Interview GAUSELMANN GROUP


INTERVIEW JU


RGEN STU HMEYER, MEMBER OF THE BOARD FOR SALES, GAUSELMANN GROUP.


G3: Mr. Stühmeyer, how would you review the German Market and the IMA show in 2014?


JS: I would characterise this year’s IMA as one of defiance and unity. Our industry is clearly being placed under the wrong light by many politicians and new legislation is set to decimate our market from 2017 onwards. We cannot and will not accept this. Whether manufacturer, distributor or opera- tor, we will be badly affected. Traditionally these three sectors worked autominously. Today, we have united to speak with one voice. The new industry association ‘Die Deutsche Automatenwirtschaft’ is this channel. Naturally, we at the Gauselmann Group are investing heavily in protecting our rights.


G3: How are your products being adjusted to the coming changes?


JS:We need to differentiate here. We support the changes for the good. For example, the new requirement to further prevent under-18’s enter- ing arcades. Gauselmann’s access control solu- tions make it easy to completely comply with the new legal rules on player and youth protection. The ‘Merkur Check-In’ offers the right answer for every need and games location. Furthermore, this system does not predicate storage of player files so completely complies with our data protection laws here in Germany. Coming back to the pro- posed negative changes, as discussed, we are vehemently fighting these to protect our rights.


G3: With such an uncertain future ahead, logically speaking, then this is not the time to invest to develop new products and solutions for the future?


JS: On the contrary! The fact that we have shown so many new innovations underlines just how positive we are in these uncertain times. We are confident that our industry will be granted its rights to continue to entertain over 10 million peo- ple here in Germany. That is how many people visit entertainment centres to play on AWPs. This number has doubled in recent years.


G3: Why is that?


JS: Quite simple: we have invested in the future. Look to our own arcades – the ‘Casino – Merkur Spielothek’ brand. These resemble casinos in their style. People can enjoy ordinary gaming on AWPs in a very pleasant and friendly atmosphere. Arcades visitors used to be predominantly men. Not any more. The number of women enjoying gaming is on the up and up. That is because we offer gaming with style and rightly call our arcades ‘entertainment centres’


G3: What other innovations is Merkur Gaming bringing to the German market?


4 2


Jürgen Stühmeyer, Member of the Board for Sales, Gauselmann Group.


JS: Where should I start – there were so many! We introduced a brand new gaming machine called the ‘Vision Slant Top SL’. This is first and foremost remarkable for its excellent optical qualities. The two 26ins. monitors feature outstanding depth of focus thanks to their innovative Merkur Profitech HD technology. The loudspeakers in the upper part of the housing frame also ensure excellent entertainment with their 2.1 stereo sound. This innovative product is rounded off by its optimised hand-rest surfacing and ergonomically improved footrest. A great new invention is the ‘Merkur Elevator’. This transports the coins back up to the level as the coin-in. That means for players all cash in and out takes place at one level. Bending down to collect the coins is now a thing of the past. This is a complete Gauselmann development. The Vision Slant Top SL is also fitted with our Merkur Dispenser 100 as standard.


G3: We heard you had a great celebration for the Merkur Dispenser 100?


JS: Yes, we did indeed, and combined that with a great deed for charity. We proudly presented the 100,000th unit in gold and auctioned this together with the 100,001st for a total of €20,000 (Paul Gauselmann rounded the sum to this amount). It is our founder Paul Gauselmann himself who saw the need for paying back winning in banknotes and this foresight has changed the way cash is


managed in AWPs here in Germany for good.


G3: What other notable new products would you like to focus upon this year?


JS: If I focused on them all, then this will become a very long interview! Let me just add one more great highlight – our ‘Merkur Ideal Space Ball’. Players can enjoy uninterrupted gaming within a capsule – the space ball. The surround sound here is so amazing. The HD graphics are placed on a screen that can be moved into position by the player – for optimal comfort. Here we have also integrated our Merkur Elevator and Merkur Dispenser 100. Before we finish, let me just add that we yet again introduced a great number of new games selections. Not only that – our ‘My Top Game’ feature was applauded from all our cus- tomers. The globally unique feature gives users direct access to the Merkur Magie games library with its 200 games – and that as standard. That means regardless of which games package is on the Gauselmann AWP, players have access to their favourite game by entering the code to access it. Our subsidiaries had many innovations on dis- play. In addition to this, the number one change machine supplier, GeWeTe, was celebrating twen- ty years in business. We are all very proud on what we have achieved and are looking with opti- mism to the future, regardless what the current political situation may be.


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