Dear Gaming Colleague,
While the main focus of the American Gaming Association (AGA) remains in the U.S., we continue to capitalize on unique opportunities to strengthen American companies abroad.
Over the last 10 days, AGA hosted the most successful Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia in its history, and we were a driving force behind the Japan Gaming Congress (JgC) Tokyo last week. AGA is a resource for members wherever and whenever opportunities arise.
Highlights from the events are below:
Global Gaming Expo (G2E) Asia 2017
The event took place at the Venetian Macao and was the most successful show to date. This comes following the recent news that G2E Las Vegas was named as one of the top-25 fastest growing shows in attendance.
G2E Asia is “the industry event offering one-stop sourcing platform of gaming and entertainment products to the forward-thinking casino operators in Asia.” Attendance for this year’s show, as reported by GGR Asia, was record-breaking. Intergame Online also noted that this year’s G2E Asia “brushed off the incumbent contender [Macao Gaming Show] with a large, well-attended expo.”
In my keynote speech, I noted that:
G2E Asia 2017 will provide informative educational content, help build new relationships and foster new business opportunities in this dynamic region.
Additionally, GGR Asia highlighted that U.S. operators are “big contributors to Macau growth.” The article also highlighted AGA’s advocacy for legalized, regulated sports betting:
Sports betting is a great opportunity in the United States, a multi-billion opportunity to open up a market. And we are optimistic that we will be able to get that done.
Japan Gaming Congress (JgC)
The event is “a two-day educational forum that offered a clear, practical insight and understanding into the casino legislation in Japan.” In my keynote address, I discussed gaming’s perception in the U.S. and in markets where we do and don’t operate:
In the markets in which we operate, our properties are valued community partners that create jobs, attract tourists and support local and regional governments. In the markets in which we don’t operate, the questions asked about casinos are identical to those being asked in Japan.
I also discussed the benefits of an integrated resort, how casino gaming creates jobs and gaming’s strong community investments. For more information, please view AGA’s statement on last year’s passage of Japan’s IR Promotion bill, which read in part:
It is clear that the expansion of our industry in Japan will produce many of the same results it has in the United States: growth in jobs, tax revenues for community services, increased travel and tourism from domestic and foreign visitors — and vast economic expansion.
Regards,
Geoff Freeman
President and CEO
American Gaming Association
