At the morning conference at SAGSE 2007 last week, representatives of four leading manufacturers of gaming machines and systems took part in the discussion ‘Server-Based Gaming: The future at hand’ at EY!07 Encuentro Yogonet. Also present was Avron Gross, executive president of the UK’s Betstone. Sebastian Salat of WMS Gaming, Sebastain Callieri of IGT Latin America, Enric Barba of Unidesa Gaming and Systems, and John Connelly of Bally Technologies represented the manufacturers.

The debate over server-based gaming is taking prominence in the global gaming industry as the next technological advance for casinos. The ability to use one slot machine to play games from various manufacturers without having to buy a new machine when a game goes out of fashion or is unproductive for the operator undoubtedly has its attractions.

It would seem a gift from the gods for operators, with equipment viable for 5, 8 or even 10 years without further investment in gaming machines. However, nothing is that simple, especially when dealing with new technology.

Following the immaculate presentations from the panel, each with all the relevant information at their fingertips, came the questions from the gaming public present at the conference. There was too little time to address these in full but a major concern was the security of the new systems and the reliability of the manufacturers in respect of operator statistics.

Of course the operators had every right to be suspicious of the claims but, as Sebastian Salat pointed out, the manufacturers speaking at EY!07 all represented solid companies. Sebastian Callieri added that it is the casinos that control the statistics and not the manufacturers who sell the systems.

However, it should be emphasised that whilst these systems are, in the words of Avram Gross, ready and waiting for installation in every casino, operators must ensure that these instant server-based games are fully backed by regulatory approval. Callieri commented that IGT server-based products have acquired homologation by GLI and been approved by the Nevada Gaming Commission. (E-10.08.07)

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