JAKTA’s 5th Gaming CongressSummarising the situation in Europe

- EUROMAT’s perspective -Belgrade, 22 October 2012

Helmut Kafka, Vice-President, EUROMAT

Established in 1979, EUROMAT represents the interests of manufacturers, distributors and operators of gaming and amusement machines outside casinos

23 national member associations from 18 different European countries

Combined industry turnover of 21 billion Euro; 27% of the overall gambling sector

Directly employ approximately 250.000 European citizens

Where are we now?

Where do we want to

go?

The rapid rise of legal and illegal remote gambling services provided across the EU

The rules in most of our countries: a barrier to innovation

Legislative frameworks that do not keep up with the speed of technological development

Unlevel playing field across the gambling arena

Land-based sector Remote sectorLegislative frameworks that hinder capacity to adapt to new technologies

Legislative frameworks?

Strictly enforced rules No enforcement of rulesStrict requirements Lax requirements Extremely high taxes Preferential tax regimes (“state-aid”!)

Unfair competition cannot be tolerated!

EUROMAT welcomed the launch of the debate The EU institutions are taking the right approach:◦Respect the principle of subsidiarity◦No harmonised EU-wide set of rules for the entire gambling

arena. ◦Due to significant moral, religious and cultural differences

between Member States gambling is better regulated at national level

The cross-border nature of remote gambling justifies an “EU approach”

A European (or international) framework of minimum standards would ensure proper and effective regulation of online gambling

National regulators need to work together

The EU institutions have a fundamental role to play in ensuring that Member States have the tools and incentives required to regulate and enforce at national level operating licenses across the spectrum of gambling services

EUROMAT supports the Commission’s efforts to mantain a strong and consistent EU framework to protect consumers and businesses against the risks of money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing (CTF)

But, machines available in gaming arcades entail only low stakes and low payouts and thereby represent only very minimum or no AML/CTF risks

We need to avoid the imposition of an excessive burden on lower risk activities

In order to foster future growth, we need to ensure a level-playing field across the European gambling arena:◦A fair and adequate taxation regime ◦ Same regulatory requirements for all operators◦Requirements must properly enforced

National rules need to be structured in such a way as to allow us to innovate and keep pace with demand

Only if we work together will we be able to find the best way to turn the threats and challenges that our industry is facting into real opportunities both for our industry, as well as for society.

Let’s works together,let’s discuss!

Don’t hesitate to contact us:

European Gaming & Amusement Federation Rue du Trône 60 - 1st floor 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium T: +32 (0)2 626 1993F: +32 (0)2 626 9501E: secretariat@euromat.org www.euromat.org