As I walked the floor at G2E
this year, I found the major manufacturers still geared toward providing their
standard delivery devices to the United States market. The titles seemed to be
predominately based on television personalities and themes this year, with the
majority of the compelling content offered as revenue share products. The
cabinets were bigger and brighter with added functionalities that would make a
luxury car manufacturer blush.
IGT showcased machines themed
after country singer Dolly Parton, reality star Judge Judy and the television
seriesFamily GuyandCSI. Bally Technologies offered slot machines themed on NASCAR and
the Las Vegas-based reality television show
Pawn Stars. WMS brought in rock legends Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley from
KISS to promote a machine themed after the group and hired actors dressed as
the Oompa Loompa characters from the movieWilly Wonka & the Chocolate Factoryto hand out candy and
advertise their slot product based on the motion picture.
Although the cost to purchase
and operate these sparkling new cabinets and licensed game titles continues to
rise and the appetite for this style of gaming continues to diminish, the major
manufacturers cannot be found at fault for offering these new products to the
industry; they are providing you the solutions you are willing to pay for,
namely larger cabinets, with branded software content and proprietary marketing
solutions.
However, the operators I spoke
with during the show were searching, not for these types of games, but for
solutions that can be added to their current floor to increase service to the
player utilizing the tools and staff they already have on hand. They must
attract new customers to meet the diminishing wallets of their regular customer
base and must accomplish this goal with a limited capital budget to spend on
new devices.
With that said, there were a
handful of companies that jumped out at me as offering solutions that actually
allow operators to build on their current infrastructure at a minimal cost in
order to drive more revenue, instead of exhausting their gaming budgets on
brand new licensed participation games.
Here’s a look at a few that
caught my eye:
• Tipping Point Gaming (www.tippingpointgaming.com)
Tipping Point Gaming, a Las
Vegas-based company, produces hardware and software solutions that enable
casino operators to deploy new marketing content and engage their customers
through their existing gaming machines. Its PlayItVision system uses the
primary game screen of the gaming machine to provide casino operators with a
unique marketing tool and advanced player user interface. Players enjoy rich
marketing and promotional content and have the ability to manage certain
aspects of their player account at the machine level while operators benefit
from the ability to message and interact directly to players at the machine and
offer targeted promotions.
• Leap Forward Gaming (www.leapforwardgaming.com)
Leap Forward Gaming, a
Nevada-based company, has created a hardware and software bridge between the
products currently on your casino floor and server-based gaming content. Its
SaffariNet product lets you simply plug your Electronic Gaming Machine (EGM)
into a power source and your floor is instantly connected in real-time. This
solution allows new levels of connectivity between an operator’s machines,
peripherals, progressives, player-tracking content and existing casino
networks.
• Iverson Gaming Systems (www.iversongaming.com)
Iverson Gaming Systems, a
Philadelphia-based company specializing in providing services to the cruise
industry for more than 20 years, is offering a solution that incorporates
mobile tablet gaming with a fully integrated concierge service. Its mobile
solution allows guests to access games whenever and wherever they want,
extending the boundaries of brick-and-mortar facilities beyond the conventional
gaming floor.
In addition to the games,
Iverson seamlessly integrates a concierge service that connects the guests not
only to all of the services and stores on the ship, but also to each other. The
best part for the casino is that management can access and utilize this vendor
information as well. This integrated product suite truly points to the future
of gaming that I envision-enabling the games to emerge from the traditional
settings while offering true customer services at the tip of our players
fingers.
To wrap up, the customers we
serve have far more options to spend their entertainment dollars on than ever
before, both inside the realm of gaming and beyond. I believe that with the
amazing and varied content available to them, we have to focus our efforts on
the best customer service we can possibly provide and truly empower our
customers to make the discerning choice between simple content and an
environment that both anticipates their needs and exceeds their expectations. SM
THOUGHTS FROM THE FLOOR: G2E's most promising solutions
November 18, 2012
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