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Aimee Schultz
Director of Marketing
ACS - AC Slots
From financial gurus to average Americans, there is a general sense of disappointment that our nation’s economy is not recovering as quickly from the recession as we had all hoped. And, with forecasters not painting a very rosy picture for 2012, it’s going to take some good old-fashioned American ingenuity and innovation to encourage consumer spending on a luxury such as gaming.
Building a Market … and a Brand
At ACS, we viewed this challenging economic landscape as a unique opportunity. In the latter half of 2011, we changed our name—which had been in existence since 1978—from AC Coin & Slot to ACS, representing AC Slots. This name change represents the company’s ever-evolving product line, and paves the way for us to build a bold new brand in the global gaming market
To continue to build on this success, we introduced AXCESS—our new, state-of-the-art video platform—to overwhelming customer approval at G2E 2011. With five distinct cabinets, AXCESS is a powerful Windows-based engine that does not rely on a server. The ultimate in flexibility, this robust content-driven platform speaks 27 different languages, has stunning HD graphics, and a variable reel timing mechanism for easy game configuration and progressive capabilities. This launch translated into tremendous fourth quarter sales for our first slot product in the line, the AXCESS 22V.
Earning Operators Higher Revenues
Regardless of how popular a game is with players, the bottom line is that it must deliver a positive impact on the casino operator’s bottom line. For more than 30 years, ACS has built a reputation for providing our customers with some of the highest-earning games in the industry, including The Munny Returns, Phat Cats and Slingo® Bonus Deluxe, which routinely produce two to three times the average house revenue.
However, providing the most value for the slot player’s entertainment dollar must remain a top priority for casino operators and slot manufacturers alike. Failing to fulfill this singular goal would be a complete waste of time, money and resources. At ACS, our high-hit-frequency, lower-denomination bonusing games have successfully satisfied this demand both for players and operators alike and it will continue to be a major focus.
Looking Ahead With Optimism
Our company proudly stands today as an independent manufacturer delivering a premium slot product for sale at a very competitive price as well as through flexible payment options. This business model allows our customers to capitalize on their investment more quickly while building player loyalty by offering a diverse mix of highly appealing games.
We will continue to proactively provide our customers the revenue-generating boxes they need that also deliver the entertainment value their players demand. In 2012, ACS is poised to release AXCESS to all jurisdictions throughout the United States and Canada, as well as opening up new markets internationally, including Macau in January and Mexico shortly thereafter. We will also bring an additional four cabinets to market in the coming year—our 32V, AXCESS Slant and AXCESS Premium Cabinet as well as our 32M-5x5 reel product that will prove to be a game changer within the industry.
Danny Gladstone
Chief Executive Officer
Ainsworth
Ainsworth launches full steam ahead in 2012 after a tremendous year of international success with the flagship A560™ family of products. Highlights of 2011 include the global launch of a stunning lineup of new A560 product innovations appropriately tagged “A Galaxy of Options™.” In further good news, Ainsworth is delighted to report the new North American headquarters in Las Vegas became operational in 2011 with many industry-experienced sales, marketing and R&D staff already on board. The year culminated in achieving a landmark for the company with the first A560 approvals in Nevada after successful product trials.
Ainsworth’s exciting Galaxy of Options A560 range was created to offer outstanding flexibility by providing customers a mix ‘n match approach to product configuration across the entire game portfolio. Now with the latest advances in A560 technology such as Mega Top™, World of Jackpots™, OLED dynamic button panel and high denomination games, the opportunity to tailor a complete range of products to every floor has never been so exciting.
Showcased on the highly innovative Super A560™ cabinet featuring an imposing three LCD screens, the extensive World of Jackpots product library provides super-store quantities of linked progressive-centric brands, with seven spectacular jackpot themes already released; Thunder Bucks™, Rapid Strike™, Players Paradise®, Lights Camera Action®, Rio Grande Rapids™, Jackpot Zone® and Dragon™. And this is just the beginning, with many more new progressive World of Jackpots brands due for release in 2012 and beyond.
Mega Top, Ainsworth’s newest A560 cabinet, stands above all others. Reaching for the stars is the stylish new 32-inch LCD top-box with exciting event-driven LED lighting. Standing more than seven feet tall, the Mega Top range offers an imposing centerpiece for any gaming floor. The first Mega Top release is the highly anticipated Players Paradise Platinum, with six levels of big-time link progressive prizes and the exclusive Platinum Play feature game.
Ainsworth’s range of Play 100Lines™/Play 50Lines™ SAP games are now top-performing games at many casinos across North America. In particular, the games Mustang Money™, Money Heat™, Roaming Reels™ and Dolphins™ all continue to excitingly produce world-class results and are now available with fixed-line betting.
Furthermore, Ainsworth has expanded their hugely successful GamePlus™ range with 25 new stand-alone games including two, three and four-level SAP brands: Double Shot Deluxe®, Triple Shot™, Double Hit®, Super Game™, Play 100Lines/Play 50Lines, an all-new specialized high denomination game range and the revolutionary ante-bet product Hot Reel®.
In 2012, we will further expand our cabinet technology with new presentation mediums that utilize advanced hardware solutions. Ainsworth is continually driven by expansive R&D programs focused on innovative new product presentations and unique game technologies. The end goal for Ainsworth is a world-class product offering a complete range of versatile cabinet options to support its rapidly expanding international game range and providing total flexibility for operators to maximize value on their investment.
Robert Miodunski
Chief Executive Officer
American Gaming Systems (AGS)
The year 2012 will be an exciting year for American Gaming Systems (AGS). We have assembled an entirely new management team of industry veterans just in the last year. They are dedicated and committed to establishing our company as a contender in the global gaming arena. AGS debuted its new Roadrunner gaming platform at the recent G2E exhibition in Las Vegas, along with almost 30 new titles in both Class II and Class III formats that will all be available for sale in 2012. This new platform is extremely robust and has three significant features that will serve us well in our future game development efforts in both Class II and Class III. Roadrunner has far superior graphics compared to our previous Encore platform. In addition, Roadrunner has a Class II engine that allows the potential number of outcomes to be in the thousands, versus historically challenged Class II engines that offer 100-200 possible outcomes. This new feature will enable the Class II games to have the same feel to players as the more robust Class III titles and should enable AGS’ Class II games to perform more like their Class III counterparts in revenue-earning capability.
In addition, Roadrunner has a sophisticated porting capability that allows a Class III game to easily be ported over to Class II. This will enable AGS to acquire Class III titles from providers that don’t have the Class II engine or access to the Class II markets.
AGS’ vision and focus for 2012 rests on three primary areas of opportunities:
1. Take what we have and make it better—AGS has more than 7,000 revenue-sharing games in the installed base in the United States alone. We plan to take the 30-plus titles that we will produce this year from both internal sources and third-party developers and deploy them judiciously to maximize game performance in the installed base. Historically, AGS relied on third-party content developers to provide new titles and had fewer than five titles per year to utilize to focus on improving the performance of its installed base. AGS acquired Gametronics in Toronto in 2009 and has transformed its infrastructure to focus on the U.S. market in both Class II and Class III. We have 50 developers in Toronto and have started a development team here in our new headquarters in Las Vegas as well.
2. Leverage AGS’ niche Class III products to place a few games in every casino where we are licensed—These are games like Boogie Ball, Caribbean Pearls, Blackbeard’s Treasure and American Revolution. Having historically been a Class II provider, we have a tremendous opportunity to expand into more traditional gaming jurisdictions and offer operators a viable number of options to enhance their gaming floors. Dr. Olaf Vancura, our VP of game development and seasoned game designer, has brought a library of creative and dynamic proprietary intellectual property that will afford AGS the opportunity to develop a variety of unique game experiences for our current and prospective customers.
3. Expansion into several new tribal and commercial markets—Over the next several months AGS will significantly grow the number of jurisdictions in which it is licensed. Major markets such as Nevada, New Jersey, Connecticut, Mississippi, Ohio, Ontario, Canada and Illinois present incredible growth potential and AGS will aim to have a major presence. While Oklahoma, Florida, New York, Texas and California have proven to be very lucrative markets for AGS, the future is bright and we feel we have exciting products to offer customers in these new markets and are excited about the potential for exponentially growing our footprint in the marketplace.
All in all, there are big plans and exciting times ahead for AGS, and 2012 is just the beginning of many great years to come.
Nick Khin
President
Aristocrat Americas
2012 is set to be a promising year for Aristocrat. We are excited about the momentum we created at G2E, which was one of our best-ever showings. The five pillars of our company’s vision that we showed received a tremendous customer response, and charted a fantastic course for us to follow into the new year.
Of course, Aristocrat is world famous for our games and systems products, and as 2012 begins, we have been actively preparing for the regulation and legalization of online gaming, and we have developed a solution, which we first showed at G2E in October to help our customers ready themselves for it.
We have developed an innovative platform solution we call nLive, which is a live, play-for-fun solution that is branded for the property and promotes the property, unlike some other suppliers’ offerings, which compete against operators. Another interesting aspect of nLive is that it can link to our in-casino system (Oasis 360™) via our product nLiveLink, empowering the operator to reward the player for in-casino and online play.
We are thrilled to be working with Maryland Live! and Island Resort Casino, our first two casino customers who we are working with to set up their fully branded virtual online casino sites that go live in the first quarter of this year. Their players will be able to log in to the virtual casinos and play numerous slot, table and poker games—all for free. Later, when online gaming is legalized, we will be able to change those sites from play-for-free to play-for-money sites.
The linkage of nLive to Oasis 360 allows our customers to monitor both online and in-casino play by their players so they get one view of their customer.
As we move forward in this exciting arena in 2012, we will continue to develop new groundbreaking games and systems technologies that are at the core of our business, all of which sets up a good forecast for Aristocrat in 2012.
From each of us at Aristocrat, please accept our best wishes for a very happy New Year.
Steve Walther
Vice President of Marketing
Aruze Gaming America
Success in the gaming industry depends on momentum, and building and sustaining momentum is a primary focus of both operators and suppliers. Over the last six months, Aruze Gaming has begun to build momentum with the successful performance of its new products and entrance into new gaming markets. With the economy experiencing small growth and visitor levels to casinos rising again, 2012 will provide enormous opportunity for Aruze Gaming to continue building momentum and introducing its innovative new products to a much larger player base.
The energy in the gaming industry is returning, and this is evident by the quality and depth of new products on display at this past G2E and the increasing visitor volume returning to venues. As operators begin to benefit from this increased volume, we are anticipating that they will want to modernize their floor with these exciting products. Surely the last few years have been challenging for the industry, but suppliers like Aruze Gaming have continued to invest in development and innovation, taking the gaming experience to the next level, so that as players return they can be delighted and engaged like never before.
During this past year, Aruze Gaming continued to reinforce its push as a strong contender as a gaming supplier around the world. We launched new award-winning products, grew our install base, expanded to new markets and expanded our operations to better serve our customers. Our products have generated a great anticipation of success, and now that they are in operation they have exceeded those expectations. Our mix of classical gaming elements, innovative concepts and player mechanics, for example Reel Feel™ Gaming Technology and Radiant Reels™, will continue to entertain and drive performance on the casino floor. We look forward to sustaining and building this momentum throughout 2012.
As the industry continues to rebound in 2012, players will continue to be more discerning with their entertainment spend, and that means that as suppliers, we must continue to provide the maximum entertainment value for the player’s investment, while still balancing the needs of the operators. Aruze Gaming has balanced the strength of its mathematics with innovative and engaging game mechanics and strong packaging. Players now seek out a more entertainment-oriented product, rather than just pure gaming, and they demand a more realistic and immersive experience than ever before. With Paradise Fishing™, Amazon Fishing™, Shoot to Win™ Craps and Lucky Big Wheel™, players get the opportunity to “feel” the game with technologies like the Bash Button™ and the Reel Feel Rod Controller.
With the Innovator line of steppers, Aruze Gaming brings new levels of excitement and anticipation to a popular platform. Innovator steppers provide a video-style presentation to a classic stepper game with Radiant Reels that are dynamic and attention grabbing. These products help Aruze Gaming create fun on the casino floor and reward players with an engaging experience.
Aruze Gaming will continue to expand its diverse product portfolio in 2012 and further introduce players to our philosophy of creating engaging fun. The industry continues to be fiercely competitive, and Aruze Gaming is prepared with innovative technologies, an expanded games portfolio, exciting new concepts and engaging products to sustain and build our momentum.
We recognize the energy in the industry again, and embrace the opportunity to equip operators in building upon this energy. We are pleased with our momentum as we start 2012, and we are looking forward to significant growth as the economy and the industry recover.
Our industry has the energy and the potential for a fantastic 2012. Good luck, everyone!
Richard M. Haddrill
Chief Executive Officer
Bally Technologies Inc.
Bally Technologies celebrates its 80-year anniversary in January 2012. This is probably the most exciting time in our company’s eight decades of innovation. We have never been in a better position to support our customers and provide casinos with the industry’s best games and systems platforms and content, including award-winning mobile technology and interactive solutions.
What’s most exciting is that while we feel like it is our time, we are confident that the casino gaming industry will see growth, too, as we have started seeing real improvement in the global economy. In late 2011, we started to see many of the gaming markets worldwide start to show signs of recovery, and in direct discussions with customers, it is apparent that their confidence is increasing. We’re excited to see global markets like Macau and Singapore continue their growth. In North America, states such as Illinois, Ohio, Kentucky, Texas and Massachusetts are considering gaming legalization, which indicates the growing acceptance of gaming as a way to generate jobs and tax revenues.
At the same time, we have seen players becoming more and more tech savvy and embracing mobile, online and social media at a faster pace than non-casino gamblers, according to a recent survey we did of nearly 1,800 casino gamblers. That means exciting things for gaming operators, who can create exciting technology experiences in their casinos and leverage mobile, Internet, and social media to bring the casino to players.
The increasing technological sophistication of the casino player and recent initiatives lead us to believe that Internet gaming will eventually become a global reality. When it happens, we feel it is very important that land-based casinos have a single view of their customer across all platforms—mobile, online and systems-based gaming. Operators are going to need solutions that integrate data from slot and casino-management systems as well as Internet-gaming systems so they can incorporate their marketing, promotions and player-rewards programs across all channels.
To that end, late last year we announced our new Bally Interactive division. This new business unit will encompass our mobile, Internet and social initiatives, complementing our traditional games and systems business lines. Through Bally Interactive, we will offer casino operators the ability to augment their land-based casino gaming with mobile and online play-for-free and wager-based games. We will integrate these solutions with our core casino patron, slot-management, and business-intelligence systems to give gaming operators a single view of the player and enable casinos to deliver a powerful experience to their patrons whether they are on the casino floor, at home or on the move.
Along with a focus on mobile and online technologies, in calendar 2012 we believe that server-based gaming will be deployed at a faster pace than ever. Gaming operators are increasingly using servers to drive strong return-on-investment by one, communicating with players and creating exciting events across entire casino floors by using technology like our iVIEW™ network; two by managing databases for marketing programs and operational analytics in more sophisticated ways than ever before; and three, for Internet gaming.
At Bally, we see a growing demand for technology that enables casinos to use this iVIEW player-user-interface technology on the gaming device to deliver self-service features, player’s club account access, marketing messages and secondary bonus games from a central server. There is a proven return on investment from these solutions for their ability to streamline operations and deliver a powerful experience to players. Casinos who use this technology are seeing increased coin-in, an uptick in carded play; more comprehensive market data about their customers; and most importantly, smiling, excited and loyal patrons.
Games have evolved as well, to offer exciting entertainment experiences. From touchscreen button decks to surround-sound chairs to arcade-like play mechanics and world-class brands, the slot-play experience will continue to evolve. New games that we are launching in 2012, such as Michael Jackson King of Pop™ and Grease™, provide new levels of visual and audio entertainment with generation-spanning iconic themes.
So, in summary, we see real recovery in the economy in many parts of the world. 2012 and beyond looks to be very exciting for our industry, as casino operators continue to embrace new technologies and update their floors with more sophisticated games, floor-wide bonusing applications, and augment their land-based offerings with mobile and online solutions. This is our time!
Paul Miller
EVP of Business Development, U.S. and Canada
BetStone
BetStone leads the world in server-based gaming. We create high energy for our customers through innovation and some of the most compelling content, and we create user-friendly systems and tools for our casino operators.
In terms of content, BetStone already has some 120-plus game titles, and some of our bonus rounds and second-screen features are very alluring to players. With multi-level play and the ability to make additional bets, respins and other decisions, this creates added anticipation for players and creates an attraction for the operator. Also, when players are walking the casino floor, the diversity of games is attractive, drawing in observers to play our games. Given the multi-game format of BetStone machines, and the ability to link any machine to a true global progressive jackpot with options like tournament play, this acts like a magnet for players to participate. New technologies being developed such as vivid Mirasol screen technology (like the iridescent cells on a butterfly’s wings), surround sound, haptic feedback and faster, interactive graphics will all contribute to a wow factor to players and passersby.
As BetStone continues to innovate in R&D, we see new up-and-coming technologies that allow more personalization and interaction with the game. Some of these technologies include biometrics, visual perception, 3-D displays, laser-video displays and even screenless displays such as holography. Connecting with social networks with fellow players and friends will lend a whole new social dimension. The player can be the game, rather than just play it.
Slot vendors are multi-purposed, in that they are not just content creators, but also hardware providers and quite often, financing partners. Traditional IT software models are not directly relevant to the gaming industry. Nonetheless, some of the lessons from the technology industry probably apply here, such as more emphasis on standards, differentiation of content over hardware, and more third-party developers to drive content innovation.
Video poker has always been popular in locals markets, and BetStone has some strong variations on the poker theme. BetStone’s selection includes standard, power poker and level-up. Some are old favorites such as Jacks or Better, along with some more interesting versions such as our Double Joker Poker. And our Power Poker range allows multiple hands to be played in a number of different variations. This ranges from four hands to the remarkable 100 Power Poker. One of BetStone’s alternatives is our level-up poker where winning hands allow you to move up a possible of up to four levels, doubling the win each time. Finally, for the player who loves the thrill of the big gamble, we have poker games attached to global progressives. Bingo is also extremely popular in some markets, such as Class II and some Latin American countries. BetStone has an extremely competitive set of bingo-based games, and we continue to launch new titles on a regular release schedule.
And a note on our customers—it’s hard to differentiate the importance between players and operators; they are both vital to BetStone’s success. BetStone has a parallel development stream—compelling content for the players, and powerful, user-friendly tools for operators to maximize the value of every square foot of floor space.
BetStone is a privately owned company based in Dublin. With our commitment to R&D and an ambitious technology and content release schedule, BetStone continues to set the pace for server-based gaming in the industry. BetStone currently runs the world’s largest server-based gaming multigame platform and is dedicated to constant innovation, excellence in customer service and quality.
Gene Chayevsky
Chairman and CEO
Cadillac Jack
2012 will be the year that Cadillac Jack, and a handful of other medium-sized companies that have matured in their organizational readiness and product portfolios, will step forward and seize a larger market share in the industry. Even while somewhat bearish on the gaming industry as a whole, a number of industry analysts have publicly recognized this trend and Goldman Sachs has recently spotlighted Cadillac Jack as one of their rising stars due to our expansion and traction in new markets, high level of product innovation and performance, and our strong growth rate.
While the past year presented yet another challenging economic environment and 2012 carries a high degree of challenges and uncertainty, I’m happy to say that we were able to produce strong results for the year. I’m also excited for the future as we introduce a new gaming engine that will allow us to expand our product library with feature-rich innovations and player-engaging interaction.
Cadillac Jack’s pillars are a culture of “can-do” team spirit coupled with a passion for product and service innovation. Even within the demanding environment of the previous years, we have not diverted from our goal to recruit and develop the best talent in the industry, nor have we waivered from our commitment to invest heavily in R&D to provide a path of excellence in design-driven products. This past year, we partnered with MicroStrategy, a world leader in business intelligence to develop a best-in-industry mobile and Internet-based solution to ensure that our customers receive maximum profitability on their floors and optimal utilization and management of the Cadillac Jack product portfolio. We also enhanced our communications with our customers and players by successfully leveraging social media tools for major product announcements and promotions, thus obtaining high ROI and visibility for our customers.
The introduction of our new game engine and our new development ecosystem provide a platform for rapid and efficient development of feature-rich products. Our objective continues to be one of product innovation, enriched player experience, and attraction and retention of players.
In 2012, our product portfolio will include a broader library of products with game features that have generated significant player interest—Connect to Win™ paylines, player-controlled volatility at the game, ante bets, expanding wilds and scatters and a wheel bonus. Many of our 2012 product releases will have a console-like game environment with real-time 3-D rendering, physics and particle effects. We are also very excited about a new product family produced in collaboration with a classic franchise in the gaming industry. In addition, toward the end of the year we will also unveil a new generation game cabinet designed in collaboration with a leading Silicon Valley industrial design partner.
Looking further into 2012, we are actively pursuing the expansion into established tribal and commercial markets and emerging VLT markets in the U.S., and we are keeping a watchful eye on the expansion of gaming in countries such as Brazil. Mexico remains an important market for Cadillac Jack, and we continue to experience impressive growth for our business there. As one of the most rapidly growing slot markets in the world, Mexico also embodies a challenging and volatile environment in which to do business. However, the recent increased focus by the Mexican authorities on strengthening the regulatory and enforcement regime provides a good opportunity for developing Mexico into a more sophisticated and robust market from a regulatory perspective. In conjunction with such regulatory progress, we also see a unique opportunity in 2012 for the Mexican gaming industry (represented by AIEJA and APSJAC gaming associations), supported by international gaming equipment manufacturers active in Mexico, to work with the Mexican government to introduce new gaming legislation to foster continued growth of the market.
I’m energized by the increasing momentum I am feeling in the industry, and I am confident that our careful planning and execution will help us to continue to bring success to our customers in the coming year.
Sonia Nikolova
Sales and Marketing Director
Casino Technology
We trust that this coming year will be very strong for Casino Technology. We are placing a strong bet on our new products and the new market opportunities. Our main strength is game content, and we are focusing on diversifying the game concepts and math models with innovative and already-proven features.
At the beginning of the year, we are starting the installations of our first Penthouse Slots™ products that will play a major role in our product offering for 2012. Our license agreement with this strong and worldwide-recognized brand provides an array of creative avenues to explore and provide unique products for the players, both on the game side and on the marketing side. The launch of the first Penthouse™ branded video slots at G2E this year, Umbrella Dance™, Butterfly Dreaming™ and Wild Temptations™, proved the high interest of the customers. Following that, we are planning the launch of the next games and concepts in 2012 with two new games that will be introduced in January at ICE in London, the Penthouse Slots implemented in PlayMe™ piano multi-player station.
We are continuing strongly the further enhancement of our game suite multi-game concept and during the next year, we are planning to deliver several new multi-game packages with strong and proven yet unique game concepts. In the product development plan, there is also included the launch of Penthouse Slots multi-game packages.
Besides the traditional stand-alone games and products, we are preparing the launch of our brand-new VLT system. It is set to accommodate multi-jurisdictional requirements in an extremely flexible way. This system is supported by our Remote Game Server that will host all of our proven, best-played and new games. We are also working on development of our relationships with several other platform providers for integration of our Remote Game Server to ensure a stronger offering of Casino Technology games on a variety of remote gaming services.
The brick-and-mortar casino properties will have their marketplace in the future and strongly continue their offering as they provide a completely different experience for the players combined with the social component of the interaction. Online gaming and new technologies will definitely have an impact, but it could be only positive overall if the traditional casinos manage to get on the wave and use the new technologies as a new opportunity to develop their customer base and bring new customers on board.
The change of the generations will definitely drive a change of the game concepts, video presentation and technological features involved, but for sure gaming will not move only to the virtual world in the near future. More likely there will be a new gaming concept created that will get the best from both worlds. As for Casino Technology—as mentioned already, we are getting ready for this move with the launch of our Remote Game Server and VLT system and we hope that we will manage to provide the technology necessary for the operators to adjust and use the advantages offered by online gaming.
Casino Technology carefully monitors the technological advancements and evaluates the best ones to implement. We believe that the new technologies will affect mainly the graphical presentation of the games and speed of performance, especially when the gaming products start using high-definition video regularly and a closer relation between online and traditional gaming is established. We select technologies that are already proven, reliable and performing up to the expectations of the operators. We feel that the new technologies will allow the products to create better visual presentation and appeal, and will become more user friendly and interactive. The new technologies will bring more entertainment to the players and we certainly have aligned several of our developments in that direction.
Elaine Hodgson
President and CEO
Incredible Technologies
“It’s too bad you entered the industry at a time when the competition has never been better and casino budgets have never been worse.” That was exactly how the state of the gaming industry was put to me in a recent meeting with an executive-level slot director. As an emerging slot manufacturer that is knee-deep in its growth phase, these words might as well have been a pie in the face. I thought, “Is this our reality, and if so, how is Incredible Technologies positioned within it?” As the meeting progressed and I wiped the whipped cream out of my eyes, an agreement was made to place our first bank of games on his floor. It was an apropos answer to my very own question.
Gaming is a growth industry in a bad economic climate that has challenged companies to become more clever and efficient to succeed. What this customer meant is the status quo is no longer good enough, and “good enough” will no longer pay the bills. One look around G2E was proof that innovation and quality are the cornerstones of the most successful companies in the industry. So it is true—we are entering a competitive industry and it’s our own level of quality and integrated technology that are compelling operators to purchase our products and players to play them. In essence, the challenging times are making us and the industry stronger.
While our corporate history spans 27 years, our commitment to casino gaming is now entering its sixth. We chose to invest in gaming development in 2005 because, like the amusement game industry we came from, the cashbox is king. If you can build a box that can out-earn the competition, people will buy it. In that time, we’ve had to cross the engineering, manufacturing, service, regulatory and relationship hurdles that make the barriers to entry in this industry high and now, as we often say, it is all about the game. Our years of hard work, testing, learning and reworking are beginning to pay off with our first successful products earning well over floor average for 90 days and beyond. To make slot manufacturing a sustainable business for Incredible Technologies, our goal is clear—create a high-quality portfolio of games with enough successful titles to offset the less successful titles while making enough profit to uphold our identity as a creatively inspired entertainment development company.
While our business team began placing games in 2011, our R&D energy was spent building a foundation for success. We’re smarter—we studied the industry, the players and operators with an open mind that allowed us to admit what we didn’t know. We’re faster—a new developmental tool system was created that allows us to develop games more efficiently and effectively. We’re stronger—our Magic Touch® brand now includes more than 25 video slot titles and 40 video poker/keno games available in two unique cabinets. We also partnered with experienced outside development teams, added industry veterans to our sales organization and added many new state/tribal licenses.
Looking to 2012, our immediate developmental goal is to focus on great game math, innovative features and compelling themes. We will continue to evolve our cabinet design and push our technology platform to the cutting edge without sacrificing our ease of service. We will expand into more jurisdictions and operate under a sales goal that places at least one bank of games in every casino in those states. Additionally, we particularly look forward to providing video gaming terminals in our home state of Illinois.
Longer term, we intend to evolve with industry and shape the parts we can. We will continue to create our signature innovations and we will look to put our content on i-gaming systems in Europe and prepare for the U.S.
The industry has been supportive of Incredible Technologies and is generally rooting for our success. As the leader of the company, the support is inspiring and confirms why I believe gaming is truly as much a growth industry today as it was decades ago. In 2012, we plan to let our products define why we are worth believing in.
Sean Kapoor
Executive Director, Marketing Communications
IGT
-Creativity, innovation and vision have always been vital elements sitting soundly at the core of International Game Technology (IGT). As we enter 2012 and face the changing global economy head on, these core strengths give us the ability to adapt to the current business economy at an accelerated pace. More importantly, these elements have helped IGT develop solutions and products that meet our customers’ needs today and will lead the industry into tomorrow.
While creativity, innovation and vision are spurred by numerous factors, they must also be harnessed to create solutions that our customers crave. IGT works diligently to uncover operators’ needs and players’ wants more than any other company in the industry. In fact, IGT annually invests $200 million in research and development to do just this.
At the heart of IGT lies a love for innovation and passion for creation. In our storied history, IGT developed the slot accounting system, ticket-in/ticket-out technology, wide-area progressive networks and server-based gaming—among many other industry firsts. Yes, our track record is strong, our roots are deep, and in 2012 our industry-shifting innovation will continue.
In all of our innovation, we are aiming to unshackle our customers from growing operational complexities so they can focus on the things that matter most to them—players, games and performance. In 2012, we will continue this focus through innovation in our systems products and by introducing the IGT Cloud to the gaming industry.
History of Innovation and Creation Fuels Introduction of the Cloud
IGT is leading the cloud-computing transformation in gaming by offering operators innovative solutions to optimize their operations and casino floors. Ultimately, we believe the IGT Cloud will propel the gaming industry to new heights by delivering fresh market opportunities, breakthrough operating models and dynamic player experiences.
The introduction of the IGT Cloud also marks the company’s move toward empowering operators to provide seamless gaming experiences across land-based, mobile and online devices. The IGT Cloud delivers efficiency and value to casino operators using Software as a Service (SaaS) protocols. The private, secure cloud will enable casinos to manage game content using IGT Floor Manager to access the largest game library in the industry. sbX® Analytics will empower operators to increase marketing productivity and maximize floor-wide performance with a variety of reporting tools.
While the delivery of features to operators is robust, the delivery of features to players is transformative. Operators will be able to customize rewards to individual players and deliver players the game they want, when they want it and where they want it. Ultimately, this will send players’ enjoyment and engagement to heights never seen before.
When it comes to technology, whether it’s the latest smartphone or a gaming industry system, features and functionality are two of the most important and sought-after attributes. Today, IGT already provides customers with the strongest features and functionality, allowing operators to offer players more choices to deliver excitement and personalized content. It also allows operators to engage players with on-screen offers relevant to the players’ interaction and easily manage and modify in-house marketing programs.
Of course, with our steeped history in innovation our significant commitment to research and development, the IGT Cloud and the IGT Systems products are built not only to help operators today, but will also set them up for success in the future.
The output of this research, which is conducted in partnership with operators, will allow IGT to unveil some of the greatest advancements in industry history in 2012, starting with our games.
2012 Releases Will Advance MegaJackpots® Games to New Heights
Already known for our pop culture titles, 2012 will mark another exciting step in the advancement of our MegaJackpots games. With features such as 3-D and advanced touchscreens, IGT’s games are built to meet the technology expectations of today’s consumer. Ghostbusters™ Who Ya Gonna Call, Elvis The King® Multi-Level Progressives and The Twilight Zone® incorporate not only recognizable titles, but advanced technology and exciting game play.
While our pop culture titles elicit rave reviews around the world, IGT also understands global casino operators need localized content for their players. We believe the need for such content will only increase as the gaming world expands. That is why in 2012, our market-attuned products featuring localized and regionalized content such as Dia de Muertos™ and Huevocartoon® will give operators games made especially for their players.
Our research also shows that today’s players are yearning for more interactive experiences, and in 2012, IGT will debut the industry’s most-exciting and authentic interactive games. From Big Buck Hunter® Pro, with its arcade-style game hardware, to IGT’s Fast-Hit Progressives™, a new family of mechanical five-reel games, players will begin to think about and engage with games in new and exciting ways.
Convergence with the online and mobile arenas is also on the gaming horizon. IGT not only has the vision to prepare for this shift, but has the experience to execute. With more than a decade in interactive markets, IGT has unmatched know-how in creating the very best games for online, mobile and land-based gaming. The recent acquisition of Entraction allows us to expand our content and offer land-based and interactive channels that no other company can match. And not to rest on our achievements, IGT’s Interactive division has many significant feature upgrades planned for the coming year.
In today’s world, creativity, innovation and vision, which IGT has always had at its foundation, are more important than ever in driving the global economy. IGT is confident that these core company attributes, fueled by our commitment to research, will help IGT continue to meet operator and player demands not only in 2012, but well into the future.
Pat Ramsey
Chief Executive Officer
Multimedia Games
As we enter 2012—and wrap up our 20th year in gaming—I continue with the same optimism for Multimedia Games that I had a year ago. In fact, last year, I wrote that I was more confident than ever that we were on the path to grow our company. Despite another tough year in our industry, we grew by just about every measure—from revenue growth to income growth to footprint expansion—and it certainly seems as if the momentum actually increased throughout the year. We have been hard at work for several years to do so; therefore, the results are exceptionally gratifying. So what’s ahead in 2012?
First and foremost, we are going to continue to build on the customer relationships that we have had for years and those that we have recently developed, and we will build new ones. Our successes in 2011 can partly be attributed to us simply stepping back and listening to our customers. The concept seems so simple, and it is one by which the casino operators frankly must live and die. In the technology and manufacturing space, it is also critically important. The operator feedback and partnerships have been essential for Multimedia Games both from a product and strategic standpoint, so we will enter the new year looking forward to continuing to build on these relationships.
Second, of course, we must remain focused on building the best games and technologies for all of our markets. In order to do so, I think it is important that we continue to ask ourselves two questions. First and foremost, what do current casino patrons like to play? Our Austin-based product development group, technology team, mathematicians, artists and producers are incredibly talented and our domestic footprint expansion is evidence that we have some good answers to that first critical question. The second question is completely different, yet should be on all of our minds: How can we help attract new customers and new revenue opportunities to the casino floor? We all have witnessed the power of the Internet, social networking and mobile technology in so many industries—from selling homes to buying books—yet I can’t help but feel that this remains an enormous opportunity for all of us in gaming. This year at Multimedia, we will continue to prudently explore opportunities that may exist in this arena without taking the eye off of our main product lines and our major customers.
Last but not least, we are all going to be focused on continuing to foster an environment of enthusiasm, growth and innovation at Multimedia Games. We have a lot of great products in the pipeline, and we will look to invest more in R&D to strengthen that pipeline. Given the economic uncertainty both domestically and globally, it seems likely that 2012 will— in the best case scenario—bring modest improvement to the gaming industry. For us, however, we like the position we are in—we have a healthy balance sheet and we feel we are underpenetrated in virtually every gaming market. With a focus on our core products, markets and customers—and an eye toward the longer term—we look forward to another monumental year in Multimedia Games’ history.
Walter Bugno
President and CEO
SPIELO International
2011 was a year of exciting changes for SPIELO International, and we’re bringing that momentum into 2012 with one of the most exciting portfolio of games and products we’ve ever offered.
Two major developments in 2011 have poised us for a game-changing 2012: We completed the integration of SPIELO and ATRONIC into what we now know as SPIELO International, with a dedicated, collective focus on creating compelling content and developing a deeper understanding of our customers’ needs.
Also in late 2011, we began the formal unification of SPIELO International with its sister company in the i-gaming space, GTECH G2. This combination means we’ll be able to deliver more content and better technology, combined with a faster time-to-market, in both online and land-based environments. Very few companies have the number of licenses and depth of proven games than we now do.
Regarding the North American casino market outlook, our customers are telling us that in 2012, players will be looking for richer entertainment experiences across multiple gaming channels. They want to attract new players by offering that entertainment with a fresh twist.
We’re offering soon-to-be released games licensed under a wildly popular brand that originated in the online casual gaming sector. We believe these titles will provide an example of how we’re responding to those needs. We’re delivering that twist by developing a brand that originates from non-traditional media, and by creating unique functionality never before seen in our industry. In other words, in the commercial casino space, we’re breaking the mold of the static five spinning reel interfaces.
Customers are asking for more skill-based games, because of their enhanced interactivity and the excitement they create for both players and observers. Our game designers have incorporated casual gaming features in these soon-to-be-released games, such as strategy, risk/reward and physical skill elements, such as dexterity. You’ll see broader gaming elements incorporated into the slots format, like tower defense setups and boss battles. We’re also building in a unique approach to betting up—players are getting value, familiar features and entertainment for their increased bet, instead of just predictable multipliers. We’ve also added fun, integrated ways of incrementing progressives.
The integration of social and casino gaming is one area where we expect to see rapid growth. This synergy delivers value, keeps players engaged when not on the casino property, and provides a cost-effective off-site marketing channel. Our customers recognize that online products can enhance the success of a brick-and-mortar operation, by building a bridge between casino and online. We think this is one of the most organic ways to draw in new players and hold their interest. In this same way, i-gaming will expand the casino space with its unlimited reach.
Looking at other segments, opportunities abound in new and existing VLT markets around the world. In Illinois, we’re leveraging 20 years of producing top-performing games for route markets, and are poised to offer Illinois operators great content and our award-winning prodiGi Vu™ cabinet. We’ll also be busy deploying our solutions across numerous government-sponsored Canadian markets that awarded us contracts in their replacement cycle.
Looking across the Atlantic, we believe our experience and leadership in the Italian VLT market will benefit other European customers developing new programs, and we expect to see VLT programs proliferate throughout the continent. On the heels of the ongoing success of our Italian AWP games, we plan to bring more great content to AWP operators around the world. And in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Latin America, the presence of our diversity™ game suites on the OXYGEN™ cabinet continues its rapid expansion as operators seek the flexibility of multi-game solutions on a player-driven cabinet.
Overall, we expect 2012 to be a watershed year for SPIELO International, and more importantly, a year of exciting and unprecedented growth opportunities for our customers, too.
Scott Winzeler
VP Product Management
Video Gaming Technologies (VGT)
2012 is shaping up to be another busy year for VGT as we channel our efforts into a number of large initiatives, both customer-focused and internal. Our primary strategic goals for the coming year are to bolster our core competencies and to continue expansion within the Class II market.
You already know we have great 3-reel products in the pipeline, and in 2012 we are bringing world-class video products as well. With more than 20,000 gaming machines in the U.S. and counting, our focus is remaining true to our Class II roots by continuing to deliver engaging entertainment to patrons and customer service to our operators that is second to none.
Our plan for accomplishing this can be decomposed into three very simple elements: developing world-class games on a world-class platform and delivering them on world-class hardware. The coming year will be filled with a great amount of concentrated, hard work on our next-gen gaming platform and cabinets, upon which we will debut a suite of compelling new video titles. At the same time, we will also be delivering new products within our stepper line in 2012 that are sure to resonate with players and keep them coming back for more.
New Markets
In addition to Class II, VGT also has its sights set on entering new markets in 2012. A new product line for the incipient video lottery market in Illinois has been in development and we look forward to releasing this package when the market opens. We’ll keep a watchful eye out for additional market opportunities—VLT, Class II and beyond—in the coming year as well.
A Streamlined, Simplified Product Release Process
Improvements in development efficiency translate to quicker time-to-market as well as more refined products. When emerging products are exposed to operators and players throughout the development process, the gaming experience can really be dialed in.
For this reason, we overhauled our foundational game development processes in 2011, shifting to incorporate agile development methodologies into our product creation pipeline. We are still in the midst of the transition and have already realized numerous benefits from the switch. Our expectation in 2012 is that they will only increase as we further entrench these processes within the organization.
Augmented Creative and Technological Functions
Additional investments in our company were made this year in the establishment of a new game studio in Reno, Nev., as well as an advanced research and development group. These two groups will create a synergistic effect as we move forward with the game studio focused on world-class design, and the R&D lab providing the cutting-edge foundation upon which those designs will be realized.
VGT is Future Ready
VGT has become the company it is today through the tireless efforts of our associates and the outstanding products that we have created. Our pledge as we move into the future—into 2012 and beyond—is to make continued investments in our people and our products. The drive to improve in both areas is ongoing, and it is why we feel so optimistic about our future. There is a lot ahead for VGT in 2012, and we welcome it with open arms.
Orrin J. Edidin
President
WMS Industries Inc.
Over the last several years, solid evidence has emerged that indicates that several factors are increasingly driving consumers’ casino gaming preferences and interactions. At WMS, we believe these factors—a sense of financial uncertainty related to the current economic environment, the emergence of technology as a growing influence in our everyday lives and the accelerated convergence of land-based, online and social/casual gaming—will prove to be prevalent in determining casino guests’ visitation and spending behavior in the new year. Although 2011 metrics across a broad number of markets indicate economic pressure on consumers is beginning to subside, we believe this factor in particular will remain the key external influence on casino guests’ behavior.
Against this backdrop, equipment suppliers must provide casino operators with differentiated gaming content that delivers a higher return on their investment. WMS is actively supporting casino operators as we refine our product development efforts to address near-term needs while helping them plan for the further evolution of their slot floors with products such as our portal applications and other industry-leading technologies.
Providing our customers with new content that can drive higher performance is a top priority, and the regulatory approval delays that impaired our ability to bring WMS’ newest participation games to customers’ slot floors continue to subside. We are now placing several new game themes—including THE WIZARD OF OZ™ Journey to Oz™, MONOPOLY™ Party Train™, Pirate Battle®, Leprechaun’s Gold® and BATTLESHIP™—that can deliver the financial performance our customers have come to expect from WMS. We expect these titles and the ones to follow will provide customers with the exciting game choices that meet their players’ preferences.
The increasing availability of advanced technologies will continue to influence guests’ slot floor preferences in 2012 and beyond. In particular, consumers are embracing online gaming and social media like never before, and WMS is developing solutions to facilitate the integration of these new technologies with the traditional in-casino experience. As the pace of technological change continues to gather speed, we are aligning our product development roadmap with current player trends to create games that deliver measurable benefits and attract the newest generation of players while being at the forefront of innovation on the casino floor.
To address these trends, we are excited to continue the rollout of our successful portal applications and Player’s Life® Web Services and drive further development of our JackpotParty.com online gaming site. In addition, we are introducing a range of innovative products such as the My Poker™ video poker series.
Our portal applications, while still in the early stages of availability, are delivering an enhanced game experience and the performance of games integrated with our portal applications is consistently encouraging. The first family, Ultra Hit Progressive®, is now installed at more than 25 casinos and generating attractive coin-in premiums. Our next two portal families—Mega Multiplier® and Winner’s Share®—have received commercial approvals and are on casino floors.
Similarly, our games enabled with the Player’s Life Web Services technology continue to drive longer time on device for players that create unique logins in the casino. Time on device for players visiting the website to experience the casual online gaming offerings is even greater, providing evidence that a fully-integrated gaming experience can drive value and game performance. Furthermore, our customers have shown a high level of appreciation for the value that Player’s Life brings to our new My Poker video poker product. The Player’s Life integration allows players to track their play statistics and view leaderboards, encouraging both competition and long-term player engagement. We are optimistic that our My Poker series will provide a fresh alternative for the video poker player that addresses consumer preferences for higher levels of technology entertainment, thereby leading to a reinvigoration of the important video poker segment of our customers’ slot floors.
We will also work with our customers as they launch online gambling capabilities, including near-term “play for fun” online solutions built around our Player’s Life capabilities. Our JackpotParty.com online gambling site, launched November 2010 in the United Kingdom, is proof our technology, e-commerce platform and gaming content can form the foundation for a business-to-business partnership with our customers worldwide.
These newest technologies reflect our ongoing commitment to the benefit of networked gaming solutions. Importantly, we understand that many customers are not currently in a position to implement networked gaming on a floor-wide basis, and we can deliver these products at the bank level.
Entering 2012, I am extremely optimistic about the prospects for WMS and the casino industry. With our customer-focused portfolio, a growing number of approved for-sale and participation games and the steady flow of innovations from our talented game designers and engineers, the new year represents an exciting opportunity for WMS to present players with the gaming entertainment experiences they love while providing our customers with the near-term value that continues to drive their success.
Phil Trofibio
Vice President of Slot Operations
Detroit MotorCity Casino Hotel
For most of us in this business, we’ve known for a while that the future of gaming depends on creating the amenities, experiences and games that will attract a younger demographic. We’re a business dependent on the retirement set, and that’s been the case for decades. But successfully attracting the Gen X, Gen Y and Millennials is critical for us to grow our business.
As an industry, we’ve been evolving our offerings to this target for a while. Upscale nightclubs, fashionable restaurants and unique outlets (such as billiard halls and tattoo parlors) have been successful in Las Vegas for years. But what about the gaming experience? The hugely successful opening of The Cosmopolitan on the Strip is a perfect business case for the quandary—great trial from the younger set, plenty of lush amenities to keep them entertained throughout the evening, but less than stellar gaming revenues as reported in the press ever since opening.
What’s the solution? Probably a combination of factors. The culture is dominated by social interaction; I read a survey recently that revealed that posting a picture from a party on a Facebook page is more socially important than actually attending the party. We need to create socially engaging atmospheres and games that speak to this level of interaction. Due to this phenomenon, traditional and electronic table games will be an easier attraction to the younger players than the solitary nature of the slot machine.
Slot manufacturers know this and as such, have been developing community-style games for a couple of years now, to mixed levels of success. The most innovative community slot games have been developed for the lower denomination games, and so they come with dozens of lines and complicated payouts—not necessarily the best way to engage a rookie player. They also tend to be very large configurations on your floor—a costly investment toward what is likely a lower worth slot player than your bread-and-butter baby boomer.
The future refinement of networked gaming and their associated applications should provide some marketing power; especially if they are developed in a way that interacts with the handful of electronic devices this customer is already dependent on. Can my progress through the various slot bonus levels be stored on my iPhone or posted to my Facebook like Farmville? Can I opt in to play a community game on a casino floor only with people whom I already know? Can I play simultaneously but communicate remotely with other players like I do on Xbox Live? These are the kinds of expectations a younger player brings with them when interacting with electronic gaming devices.
The key for all of us will be to develop multiple programs and attractions that appeal to this growing segment as well as to our current, older players. The 50-plus age group has been the fastest growing segment on Facebook for a while, so the good news is most of our players are becoming “wired.” The key will be content. The themes and games that appeal to a younger group will likely be different from what appeals to our boomer guests (although the broad demographic crossover titles and applications remain the Holy Grail for us all). But therein lies the irony—content has been king for decades in slots, and the future of gaming is more content-dependent than ever.
Frank Neborsky
Vice President of Slot Operations
Mohegan Sun
With the passing of the 2011 holiday season comes the end of yet another year, and our attention now turns to 2012 and the happy new year.
There is no doubt that we learned a lot about ourselves in 2011. We evolved, we changed. We learned how to be more efficient, to better yield manage our property resources and to capitalize on every business opportunity. We optimize our gaming and non-gaming revenues like never before and better manage our staff to adjust for changes in business volume and economic shifts. Most of all, we learned how to do more with less.
Gone are the days of “build it and they will come;” the notion that the mega resort reigns supreme is no longer true. Convenience gaming is everywhere; whether it’s tribal or non-tribal, public or private, racinos, riverboats or slot parlors; some form of gambling can be found in all but a few states. As gaming has changed, so too has our customer. They have evolved and are now no different than the typical retail consumer who seeks out convenience while looking for the best value and the best price possible for the money they spend.
Gaming now, more than ever, competes for the discretionary dollars of our patrons. This is true across all geographic or demographic areas. Young or old, rich or poor, whether it’s casual non-carded play or the most valued high roller, everyone has cut back somewhere. And gaming revenues are usually the first to see the impact in either changes to trip frequency or spend per visit.
Service, product and marketing will be key to success in 2012 and a means to reaffirm market position. These three factors must work together in harmony, along with sound analytics, to ensure maximum ROI for any expense; capital, operational or promotional; with the goal to maintain existing business, safeguard against defectors and capture new customers wherever possible.
Service, service, service. Personalized. Engaging. Extraordinary. Did I mention how important service is? Well it’s huge. Without it we are nothing, unless it is bad service. And with bad service we are doomed. It costs no more to provide good service than bad, but bad service can be very expensive. In an industry that relies on discretionary spending, service is key. It’s a game changer, a differentiator between competitors. Service is what separates good operations from great operations or an ordinary experience from an extraordinary one. It’s what makes a guest feel comfortable and welcome. It makes them come back and in turn makes them want to bring their friends and tell others. A warm smile, a welcoming hello and open body language that says, “I am here to help you” are all priceless when it comes to guest service.
Product is what keeps our players entertained. Spinning reels, video slots, poker and table games all provide an experience and level of gratification that can be tailored to meet guests’ expectations. Penny slots to $100 games, $5 blackjack or $10,000 high-limit tables, $1,000 jackpots to more than $1 million—these are just a few of the options that product offers. Someone once said “variety is the spice of life,” and this holds true for gaming and non-gaming offerings. There will always be games or tables that perform better than others, even restaurants and retail, but giving the player the right choices is equally as important. Through these choices, our guests find an escape from everyday life, a means for recognition or even a chance to hit it big. Often the casino experience provides sought-after public interaction and socialization with others who share the same interest.
Marketing is the spice, that special ingredient in the secret sauce that brings everything together. Marketing provides the call to action for our players and emphasizes all the reasons they should come. Marketing promotes the property, the image and the brand, all the while highlighting the services and amenities that the property has to offer. Marketing is key to developing the strategies and campaigns around a player’s club program. These campaigns, combined with the appropriate reinvestment rates for players points, offers and incentives are the cornerstone for driving trial and creating guest loyalty. Marketing also creates and manages the various tier programs which are essential to any operation if value-added programs are to be offered to players based on play and casino value.
As with any investment, the goal is to see positive results with profit and increased revenues being the focus. This is where sound analytics and measurable metrics come in. We invest in service delivery and recovery and then measure our service against established standards and make adjustments as needed to maintain the quality of our delivery. We invest in product and property amenities then we evaluate gaming and non-gaming performance and then replace, upgrade or enhance our product or offerings as needed. We invest in our players through our various promotions and incentive programs. We then analyze player profitability regularly and adjust our offers and incentives accordingly. Sometimes it’s not the offer or promotion that’s unprofitable, but rather the players themselves. Too often, an extremely high drop or win can mask the true profitability of a player. After factoring in the totals for player rewards and reinvestment it is quite possible to be upside-down on player value. This being said, there must then be change in reinvestment or maybe non-profitable patrons must be let go.
Putting it all together is more difficult than it sounds. It takes planning and collaboration across many departments. It takes the patience to accept that change sometimes happens very slowly. It takes a level tolerance for mistakes and testing errors in order to find the right plan. Last, but arguably the most important, is execution. The best plan, the most thorough strategy is nothing until it becomes reality and it is executed.
Ralph Margolis
Director of Slot Operations
Mystic Lake Casino Hotel
There’s a misconception that regional Native American casinos have not been negatively impacted by the financial downturn. Unfortunately, it’s not true. In the regional market, our business is even more dependent on consumer attitudes than many destination resorts. When consumer confidence is shaken due to announced layoffs at a local business or a sudden drop in retirement accounts due to a financial crisis abroad, we feel the impact. “Leisure activities” is the first line item cut from personal ledgers as consumer fear escalates.
While Minnesota has fared better than many other areas of the country, the continued unsettled nature of the financial and housing markets has negatively impacted consumer spending. Still, we’re optimistic that we’ll see market stability increase this year and marginal growth in leisure spending as a result.
As this financial malaise continues, state and local governmental officials are feeling intense pressure to find new sources of revenue. Gaming is an easy target. They see expanding gambling as a quick answer and a victimless crime. The impact of the loss of revenue and jobs on poor rural communities, however, caused by increased urban competition would be devastating. Well-paying jobs lost in rural communities simply can’t be replaced. Our legislators haven’t bowed to the pressure thus far, but could eventually give in if the economy worsens in 2012.
This year, we will continue our efforts to maximize all revenue sources through forward thinking and creative marketing. We believe understanding and having an active role in the Internet is important for any modern brick-and-mortar casino. As such, we maintain an up-to-date website, have a robust e-mail marketing program and recently began offering free online casino games.
As for this year’s G2E, equipment manufacturers were more surprising for what they didn’t present as for what they did. There was a noticeable absence of unproven technologies and theoretical concepts. All of the key players were noticeably conservative in their offerings. They showed more products that were extensions of proven math models and successful theme libraries. This year I saw far fewer technological solutions looking for a problem to solve. In past years, manufacturers seemed to be spending a great deal of time promoting edgy platforms or delivery systems. My sense was that they had already committed a huge amount of research and development dollars on the technology and had to find a way to recoup it. This year’s return to a gaming product focus was refreshing.
Our capital expenditure plans for 2012 remain similar to years past. We continue to invest in technology and games that provide us the ability to measure success and demonstrate a reasonable return on investment. We are focusing on slot products that offer our guests the most entertainment value for their money. We strive to limit our participation footprint, and as such are always looking for products we can purchase that offer a branded feel. Two such standouts from the show are the Alice games from WMS, and Bally’s themed Curve progressive packages.
In these uncertain economic times, we focus our efforts more than ever on strategies that are most important to our guests: great guest service, the best gaming product and focused marketing offers that give the guests what they want when they want it. While the external forces that affect our business are ever changing, the core values that make us successful are not.
Buddy Frank
Vice President of Slot Operations
Pechanga Resort & Casino
With the economic downturn of 2008 still fresh in our minds, many of us have focused our attention on operational efficiency and cost savings. The result is that all of us are better operators today. Accordingly, when the economy does recover fully, we’ll be in a better position to capitalize on that growth.
There has been another benefit for us from the slot manufacturers. Today, more than any time in recent memory, the vendors are listening. They’ve always sought our advice; they just didn’t do much with it in a timely manner. Today they’re responding quickly, and it’s beginning to have positive effects that should produce good returns in 2012.
As an example, operators for years have urged manufacturers to offer popular existing game themes when they introduced a new model cabinet. But this has seldom been the case. Any new cabinet was always launched with all-new games, and the legacy titles were only released months or years later when the initial offerings stumbled. Today there are signs of change. At G2E 2011, Aristocrat released their most popular older themes for their new widescreen Viridian cabinet. They didn’t do it at the launch (which would have been best); but they did make the change far faster than in the past.
Likewise, getting performance guarantees (which Aristocrat pioneered) used to be like pulling teeth. Manufacturers were satisfied to sell expensive conversions rather than provide a theme guarantee. No more. It is rare today that any new game would be sold without a 90-day or longer guarantee. In the long run, this is good for both parties. We get better-performing games, and they protect their positions on the floor. But it took the slowdown in game sales to make this a standard practice.
There are other encouraging signs. Have you seen the insides of IGT’s latest games? It appears they were designed to make it easy for a technician to perform maintenance. What a concept! WMS is now promising a rich range of math models instead of more clones.
Ainsworth is showing the value of simple low-denomination volatility. The new JCM bill acceptors can be disassembled without carrying a tool box. The majority of the new games shown at G2E in 2011 could be purchased before the end of the next decade. These, and many more positive changes, have arrived far faster than might have been the case in the days before 2008.
Technology has also helped. You can now download real slot games on your iPod/touch/pad/phone/Android from Aristocrat, Bally, IGT, Multimedia, WMS and many others. These are great tools that allow our teams and our guests to learn more about new (and classic) games on their mobile devices and desktops. Thanks to Bally and the others who have made practical information on their games available on memory-stick handouts and improved web pages. These are no longer just electronic ad slicks, but rather full-blown product catalogs that contain solid specs on cabinets, pay tables, PARs, configurations and the like.
Finally, kudos to Konami Gaming for supporting both the IGT/WMS service window (sbx™) technology and the competing Bally/Aristocrat methodology (like Display Manager™). Next year will be nearly perfect if there is a truce declared and more major vendors join KONAMI in supporting the operators rather than proprietary protocols. That will benefit us all in the end. I’m an optimist … it could happen!
Paul Tjoumakaris
Senior Vice President of Gaming Operations
Seminole Gaming
There have been too many well-written publications already about our poor economic climate and the economic strains it placed throughout the various gaming jurisdictions, so I would not expand on that further. However, I will use that climate for the opportunities it offers to the operators to work smarter.
By working smarter, I don’t mean that we look inward and try to cut costs and run our operations leaner and more efficient; that is a given and expected from a good management team.
I am referring to the evolution that has taken place with technology in front of our own eyes, and perhaps some may miss the opportunity to develop the sophistication they need to maximize the revenue potential as it is evolving with their leaner capital budgets.
From the slot product performance and analysis perspective for example, for many years slot management has done a pretty good job in their decision-making process by relying on system and slot product providers to come up with the reporting/intelligence to measure the performance from their gaming devices. Today, we need a lot more than just analyzing slot performance reports to determine which games our players like to play by the simple deviation from house averages.
Slot system providers today offer myriad tools from club functionality, customer interaction at the game, promotions, monitor/reporting and even business intelligence with databases for analytics, as well as many other consulting providers with business intelligence and tools. Are you prepared with your internal team to make those hard decision in allocating desperately needed capital dollars to purchase and use these tools wisely? Or are you relying on the provider to make those decisions for you?
The opportunities I am referring to under the current economic conditions that exist today are to assemble the best analytical team you can find (perfect timing) to be your gateway to your intelligent decision-making process for your systems, databases and slot product. By using tools that are available today in the marketplace, the property needs to understand, develop and take full control of its own databases with all slot machine information and merge its marketing and player data for the full complement in analytics. These assets will assist us in making the right decisions based on many new variables from a player’s perspective as well, i.e., player machine preference based on different tier levels, slot configurations with the optimum average bets, machine earnings per hour, machine volatility, various utilization and many other indexes. Slot machines today offer us a variety of options that may or may not work for our demographics, and the right analysis will separate the clutter from what the players enjoy playing. We need to develop and implement machine test models as we have done with player development incentive programs for many years and see what works and what doesn’t work. The right results will assist us in allocating capital wisely to acquire or convert slot product that will ultimately provide the expected incremental revenues.
The other opportunity that is offered under these economic conditions is to partner with the slot vendors to revisit your sales and lease agreements for your upcoming machine replacement cycles and renegotiate a financial model that will work for the operator and slot provider alike; we are all in this together. With the analytic tools on hand, we need the terms to offer us the flexibility to make changes more frequently on slot products that will maintain the entertainment value of our players that keeps them coming back. There are a lot of new and very attractive slot products available today offered by the mainstream providers, but one should not discard many newcomers on the marketplace that may fit perfectly with your analysis to give them a shot. Decisions should not be based on past performance, relationships and pricing alone, but on games that your players like to play that will generate incremental revenue. Internet games for entertainment (non-gaming) are already proliferating into our players’ homes, and we need to seek all types of providers that will offer similar entertainment value that will drive them back into our brick-and-mortar casinos as well.
I believe our current economic conditions are small bumps on the road, but they also offer opportunities not only to manage our properties more cost effectively, but also the opportunity to acquire smart talent and the tools to meet the challenges we are facing in seeking more ways to increase our revenues.
Wendy Hamilton
General Manager
SugarHouse Casino
In 2012, Pennsylvania will become increasingly recognized for its gaming destinations.
When gaming licenses were first issued in the commonwealth in 2006, there were only two casinos opened by the end of that year. Now, Pennsylvania is home to 10 casinos—SugarHouse being one of them—with an 11th casino opening this spring.
During the 2010-2011 fiscal year alone, the state earned more than $2.3 billion in slots revenue—nearly an 8.4 percent increase from the year prior—and almost $508 million in revenue during its first year of table game operations. Forecasted 2012 gross gaming revenue growth in Pennsylvania is anticipated to be more than 14 percent due to several factors. With new gaming facilities obtaining licenses throughout the region, as well as many casinos looking to further develop their properties in 2012, it signals that there’s even greater opportunity for gaming growth in Pennsylvania.
At SugarHouse, we too have experienced the momentum of the eastern Pennsylvania region firsthand, and in mid-2012, we plan to break ground on an expansion that will bring many new amenities to our property.
SugarHouse opened in September 2010 as Pennsylvania’s smallest casino, with roughly 50,000 square feet of gaming space on an 18.5-acre lot. But despite currently having the fewest number of tables at 53, and only 1,602 slot machines, the casino is already posting the highest win-per-table rate statewide, and has been able to make a big impact on the community at-large.
Since the grand opening, SugarHouse also has been a strong economic engine for the City of Philadelphia and the commonwealth. In our first year of operation, we generated more than $100 million in city and state tax revenue.
In our industry, customer experience is everything. SugarHouse benefits from being located in a naturally social city, where people like to take a break from their long work days to go out and also have a good time with friendly, familiar faces. Additionally, being situated only an hour from Atlantic City has allowed for a customer base that already has experience with gaming.
Of course, much of this social culture is also enriched by the energy of our team. When we opened, we brought 1,000 jobs to Philadelphia during economically trying times. We wanted the best of the best to fill those spots and were proud to recruit energetic and enthusiastic team members who not only keep our casino running each day, but also work to make sure customers have a positive experience.
Finally, being a good corporate citizen and neighbor to the Philadelphia community also has been key to our success and will continue to be an important factor for SugarHouse in 2012. Since 2006, when we began seeking startup approvals, SugarHouse has provided more than $1.5 million in charitable contributions to fund community initiatives. Additionally, we have supported many of Philadelphia’s long-standing events and traditions including the renowned Mummers Parade. In a community-driven environment like Philadelphia, and in other major markets around the country, being part of the neighborhood is essential for seeding the future.
As both the economy and the gaming industry continue to grow in Pennsylvania over the next 12 months, it will be interesting to look back and see how it has all evolved. If one were to examine the history of gaming as it emerged in Las Vegas in the early 1930s, you would be able to draw many parallels to Pennsylvania today. As the first casino opened its doors in the Nevada desert while the country was battling the Great Depression, many entrepreneurs saw it as an opportunity to bring in revenue and boost the economy. Looking at Las Vegas now, it’s hard to imagine a time when casinos weren’t the norm. That’s soon to be true in Pennsylvania, too.
Dave Krise
Senior Vice President of Product Development
DigiDeal Corp.
Without a doubt, technology will be the driving force in transforming not only the casino, but especially the pit in 2012. Instead of giving away more of the pit to other games, the addition of key technological improvements to tables will let casinos keep the “felt” and lose the inefficiencies.
Going electronic the right way will not only keep the key elements of a pit, but also deliver newfound accountability and efficiency with actual player tracking, better reporting and elimination of errors. Smart operators will be able to sustain all the pivotal advantages that a pit renders for a casino including the social interaction and that special entertainment and excitement that only table games can create on a floor.
Since our first table technology patent was issued more than a decade ago, we have envisioned traditional tables with a unique high-tech edge.
Today with our versions of our table game, it is still a felt table. It is still real blackjack with the same game play and strategy. And because a pit is not a pit unless there is somebody behind the tables, there are still live dealers or hosts.
With computing technology embedded into tables, the dealer is freed from the math, game tempo is faster with more hands per hour and there is real accuracy in reporting and player tracking.
Yet even that may not be enough for casinos still recovering from the economic downturn. We all have seen how in the past few years table games operators have tried to improve their bottom line with changes to the house edge. Blackjack is now offered at odds of 6-5 rather than the traditional 3-2 to help the pit stay in contention with slot revenue.
Even as the forecast for 2012 indicates a better economy, asking operators to add technology to control costs and maximize revenues in a pit is one thing. Even better is providing casinos with e-table technology that tallies even more to the bottom line.
As a result, we are planning for a 2012 that will buzz with new table games enabled by technology. Traditional table games with additional side bets or “games within games” will power revenue for the pit. Previously these would be too difficult to deal, pay or keep track of. Now with the e-table, all of that can be relegated to the built-in tech.
With the e-table, all kinds of additional wagers and different variations are possible and present real opportunities for added returns from these tables. These add-ons bring new game play, extra betting and even more excitement to the traditional table games.
Players have the opportunity to bet a little more and get extra action with the opportunity to win more. For example, we see real interest in our newly introduced Pik-It Poker, which offers in one game both three-card and five-card poker play along with special bonus bets.
A third trend we see is the convergence and integration of table games across to what could be called the “slot” side. These games don’t resemble the look of traditional tables, but are rather full-fledged electronic versions designed to reside in self-contained cabinets and have options for single or multiple players.
Internationally, these fully electronic table games represent 11 percent of the casino floor. In the U.S., the percentage now is less than 1 percent, but we see that changing and changing fast.
These casino games bear more resemblance to a slot cabinet but offer a full range of traditional table games. Our electronic X-Table is multi-player set for up to eight at a time and can be switched between diverse game themes: classic blackjack, classic baccarat, along with proprietary games such as Texas Hold’em Xtreme, Royal Roulette and Racing Card Derby. There are bill acceptor/ticket printers at each position and complete connectivity to operational and tracking systems. Our newly introduced X-POD terminal is a single-player table game.
Whether single or multi-player versions, we are looking at these bringing table games to casinos and players in whole new way.
In all, 2012 will be the year of table games for both the traditional pit and the slot floor. Our partner TCSJOHNHUXLEY and Roger Hawkins, the company’s CEO for the Americas, agrees that these hybrid gaming products will see continued success in 2012. For Hawkins, this is a growing market, and a recently signed agreement between the two companies allows for a product offering that covers all the requirements of casino operators.
Ron Marks
Vice President of Sales
Galaxy Gaming Inc.
In recent years, perhaps due to economic setbacks, many casino operators have been cutting back on their table games operations. Diminished demand, high labor expense and increased risk of dealer errors all contributed to this trend. Slot operations have increasingly replaced valuable space on the casino floor, and the table games business appeared to be moving in a downward trend. We at Galaxy Gaming are now seeing a definite reversal in this trend and we believe it can now be said that table games are taking back the floor! While there is no doubt slot operations will continue to dominate casinos worldwide, it looks as though the demand from players for more personal interaction in their gaming is increasing and operators are responding by offering more areas and taking the lid off their various table games.
One of the reasons that players are coming back is that many casinos are operating progressive and bonus jackpot opportunities on their table games. Using various forms of technology, operators can now accurately track the number of wagers that are placed to win a life-altering jackpot, and the participation is higher than ever. Players can wager as little as a dollar and try their luck at winning upward of $250,000 in addition to their normal game play.
The trend that you will most certainly see in the coming months and years is the ability to link tables within a casino and now cross casino properties in a given jurisdiction. Galaxy was the first in Nevada to link properties whereby tables from different locations within a corporate ownership structure could all be tied together and feed into a single progressive jackpot. By linking nine different properties from the Station Casinos group, we allowed the jackpot to build higher and faster and it creates tremendous excitement. Many of the table games manufacturers are now or will shortly be able to accomplish this because the demand is so high. The technology is available, and has been for some time.
The real challenge developers face is setting up their systems to operate within the guidelines of regulatory control agencies. In the coming years, this will be the greatest limiting factor. Galaxy has also recently developed a table game application, which allows a separate jackpot to be created that ties tables from different games to create a chance for players to win even if they don’t win. We call it MegaShare and recently introduced the concept at G2E 2011. We have had great feedback from our clientele and expect it to be our most requested item in 2012. It works like a bad-beat jackpot in a poker room, and allows players to qualify with an extra dollar wager. The really great element is that many regulations allow us to mix and match types of games to build a bigger jackpot, whereas progressives are typically limited to a specific game title.
Though the mid-size and larger casinos are moving ahead with increased table game placements, we still are finding that the smaller casinos are hampered by the labor expense and trying to maximize revenue per square foot. For this reason, one of the more popular trends we are seeing is e-table games. Somewhat of a hybrid between table game play and slot machines, players are able to play their favorite blackjack or specialty card game on a platform that does not require chips or a dealer. This allows casino operators the best of both worlds; they can attract traditional card game players and maintain overhead control. At Galaxy, we offer one of the most popular e-table games called TableMax. We have several popular games available on the platform and are adding many of the most exciting games from the Galaxy library to our updated versions.
While there seems to be a good deal of “press” about the explosive growth in Asia, Galaxy is seeing some of its greatest potential in the new jurisdictions opening in the U.S., the U.K. and Australia. We believe table games are taking back the space we lost and are likely here to stay with a steady growth rate. I realize this comment may date me, however I always think about John Naisbitts quote in his classic 1980s book MegaTrends. He stated that “as our society continues to develop high technology, human beings will crave high touch.” High tech will lead to more high touch, and I think this sums up the opportunity for increased table game growth. Operators may have reduced their table games operations to save expenses. However, the players clearly want the interaction, community feeling and the excitement that goes with the classic table game. We know it is here to stay.
Greg Gronau
President and CEO
Gaming Partners International
Despite the challenges presented by the world’s ongoing financial struggles, 2011 was a positive year for Gaming Partners International, and we are looking forward to 2012 as we continue to make providing our customers with a complete range of table gaming and currency products our top priority. As the gaming industry continues to grow and flourish worldwide, our company is in an exceptional position to take advantage of table game trends and meet the expectations of casino operators across all markets—especially in Asia where we expanded our local support significantly during the past year.
As the industry’s most profitable and high-performing gaming region, with annual revenues driven primarily by live table game play, we felt it absolutely essential to provide a higher level of localized service and support for our Asian customers, especially to address their ongoing casino currency and RFID needs. By enabling instant chip authentication and 100 percent accurate accounting and tracking of gaming currency, RFID still represents the highest level of chip inventory security available. In the coming year, we will continue to focus on increasing the technology’s value by ensuring that it also provides easy-to-implement operational and procedural efficiencies.
We will also continue to emphasize the value of currency customization, which enables operators to combine unique design and casino brand elements with other visible and invisible security features. Thanks to our recent purchase of a high-precision plastic-injection mold manufacturing facility in France, we now have the ability to produce molds that can contain six or more individual color shots. This specialized, intricate capability enables casinos to use custom chip designs specific to their property and brand, and we are confident that customized chip molds will become a more utilized currency feature in the coming years.
Looking beyond Asia and its numerous growth and expansion opportunities, other areas around the world also continue to be very competitive and positive markets for operators and suppliers. Some have said that established markets like the United States appear to be recovering from the financial downturn by increasing their capital expenditures and showing more optimism toward market growth. Numerous areas in the U.S. are considering legalizing table games, and we are well positioned to meet their table game needs with our wide range of products.
Finally, in 2012 we will continue to place a heavy emphasis on further gaming currency research and development to improve our security features, chip designs and customization offerings and will increase our efforts to work more closely with operators to develop and produce products that are specific to their needs. We are also looking at acquisitions to increase our current product offerings throughout the world. What’s truly exciting about 2012 is that GPI is entering the new year with the resources in place to improve our support of our worldwide customer base and work as their partner in the pit to help them meet their operational objectives and enhance their overall casino performance.
Mark H. Jones
President
INAG Inc.
I would like to start by thanking CEM for taking the time to do this each year. It is very important to listen to the different views of people in the middle of the issues facing the industry, as only a fool thinks he knows it all.
2012 will see the growth in electronic table games as the need to reduce the costs in table games is here. I believe the hybrid versions of the dealer-assisted table games will be the wave of the future as it still allows the player to interact with the dealer while allowing the dealer to operate in a more proficient manner. Our new Turbo Card Roulette (TCR) game introduced at this year’s G2E show is a great example of this. With one dealer, the casino can offer 100-plus players the opportunity to place wagers on touchscreens in a slant-top terminal positioned around the casino. These same 100 players playing on conventional roulette tables would require 14 tables and dealers to service their needs. With the dealers mic’d up, the dealer is active talking up the game as on any standard game.
The importance to the casino migrating to this format of gaming is that TCR will deliver around 120 decisions per hour, no dealer decisions, no casino bleed and no open banks at the table to watch. By using hard plastic RFI cards, which only our shuffler can handle, the dealer does not ever manually input the decision number as a card reader is used in conjunction with these cards. The cards having RFI capability, allows us to memorize the RFI signature so that no one can remove and replace bogus cards. This technology is the future of table games and can be adapted for play of any table game.
The other issue facing table game managers in the upcoming year is the possible reduction of new game content available to them due to the Supreme Court ruling in the Bilski case and the changes brought about by Leahy-Smith American Invents Act (AIA). I am not an attorney, but have studied both of these as they have a great impact on me as an inventor as well as all table game developers.
Because there is so much confusion on how the court intended their rulings to be interpreted, the United States Patent and Trademark Office has put a freeze on issuing table game patents. There is a black cloud hovering over game patents as most are not tied to anything other than an abstract idea, which is now non-patentable. I hope to have an article out soon for all to read that will address this issue or at least shed more light on it. The larger table game companies have relied on new game designers outside their companies to fill their game content. If an inventor has a current patent, supply and demand might just have become his best friends.
Tom O’Brien
Vice President Sales
Interblock USA
Looking forward to 2012, with additional jurisdictions opening up in the U.S., we here at Interblock are finding that not only do they need live table games, but we are seeing additional placements of electronic table games (ETGs) as well. Our products are becoming more popular each and every day. What gives our product an edge, and at the same time boosts the live table market, is the fact that customers do not have to be slowed by waiting for the dealers to be ready for each and every play. In return, the casino operator does not have to pay the labor costs for staff to man the lower limit games. Also, most live table games are up and running at a higher rate to buy in. Minimum bets are starting at $10 and $15 dollars per game. Another advantage of the ETGs is that we can usually help each and every property by adding our products at the lower limits. This will keep this type of player happy and they will still get to play the game they came to play in the casino. It is proving to be very successful. With that said, we are creating the games that even the younger crowds seem to enjoy!
Interblock feels that the trend of providing games that closely simulate live games but offer improved game play with much less hassle for the players will experience rapid growth in the North American markets. Many operators are now interested in electronic table games, and they like the way it feels. For example, take a look at Resorts World New York, which opened in October with no live table games. Placement of all ETGs has been very successful in giving customers a true world-class gaming experience. This complete lineup of electronic table games will provide the industry with a new platform and product line unlike any other available. As more game types are released in 2012, the market will realize their great benefits. As the economy begins to recover, operators will be exploring ways to drive new revenue to casino floors while maintaining the previous cost-cutting measures put in place over the past few years. For these reasons, the industry will see a continual increase in electronic table game play in 2012.
Our games are very popular at the moment. We are always looking for ways to improve on what we can offer to the operators. Table games traditionally have lower paybacks for the operators, so we are trying to find ways to make the ETGs even more profitable. Our job is to create new side bets and progressives that will never change the actual rules of the table games. We find that most players do not like to play any live game that has been modified to add side bets.
Our company is growing more than anyone could have ever imagined. With that in mind, we have to remember that at the end of the day, what will be most important is the service to our great products and making sure we are delivering to our customers and to the end users the best games possible. Our casino operators will need the latest and greatest products to keep the edge on the market in 2012.
Roger Snow
Executive Vice President
Shuffle Master
There was that time in May when I drove to the Commerce Casino in Los Angeles and ended up having to park so far from the entrance I thought I was in San Gabriel.
Then there was that time over the summer when I went to play blackjack at Sky City Auckland and was met by overflowing tables and $50 minimums. And then there was that time last month in Lake Tahoe where the buffet queue was so long, I swear in front of me waiting to get seated was the Donner Party.
OK, that’s a lie. (Those tables at Sky City Auckland were only $25.)
The illustrations above, although anecdotal, mean something. They mean more people are going to casinos than before. They mean more people are gambling, more people are dining, and more people are having fun and spending money. They mean, perhaps, the worst is over.
Empirical data ratify my small sample of observations. In gaming markets around the world, year-over-year revenue comparisons are mostly favorable. Earnings and stock prices of the major casino companies are up. And traffic count at McCarran International Airport, an infallible bellwether for the tourism and convention business in Las Vegas, is on a steady ascent. All in all, this year was a pretty good turnaround story.
And what about 2012?
Next year looks to me like a faithful, formulaic sequel to 2011. My crystal ball is no more high-def than anyone else’s, so I probably see what everybody sees: The U.S. market will continue and perhaps accelerate its recovery; Asia will resume its torrid growth; Australia will consolidate and expand at the same time; and Europe will try to survive the crises affecting the buying power of its central currency.
Worldwide, there are only two big casino openings on the docket next year: The Cotai site owned by Las Vegas Sands and the Revel property in Atlantic City. In addition, new casinos will open or existing ones will expand in Mississippi, Louisiana and Kansas, and table games will debut in Ohio and perhaps North Carolina. And in Australia, the province of Victoria will deregulate its slot machine procurement, opening up a potential 15,000 new boxes.
Damn, it feels good to be in gaming.
The wild card for 2012 is, of course, the looming prospect of Internet gambling in the United States. Will it be legalized? If so, by whom—the feds or the states or both? And if so, to whom—the casinos or the suppliers or both? What about the tribes and the lotteries? Will it be only poker or all casino games?
There are, at this stage, more questions than answers. But it will eventually get sorted, and when it arrives, Internet gambling will trigger the next epoch in our industry. How big and influential and lucrative it becomes hinges on two factors: 1) The appetites of legislators and regulators; and 2) The ability of the industry to commercialize it to the masses.
When enough time has passed to trace the trajectory of this economic downturn in its entire context, I think we will look back and recognize 2011 as the first positive inflection point. And as for 2012, that will be the year the cycle reversed for good … and for the better.
Roger Hawkins
Chief Executive Officer for the Americas
TCSJOHNHUXLEY
Well, it only seems like yesterday I sat here in front of my Apple Mac and pondered what 2011 would bring. Twelve months later and here we all are again, another year older, maybe even another year wiser?
What proved to be a challenging year still turned out to be one of great success. We enjoyed supplying our customers our continued exceptional levels of service and market leading products throughout the year albeit under more creative supply arrangements. The beauty of working for TCSJOHNHUXLEY is the flexibility being privately owned brings with it.
One area that proved to be beneficial to our customers was the way in which we could adapt the procurement process to meet such differing needs in such a turbulent trading economy. In working with our customers, we still enjoyed a good sales year and continued to grow our already strong relationships worldwide. Having this luxury makes building long-term relationships so much easier and removes the need for us to attempt getting “quick wins” just in order to secure sales—long-term strategic business relationships are our foundation and one we are very proud of.
During 2011, the growth in live table games I predicted last year certainly rang true for us, and our manufacturing facilities were at full, if not over capacity for the majority of the year, which is a phenomenal position to be in.
Some of the exciting projects we were fortunate enough to work on proved very challenging and pushed the manufacturing process of a live gaming table to a new dimension for us, which was a great learning curve for my team and also for me personally. Again demonstrating the evolving nature of our business, the added components to a “simple” card table is ever increasing. Where will it end?
2012, I believe, will be the real turnaround year, and we will really see the signs of economic recovery we have all been waiting and wishing for. While we will not see an abundance of brand-new openings, I suspect we will start to see focus and resources being applied to existing operations as they commence regenerating some of the lost revenues and servicing the needs of returning customers into land-based casinos.
Our focus on innovative products and delivering new offerings to our customers continues to be at the forefront of our internal strategies, and we will be investing more than ever before in research and development. I am confident that we will be bringing some new and exciting things to market—watch this space as they say!
I am not suggesting for one second it will be an easy year, far from it, but I truly believe we will enjoy some success next year. As always, I wish you and your families a wonderful Christmas and a prosperous new year.
Kate Chambers
Portfolio Director, ICE Totally Gaming
Clarion Events
As the only exhibition that brings the online and offline gaming worlds together, we are in a unique position to reflect the challenges, trends, technologies and opportunities impacting the entire gaming landscape. In essence, whatever is taking place at ICE Totally Gaming reflects what’s about to happen in the global gaming industry.
The opportunity to see gaming from every possible perspective is one of the key reasons that convinces thousands of senior gaming professionals from around the world to make the journey to London every year. With more than 400 exhibitors from 52 jurisdictions, the 2012 event will be no exception.
The big issues at ICE Totally Gaming relate to technological advances and changing regulations. ICE Totally Gaming was born out of the casino industry, and all of the major players retain a high profile presence at the show. The key discussion points will no doubt revolve around the innovations taking place in the current product offering, but also the commercial marriage between offline and online gaming, legislation permitting.
In the burgeoning online arena, regulations such as Facebook’s change in policy on gambling advertising, have prompted new ways of thinking and new product strategies, all of which will manifest at ICE. We also expect to see new online security products to protect players, new social games together with product strategies to convert social games players to online gaming platforms.
In the lottery sector, many of the world’s “thought leaders” converge at ICE Totally Gaming to discuss and debate the key issues of the day with game developers and regulators. The Multi-Channel Lottery Summit, which is being held at ICE, will look at how the sector can be competitive through the development of interactive, cross-channel and social strategies.
With mobile gaming, the issues relate to the rising importance of tablets, HTML5 and new developments in game content.
In street gaming, including bingo, there are big changes in regulations—some of which are very positive—but there is also the potential imposition of punitive duties as governments increasingly look toward low-stake gaming as a source of generating tax revenues and a method of cutting budget deficits. Each jurisdiction is different, but the principle of taxing gaming remains constant. We invest a significant resource to host regulators at ICE in order for them to see the gambling industry at work. Our message is this is a modern, responsible industry that will be able to play its part in economic recovery, providing it is allowed to flourish.
Betting is a changing landscape of gaming, tradition and technology. The betting sector uses ICE as an event to network, meet with colleagues and debate future directions and business strategies.
Our philosophy is that people attend expos for a host of reasons, and whilst the chance to see, feel and touch new products first and learn how to harness new technologies remains key, they also want to leave armed with new ideas and new ways of doing business.
It’s against this backdrop that we’ve put together an eight-strong program of conferences, seminars and summits taking place at ICE Totally Gaming. They are being delivered by gaming’s thought leaders and are designed to provide analysis and promote debate.
We have conducted in-depth research on the “hot issues” and compiled a program that covers topics including how to integrate the offline and online gaming offers, how to monetize social gaming, cybercrime and how to combat it, and player retention in gaming. In addition, we will be staging the fourth International Casino Conference, holding the World Regulatory Briefing UK as well as the Multi-Channel Lottery Summit. Beyond ICE Totally Gaming, we stage a number of gaming conferences notably GiGSE, which is taking place in May in San Francisco, and EiG, which will take place in Europe toward the end of 2012.
The challenge for exhibition and event organizers in the gaming space is to deliver an experience that leaves their visitors inspired and wanting more. That’s what my team is focused on and what ICE Totally Gaming will deliver in January. The only advice I would give to visitors is “prepare to be inspired.”
Alan Burak
Show Manager
SAGSE
The SAGSE Expo is the largest and most important in Latin America. We have 20 years of experience and the full support of the gaming industry, online gaming and amusement industry.
The exhibition features approximately 20,000 square meters and has 8,000 international visitors. What happens in Latin America is reflected in SAGSE. SAGSE is synonymous of the success and developing of this budding region.
Expectations for 2012 are high and we aim to grow year after year. SAGSE has a commitment in the sector, always doing events with the highest reliability and quality never seen before in Latin America. SAGSE attracts the best exhibitors and operators across the region and the world. Year after year, it shows an increasing in the flow of buyers and decision makers. SAGSE Buenos Aires is, and will be, the most important event in the calendar year in Latin America.
SAGSE reflects the current market situation, and we have very good prospects for the future. In the 2011 edition, we noticed a consolidation of the sector in Latin America. In Latin America, you will find the present and future of the global industry and only companies that can see this phenomenon on time will succeed. This international niche will evolve, learn, change and improve. This is clearly reflected in the events we produce—the quality, reliability and perpetuity.
SAGSE stands for internationality. It has responsibility, credibility and confidence gained through 20 years of experience. Each item is designed and planned for months. Working in conjunction with the ICE exhibition in London and G2E in Las Vegas has given us great results we see today. Being part of this international calendar means for a great responsibility and a feeling that indicates that we are doing things professionally, neat and ethically. Evolution is part of nature, as well as survival of the fittest.
The i-gaming sector is a reality in Latin America, and SAGSE already has an area for this new coming industry. Attendees and participants will find instances where they will analyze and discuss all major issues related to casino, poker, bingo and sports betting in the online market.
The 2012 program of activities will be aimed at developing and promoting businesses in the gaming industry in order to update and deepen understanding and connect with the directors and major figures, creating avenues of negotiation and strengthening bonds. These personalities and industry representatives, stand operators, webmasters, affiliate programs, affiliate managers, politicians and decision makers are from industry-leading Spanish-speaking companies.
In order to generate more value in the business activity and the game, a tool has been created that aims to strengthen relationships between manufacturers and operators. This tool is already a success. It was tested among 30 top players and had a 100 percent satisfactory experience.
The Fast Pass SAGSE sponsored exclusive access to SAGSE. It is faster and more agile for virtually no waiting. These passes will be issued in advance and delivered to the offices of the sponsors to give them the treat to the operators.
SAGSE today is among the three most important gaming industry trade shows besides Las Vegas and London. Our main goal is to remain the most important in Latin America to accompany the industry trends.
In 2012, SAGSE will present new solutions and developments for the industry for the first time in Latin America. According to a survey among the exhibitors, “exhibiting at SAGSE offers greater credibility and quality of interpersonal relationships, involves sales on other marketing options, raises the status of companies and the image within the industry, promotes the search for partners and investors for the development of new ventures. To sum up, SAGSE is the place where all projects can be realized. SAGSE generates an optimistic feeling about the future of the industry.”
SAGSE Buenos Aires is the only exhibition in Argentina dedicated to presenting all the supplies and equipment necessary for the installation of hotel casinos, bingo halls, casinos, lotteries, betting shops, entertainment, i-gaming, and more.
The times ahead will be successful! The future is in Latin America, the future is in SAGSE.
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