithuania, Romania, Hungary,Ontario and New Brunswick. A fundamentalcore value of NMi is to put the customerrelationship first, and we are delighted to beable to serve our customers wherever theirambitions take them."

nMi takes a dynamicnew spot at iCe show 2017 promises to be anothersuccessful year for the market-leadinggaming test laboratory NMi. The teamlook forward to meeting existing andnew customers alike as they launchnew services at this year's ICE 2017show at Excel in London from the 7th- 9th February 2017.

We made our debut at ICE almost a year ago –and it’s been a very busy time for us eversince. We have brought forward our deadlineto have our entire extensive back catalogue ofslots and table games converted from Flash toHtML5. This ensures all our successful titlescan now become available to operators in thesame technology.

Among the recent releases during 2016 havebeen a series of slots with appeal to Asianplayers around the world, including Fa CaiShen, 12 Zodiacs, and our most recentlyreleased - Fenghaung and Fire Rooster. But ourteam of designers has also taken inspirationfrom other themes as diverse as prohibition-era mobsters in Gangsters, ancient warriors forSparta, and a dark circus motif for Jugglenaut.

We like to think these games are very differentto what’s on the market at the moment. That’sbecause, as well as producing great graphicsand soundtracks for all our games, we’ve alsothought long and hard about themes andstorylines. In other places these have becomequite formulaic and I think players are cryingout for fresh ideas.

All of our games work beautifully in portraitand landscape modes and players enjoy thesame immersive experience no matter whatthey chose to play them on. Our games aremulti-language and multi-currencyadministered through a single back office,tailored to suit the individual requirements of

the operator. As well as games, we providepayment solutions and an end to end casinomanagement system with all industry optionssupported. Operators and aggregators areserviced by client and integration support bothin Chinese and English

As well as developing our catalogue, Habanerohas been busy finding ways to ensure playersround the world have access to them. Beingintegrated directly into over twenty clientoperators, we’ve also struck deals with anadditional number of content aggregators.These include a host of leading names such asEveryMatrix, Opus Gaming, Softec Digital,BetConstruct, and Mediatech.

Through those operators and game aggregatorsour client base currently reports mobileactivity at a very high level, we believe wellabove the industry average. We are alsopleased to say that we offer, to any browser,whether mobile or desktop, some of the fastestgame load times available anywhere.

Habanero is competitive on price withoutcompromising on quality, and we have agrowing reputation for producing some of thebest and most affordable content on themarket. We feel our portfolio has now got thebreadth and depth of games to satisfy brandsin multiple territories. So if you’re an operatoror an aggregator looking for unique content,we’d be very happy to welcome you to ourstand (N3-243 at ICE this month.

Game developer habanero to show its complete catalogue of games at iCe Habanero is gearing up for its secondsuccessful ICE after a year of impressivegrowth according to Head of Sales, Daniel Long

At this most pivotal time in our industry,tremendous opportunities exist to modernizeofferings in ways that resonate with a differenttype of consumer. Understanding what makesthem tick, and appreciating any limitations isonly the first step in configuring a new gamingexperience that appeals to a younger consumerand doesn’t alienate the existing casino guest.

Don’t miss this year’s Growth & Stability paneldiscussion on tuesday at 2:30pm.

Session attendees will learn how to optimise

opportunities with existing customers, anduncover latent segments of the market includingany amenities that have been dormant orunderappreciated by the casino industry.

Hear industry professionals discuss how thelatest technology attracts new customers ontoyour property. Understand how to cut costs,maximize ROI and still provide a quality gamingentertainment experience to all customers.Experts will define the most critical areas forcost improvement and the aids they use toaccomplish these tasks.

in This pAnell Learn new methods to using technology to

attract new gaming and non-gamingcustomers.

l See how well you’re optimizing your currentsystem.

l Identify the right tools to optimize theexperience and costs for customers properly.

l Hear what kind of reporting will help youbetter manage overall operations.

A series of panel discussions held atICE Totally Gaming seek to inform andeducate visitors to the trade exhibitionas to the latest technology and itsimpact on the gaming sector

agilysys is optimisingtechnology for thenext-Gen customer

The system is available to OEMs with severaldifferent SOCs from the AMD Embedded R-Series family so to offer a configurableperformance levels: from 12 to powerful 35watts version that offers players a new gamingexperience of the highest quality.

The system in its standard configurationcontrols up to three independent displays withresolutions up to 4k (3840 x 2160) over 3xDisplayPort. two optional video outputs, thekind of them – HDMI, DVI or VGA - decided bythe customer, can be available via an internaldaughterboard. A two display, both DisplayPort,cost effective version will be shortly availableusing the AMD Brown Falcon SOC. Even in closeproximity to the screen, graphics and H.264 andH.265 encoded videos look outstandingly sharpwithout pixelation. The system supports up to32 gigabytes of fast DDR 4 memory, allowingmore data to be stored on the RAM. This in turnmeans that games can be swapped faster andloading time is minimized. In addition to ananalog 5.1 audio output, S/PDIF and line-in andmicrophone ports, the G920 CHILI also offers a2.1 amplified output with 3x 20 watts. OEMs candirectly attach stereo speakers and a subwoofer,without having to invest in an audio amplifier.

Via 2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0, cctalk, 4x RS232and iButton, OEMs can flexibly connectadditional controls and peripherals, such asvalidators for credit cards, coins and bills. twoEthernet ports allow for a wide range ofnetwork topologies. Storage media can beconnected via SAtA, CFASt and SD.In terms of security, the G920 CHILI offers PSP,HWB, DR and a tPM 1.2. It also complies withthe SAS and G2S protocols. Further to thesehardware features, in accordance with GLI11certification, PSM Gaming has integrated ahighly secure Boot Security Chain, not onlyproviding better overall security but alsosimplifying obligatory and complex security testand audits in the gaming industry.

Further to designing the hardware PSM Gaminghas also developed the firmware and the BIOSof the G920 CHILI, so these can be adapted tomeet individual customer specifications. PSMcan therefore also offer its customers additionalvaluable support in certifying their finishedapplications according to legal requirements,thus simplifying OEMs lives.

The PSM Gaming system derives from anindustrial COM Express Basic module fromSECO, which application developers can alsodeploy in other applications.

psM Gaming presentsthe all-in-one gamingplatform G920 ChiLiDuring ICE 2017 PSM Gaming willpresent the new G920 CHILI system.The G920 CHILI is a completely fanless5 displays all-in-one gaming platformdesigned for the specific needs of high-end casino machines and to fulfill allthe international gaming standards andlegal requirements.


“Following a thriving year of numerous newproducts, extensive market deployment,distribution network growth and manufacturingand sales upscale we are ready to present agaming collection for brilliant entertainmentthat will make a compliment to every operatorand player,” shared Stanislav Stanev, sales &marketing director at EGt. “Each of our productdivisions is ready to showcase many newdevelopments, that are a result of thoroughresearches, creativity, know-how and all valuesthat EGt stands for. I am confident that ourpremieres will be a best match for all ICEvisitors, looking for something innovative, highclass designed and ultimately to their liking.”

The eGT sloT debUTsThe Chinese-themed Cai Shen Kingdom jackpotwalks the players into the realm of the God ofWealth - Cai Shen. Its 5 levels of winninginclude stand-alone, linked, progressive andnon-progressive jackpots and will be favouredby players for its capacity to grant more thanone at a time, even all five. The games are basedon the Exciter III platform and will be housed inthe good-looking P-24/32H Up cabinet, having aRainbow jackpot panel.

The Premium jackpot is common for all EGtproducts and games that are based on Exciter III,Exciter II and Exciter platforms, offering theoption for a mystery jackpot of 1, 2, or 3 levelsthat is common for all denominations and theopportunity for a progressive jackpot ofmaximum 4 levels that correspond to a specific

denomination. The jackpot system uses theRainbow jackpot panel of EGt to display thejackpot values, shown also on the second or thethird monitor of the cabinets. A specialcelebrating splash congratulates the winners,adding to their praise.

After the enormous success of the SuperPremier slot cabinet, EGt is now about to showanother high class addition to the same line –the Super Premier 75. Its 75-inch portrait-oriented curved monitor and 27-inchwidescreen main touch-screen display createdepth enhanced gaming experience for theplayers. The flawless edge-to-edge glasssurfaces and intelligent ambient LEDillumination, responsive to the activated game,add to the contemporary industrial design of thecabinet that also uses the new Exciter IIIplatform of EGt. Super Premier deserves itssuperior position also for its incorporatedcomfortable multimedia chair with high-qualitystereo sound speakers and main gamecontrolling buttons, included into the armrests.

A wide range of debuting multigames will alsobe part of EGt’s display. The General mixincludes different-themed titles (12 of whichwith a brand-new fruit design), that can beconfigured from low to high RtP. The Fruits

Collection 2 is based on the Fruits Collectionmultigame, joining 10 recently created gamesand reaching a total number of 48 titles. ThePremier Union multigame combines a mix of 45slot games from Red, Green and OrangeCollection with the play on 1 to 3 live,automated, or virtual roulettes.

solUTions of The MUlTiplAYer diVisionThe multiplayer solutions division of EGt willgrab the attention with its new array ofterminals, comprising of the S-Line models -S32 with one 32-inch full HD touch-screenmain monitor, S32/32 with an additional 32-inch full HD monitor and S32/32/27, having alsoa 27-inch topper for the Jackpot Cards system.The products are highly flexible and can beconfigured in any way appropriate to the casinooperator’s requirements. Their stylish designwith intelligent LED illumination, carbon fibrearmrests, high quality displays, two types ofkeyboards and surround stereo sound turnsthem into a highly advanced solution. Theirmultigame mix King HD Collection of 40 titlesincludes poker, keno and blackjack and is ableto connect the player to up to six differentroulette wheels (live, or automated; with single,or double zero) one at a time, providing anexcellent high-definition gaming interactionwith the player.

eGt present latest range of machines designedto create a truly brilliant gaming experience

over 230 gaming positions will shine atthe booth S3-330 of Euro GamesTechnology at ICE 2017. The display willinclude top-of-the-range slot,multiplayer, interactive gaming andEGT’s casino management system

transAct technologies will, in conjunctionwith its global distributor Suzo-Happ,demonstrate a full suite of its innovativesoftware technologies and printing solutionsfor the global gaming industry at ICE totallyGaming 2017.

The Company’s display in Suzo-Happ’s stand(N4-110) will include a full lineup of transAct’sEpic casino and gaming ticket printers,including the all-new Epic Edge, as well as twonew versions of the company’s revolutionary

Epicentral promotion and bonusing system:the latest full feature Epicentral version 3.8 andEpicentral System Edition (“Epicentral SE”).

“We are delighted to return to ICE totallyGaming 2017 with a full lineup of our industry-leading technology and print solutions for theglobal casino and gaming industry,” said BartC. Shuldman, Chairman and Chief ExecutiveOfficer of transAct technologies. “Ourcompany has long supported the thrivingcasino and gaming industry across Europewith our market-leading Epic casino andgaming printers and we are excited todemonstrate our newest printer, the Epic Edge,while showing attendees at ICE totally Gaminghow ‘Epicentral has Growing Casino RevenueDown to a System.’ Casino operators and slot

management system providers in Europe andaround the world are proscribing increasedvalue on the power of the printed coupon todrive increased floor-wide play and casinorevenue. In particular, we are bringing toLondon our innovative new full-featureversion of Epicentral, version 3.8, whichintroduces new capabilities and features thatwill allow customers to benefit from increasedsystem performance over time. Furthermore,the new Epicentral SE version providescustomers with the means to turn the existingelectronic bonuses and promotions madepossible by their slot management system intocustomized, printed coupons while the playeris at the slot machine.”

The next-generation Epic Edge casino andgaming ticket printer builds on the provenperformance of the industry-leading Epic 950and brings to casinos a host of advances thatwill further extend transAct’s industryleadership.

transact to demonstrate full suite of gamingtechnology and print solutions at iCe 2017New Epicentral versions – SE andv3.8 – to further show that“Epicentral has growing casinorevenue down to a system”




ICE will provide the backdrop for theworld debut for IGt’s latest multi-gamesuites on the versatile AXXIS 23/23 cabinet:diversity HD 3, diversity HD 4 and diversity HD5. Building on the international success of thediversity HD bundles 1 and 2, each new suitecontains a mix of innovative titles, popularthemes, jackpot-driven fun and classic slotgames. IGt will also highlight a number of titlesfrom its expanded portfolio of core video,including games built on the Ascent platform forthe CrystalSlant and CrystalDual cabinets.

titles such as Golden Egypt, Ocean Magic and Big5 Safari will be prominently featured in theCompany’s stand. IGt will also emphasize Spin-Splosion! , the new single or multi-site turnkeyvideo slot tournament solution for theCrystalDual cabinet. IGt will reveal new coremechanical reel titles such as Multipliers on Fire!and Bonus Wheel for the S3000 cabinet, alongwith a new high-limit version of the S3000cabinet that offers more subdued lighting andcelebrations.

Guests in IGt’s stand can be among the first toexperience Race Ace Arcade, the newest additionto IGt’s Skillcade portfolio. Race Ace Arcade is askill-based driving experience that envelopsplayers with three immersive monitors and ispaired with a sophisticated motion chair thattransports players to a virtual competitive roadrace environment. The chair will twist, turn,rumble and vibrate, giving players the sensationof participating in a real-life auto race. Othermarquee skill-based games in IGt’s standinclude the omni-channel story-based game,Lucky’s Quest and the highly anticipated VideoReel Edge hybrid skill themes texas tea Pinball,Cleopatra Pinball, Little Fish Big Fish and Fuzzy’sFortune.

The industry’s first 4D gaming experience, IGt’sSPHINX 4D, will be prominently displayed inIGt’s stand. The game builds on the success ofthe internationally celebrated SPHINX 3D game,and offers players a multi-sensory experiencethat enhances its glasses-free 3D technology.Through air haptic and gesture-basedtechnologies, SPHINX 4D players can touch andmanipulate the game’s 3D objects. SPHINX 4D ishoused on the CrystalCurve tRUE 4D cabinetwith a 32-inch touchscreen display and atowering 50-inch Ultra HD, curved upper 4Kdisplay. SPHINX 4D will be joined by other newpremium IGt titles and hardware solutions suchas The Voice Video Slots on the 4K CrystalCurveULtRA cabinet, new versions of Fort Knox videoslots and Harley-Davidson video slots on the 4KCrystalCurve cabinet, ZUMA 3D and JurassicWorld 3D on the AXXIS 3D cabinet. IGt will alsodemonstrate a series of progressives such as WanShi Ru Yi, Egyptian Empire and Super Red HotJackpots.

IGt’s commitment to enhancing the land-basedcasino environment with mobile technology willbe showcased in a dedicated casino systemsarea. Cardless Connect, Mobile Host, Mobile

Responder, and Mobile Dashboard will beamong IGt’s mobile systems solutions ondisplay in the Company’s stand. CardlessConnect continues to gain internationalnotoriety for its capacity to be embedded into acasino operator’s app to eliminate the need forphysical loyalty cards and tItO tickets.

The interactive portion of IGt stand willhighlight the award-winning PlaySpot mobilesoftware solution. The Company willdemonstrate PlaySpot’s compatibility with otherIGt systems such as Cardless Connect and IGtAdvantage casino management systems, alongwith the solution’s unique offerings for roulette,baccarat, sports betting, slots and lottery ticketretailers. IGt’s stand will also feature a roster ofnew games such as Cleopatra PLUS, which

features level-up game elements. Anotherhighlight in IGt’s Interactive demonstrationswill be its new instant win game format, givingplayers an even more dynamic gamingexperience with IGt and licensed themes. IGtwill showcase modern solutions for classicbetting options such as bingo, poker and sportsbetting, along with new platform advancementsthat can streamline operations and enhance theplayer experience.

IGt’s Quasar Video Lottery terminal (VLt) thewill be joined by a series of other special gaminginnovations such as its Dynasty Electronic tableGames, video poker and keno themes such asUltimate X Bonus Streak and IGt’s Multi RaceKeno, in addition to a series of Amusement WithPrize games, and Betting solutions.


AMAtIC Industries from Austria has createdthe perfect online gaming solution with itsAMANEt interactive range of games.

AMANEt brings the renowned AMAtIC gameslibrary online. All games are in HtML5 format– meaning that they can be played on onlineand mobile devices. Each game has been triedand tested in the land-based gaming segmentbefore entering the online market. This vastexperience, intertwined with a flair for designand proven multi-game mathematics, gives acompetitive edge over online-only titles.

Only successful games from the AMAtIC land-based range find their way into the onlineportfolio. This includes many favourites, suchas Arising Phoenix, All Ways Fruits, Billy’s

Game, Bells On Fire and the ‘Hot’ series: HotNeon, Hot Scatter and Hot 27. Game content isalso regularly updated with further newexciting titles.

The entire AMANEt game portfolio has beentested for play in all major browsers and onmost common devices. It is multilingual andhas already been approved by multiplejurisdictions, which means that gameintegration for online gaming providers is verysimple and flexible. to sum up, AMANEtmakes it possible to play anytime, anywhereand on any device.

AMAtIC Industries can be found, as ever, atICE at stand S3-350.

aManet – the onlinegaming solution from aMatiC at iCe

ICE attendees can experience IGT’s “Innovation at Play” in stand N3-160, wherethe company will showcase its vast portfolio of gaming solutions for everyregulated channel and segment, and convey its commitment to leadinginnovation, quality content and new player experiences.

‘innovation at play’ sees iGt inject excitementinto the iCe totally Gaming show in London

At the upcoming ICE tradeshow (Advantechstand number N1-238), the company’s theme is‘Gaming Intelligence.’ “This theme aptlyencompasses our products, our knowledge ofthe industry and our added value hardware andsoftware solutions” commented Craig StapletonAdvantech’s product director. “Our standardproducts provide customers with the latesttechnology in the form of gaming specifichardware platforms for the intelligent heart oftoday’s sophisticated slot machines. Our expertteam has over 15 years’ experience in theindustry and can help customers with the designin process. Our range of software solutions addfurther intelligence with functions such asmedia validation, SAS networking, security anddiagnostics. Finally for customers requiringcustom-designed products we can addintelligence in the form of custom FPGA andadditional micro-controllers with customfirmware for sophisticated security, control andsupervisory functions.”

lCd MoniTors, diGiTAl siGnAGe AndplAYer TrACKinG solUTionsAdvantech-Innocore will be showing a selectionof products from Advantech’s other productdivisions. Products on display will includeembedded PC platforms featuring the latestAMD, Intel, chipsets), and other embeddedcomputing products: Industrial motherboardsand modules in a variety of formats includingMini-ItX, COM Express and MicroAtX.

Advantech’s growing line of industrial LCDmonitor products from IDS (Industrial DisplaySystems) product line will also be shown. Withscreen sizes available from 7 inches up to 55inches and beyond, the IDS range includes thelatest technology products for high visibility,touch screen, sunlight view ability andruggedisation and curved screen models too.

Different models of displays will be on showfeaturing concave and convex curved LCDs insizes from 25 inches diagonal up to 65” and evenS-shaped curve screens.

4 new GAMinG plATforMs & hiGhperforMAnCe GrAphiCs CArdsNo less than four new DPX products will be onshow. The exciting new DPX -E135 and DPX -E250 in the E Series range, the DPX -S440 and

DPX-S2440 in the S Series range.

The DPX-E135 is a completely integrated systemfor gaming applications. Based on the 3rdgeneration of AMD’s G Series embeddedplatform, the DPX-E135 provides a complete PCplatform with passive cooling. The system usesAMD’s latest high performance dual and quadcore SOC devices with “Discrete-level Graphics”from the integrated HD8000 series graphicscore. A full feature set of I/O and COMs designedspecifically for gaming devices is also includedmaking the DPX-E135 an ideal integratedplatform for many gaming, amusement andkiosk applications.

The DPX-S440 is another new motherboard forthe gaming industry. It features the very latestAMD top end R series embedded platform. TheDPX-S440 is the latest in the very successfulDPX-S range of products which give customersfield-proven reliable platforms with the peace ofmind of massive scalability and futureupgradeability.

The third new product on show at ICE is theDPX-E250 a Xeon capable motherboard for thegaming and lottery industry. It features the verylatest 4th Generation Intel Core architectureCPUs up to and including Intel Xeon CPUs. Bestin class CPU performance – the DPX-E250supports a huge range of price and performancefrom dual core Celeron, through Core i3, Core i5,Core i7 and up to Xeon CPUs. The latest Intelembedded platform ensures customers a longlived (guaranteed 5 years in production), andfuture proof platform ready for whateverperformance needs come along.

to meet the ever increasing graphicsperformance requirements of the casino gamingindustry, Advantech’s products offer the mostscalable expandable solutions for customersneeding more screens or high performancediscrete graphics card performance. At the showthe company will introduce new graphics cardswhich use the latest AMD and Nvidia GPUs.From AMD we will show cards based on the newE9260, E9550, E8870 and RX-460. These cardswith 4GB or 8GB of on board memory and thelatest Polaris GPU architecture from AMD givecustomers state of the art 3D performance withthe extended availability needed for gaming.

advantech-innocore showcases ‘Gamingintelligence’ at the upcoming iCe tradeshowAdvantech-Innocore promotes four new Gaming Platform Products, as well as LCDmonitors, curved LCD monitors and solutions for Digital Signage and Playertracking applications to visitors to the ICE Totally Gaming exhibition this month


NSoft has confirmed that it has improved itsproducts, become stronger on internationalmarkets, expanded its family with great newpeople and expended its already significantcustomer base.

NSoft’s SEVEN Platform was launched in 2016and recognized as an important tool in turnkeymanagement of betting and gaming operations.It incorporates all of NSoft’s ideas and effortsinto a single solution.

All our virtual games, sports betting solutions,integrated casino games and other third partysolutions exist as units and services within theSEVEN Platform. SportsBook has seen manyimprovements, polishing and new features.Besides already implemented Betradar’s MtS(Managed trading Services) that allowscustomers to externalise their operational riskand liability management completely toBetradar’s proven industry expertise andcompetence, we are introducing SportsBookSelf-Managed. It is fully integrated into SEVENPlatform through all delivery channels (web,mobile, terminal, retail) and gives the customerfull autonomy of sports events creation, oddsmanagement and risk management.

We are also very proud to become one of thefew Betradar Gold Certified Partners. Thisconfirms that NSoft is qualified to provideprofessional services that are designed to assistcustomers in rapidly deploying andimplementing Betradar’s Pre-Match Betting,Live Betting, Live Channel, Managed tradingServices and Gaming Solutions. In addition,NSoft is qualified to assist in rapidly deployingand implementing Betradar’s entire portfolio ofGaming Solutions with just one integration viaBetradar’s Remote Game Server.

We were also quite busy in virtual gamesdevelopment. Besides standard improvements,we have two new games, two new race games –Drag Races and Motorcycle Speedway. Both areextremely fast-paced and provide a lot ofexcitement, betting options and amazinggraphics. These games definite enrichment tobetting operator’s portfolio and will definitelyhelp them boost their revenues. NSoft crew willbe exhibiting its products at ICE, stand S1-140.More than 40 NSofters will be waiting for youwith the desire to answer all of your questions.Looking forward to meet you.

nsoft captialises onphenomenal successwith 2017 portfolioGiven the fact that 2016 was the bestyear in the NSoft history, what else canwe expect, but even more prosperousyear and better ICE 2017



ICE – now in its 23rd edition – prides itself oncombining land-based and interactive underone roof and NOVOMAtIC’s expansive standenables the Group to demonstrate its leadingOmni-channel solutions in every segment ofthe international gaming space. Split intodistinct sections, visitors will be taken on a 360°journey through the world of NOVOMAtIC,culminating in the traditional hospitality areawith a selection of Austrian foods and drinks.

Harald Neumann, CEO NOVOMAtIC, said: “Aswe are heading into another exciting year forNOVOMAtIC and for the international gamingindustry, stakeholders, decision makers andgaming experts all gather at ICE totally Gaming2017 in London where the NOVOMAtIC Groupagain takes pride of place with a 360-degreegaming experience that covers all aspects ofmodern gaming.”

Starting at the main reception, NOVOMAtICGaming Industries will present the latest casinogames, jackpots, cabinets and systems. The fullsuite of V.I.P. cabinets will be on displayalongside the latest slot machines such as theGAMINAtOR Scorpion that will feature a host ofnew titles ready for 2017, as well as leadingmultiplayer cabinets. Octavian will also be onhand to demonstrate exciting newdevelopments of the ACP system.

Making their debut on the NOVOMAtIC stand atICE will be Ainsworth Game technology andvideo bingo supplier Otium. Having recentlylaunched the A600 cabinet series, Ainsworthwill reveal new games and linked progressives.Making its global premiere will be Ainsworth’sstunning A640 cabinet with a host of new titles.Otium will display exciting new products forinternational video bingo markets including theOt-100 cabinet and industry-leading bingocontent.

Along the right wing of the stand will be theNOVOMAtIC UK Group with an impressive line-up of products for casino, arcade and pubmarkets. A selection of awe-inspiring Batmanlicensed games for UK and export markets willmake a dramatic entrance.

At the forefront of the offering is the B3 titleBatman Begins, presented by Astra Games in theV.I.P. Lounge. Bell-Fruit Games will showcaseBatman Gotham City, next to new Cat C and CatB4 titles. National operator Gamestec will alsoshow off a range of Batman games and treatvisitors to an immersive VR competition thatwill take place for the duration of the show.

The NOVOMAtIC Interactive division willoccupy the left wing of the stand with a fullrange of solutions. Popular casino slots from thevast NOVOMAtIC games library, the server-based gaming system Plurius, new mobiledevelopments, AWP online slots and socialgames are just some of the multifacetedsolutions that will be shown by Greentube. Newand creative Live Dealer attractions featured byExtreme Live Gaming will include social-

themed Club Roulette, as well as Extreme LiveBox and Reel Roulette.

A B2B suite of HtML5 multiplayer casino titlesby AbZorba Games will be released at ICE,Mazooma Interactive will present its new digitalcontent, and EuroCoin Interactive will featureclassic land-based titles brought online.Completing the interactive presentation isStakeLogic, with an action-packed program thatincludes the launch of a brand new 3D slot gameDarts Heroes featuring four world-class dartsplayers – Gary “The Flying Scotsman” Anderson,Phil “The Power” taylor, Michael van Gerwenand Raymond van Barneveld – who will


Bringing the latest gaming innovation to customers and players around the worldevery day, NoVoMATIC will combine it all on February 7-9 at ICE Totally Gaming2017 where Europe’s leading technology group will present its 360° gamingexperience. A comprehensive range of cutting-edge gaming solutions will be onshow by 22 global subsidiaries and competence centers as the NoVoMATIC Grouptakes centre stage on the world theatre of gaming.

the complete range of nOVOMatiC Groupcompanies prepare to present a 360° gamingexperience at iCe totally Gaming in London


Having become a regular fixture at the show,once again the company’s R&D team will beshowcasing their latest innovations tooperators in a purpose-built Immersion Roomon Microgaming’s stand, designed to fullyimmerse people into the world of newtechnologies.

Having revealed the award-winning VRRoulette and an AR application in previousyears, what’s next?

Beyond future technology, for Microgaming,this year, the focus is games. Hosting thelargest offering in the industry, with anunparalleled 850+ games, the company wasrecognised by BEGE Expo in November,winning the ‘Biggest online games portfolio’award. But it’s not just about quantity.

Quality is key, and Microgaming has createdsome of the biggest titles in the industry,including Thunderstruck, Immortal Romanceand Hot as Hades. In 2016 alone, the companyreleased a string of hit titles, including JungleJim – El Dorado, Lost Vegas, Dragonz, and

tarzan, and operators have even more to lookforward to in 2017, with Pollen Party and Fruitvs Candy being just two of the six games goinglive in Q1. And the roadmap for the remainderof the year is stronger than ever!

In addition, 2017 will see the launch of severalnew branded content slots, such as JurassicWorld. And Microgaming will be announcingat least one other licensing deal at ICE!

What better way to celebrate the company’supcoming content, than at ICE, the biggestshow of the year! If you want in on the action,be sure to visit Microgaming at N5-220.

Behind every great character @Microgamingare hundreds more operating in their elementTaking on 620m² of floor space, the Microgaming Stand and Bar is located at thecentre of the ExCeL London. you can’t miss it… and you don’t want to!Entertaining and exciting attendees is something Microgaming has becomewell-known for at the show, whether it be by way of a Game of Thrones greenscreen experience or through a custom-made CRyo lab, enabling exhibitors toplay a virtual game of roulette in space! And yet again the software giant hassome thrilling show plans.

demonstrate their skills at the show. Visitors willbe able to see the players in action, and try theirluck in a competition led by acclaimed dartsreferee Russ “The Voice” Bray, on theNOVOMAtIC stand at 1 – 4 pm on tuesday,February 7.

Rounding out the offering at the front of the standwill be an extensive range of international AWPand VLt products, as well as cash managementsolutions, by European subsidiaries includingLÖWEN Entertainment, Crown technologies,NOVOMAtIC Italia, NOVOMAtIC Gaming Spainand NOVOMAtIC Netherlands. Makingsignificant progress last year, both NOVOMAtICLottery Solutions (NLS) and NOVOMAtIC SportsBetting Solutions (NSBS) will also feature at thefront of the stand. NLS will unveil its best-in-class lottery and VLt products, and NSBS willpresent its one-stop-solutions for the sportsbetting industry.


“We are pioneers. We were pioneers in 2005,when we got the first Class 4 licence for thedistribution of online games with no-downloadFlash technology from the Malta GamingAuthority; we were pioneers in 2012 when wereleased the first collection of slot machinescertified for the Italian market, in conjunctionwith the decree issued by ADM (the ItalianRegulator) that ratified their liberalisation. Andwe are still at the forefront of online gaming aswe continue along the path of technologicalR&D, offering games increasing in popularityand performance”, said Andrea Boratto,Executive Director of World Match.

At ICE, World Match will present all itsupcoming releases, starting with Robotika HD, aslot inspired by the popular science fictionstories. In 2017, the quality of World Match'sgames is going to further increase, thanks to thelatest update to its game engine’s managementsystem. In addition, the company’s productioncapacity will grow dramatically. “We arealready renowned in the field for being able torelease up to two games a month, but we’vedecided to raise the bar even higher and we arenow able to release three,/four games permonth,” Boratto revealed.

World Match aims high with mobile games,which is why the provider has developed adedicated touch interface that optimisesusability and brings the game experience to thenext level of fun. The company has investedheavily in omni-channel games to allow playerswho change device to resume the game exactlyfrom where they left it and enjoy a trulyseamless game experience. In addition, WorldMatch is the only provider offering cross-platform jackpots, giving players the samechance to win the same prizes, irrespective ofthe device. The range of jackpots is wide andincludes: jackpot with fixed or progressiveamount, local jackpot (set on a specific game)and group jackpots (set on a definite group ofgames or operators).

Finally, Boratto highlighted the integrationflexibility of World Match's game suite: “Weoffer two different kinds of integration, walletand seamless integration. Our tech Departmentis at the customer’s disposal during the wholeintegration process to allow him to go live in lessthen five working days.”

World Match on thefrontline of onlinegaming during iCeWorld Match is offering acomprehensive collection of state-of-the-art casino games to the world’smost important gaming operators inregulated markets on stand N4-240

Jackpot Translation, an ISo 17100 certifiedbrand, was created by global language servicesprovider, translate plus. We are focused ondelivering technologically innovative services,allowing our clients to interact with newmarkets worldwide.

We support hundreds of gaming clients, suchas NetEnt, Kambi, unibet, Betsson, WilliamsInteractive, betboo.com, iSoftBet, GTECH,SkillonNet and Gaming VC. Across mobileapps, HTML5 games, subtitling, audio, websitelocalisation, SEo and more, we help our globalclients to increase revenue, create engagingmarketing campaigns and produce user-friendly gameplay for multilingual customers.

Jackpot Translation are specialists in gaming,betting and sporting translations. our team

includes expert gaming translators,interpreters and project managers that canunderstand and solve all your language needs.

new for iCe 2017Last year we were happy to announce thearrival of our new Business Consultant, JamesMcKie to the Jackpot Translation team. Hejoined us in october 2016 bringing with himyears of experience in the gaming industry.James has worked for companies such asQuickspin and gaming giant, NetEnt as theTeam Lead for Language Management.

James has a clear passion for the industry andsince joining us he’s injected plenty of passioninto projects involving our current clients, aswell as new clients that he’s brought on board.It’s an exciting time for Jackpot Translation.

you can find us at stand S2-100 where we’ll betelling the gaming world exactly what we canoffer and how we can help gaming companiesincrease their presence internationally, whichwill ultimately increase revenue.

Having only officially launched in January2016, we’ve already gained so much ground inour gaming-centred operations. That’s down toour gaming, sporting and betting knowledge,which is supported by the foundations builtand years of experience from translate plusthat’s been injected into Jackpot Translation tomake it the success it is today.

Preview

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Oryx Gaming: shapingthe future direction ofonline casino slots

During 2016 ORYX has seen solid growth interms of revenue and client base whilesimultaneously managing to enter a number ofnew markets.

The show will give ICE visitors and exhibitors achance to explore the ORYX product portfolioand test the omni-channel Casino, SportsBetting and Lottery solutions.

Over the course of last year ORYX managed toadd several content partners to the ORYX GamePlatform including the likes of Gamomat, GoldClub, EGt, Amatic and Extreme Live. time hasalso been spent strengthening the I-gamingplatform and sports betting product and therewill be a series of new gaming content acrossdesktop, mobile and retail solutions in 2017.

Omni-channel, content partnerships and sportsbetting will continue to form a substantial partof company expansion in the 12 months aheadand beyond. Another element Oryx isparticularly excited about is showcasing thelottery solutions that will be on show alongsidea number of games and scratch cards.

Several game platform improvements are to be

exhibited at ICE which for the majority focus onadvanced game features, promotion features,seamless play and jackpots and completeproduct migration from Flash to HtML5.

I-Gaming platform presentations will beavailable at the stand which means potentialbusiness partners can check out productfeatures centred around player data,promotions, business analytics and omnichannel experience. This has arisen in responseto the continuous requests for real timeperformance reports, longer player life-cycles,optimisation of player engagement and higherconversion rates.

ICE brings together the best gaming expertsfrom all over the world and it’s a fantasticenvironment to debate the important trends thatwill shape the future.

Oryx is looking forward to meeting with currentand potential partners and offer a taste of theportfolio that will allow the company to furtherexpand into a number of European, LatinAmerican and African markets.

ice ToTAlly GAminG 2017

oRyx Gaming are exhibiting at ICE 2017(Stand N1 - 300) on the back of anotherhugely successful year.

With a network of over 11,000 linguists,including native gaming specialists,covering over 200 languages whoknow the industry inside out; yourtranslation projects are in safe handswith Jackpot Translation

Leaderbet, the main brand of LB Group, nowproudly offers a wide range of sport bettingoptions, a Poker Room and various onlineCasinos, ensuring pleasant and diversified formsof entertainment for every type of a player.

b2b serViCesStart your own online gaming business with LB

Group. At ICE (stand S9-155) the Maltesecompany is launching its white label solutions.

eASy STePS To STArT1. cOntact: the specialised staff will supportthe client in finding a domain, realising a logoand choosing the best color combination for anew website.2. pre-prOductiOn: the client can choose thecontent and LB Group will provide CustomerService, Odds, Markets, Payment Services andmany more…3. prOductiOn: the White Label is hosted inone of LB Group’s data centers and managed24x7. In the end LB Group will providemarketing strategies, promotions and bonus

plans to make the network grow faster.

b2C serViCesSpOrt: 50+ sports, 100+ football markets,5.000+ weekly events, Coupon with 32 events,

+250% Bonuses - COMING SOON: eSport,caSinO: 300+ video slots, 3 Live Casinos, 1Poker Room, Virtual Football, Virtual Dog RacestOOlS: Smart & Friendly Mobile Version, Backoffice & Private Area Management

LB Group is a company that operates inthe online gaming sector since 2011,based in Malta and MGA licensed. Thecompany may be young, but it isalready at the center of the Europe’sgambling market and till now it hascreated a solid organisation and strongnetwork of partners and agencies

e-gaming, the Czech manufacturer specialistin SBG system, will once again participate atICE in early February 2017. Like every year, thecompany will present many differenynovelties, including a facelift of thecompanies’ latest very successful e-neoncabinet will be showed for the first timepublicly. It will come with an updated design,new hardware and software versions.

Latest game porfolio for land based games forseveral jurisdictions will be showcased in allversion of cabinets. Newest online casinogames will be presented for PC and mobile

versions in HTML5 for Android and ioS. Newgame packs especially developed for LatinAmerican markets will be a part of the newproducts for 2017. And lastbut not least, the updatedversion of online casinoplatform with newest titleswill also be presented withinnovative developments.

As always ICE is the perfectplace to meet e-gaming´scustomers and localassociates but also the placeto showcase newestdevelopments and meetnew potential clients. All ofthat will be happening at thestand No. N1-450. E-gamingis looking forward to seeingyou in London for ICE.

Complete suite ofgaming solutionsfrom e-gaming at iCe

LB Group & Leaderbet launch white labelsolutions at the iCe at totally Gaming 2017

Cash Support will be exhibiting at stand N3-422and again with Signs4U and REAC also from TheNetherlands. On display the company will havethe new CtM-CD with coin and note recycling,for smaller casinos and arcades.

The CtM-ONE is a rear loader for additionalsecurity and easier maintenance. For the CtM-ONE the company also developed the tC (totalCoin device) to be used in conjunction with themain terminal to accept coins in bulk and highspeed processing.

Modularity is the key word for 2017 and CashSupport welcomes visitors to ICE to join theteam on N3-422 for a demo and a refreshment!

Modularity is the keyfor Cash support

Cash Support BV, the Dutchmanufacturer of self service terminalsfor the Arcade and Casino industry willshow on ICE the latest developments incash and card handling for Ticket/Cashand Smart card operated casinos.



Merkur Gaming is the internationalmanufacturing and commercial arm of theGauselmann Group and is dedicated 100% to thevalues of made-in-Germany quality standards,outstanding customer service and a diverseproduct portfolio.

What is, for Merkur Gaming, the mostsignificant trade show of the year, ICE totallyGaming, is fast approaching and we would liketo extend our invitation for all gamingprofessionals to join us from February 7th to 9that the ExCel Exhibition Centre in London’sDocklands on Booth numbers N4-210, N4-220to N4-250.

The 2017 edition of ICE will reveal theGauselmann Group and Merkur Gaming’slargest ever presence at the show with aninterconnected booth space that allows all of thepreviously separated Group companies to nowcome together in a single space. The additionalspace will all be needed for, as well as MerkurGaming’s national and International teams,edict, Cashpoint and XtiP, GeWete, the UK’sBlueprint Games and Merkur Dosniha fromSpain will all be present at full strength andready to welcome visitors.

Product developments such as the hugelysuccessful Merkurstar, the brand new Evostar,the global operators’ favourites Avantgarde andAvantgarde trio, as well as the recent arrivalsM-BOX, M-BOX Buzzer and the Black Series

drive our diversification and prove ourinnovation in Cabinet and Platform design.Thanks to numerous technologicalenhancements Merkur Gaming now proudlypresents G2S compatible machines. And MerkurGaming machines feature the most importantelement of all: GREAt GAMES! Check out ourgame packages such as Fruits, Egypt, RandomLines and Hero Games to see the variety andattraction that our talented game designersbuild in, as standard, to all our game releases.

Alongside the key factor of game contentdevelopment the core competence of MerkurGaming is the empirical value of the completeGauselmann Group. With over 250 own

operations, some 10,000 employees worldwide,market leadership in Germany and Europe andthe brand’s rapid development and expansionthroughout Latin America, the GauselmannGroup has proven to be one of the mostexperienced and dynamic companies in worldgaming.

Merkur Gaming is, in this year of its 60thanniversary celebrations, continuing to writenew success stories in key gaming marketsaround the world. The company welcomesvisitors, its customers and business partners, tojoin Merkur in this great adventure for, nomatter what your language or culture, at MerkurGaming: ‘We Speak Gaming.’

Welcome to the Merkur Gamingexperience! Merkur Gaming’s brandreputation has been created throughconstant innovation and with theexperience and tradition built over the60 years of Germany’s world famousGauselmann Group

For more than 60 years, operators have reliedon JCM Global to provide innovative, securesolutions to protect them from counterfeitersand manage cash in the back office. Now onstand #N3-220 at ICE 2017, JCM will presentits broad portfolio of award-winning solutionsfor casinos, AWP operations, bet terminalmarket, as well as for back office / cashierarea.

JCM’s line of bill validation solutions beginswith the award-winning iVIZION, one of the

most widely used bill validators in the gamingindustry. iVIZION outpowers the competitionwith its CIS technology that sees and capturesa full note or ticket and is the foundation forintelligent validation, meaning it is a secure-

ROI purchase. Other validation solutionsinclude UBA, iPRO-RC, Vega, Vega-RC andVega-RC twin, EBA, tBV, Fujitsu F53/56, andthe recently released RDM.

JCM printing solutions include the new andtechnologically advanced GEN5 thermalprinter, the CouponXpress coupon solutionand the Nippon printer.

JCM system solutions include ticket2Go, anafter-market tItO solution for AWP operatorsand the new FUZION, which when combinedwith iVIZION, GEN5 and the casino’s existingCMS, opens a host of new revenue potential.

JCM’s commitment to innovative solutions forthe gaming industry mean operators can gobeyond transactions to making real customerconnections. Experience the innovation on ICEstand #N3-220.


JCM Global bringswealth of experienceand award-winningsolution to iCe 2017

iCe totally Gaming is set to reveal the totally‘Merkur Gaming’ experience at London show

“A strong portfolio combining exciting content,segmented product lines and popular licensedthemes have been the key business driver overthe last 12 months,” commented James Boje, MD– EMEA.

“A significant proportion of our stand space atExCeL will incorporate premium licensedbrands, demonstrating Aristocrat’s ongoingcommitment to this extremely importantsegment. Players across Europe and Africa haveonly recently begun to enjoy the entertaininggaming experience of global phenomena such

as Lightning Link and blockbuster titles on theArc Double platform and at February’s ICE showwe will reveal the rich pipeline of new licensedgaming content, crafted with passion by theworld’s greatest games designers.”

Having already embarked on a roll-outtrajectory well established across Australasia,North America and other regions throughout theworld, Lightning Link will be given more supportfor gaming floor expansion in EMEA with sixnew varied themes sporting three different basegame mechanics. Also new to the market, a middenomination version of Lightning Linkespecially designed for VIP areas.

Arc Double titles Game of Thrones, The WalkingDead 2, Britney Spears and Buffalo Grand havealso started to establish a firm foothold in anumber of European markets and South Africa,with more approvals coming on stream and twomore popular themes being added to theportfolio in Elvira – Mistress of the Dark and TheBig Bang Theory Jackpot Multiverse.

At ICE 2017, Aristocrat will also expand its rangeof licensed formats with Zorro and Sharknadobeing released on the Arc Single platform, both

packed with a broad variety of features andproven mechanics for extended entertainmentvalue. Fast Cash, Aristocrat’s first combinedMSP/SSP for the EMEA region, is a new linkedmultigame that delivers the fun of any jackpot,any bet, any time. Jackpot-loving players willappreciate the opportunity to win a lowerjackpot on every spin in the base game and freegames, as well as the chance to hit a larger,higher frequency wide area progressive jackpotaward.

Further progressive options on show willinclude the Asian-themed Good Fortune Linkand the formidable Wonder Wheels, nowavailable with four triple A licenced themes.

Mr Boje concluded: “Rich content and featuresfrom the most popular Aristocrat gamesunderpin the new portfolio in both licensed andsale categories. Customers already know what’sworking on their floors and we will outline howour globally based game studios are taking thevery best elements and pushing the envelopewith the next generation. Stand S3-250 will be ahotbed of creative gaming innovation and weeagerly await sharing our vision with partnersold and new.”

This year at the ICE exhibition (stand N3-200),Astrosystems Ltd will be showcasing its GBAGV1 bill acceptor, which is a front loading notevalidator designed for secure markets rangingfrom kiosks, payment systems to gaming.Designed to deliver on market demands forform and fit, it has unique characteristicswhich make it an attractive solution forserviceability and modularity.

The powerful GBA St2 stackerless note readeris used as the GV1’s currency validationmodule, providing ready access to a widevariety of global currencies, whilst offering theability to read tickets – a most relevant featureof the present day. The GBA St2 is cunninglyintegrated into the GV1 transport system, yet

can be easily accessed for cleaning orextraction. With an eye on service wants andneeds, everything about the GV1 is easy. It canquickly stripped down to its serviceable parts.Belts are easily accessible for changeouts, themain PCB controller slides out from its positionwith the flick of a finger and the note transportpathway is completely accessible for cleaning.

The secure note cassette is audit-capable,lockable both to itself and to the GV1 chassisand can hold up to 800 notes.

The latest addition to the GV1 is its universalbezel, which allows it to be a directreplacement within existing applications as acost effective solution.

When considering a reliable and robust coinmechanism for the casino market, theMicrocoin QL is unrivalled. This product offersa high speed multi-coin and token validator,

with a significant global presence, beingspecified as the default product in some of theworld‘s most prestigious casino machines.The Microcoin QL is award winning, withparticular recognition given to the high speedvalidation - up to 10 coins per second.Alongside this benefit, the coin mechanismoffers a strong protective barrier against fraudattempts.

Astrosystems Ltd have been working with TheRoyal Mint for several months, in order toprepare for the introduction of the new 12 sided£1 coin which is due to be launched in early2017.

In order to support their customers,Astrosystems Ltd have already prepared thelatest config for the Microcoin SP and QL coinmechanisms, which covers the full UK coin set,including the existing and the new £1 coin.

The config is available free of charge, and forthose needing assistance with the upgrade,there is a small fee for re-programming anyunits at the Repairs and Service Centre based atAstrosystems offices in Wantage, Oxfordshire.

Aristocrat Technologies will show anintense ‘passion for gaming’ at ICE 2017as the global provider unveils keyhighlights of its new slot portfolio forthe EMEA region on stand S3-250

aristocrat to displayits passion for gamingat iCe show in London

Astrosystems prepares a showcaseof payment systems technologies toanswer present and future issuesaffecting gaming operations

astrosystems brings proven, innovative, cost-effective payments systems to iCe


Greentube, surrounded by the partnercompanies of NOVOMAtIC Interactive, willintroduce a vast array of product innovations atthis year’s show. As NOVOMAtIC’s centre ofinteractive entertainment, Greentube is proud tointroduce its multifaceted content with a widerange of new titles from more than 20 Groupsubsidiaries and third parties worldwide. Eachteam is looking forward to meet with visitorsand business partners to present their latesttechnology innovations and brand newproducts. Popular casino slots from the vastgames library offered by NOVOMAtIC, latestmobile developments, the Server-BasedGaming system PluriustM, AWP online slots,Live Dealer games, Social Gaming solutions andmuch more awaits visitors at the legendaryNOVOMAtIC booth.

After the successful launch of FootballGladiators™ at ICE 2016, StakeLogic’s team hasprepared yet another major attraction for 2017that will see special guests visit the booth ontuesday, Feb 7th between 1pm - 4pm. An action-packed program includes the launch of a brandnew 3D slot game “Darts Heroes” featuring fourworld-class darts players – Gary Anderson aka“The Flying Scotsman”, Michael van Gerwen aka“Mighty Mike”, Raymond van Barneveld aka“Barney”, Phil taylor aka “The Power” – whowill demonstrate their skills to fans.

Guests shouldn’t miss out on the opportunity toobtain signatures at an exclusive autographsession, and try their luck at a competition ledby acclaimed darts referee Russ Bray aka “TheVoice” to call out the scores! As a bonus, alimited number of dart boards sponsored byUnicorn will be handed out. StakeLogic willfurther present a premium selection of morehigh-end casino titles at the show, includingBank or Prank, tropical Adventure and Clash ofGods.

true to tradition, the Plurius™ system is onceagain proudly representing the company’somni-channel approach. PluriustM connectsland-based and online gaming worlds, allowingthe same content to be offered across allchannels without additional developmentefforts. Combining all channels into a singlesystem greatly increases player retention.Plurius already offers a stellar portfolio of


games, including world-famous NOVOMAtICtitles and popular game content from differentthird parties and subsidiaries such as Mazoomaand Eurocoin Interactive. The content will bedisplayed on a wide range of NOVOMAtIC’smarket-proven cabinets including the V.I.P.Lounge™ and the DOMINAtOR® Curve.

Following the recent partnership with treasureIsland Resort & Casino, Greentube NorthAmerica is delighted to introduce the latestsocial casino gaming solutions with GreentubePro, the innovative B2B social casino platformdeveloped for the US market. Created byBlueBat Games, Greentube Pro allows land-based casinos to choose from the extensiveNOVOMAtIC game library. The company isexcited to create a customized look and feel witha range of slot and gaming offerings reflectingthe real-life experience of the treasure Islandfloor to keep players engaged.

Extreme Live Gaming is again part of theimpressive interactive presentation. Thecompany is driving innovation through socialgaming opportunities, product diversity andpromotional functionality and, in particular, isthrilled to present the Extreme Live Box productalongside a market-leading lineup of LiveDealer games. With mobile HtML5 throughoutits product suite and the utilization of ChromaKeying technology, Extreme harnesses the latest

technologies to produce games that optimizeplayer engagement and add game-changingfeatures.

AbZorba Games passionately creates authenticsocial casino multiplayer titles for mobile,amassing almost 10 million installs on GooglePlay and itunes across the globe, and at ICE2017, the company will launch its B2B suite ofHtML5 tabletop multiplayer casino titles withNOVOMAtIC Interactive. This collaboration willenable operators to extend their customergaming choice with proven, multiplayer tabletopgames in both online and mobile formats – titlesinclude Poker, Blackjack, Roulette and Baccarat.Each title can be uniquely customisedthroughout, including landing pages, operatorlogos, colour, branded tabletops and moreensuring the best combination of fast authentictabletop games with a unique look and feel.

Last but not least, Eurocoin Interactivecompletes Greentube’s key ICE highlights withits AWP Reloaded slots. Bringing the classicgaming machines from the pub to the onlineworld gives the classic land-based titles such asRandom Runner AWP® an extended life. ICEtakes place at London’s ExCeL Centre fromFebruary 7-9, 2017. Visit us at Booth #S5-130and explore Greentube’s latest innovations. topre-arrange a meeting, contact us now [email protected].

Greentube to stir excitement at iCe 2017with latest innovationsGreentube is excited to feature as a keyexhibitor within the massiveNoVoMATIC booth at the industry’sunmissable ICE Totally Gaming 2017.The latest range of omni-channelgaming products will be showcased inthe INTERACTIVE section - S5-130.


Konami Gaming, Inc. announced the ICEpremiere of its expanding Concerto Collection ofcore video slots cabinets, including ConcertoSlant, Concerto SeleXion multi-game, ConcertoStack single tall screen, and Concerto Crescentsingle curved screen.

Konami showcases an array of new cabinets andoriginal base game themes to an estimated28,000 attendees at ICE totally Gaming inExCeL London. More than half the games ondisplay will include multi-game functionality,across a variety of slot formats to provide casinoplayers with a rich array of game play options.

“Our SeleXion multi-game technology is thecenterpiece of this year’s ICE show, reachingeverything from our new Concerto Slant, to

Rapid Revolver, to linked progressivecombinations and premium standaloneprogressive games,” said Steve Walther, seniordirector, marketing & product management.“Four years ago we developed SeleXion inresponse to feedback from customers lookingfor a multi-game machine with instant speedand long-term reliability. Now we’re bringingthat technology to our popular Concerto cabinetfor even greater performance potential andwe’re combining it with high-thrill premium andcore progressive products so players can enjoy arich, immersive gaming experience with avariety of base game options on one machine.”

Concerto SeleXion is available for upright andslant, each with dual 27-inch HD cinematicdisplays. It instantly changes between gamethemes, denominations, currencies, andlanguages as permissioned, with up to ten newKP3+ or proven KP3 platform games and theoption for a progressive bonus. Also joining theConcerto Collection are two 43-inch singlescreen cabinets, Konami’s tall Concerto Stack

and curved Concerto Crescent .

“A core benefit of Concerto Stack and ConcertoCrescent is that each has the big impact andexciting game play mechanics you would expectfor a tall screen cabinet without exceeding thestandard base size,” said Walther. “Players getthe premium experience of custom portrait-oriented 7-8-8-8-7 reel games like Dragon Furyand Pharaoh’s Fury, and because each machinefits the same floor space as a standard cabinet,operators have the greatest flexibility whenplacing it at their property.”

top game themes arriving at ICE 2017 for thefirst time include three new base games withAsian art and design elements: Wealth ofDynasty , Winning Animals , and Power ofRiches . Each is compatible with Konami’s lateststandalone progressive bonus called Cai Lai Si Ji, and will be featured at ICE on the ConcertoSlant cabinet. Other progressives include SmashSmash Festival linked bonus, The treasure Fallsfor Podium Monument , Volcanic Rush for RapidRevolver , and Jackpot Ball for Concerto uprightand Slant.

“Our global customers have full access to a richarray of new game formats and creative gamecontent during ICE 2017 to power theirbusiness,” said Walther. “The time we share withindustry professionals from markets around theworld is vitally important and we look forwardto sharing our latest advancements, listening tofeedback, and building continued collaborationfor the coming year.”

Attendees are encouraged to visit stand #S6-110at ExCeL London on February 7 - 9, 2017 toexplore these and more important new Konamireleases. For more information about KonamiGaming, Inc., visit www.konamigaming.com.

Konami’s Concerto Collection arrives at iCe2017 with a Landmark release of Debut slotsKonami Gaming’s proven Concertorange expands to a diverse line-up ofgame cabinets spanning multi-game,slant, curved, and much more


Quixant returns to iCetotally Gaming with anever-widening gamingtargeted portfolio

Alfastreet is preparing its latest innovativenovelties for the upcoming ICE 2017 show inLondon. to complement a completelyredesigned booth, there will be an attractivevideo wall solution and to display thecompany's capabilities in providing a complete

interior for a modern casino venue, aninventive spinoff of the popular Royal Derbyplatform. Also at ICE will be a special, limitededition R8 Roulette cabinet; a definitiveversion of a brand new Lucky 8 Roulettecabinet and a redesigned WIKY single terminalfeaturing various display dimensions.Furthermore, the company will show aprototype of a fully automated live Roulettetable and plenty more.

Additional focus will be on the AlfastreetRemote solution, that allows gaming venues toeasily expand gaming places for their clients,both inside and outside of the premises. Thecompact Roulette cabinets will also berepresented on the stand, paired with several

live game options. The company's Multigameslot cabinets will be available to all visitors totry and test.

Alfastreet’s Roulette range remains itsstrongest selling product, followed closely bythe unique horse-racing machine, RoyalDerby. The advantage that Alfastreet has overthe majority of the competition is itsadaptability to client's wishes and thecapability to provide complete solutions within-house products as can be seen in casinosworldwide. The company is preparing amemorable 2017 appearance for the ICE totallyGaming exhibition and extends a warmwelcome to the visitors to join Alfastreet at thestand number S6-130.


Quixant’s full range of award winning gamingplatforms and monitor solutions will bedisplayed on our redesigned stand (N1-520),including the 4K HD-enabled ultra-high-endQMax-1, operating in harmony with the newAMD RadeontM E9260 “Coruja” discretegraphic card option.

The E9260 supports up to 8GB of GDDR5 videomemory, and is the second productannouncement in Quixant’s new QGCM series,which will allow users to select the perfectgraphics card for their game application - whilstalso providing opportunities for straightforwardupgrading.

Making its debut at ICE 2017 will be the newQXi-400 platform, combining cost-effectiveness with powerful, new-generationAMD processing technology, in an attractivepackage for advanced two-screen applications.The QXi-400 utilises the latest AMD chipset towork with Linux and Windows 7, without theneed to upgrade to Windows 10.

In addition, the middle range all-in-one, highlysuccessful QXi-6000 will be on show. Withsupport for up to three independent HDmonitors, including 4K compatibility, the QXi-6000 utilises a high-specification AMDEmbedded R- Series “Merlin Falcon” SoC housedin a fully fan-less enclosure.

All of Quixant’s other platform solutions, suchas the entry-level QXi-307, the versatile QXi-300, and multiplayer-supporting QX-50, willalso be available for demonstration.

Quixant will be showcasing their extensiverange of gaming monitors and cut-glass buttondecks at ICE totally Gaming 2017. Specificallydesigned to meet the stringent requirements ofthe gaming industry, high-quality grade panels,wide viewing angles, LED backlighting, andadvanced touchscreen technologies includingPCAP, SCAP, SAW and IR, are available.

As with their platform technologies, Quixant’sdisplay solutions are fully customisabledepending on customer requirements.

“Over the last few years, ICE totally Gaming hasunquestionably become the premier globalevent for the gaming sector” stated John Malin,Sales Director at Quixant UK. “As such, it is ahugely important event for Quixant, both interms of introducing our new technologies tothe industry, and meeting with both existingand potential customers. We welcome you tojoin our team on our stand N1-520 at ICE 2017.”

Quixant, renowned supplier of market-leading gaming platform and monitorsolutions, will once again be exhibitingat the ICE Totally Gaming event, held atExCeL, London, February 7-9.

alfastreet promises athrilling spectacle ofnovelties at iCe 2017A fully automated live roulette table isjust one of the surprises set to thrillvisitors to the Alfastreet stand at ICE

Comtrade Gaming, the premier technologyprovider to the gaming industry, announcestheir presence at ICE 2017 by presentingcontinued innovation throughout its coreproduct portfolio. Comtrade Gaming's productdevelopment centred around the concept thatplayer data and business analytics curate themodern multi-channel experience.

“For almost a decade, Comtrade Gamingreinforced its place in the gaming industry byexhibiting at ICE and this year’s stand proves tobe an extension of our product success. iCorevalidates that the operator can have it all, sCorerepeatedly proves to be monumental forregulators and operators and gCore is now, asalways, the foundation for the returningcustomer,” explains Aleš Gornjec, GeneralManager of Comtrade Gaming.

iCore – The enTerprise plATforM As a development to launching iCore 2.0,Comtrade Gaming sharpened its player data andbusiness metrics capabilities to surpassstandard features and unlock further businessvalue. This improved data strategy sleekly

records and compiles additional user activity,segments preferences and intelligently respondsto player profiles to continuously improve playerlife-cycles.

sCore – GAMinG sYsTeMs MAnAGeMenTBy formally introducing sCore 2.0, the productpresentation will flaunt two-waycommunication that enables operators nearreal-time responses based on high-qualityplayer intelligence. The revamped G2Senhanced Central Monitoring and GamingManagement Solutions, now more than ever,improve operations with advanced venue andterminal performance reports, analytical toolsand remote optimisation possibilities.

GCore – The GAMe serVer Updates focus on investments and refinementsin the game development frameworks withadvanced animations to specifically focus onmulti-device support. The gCore frameworknow encourages the reuse of components acrossdifferent devices with advanced optimisation toachieve refined user experiences. to supportindustry preferences, we will be exhibiting ourgame and product migration from Flash toHtML5.

Comtrade Gaming will be located in the NorthHall, booth N4 – 340.


Product breakthroughs includeimproved features with intuitivefunctionalities in business reporting

A visit to the APEX gaming stand promises toleave lasting impressions with a record numberof innovations on show to accompany thealready very strong range of gaming solutions.

“We anticipate great things. We are completelyfocused on providing value-adding solutionsthat deliver the highest player satisfaction. Wesend out a warm welcome for visitors to the ICEto come and see us. We will have much to showand look forward to helping operatorsstrengthen their business with APEX solutions,”explains Kubilay Özer, Global Sales Director atAPEX gaming (pictured above).

APEX gaming prides itself on bringing solutionsto the global gaming market that make adifference. The examples stand out: the Pinnaclegaming machine family has proven theirsuccess in gaming locations around the world.The EVO gaming platform has enabled players toenjoy the APEX games in pin-sharp quality. Thelatest new High-Definition games such as‘Dragon Egg’ and ‘Reel Attraction’ are the resultof in-depth market research and gamedevelopment. The iDROPe has been bestowedwith three separate awards last year – theawards were presented both in the US and inEurope.

The VIP Premium Lounge is the top of the rangesolution in the Pinnacle family. Get ready to seeeven more innovations centered around the VIPPremium Lounge.

APEX gaming will be launching a recordnumber of solutions at the ICE. The curtain is setto rise and hail a new age of gaming machinedesign. This new cabinet design is set to becomethe standard within APEX gaming. A number ofnew gaming machines and Jackpot Systems aswell as Island Solutions will be premiered. Allwill be revealed at ICE.

The APEX gaming stand number is # S4-250

Comtrade Gaming spotlights cognitive technology and revamped core products

For ICE totally Gaming 2017 Latvia-based DLVhas prepared something that is sure to bring atouch of spring to the show gripped in the chillof European winter – the new four-level SilkFlowers jackpot, literally dazzling with itswarm esthetics and saturated colours.

This brand new 25-games set features 20 topgaming themes from previous multigamesmixes and incoporates five new ones titles,including the hugely popular fruit games. SilkFlowers’s interface has been patterned afterthe sliding interface of Diamond Games Ultra4, which is one of the company’s most

successful innovation. Following in thefootprints of DLV’s most populardevelopments, Silk Flowers blends togetherunique features; including the fact that higherbets increase the probability of winning ajackpot level, and the information on winningprobability is displayed to the player.

In addition to new software releases, DLV willalso show its latest hardware development –the Diamond Z machine with 24ins. screens.Comfortable to play, solid and light, theDiamond Z is suited for any type of scale ofoperation. Naturally, the company will alsoexhibit its Diamond Games Ultra 4, which waspresented for the first time during the show inLas Vegas, as well as further DLV’s hardwareand software products. Visit DLV at the standNr. N4-350.

silk Flowers andDiamond Z debut onthe DLV stand at iCe apeX’s Dragon egg

and reel attraction toset new benchmarkfor gaming industry


The latest Betsoft games include SLOtFAtHER II- the long-awaited sequel to the Betsoft smashhit SLOtFAtHER, FA FA tWINS - an adorableany way pays slot, and SIN CItY NIGHtS - a LasVegas themed game which was launched inDecember to resounding popularity.

Betsoft’s stand at the show will bepredominantly gangster themed to highlight theupcoming launch of SLOtFAtHER II, bringingelements – especially the Slotfather’s throng ofthugs – of the gangster underworld to ICE.SLOtFAtHER II features Betsoft’s tall symbols,icons which take up an entire reel. The excitingbonus round shows off the tremendousflexibility of Betsoft’s new, proprietary Shift™platform, providing a new level of quality to thesmoothly cinematic experience for whichBetsoft is widely known.

Also to be revealed at ICE this year is FA FAtWINS, a game with 243 paylines hosted by apair of anime-styled twin sisters. The brilliantred-and-gold styling, coupled with classic Asianiconography, sets the stage for massive wins, asthe game pays all ways and features reels thatcan lock and synchronise when symbols match.

Betsoft’s slotfather toreign supreme overiCe totally GamingBetsoft Gaming, creators of the Slots3franchise of true 3D video slots, haveannounced the games that will beshowcased at their stand, S3-312,during the ICE Totally Gaming Expo

Featured at this year’s ICE totally GamingShow by Aruze Gaming will be the Cube-XVertical platform, the highly anticipated linkedprogressive, Cash Locomotive and theextremely successful Cube-X Ultimate series.

The Cube-X Vertical tower stack series isavailable in both the Vertical 80 and theVertical 40 cabinets.

The innovative play mechanics allow theplayer to not only choose up to 3 play areasadding up to 150 lines, but also gives them theoption to actually move the play areas around.

The player can also play the “Plus Factor” antebet. The “Plus Factor add exciting features likewild symbols on reel 5, an extra selectable playarea and the ability to trigger the PILE ‘EM UPJACKPOt CHALLENGE. The tower stack

series on the Vertical 80 cabinet allows for 4progressive levels.

The Cube-X Ultimate stepper series isavailable in both 3 reel and 5 reel games.

The 999.9 GOLD WHEEL series combinesAruze’s radiant wheel technology with amechanical bonus wheel. Featured are fourlevels of progressive jackpots which arerepresented by slices on the big bonus wheeland can be won during the wheel-spin bonus.

Cash Locomotive, a 5 reel 3 row video gameseries presented on the Cube-X cabinet. Itfeatures 2 progressive levels and 2 fixedbonuses with the option to be linked or standalone and is currently available in four gametitles.

Prizes are collected in the collect feature.When 15 prizes are collected, the prize pickfeature is triggered.

All of these dynamic games can be played atthe Aruze Gaming ICE totally Gaming Showbooth #S3-205.

aruze Gaming springsfresh surprises withlatest Vertical series

SCR Advance is an evolution fromthe original two-denomination SCRnote recycler. In addition tooffering the same exceptionalacceptance and security as thelegacy unit, SCR Advance hasincorporated new technology todeliver the lowest jam rate in theindustry – resulting in longermachine uptime, fewer costlyservice calls, happier players and,ultimately, greater operatorprofitability.

In addition to its exceptionally lowjam rate, SCR Advance is equippedwith a number of security featuresthat also differentiate it in themarketplace. Its architecture includes aremovable anti-stringing module as well as aspecialized inventory management systemthat accurately tracks the number of notesgoing into and out of the machine; it providescomplete note accountability even in apowered down state; and personnel can accesssystem components, when needed for

maintenance, without also gaining access tosecured notes, which remain safely lockedaway.

Also on the CPI booth will be EASItRAX Web,CPI’s cash management solution for casinoenvironments that is now installed in morethan 200,000 games worldwide. EASItRAXWeb works by gathering information frommultiple SC note acceptors into a remotedatabase, where it can be easily converted intocustomizable reports from anywhere in theworld with secure intranet access. This datacan be used to streamline the drop process,

facilitate asset evaluations andconduct preventative maintenanceprograms. And because cashboxes nolonger need to be tied to specificmachines, operators can save 20-30seconds per cashbox on every drop –routinely resulting in a return oninvestment in less than one year.

Now, CPI has released a newMaintenance Alerts feature forEASItRAX Web that allows operatorsto set performance thresholds andreceive automated notifications basedupon these critical metrics. This willhelp operators save time and interpretdata so problems can be identified andprevented before they even occur.

By continually improving and expanding thefunctionality of its products, CPI continues toempower its customers with new ways tobecome more profitable and efficient. to learnmore, please visit www.CranePI.com or speakwith a CPI representative on booth #N3-320 atICE.

Crane Payment Innovations willexhibit will exhibit the mostcomprehensive portfolio ofautomated payment systems in thegaming industry at ICE 2017. Amongthe products on display will be thenew SCR Advance note recycler andthe EASITRAx Web cashmanagement solution, which offersa new Maintenance Alerts feature

Route Mobile, established 2004, is a globalleader in mobile solutions. Headquartered inMumbai, India, the company has offices in theMiddle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and Europe.

trusted by global enterprises to delivercompelling innovative mobile engagementsolutions, RML processes more than 2 billionmessages per month. We understand acquiringnew players while retaining the current ones canbe a hard bet. Our SMS solution provides youwith a quick and easy to implement yet durableas well as cost effective solution to interact withplayers on a whole other level!

Supporting over 850 global networkconnections, 144 of which direct, RML providesflexibility, competitive pricing and high qualityrouting. The company will be appearing at theICE show in London on stand S9-250.

route Mobile - the favourite forglobal sMs delivery at iCe 2017

Crane payment innovations brings the newsCr advance note recycler to London show


A regular participant and exhibitor at Europe’sleading e-Commerce industry events, paymentservices provider ECommPay joins thethousands of gaming professionals andenthusiasts at ICE totally Gaming 2017.

taking place on 7-9 February at ExCeL, theLondon-based exhibition expects to welcomemore visitors and exhibitors in 2017 than lastyear’s officially audited figure of 28,487.Industry innovators and market leaders attendICE totally Gaming to launch and showcasetheir hottest, cutting-edge products, share anddiscuss proposed solutions to key challenges,establish new contacts and forge partnerships,as well as to engage in debates on the latestgaming trends.

ECommPay will welcome both existing andprospective clients, business partners, andgaming enthusiasts at Stand N7-415, where thecompany’s team of experts will be available toanswer questions, discuss industry trends, andoffer insights into how the latest innovationscan be monetised to increase businessrevenues. Offering a broad selection of originalproducts, services, tools, and technologiesengineered to improve conversion, the companyworks intimately with each client to tailorpayment solutions to their specifications.

ECommPay returns to ICE to showcasethe latest payment technologies,establish new connections, and engagein dialogue with leading gamingprofessionals. Meet ECommPay’s teamof payment experts at stand N7-415


FanHub specialises in building and operatingwhite label digital fan engagement products.The company currently work with bettingagencies, leading media companies and sportsbodies in the UK, USA & Australia.

Its product is applicable to any sport andalready covers English Premier League, AtPtour tennis, Rugby, NFL, Motor Sport andmany more. Clients include Sunbets, tabcorp,CrownBet, Draft Stars, NewsUK, CBSSports, (USA), the NFL, AtP tour (USA),Perform Group and telstra among others.

FanHub has significant experience in workingwith betting companies to help them meettheir objectives. Through the use of FanHub’sproducts, betting partners have been able to:

l Drive new users to their site and acquirenew customers.

l Increase revenue through contextual odds,resulting in a higher volume of bets andcreation of pre-filled betting slips.

l Increase revenue by increasing the value ofthe stake their users place.

l Improve brand recognition and loyalty.l Create engagement and regular return visits

There are a range of different ways that FanHubworks alongside a betting partner.

inCreAsed reVenUeFanHub powers the biggest non officialPremier League Fantasy game in the world, TheSun Dream team. A key objective of the gameis drive users to Sunbets (their betting partner)website and for that user to then place a bet. Ahuge amount of user-specific data is generatedfor each user, allowing the display ofcontextual betting odds. Rather than showing

users standard banner ads or displayadvertising, FanHub can determine a user'spreferences and display betting offers specificto them.

ACqUisiTion driVerIn 2016 FanHub partnered with the AustralianFootball League (AFL) & CrownBet, two ofAustralia’s most reputable organisations. Thepartnership produced a state of the artpredictor game that was tailored to driveadditional signups for Crownbet.

brAnd AwArenessIn 2016 Draft Stars, a Daily Fantasy site,launched in Australia. By sponsoring theFanHub powered Official AFL Fantasy gamethey were able to talk to their most engagedaudience almost instantly. This drove users totheir site and played a large part in Draft Starsbecoming the leading Daily Fantasy market inAustralia within its first year.

At this year's exhibition, Interblock willshowcase its wide range of automated, video,and dealer assist advanced multi-player EtGs(electronic table games) methodologicallyenhanced based on customer and playerfeedback, including the Big Six wheel, StarBar,Stadium, MiniStar Roulette, tRIO, PULSEARENA, Dual Roulette and more.

The MiniStar Roulette offers a smaller footprintthan Interblock's Diamond Roulette product lineto accommodate any casino floor. Theergonomically designed MiniStar Roulettefeatures super-comfortable techno-gelarmrests, optional progressive jackpot systems,and fast result detection.

Interblock's Big Six wheel scheduled to be ondisplay at ICE will feature its enhanced audioand visual effects launched at G2E Las Vegas2016. This wheel is not only the largest wheel inthe industry, but is also the industry’s onlydouble-sided wheel, providing the flexibility toadd play stations on one or both sides. In arecent report, Interblock announced that the BigSix game is performing at two times the houseaverage at two of New York State’s largestgaming destinations including Resorts WorldNew York City and Empire City Casino.

StarBar is another game-changing product thatwill demonstrate its ability to connect togenerators placed in remote areas of the booth.This innovative play station is playable directlyfrom the bar’s counter and allows guests to playup to four games simultaneously, includingpopular video poker games and traditional tablegames such as Roulette, Blackjack, Baccarat,Craps, Sic Bo and more.

Interblock'sDiamond Stadiumconfigurations will show how casinoscan easily transform a dealer-assisted Stadiuminto a fully automated Stadium, ensuring thatthe section is always active on the casino floor,and can generate constant revenue even withoutdealers. Interblock's Stadiums allow operatorsto maximize their floor space by adding dealerassist, automated or video generators, and evenincremental play stations based on their growingneeds.

The PULSE ARENA, which boosts the Stadiumenvironment into a multi-sensory, social gamingexperience, will make its second appearance atthe ICE show. PULSE ARENA offers players theopportunity to play all of their favorite casinogames from the comfort of a single play stationwith a live dealer, automated games, or in videoformat. Its multi-game functionality lets playersswitch seamlessly between as many as fourgames with the press of a button—withouthaving to cash out, change machines, or go backto the menu screen to select a different game.

The tRIO EtG island, a new product which madeits debut at G2E Las Vegas 2016, will also bedisplayed at Interblock's booth. tRIO is made upof three 5-seater automated and/or video EtGproducts designed to transform any footprint,large or small, by combining and connectingpopular games into one unit. At the show, thegame will be configured with Blackjack,Roulette, and Craps and will offer two newprogressives.

etG innovator interblock changing operators'visions of a successful floor at iCe 2017Interblock will raise the bar evenhigher at ICE Totally Gaming with adiverse, industry-leading profile ofnew products, side bets, features andfunctionalities at booth S4-210.

Fanhub Media - make thebig game your game

eCommpay to exhibitat iCe totally Gaming


Scientific Games Corporation will showcase theindustry’s broadest international productportfolio designed to empower customers withthe world’s best gaming and lottery experiencesat ICE totally Gaming - stand N1 – 440.

Scientific Games Chief Executive Officer andPresident Kevin Sheehan said: “ICE provides uswith an unparalleled opportunity to present ournewest innovations and transformativetechnologies for the international market, and isan important opportunity to connect withcustomers and demonstrate ourgroundbreaking solutions to drive playerengagement, accelerate their revenue growth,and enhance operating efficiencies.”

Scientific Games will feature its newest slotplatforms and a host of game content toempower engagement and excitement acrossthe casino floor.

The twinStar dual-screen cabinet is a stunningplatform for Bally and WMS games.Incorporating the next-generation ArgOSoperating system, twinStar features high-speedprocessing and video capabilities, along withfeatures such as a larger iDeck multi-touchbutton deck; two 61-centimeter (24-inch) HDdisplays; a 55-centimeter (22-inch) full HDdigital topper; premium sound; and game-synchronized edge lighting.

The Company will highlight engaging contentfor twinStar, including its Lock It Link near-area progressive titles Lock It Link Diamondsand Lock It Link Night Life. The entertainingLock It Link respins feature adds entertainmentas certain symbols lock and increase the valueof each of the same symbol by the player’s bet.

Another ICE reveal is the Dualos platform, adual 58.4-centimeter (23-inch) HD screencabinet with superior sound, OLED digitalbuttons, integrated ambient lighting, and a 47-centimeter (18.5-inch) digital topper. Thecabinet comes with a rich game library of titlesfrom Scientific Games’ leading brands Bally,Shuffle Master and WMS.

porTfolio eMpowers More plAYScientific Games will display an engagingpremium game library, featuring game titlesbased on popular licensed brands.

l world Of wonka, already a top performer inthe United States, is sure to be a favorite withICE attendees. Featured on the groundbreakingGamescape platform, World Of Wonka takesplayers on an unforgettable musical journeythrough the deliciously delightful, whimsicallywonderful world of Willy Wonka featuringevery kind of chocolate and sweet treatimaginable. Featuring three vivid, HD displaysthat angle toward the player, and a 101.6-centimeter (40-inch) curved top screen,players will feel the sensation of beingwrapped inside Wonka’s wondrous world.

l Cirque Du Soleil Kooza takes center stage,pairing the award-winning Alpha 2 Pro Wave360 slot configuration with the acrobaticadrenaline rush of Kooza. This Cirque Du SoleilKooza-inspired gaming experience is rich insurprises, with bonus events, beautifulgraphics, HD show video, breathtaking music,and a special in-game appearance by Thetrickster, a popular Cirque Du Soleil Koozacharacter.

l The Simpsons game on the pioneeringGamescape cabinet delivers breakthroughmotion zone sensor technology that enablesplayers to become part of the game. Playerstravel through Springfield with Homer, Moe,Apu, Chief Wiggum and other favorites andexperience the chance at winning aprogressive jackpot along with a Donut Wheeland three other bonus events.

l The Godfather theme on the s32, offering freespins with double the lines, a five-level near-area progressive jackpot, and randomcharacter symbols that award characterupgrades, respins, multipliers or more credits.

l Spider-man theme on the Alpha 2 Pro Wavecabinet, featuring a three-level progressivejackpot and a wheel feature.

l Space Invaders is a new style of slot game thatcombines classic arcade fun with slotentertainment and skill-based play.

new CAsino sYsTeMs solUTionseMpower plAYer enGAGeMenTScientific Games, the leading global provider ofcasino system solutions, demonstrates leading-edge technology to empower player engagementand operating efficiencies:

l iVIEW4 In-Game Display Manager — A majoradvancement featuring state-of-the-art webwidgets and connectivity to web services.Whether it is floorwide bonusing, secondarywagering, customer service or accessingwebsites and promotional kiosks, the feature-rich iVIEW4 enables casinos to manage theirown content dynamically. Name-brandbonusing with Monopoly, Clue, Yahtzee, andmore increases entertainment.

l BOSS, an exciting feature that enables playersto order drinks from the slot machine throughan iVIEW or iVIEW DM touch-enabled playeruser interface.

GroUndbreAKinG TAble UTiliTiessolUTions eMpower The CAsino piTScientific Games, the global leader in shufflers,chip sorters and other utility products,introduces two new innovations at ICE:

l ShuffleStar is a groundbreaking, low-profilefront-loading shuffler that shuffles four toeight decks continuously and features arevolutionary high-speed flat-dealing shoeand sophisticated card recognition using twocameras.

l Shufflink, a pioneering innovation that for thefirst time links shufflers, chip sorters and i-Shoes to the casino-management system toprovide real-time data and reporting on tableperformance — without dealer input,interaction or any manual data collection.

CUTTinG-edGe eleCTroniC TAblesYsTeMs eMpower CoMMUniTY plAYtaking center stage in electronic table systemsinnovation, Scientific Games will showcase thePrizm Game table, an industry-first in slotcabinet design.

Other electronic table systems highlightsinclude:l Fusion Hybrid, a terminal-based product that

connects players with live Stadium Blackjack,Stadium Blackjack Casino War, Baccarat,Roulette and Sic Bo games through cameras ateach live table that showcase real-time play.

l i-table, wildly popular across Europe, willfeature i-table Blackjack with a new back-betting feature as well as the popular i-tableRoulette.

transformative slotsand cutting-edge cabinets empower theplayer experienceScientific Games Brings World’s BestGaming and Lottery Experiences toLondon at ICE Totally Gaming 2017




VR is a technology that has the potential torevolutionize the gaming industry. The market isa rapidly-emerging, high-growth area intowhich NetEnt is well positioned to lead itscustomers. The premium supplier is set to sharenews and showcase the progress it has madesince revealing its praised proof-of-conceptprototype at the show 12 months ago.

VR will be just one of the innovations, straightfrom the company’s development labs, thatvisitors at ICE 2017 will be able see andexperience. It will also exhibit its innovative livecasino offering. Having committed a hugeamount of resource to developing its mobile livecasino product in collaboration with players, theresult is an incredible experience that trulypushes the boundaries, and is the mostimmersive product for mobile on the igamingmarket today.

This year’s show will also be the first place tofind out about NetEnt Engage.

Engage is a new suite of connected products,developed for NetEnt customers, to maximizelevels of loyalty and player retention. The firstproduct from this suite is Live Rewards™. Theunique stake stimulation tool is designed tocreate excitement by enabling different types ofreal-time rewards during game play, boostingall-important player engagement.

Finally, in keeping with tradition – but adding asignature NetEnt twist – CEO Per Eriksson willpull back the curtain to reveal the details of notjust one, but two, new branded titles. NetEnt’sbranded games continue to surge in popularity.During the past 12 months, they have dominatedthe most-played charts, collected a number ofawards, and driven considerable transactionalgrowth for the company and its customers.

Join the NetEnt team at 15:00 on day one at ICE,and at 15:30 on day two, as the eagerlyanticipated games will be announced.

Visit NetEnt at Stand N3-242 at ICE totallyGaming, held at ExCeL London.

NetEnt will underline its pioneer statusat ICE as it presents its latestdevelopments in virtual reality (VR)and live casino, and reveals details ofits its new branded titles

netent will follow iCe tradition with big brandreveals on the stand and a new suite of games

proprieTArY TAble GAMes eMpowerAMAzinG experienCesLeading the industry in the depth and breadth ofits proprietary table games library, ScientificGames will showcase exciting table games atICE, including:

l EZ Baccarat, the world’s leading baccaratbrand, eliminates the commission after everybank winning hand – without modifying anyof the existing drawing rules of the standardgame.

l DJ WildtM lets players get wild. It’s a five-cardstud poker game that features a trips Bonusand a progressive side bet.

eMpowerinG lbo, ArCAde And binGoseCTors wiTh ConTenT And plATforMsFrom the SG Gaming UK business, theCompany’s ICE display will focus on new gamecontent, platforms and sports-betting solutions.Highlights include:

l Content titles for the licensed betting office,arcade and bingo sectors – available for land-based and online operators – includingEmperor’s treasure, Jewel In The Crown,Legend of the Pharaohs, Black Knight® andQuick Hit Blazing 7s.

l Launch of a new gaming platform for the UKCasino market with the new Riveria cabinet,augmented by a library of game content thatoffers a £10,000 jackpot based on player-favorite game titles such as Rainbow Riches,Action Bank, Spartacus of Rome and HerculesHigh and Mighty.

l A range of HD gaming cabinets and platformsfor the arcade and bingo markets, includingthe Company’s latest sit-down t8 cabinet.

sG inTerACTiVe eMpowers MobileenGAGeMenT wiTh porTrAiT GAMesSG Interactive continues to showcasegroundbreaking innovations. At ICE, casinooperators will be able to experience the larger-than-life thrill of portrait mode mobile gamingon two giant touch screens. SG Interactive willalso highlight new multi-channel titles and adiverse array of unique games from theScientific Games portfolio.

loTTerY’s new sporTs-beTTinG Andself-serViCe solUTionsScientific Games brings exciting sports-bettingaction to ICE with SG SportstM, an enhancedmulti-channel solution for online, self-serviceand retail fixed odds sports betting.

ICE attendees will also be able to experience theaward-winning PlayCentral HD, an engaging,interactive retail self-service experience forpurchasing lottery instant, draw and kenogames. The first full-service lottery self- servicekiosk to integrate credit, debit and mobilepayment, PlayCentral HD is Europay,MasterCard and Visa (EMV) compliant andsupports Android Pay, Apple and Samsung Pay.

“In Las Vegas, our innovations and thepassion for which Merkur Gaming stands metwith an enthusiastic response from customersand players alike” said Athanasios “Sakis”lsaakidis, Chief Executive, International. “Weintend to continue down the same successfulroute at ICE. We will show our friends andpartners what we have in store for them in2017 and offer them a first glimpse of thefuture ‘made by Merkur’. With our wide-ranging portfolio of games and cabinets, wemeet the requirements of international as wellas national markets and simply do what wedo best: gaming entertainment!”

The ICE highlights of the MerkurGaming product show include theAvantgarde SLt and Avantgarde triopremium multigamers and themodern Merkurstar upright cabinet.Also, the latest innovation in terms ofplayer comfort, the new Evostar thatwas first presented in Las Vegas, isnow entering its rollout phase. TheEvostar takes the quality demands ofAvantgarde SLt and Merkurstar on tothe next level and projects theergonomic aspects and comfort of a

slant top within the configuration of anupright cabinet in an unprecedented manner.The integrated USB port provides additionalplaying comfort and functionality.

In 2017, Merkur Gaming is playing withcolour. Even ahead of the product show, thenew Black Series, with its elegant matt blackdesign, is already shaping up to be one of theeyecatchers of the year. Coupled with the highgraphics capabilities of the black-and-whitegame “Win City”, this modern, contrast-richdesign now catapults the Merkurstar and theAvantgarde trio to an entirely new level.

The Avantgarde Highflyer will also becelebrating its premiere at ICE 2017. The‘floating’ upper monitor allows players toadopt a relaxed sitting position as they enjoy atotally new interactive gaming experience. Abaseplate connects the Avantgarde Highflyermultigamer to the accompanying chair, so allthe player has to do is sit back and enjoy.

For that extra thrill, the Merkur Buzzerfeatures exciting additional games. The M-BOX versions for the German and Dutchcasino market also seamlessly build on

Merkur Gaming’s success story to date.The product show is complemented byan extensive casino offering and arange of other market-specificproducts.

ICE will also herald a new era forMerkur Gaming in the area of jackpotsystems: with Bingo, Golden Dragonand Egyptian treasures, theGauselmann Group’s internationalsales arm is gearing up for a brightfuture in the jackpot segment.

Merkur Gaming planstop-class iCe show The Merkur Gaming team is once againattracting attention with its largestpresence ever at ICE. Visitors canexpect an impressive exhibition stand(N4-210, 220 and 250), coupled with adiverse mix of cabinets and games


InteractiveVirTuAl AnD AuGmenTeD reAliTy

Over the past 6 months we’ve been spending alot of time meeting with colleagues, influencersand partners to try to pin down the “Next BigThing” in our industry. More importantlyhowever, is how KamaGames could be the first tomarket and pioneer the next big step forwardthat would revolutionise the social casino worldin the same way the mobile platform did 7-8years ago.

The casino industry as a whole, not just thesocial casino side, are intrigued by the entireconcept of both Augmented Reality (AR) andVirtual Reality (VR) and the massive possibilitiesunlocking this technology could bring. With theexception of the adult entertainment industry,and to an extent – the travel industry, onlinecasino games are going to be one of the topindustries to benefit from this technology. Thevision of an AR/VR casino would be prettyimpressive and be a perfect fit within the gaminggenre.

whAT is Vr And Ar?For those of you that are a little out of the loop orhave been trapped on the dark side of the moonfor the past few years and aren’t sure what ARand VR are, here is a quick explanation courtesyof Wikipedia:

Virtual reality (VR) typically refers to computer

technologies that use software to generaterealistic images, sounds and other sensationsthat replicate a real environment (or create animaginary setting), and simulate a user'sphysical presence in this environment, byenabling the user to interact with this space andany objects depicted therein using specializeddisplay screens or projectors and other devices.A person using virtual reality equipment istypically able to "look around" the artificialworld, move about in it and interact withfeatures or items that are depicted on a screen orin goggles.

Augmented reality (AR) is a live direct or indirectview of a physical, real-world environmentwhose elements are augmented (orsupplemented) by computer-generated sensoryinput such as sound, video, graphics or GPS data.As a result, the technology functions byenhancing one’s current perception of reality.

Clear? Good, then we’ll continue.

GrowTh ThroUGh inVesTMenTAccording to a statistic from investment bankingfirm Digi-Capital, $2.3 billion has been investedin AR and VR over the past 12 months with astaggering $500 million invested in the lastquarter alone. This is the ninth quarter in a rowthat’s seen a rise in investments which have

When Pokerist was first launched, the basic ideawas to create the most realistic gaming experiencepossible which would bring people from all cornersof the world to the tables. KamaGames’ Samforrest discusses the potential of Virtual Realityand aumented Reality to achieve these goals

Is VR and AR in the social casinoindustry a reality?

The casino industry as a whole,not just the social casino side,are intrigued by the entireconcept of both AugmentedReality (AR) and Virtual Reality(VR) and the massivepossibilities unlocking thistechnology could bring.

Sam Forrest has worked in the gaming industryfor 24 years holding senior positions in THQ andJagex and now heading up global Comms for thesocial casino developer and publisherKamaGames.

Sam Forrestpr director, kamagames


averaged at over $9million which is a very clearsign that the financial world do see AR and VRas potential “boom” areas.

One of the biggest issues so far is of course thehardware. There is no doubt that there issignificant financial backing from financialinstitutions and there are some fantastic top tierdevelopers working on the software but whereis the consumer demand and which platform isgoing to be the most successful? Will VRdominate on a PC platform where owners willneed to pay a significant premium to run AAAquality VR games through the Oculus hardwareor will the console giants bring VR to the massesthrough their own hardware peripherals fortheir next generation consoles?

In a recent interview, the founder and MD ofDigi-Capital, tim Merel stated that he believedthat out of the two, AR would be the mostpopular (around four times as popular withregards to net-worth). This is predominantlydown to VR needing hardware such as headsetsand the right console or PC as well as a usablecontrolled environment, whereas AR can beused anywhere due to its technological freedom.

Google have already made significant stepsforward in the AR world with their depthsensing technology, tango, which recently made

its consumer debut via the launch of the LenovoPhab2 Pro phone. This new hardware was alsosupported by an impressive 35 new apps allavailable via the Play Store at the same time.

There is no doubt with the release of Sony’s VRoffering and the huge rise of AR awarenessthanks to the extraordinary success of PokémonGo, that the video game industry is going to beone of the main driving forces behind marketpenetration of the hardware. This is going to beespecially true for racing games such as Forzaand Gran tourismo and also first personshooting games such as Call of Duty andBattlefield, both of which would give a trulyamazing gaming experience.

whAT’s nexT for KAMAGAMes?Looking specifically at our own portfolio, theopportunities are endless and the concept is anamazing one. Through the power of VR youcould be sitting at a velvet covered table, in acasino that you have chosen, maybe in LasVegas, Macau, or London, you’d be able to lookat your cards without the need to swivel yourhead around every few seconds. You’d be able tolook around the table and actually see the otherplayers around you, and of course see the dealerdealing your cards.

Our players would be able to fully experience

the atmosphere of a real casino. VR will be ableto truly transport people to a genuine feeling ofreality.

We are expecting AR to play a significant part ofour growth as an industry too. Whereas with VRyou require a headset and powerful hardware,think of what you could do with AR? You couldbe on a train and through the power of AR youcould be staring at a Poker table with anotherfour players all sat there too. Click on a playersface at the table and see their stats appear, bestwin, skill level, even where in the world they arefrom, interact with players by sending animatinggifts and drinks. Another opportunity is tocreate a casino around you if your friends are allplaying in the same room – see them actuallysat at a famous casino without them having toleave the house.

in ConClUsionThere is no doubt that thanks to variousbreakthroughs in technology that it’s not justthe video games industry that is going to benefitfrom this new entertainment medium and thereare hugely exciting times ahead. The birth ofOculus, Pokémon Go, PlayStation VR andGoogle’s Daydream and tango technology is justthe start and over the next 12-18 months we aregoing to see another surge of growth ashardware becomes cheaper and softwareadvances.

Looking specifically at our industry and thesocial casino genre, the question that is stillbeing asked is who is going to be the first to takethis step forward? Who is going to actuallymake this a reality?

The answer is pretty simple – We are.

Watch this space…

In the meantime, see you at the tables… literally.

There is no doubt that thanksto various breakthroughs in

technology that it’s not just thevideo games industry that is

going to benefit from this newentertainment medium and

there are hugely exciting timesahead. The birth of Oculus,

Pokémon Go, PlayStation VRand Google’s Daydream andTango technology is just the

start and over the next 12-18months we are going to seeanother surge of growth as

hardware becomes cheaperand software advances.


InteractivebeTconSTrucT - SociAl GAminG

Vadym, where does social gaming fit in theportfolio of products from BetConstruct? Whattype of games do you offer?

Social Gaming Platform is an important part ofBetConstruct’s product line that makes the lattera fully comprehensive solution for land-basedcasinos. The platform is firstly dedicated toproducing Social Casino Games, either simpleclassic games or more complex ones, combinedwith successful game mechanics from othergame types like a roadmap with a specific plot.Nevertheless, BetConstruct’s Social GamingPlatform is capable of producing any type ofsocial game that’s required, whether it’s fantasy,sports or casual.

How do you choose what types of Social Games tooffer players?

The golden rule here is to decide objectively. Tomake a successful game, you have to deeplyresearch the preferences of your audience, testcontinuously and evaluate, while searching forthat ‘magic formula.’ It’s a process thatBetConstruct’s Social Gaming Platform makeseasier than ever. using a powerful back-officetool, a game manager can easily turn on/off orconfigure separate game mechanics and evaluateeach change via a comprehensive ReportingModule.

Social Gaming is all about creating an eco-systemof player interaction with the games and with otherplayers - how do you set-up and maintain that kindof eco-system - and is it worthwhile?

Many small, but important details are consideredin game features design to provide the best userexperience together with exciting gameplay. Forexample, incentives for social interaction.Players are appropriately treated with in-game

goods for sharing, friend invitations etc. Thetricky thing is to make sure such incentives areperceived as a natural part of the gameexperience and not as an enforcement.

Should land-based casinos consider offering SocialGaming?

Surely. Social Gaming is a powerful and efficienttool to retain existing clients, attract new ones,especially Millennials, and advertise a casino'sbrand. Social Gaming is a natural evolution ofthe casino industry in line with the changingdemands of customers. In the modern age ofinformation oversaturation, old acquisitiontechniques are less efficient. Land-based casinosthat want to succeed in the long term, shouldconsider Social Gaming as a ‘must have’ option.

How valuable a tool is Social Gaming in connectingwith players remotely?

Extremely valuable. once the customer crossesthe threshold of a land-based casino, there’s abig risk they’ll lose that customer forever as hisor her attention might be easily captivated byanother casino. In such a situation the use of abranded social casino game is an efficientmarketing tool to stay connected with thecustomer base. Customers continue playinggames they like and receive the casino’smarketing messages; they earn loyalty points forfree and exchange them for real-worldamenities; they communicate, become friends

G3 speaks to betConstruct’s VadymSilchenko, the company’s Social GamingProduct Owner, about the opportunties forboth land-based and online operators inoffering social gaming to their players

Constructing theperfect social space

Vadym Silchenko,Social gaming product Owner, Betconstruct

Social Gaming is a naturalevolution of the casino industryin line with the changingdemands of customers. In themodern age of informationoversaturation, old acquisitiontechniques are less efficient.Land-based casinos that wantto succeed in the long term,should consider Social Gamingas a ‘must have’ option.

Vadym is a dedicated social gamer withcomprehensive experience in differentindustries. He joined BetConstruct bringing withhim experience in online gaming. Vadym’s visionfor BetConstruct’s Social Gaming is to providethe best possible gaming experience combinedwith the best back-office tools.


and plan joint visits to casino facilities,generating even more income.

Is social gaming given enough prominence byoperators?

Not currently. At the moment only the largestcasino operators have invested in Social Gaming.For most utilising social casino games they arenot simply marketing tools, but an additionalflow of income from game monetisation via in-app purchases. We believe that social gamingshould, and will, become more popular as it is avery efficient marketing tool.

What role do you believe social gaming plays inattracting new/casual customers, and are thebenefits being exploited fully?

Social Gaming, when properly used, might be agame-changer in acquiring new customers. Formost products on the market, the benefits ofsocial gaming are not being used efficiently.Existing players are not properly stimulated forsharing, liking and friends inviting; new playersare not properly stimulated to start playing agame, rewards are not of sufficiently highquality and are quite hard-to-get. BetConstructalways consider these factors in social gamesdevelopment to provide the best qualityproducts to our partners.

What’s the best way to utilise social gaming withina customer offer?

The best way is to bind social gaming to existingloyalty systems or to create such systems basedon appropriate opportunities, included inBetConstruct’s Social Gaming Platform. Anotherpopular and efficient option is to implementcustomer status systems: whereby the higherlevel equates to a more attractive offer, such asdiscounts and various amenities.

What role does Social Gaming play in customerretention?

Social Gaming is all about customer retention.BetConstruct always strives to create a micro-universe for players; where they cancommunicate; compete in tournaments;challenge each other and make new friends thatboosts retention to new heights. In additionthere are classical mechanics such as dailybonuses with increasing ‘days in a row’multiplier, super bonus games or dailyleaderboard contests. The main goal is to createemotional hooks, which lead customers toreturn.

Should operators offer both social gaming andgambling products in the same channel or createseparate entities?

Experience shows that free play players and realmoney players are not the same. Some statisticsstate that only about five per cent of socialgaming players convert into real moneygamblers. Taking this into account, it’s better to

create separate entities. Despite such a smallshare of customers’ conversion, Social Gaming isstill a reasonable investment since a largeaudience of players makes a casino brand morerecognisable and respectable on the market.Experience shows that there’s no silver bulletfor every occasion. Markets change, peoplechange and there’s always a place for newvictories.

At the moment only the largestcasino operators have investedin Social Gaming. For mostutilising social casino gamesthey are not simply marketingtools, but an additional flow ofincome from gamemonetization via in-apppurchases. We believe thatsocial gaming should, and will,become more popular as it is avery efficient marketing tool.


InteractiveDAily fAnTASy SPorTS

Many lessons can be learnt from the videogaming industry (always pushing the boundariesof quality, skill is everything…) but the mostimportant one is that customers are expecting toplay against each other.

Social is becoming the cornerstone of allsuccessful games!

But iGaming operators (particularly sportsbetting and casino operators) are havingdifficulties embracing this.

The reason is simple: when you have beenplaying AGAINST your customers for years, youhave a very complicated relationship with them.you think that they hate you for taking theirmoney whenever they lose (and in many casesit’s true). So when the “social” revolution kickedin, the iGaming sector quietly ignored it, muchtoo afraid of the infinite consequences that thismight have on its very optimised businessmodels.

Accepting that evolution would also meanabandoning the short term profitable “ExcelBusiness Model” tailor-made by the sector:

l Buy unloyal customers (thanks to affiliation),

l get as much money as possible from them in afew months,

l lose them and start again.

They should then adopt a new business model:

l Gain/buy customers (thanks to the word ofmouth, referral programs, affiliation)

l make less money per month per customer,

l keep them for years as customers (9.51 years).

of course, this new “social” business model willnot offer the same kind of return short term. Butloyalty means that the profitability is muchhigher on the long term. The economic value of aloyal customer over time is obvious!

Despite that fact, it is such a change of paradigmthat many operators are still afraid of thatchange. They therefore prefer to say that socialhas nothing to offer to their sector and are usingthe “peer to peer” betting exchange semi-failure

according to Oulala’s Valery bollier, the iGamingmarket is now approaching a critical stage,where the majority of its customers, so-calledmillennials, were raised playing video games(anyone born after 1980, grew playing on anatari, Nintendo or Playstation...).

Daily FantasySports: The Social Revolution

Valery Bollier, ceO, Oulala.com

This new “social” businessmodel will not offer the samekind of return short term. Butloyalty means that theprofitability is much higher onthe long term. The economicvalue of a loyal customer overtime is obvious!

This simple demographic factshould have led to a productrevolution in the iGamingsector… but, for structuralreasons, it still is not the case!

Valéry Bollier has over 12 years of experience inthe iGaming industry. He is a regular speaker atindustry conferences and seminars, as well as acontributor to various BtoB publications.Equipped with a passion for Daily Fantasy Sports(DFS), Bollier is the co-founder and CEO ofOulala.com, a revolutionary fantasy footballgame which was launched three years ago.


to reinforce and ultimately prove their point.

It is true that the Betfair business model was notthe success that many people thought that itwould be . But using one example to make agenerality is of course a major mistake. Andtheir analysis is wrong because it is not aboutthe product, it is about the market needs.

The new paradigm of our sector should rely ontwo simple facts:

l It is more stimulating and enjoyable foranyone to win their friend’s money than ofthe house or a stranger.

l Beating your friends is cool but taking theirmoney at the same time is way better.

This is the real value offer that the iGamingmarket should focus on in the next few years: tobecome an extension of the video game industryby offering the same type of games, butmonetized. The video gaming industry istargeting children and the young adult market.The iGaming sector could position itself aslogical following and target all adults. Knowing

that, for example, GTA V reached $1 Billion insales after just 3 days , this positioning is not asbad as it could seems!

DFS is leading the social revolution in theiGaming sector

Daily Fantasy Sport is a game changer for theiGaming Industry, because for the first time,operators will have the opportunity to offer agame that is structurally a social game.

People are playing DFS to prove to their friendsthat they know the sports better than them. So itis not a coincidence that oulala’s slogan is “Wincash, earn respect.” Customers are playingbecause they want to show off on Mondaymorning at the office, because they had the bestteam, because they beat all their colleagues (andtook their money).

Companies like ours (oulala.com), havepositioned themselves as a network, so thatiGaming operators interested in offering a DFSproduct do not have to severely invest. They willhave access to our technology and will benefitfrom the customer mutualisation of our network

(offering the critical mass that is needed).

Adopting DFS is therefore an easy process, butthe biggest step is to change the mentality of theiGaming sector: they need to embrace the factthat the majority of the customers are nowexpecting real social games. This is historyunfolding and those who understand thisDarwinist evolution in the early stages will mostprobably be the future winners of our sector.

It is true that the Betfairbusiness model was not the

success that many peoplethought that it would be . Butusing one example to make agenerality is of course a majormistake. And their analysis iswrong because it is not about

the product, it is about themarket needs.


InteractiveHArmAn connecTeD SerViceS

At casinos, high-rollers are supervised andserviced efficiently because they are extremelyvaluable to the business. For some perspective,customers are segmented into three broadgroups. At the very top of the list you have theVIPs, or ‘whales’, with around $uS8m and up toplay with. These players demand the most fromcasino hosts, and are often provided with privatejets and delivered, more or less, anything uponrequest.

A similar level of high quality service is alsodelivered to the junkets which consist of a groupof players with at least $uS40,000 to spend.Finally, there is the retail crowd who will play thecasino floor and occasionally look to play ahigher stakes game. Nonetheless, it is the highrollers who deliver the biggest returns for thebetting and gaming sector. An example of thiscan be seen from Star Entertainment GroupAustralia which revealed that A$49.5bn were betover its high roller tables in 2015 alone.

up to this point, the online betting industry hasdone very well appealing to the retail crowd,making it easier and simple for them to sign upand play games. Innovations in software,broadband and smartphones, for example, haveallowed gaming businesses to target a broaderconsumer group and provide a range ofenjoyable products. Since 2009, the size of theglobal online gambling market has almostdoubled and is worth around $uS4.5bn. Howeverit has struggled with its ability to service thehigher tier market of both high rollers and thejunkets and capitalise on the potential for thissector to generate growth.

A key reason for this is that the industry hasencountered difficulties in creating apersonalised and exclusive experience, whichbrick-and-mortar casinos are so easily able toprovide. This is partly due to the fact that it hasnot been easy for outlets to identify and targetspecific customers and influence them towards

Stakes are high foronline outlets toattract high-rollers

kaushik Banerjee, Senior director europe, harman connected Services

In recent years, the high-roller lifestyle has been glamourised bythe phenomenon of televised high stakes poker and the lifestylesthat these players lead. As a result, a new wave of high valuecustomers are entering the gaming and betting industry

Casinos around the world have long beenattracting customers with their glitz and glamour.as hospitality venues first and foremost, theyhave had the distinct capability of being able tolook after their most valuable customers byproviding them with tailored luxury experiences.

Kaushik is a technology industry expert who hasbeen involved in three start-ups. Over the past24 years, Kaushik has worked across multiplesectors in the technology industry and nowleads a global team at HARMAN. In this role, heis responsible for helping businesses transformtheir systems by using the latest tools andtechnologies, including analytics and big data,artificial intelligence, cloud & IoT platforms, andmobile. Over the past eight years, Kaushik hasworked closely with some of the largest namesin the betting and gaming sector helping themdrive their businesses to both national andglobal audiences.


the higher stakes tables and products.Furthermore, it is much easier to develop andmanage a relationship between host and playerin a casino. Face-to-face interaction has meantthat it has been much easier to understand andmeet the needs of the player and ensure theyhave a great time. Nonetheless, there is plenty ofspace for technology and innovation to solvethese issues and there clearly is a bigopportunity for the industry here.

TAilored plAYer experienCeIn order to create a tailored experience forcustomers, online outlets must create an onlineequivalent of the casino host. This relationshipmanager needs to be supplied with all theinformation possible in order to build anaccurate picture of the high roller. Thisinformation needs to be clearly presented sothat it can be acted upon effectively.

Comprehensive player tracking and customerengagement analytics are therefore needed todiscern how much the individual is playing with,what products they are playing on, when theyare playing, where they are playing and whatdevices they are using. Players can then beidentified as high-rollers and will appear on adashboard for the host. The data for that player

can then be updated in real time and spendingcan be monitored effectively.

once a host has identified a high-roller, they canthen begin to provide them with an optimisedexperience. To create a more personalrelationship the host should be able to speakone-on-one with the player and begin tounderstand and meet their needs. This could bedone by having a relationship manager greet aVIP when they login via a video chat box. Theycan launch a desired product for the VIP andbroaden the range of games that they play.

Coupled with the use of data analytics, the hostcan begin to distribute tailored offerings basedon historic behaviour for example. If a hostknows that a player is more active at poker onweekend nights, he can look to arrange aninvite-only private table with a dedicated livedealer for that time. These tables could beaccompanied by special prizes such as luxurygoods that meet the desires of the players. Thistargeted approach will have a much morepositive effect on player retention. Hosts couldalso arrange food and drink deliveries to theplayer’s location and perhaps partner withorganisations to deliver high quality luxuryexperiences. High-rollers can also be further

incentivised by assuring faster pay-out timesthan regular customers and by delivering theminstant credits based on their transactionhistory.

Historic player engagement data could also beleveraged to understand how long a high-rollerusually plays and when it’s best to distributeincentives such as cash bonuses, free spins anddiscretionary bonuses to encourage longerplaying sessions.

In order to facilitate this, it is crucial that gamingoutlets acquire a bespoke end-to-end playerengagement solution to seamlessly manage thecustomer relationship with the high roller. Asolution of this type needs to include customerfriendly apps and products with an optimiseduser experience (ux) that can not only deliverhigh quality games, but also can feed importantinformation into a data analytics suite. This dataanalytics suite should deliver quality reportingon customer data, in real time, and becommunicated into the relationship manager’sdashboard. A smooth-running solution such asthis will allow betting companies to effectivelymanage and deliver quality experiences tocustomers with ever-changing needs.

It can be expected that vendors will continue tocreate more enjoyable products for high rollers.We will see an increasing integration of virtualreality (VR) and artificial intelligence into theindustry. The potential for virtual reality todeliver more immersive experiences willincreasingly allow the online gaming industry tocompete more proficiently when it comes toserving online high-rollers. We could also seeconnected devices such as Amazon Alexa beingused to deliver a profoundly greater integratedservice and retail offering.

It is also possible that we will see gaming outletscreate experiences for high-rollers that are notonly online but spill out into real world venues.outlets could partner with hotel businesses, forexample, so that high rollers can begin theirsession online and be transported to real worldvenues, all the time playing games in a VRenvironment. There is a huge potential for theonline betting and gaming industry to widen itsappeal to the most valuable customers in thisspace. However, businesses must understandthe importance of software innovation and dataanalytics to equip themselves with the righttools to succeed.

We will see an increasingintegration of virtual reality(VR) and artificial intelligenceinto the industry. The potentialfor virtual reality to delivermore immersive experienceswill increasingly allow theonline gaming industry tocompete more proficientlywhen it comes to servingonline high-rollers.


InteractiveSiS - HorSeS-in-runninG

The past 12 months has seen a rush of newsportsbook operators enter the market as thecost of entry has been reduced dramaticallythough the use of third party suppliers. This isparticularly the case when it comes to platformand trading services, with operators able to use aturnkey solution that takes care of things underthe hood letting them focus of branding andmarketing.

This is allowing new entrants to offer high-quality and sophisticated products with adiverse range of markets, without having to forkout substantial capital in building their own in-house technology and trading teams.

But turnkey solutions are not just of benefit tonew operators in emerging jurisdictions, theyoffer just as many advantages and opportunitiesto established bookmakers in mature markets.These platforms and services make use of thesuppliers’ vast knowledge and experience in

their specific field to offer players the bestpossible experience.

Here at SIS we have been providingbookmakers, both retail and online, with dataand pictures from greyhound and horse racingfor more than 30 years. We recently boosted ouroffering with trading services, taking ourproposition to the next level.

We aim to offer something to both ends of themarket. Smaller operators in emergingjurisdictions who don’t have specialistknowledge can tap into our experience and offera competitive product to their customers’players. This is vital for those looking to make amove on the highly competitive uK marketwhere horse racing is a must have product.

on the other hand, larger operators and those onhome turf can use our products and services tooffer overseas racing markets. The experience

required to do this is something the powerplayers may no longer have as their businessesrely more heavily on automation.

Essentially, we can offer operators of any sizethe full package by giving them access to ourdata, pictures, and trading services. It is apowerful combination, and one that allowsoperators to get everything they need for astrong horse and greyhound product all fromone trusted supplier.

Some argue that turnkey solutions take powerand control away from operators, and preventthem from extracting the most value from theplatform. But the opposite is true, particularlywhen it comes to making the most of innovativenew features and tools that come to market.

Take our forthcoming product, for example. ourHorses In-Running service will collect in racedata, process it through our algorithms andprovide in-running prices for horse races,allowing operators to offer in-running marketsfor the very first time.

The new bookmakers entering the market of latehave been able to benefit from third partysuppliers who are making it cheaper for them todeliver an exciting range of content across arange of sports. They understand that operatorsneed to avoid being one-trick ponies by offering

Paul Witten, Commercial Director at SIS, says turnkey solutionsallow operators to refocus their efforts on branding andmarketing while their platform takes care of itself

Time to refocus

paul witten, commercial director, SiS

Paul Witten became commercial director for SIS,the worldwide leader for broadcast and dataservices in betting retail and online, in August2014. He is responsible for enhancing thecompany’s retail betting products includingvideo and data delivery. Prior to SIS, Wittenworked at German lottery provider Tipp24,where he developed key global relationships,particularly in the public sector. He has morethan 10 years’ experience in the betting andgaming industry, including more than five yearsin eCommerce, mobile and eGaming withLadbrokes, and four years at Betfair where herose to the role of Director of Football. Havingworked initially in sales, Witten is alsoexperienced in advertising, playing a role in theemergence of eBay’s fledgling UK business.

InteractiveSiS - HorSeS-in-runninG

their players the widest possible range ofverticals, games, features, and tools.

As such, they have moved to fill theirportfolios with additional games, with virtualsports seeing a huge spike in popularity as aresult. It is something we can facilitate throughour Virtuals Connect platform, which makesuse of the reliability and low-latency of ourSIS Stream platform.

operators looking to add such modules to their

legacy platforms are often hit with difficultand lengthy integrations and complex set-upprocesses. With a turnkey solution, much ofthe hard work has already been done whichmeans flicking the switch on additional gamessuch as virtuals is almost instantaneous.

Whether a new operator looking to make aname for themselves in new and establishedmarkets, or large operators looking to cementtheir position at the top of the table, turnkeysolutions offer a compelling package.

At their heart bookmakers are nottechnologists, they are big brands that requirea lot of effort to remain relevant and excitingto their customers.

With customer demand changing at such arapid pace, operators can benefit from theinvestment in innovation by their third-partysuppliers. Choosing turnkey solutions meansoperators can focus on what they do best,while their technology pretty much looks afteritself.

The new bookmakers enteringthe market of late have beenable to benefit from third partysuppliers who are making itcheaper for them to deliver anexciting range of contentacross a range of sports. Theyunderstand that operatorsneed to avoid being one-trickponies by offering their playersthe widest possible range ofverticals, games, features, andtools.

“I was comparing sports-betting with casino play and

was struggling to understandwhy there was such a hugedifference between sports-betting and casino. Casinos

were treating every roulette spinindependently, allowing players

to only bet on the outcome ofthe next spin, as opposed to

multiple events. It seemed like amissed opportunity.”


InteractivecASH ouT rouleTTe -be THe HouSe inTerView

In October 2016, be the House launched itsaccumulator roulette product, Cash Out Roulette,with industry giant betfair, following up withWilliam Hill’s launch in January, with the operatordescribing the concept as “the greatest thing tohappen to roulette in a decade.”

Be The House: Raising The Roof

Seth FreedmanceO, co-Founder, Be The house

A quick Google of ‘Be The House’ reveals that thecompany was formed in March 2014, is registeredto a residential property in Finsbury Park, London,and was established by directors Seth Freedmanand Andrew Woolfson. So far, so traditionalgaming start-up.

Another web search for Andrew Woolfson andthe results throw up a LinkedIn profile and acareer in aviation management and finance,which tallies perfectly with Be The House’sdirector profile number one. So far, sostraightforward.

The next set of results are altogether moreunusual. Type “Seth Freedman” into Google andyou’ll see what we mean. “Whistleblower at thecentre of uK gas price-fixing story,” is the firstheadline. “Banned, Blacklisted and Embattled,”reads another. “uK Gas Market Price Rigging: SethFreedman Sacked” is yet another. Each are takenfrom the online editions of The Guardiannewspaper, Evening Standard and HuffingtonPost. This can’t be the director of Be The House,surely?

A biography sent prior to G3’s interview with SethFreedman confirmed we’d be speaking to the manin all the headlines. What’s remarkable about thebio is that while it fails to mention any of theheadlines above, it does reveal that having startedhis career in 1998 as an equities broker and traderin London, Freedman went on to enlist as a

combat soldier in the Israeli army in 2004, writingabout his experience for The Guardian andauthoring four books.

According to The Guardian website, Freedmanreturned to the City in 2011, joining ICIS as a uKwholesale gas price reporter in January 2012, buthe raised the alarm about wild gyrations in theunregulated and over-the-counter (oTC) gasmarket, in September. He took his concerns aboutthese day-ahead trades to ICIS, who later reportedthem to ofgem (the industry watchdog) but,fearing inaction on the issue, he went directly tothe FSA (Financial Standards Authority). He wasfired from ICIS on December 28, 2012.

Just over a year later, Freedman and his Be TheHouse co-founder, Andrew Woolfson, foundthemselves developing Cash out Roulette, aproduct they brought to market in 2016.

“I’m not from the gambling industry, but wasresearching for a book on the sector, looking intoregulation and the rise of online gaming,”describes Freedman of his most recent careermove. “I was comparing sports-betting withcasino play and was struggling to understand whythere was such a huge difference between sports-betting and casino products. Casinos weretreating every roulette spin independently,allowing players to only bet on the outcome of thenext spin, as opposed to multiple events. Itseemed like a missed opportunity.”


Seth explains that he was not looking at thatstage to enter the gaming industry, but after aconversation with his wife’s cousin, maths expertAndrew Woolfson, the pair realised that foroperators and players, an accumulator roulettebet held great potential, offering operators highermargins, while players got a much wider range ofodds. It had also never been done before.

GrowinG oVer TiMe“We knew the idea was significant because itbrought something unique to roulette withoutchanging the game,” says Freedman. “The layoutremains the same, we’re not adding hundreds ofnumbers or spinning two balls at the same time.Players want the same table game people haveplayed for over 300 years, but with the option tobet the way players bet today. Cash out Roulettelets them place bets on multiple spins. If theywant to choose three reds in next five spins - welet them. Players don’t need an understanding ofthe odds across those multiple spins, but just likean accumulator in football - they’re not feelingshort changed by the odds, they’re looking at thepotential rewards.”

Cash out Roulette (CoR) delivers rewards for theoperator too. Entirely configurable, CoR offersoperators a 95 per cent RTP, as compared to 97.3with traditional roulette. Players can “cash out” ofthe accumulator at any stage, but pay an early optout fee for the privilege (as happens in sports-betting).

“We went in completely blind,” admits Freedmanof his initiation into the industry. “As playersourselves, we loved the concept, and wanted tobring it to market as quickly as possible, but therehave been plenty of hurdles along the way. Tophysically build the concept we partnered withLeander Games, raising capital and patentingCash out Roulette in the uS in July 2014, beforeextending the patent worldwide.”

As Cash out Roulette began to snowball in sizeand scale, Be The House parted ways withLeander to take its concept to market, going livewith Betfair in Autumn 2016, after an initial softlaunch period.

bUildinG MoMenTUMWhile Cash out Roulette has launched to datewith Betfair and William Hill exclusively online,Seth explains that CoR is applicable to retail andland-based environments, where it adaptsperfectly to electronic multi-player roulette play,or in operations using tablets to place betsremotely. The patent also covers all tables games,from black jack to baccarat and poker, with BeThe House already in talks with operators to bringCash out Roulette to the Live Dealer online spacethis year.

As for expectations for the future, Seth admits BeThe House is neither a software developer noroperator. “We are licensing Cash out Rouletteright now and see an opportunity, much as

Shuffle Master did with Three Card Poker, to takethe concept as far as possible,” states Freedman.“We’ve turned down offers to date, as we hope inthe next six months that the proof of concept willprovide us with an idea of its true value.”

As Cash out Roulette released on William Hill’sonline casino in January, Be The House is now inthe hands of operators to take the concept to theirplayers, to inform and educate as well as exploitthe opportunities it provides to punters andoperators alike. There’s certainly no lack ofenthusiasm from William Hill, with the operatoroffering players a £1m win per line chance that issure to generate mass market appeal.

Speaking to Seth about the last two years, hedescribes his initiation into the gaming industryand the enthusiasm for Cash out Roulette as ‘alittle bit insane.’ “The craziest thing was that wecouldn’t believe it didn’t already exist,” saysFreedman of the concept.

Why no one has thought to bring sports-bettingstyle accumulators bets to roulette is actuallyshocking, but then it often takes someone fromleft-field to point out the glaringly obvious in anindustry hungrily looking for the next biginnovation.

The fact that it took an ex-army, city trader,whistle-blowing journalist and author is perhapsan outsider bet that no one saw coming.

InteractivecASH ouT rouleTTe -

be THe HouSe inTerView

CAsh oUT roUleTTeCash out Roulette offers bets over consecutive spins of a roulette wheel, in addition to thetraditional single spin roulette. This means players can place bets on outcomes like 2 number 8s inthe next 20 spins, 14 black numbers in the next 20 spins, and 65 reds in the next 100 spins, with anastonishing array of odds, from odds-on all the way out to 1 million to 1. Cash out Roulette attractsplayers with the potential for higher payouts, greater control over their volatility, and, crucially, theability to cash out during a multi-spin bet. Benefits to operators include the ability to attract newplayers to this exciting new twist in roulette, a wider customer base to cross sell to and longersessions from players.


Area 31, the space for entrepreneurs within theIE Business School in Madrid, hosted the secondedition of Game Weekend, an event organisedby Recreativos Franco in hackathon formatwhere more than 50 participants had to developa Christmas-related game in just 15 hours.

In this second edition, the criteria upon whichthe jury founded their award includedoriginality, the highest valued quality followedby prototype quality, design quality andcommercial feasibility, among others.

The winninG projeCTGoodboy was the winning game and, therefore,obtained preferential access to WanajumpIncube, R. Franco’s pre-accelerationprogramme. Developed by a group of young

people aged 23 to 39, the game is abreakthrough within the industry of educationalgames. It is a game with which childrencommunicate with Santa Claus; however,parents manage the conversation pretending tobe Santa. Children ask for their Christmaspresents and Santa defines the number ofsweets they need in order to unblock eachpresent. Then, Santa asks children to meet aseries of challenges: drying the dishes, kissingmama 10 times, making their bed... Eachchallenge is rewarded with a certain amount ofsweets. A present is unblocked as soon as thechild collects enough sweets. Parents’management application then displays differentonline sites to buy the present. The businessmodel consists of obtaining a certaincommission out of each transaction.

sChools And r. frAnCoIn the last month, Wanajump and GameWeekend officials have been making acommunication effort and presented R. Franco’snew digital initiatives at universities andBusiness Schools. This Game Weekend is thefirst fruit to reap from this effort: the threefinalist teams included at least one student fromthe Higher School of Design of Madrid,universidad Complutense (Madrid), andparticipants also came from ESNE, u- Tad, CICEand KSchool, among others.

GeTTinG diGiTAlGame Weekend falls within the strategy totransform Recreativos Franco with new digitalbusiness models. This partly includessupporting young talent within the entertainingindustry. Alejandro Casanova, R. Franco’s NewBusiness Manager and CDo, was pleased withresults: “We were surprised with participants’level and the premium quality of projects. Weappreciate the excellent acceptance thisinitiative has had, as well as the help providedby our in-house and external collaborators.”

Game Weekend - more than 50 developers,marketing experts and visual artists took partin the second edition of the gaming eventorganised by Spain’s Recreativos franco

Goodboy, an educational game designed for children tocommunicate with Santa Claus, was the winner of RecreativosFranco’s second edition of its Game Weekend, and gainspreferential access to Wanajump pre-acceleration programme

Playing away for the Weekend

Interactiver frAnco - GAme weeKenD


Playtech has opened a state-of-the-art livecasino studio facility in Bucharest, Romania tocater for a huge demand in licensees in thenewly regulated Eastern European country.

Playtech’s new Romania live casino facilityemploys native dealers and further bolsters itsposition as the world’s leading live casinosoftware and content provider with the largestglobal footprint in the gaming industry.

Playtech has well-established, large-scale livecasino studios in Manila and across Europeincluding Latvia and other regulated marketsincluding Spain and Belgium in order to cater tolocal audiences in regulated and soon-to-beregulated jurisdictions.

The facility, that was delivered ahead ofschedule, offers licensees a huge range of newand classic game variants including liveblackjack, roulette and casino hold’em. Allproducts are streamed using the latest HDcamera equipment and next generation livegaming platform offering available across alldesktop and mobile devices.

Romania opened its newly regulated, licensedonline gaming framework earlier this year withPlaytech receiving approval for four licencesincluding software, live studio, platform andhosting services.

Mor Weizer, Playtech CEO, said: “The openingof the new studio further solidifies Playtech’s

position as the market leader in global, cutting-edge, regulated live casino.

“This is just the beginning of our growth planswith a series of exciting new products andvariants in our 2017 live casino roadmap aswell as significant expansion plans for ourother facilities,” Weizer added.

romania studio LiveCasino playtech

Dallmeier’s Video Management Centre VMC-2 stands out fromthe crowd thanks to its ergonomic and intelligent design. It ismade up of a touch screen, a joystick and a jog-shuttle.

The individual components are modular and flexible, i.e. they arefreely positionable and thus ideally suited for both left- and right-handed operators. Moreover, it is possible to use the componentsindependently as stand-alone devices.

Vmc joystickBy using the joystick, the security operator is able to controlmovable cameras conveniently. Pan, tilt and zoom movementscan be carried out intuitively. With just a single click on the joystickbutton, the camera automatically moves back to its homeposition. If the mode is switched, the joystick can also be used asa mouse, which allows an easy menu control.

Vmc touchThe touch screen enables a simple and convenient multi-touch

control. The intuitive user interface allows the securityoperator for instance to activate live streams or to controlPTZ cameras precisely. Furthermore, the playback ofrecordings and the initiation of backups can be controlledconveniently. In addition, an enhanced snapshot functioncan be used for individual marks and comments directly inthe image.

Vmc jog-shuttleThe jog-shuttle is ideally suited to find certain frames in avideo sequence quickly. By rotating the central jog-dial, thesecurity operator can conveniently move through individualframes. Using the shuttle-ring surrounding the jog-shuttle,the scenes can subsequently be replayed forward or backwardat different speeds.

Video Management Centre-2 security solutions Dallmeier

GameCo is developing three newcasino games for its video gamegambling machines (VGM) based onthe iconic science fiction film,“Terminator 2: Judgment Day” (T2),under license from Studiocanal.

GameCo’s proprietary VGM is anarcade-style cabinet featuring asingle-player 45-90 second videogame, adapted from top console,PC, and mobile games. The firstgame is planned as a first-personaction game where players will takethe role of a reprogrammed T-800with a mission to aid the humanresistance by exterminatingopposing Terminators. The deal wasbrokered by Creative Licensing andis expected to make its debut incasinos in early 2017.

“It’s exciting to introduce ourcelebrated film titles to fans andcasino players in an engaging andinteractive format,” said Rand Marlis,President and CEO of CreativeLicensing. “GameCo’s VGM bringsfilms to life in an updated arcadeformat, whereby players have funwith a chance of winning big.”

GameCo recently launched at allthree Caesars Entertainmentproperties in Atlantic City and at theTropicana Atlantic City, making it thefirst skill-based gaming company inthe world to debut its product oncasino floors. GameCo is currentlyexecuting a major nationwide rollout,with plans to be operational in mostmajor US gambling jurisdictions bythe end of 2017.

“T2 is a world famous classic filmknown for action, visual effects, andmemorable characters, so it’s agreat fit for the fast-pacedexperience we want to bring tocasinos across the globe,” said RichMaryyanek, Head of Global BusinessDevelopment for GameCo. “We areexcited to be working withStudiocanal and CLC to bring the‘Terminator 2’ brand to ourVGMs,” he added.

GameCo’s VGMs offer aninnovative new way to adaptpopular licensed propertiesto the casino environment.VGMs combine theengagement andinteractivity of videogames with thecharacter, story, andnarrative of popular film andTV properties. Gamers can“become” a Terminator toplay and experience the story.

terminator 2:Judgment Day VGMs GameCo

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Lucky For you is immediatelyavailable for all channels via KazuriCasino Module and is already live atselected partners. The game isapproved and certi ed for use in thejurisdictions of Alderney, UK,Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Denmark andLithuania.

The latest Endorphina release isMAROI, which follows up thesuccessful release of its Voodooslot. MAORI is a polynesian themedslot celebrating the traditionalinhabitants of the New Zealand.

Known for their rich mythology,distinctive crafts and performingarts, the Maori people developedtheir culture during the centuries ina complete isolation. Thisinteresting ethnic group inspiredthe creative team and the result isvisually mastered slot that featuresfull 3D modeled characters in HDthat allows great immersion intothe game and the culture of thepeople.

The slot promises unlimited freegames and a huge opportunity forwinning big and is available now.

SlotGuru is a new & unique servicethat provides key information oncasino slot games directly to aplayers’ mobile phone.

For the first time, players will haveimmediate access to essentialinformation such as game type,bonus style and number of lines.This also includes the Volatilitylevels for a growing database ofover 2,000 games from multiplemanufacturers and will helpeducate players to easily findgames that are best suited to theirplaying styles.

‘Volatility is a vital metric thatseriously impacts the gamingexperience of the player’ said StuartArmstrong, Director at SlotGuru.‘This information has never beenwidely available to the global playerbase until now but with SlotGuru ontheir mobile devices, players will bemore empowered than ever to

make the best decisions about theirgame choice.

Specifically aimed at helpingplayers get pertinent informationeasily and dynamically, SlotGuruwill play a significant part inboosting a casino’s engagementwith their customers aroundResponsible Gambling.

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‘At Aspers we are continuallylooking at how we can effectivelyinform and educate our players tomake the best decisions tooptimize their playing experience’said Mark Beattie, Head ofElectronic Gaming at AspersCasinos. ‘We believe that SlotGuruis a welcome piece of innovationthat provides the perfect storm oftechnology, functionality, and enduser benefit that will give ourplayers the power to choose theideal game time after time.’

SlotGuru is currently beingdeployed to Aspers casino in the UKand will be formally launched tocasinos worldwide in February.

Microgaming heralds in the New year with twoexciting and very differently themed games.

Players can now join Huangdi The yellow Emperor onhis quest for glory. Steeped in history and culture,Huangdi’s revolutionary inventions are seamlesslyintertwined with authentic calligraphy and ancientsymbols. Bringing the game to life is a uniquesoundtrack, created in-house using a number oftraditional Chinese instruments.

Beautifully designed artwork, including a stunninglyrendered background capturing the legendary Zhuolubattlefield, feature across the five reels and 25paylines, with stacked and expanding symbols, 15retriggerable free spins, and expanding wilds in boththe base and free spin games.

Animations are true to the theme; instead of genericgold coins during big wins, this game features ancientcoins. With the all-conquering yellow Emperor bytheir side, players can expand their empire on bothdesktop and mobile with a 0.25 minimum bet and30,000.00 credit maximum win.

Life of Riches brings all the glitz and glamour of thejet set lifestyle to the slots, with players matchingsuper yachts, sports cars, private jets and much morein this aspirational game. This 5 x 3 reel, 30 line gamegives numerous opportunities for amassing a smallfortune with a multiplier free spin feature where winsare doubled. But true riches await - the inclusion of astacked wild within the free spins gives an additional2x multiplier!

A life of decadent luxury awaits players on bothdesktop and mobile, with a minimum bet of just 0.01and 120,000.00 credit maximum win.

David Reynolds, Games Publisher at Microgaming,comments: “It’s a great way to start the New yearwith two games of highly contrasting styles. Ofcourse, both are built around our engaging gameplayfeatures, but the quality of the graphics, animationsand sounds are what really bring these games to life.The game development teams work hard to ensureall facets of the games are true to the theme. Forexample, in Huangdi, the low symbols were designedto capture Chinese calligraphy, but the creative teamhad to ensure that the stroke direction and patternswere accurate when recreated digitally.”

Huangdi The yellow Emperor and Life of Riches golive to Microgaming and Quickfire operators on 4January 2017. Both games come with in-gameachievements and free games.

huangdi Yellow emperorand Life of riches Onlineslots Microgaming

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