Sound Leisure and Soundnet launched their revolutionary new digital jukebox interface at ATEI, called Trackdial and have reported immense interest in the service at the show.
 
Trackdial will open up a new income stream for operators, as customers are able to access the jukebox services from anywhere within the venue and multiple users can access the box simultaneously. In addition, no cash is required as music choices are charged to the user’s mobile phone bill.
 
Trackdial uses innovative WAP mobile phone technology developed by Soundnet and Sound Leisure to upload information onto mobile phones. To advertise the offer personalised messages will automatically appear on Bluetooth-enabled phones upon entry to a venue. Soundnet will also supply humorous point of sale stickers to be posted at various points throughout the site.
 
“One of the great things about Trackdial is that it can be personalised to the pub, bar or club. Not only will customers receive a message to welcome them and inform them about the service, Soundnet can also create venue-specific track selections to maintain the familiar feel of the location and drive music sales and footfall,” says Soundnet’s Simon Davis.
 
The many operators who had the facility demonstrated also understood the huge benefits of automatic music uploads either via WIFI fixed line or by using 3G mobile data networks. This means that there is no longer the need to install a fixed line/broadband connection, or to manually upload music via disk. It also gives greater flexibility in the location and relocation of boxes with the minimum amount of fuss. “This truly is another milestone in the history of the jukebox,” adds Davis. “Soundnet handles all the connectivity and management issues relating to Trackdial and aggregates the income from the mobile phone companies, so life could not be easier for operators or customers.”
 
Sound Leisure also demonstrated two further new innovations :
 The new Bingo Bob programme for Milestones In Music which produced immense interest from both operators and retailers anxious to maximise opportunities through all the mid week evenings.
The new advertising programme and innovative Jukebox Buddy playlister/ promotional card facility which enables users to interact with the jukebox not only in their venue but on any other Milestones machine .
Chris Black stated –“We are continually striving with Soundnet for new and exciting developments to our portfolio and we have had an excellent reaction from our customers to this years groundbreaking changes.”

Money Controls’ Chief Executive, Mike Innes, declared ICE “a big success for the company”, a comment based on both the number of visitors to its stand and their positive reaction.
The centrepiece of the stand was the Ardac Elite bill and ticket acceptor. Launched before last year’s show, Ardac Elite has now been extensively proven in the field and is enjoying unprecedented success with both OEMs and casino operators. So much so, that at the last count, there were over 30,000 units deployed worldwide.
Mike was particularly pleased with the welcome visitors gave to the new 4-way barcode reading option for Ardac Elite: “It’s frustrating, for customers and casino operators alike, when valid tickets are not accepted on first-time insertion; with this new option, whichever way a ticket is inserted Ardac Elite will read it.”
Mike regards a second new feature, the display on a PDA of a full-colour image of the last-note inserted, as equally important for casino operators: “With Ardac Elite, disputes can now be resolved in seconds, with no need to remove the cashbox: all floor staff need do is connect a PDA to the USB socket on the front of the Ardac Elite for instant proof of what note was inserted last.”
Last-note display and other advanced features are possible thanks to Ardac Elite’s unique image capture and data processing technology: a full-colour, whole image is taken of every bill and barcode ticket inserted.
“With first-time acceptance rates in excess of 97% for street grade notes and for barcode tickets, you can see why operators are delighted with Ardac Elite,” continued Mike. “On top of that, it has proven to be remarkably reliable and needs virtually no maintenance, maximising in-service availability.

Atronic International has announced the appointment of Shaun Wischnowsky as new Regional Sales Executive mainly for the company´s Eastern European customers. Based out of the company’s UK office, Shaun reports to Atronic International’s Sales Director, Stuart German and is responsible for sales activities in Belgium, Belarus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland and Slovakia.

Relocating from New Zealand to the UK, Shaun comes to Atronic with several years’ sales experience under his belt where he was responsible for contracts, merchandising equipment and stock, and key accounts for large oil companies and grocery chains. He holds a Bachelors degree in Business, majoring in Marketing, gained from Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand.

Shaun has had a whirlwind start to his position with visits to Germany, Austria and attending the recent G2E show in Las Vegas. Shaun comments:, “It was a great start for me to attend the Las Vegas Show where I got a superb exposure to what the casino industry is like. Now I’m keen to get in and meet my customers.”

Atronic International’s Sales Director, Stuart German said, “It gives me great pleasure to introduce and welcome Shaun aboard. I’m confident that he will quickly settle into his position and be an asset for the Atronic sales team. With the recent restructuring within Atronic, Shaun’s appointment helps to strengthen our sales team once again.”

At the annual IMA (International Trade Fair For Amusement And Vending Machines), Bally Wulff Entertainment presented new products featuring lots of new games, new technology and new design. This was a growing continuation of last year’s trend: analog reel machines are more and more replaced by versatile digital machines - first and foremost the so-called multigamers, which combine different games all in one machine, e.g. poker, roulette and more, including new varieties of AWP games.

»We succeeded straightaway in convincing and delighting our customers with our new products. The entirely positive response to these machines shows us that we meet the sophisticated  requirements of our customers,« summarizes CEO Axel Herr at the close of the four-day performance show in Düsseldorf.

The highlight of Bally Wulff’s performance in a Las Vegas-like casino environment were the impressive Royal Casino and Multi Casino machines, which were presented each on their own exclusive stage. The two multigamers offer lots of new features, not only new games but also new design: »All eight premium games on Royal Casino’s 32” touchscreen were received outstandingly well by the customers - Lamb Story, the amusing reel game, Roulette, Black Jack and the Strip Card poker game,« summarizes product manager Peter Nötzold. Apart from numerous lavish animations in the bonus games, Royal Casino is the first multigamer featuring - in the poker game Strip Card - real live video sequences.

Multi Casino also received a powerful response, convincing the players with 17 games on two 19” TFT monitors and a chrome casino cabinet: »The extended reel games 80 Days and Admiral Nelson were among the favourites at the IMA,« resumes product manager Jörg Neuberger. The fascinating world trip in the »all-around-the-world« bonus of 80 Days begins in England, just like in Jules Verne’s novel, and leads across Egypt, India, China, Japan and America. »Convincing the visitors of our new Multi Casino machine was an easy job for us,« Jörg Neuberger is happy to report.

With the additional IMA novelties Nevada Casino, 18+ and FreeGames Bally Wulff Entertainment showcased an array of gaming innovations appealing to all kinds of players - in arcades and gastronomy alike.

Eurocoin Remains Gaming and Casino Market Distributor and Service Partner for Europe and Africa

TransAct Technologies Incorporated (Nasdaq: TACT), a leading producer of transaction-based printers for customers worldwide, today announced that it has extended its agreement for Eurocoin to serve as its exclusive distributor and service agent for the gaming and casino market in Europe and Africa. Under the agreement, Eurocoin will distribute TransAct’s line of gaming printers through January 31, 2010. 

Bart C. Shuldman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of TransAct Technologies, commented, “Our international gaming sales continued to grow in 2007, fueled by the broad acceptance of our Epic 950® ticket printer in the Ticket In, Ticket Out market and the Epic 430 gaming printer, which targets off-premise gaming opportunities, such as Amusements with Prizes (AWP) and Skills with Prizes (SWP), Video Lottery Terminals (VLT), and Fixed Odds Betting Terminals (FOBT). Our long-term sales partner, Eurocoin, has expanded our global reach by building customer relationships and achieving record sales in Europe and Africa. Given the opportunity in these markets and all that we have achieved together, it is clearly in both companies’ best interests to extend our partnership.”

Colin Veitch, Director, Eurocoin, said, “Eurocoin is pleased to extend the ongoing relationship with our colleagues at TransAct and look forward to continuing growth and success in the forthcoming two years.  TransAct is an outstanding partner with the proven technology of the Epic 950 and Epic 430 printers.  Together we have worked to provide innovative solutions and exceptional support resulting in our leading position in the European and African gaming markets.”

Founded in 1973, Eurocoin is one of Europe's leading suppliers of products for the amusement and gaming industries. Eurocoin sells across Europe and Africa from its UK headquarters near London and sales offices throughout Europe and Africa.