ICE 2024 smashes all records and provides a platform to build on in Barcelona s394j
ICE 2024 is over, but the echoes of the world’s biggest gaming event are still reverberating. We bring you an interview with Stuart Hunter, Managing Director, Clarion Gaming, to find out what ICE 2024 London meant for the organiser, visitors and exhibitors alike, what the highlights were and how high the bar was set for ICE 2025 Barcelona. 6qt18
Stuart Hunter j62b
What is the sentiment of yours regarding the fact that ICE 2024 was the last edition in London?
ICE 2024 was a very poignant experience as the industry reflected on close to nine decades of being in London but at the same time looked forward with excitement and anticipation about the next chapter opening in Barcelona in January 2025. ICE and iGB were what I described as being ‘I was there’ events and I am personally hugely grateful to everyone in the industry for creating an experience which was full of energy and excitement. Our exhibitors made a herculean effort to bid farewell to London in style and from all of the we received at show and from subsequent emails and conversations it connected with everyone who was present. This level of positivity provides the perfect platform for the ICE and iGB brands to look forwards in readiness for Barcelona 2025. It’s important to recognise and be respectful of the show’s history but ICE and iGB have always looked forward and embraced the future with energy, enthusiasm and excitement.
ICE 2024
What was the big numbers of this edition of ICE?
In of attendance figures we are currently going through the process to establish the number of unique attendees and the total number of show visits. What I can confirm is that we will declare a record attendance in excess of 45,000 unique attendees: visitation which includes delegates attending on more than one day will be in excess of 90,000. On the opening day alone we welcomed over 32,000 industry professionals to ICE – which is a phenomenal figure.
Which was characteristic for this edition of ICE?
With an event the size, substance and scale of ICE I don’t know how instructive it is to focus on a single characteristic. However, if you identify the uniqueness of ICE it would be its internationalism: very few live events in any sector are as truly global as ICE and no gaming event comes anywhere near it in of attracting visitors from every corner of the globe.
Every jurisdiction and every gaming vertical were catered for at ICE and the show floor was bursting with energy, opportunity, innovation, connections and insight. Having all of these touch points in the same space enabled the global industry to move forward with focus and optimism – empowered by the knowledge and connections to make great outcomes happen. Topics such as emerging markets, new tech, safer gambling, de&I, investment opportunities and start-ups underpinned by the tens of thousands of product launches that took place were all characteristics of ICE and were represented in abundance. Significantly, there was also a shared desire to create a sustainable industry to be proud of.
ICE London 2024
What was the of exhibitors and visitors this year?
Each year we commission an extensive and independent programme of research conducted amongst both exhibitors and visitors. That process is currently underway and it needs to run its course for me to share the findings. What I can say is that the headline figures are hugely encouraging. The response rates are unprecedented which shows a community of customers that’s really engaged with the brands. In of the satisfaction rating ICE is enjoying an approval score of 95 (out of 100) compared to the average for all UK-based business-to-business events of around 50. Whilst that’s really satisfying we are very aware that the bar has been set for Barcelona 2025. The entire team is confident that we can maintain and improve on what London has delivered. Make no mistake these are hugely exciting times for everyone that’s involved in the industry.
At ICE VOX CONFERENCES was a lots of theme to debate. On what was the main focus this year?
This year’s edition of ICE VOX was widely acclaimed for being the most impressive on record. It comprised three high profile conferences – the World Regulatory Briefing (WrB) the International Casino Conference (ICC) and the Esports Betting Conference which were held in addition to four deep-dive workshops covering Safer Gaming, Entering New Markets, the iGaming Customer Journey and Innovating Lotteries. In total VOX featured expert insights from more than 150 thought leaders, policy-makers, industry commentators, trade body CEOs and politicians which isa record number. ICE VOX succeeded in delivering MORE content and inspiration than ever before making it one of those extremely rare events which industry leaders simply don’t miss. ICE VOX was described by award winning former Financial Times journalist Nadine Dereza as being the Davos of Gaming a description which explains why it was so memorable and why it’s such an important part of the overall ICE experience.
