The British Gambling Commission has issued figures which show that the market currently contains 248,000 gaming machines, but that in almost all sectors of the market, the numbers have fallen in the past year.
The report covers the year to March 31, 2009, and shows that the largest single sector remains Category C (AWP machines), with 121,000 pieces of equipment in operation, but that figure is 7.6 per cent down on the previous year. In Category D (also AWPs, but designed for seaside arcades with lower stakes and prizes) there are 71,000 machines in operation, down 1.6 per cent.
The increases come in casino machines (B1), although the established base is small, at 2,500, but that is up 24 per cent, and B2 (fixed odds betting terminals or FOBTs) with 27,500 machines, up 1.9 per cent. There are B3 and B4 machines which go into members’ clubs which total 26,800, both sectors showing a decrease in numbers.
The figures come as an appendix to the already-released annual report of the Commission. It shows that there are fewer operating certificates in circulation, down sharply from 439 to 367 and fewer machine manufacturers, down from 93 to 76. But there are more adult gaming centres (arcades with payout machines), up from 601 to 632.
