For such a small industry we sure as hell have a lot of conferences. Throughout one calendar year there are literally hundreds of events of all sizes, focuses, locations and layouts, something that makes choosing the top conferences of the year a rather difficult task. Seeing as we at CalvinAyre.com attend more conferences than just about anyone except for Melissa Blau, we hope you’ll learn something from our top conference picks of 2013.
The potential of Bitcoin is something we keep hearing about all over the news and at gambling conferences around the world. Bitcoin dedicated conferences are popping up everywhere and this year’s London event attracted a prestigious crowd of entrepreneurs, innovators and savvy professionals looking to learn more about the virtual currency. In addition to providing some incredibly stimulating content, the view from the 39th floor of Canary Wharf’s One Canada Square was a treat in itself.
Everyone knows that the Asian market is a goldmine, but only a select few know how to navigate the complexities of this market. The iGaming Asia Congress was the only event this year that provided an intimate platform for operators, service providers, regulators and beyond to learn how to enter the Asian gambling market.Ros Wade and Beacon Events lived up to their reputation and took outstanding care of their iGA delegates, sponsors and media partners with plenty of food, networking opportunities and good old fashioned hospitality.
There has finally been some action in the regulated American online gambling market and we’re all hoping there’s a lot more to come. iGaming North America was a well organized event put together by industry veterans and included sessions for American and tribal organizations who want to take advantage of regulated online gambling in the US.Just about every delegate learned something new at this event.
7. Mobile and Tablet Gambling Summit
Mobile is the future of online gambling. Mobile and tablet strategy and optimization is a must for all online gambling operators and even affiliates who want to remain competitive, hence the popularity and timeliness of this niche conference.Organizers Bullet Business are known for inviting gamblers on stage to interact with delegates and for this year’s event, four mobile sports bettors shared their feedback from a player perspective and provided outstanding value to the crowd.
Clarion’s EiG has just completed its twelfth year and in order to keep up with the times, a number of features were added to the agenda including EiG TV, more interactive sessions, expansion beyond Europe and additional support for start ups and online gambling industry innovation. While some complained that EiG this year was pricy, we’re hopeful Clarion will do what they can to accommodate more delegates in the future and that they’ll invite Boris Becker back for next year.
5. G2E Asia
G2E Asia, sister event to G2E Vegas, made its debut in 2007 and has been growing exponentially ever since. With endless displays of massive electronic table games, card shufflers, fast action baccarat tables, Chinese dragons, slot machines with Chinese characters, flashing lights, spinning wheels and a lot more for your senses, G2E Asia 2013 served as the one stop shop for the latest and greatest technology in Macau and the greater Asian gambling market.
There are two things about the iGaming SUPER Show 2013 that we loved: 1) It was in Amsterdam and 2) It was free to attend. This year’s SUPER Show encompassed seven “mini conferences” and was the largest event of the year for the online gambling industry as a whole. Delegates were pleased to find a high quality selection of sessions and an expo floor with more activity than years previous, plus there were plenty of conference parties. We do miss the CalvinAyre.com anniversary blowouts, though.
Screw the Super Bowl, the end of January and now early February time frame is infamous for its London gambling conference week. ICE is so popular that awards ceremonies and annual parties take place in and around the conference, consistently bringing in delegates from every corner of the globe and 2013 was no different. ICE moved from Earl’s Court to ExCeL this year, a move that broke a lot of nostalgic hearts but satisfied our stomachs because the food options are way better at ExCeL than Earl’s.
Hands down, G2E Vegas had the most impressive, expensive and creative booth displays of 2013. This year we encountered dozens of wandering zombies, midgets, models, Avatar characters, CEO appearances, famous poker pros, all the themed slots you could possibly imagine and literally so much more, just by cruising the enormous expo floor.The evenings were full of cocktail hours, sponsored parties, dinners, recreational gambling and anything else our hearts desired because we were in Vegas, baby.
1. London Affiliate Conference (LAC)
What do actor David Hasselhoff and darts pro James Wade have in common? LAC 2013! Aside from the celebrity appearances, this conference was the must attend event of the year for the online gambling affiliate industry. It was fun. It was social. It was expertly organized. The expo floor was full of freebies. There were parties every night. Lunch was free. Open bar from 3pm. What else could you ever ask for in an online gambling industry conference?
