Indy Gaming: Expanding usage of mobile wallets and cashless payments requires education for players and casino staff

Omer Sattar, executive vice president of Sightline Payments, compared the first introduction of digital payment technology to casino sites to the 20-year introduction of what has already become the norm for slot machines, a ticket-in-a-box system.

Initially, players received the technology mixed.

Customers missed the buzz of coins in the tray and didn't realize they were getting credits when they left the game and fired the machine for real dollars. Slot players had to be trained to take their tickets back to kiosks or casino cells for payment. Using checks at other gaming establishments still required training.

"Casino players and employees learned a lot," said the company, which started in Las Vegas.

Today, casino-buyers are hard-pressed to find a chance to find coin-operated slot machines in the middle of a big city, in the historic second-floor gaming area of ​​the D Las Vegas Hotel, the El Cortez Hotel, and in some rural areas of Nevada.

Similar educational efforts, such as "one-and-don tickets," will be needed to expand the use of digital wallets and non-cash games in casinos. But Sattar believes that in fact, the rollout will soon have a simple appearance.

Last week, Sightline expressed interest in raising $244 million. The funding will allow the company to study casino staff, pay for technology upgrades, and expand the introduction of digital payment products. Earlier this year, Sightline closed another round of funding of $100 million, part of which was used to purchase a digital platform for customer commitment programs.

Sightline Vice President Omer Sattar. (Photo from the site)

"Training casino staff is a key challenge in introducing digital payment products," Sattar says. But this is only part of the job. "It's a double whammy. We're not only being asked to create an industry-leading product, but also to implement it to guarantee the technology on all casino floors."

With the introduction of ticket-in-ticket technology, gambling company buyers in 2021 can now pay for almost any product or offer through digital wallets or credit cards connected to their mobile devices.

"We use apps for everything, but the operation of most apps for casinos is limited to checking quota points or viewing casino rooms," Sattar said.

According to his writing, with the standard of widespread use of digital payment systems, the updating of apps for casinos is being done as an important measure.

After nearly two years of work by the American Gambling Association to modernize the industry and move away from cash-centric gaming to casinos, COVID-19 quickly favored digital payments. In fact, a Washington-based survey conducted last year found that more than 60% of casino buyers want to adopt non-cash and digital payment methods.

The first business line it looked at was providing payment systems and processes for legal online gaming. It grew handily thanks to the legalization of sports betting in 2018. States gained mobile sports betting on par with retail sportsbooks.

Most recently, Sightline had raised funding from Cannae Holdings, Vegas Golden Knights investor Bill Fowley, as well as Resorts World Las Vegas owner Malaysian company Genting Group, Point Break Capital Management, and the company's investor founder Wal Kotak. Previous funding came from lead fund Searchlight Capital Partners.

"I believe in Sightline as a company that connects the past and future of the gambling industry," said Eilers & amp; Krejcik Games analyst Chris Groove. "I believe it's really more of a bridge between continuing to serve today's buyers and striking a balance between the ways of tomorrow's buyers."

Macquarie Securities analyst Chad Bainon, who was in the audience with Sightline's award, as well as acting gaming equipment supplier Everi Holdings, International Gaming Technology and Scientific Gam, actually supported Burning Technologies and helped "foster customer skills" in cashless calculations and mobile wallets.

"The pandemic has definitely acted as an accelerator for gaming technology, and non-cash payments are one of the key achievements of the industry in recent years," Bainon said.

This month, traders considered their sights on the $1 billion mark and, indeed, what Nevada's first "unicorn" did - an economic term that denotes a private technology company valued at more than $1 billion.

In his own statement, Fowley said there is "no longer any doubt" that Sightline is at the forefront of the digital transformation happening in North America's gambling, sports and entertainment ecosystem.

Fowley praised the company's role in the June 24 opening of the $4. 3 billion Resorts World Las Vegas. The company was one of five gaming technology suppliers that participated in the implementation of non-cash gaming odds on slot machines, board games and sportsbooks in the Strip's brand new ensemble.

According to Sattar, Sightline has gained important insights on all the nuances when working on the start of a cashless game throughout the casino. Sightline employees and others spent several months on the site during this study process.

Sightline is believed to be part of the plan for Boyd Gaming to introduce cashless gambling in slot machines in partnership with AristoCrat Technologies. Boyd brand mobile wallets were started in five regional casinos: Blue CHIP and Belterra, Pennsylvania, Valley Forge, Belterra Park in Ohio, and Aliante Casino in Northus Vegas.

In July, Boyd Gaming's Keith Smith's highest executive (CEO) stated that the mobile wallet could start with 21 casinos within the year, waiting for the approval of regulatory authorities. 。 In fact, he stated that the digital payment system was tested in Ariante's no n-gaming area and could be used in table games this fall.

This is to reduce the time it takes to download the app and create an account, the biggest goal of the site line. According to his text, it is an issue to reduce this time within 3 minutes, which is considered to be a stereotype in the industry.

We are already approaching, "he said.

Community game manufacturers, Play Studios, have an office in Summerin. The company was listed on the Nasdaq market in late June 2021. (Photo provision: PlayStudios)

The decline in promotion costs has not changed the opinions of experts about the public game development company Playstudios.

Eilers & amp; amp; amp; Krejcik Gaming analyst Adam Krejcik said, in his own survey report published last week, the price of PlayStudios's Nasudak Promotion has fallen by nearly 50 % since the IPO in June. Regardless of, regardless of Las Vega s-based social game maker PlayStudios, traders have a positive prospect.

Cligic, a director of a company that covers the digital interactive game industry based in Southern California, owns a special aim acquisition company (SPAC), a system in which Play Studios became a public company. The company said that the company's shares had damaged the market as a whole.

"Traders have been disillusioned in this area due to the number of repurchases of advertising stocks and the influx of new companies," says Cr try.

He is actually saying that PlayStudios, which has made a profit of about $ 7 billion a year and thinks he is the 8th largest company in the public game category, is a "powerful" balance sheet of $ 230 million. Does it mean that it has a cheaper and repetitive credit part of $ 150 million?

"Play Studios is very aggressive in M ​​& amp; A, and probably will consider multiple targets." The company's management states that M & A is the main reason for stock public disclosure. "

PlayStudios is headquartered in Summerin, led by Casino and former director Andrew Pascal Chairman and CEO. PlayStudios manages free casual mobile and social games, such as Myvegas Slots, My Konami Slots, M YVEGAS BLACKJACK, and recently released Myvegas Bingo. There is.

Last month, PlayStudios announced that the release of Kingdom Boss will be postponed to the fourth quarter. According to Krejcik, this is the first new work in the company except for social casino categories. With this postponement, Play Studios has reduced the profit and cash flow guidance in 2021.

According to Krejcik, the mobile game acquisition market is still "very competitive and many highly fluid digital game companies are fighting for larg e-scale properties that are growing rapidly." He named Zynga and Playtika as the main competitors of Playstudios.

Cregrick said that although not recommended stocks or target stock prices, PlayStudios stock prices are "trading considerably compared to the same industry."

PlayStudios runs royalty platform PlayRewards, and online and mobile gamers can get actual rewards from 95 or more partners in the entertainment, retail, travel, leisure, and more than 290 brands.

Earlier, Play Studios merged with the MGM Resorts Jim Mahren's former chairman and CEO and two executives of Morgan Stanley, investment bank, and Aisse Aquidition Corporation. Shareholders own 64 % of the company's shares, and institutional investors control 18 %. Merren and sponsor Aisz own 3 %. After the merger, Play Studios provided 15 % of the company's shares to the public market.

Merren joined the Board of Directors with the current MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle.

Other interesting facts

Marker Trax in Las Vegas, which provides no n-cash systems that issue markers for casinos, has partnered with Scientica Games Gaming Equipment Supplier. Marker Trax was established in 2018 by the game industry veteran Gary Ellis. The product evaluates and approves the player to get a loan. Currently, the system is operating in Wendover Naget in the countryside of Nevada, a facility operated by Golden Entertainment, Ellis Earland Casino in Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Stratum Resort and Tower. The two casinos in Southern California also use Marker Trax. Rob Bown, a senior vice president in charge of scientific gaming, said that the system would be added to the company's cashless gaming technology. "Mr. Bone says," We are watching the development of Marker Trax, and we believe that loans with less friction are attractive for players. "This partnership improves the player's game experience."

On the weekend of the expansion of the casino network in Japan, they rejected again. Yokohama City has cut off the hope of Yokohama, which could choose a new mayor from among the candidates against integrated resorts and have a license for a casino. In Japan, the introduction of casinos has been discussed for more than 10 years. Yokohama's withdrawal was a blow to the owner of Gentin Bellhad's Resort World Las Vegas in Malaysia. In February, Win Resorts refused to compete in Osaka in 2019 and then withdrawn a bid from a casino construction competition in Yokohama. Las Vegas Sands refused to fully participate in the 2020 Japanese trial. MGM Resorts still invests in major ship funds, and one Japanese leader is predicted to be the only city where integrated resorts are legalized.

Lyle Berman (photo is from the site)

Lile Bermann is a member of the three gambling industry, the Gambling Hall of Fame of the American Gambling Association, the Gambling Hall of Fame, and the Gamble Business's Gambling Hall of Fame in Mississippi. Last Friday, Golden Entertainment reported in a statement of the Securities and Exchange Commission that a 8 0-yea r-old Berman would leave the company's Board of Directors. Berman's company Lakes Entertainment and Golden Gaming were based in Las Vegas in 2015, and Berman was a director and consultant. He is also one of the founders of the Grand Casino who contributed to the creation of a casino market in Mississippi. In Poke, he won the World Series of Poker championship bracelet three times in his personal tournament, contributing to the creation of a global poker tour.

In an interview with Tony Butt of Vixio Gambling Compliance (paid), Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman Bryn Gibson said remote sports betting registration remains a goal in Nevada, regardless of what other states do. Nevada is pushing for mobile sports betting registration to be done directly with casino sports clubs. "I think some people see remote registration as a camel's beak or an ancillary step to allow operators who don't have investments in brick-and-mortar to enter the market in Nevada," Gibson said. Remote registration is already offered, but has been met with fierce criticism from some casino operators. In fact, Gibson said remote registration "is still there. She's still going strong, and I don't doubt she's going to go away."

The day after MGM Resorts required employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19, Las Vegas-based casino operator Golden Entertainment did the same. In an August 17 employee memo, Golden's president Charles Protell wrote that the company is preparing to "require unvaccinated staff at select facilities and corporate offices to provide proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 tests weekly." In Nevada, Golden operates Strat Tower Bar & Resort, two Arizona Charlie's in Las Vegas, casinos in Pahrump and Laughlin, and more than 60 taverns. It also operates casino resorts in Maryland. Protell said Golden's employees will receive supporting information on the request. MGM Resorts, which employs 57, 000 people, became the first major casino operator in the United States and in Nevada to insist that employees get vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition of employment. The company is exploring the possibility of extending the vaccination requirement to hourly employees and other positions. In 1989, Deadwood, South Dakota, became the third legal casino market in the country after Nevada and Atlantic City. Last year, voters in the Wild West metropolis legalized sports betting in small casinos. Now, casino giant MGM Resorts International is getting into the game. Last week, the company announced that BetMGM (50/50), a joint venture with Entain Plc., will open retail sports casinos and offer mobile sports betting at Liv Hospitality-operated small stakes casinos Tin Lizzie and Cadillac Jack's. Subject to regulatory approval, BetMGM will be available in South Dakota in the appropriate months for the opening of the NFL and Institute football seasons. South Dakota is one of 10 states where sports betting is legal but has not yet launched. Sports betting is legal and active in 22 states and Washington, DC.