Attendance at this year's Global Interactive Gaming Summit & Expo in Montreal was a measly 640 people - a tiny fraction of last year's bustling 1,864.
Last year, it was the best of times.
This year, it was clearly the worst of times.
As reported in the Montreal Gazette, attendance at this year's Global Interactive Gaming Summit & Expo in Montreal was a measly 640 people - a tiny fraction of last year's bustling 1,864.
Culprit: The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act - or the fear of its repercussions, anyway.
The general consensus among high-profile players in the internet gambling industry: it's better to stay home than risk an appearance at a Canadian event. Or worse, be confronted with an emergency landing on U.S. soil en route, where a number of fellow industry leaders have been taken into custody this year.
"People were really afraid to come, unfortunately," Sue Schneider, president and CEO of the Missouri-based organizer, River City Group, told the Gazette. "A lot of people are trying to keep a low profile."
In their place was a slew of presentations on how to get around U.S. laws and a general feeling of uncertainty about the near future of the industry.
There were, however, a few buoyant messages of hope, including one from an attorney for the Internet Gambling Association, who indicated the movement afoot to challenge the UIGEA as unconstitutional has a strong legal basis.
