Racing & Gaming Summit December 10
Racetracks, lotteries, slot vendors and financial analysts converge in Tucson
TUCSON, Ariz. (September 9, 2002) – Several respected Wall Street gaming analysts will join executives from the racing, lottery and gaming machine industries at the inaugural Racing & Gaming Summit Dec. 10 at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson. The Summit precedes the 29th Annual Symposium on Racing (continuing through Dec. 13) which draws about 1,000 racing executives and industry vendors from across North America every year.
Two significant research reports on the racing and gaming industries will be presented for the first time at the Racing & Gaming Summit. The reports are being produced by respected Wall Street analysts Jason Ader and Michael Tew (Bear Stearns), and Marc Falcone and Eric Hausler (Deutsche Bank Securities), with the assistance of the students from the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program. The reports address, among other things, the economic impact of gaming machines at racing facilities and the potential for new racing and gaming markets.
The Wall Street presentations are the latest addition to a strong and diverse lineup of speakers and topics at the new Racing & Gaming Summit, helping to make this year’s Symposium on Racing one of the most exciting to date, according to University of Arizona RTIP director Doug Reed.
“The Racing & Gaming Summit is distinguishing itself as the premier gathering for all industry professionals who are interested in learning about existing racetracks with gaming machines and the prospects for future growth,” Reed said. “And because half of the net proceeds of the Racing & Gaming Summit go to RTIP, this is the only racing and gaming event that directly benefits the industry.”
Delaware Lottery Director Wayne Lemons said the Racing & Gaming Summit provides a great opportunity for his colleagues to meet, network with and learn from hundreds of racing industry executives.
“The lottery and racing industries should work closely together, especially now when many states have or are considering video lottery programs at race tracks,” said Wayne Lemons, Delaware Lottery Director and Summit speaker. “Meeting together in Tucson for a Racing & Gaming Summit before the Symposium makes sense, as racing industry leaders will already be there. There are only so many conferences that any of us can attend, so it’s logical that we in the video lottery industry join the racing industry at its established event.”
The one-day Summit looks at the marriage of racetracks and gaming machines from every possible angle. The luncheon keynote speaker comes from a successful operation in Canada. Ron Barbaro, Chair and CEO of Ontario Lottery & Gaming Corp., will discuss the successes in Ontario, where some 15 racetracks are participating in the slot machine program. Other speakers come from diverse fields.
Joining Barbaro and Lemons, other speakers from the lottery industry include:
• Gerald Aubin, Executive Director, Rhode Island Lottery
• Don Johnson, Video Lottery Operations Manager, Delaware Lottery
• John Musgrave, Director, West Virginia Lottery
The racing industry will be represented by:
• Edson (Ted) Arneault, Chairman, CEO & President, MTR Gaming Group
• Dan Bucci, CEO, Lincoln Park
• Ellsworth Gaskill, VP and General Manager, Slot Operations, Dover Downs
• Jane Holmes, Executive Director, Ontario Horse Racing Industry Association
• Ray Tromba, Vice President and General Manager, Louisiana Downs
• Bruce Wentworth, General Manager, Dubuque Racing Association
Speakers from gaming industry vendors include:
• Walt Hawkins, Director of Corporate Development, IGT
• Gary Loebig, Executive Vice President, Multimedia Games
• David R. Pye, VP, Corporate Development, Scientific Games Corporation
Gaming analysts, investment banking representatives and industry experts include:
• Charles Anderer, VP Group Publisher, GEM Communications
• Bill Eadington, Professor of Economics; and Director, Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming, University of Nevada-Reno
• Marc Falcone, Managing Director, North American Equity Research Group for gaming, Deutsche Bank Securities
• Bennett Liebman, Coordinator, Racing and Wagering Law Program, Albany Law School
• Patricia McQueen, Lottery/Racing Editor, IGWB
• Saverio Scheri III, Managing Director, WhiteSand Consulting
• Mike Shagan, racing and wagering consultant
• Michael Tew, Bear Stearns
Speakers and panelists are still being added to the conference’s five seminars, which are:
• The Economic Impact of Gaming Machines at Racing Facilities
• The Racetrack/Lottery Partnership
• The Politics of Racing and Gaming
• Integrating Gaming into the Racetrack Environment
• The Gaming Product: What’s Available
Both the Racing and Gaming Summit and the 29th Annual Symposium on Racing will be presented at Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson. Registration for the one-day Racing and Gaming Summit is $295. Registration for the Symposium on Racing is $400. A reduced combination rate of $595 will be offered to people who attend both the Racing & Gaming Summit and the 29th Annual Symposium on Racing. Registration information will be available at the GEM Communications booth (#3011) at G2E, Sept. 17-19 in Las Vegas; and in the October edition of IGWB. Get the most current information about the Summit, seminar topics and speakers at www.rgsummit.com, or at www.ag.arizona.edu/rtip.
The 29th Annual Symposium on Racing is produced by the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program. The three-day event annually attracts 1,000 attendees, primarily from the United States and Canada, with more than a dozen other countries represented. The Race Track Industry Program is teaming up with gaming industry media leader GEM Communications to produce the one-day Racing & Gaming Summit.
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Media contact: Stephen Gibbs, GEM Communications, (913) 344-1300 x234; [email protected]