Global Betting and Gaming Consultants measure the state of the gaming industry through two indices, the GBGC 50 and the iGBGC index. The GBGC 50 includes the 50 largest listed companies in the gambling industry, both land-based and online. The iGBGC index includes the ten largest listed companies whose main focus is on remote gambling. The indices track the performance of the listed companies, i.e. movements in their share price.

GBGC has tracked the performance of the indices since January 2005. The interactive gambling industry clearly shows higher resilience to the economic crisis compared to the traditional land based industry. The movements of the indices show all the major worldwide events that affect the gaming industry, such as the passing of the UIGEA in the US in October 2006, when the iGBGC index lost 80 points or 36% of its value overnight. They also show the effects of the recent recession, which has affected gaming companies in various parts of the world in the same way, with a steeper decline in the land based gambling industry.

Both the indices started at a value of 100 points at the beginning of 2005. At the beginning of 2011 the GBGC 50 stood at a value of 121 points, whilst the iGBGC index was at 269 points. The industry has faced many challenges in the six years since GBGC began tracking the index. Overall, 2005 was good for the industry, with the value of both indices going up. 2006 was a good year for the land-based industry, (45 of the 50 companies are primarily land based businesses), while the interactive industry fell as a result of many listed companies withdrawing from the United States following UIGEA.

During 2007 the value of both indices increased and then came the economic crisis. During 2008, the value of the GBGC 50 index decreased by more than 100 points or 60%, whereas the interactive industry performed better, losing “only” 33% of its value. 2009 showed recovery for both indices from a low starting point after a poor 2008. The results for 2010 were mixed, with the land based industry seeming to finally emerge from the crisis and the interactive industry declining its value. (E-01.18.11)

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