p36-42 table gaming:Layout 1 04/03/2010 09:37 Page 36
TABLE GAMING
TCSJohnHuxley’s AccuPlay versions of Baccarat,
Blackjack and Poker can be played via touchscreens Benefits of electronic table gaming put forward by
at the table, on remote terminals, or even online – Amaya include greater flexibility in casino layout –
with players at all locations participating in the same the tables can be anywhere on the casino floor – as
game. well as higher occupancy: an unlimited range of
stakes can be played at a single table.
Amaya Gaming takes the same tack with its
PokerStation terminals, designed to attract customers Even when there is no linkage to remote terminals,
who used to play online but no longer can. The firm the more of the process that is operated
is also a proponent of another popular approach to electronically, the less staff training and supervision
re-inventing the table game – maximising automation is required, and the fewer errors are made (ideally,
at the table itself by digitising play. none at all).
No more dealer Electronic or partially electronic table games also
“Standard Poker tables generate some of the lowest facilitate side bets and progressive jackpots across
revenues per square foot of all gaming products,” says multiple table games, and as an additional plus they
the company, suggesting that automation can change record lots of data which can be used not only for
that by removing the cost of a human dealer. management and security purposes but also to
heighten interest in the game itself among players,
Its PokerMate tables, manufactured in six-, eight- for example by displaying statistical number-
and ten-seat models, run on software that distributes crunching of plays and wins.
virtual cards, splits pots, and calculates side pots,
payouts and rake faster and more reliably than a It all comes down to the simple fact that
dealer, while a screen shows everything that would electronics are faster and more accurate at gathering,
normally be on the table – community cards and chip recording, analysing, and sharing data than human
stacks, for example – as well as information such as employees can ever hope to be. They don’t need to
winning hands and payout totals. Players engage in take breaks, either.
the game through individual touchscreens.
Best of both worlds?
Behind the scenes, meanwhile, Amaya’s PokerMate Not everyone is going all-electronic, though. Some
Administrative System allows management to monitor casinos and vendors prefer to combine the old with
systems and players in real time, view up-to-date the new by mixing innovative technology with a live
financial summaries, and control rakes, limits and dealer – Shuffle Master, for example.
game types.
Its i-Table, a standard-sized Blackjack table with six
Amaya also offers electronic Sic Bo, Roulette and touchscreen-based player stations built in, combines
Craps, combining the traditional with the high-tech electronic placement of bets with a live dealer. The
through the use of real dice in Craps. dealer uses Shuffle Master products such as the i-
Watching the game: table important in making well-informed decisions management tools that draw data directly
management and monitoring on comping. Keeping a close eye on wins and from components of the table itself.
the accuracy of pays can also help reduce
One of the biggest differences between slots losses, whether caused by human error or TCSJohnHuxley’s Gaming Floor Live,
and table games is that slots can, by their deliberate scamming. scheduled to be available this summer, grabs
nature, collect exhaustive data on everything game data from sources such as the Saturn
that happens in the game and every way that One method of improving table monitoring Roulette wheel and the Chipper Champ 2
the customer interacts with it. has been to combine video surveillance with chipping machine.
sophisticated analytical software provided by
Historically, that’s been difficult for table the likes of NICE Systems. It then analyses the yield of Roulette games
games. For many years, direct observation of in real time, for example by comparing actual
the gaming floor was the principal way that That approach is not only used to track performance against pre-designated optimum
management tried to track player behaviour, players; it can also be used to assess the targets, and providing feedback on how well
but the information gathered by this method productivity of individual tables and their the tables are doing to individual dealers, floor
was necessarily limited – one employee can staff. For example, Ipsotek’s Casino Suite management and the casino back office.
only comprehensively monitor one player at a product uses video to measure how often a
time. roulette wheel is spun and how often a card of Not only can it enable management to
hands is dealt, relative to the bets taken at improve performance by adjusting variables
More information was needed. For example, that table. such as table limits, it can also be used to
details such as the duration of an individual’s detect problems such as wheel bias and
play; their average, lowest and highest bets; And now the spread of electronic elements consequent advantage play, or incorrect
and the speed of their decision-making are in table gaming is allowing vendors to produce following of procedures.
38 MARCH 2010
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