ICE tipped for top showing

The 2006 International Casino Exhibition (ICE), which takes place at London’s Earls Court 2 on 24-26 January, is on track for yet another record-breaking year. Whilst the last few remaining stand pitches have been filled, online visitor registrations have been pouring in and show organisers ATE have confirmed that entry badge requests are already up year-on-year.

ICE, together with its integral i-gaming sector ICEi, notched up an all-time high attendance of 19,306 in 2005 – and with pre-registrations more than keeping a pace the prospect of breaking the 20,000 barrier in January is looking ever more likely.

ATE‘s head of exhibitions, Karen Cooke is confident that the 2006 edition will be the best show yet: „The strength of the show lies in its truly cosmopolitan flavour,“ she said. „More than 180 suppliers drawn from 34 nations, all exhibiting their latest products and services in Earls Court 2, is a very tempting prospect indeed for gaming professionals, regardless of jurisdiction or scale of operation. The product mix and variety of games and systems on display will provide new opportunities for everyone.“

57 domestic exhibitors will account for just under a third (31.3 per cent) of the ICE 2006 make-up. The United States will be the most represented overseas nation with 20 exhibitors, followed by the Netherlands (ten exhibitors) and Russia and Spain (nine each). Slovenia and Sweden will both be represented by eight exhibitors, Canada by seven, Australia, Austria and France with five each, Belgium and Italy both with four, Bulgaria, Germany and Israel each with three, whilst Argentina, the Czech Republic, Japan and Malta all have two companies on show. The remaining nations are Belarus, Finland, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Korea, Latvia, Portugal, Serbia & Montenegro, Slovakia, South Africa, Taiwan and Ukraine.

Slots and other electronic games including betting terminals, multi-players, video poker will be the most prolific product type on show at ICE 2006, variants of which will be displayed on at least 36 different stands.

I-gaming will be the second most prevalent gaming genre being demonstrated and discussed on 33 stands, the vast majority of which will be located within ICEi.

Equipment for live gaming is next in the pecking order with a myriad of roulette wheels, cards, dice, chips, layouts and other accessories appearing on no fewer than 25 stands.

19 different specialists in payment systems will be on hand to show off the latest designs and specifications of changers, chippers, validators, mechs, hoppers, cashless systems and payment processing techniques.

Interior design and styling will be the preserve of 18 manufacturers of furniture, signage, flooring, costumes and ancillary products. Machine components and spares will be the order from 16 suppliers; numbering the same as publications and exhibitions.

Software and systems – covering a broad spectrum of applications from progressive jackpots to player tracking, game development to casino management and accounting to multi-site machine monitoring – will be showcased on 14 stands, one more than the cohort of specialist consultants offering their services in legal, financial, educational, recruitment, testing/homologation/standards and political/governmental fields.

Income protection will be the mantra of 11 exhibitors, setting out their stalls with the latest in locking systems and devices, CCTV security and surveillance.