The vending industry is currently facing a variety of challenges. Rising operating costs, the decline in floor space in the hospitality industry, the COVID-19 pandemic, and increasing digital competition are putting providers of slot machines under increasing pressure. At the same time, there is only limited legal room for manoeuvre for the vending machine industry to counteract the changed economic conditions by adjusting prices, the quantity offered and via changes to product characteristics.
On behalf of the Verband der Deutschen Automatenindustrie e.V. (Association of the German Amusement Machine Industry), DIW Econ examines the key economic figures of the amusement machine industry against the background of the applicable regulations and the development of economic trends over the past 30 years.
The Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) has commissioned DIW Econ GmbH to study the current situation of the local German press.
The study aims to create a comprehensive picture of the local German press and, in particular, to analyze the challenges and opportunities arising from increasing digitization. In addition, the study will evaluate the extent to which current developments are endangering the diversity of the press and opinions and whether a need for state support can be derived from this. Finally, the study will examine which government funding measures could effectively support the local German press and thus also press and opinion diversity.
DIW Econ GmbH was commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Justice and Consumer Protection (BMJV) to evaluate the “buyer principle” introduced in 2015 for the marketing of rental properties. Since then, this principle has obliged the initiator of a brokerage service to pay for it (“whoever orders, pays”). The evaluation examines whether the law’s objectives have been achieved and additionally identifies potential needs for an amendment to the law.
The Annual Report on European SMEs 2020/2021, commissioned by the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA) of the European Commission, reviews the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on EU SMEs in 2020 as well as their expected performance in 2021, after providing a brief overview of their pre-pandemic performance. The report focuses particularly on the digitalisation of European SMEs, as the use of various digital tools in 2020 helped to mitigate the impact of the pandemic.
The current study by DIW Econ, in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Claudia Kemfert, DIW Berlin, commissioned by the Bavarian SPD state parliamentary group, examines how the Free State of Bavaria can achieve a just transition into a emission neutral future. For this purpose, the study discusses specific social-ecological measures for the upcoming political reorientation in the sectors of energy, transport, buildings and industry.