Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency (ADM) has simplified maintenance procedures for amusement with prizes (AWP) machines, addressing operational issues caused partly by the ageing of equipment operating under extended concession arrangements.
Under the new procedure, operators can send only a machine’s game board to its manufacturer for replacement or extraordinary maintenance. Previously established procedures remain available.
The machine itself can stay at the venue provided it is switched off and disconnected from both the electricity supply and data network. Operators must display signage making clear that the device is undergoing maintenance and cannot be used.
Transport documentation must accompany the game board, while communications between the operator and telematic network concessionaire must provide a record of the maintenance process. The machine’s technical specification sheet and maintenance logbook must also be sent to the manufacturer.
ADM said deterioration of the installed machine base was one factor behind the change, particularly following statutory extensions to the concessions governing Italy’s AWP and VLT telematic networks.
Those concessions were originally awarded for nine years in 2013. Subsequent extensions ultimately moved their expiry to 31 December 2026 under Italy’s 2025 Budget Law.
The extension requires concessionaires to pay €120 ($138.30) for each AWP authorisation held at the end of 2023. Parliamentary documentation recorded 250,673 AWP authorisations at that point, producing approximately €30.1m in extension payments across 2025 and 2026.
The maintenance change comes as the physical machine segment remains a significant source of gambling tax receipts despite lower turnover.
Italy had between 220,000 and 230,000 active AWP machines during 2025. AWP stakes fell to €14.9bn, compared with €15.9bn in 2024 and €22.9bn in 2019, while associated tax receipts reached €3.6bn.
ADM has warned that maintenance activity falling outside the prescribed procedure remains subject to penalties under Article 110 of the TULPS.
The change follows another ADM procedural update this week. The regulator is introducing a central online gambling complaints portal from 10 September, with operators required to respond to player complaints and regulatory referrals within 72 working hours.
Sogei provides technological services supporting ADM’s fiscal information infrastructure, including systems used in the administration of Italy’s regulated gaming sector
