The world of igaming and related events has evolved and matured, but it seems that it is still growing at a rapid pace thanks to the dedicated team of iGaming Business Events who manage to pull the rabbit out of the hat on every event and amaze the igaming industry each time.
We have managed to catch up with Alex Pratt, the Head of Business at iGaming Business to give us an insight on the results of the iGaming Super Show which was held in Amsterdam between the 23rd and the 26th of June 2015. Alex will also give you a heads up on the new event that everybody is looking forward to attend at the new location.
EEG: We’ve seen the pictures from the event a felt sorry about not being present at the event, would you help us out and explain the mood of the event? What was it like, it certainly looked very successful?
Alex: This was definitely our best Supeber Show to date and the mood certainly reflected this with a genuine “buzz” on the show floor, whether this was people doing business, creating relationships or getting excited about new opportunities they had discovered in the conference rooms.
EEG: Do you have any official numbers for attendance and maybe a stat of the increase in the number of visitors?
Alex: Indeed we do and the great news is the numbers were up across the board. Overall we were up on attendees making the total number through the door 3,906. This broke down to 33% affiliates and 67% non-affiliates which is excellent considering we have a lot more non affiliates at the event due to the b2b zone… Overall we had almost 1,300 affiliates which represents A LOT of traffic!
The most interesting trend is the volume of affiliate that are now working in the binary and FX markets (37% of attendees) as well as iGaming, with binary representing the third most popular vertical to promote after casino (58% of attendees) and sports (45% of attendees)
Below are a few charts on our attendees:
Top 25 countries for affiliate attendees by %
EEG: What was the feedback that you’ve received from the exhibitors or maybe delegates?
Alex: We are currently collating all the feedback from the event but generally it is really positive and in some cases amazing for example Bet365 described it as their best Amsterdam event ever!
This is really a culmination of 5 years of hard work combined with constantly changing the event based on the feedback and I feel we now have something really unique where you have the entire industry meeting under one roof for a multitude of conferences and events which you don’t see at any other event in the sector.
EEG: We have seen of lot of friendly faces from big brands. What was the key aspect which everyone appreciated and pointed at the event?
Alex: People are so different in terms of what they expect and want from an event so I wouldn’t say there was a specific aspect that they appreciated but a multitude of things. Generally speaking though we had lots of positive feedback on the fact the hall was a lot bigger with lots more exhibitors and more places to meet, plus the way we now have multiple networking events targeted at specific niche groups in the sector.
In addition the conference sessions and speakers came up a lot which isn’t surprising considering the huge effort the team put into this and sheer volume of sessions that take place over the two days.
EEG: Great to hear the conference sessions were success. The lineup was amazing, what were your personal highlights?
Alex: With over 100 speakers and 8 conferences it was impossible to see every session but fortunately we recorded them and I am quickly trying to now watch them all in the iGaming Business Intelligence Centre and I have to say the sessions I have seen so far have been extremely impressive…. Personal highlights for me were the eSports session by Newzoo as I find the market fascinating, the session on why the brain likes games and the Asian focused sessions by Patrick Jay and David Jung. In addition the affiliate panel discussing issues was great although we could have done with a few more hours to really hash out what was discussed.
I should also point out the entire payment solutions track was brilliant as this was an area where my knowledge wasn’t the greatest and the sessions were extremely informative and interesting from a personal perspective. I still have a few more tracks to watch including the IMGL and acquisition tracks which I expect to be equally great.
EEG: How about the networking parties, were they packed with quality people enjoying themselves?
Alex: These were amazing this year because we didn’t just have one party every night but instead had a variety of events happening such as niche focused meet ups for niche groups like bingo and sports betting but also unique ideas like a dinner for the payments industry at the Supper Club.
Of course we still had the main parties and they were packed with industry peeps partying till the early hours! Spot Option hired Club Air on the second night and flew in some incredible DJs that literally blew the roof off and was the talk of the event the next day plus we closed the event off with the regular closing party we orgainse at the Euro Pub and Majestic which is an amazing outdoor networking drinks bang on Dam Square.
We also mustn’t forget the wind down session the day after the event ends (usually Sunday Session) which was kindly sponsored by Intertops again. This took place both on a man-made beach in the sun as well as on a number of canal boats loaded with booze and music which took people on a tour round the maze of canals in Amsterdam.
EEG: With all the excitement of the summer upon us, which is the next conference you guys organize and what are the targets for this year?
Alex: Next event is the Berlin Affiliate Conference which will be our first time in the city. At the moment the event is looking like it will surpass our previous targets in terms of both attendees and exhibitors which I know I always say but we do always seem to keep getting bigger!
I think what’s appealing is Berlin is a new city and one that is really cool to visit no matter what you are into plus its super easy to get to from all over Europe. On top of this its tech central and home to a lot of affiliates that aren’t necessarily in iGaming so offers a big opportunity to get new faces into the show.
EEG: We are very pleased to have your company as a media partner and we certainly hope that by adding and covering your events we can bring a new audience and shape the igaming industry in the Eastern and Central Europe. Any last words, maybe a dedication to the partners that you guys have?
Alex: You know I love your site and what you are doing to boost the Eastern and Central European iGaming market so thanks again for giving us profile and supporting us and the events. I look forward to making the market massive and getting one of our events into the region soon!
