This year's G2E show was epic to say the least. Great new technology, huge stands, and a warm welcome to all visitors from one of the world's most exciting industries. You can read the first part of Casino International's G2E show report starting on page 34 if you couldn't make it to Vegas.

Octavian and eBet have signed a Heads of Agreement that will see the Australian Stock Exchange-listed eBet Limited acquire Octavian Gaming Systems. The deal, if agreed by shareholders, will result in a merger of the two companies’ operations and the creation of a major international gaming systems company.

All gambling in Kazakhstan is to be restricted to two towns – Kapshagai and Shchuchinsk – it has been announced. From January 1, 2007, casino operators, along with bookmakers and slot halls, will be forced to move to either Shchuchinsk, in the north of the country, or Kapshagai, in the south-west.

IGT has acquired certain intellectual property from Novomatic AG, the Austrian-based global gaming company, for use in IGT’s M-P Series multi-station gaming products.

Bally Technologies Aristocrat Technologies have agreed to cooperatively develop and market a common download system that manages configuration and content download in accordance with Gaming Standards Association (GSA), G2S and S2S protocols.

Konami Gaming of Las Vegas and Phoenix-based Atronic have entered into a multiyear OEM agreement. Atronic will now develop and market its new stepper product Passion Slots based on Konami Gaming’s proven software and hardware platforms.

Danoptra Holdings and Aristocrat Leisure have today announced their intention to work together on a joint development for a new gaming product targeted at the UK Betting Industry.

Suzo-Happ have acquired Starpoint Developments Ltd., a UK-based supplier of electro-mechanical devices used in the gaming and amusement markets.

Recently the gaming floors of Monte Carlo’s casinos have been enriched with a variety of new products from WMS Gaming.

Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) has announced it has issued the first communication certificates for casinos in Macau.

GamCare’s board has announced the appointment of Nicola Crewe- Read (nee Weiner) as Director of Communications with immediate effect. Nicola assumes responsibility for all of GamCare’s media relationships and will be the first point of contact for all press enquiries.

Leading Slovakian casino operator Casinos Slovakia has signed a contract for the provision of an Interactive Video Terminal (iVT) solution with ACE Interactive.

Heber Limited, designers and manufacturers of electronic control systems for the Gaming and Amusement industry, presented their 500,000th gaming controller to Casino Technology at G2E, Las Vegas.

Bally Technologies has engaged Credit Suisse Securities (USA) to evaluate the potential sale of Rainbow Casino located in Vicksburg.

Cantor Gaming has signed a slot content licensing agreement with Atronic Americas which means Cantor’s mobile gaming system will be the exclusive carrier of Atronic’s mobile slot games in Nevada and other US jurisdictions.

eCOGRA has appointed Bill Henbrey, a highly experienced leisure and gaming financial executive as an additional independent director on its Board.

Leisure Link, the UK’s leading machine operator and part of Inspired Gaming Group plc, the leading player in the Open Server- Based Gaming (SBG) market, has won the service contract with Gala Coral Group for all of its gaming machines and terminals for a further five years and extended the contract to cover the entire Gala Casino and Gala Bingo estates.

The August opening of Olympic Entertainment Group’s first Casino in Belarus has added another country to the expanding install base of Progressive Gaming’s CasinoLink Enterprise Edition system.

eCOGRA (eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance), the online gambling industry’s independent player protection and standards authority, has offered to lend its regulatory experience to the UK Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

Bally Technologies has made four new appointments to strengthen its international sales force.

Grosvenor Casinos is continuing its support for regional poker tournaments in the UK, recently hosting a successful 10-week event in Wasall, west midlands. Starting on September 1, Grosvenor Casino Walsall started its latest poker league: The Eliminator. The concept was unique; “Only the best progress!”

Open on September 29, the new casino of the Spielbanken Sachsen- Anhalt GmbH, Wernigerode, is in a central location, in the heart of the medieval town. There, visitors can find state-of-the-art gaming equipment from Austrian Gaming Industries GmbH (AGI) to enjoy.

Have you ever entered a building and seen old photographs and paintings on the walls? Did you have a sense of the endless life stories that these silent characters could tell?

I write this from Las Vegas, where we are ‘doing’ the G2E, the world’s leading gaming expo. As is usual during this time of the year, we are meeting with friends from the four corners of the globe. In this, as in other things, this annual event is truly global.

There is no world event that has obtained results of outstanding growth year-on-year like SAGSE Buenos Aires. Surely it is about time a special prize is awarded to Monografie S.A., organizers of the Argentine gaming show.

Over one year ago, on 4 October 2005, the lower House of the Mexican Parliament filed constitutional charges against the Federal Government for the previous month publishing a Presidential decree approving the Regulation of the Federal Gaming and Betting Law, based on the 1949 law, while the new law was still being debated.

A six-month project started last month in a state-of-the-art assembly facility in Bogotá. Spanish firm Codere is using proprietary upgrade kits form Cyberview Technology to provide a total renovation of its mechanical reel cabinets into modern touch-screen video terminals with server-based downloadable gaming capability.

At the beginning of last month, Judge Hadolff Ascencio, presiding on Santiago’s Sixth Civil Court, suspended the casino licensing process for the Valparaiso Region in Chile.

Costa Rica and Antigua & Barbuda, small countries in the Central American Caribbean region, are putting their foot down against the nefarious anti gambling online legislation passed by USA Congress last month.

FADJA 2007 will open on Wednesday 11 April and run for two days in the Great Room of Corferias Convention Centre in Santa Fe, Bogotá. 70% of exhibition space has been contracted already and the remaining 30% is under negotiation.

CryptoLogic are among the world’s top software providers for the online casino industry, providing turnkey solutions in seven languages to blue-chip licensees. Jon Bruford found out about the company from Justin Thouin, Vice President - Casino, and what they’re doing about the recent US legislation.

Blackpool and Fylde College started a course to train local people in casino skills when the UK government announced plans to expand and overhaul the country’s casino industry – and even if the area does not get the supercasino license, it now has a training centre which could change the recruitment policies for casinos in the UK for good.

This was the big one, and pre-show the main thinking seemed to be that it would be dominated by the downloadable gaming systems that were tantalisingly previewed last year. Well, that did play a big part, but there was so much more to Global Gaming Expo 2006. So much more, and the next year is certain to be an immensely exciting one on casino floors worldwide.