As you read this, the casino industry gears up for the ICE show in London, breathing a sigh of relief that EELEX moved to September. Thoughts turn to Christmas for those that celebrate it, or perhaps just to some much-needed time off.

Harrah's, the world's largest casino operator, has apparently accepted a $17.1bn bid from two private equity firms for the company. The Las Vegas-based organisation has okayed a revised £90 a share offer from Apollo Management and Texas Pacific Group, which brings to a head more than eight weeks of negotiations between the parties.

The licence for the second gaming venue in Singapore has been given to Genting International, beating off competition from Kerzner International and Eighth Wonder with a $3.38billion bid inn conjunction with Star Cruises.

Aristocrat Technologies Europe has installed the very first PokerProT table into Europe. The successful installation into Aspers Casino in Newcastle, one of the leading gaming operators in the UK, marks Aristocrat’s entry into the European multi-station gaming market.

Online bookmaker Blue Square and Grosvenor Casinos, both part of the Rank Group, have announced the launch of the first major UK-only poker tour to hit our shores. This new tour – the largest in the UK, with a £4m total prize pool – will commence in January 2007 and tour different Grosvenor casinos each month.

WMS has announced the appointment of Stuart Gribble to the International Sales team representing South East Asia, which includes Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Aristocrat has recruited Marcus Honney, previously with TCSJohnHuxley, as the new Sales Director for Europe. Marcus’s role at Aristocrat is primarily to look at and improve slot sales.

Gaming Support has announced the appointment of John Van Hoove as Vice President of Sales for the North American market. In this capacity, Van Hoove will lead the North American Sales operations from the company’s offices in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Bally technologies has announced the appointment to the company’s board of Robert L. Guido, to fill a vacancy. Guido, who has been affirmatively determined by the Company's Board of Directors to be an independent director, will also serve on the Company's Audit Committee.

Octavian International and Hot Games have signed a Heads of Agreement to jointly develop Section 31 and Section 34 server-based games for the UK AWP market.

Novomatic Group and Austrian Gaming Industries GmbH (AGI) showed an extensive product range at this year’s Chile Casinos, in early December, Santiago de Chile, the company says.

Next Gaming SA has announced the appointment of James Illingworth as Director of Sales, International. Gianfranco Scordato, Managing Director of Next Gaming SA has high hopes for the appointment, and plenty of confidence that they have the right man for the job.

MEI has promoted Mark Greenawalt to the position of European Gaming Director. The former US-based Director of Gaming Sales (Eastern Region) will be relocating to MEI’s UK headquarters in Winnersh, Berkshire where he will head up the European Gaming Team.

A newly-established dedicated team is set to monitor the 91 online casinos and 21 poker rooms accredited under the 'Play It Safe' seal by eCommerce and Online Gaming Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA).

The new DPX-117, Densitron say, is the first industrial computer board to offer today’s latest dual-core CPU technology on a board specifically designed for the gaming industry.

Following the recent news of the proposed acquisition of Octavian by the Australian Stock Exchange-listed eBet, Octavian has announced a number of staff moves. The new roles, said CEO Harmen Brenninkmeijer, “are part of Octavian’s strategic plan to position the new extended company for the next phase of its global growth”.

WMS Gaming International was awarded The SAGSE Trophy at the Gran Gala del Juego dinner held at the SAGSE show in Buenos Aires in October.

English Premiership club Reading FC’s players Glen Little, Steve Sidwell, Nicky Shorey, plus Brentford FC striker Lloyd Owusu helped celebrate the re-launch of the Reading Sporting Club Casino.

November was a busy month for American citizens and the gaming industry in the United States. Almost 80 million people, including my husband Norman and I, went to the polls to vote their collective will.

Well, I think that it is best we do away with bad news first. I’m writing this piece from Lima, the Americas’ gastronomic capital, after a great lunch well lubricated with a super Pisco Sour, and wish to finish with the sour note on the ChileCasinos 2006 fiasco once and for all. It was truly a pity to hear that the industry expo and conference mainly fell foul of exhibitors’ apprehension.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) announced the opening of the Crowne Plaza Maruma Maracaibo Casino and Convention Center, in Venezuela’s second city, which is the heart of the country’s oil and petroleum industry.

The Amazon Room at the Hotel JW Marriott Quito is the place chosen by the firm 3A Productions for the start of the second FADJA Round of Business on 22 February 2007.

The Chilean Senate approved by 24 votes, with two abstentions, the Lower House project to postpone the casino licensing process.

In an interview with the local media in mid December, the Director of Casino and Slot Machine Gaming at the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism (MINCETUR) commented that the Peruvian state should maintain the 12% tax at present levied on gross gaming revenue. Under the latest modification to the gaming law, the tax will be replaced from 1 January 2007 with income tax 12% above the norm.

In front of over 250 gaming operators from all over Colombia and renowned national gaming businesses, International Game Technology (IGT) formally introduced its brand and officially launched its most recent product for the Latin American market – the TRIMLINE slot machines.

With the announcement that leading gaming multinationals have chosen SAGSE Centroamerica 2007 as ‘the exhibition of excellence’ for the region, which now includes the Caribbean, the organisers report that WMS, Aristocrat, Ainsworth, Fair Play, Bally, GPI, Orion, Smart Games, Atronic, Unidesa, Digideal, Euro Games Technology, Zero Labs, Gaming Technology, Betstone, KSI, Hispania Casino Equipment, GEM, Noble Gaming and others will be exhibiting in the Atlapa Convention Center in Panama on 14-15 June.

There are few milestones in the gaming industry such as the 10th Anniversary of Brazilian-based GAMES magazine. In a way it may have been owing to our own CASINO INTERNATIONAL’s efforts in the Latin America industry all those years back, as practically co-founders of Sao Paulo’s Salex expo, that first touched the imagination of journalist Carlos Cardama so that on 15 January 1997 he set out on a media adventure with much trepidation and loads of hope.

G2E was a big show for Atronic; they had an unsurprisingly large stand, with a surprising amount of new licenses and very impressive new slots.

They are recognised as innovators in currency validation technology, with offices worldwide and well-respected product that can service more than 50 currencies. But company CEO Stephen Nevitt says that's not enough - and he expects to oversee a period of significant growth as GPT begins to realise its true potential in the global currency validation market.

At the ICE Show in London Alfastreet will be presenting the whole range of multi-players including M line (double terminals that can be arranged in various layouts and linked to fully automated roulette wheel, Dice game or Live roulette wheel), SG line single terminals, newly designed SL line single terminals and additional TT Bar Top line terminals which can be incorporated into bar tables or be presented as stand-alone bar extension terminals.

3M UK will be demonstrating a new touch screen system, the MicroTouch Capacitive TouchSense System, using Immersion’s TouchSense tactile feedback, at ICE.

One year on from its unveiling at ICE2006, Ardac Elite, Money Controls’ revolutionary bill and ticket acceptor, is set to take centre-stage at ICE2007.

As the gaming industry’s fastest growing product segment, specialty table games and side bets represent an important part of the overall casino table game mix.

Aristocrat Technologies Europe will be launching a sensational range of new games at ICE 2007. Look out for the exciting addition to the Zorro licensed range, the Zorro Link, as well as more than 20 new stand-alone games.

Camlock is no stranger to those in the gaming sector seeking uncompromising, secure and reliable locks to protect their profits. However, ICE is a new location for Camlock, having previously exhibited at ATEI for many years.

When your customers want to pay for a product or service using your latest terminal you want them to have the best and most reliable service – fast and immediate acceptance of their money. And when you go and collect the cash you want it to be absolutely correct.

In response to feedback from OEM slot manufacturers, MEI is introducing a new larger capacity version of the note acceptor. The MEI CASHFLOW SCM is designed to lengthen the time period between collections during periods of high traffic, providing capacity for up to one thousand notes and TITO tickets.

Project, the London-based games developer, will be returning to its roots when it makes its debut appearance at January’s ICE spectacular. The company, which began life over 20 years ago exporting gaming equipment and consulting on prestigious casino developments in Turkey, has embraced what Managing Director Anthony Boulton describes as the fusion of gaming markets.

Signs4u is going through an exciting period, having recently expanded to a staff of 25 to accommodate additional work that has been flooding in.

At the exhibition, Forge Europa will be launching a new range of standard and custom designed LED assemblies along with new product developments such as aLED high power LED lighting assemblies, high intensity LEDs and long life LED technology.

The Barcelona-based company will give the latest proof of its international ambitions showing machines for different European Casino and AWP legislations such as UK section 31, AWP’s for Czech Republic, Hungary and Italy as well as special casino versions for Ukraine, Bulgaria and some South American markets.

FEE Junkets operates the FEE Club, a worldwide gaming club that organises complimentary gaming trips for its members to FEE’s own and other prestigious casinos around the world.

New multi-game that collects the top performing video slot games from the company for 2006 will be launched by Casino Technology at ICE. Implemented in the hi-end GEMINI cabinet, recognised for its luxury appeal and comfort, Multi Gemini will give players more diversity coupled with great thrills.

Novomatic Group of Companies starts an innovation offensive with its new Coolfire II platform and spectacular multi-player products at ICE 2007.

Every new year brings something new and exciting. 2007 is to bring brand new opportunities for the Bulgarian company Gaming Technologies at the long-anticipated ICE show.

Euro Games Technology, the Bulgarian manufacturer of video slot games and casino equipment is going to unveil at ICE 2007 its completely new exquisite cabinet – VEGA Vision.

Publisher of hundreds of gambling research papers, winner of numerous research awards and prizes for his ‘outstanding scholarly contributions to the field of gambling research’, few people can offer the claim ‘gambling expert’ as legitimately as Dr. Mark Griffiths, Professor of Gambling Studies at the UK’s Nottingham Trent University, and Director of the International Gaming Research Unit. Paul Reaney finds out more about the country’s most published gambling academic.