Last week, figures for Italy’s total online gaming revenue were published by the Italian gaming authority — the AMMS.
These published statistics revealed Italy’s total turnover for January and February of this year to be sizeable €11.6 billion. After the first two months of last year, revenue had reached €10.02 billion. Accordingly, the figures show that in 2011 the Italian online gaming industry has seen a 15.8 percent increase when compared to the previous year.
The AMMS figures also show that Video Lottery Terminals (VLTs) have gained a high degree of popularity in Italy and have consequently had a strong influence on the Italian marketplace. Indeed, VLTs, which are essentially computerised slot machines, were only introduced in Italy in February. However, of the total €5.73 billion revenue generated in that month, a massive €719 million can be attributed to VLTs.
Bingo was the next biggest taker behind VLTs with €156 million.
The AMMS statistics once more reveal Italy to be the European leader when it comes to online gambling. And this is understandably so; Italy was the first significantly sized European mainland country to permit regulated private online gambling.
Moreover, Italy looks set to maintain its elite status. Indeed, the Italian marker could also be set to open up even further after the Italian government passed a new online gaming regulation which now permits online casino operators to offer customers the chance to play online poker and other online casino games.
