G2E 2014
combine this terminal with another three roulette tables, so that players can bet on four different wheels. The next innovation is to include APEX slots games within the APS – providing gaming choice previously unheard of in the industry. DRGT staff were also on hand on the APEX
stand as they act as APEX’s distributor in Latin America.
Gary Platt
Employing 65 at its Reno, Nevada headquarters, Gary Platt Manufacturing (GP) continues to expand its casino seating business throughout North America and Australia. President Skip Davis reported the company has now retained Patriot Gaming of Indiana as its East Coast representative. Three associates will cover Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. In December 2013, GP hired Ed Abadie,
prominently involved in designing the Gary Platt X-Tended Play series, fulltime. Davis described Abadie’s approach as “comfort focused on ergonomics,” using Abadie’s earlier office seating market experience. GP exhibited its new Lido series chairs,
available in three sizes contoured to fit the human form in different widths. Abadie said, “Comfort is always about the seat’s cold-cured high resilient molded foam. The Lido chairs have a light top layer of foam, which accentuates the stitching on the material. The foam has a 10-year guarantee.” Abadie is evaluating updates for GP’s current seating portfolio. While the appearance would not change, the chair will seat differently.
State of the State The American Gaming Association (AGA)
released its new Oxford Economics industry study. Unlike past “State of the State” reporting on commercial gaming, this survey also includes tribal gaming. The AGA demonstrates gaming’s total impact in 39 states across America. Gaming supports 1.7 million American jobs, contributes $240 billion to the U.S. economy and pays $38 billion in federal, state and local taxes. Editor’s note: Look for an in-depth summary in January.
SEMINARS
In addition to the usual marketing, tribal, maximizing revenues and trends seminars, technology was a major theme. Whether
GP introduced a yet unnamed temperature-
controlled seat featuring hot and cold switches. Its uses include outdoor smoking sections or cooler/warmer climates. “The foam seat cushion works, but the chair needs a porous mesh seat back. We would have to educate players, via signage or explanation, on its use,” said Davis. They could possibly first appear on the Lido seats in 2015.
Bally Technologies
With the Scientific Games merger not yet a done deal, it was business as usual for Bally Technologies at G2E. And that business is, frankly, some of the best slots and systems products available. The customer message was ‘Go All In’, underlining a level of commitment to their customers; as John Strickland told Casino International, “We have virtually every device on the gaming floor, we are a one- stop shop and solution; we partner with the customer. We would like our customers to go all in with us as well. It’s total commitment.”
The highlight for us on the slots side was probably Wonder Woman, a superior piece of branding and design. The appearance of Lynda Carter caused a storm on the show floor at G2E as she arrived to promote a really beautiful-looking
game. The Pro Wave cabinet will be like a beacon on a gaming floor with bold graphics on an evergreen license. Other key titles included
Friends – expect that to be a huge international hit – and Duck Dynasty, which is based on the number one unscripted reality show in the US. It’s on the Pro Theatre cabinet, which is quite a striking piece of kit. Bally also plans to take its
Duo Fu brand international, with most installations in Asia; South Africa and Europe will see more of this exciting brand in 2015, with 88 Fortunes and Five Treasures added to the Duo Fu Duo Cai line-up. Safe Bacc is an all-in-one Baccarat shuffler solution that puts and end to security risks in Baccarat. As John told CI: “One of the major issues for the game is, if you’re using a shuffler, you get the cards out and then have to put them into a shoe. So there is manual handling for the shuffled or even pre-shuffled deck; with Safe Bacc it’s the first time we have a complete solution. We have a shoe where there is no point at which you have access to the cards. You take the shoe and dock it on to the shuffler; this is the only time you can open the lid, when the old, used cards are removed. The lid is closed, and the cards are loaded from the shuffler. There is no opportunity to manipulate the cards, and the next set of cards can be
embracing its potential or being warned of its repercussions, attendees wanted to learn. On the plus side, customers’ and management’s social media usage has soared. Some restaurant executives monitor Trip Advisor and Yelp daily to read and respond to customer comments. One said, “If you can’t produce good food,
you’ll be closed.” Unlike entertainment options, where people predetermine their choices, food selection is often last minute. Johnny Rockets is one restaurant chain
with stores in dozens of casinos. Like many cutting-edge companies, it employs its own social media team. They solicit feedback from customers within minutes of entering their venue. CEO James Walker said, “We offer the
ability to order via social media. Many of our customers are in the younger half of the
Millennial generation.” Smart operators self promote via social media. MGM Resorts International Executive Vice President for Global Government and Industry Affairs Alan Feldman said companies should use electronics to distribute daily information. Employees may then publicly support their company. Feldman said, “Companies must show the face of the industry in human terms. Profit, etc. means nothing to average people.” Technology’s darker side discussions included threats from unregulated Internet gaming cafes, identity hacking and cyber security. Once considered probable only on onsite, casino crime has expanded to hacking and sabotage well beyond the casino’s walls and corporate computers. Casinos cooperate with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on many issues.
44 OCTOBER 2014
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