It was at the Milton Friedman Institute’s “Game: One Market, One Reorganization” conference that representatives of the main trade groups in Italy’s gaming industry recently came together. As they emphasized the need for just and uniform regulatory and economic policies, their collective voice mirrored worries over the government’s proposed significant rise in licensing costs.

Industry Leaders Express Apprehensions

Under the direction of Alessandro Bertoldi, the Milton Friedman Institute’s Executive Director, the conference revealed the concerning idea of raising licensing costs from €200,000 ($392,000) in 2018 to an outrageous €7 million ($7.66 million). Concerns over possible imbalances in market dynamics and the detrimental impacts on legality and consumer protection were expressed by attendees, including Geronimo Cardia, President of ACADI, and Emmanuele Cangianelli, President of the Italian Association of Public Games Operators.

“The regulatory interventions that the Government is preparing will once again create disparities by favoring the illegal market and heavily conditioning the free market.” – Alessandro Bertoldi, Milton Friedman Institute Executive Director

Cangianelli pushed for a thorough redesign of gaming items and distribution methods, highlighting the necessity of precise payment service rules to support online gaming. Geronimo Cardia bemoaned the sector’s ten-year problems brought on by dispersed initiatives, emphasizing the detrimental effects on job levels, public interests, and legal compliance.

The delegates emphasized the need of acknowledging small and medium-sized gaming businesses, stressing their job prospects and economic impact. There might be only 20 active operators left after the planned rate rise, down from 91. Concerns over Italy’s prohibition on gambling advertising, which they said made licensed operators less competitive and aided in the growth of the black market, were also echoed by stakeholders.

“The legal gaming sector expresses its disappointment at the missed opportunity for an organic overall and coordinated reorganization.” – Moreno Marasco, Logico President.

The unified front of the sector sent a strong message to the government, asking it to enact comprehensive, equitable, and cogent laws that protect consumer welfare, emphasize legality, and support a varied range of operators. The Italian government seems intent on moving forward with its changes in spite of these worries, maybe disobeying the advice of business players.