One of Europe’s top casinos has only 20 slots.....but hopefully upcoming law changes will see that changed, says Phil Burke, managing director of Novomatic Gaming UK, speaking at the London ACOS trade show last week.
Phil had taken a full team to London for the show, with a range of Category C and B3 models, saying that there is a portfolio of all-new developments in the pipeline that will be ready for the upcoming London Casino and Gaming expo at ExCeL in January.
A keen supporter of the new London casino event, Phil said that London and the UK needed a casino show. “There is a long tradition of casino shows in London,” he said, “and they traditionally show product for Europe, so the operators of bricks-and-mortar casinos in countries like France and Germany will find much to interest them at LCG in January.”
He lamented the out-dated British casino slots regulation, hoping that the largely-agreed revision of the gambling laws would soon be introduced. “We are hoping that the new government will take up white paper recommendations, notably in the area of the number of slots permitted on a casino floor.”
The current upper limit of 20 slots per location was totally inadequate he said. “Look at the Hippodrome in London, one of the top casinos in Europe, yet it can only have 20 slots. Players are standing in line to play them.”
He said there is some evidence of multi-licensing in the UK now, where one operator holds more than one licence for a city and amalgamates them into one location, technically separating them so as many as three licenses are in operation under the same roof.
Image: Phil Burke, Managing Director Novomatic Gaming UK
The new proposals, he said, would overturn this and permit casinos to meet the demands of customers. Fresh product for this rejuvenated market, and for casino operators from other European countries, will be on Novomatic Gaming UK’s stand at the LCG in January.
