The FER trade show opens in Madrid today to an uncertain three-day run. The exhibition, the only annual trade show for the 240,000-AWP Spanish market, is being held against a background of fragile recovery in the Spanish economy.
That recovery will be welcomed by the exhibitors, hoping that the 5,000-plus Spanish operators – mostly with arcades – will be encouraged to reinvest in some new equipment. With cashbox returns down 30 per cent over the past three years and bankruptcies and mergers common among operators, it will take some persuasive selling by suppliers to see reinvestment so soon.
Spain, however, has the most diverse market, with AWPs across all 17 of the jurisdictions and many also permitting bingo clubs, automated bingo games and automated casino table games into arcades. The majority of jurisdictions are now permitting AWPs with digital operation while a few still favour the old-fashioned hybrid reels-to-feature half-measures.
There is considerable international interest in what happens in Spain, understandable with such a large market. Machines from Germany, Austria, the UK and the Netherlands all compete for a share in the market, chipping away at the majority holdings of the big two in Spain, Cirsa and Franco.
