As an organizer, experiencing the run-up to an event is always fun. Getting a daily report of who is attending is always a great indication of what the event will be like and EiG is no exception. There are lots of key veterans coming and, as we’ve experienced at most of our events in the past year, many new faces. And the registrations are coming in like crazy.

As of today, we’ve got over 860 people registered representing over 432 companies, governments, or other entities. And it’s a diverse crowd geographically with over 53 countries represented.

So, clearly, this will be an opportunity to learn, debate, view new products, network, get some business done, catch up with old friends, meet new ones and just have some fun. If you haven’t already registered, beat the rush on site and do it now….online at http://www.eigexpo.com/2008/index.cfm?page=register.

See you there.

Sue

One of the things I love most about our industry events is the chance to hear from industry leaders. That’s especially true when you add in a free-form format where the debate, disagreements and diatribes flow with the wind.

The 2008 EiG is offering a double-header of those sessions on the first day in Barcelona. We’ve got two sessions, one of operator CEOs and one for software suppliers. The line-up is as follows:

So as you can see, we’ve amassed the cream of the crop to give you their perspectives of where we are and where we’re headed as an industry. These are uncertain times in terms of the global economy and the gambling industry, particularly the land-based side, is now well aware of that. So we’ll get the take of these experts on how they hope their companies will fare in the coming years.

Operators Forum: Jim Ryan (PartyGaming), Norbert Teufelberger (bwin), Jez San (PKR), Mark Blandford (formerly SportingBet), Arthur Wang (Gigamedia), Gigi Levy (888)

Suppliers Forum: David Loveday (Orbis), Brian Hadfield (CryptoLogic), Mor Weizer (Playtech), Paul Mathews (WagerWorks), Martin Lerby (Ongame)

Without giving away their secrets, we also hope to hear what’s coming down the pike in terms of products and how we can hope to attract new players to this still emerging entertainment option. How do we keep the innovations coming so that products remain fresh and interesting for the up and coming young audience who’s been reared on high action, high visual games?

As we gear up for these discussions, let us know what you’d like to hear from these distinguished industry veterans. If you’ve got a question to get into the mix, email me at sue.schneider at clariongaming dot com.

By now you've hopefully heard that for the second consecutive year, there will be a friendly footie match the day prior to the start of EiG.  But what you may not know, is that it is intended to be coed.  Gender neutral.  Whatever you want to call it is fine, just as long as it's known that we need more female players!  Right now, there are only two women signed up to play - myself and Sue Schneider.  And that's not ok.  Last year we were the only two girls playing and while we held our own amongst the manly men, it's not a stretch to say that it would be much more interesting if we could bulk up those numbers a bit closer to even.  Or just more than us two.  See, Sue and I play together every Tuesday as it is and we would love to see more industry chicas participate, if for no other reason than to take some of the attention away from ourselves.

I know it's not as common in Europe for women to play football, but I know there are some out there because I've seen them in person.  The first time we put this soccer tournament together was for the 2007 ICE event and each of the teams had at least one girl.  InterCasino, I'm looking at you! 

So, if you or some lovely lady you know is interested in playing, please email us to join in.  There's no skill level requirement, it's just for fun.  And trust me when I say there are perks beyond that of getting a bit of exercise!

I’m excited to know that the EiG attendees will be exposed to the musing of Bruno Guissani. I had a chance to speak with him by phone this spring as we were considering him as a keynote speaker and he’s an impressive guy. As you can see from his bio, he is the European Director of TED (Technology Entertainment Design) which has quite a buzz among events on the internet. And, among other past and current duties, he was the Head of Online Strategy at the World Economic Forum in Davos where thought leaders gather. When it comes to how the internet is being utilized by our end-users, he’s the master of spotting trends and seeing how the users are really driving the online experience these days. So I look forward to seeing exactly how he puts the i-gaming industry in context on the overall growth of the web. Don’t miss it!

Today I got a text from a friend with a very simple question: If an invitation says smart casual, would you expect everyone in attendance to be wearing a suit?  My feeling on this is that suit = business attire and has nothing whatsoever to do with the word casual and so that was how I replied.  But, I wonder...am I way off the mark on this?  I'd comment about the differences between American and European fashion sense, but anyone that's ever stood in a U.S. airport's customs line knows there's an impassable chasm between the two. 

The simple fact is that the definition changes as the industry changes.  I've been going to i-gaming conferences since the 2000 GIGSE and I can tell you that event had a heavy dose of jeans and Hawaiian shirt-wearing types and was a far cry from say, the 2007 EiG where suits were the fashion mainstay.  The industry has evolved and a side effect has been the influx of suits. 

Impromptu poll: If an event specifies dress as smart casual, would you don your Armani three piece or opt instead for your high-end jeans and dapper button-down?