MGS Entertainment Show has reshaped its offerings as it celebrates six years in 2018.
MGS Entertainment Show celebrates its sixth anniversary in 2018 and this year the homegrown exhibition and conference is looking to reshape its offerings to adapt to the constantly evolving gaming industry.
The hugely successful Macau gaming model has had a massive impact in Asia and beyond, opening up opportunities for other jurisdictions and attracting the interest of global investors.
Consequently, MGS organizer, the Macau Gaming Entertainment Manufacturers Association (MGEMA), has seen the need to populate this year’s event with content that addresses subject matter beyond traditional boundaries while staying mindful of the leading role Macau plays in the region.
As MGEMA Chairman Jay Chun says, the show “hopes to tap into the rising integrated resort industry and make MGS’s influence reach out from Macau to neighboring countries.”
MGS Entertainment Show will run from 13 to 15 November at the Venetian Macao and for the first time features two separate conferences – the MGS Summit 2018 and the Sina Global Digital and Entertainment Future Summit 2018.
Among the panels scheduled for the opening day of MGS Summit 2018 is one titled “Set technological innovation as the driving force to build a sustainable world city of tourism, leisure and intelligence”. With Chinese government officials among those invited to participate, the panel is expected to discuss Macau’s ongoing diversification push and how it might impact the upcoming retendering process for gaming licenses. The city’s six concessionaires will all see their current 20-year gaming licenses expire between 2020 and 2022.
With that in mind, a panel titled “The law and supervision of Macau gaming franchise rights” promises to attract a wealth of interest with Paulo Martins Chan, the director of Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau, among the confirmed panelists. Dean of the Faculty of Law at University of Macau, Professor Tong Io Cheng, and Professor in International Integrated Resort Management, Davis Fong, will also sit on the panel, casting some light on the process and its key elements.
JUNKETS IN THE SPOTLIGHT
One of the great strengths of MGS Summit in recent years has been the presence of leading representatives of Macau’s VIP industry, better known as junket operators.
In 2017, Suncity’s Alvin Chau and Meg-Star’s Thomas Pang joined Jay Chun onstage to discuss the future of the VIP segment.
This year, the afternoon of Day 1 will again incorporate a number of sessions in which junket operators will be the focus of attention.
Topics to be discussed will include details of a possible central credit system, how to protect VIP rooms regarding debt collection, whether credit should be provided by banks instead of junkets and Macau’s VIP market opportunities and challenges.
The potential for Suncity Group to become Macau’s seventh concessionaire and the expansion of VIP operators beyond local borders and their traditional activities will no doubt come to the fore.
Day 2 of MGS Summit will focus back on the mass market customer, diversification, facilities, local talent and integration via representatives of the Big 6.
JAPAN DREAMING
Japan will again feature heavily at this year’s MGS Summit. Panels scheduled for Day 2 will analyze expectations from the Japanese government, the likely size of investment and ROI, international participation in Japanese IR projects, partnerships, the feasibility of Macau operators bidding for a license and how non-gaming offerings might be developed. A second session will debate the pros and cons of the possible locations of Japan’s IRs.
FUTURE CALLING
Technology will be one of the major components of MGS Entertainment Show, with Chun stating, “We have more focus on technology this year and also eSports.”
Accordingly, MGS Summit will close with sessions delving into the future of electronic gaming and the best strategies to follow to gain market share.
Interblock’s Joc Pečečnik, Aruze’s Takahiro Usui, APE’s Herman Ng and RGB’s Steven Lim will hold a discussion on innovation and evolution in the eGaming sector.
The exhibition at MGS will feature some of the biggest names in the global gaming industry including Scientific Games, Aristocrat and IGT.
