The World Game Protection Conference in Las Vegas has been canceled and won’t be held until sometime in 2021, with a new target date in March.
The conference was originally scheduled for last March, but was moved to October 5–8 after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a global pandemic and the U.S. enacted a travel ban on flights from Europe. The conference was supposed to take place at the Tropicana Las Vegas, but unlike other properties on the Las Vegas Strip, it has yet to reopen.
Conference founder Willy Allison, who has been a vocal proponent of customers wearing masks and critical of the casino industry and state gaming officials for their handling of the coronavirus, made the announcement in an email to attendees.
“The bottom line is we are in the middle of a global pandemic and it is not safe for people to gather inside in large groups,” Allison said. “I didn’t consult with health experts or government authorities. I just feel it’s the right thing to do until this thing blows over.”
Allison said he thought the coronavirus would have been contained by now, but with new cases rising across the nation and Nevada currently limiting gatherings to no more than 50 people, that makes it difficult to schedule an event with hundreds of people from around the world.
“With a lack of a coordinated national plan, rising infection rates, and the ‘gone–wild’ crowd emerging from hibernation with cocktails blazing, I don’t see things getting back to normal this year,” Allison said. “Even if a vaccine were discovered tomorrow, it would not be ready for the public before October.”
Allison said he considered a virtual conference, but that wasn’t an option, given that the event is about connecting people face to face. Refunds will be issued.
The conference was set to consider the impact of artificial intelligence, organized slot cheating and what casino security has learned over 20 years. Allison said those will still be a focus of the 2021 program, along with lessons about the coronavirus as it relates to game protection.
