Clarion Gaming announced Wednesday that new April 2022 dates for the gaming industry’s biggest conference were not secured yet, and that negotiations with ExCeL would continue through the Christmas period.
Last week Clarion Gaming announced the postponement of ICE London from its planned dates in early February and set a goal of announcing new dates by today, December 22. The company now plans to announce the new dates “early in the New Year after due diligence has been completed.”
“We have been working closely with ExCeL London to secure a new dateline in April 2022. We have seen good progress over the last few days and now have a preferred date we are working towards, but we will require some additional time to iron out some operational challenges prior to confirming the final dates with you and the wider gaming industry. This work needs to continue through the Christmas period and we will then be in a position to confirm the selected date during the first week of January. Whilst we had hoped to have been able to confirm dates today (22nd December), the migration of events the size and scale of ICE and IGBA are hugely challenging – requiring full dialogue with our extended contractor base and other UK organisers who have tenancy at ExCeL to ensure the international gaming industry can meet with minimal disruption,” Stuart Hunter, Managing Director, Clarion Gaming said in a communication sent to exhibitors.
“I would like to thank you for your continued support and patience, it is hugely appreciated and I look forward to working with you closely in the new year towards ICE in April 2022,” added Hunter.
The United Kingdom is amid a surge in COVID-19 fueled by the Omicron variant and has continued to set new case numbers daily.
“The Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM) understands the difficulties of navigating all aspects of the business world during this ongoing pandemic and we appreciate the thoughtful consideration Clarion Events put into the decision to postpone ICE. Global gaming suppliers are anxious to gather at a better time and in particular want to welcome back the international community and especially those based in Europe to ExCeL and the ICE exhibition, ” said Marcus Prater, Executive Director, AGEM.
