US Analysis


In a world of competing leisure activities, what attracts customers to amusement locations? Savvy street and family entertainment centre (FEC) operators recognise the answer grows more complicated every year. Sharon Harris finds out more…


The games people play C


onsumers have multiple entertainment options, so operators must provide a satisfying social experience that bypasses individual games or


devices. Specific amusements, like smaller bowling alleys, may be appropriate for FECs or smaller arcades. Others, like shuffle alleys, darts, video games, pool tables and juke boxes, are more street or tavern oriented. Video games and pinball machines are ideal for both types of locations. Total revenues often depend on whether these machines are ideally played individually or in groups. Even play habits have evolved over time. Location


jukeboxes, with then-advancing technology, regularly attracted post-WWII customers to listen to new records. Today, consumers choose music by downloading a


playlist to a device or app. Location music is now a backdrop for socialising and jukebox technology replicates what consumers can easily get themselves. Companies like AMI and TouchTunes have said goodbye to yesterday’s jukeboxes.


AMI combines songs, music videos and digital signage for


superior experiences and value. AMI jukeboxes can connect customers to all music genres and thousands of music videos played on a location’s linked television. Either the AMI jukebox or its BarLink mobile app expedites selection. Also, the free AMI Ad Manager’s digital signage system advertises food, drink or sporting event promotions from 1,400 ready-to-use templates. TouchTunes operates in 65,000 bar and restaurant locations and is the largest in-venue interactive music and entertainment platform across North America. TouchTunes capitalises on the younger generation’s constant Smartphone use. For consumers who have created a personal profile, the app will coordinate individual tastes with “the venue’s vibe.” This technology alerts users to which locations offer their preferred music genre. Why walk over to the jukebox to select music that is


readily available on a device? TouchTunes’ installed app can import playlists from iTunes or Spotify. TouchTunes is merging with PlayNetwork, Inc., an


international provider of in-store entertainment for retail, restaurant, and hospitality environments. Executives from both companies view this alliance as the ultimate way to offer customers the blending of music with entertainment in an exciting atmosphere. What about video games, dominant in homes since the 1980s? Generating worldwide competitive excitement through e-sports will pump up stagnant revenues.


10 www.globalamusementsandplay.com May/June 2017 In 1989, Incredible Technologies (IT) took America’s


love for golf and developed its first of more than three dozen Golden Tee Golf versions. All are linked by online network play and use the game’s signature trackball to determine players’ power, direction and curve of their shots.


Rather than connect solely with each other, a central computer linked all games and tallied scores for tournament ranking. In 1996, IT held its first three-week contest in Chicago-on 24 games-and awarded cash prizes. Successful competition has since flourished. After extensive testing, IT launched a Golf Daily Contest prize format in October 2016. It culminated in a $6,000 daily prize pool on March 31 to celebrate the 1,000th consecutive Daily Contest. Patrons had unlimited daily chances to play the course,


improve their scores and advance onto the leader board. Prior to March 31, IT awarded more than $1.5 million in cash prizes to thousands of North American players. Darts, pool tables, shuffle alleys, plus smaller fussball and air hockey games, enhance the amusement mix in licensed liquor establishments with sufficient space. Operators and locations can maximise earnings by joining national league organisations or promoting in-house local league/tournament programs. A defined league program usually guarantees multiple


players regularly using these machines for practice or league play. However, operators and location owners should understand that well-run leagues require intensive management.


Arcades and FECs like fussball and air hockey games because of their multi-player competition. During seasonal sports seasons, these games attract younger customers who may play soccer and hockey at school. Also, fussball and air hockey have always enjoyed a more favourable perception than pool tables.


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