God save the queen and public gaming

The appointment with the Gioco News seminar is reconfirmed at Ice London: "The Italy Briefing". The only foreign event entirely dedicated to the Italian gaming market, as an excellence.

New year, new life: also for public gaming. If in the last issue we presented 2018 as the year of real change in the sector, in these days we start to reap the first rewards. Starting from the publication of the tender notice for online (that we will talk about later): highly awaited by operators all over the world, and for years. But also because of that slow and very complex reorganization process of the sector, at land-based level, outlined on the front of distribution, following the (albeit ambiguous) standards of the Legislator, and from the point of view of the product, using new procedures, for example as regards anti-money laundering and gaming approvals, and technologies, looking at betting offer and at future remote slots, which production should start during the year. For a series of news and changes coming to the Italian gaming industry. However, the agenda of (Italian and not only) operators doesn't change with the new year, it can rely on the same reference appintments, as in previous years. Starting from the Ice fair in London, which at the beginning of February allows to outline all the industry scenarios at a global level and that also this year hosts the Gioco News seminar: "The Italy Briefing", which for the third consecutive year offers a in-depth focus dedicated to the all-round Italian gaming market. At a time more important than ever. "2018 is a key year for gaming in Italy", Christian Tirabassi, Ficom Lesiure's senior partner and moderator of the debate since the first edition, explains. "Starting with the renewal of licenses for the newly announced online market, up to the tender notice for physical gaming market, related to betting and bingo, which should come later this year". According to Tirabassi, this scenario could support further reflections in terms of business: "First of all, the convergence of products is clear: operators are already horizontally integrating on all products and distribution channels", for a new scenario that is always more characterizing our market too. In fact, as the consultant points out, "the entrance into the market and horizontal integration is generating safer and more immediate M&A activities (literally: company merger and acquisitions)". People prefer already acquired licences to future titles, because of the constant postponement of tenders for the appointment of concessions (a typically Italian scenario, that is also difficult to be explained abroad) and more generally the everlasting regulatory instability. For another scenario that is supposed to radically change the panorama of Italian gaming sector and that the London event allows to discover.