SBGI show succeed in India
A hearty congratulation to Eventus International for the success of its first ever event in India.
India.- From February 27th to 28th, Eventus International held its first gaming event in India – the SBGI 2018 at the Park Hyatt Goa Resort & Spa. It was one of the most anticipated sports betting & gaming events in India. The event started with a house-full of more than 150 attendees on Day 1 with Tim Shepherd, co-founder of Silver Heritage Group presenting on the global gaming industry and growth in demand from India’s burgeoning middle class and how can you capitalise.
Next were three panel discussions: gambling and sports betting legalisation in India, casinos of India, and future of lotteries in India. All had eminent panellists, including William Howie (Betradar), Ranjana Adhikari (Nishith Desai Associates), Susan O’Leary (Alderney eGambling), Vidushpat Singhania (Krida Legal), Manoj Jain (Deltin Group), Vaibhav Gaggar (Gaggar & Associates), Felix Mukaxe (Mozambique Gambling Board), Geaspar Byrne (Lottoland Solutions), Ratul Sethi (Golden Gaming), Jay Sayta (GLAws), Kit Szybala (Global Market Advisors) and one of the highlights of the day – a conversation between Kevin Carpenter (Genius Sports) and Chris Eaton.
There were presentations on important topics like analytics from Andrew Pearson (Intelligencia Limited), on sports integrity and responsible gaming from Kevin Carpenter and Nandan Kamath (LawNK) respectively. The day ended on high spirits with a poker tournament at Deltin Royale.
Day 2 also had an amazing turnout of attendees, all eager to learn despite the late-night poker networking tournament. The day kicked off with a presentation by Christina Thakor-Rankin (1710 Gaming) on the key growth markets and opportunities in India, followed by a joint presentation from AIGF, which was followed by a factual presentation of DFS by Harsh Jain CEO of Dream 11. The rest of Day 2 featured four panel discussions concentrating on fantasy sports, mobile gaming, poker & rummy in India, horse racing and e-sports in India. Each panel featured key panellists, including: Akshay Jain (Vinfotech), John Loffhagen, Ankush Gera (Junglee Games), Catherine Chauvin (PMU), Gowree Gokhale (NDA), Porus Govekar (William Hill Australia), Madhav Gupta (Baadshah Gaming), Pariekshit Maadishetti (Taj Rummy), Benjamin Föckersperger, Mujahid Rupani and Devesh Kabdwal (Cobx Gaming), Sudhir Mishra (Trust Legal) and many more!
Yudi Soetjiptadi, the Managing Director of Eventus International was in total awe at the support given by the industry for the event: “India is definitely the next big thing. With online gambling being estimated as worth as much as US$1.5 billion – but this could rise to as much as US$4.6 billion or more in the years to come – it’s time for a change. Regulating online gambling would create jobs, bring in foreign investment, open up a new source of tax income, and protect consumers from the risks of an unregulated market with the deployment of a responsible gambling awareness campaign. The summit was initiated to create awareness about betting integrity, and we had great support from the industry. Everyone present was eager to make it work for the future of the gaming industry in India. Eventus’ role has always been to create the platform for various gaming industry stakeholders to network and share ideas. We have succeeded in delivering that in Goa recently, as the feedback from participants was very encouraging. In conclusion, the event was a huge success for us and the industry, and we look forward to hosting it again next year!”
Jay Sayta, one of the eminent speakers said: “The event was a well-organised one and saw participation from gaming companies across the world. The tremendous response received by the event indicates that global companies are very much interested in the Indian market and are tracking developments here very closely. In the years to come, I hope SBGI will become the flagship event for the gaming industry in India.” Catherine Chauvin from PMU said: “It was a great event, with a good rhythm and various subjects. I hope it’s the first one of a big series!” Another speaker – Kit Szybala from GMA – said: “It was a very productive conference for GMA as well as for the industry in India. I am already looking forward to the next one!”
With the outstanding support received and the positive feedback from the industry – both domestic as well as international borders – Eventus International would like to once again thank all the speakers and participants of SBGI 2018 and making it a huge success.
