Fall has arrived. This change of the seasons is certainly evident here at CEM headquarters, nestled neatly at the heart of the beautiful-but-frigid Fargo-Moorhead metroplex. But more prolific than browning leaves and arctic breezes, the stirrings of change are also afoot in the gaming industry. And unlike the coming eight months of winter here in North Dakota, these changes should prove much more pleasant.
This month’s feature article, submitted by our friends at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and based on the newly released Global Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2007-2011 report, projects in detail hefty increases in consumer spending on gaming through the end of this decade. Compiled by PwC’s Director of Research and Analysis Mary Lynn Palenik, the feature shows that these increases are expected to be across the board and worldwide. Leading the way is the United States, which constitutes almost 57 percent of the global total of casino spending. The growth rate, however, of other regions has surpassed that of the mature U.S. gaming market. Could this be evidence of a trend toward the globalization of gaming? Will traditionally domestic gaming companies look beyond U.S. borders for new growth opportunities? Regulatory constraints are the most obvious barrier to overcome, but as we all know, gaming is changing all the time and only time will tell.
Meanwhile, changes of a smaller scale are in the works at CEM. We have been busy meeting and brainstorming plans to improve the quality of what we do and charting our course for what’s ahead. Be it luck or skill, we have hit on something that fits both bills.
Immediately after CasinoFest2 last fall, the CEM staff realized that there was a need to develop conference content specifically for gaming executives and tribal leaders. These individuals need insight delivered from an elevated perspective, and they don’t want to be mired down with unnecessary details. They are looking for big-picture wisdom.
Without a doubt, our most popular CasinoFest track has been Slot Operations Management; that is, until now. For CasinoFest4, enrollment in our brand spanking new Casino Management Forum track is running at a dead heat with Slot Operations Management. While this track’s popularity didn’t come as a surprise, the depth and scope of that popularity did.
So we took that nugget of information back to these pages. Starting this month and going forward, we will open our monthly message to you with a new department, Gaming Management, at the front of the magazine. There’s no need to worry about losing the content you look forward to each month. You will still get everything you’ve come to expect from CEM, just a whole lot more.
We’ve also made one more big change at CEM; we’ve significantly expanded our circulation outside of the United States. (We couldn’t ignore our own feature article, now, could we?) The growth of gaming on a global basis is substantial and, with no end in sight, CEM plans to be wherever the action is.
We’re proud to bring you along on this adventure.
Peter Mead
Publisher, Casino Enterprise Management