Insight ITALY - MONEY MARKET


the times they are a-chanGin’


Italy’s AWP sector is pushing for the introduction of Comma 6a+ legislation to compete against VLTs, but the inclusion of a note acceptor would radically change the entire marketplace


Italy remains a market of incredible opportunities and crushing frustrations. VLT delays from every angle have confronted suppliers to the market, though as Eurocoin's Colin Veitch explains, the marketplace has radically changed this year, after the problems in 2010. "The approval process appears to have resolved most of the problems, with companies moving through the pipeline much quicker, which is good news for everyone," described Mr. Veitch for whom the ENADA Rome exhibition is now a domestic show, having personally opened the Eurocoin Italy office last year.


"We knew we had to create an Italian business to supply the Italian market. It shows our level of commitment to the market, just as we have done in Poland, Romania and Spain. We are not drop- shipping into this market. You have to have respect for the processes within each country, and you can only do that from within the country itself,” said Mr. Veitch.


Eurocoin's commitment has proved justified, with the company having secured a 70 per cent share of the TITO market in the country, though this has been in cooperation with international OEMs, as the Italian domestic market has been slow to exploit the opportunities presented by VLTs. "The success of VLTs caught the Italian manufacturing sector by surprise, which had concentrated its efforts on the Comma 6a market. The success of VLTs in this market, with 28,000 machines currently installed, of which there isn't a single Italian manufacturer, has rocked the industry. The only Italian manufacturer at ENADA with a VLT product is MAG Electronica," pointed out Mr. Veitch. "Thankfully, the


December 2011 Page 42


iLeo is a stunning machine that looks like an elongated iPhone and is built around CMS technology, which has proved a consistent performer in this market. Our printer completes a machine that shows what Italian manufacturers have always been great at, stunning designs and quality manufacturing."


Mr. Veitch also welcomes the recent increase in the number of Comma 6a machines in Italy's bar sector, but the really interesting change he believes will come with the introduction of Comma 6a+ next year. "Doubling the stakes and prizes and including a note acceptor will radically change this market," stated Mr. Veitch. "Revenue will certainly increase with the incorporation of note acceptors, as it has done in every market in which they have been introduced. However, the change sector in Italy will be seriously compromised as a result. The Italian Comma 6a market supports one of the largest change machine markets in the world. Why would players continue to use a change machine when you have bill-in?"


Comma 6a+ legislation has still to be confirmed, so there remains the possibility that the government could insist on coin-out, but that would create a real danger of coin starvation, a situation we’ve seen in the past with AWPs.


AAMS has only recently changed the tax percentage on AWP turnover (PREU) from 12.6 per cent at maximum (depending on global market turnover) to 11.8 per cent for 2012, 12.7 per cent for 2013 and 13 per cent from 2014 on. This change has come togheter with an increase on VLT taxation on turnover (from 3 per cent to 4


(Above) Eurocoin’s Colin Veitch with


the Merkur Gaming Merkur Dispenser 100 pictured at the


ENADA Rome show in October.


(Top right) Change


specialists, Lorenzo Verona and


Valentina Santarelli of VNE.


per cent for 2012, and 4,5 per cent from 2013 and so on). These changes in taxation are linked with the opportunity for operators to change minimum AWPs payout from present 75 per cent at least to 74 per cent at least, allowed from 2013.


To authorise the changes in AWP software it is necessary to draft new technical regulations; with AWP manufacturers waiting for this change in order to petition AAMS for changes in AWP maximum winnings (presently, €100), plus the incorporation of bill acceptors. These changes have become part of the ‘myth’ of Comma 6a+, even if these new AWPs are unlikely to be in the field before January 2013.


legislation behind the change Legislation in gaming can create new markets and new opportunities. This is


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