The vlt are on the borderline between taxes and new Preu
A thriving market, in full development and quick growth. With a collection of about 10 billion euro during the current year, that for the State is about 200 million euro; with good prospects for the near future. Even too good prospects. At the point that the administration has been induced to sacrifice that part of public gaming in the new tax revising of the section, and it must answer to the request of the (outgoing) Government of 1,5 billion euro to balance the accounts of the State. The sector of the Vlts is the most affected by the new tax regulation, with a taxation of 6% on winnings above 500 euro and an increase of 1% of the revenue withdrawal, passing it from 2012 to 4%, as would have happened the following year according to the initial regulations, and instead it will go to 4,5% from 2013. Moreover, both this field and also the Aams itself have suffered the blank delegation of the government for finding new resources.
Written by Alessio Crisantemi
Lottomatica has been the first company to speak about it and, at the eve of the publication of the official measure about new taxation, had issued an official note to keep the Stock Exchange down, where the news to tax the winnings was not welcomed. As for the videolotteries (because the increase in fact is for lotteries and other games also), "Thanks to already signed agreements with the distribution chain, the increase of 1% of taxation in 2012 would produce an Ebitda incidence of about 25 million euro", the company explained, while in 2013 the annunced taxation increase would be of half percentage point. But the effects, according to the insiders, may be others and beyond the accounting aspects. For Alejandro Pascual, managing director of the Codere Network concessionaire, "So unespected choises risk to disconcert a system that has been calibrated on some rules and overnight somebody changes this way. It is a strong impact above all for some companies such as Codere that must assure certainty and transparency to its investors, becuase it is listed. The gaming market is asking for stability since a lot of time for strenghten the investments made and to assure economic stability to the companies of the field". For these rasons, Pascual assumes, the measure will certainly have repercussions: "Taxation is only another "hidden" increase of Preu that will only legitimize the alienation from the legal gaming, to the advantage of that part of gaming offer that is not subject to taxation or unjust taxes and it will reduce the competitiveness of the State concessionaires to the advantage of an illegal offer that from the economic point of view is most advantageous for the player". Giulia De Rosa, head of business development of Gmatica, thinks the same, "The rate increase causes without doubt significant problems to the return of the investment", she says. In fact is important to consider various aspects when one makes some changes to the current structure of the market.
Giovanni Emilio Maggi, President of Acadi - Associazione Concessionari Apparecchi da Intrattenimento (Association of the concessionaires of amusement machines) - expresses "concern" for the introduction of this new rule, because it is "too much unbalanced on the measures about taxation". As Stefano Bortoli, ceo of the group Snai, understands the ratio of the rule, but highlights: "It is clear that during last years the lawmaker pointed to increase the fiscal revenues through broadening the offer and thanks to the excellent work of the Administration, that was able to regulate new channels, producing new revenues also recovering from the hidden activities. But now we can't think to further increase the market, because this would compromise the work of the operators, and in this sense the only way was to intervene on the winnings. But is a fact that the gaming field must still retrieve something from the tax evasion and from the fight to the hidden activities".