IGT Signs Systems Agreement with Otoe Missouria Tribe, Announces New Board Members
International Game Technology announced that the Otoe Missouria Tribe of Oklahoma has signed an agreement to install the industry-leading IGT Advantage® casino management solution and the sbX® Experience Management System enterprise-wide. After an intensely competitive process, the Otoe Missouria Tribe chose IGT as their systems partner for 2,300 games at four properties. “The Otoe Missouria Tribe is the first operator in Oklahoma to experience sbX,” said Ron Rivera, IGT senior vice president of North America sales. “They’re also the first to benefit from full integration with IGT Advantage across all four properties for superior player marketing, casino management and so much more.” The sbX Tier One package was also recently installed at Barona Resort & Casino.
Also, IGT announced the elections of Janice Chaffin and Greg Creed to its board of directors. Chaffin is group president for Symantec Corp.’s Consumer Business Unit and has held the position since 2007. “Janice’s deep knowledge and understanding of managing engineering, sales, marketing, strategy and business development teams will be an asset to the IGT board,” said Patti Hart, IGT president and CEO. Creed is president and chief concept officer for Taco Bell Corp., a subsidiary of Yum! Brands Inc., since 2006. “His expertise in branding and marketing initiatives with internationally recognized products will help drive our global transformation as a market-led company,” Hart said. For more information, visit www.igt.com.
Wright Casino Marketing Announces Advisory Board Appointments
Wright Casino Marketing has announced the first two appointments to its new company advisory board. William LeCaine Sr., president and CEO of ArrowREZ Solutions, LLC in Denver, will act as a tribal cultural consultant. LeCaine is a member of the Wood Mountain Lakota Sioux Tribe in Canada and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in South Dakota. Also appointed to the advisory board is John Romero, a well-known veteran casino marketing consultant, writer and lecturer specializing in direct mail, database building, floor promotions and direct response advertising. Romero is also the author of the books Casino Marketing and The Secrets of Casino Marketing. For more information, visit www.wrightcasinomarketing.com.
Gran Casino Costa Brava Specifies MEI CASHFLOW SC
Gran Casino Costa Brava in Spain opened in July with MEI CASHFLOW SC note validators on its slot floor. The casino is located on the coast of Lloret de Mar, a popular tourist destination, and has seen over 1,000 visitors per day since its opening. Slot Director Francisco Fiol commented: “Our strategy is to welcome the players with the best technology in the best atmosphere possible; choosing the MEI CASHFLOW SC fits in with this strategy. Its acceptance rates are excellent, and we have not needed to service them. We have specified MEI on all of our Unidesa, Novomatic, Williams, ATRONIC and GoldClub machines.” For more information, visit www.meigroup.com.
Endemol and Hulk Hogan Team Up for Online Gaming Deal
Hulk Hogan is taking to the ring again, forming a new tag-team with global production company Endemol and the licensing division of Bischoff Hervey Entertainment in order to take on the online gaming industry. The result is Hulk Hogan’s Hulkamania, an online slot that will be one of the first games of its type to integrate original video content of its star. MX Gaming is co-producing Hulkamania and was instrumental in the genesis of the deal. “When examining our options for online, Endemol was clearly the perfect fit. They know television, and they know gaming, and that’s precisely what we wanted,” said Ike Mcfadden of MX Gaming. For more information, visit www.mxgaming.com.
AGS Announces New VP of Business Development
American Gaming Systems (AGS) announced it has appointed gaming industry veteran Paul A. Lofgren as its vice president of business development. Lofgren will be responsible for streamlining AGS’ entrance into new markets, optimizing the performance of the sales force, improving the game development process through customer and market data feedback, developing strategic alliances, and investigating potential merger and acquisition activities. His work history has given him unique and broad exposure to essentially all segments of the industry, including casino, lottery, horse racing, bingo, AWP and redemption markets, from both regulatory and business perspectives. Prior to joining AGS, Lofgren was the principal of the company he founded, Redhorse Advisory Group, as well as executive vice president of Bally Technologies. For more information, visit www.ags-llc.net.
Cantor Gaming Appoints Steve Kezirian COO
Cantor Gaming announced that Steve Kezirian has joined the company as chief operating officer. Kezirian will be responsible for overseeing and managing, reporting to Lee Amaitis, president and CEO. Kezirian joins Cantor Gaming from Sprint Nextel, where he served as a vice president, responsible for more than 5,000 employees in vendor and in-source call center locations around the world. For more information, visit www.cantorgaming.com.
BMM Compliance Wins Primary Provider Contract with ALC
BMM Compliance is pleased to announce that it has been appointed as the primary service provider to the Atlantic Lottery Corp. (ALC) for certification services of all of its gaming products. This agreement will create a partnership between the ALC and BMM through to the year 2016. Martin Storm, global president and CEO of BMM, said, “Our acknowledged certification expertise in video lottery terminals and advanced technologies will enable us to support the ALC in its important expansion plans over the next five years … .” BMM Compliance has been servicing the ALC as a secondary provider for the last five years. For more information, visit www.bmm.com.
Gary Plat to Supply UNR
Gary Platt Manufacturing and the University of Nevada, Reno are working on a joint venture to supply Gary Platt X-Tended Play chairs with the UNR logo to all football box seat holders. The chairs are in UNR colors—silver and blue—and have the Wolfpack logo on the outside back. These chairs are also available to the public. Boosters can order the UNR specialty chairs through Gary Platt Manufacturing. For more information, call 775-824-0999 or visit www.garyplatt.com.
Everbrite Focuses on Gaming Industry
Everbrite LLC recently promoted Robert Tortorello to senior vice president, gaming and new business. In this new position, Tortorello will focus on lighting solutions for casino operations and gaming manufacturers, as well as OEM work and cross-over opportunities in the digital signage, health care and kiosk markets. Tortorello’s promotion solidifies Everbrite’s efforts to better serve the gaming and casino industry. Tortorello has 30 years of senior management experience in the technology, global manufacturing, design/graphic arts and digital multimedia markets. He joined Everbrite in 2008. For more information, visit www.everbrite.com.
JCM Global Provides Solution for Polish Consulate
JCM Global recently provided a video wall solution for the broadcast of a 200th birthday concert tribute to Chopin. Staged at the Springs Preserve Amphitheater in Las Vegas by the Consulate of the Republic of Poland in Las Vegas, the concert was a benefit for the Polish School John Paul II in Las Vegas and the Las Vegas Youth Orchestra. JCM provided a 2×2 Samsung video wall comprised of the 460UXn-2 model. This video product has a thin bezel, allowing the monitors to be configured as a video wall with minimal bezel interference. For more information, visit www.jcmglobal.com.
Union Gaming Research Announces Addition of Pelegrimas
Union Gaming Research LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Union Gaming Group LLC, announced that Dovydas Pelegrimas has joined the firm as a high-yield research analyst. Pelegrimas joins the firm with eight years of research experience, most notably as an associate at Deutsche Bank Securities within the gaming, lodging and leisure group in New York from 2002 to 2006. “The addition of Dovydas to our platform underscores our commitment to offering our clients a breadth and depth of coverage we have been unable to provide in the past,” said Bill Lerner, director of research. For more information, visit www.uniongamingresearch.com.
Casino Data Imaging Unveils Casino iGuideTM Pro Mobile
Casino Data Imaging (CDI) announced that it has received sales orders for Casino iGuide™ Pro mobile media phone applications. “Casino iGuide Pro takes our award winning iGuide technology one step further by allowing a casino operator to quickly have their own dynamic phone application that provides real time relevant information customers will appreciate,” said Raj Srivastav, CDI’s chief technology officer. CDI also announced that River City Casino and Marina Bay Sands have licensed CDI’s CasinoCAD© data visualization and report writing analysis program. For more information, visit www.casinodataimaging.com.
Pinnacle Entertainment Names Ginny Shanks CMO
Pinnacle Entertainment Inc. announced Ginny Shanks has been named executive vice president and chief marketing officer. Shanks will be responsible for Pinnacle’s company-wide marketing strategies. In addition, Shanks will be responsible for developing Pinnacle’s database marketing efforts, evolving Pinnacle’s mychoice customer loyalty culture and establishing new processes for enhancing the guest experience and more effectively communicating with guests. Prior to her recent two-year tenure as CMO for Multimedia Games, Shanks held senior executive positions for over 25 years at the property, division and corporate levels of Harrah’s Entertainment. For more information, visit www.pnkinc.com.
Viejas Casino Chooses BIS2 for Gaming Analytics
BIS2 announced that its floorViz software has been installed at Viejas Casino of San Diego. The floorViz software product provides a new paradigm of visual analytics for casino operators, and turns their growing mountains of gaming data into actionable insights. “We anticipate floorViz will take us to a new level in gaming analytics and we hope to realize immense value in our technology partnership with BIS2 in terms of its product vision and innovative roadmap,” said Rich Marino, Viejas’ vice president of slot operations. For more information, visit www.bis2.net.
Bible and Mousel Join Lewis and Roca
Lewis and Roca is pleased to announce that Paul A. Bible and David L. Mousel, formerly of Bible Mousel PC, have joined the firm’s Reno office. Anthony Cabot, leader of the gaming practice group for Lewis and Roca, said, “Both Paul Bible and Dave Mousel have stellar reputations as gaming law practitioners, which not only compliments, but enhances our existing gaming practice expertise and demonstrates the continuing commitment to our clients.” Bible advises clients on all aspects of gaming law and is a former chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission. Mousel’s practice focuses primarily on the purchase and sale of gaming businesses licensed in Nevada and is also licensed in California. For more information, visit www.lrlaw.com.
ATRONIC Signs Two Major Deals with Nervion Group in Spain
ATRONIC’s Systems Division announced that it has signed major deals for complete systems solutions with the Casino Kursaal in San Sebastián and Grand Casino Nervion in Bilbao, both part of the Nervion Group in Spain. Under the agreement, ATRONIC’s Systems Division will provide the CRYSTAL.netTM casino floor network as well as the qpon cashTM cashless gaming solution and Star systems. Casino Kursaal General Manager, Lander Letemendía said, “We are confident that our players will enjoy the personalized communication that CRYSTAL.net allows.” The installations will take place later in 2010 and both locations are planning to go live with their new system on the Jan. 1, 2011. For more information, visit www.atronic.com.
GLI Gains Accreditation in Asia, Joins World Lottery Association
Gaming Laboratories International’s GLI Asia laboratory was the first full gaming testing lab in Macau, and now the lab has achieved another important milestone, becoming the first and only gaming test lab in the region to achieve accreditation by the American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) for ISO/ISE 17025:2005. The scope accredits GLI in software and hardware tests or types of tests on electronic gaming devices, including Internet gaming. GLI Sr. Director of Engineering and Client Services Ian Hughes said, “Independent accreditation from an organization like A2LA proves that GLI meets the very highest international standards, and that means our regulatory and supplier clients can trust GLI for testing that is accurate, thorough and independent.”
Also, GLI has joined the World Lottery Association as an affiliate member. “The World Lottery Association lists as its core values responsibility, integrity, professionalism and integrity,” said GLI’s Sr. Director of Compliance Andy Comer. “Joining the World Lottery Association is a logical step for GLI because their core values closely reflect those of GLI.” Since its first client in 1989, GLI has grown continually and now serves regulators in more than 450 jurisdictions globally, including more than 65 lottery regulators. For more information, visit www.gaminglabs.com.
XZipit Branded Furniture Offers Unique Advertising Opportunities
XZipit branded furniture offers a unique and endless branding and advertising opportunity with its interchangeable, hidden zipper panel system. With the high-quality, customizable, embroidered logo panel, XZipit provides a memorable and attractive alternative to promoting and advertising companies and brands. XZipit has been used at Caesars, WinStar Casino, Foxwoods, McPhillips Station Casinos and much more. It offers a vast library of licenses along with the ability to customize logos. For more information, visit www.dreamseat-contract.com.