National and international exhibitors met at what is now a traditional event for the European professionals, which this year celebrated its 26th anniversary. Enrique Osorio, deputy treasury minister in the Madrid regional government, was charged with cutting the tape at the opening ceremony, which was also attended by the people responsible for gaming from several other regional governments, among whom were those from Madrid, Andalusia, Catalonia, the Basque Country, Galicia and Castilla y León, together with the major manufacturers and directors of the associations representing the amusement sector, arcades, casinos and bingo halls.

During the three days of the fair, according to organisational sources, all expectations for participation and attendance were surpassed, these being based on the numbers taken from previous events. In all, 520 companies from a total of 52 countries took part, of which 315 were foreign firms, distributed over 155 stands occupying an exhibitor area of nearly 16,000 square metres. There were 16,907 professional visitors recorded too, of whom 20 per cent were from outside Spain. Among the visitors of note who attended the event was Hajime Satoni, the President of Sega, the Japanese multinational company, who visited FER Interazar at the invitation of the Spanish company MGA-New Park, which markets throughout Spain many of the models from this world leader in the production of simulation and video games. Hajime Satoni was accompanied by his son, Haruki Satoni, who is responsible for the Sega operation in America. Both congratulated Jaime Sanahuja, President of MGA, on his stand at the Madrid fair and expressed their admiration for the volume and overall quality of the whole exhibition.

For the first time at a Spanish show, we were able to see products and companies dedicated to online betting. The increasing interest in this type of market, which has scarcely begun to be legislated in Spain, has caused several of the most important Spanish companies to sign agreements with specialist foreign companies. This has been the case with the Orenes Group, which has reached an agreement with a specialist company in the betting sector, Betbull. The agreement binds both organisations in a 50/50 venture with an equal shareholding, capital investment and distribution of profits. Both companies are committed to actively pursuing licensing applications for sporting bets in all the Spanish autonomous regions, to conform with their respective regulations. Similarly, an agreement was signed during the fair between Ekasa and the British company Betfred. The Ekasa firm (Euskal Kirol Apustuak) consists of 100 Basque operators of machines for amusement and games of chance, and was created four years ago to apply for licences for sporting bets for operators in the Basque Country. For its part, the British company owned by Fred Done, is one of the major firms in this sector in the United Kingdom, with 5,000 employees and 600 betting shops. On their stand both companies promoted the bet validating machine which has been developed by the Basque company using its own technology. José Manuel Fernandez, President of Ekasa and Fred Done of Betfred signed the agreement.

This was not the only agreement reached during FER Interazar. Cocamatic obtained the exclusive rights in Spain for Time Crisis 4, one of the best games exhibited at the fair. John McKenzie, marketing and sales director at Namco Europe, commented: “Our commercial relationship with Cocamatic has been very positive and productive up to now. They have obtained an extraordinary return, recording huge successes for us with both The Fast and the Furious and with Super Bikes, which is why I am delighted to give Mónica Palomares and her team the exclusive rights to another extraordinary game which, without a doubt, will form part of the book of fame in the video games sector.” Comatel Industries, for its part, signed an agreement to act as the service centre in Spain for the prestigious manufacturer of billhandlers, Japan Cash Machine. This agreement authorises it to repair all the JCM products as well as providing guarantee support services and providing spare parts.

As happens every year, a broad range of products designed for the Spanish market could be seen from companies such as Electrocoin on the stands of Sega Sonic and Cocamatic, Bally Wulff on Costa Cálida, Amatic on Comatel Industries and TAB Austria on the Orenes Group stand, to mention but a few. Nevertheless, the MGA (Machines Games Automatics) company was without a doubt the one that exhibited the most foreign products on its stand. Sega, Sammy, Doshina, Harry Levis, Konami and Astra were some of the companies that were to be found on the MGA stand although in fact there were many more. One must highlight the presence on the MGA stand of the Dancing Stage Fusion Supernova machine which was used in the storyline for the Spanish film La Máquina de Bailar, released in Spanish cinemas on September 22. The Argentine company Formanova, dedicated to the manufacture of armchairs for casinos, was represented to the Spanish market by Hispania, a subsidiary company of the Cirsa Group, which had to compete with the presence of Patir Design & Productions (Germany), a specialist in furniture for gaming rooms. Some companies, having taken part in previous FER Interazar exhibitions, have make a firm commitment to the Spanish market and have opened their own branch offices. It is the case with Zest Gaming and Tecnoplay (Italy), dedicated to the manufacture of type “B” machines (AWPs), and also Money Controls, manufacturer of the coin collection and payment systems that make up an indispensable part of the current machines. Finally, we must not forget the large local companies such as R. Franco, the CIRSA Group, GiGames and Sleic, to name but a few, specialising in the production and design of gaming machines (AWPs and slots). These, together with Recreativos Presas (amusement, video games, and redemption machines); Industrias Lorenzo (spare parts); FAMAI and Industrias Falgás, which manufacture Kiddy rides, all have a high profile internationally and a welldeserved reputation.

The Spanish market is based mainly on machines of type “B” and on their diverse variants according to the legislation in each of the regions. The appearance of video screens on the new models has provided a breathing space for the gaming industry. However, it has not been sufficient, since the slowness in gaining approving for products and the necessity to do this in each autonomous region is limiting the growth of the sector. In addition, and as if it is not already complicated enough, models exist which, on account of their characteristics, can only be used in gaming arcades. Mainly roulettes, widely represented at the fair, or interconnected machines. The ANESAR Association, that brings together the owners of this kind of “arcade”, held a meeting during the event to request technical improvements to this type of product and also to demonstrate its concerns about the possibility of unfair competition when future betting shops are established. This possibility depends on the legislative plans that autonomous governments such as Madrid, Catalonia and the Basque Country are negotiating, which are forcing Spanish companies and professionals to unite in joint ventures as in the case of ATZARIA, or to look for external partners with experience in online gaming so as to be ready for the future demand in this market. In this regard FER Interazar has been a multi-purpose exhibition, with a multitude of new products, and this leads one to the conclusion that the Spanish market will continue to be one of the most important in the world, which always means being one step ahead.

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