ICE PICKS
ICE picks I
Is it getting cold in here or is it just us? Matt Broughton presents an alternative view to visiting ICE Totally Gaming 2012 as it enjoys its last outing at London’s Earls Court.
f you have any interest in the world of interactive gaming and gambling January is THE time to be in London. This year ICE welcomed thousands of visitors from around the world, presenting over 400 exhibitors to the hungry masses. Getting to
Earls Court represents a fair trek west across London for me so I can’t pretend to be too disappointed that the show moves east to ExCeL next year. There is, however, a certain unique buzz when you take the long walk out of the underground to be hit smack bang in the face by one of the capital’s great exhibition halls. One very slick registration process later and I’m
through the front door. An enormous queue has already formed – as it always does – for the cloakroom. One day I plan to hire one of the exhibitor booths right at the front of the hall, put a curtain up around the whole thing and start my own private cloakroom, competing directly with the ‘official’ one. I’ll charge 20p less per item, allow bags at no extra cost, and then, when I’m sure everyone’s in, I’ll drop the curtain to reveal a huge unorganised pile of belongings, head off home with the cash, and let everyone fight for their garments in a free-for-all come 5:30pm. Six minutes in and I’m already carrying my own
body weight in collected literature. For an industry that’s ‘online’ there’s a tremendous amount of paper being thrown about here. Twelve minutes further into the day and my iPhone’s memory is now also full to brimming with photos of promotional girls’ legs. I should emphasise that these pictures are ONLY for the show report and not for me personally.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
These dresses come in two sizes: tight and too tight.
Somewhere behind the frontline battle for who has the biggest show budget I’d like to think there’s a fight going on for who has the best product, but in some sections of the hall that’s clearly the last thing on the exhibitors’ minds. One war I wasn’t expecting is the outward competition for who has the most delicious stand. G2 GTECH has a sushi bar in full swing by 10 o’clock in the morning, while the vast
62 MARCH 2012
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