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Italy looks to revamp land-based gaming rules with cutbacks on slots and VLTs – G3 Newswire

Steve Tyler Exec Content

Italy looks to revamp land-based gaming rules with cutbacks on slots and VLTs

Summary

Italy’s government is weighing a draft decree to unify land-based gambling rules across all 20 regions and 110 municipalities. The measure would reduce the number of venues permitted to host slot machines, bingo halls and video lottery terminals (VLTs), re-tender licences for gaming machines, betting and bingo by year-end, and transfer licence issuance to the Agency of Customs and Monopolies (ADM). The state expects the new tenders to generate roughly €2bn in additional tax revenue.

Key proposed changes include a roughly 10% cut in venues (about 40,000 fewer locations), a drop in slot machines from around 240,000 to 200,000, and a 20% reduction in VLTs (from about 55,000 to c.46,000). Betting shops would remain capped at 10,000, and the distinction between specialist betting shops and ‘betting corners’ inside hospitality venues would be removed. New licence applicants will face tougher standards on player protection, gambling-harm prevention and measures to stop underage access.

Key Points

  • The draft decree aims to standardise land-based gambling rules nationwide under ADM oversight.
  • Approximately 40,000 venues are expected to be removed from the market (about a 10% cut).
  • Slot machines would fall from ~240,000 to 200,000; VLTs would decline by ~11,000 units (c.20%).
  • Betting shops remain capped at 10,000; the ‘betting corner’ distinction would be abolished.
  • Licences for machines, betting and bingo to be re-tendered by year-end with stronger player-protection and anti-underage controls.
  • The government anticipates roughly €2bn in extra tax revenue from the licence tenders.

Why should I read this?

Quick and dirty: if you supply kit, run venues, or follow gambling regulation in Italy, this could reshuffle who operates where and how strict compliance will be. It’s a sizeable regulatory shake-up — worth a skim now and a proper read if you’re exposed.

Source

Source: https://g3newswire.com/italy-revamp-online-gaming-rules-cutbacks-on-slots-and-vlts/