They are probably the best-known bosses in the industry, and they will bookend the festivities at its largest trade show in Las Vegas next month.
Steve Wynn will deliver the Global Gaming Expo’s opening keynote on 30th September, and Sheldon Adelson will close out the show with a speech on 2nd October, its final day at the Sands Expo and Convention Center, which Mr Adelson founded and his Las Vegas Sands Corp. owns.
Amid dramatic changes sweeping the industry in the US and worldwide, the show’s popular “State of the Industry” roundtable has been expanded this year—there will be one dealing with operations and featuring MGM Resorts International Chairman Jim Murren—the other will cover the manufacturing sector with International Game Technology CEO Patti Hart among the speakers.
Ms Hart recently presided over the sale of the world’s largest slot-maker to lottery giant GTECH for US$6.4 billion.
Jim Allen, CEO of Seminole Gaming and chairman of Hard Rock International, also will speak at the session on operations on 30th September. While joining Ms Hart at the manufacturing roundtable will be Aristocrat Leisure CEO Jamie Odell, Novomatic CTO Thomas Graf, Amaya CEO David Baazov and Multimedia Games CEO Patrick Ramsey. The session will take place 1st October, and it’s expected the merger mania that is remaking the machine gaming sector will dominate the conversation. Recent months have seen Bally Technologies complete a $1.3 billion buyout of SHFL entertainment, Scientific Games finalizing its $1.5 billion purchase of WMS Industries and Aristocrat scooping up Video Gaming Technologies for $1.3 billion. In June, Canada-based Amaya announced it was buying PokerStars, the world’s largest online poker portal, for $4.9 billion.
Producers Reed Exhibitions and the American Gaming Association say G2E 2014 will be the largest in five years. More than 450 exhibitors have signed up, and there will be special pavilions dedicated to iGaming, security and food and beverage.
The packed conference schedule will include discussions on topics ranging from skill-based gaming trends and consumer behavior to data-base marketing and analysis to cyber-security.
This year’s show also will host its first-ever hotel conference.
“The improvements brought to this year’s seminars and exhibitions are a direct response to meet the needs of the diverse gaming industry,” said Mike Johnson, vice president at Reed in charge of gaming.
