The MD of Clarion Gaming answers the key questions about ICE London

ICE London continues to grow year-on-year – can you give us an insight into what’s in store for visitors in 2019?

Visitors attending ICE London will have direct access to 612 exhibitor brands from 66 countries. The net floor space has grown from the 2018 figure of 43,500sqm to 45,500sqm, an increase of just under five per cent. This is part of a trend which stretches back to 2012, when the show floor comprised 22,500sqm.

Since then, ICE London has grown year on year and is now more than twice its 2012 size, a remarkable feat when you consider the level of merger and acquisition activity that’s taken place over that period. I think the real attraction for visitors is the guarantee that, when they attend ICE London, they will see all of the smartest innovators in world gaming, showing products and services that harness the latest advances in technology.

As well as meeting with the industry’s key innovators, visitors can also participate in gaming’s most creative learning programme, ICE VOX Conferences.

The seven-track programme comprises the International Casino Conference, Modernising Lotteries, WrB, Advertising & Marketing, Cybercrime & Security, Artificial Intelligence and Esports.

This year sees Clarion Gaming introducing a new Code of Conduct for the event after some negative coverage in consumer media last year. Can you talk us through the new Code of Conduct and what it means for ICE London 2019?

The 2018 edition of ICE London was the most successful on record, but it was also the edition that generated the most coverage in consumer media and, as you said, not for all of the right reasons.

The ICE brand does not, and will not, hide from difficult situations and, before the 2018 edition closed, we began the process of consultation with our stakeholders using our Ampersand group, which is the biggest think-tank-meets-focus-group in gaming. From Ampersand, we created a Diversity Working Group comprising 80 gaming professionals which contributed to our Code of Conduct.

The code confirms the standards that organisations and individuals are required to uphold, including gender representation and dress codes for stand staff. The code also sets out Clarion Gaming’s responsibilities to ensure a safe and appropriate working environment for everyone, including staff, customers and suppliers.

We are committed to continue to drive a cultural shift in terms of the representation of gender and we have backed up that strategy with a robust set of terms and conditions that set out responsibilities conditional on participation.

With an increasing focus on responsible gaming in the industry, can you explain how ICE London is promoting responsible gambling?

The Consumer Protection Zone (CPZ) is a central focus for the debate surrounding responsible gambling.

Relocated to a high footfall area in the South Hall at ExCeL, it features the international industry’s most forward-thinking, responsible gambling organisations who will participate in a comprehensive agenda of presentations and discussions. We will be examining the Responsible Player Journey, which starts from game idea to design, through gameplay monitoring, interaction, intervention and, ultimately, to self-exclusion and blocking.

The CPZ agenda has been curated to showcase how technology can improve consumer protection tools and will involve policy-makers and regulators as part of the networking session for International Legislators. CPZ exhibitors include Gamblewise, GamCare, Gordon Moody, IBAS, IGRG – Industry Group for Responsible Gambling, Little Wheel, Mindway AI, Sustainable Interactive and Young Gamblers Education Trust (YGAM).

With Clarion Gaming hosting charities and non-profit organisations on a complimentary basis, the aim is to enable organisations to engage with operators about their innovations and, courtesy of ICE London’s unrivalled international reach, help to progress responsible gambling and consumer protection throughout the global gaming industry.

Sponsors of the Consumer Protection Zone have generated in excess of £35,000 for charities and not-for-profit organisations working in the responsible gambling space. Gaming companies to pledge sponsorship comprise: 888 Holdings; ALEA; GVC Holdings Plc; Kindred; Mr Green, LeoVegas, and Videoslots.

What focus will ICE London have on the recently opened up US market and what are Clarion Gaming’s plans for the US this year?

While the growth in 2017-18 was due to the demand for space from payments providers, the 2019 growth has, in part, been driven by sportsbook companies, following the Supreme Court’s repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA).

Because ICE London serves as a barometer of the world industry, we can anticipate that macro changes, such as the repeal of PASPA, will be reflected in the visitor and exhibitor metrics at show.

Following the Supreme Court ruling, it has become clear that there’s a need for a professional and, most importantly, trusted platform to help drive the future of gaming across the continent. Reflecting this, we launched ICE North America, which will be held across May 13-15 in Boston to serve as a stakeholder meeting place and provide the opportunity for brands to establish a competitive advantage in what is a tremendously dynamic market.

The official launch will take place at ICE London, but essentially it involves a campaign that highlights the new ground that’s being broken in the sector.

The ICE VOX conference is packed with top-level speakers – has this become a key part of the ICE experience?

Our objective is to deliver a complete experience and ICE VOX is certainly part of that strategy. This year, we have decided to do things differently, while still delivering what I believe to be the most comprehensive learning programme in gaming.

ICE VOX will feature 120 high-profile, tier-one thought leaders delivering 40+ hours of business-centric content. We are using four branded areas that offer distinct ways of learning, ranging from the direct, information-based Elevator, through to Hive, where delegates will be able to meet with regulators, operators and policy makers in a series of roundtable networking sessions.

Counsel will feature Oxford Union-style debates and motions all facilitated by a professional debate team, while Boardroom invites inspirational thought leaders from outside the gaming universe to provide their insight.

Finally, the Speaker Clinic delivers a one-to-one feedback Masterclass, as delegates can make presentations to our professional speakers and receive an exclusive critique and guidance. The updates we have introduced aim to deliver a new kind of immersive learning experience.

Finally, what is the most exciting part of ICE London for you this year?

When you look out across the halls at ExCeL before the doors open and you feel the energy and anticipation of 600-plus brands, it’s impossible not to be excited by what’s in store over the next three days, but in terms of specifics, we have put a great deal of energy and thought into the ICE VOX conference programme. We’ve ripped up the rule book and approached the learning experience in a totally different way, with formats designed to challenge and engage with an audience that wants something different and an alternative to conventional learning.

I’ll be intrigued to experience the response from the industry. We’ve also addressed something close to my heart and that’s the issue of single-use plastics and their impact on the environment.

In the first initiative of its type, we have partnered with Ecobooth to collect discarded graphics, which are the most common stand waste materials.

They will be recycled into a sheet material and used to make an array of products and outdoor furniture for the local community and used in communal spaces surrounding ExCeL London. It’s a good initiative and one which will show gaming doing its bit for the planet.

To experience the #spiritofgenius at ICE London 2019, register for tickets here

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