Sydney, Australia – The annual Australasian Gaming Expo (AGE), to be held in Sydney August 19-21, 2007, is shaping up to be a hugely successful show, judging by registrations for the trade show and conference, and bookings for the exhibit space.

„We have already sold over 90% of the exhibit area, which covers 15,000 square metres over three halls at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre at Darling Harbour,“ said Mr Ross Ferrar, Executive Officer, Australasian Gaming Machine Manufacturers Association (AGMMA), which hosts and operates the AGE.

„Judging by pre-registrations for the trade show which is open the Sunday, Monday and Tuesday from 10am over each of the three days, we expect to welcome thousands of key industry executives, senior management and other trade visitors from the gaming industry,“ he said.

In addition to the trade display, a number of key industry representatives will present at the conference on the first day of the show. This initiative also brings together the major industry Associations in Australia and New Zealand – AGMMA, the Australian Hotels Association, Australian Casino Association, Clubs Australia and the Gaming Machine Association of New Zealand.

The Australian Productivity Commission’s Chairman, Mr Gary Banks, will deliver the keynote address. He will highlight the opportunities and challenges facing clubs, hotels, casinos, betting outlets and other gaming operations as a result of the landmark gambling study that was conducted under his guidance in the year 1999.

This will be followed by a lively and informative „hot topics“ discussion from six key industry organisations, ranging from facial recognition technology and money-laundering to problem gambler identification and gambling expenditure pre-commitment. The final sessions, outlined at www.AustGamingExpo.com will provide expert research and views on solutions that achieve a sustainable gaming industry, and new technology such as downloadable server-based games.

Indeed, the level of awareness of the entire event has been heightened this year with the support of a multi-faceted advertising campaign focussed on the general gaming community, as well as targeting the club, hotel, and casino sectors of the industry.