The way Jason Seelig sees it, the last major innovation for slots came in 1999, when players’ coins and plastic cups were replaced by the “ticket-in, ticket-out” system.
“The industry needs new technology. It needs to move forward,” says Seelig, who, naturally, is offering a solution. The Seeligs’ company, based in Pompano Beach, Florida, is called Banyan Gaming.
Seelig and his father, Mac, are marketing “distributed gaming,” which consists of a central computer server communicating with casino slot machines. The central server can more quickly adapt to players’ needs, even switching out unpopular titles on machines not being played, in favor of those getting more action on the slot floor.
“This isn’t really for the casinos. This is for the players to have the experience they want to have at a slot machine. If they do, then chances are they’ll come back,” he says. (Note: that means more revenue.)
As casino officials scratch their heads trying to figure out how to attract new slot players, Seelig suggests they look at using current technology. “When you look at what smart TVs have done to advance the TV industry, that’s what we believe we can do to the slot machine,” he says. “Everything in our normal lives is now distributed technology. Today you have Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime …
“Prior to 2007 nobody knew they needed an iPhone. Now they literally can’t live without it. It’s how you do banking, play games, take photos … It’s such a personal device. You’re basically carrying a computer in your pocket.”
Banyan’s system, which was displayed at last year’s G2E, can make for linked progressives well beyond just one casino, thus creating higher jackpots. Banyan has more than 120 slot titles available, though casinos are using only about 25, including three recent Asian-themed games, “Asian Pearls,” “Serenity,” and “Warriors of Fortune.”
The company is also rolling out a five-level customizable mystery bonus system, which can be set up for value-based payouts, or in an industry first, time-based payouts, an innovation that can literally create a “slot machine happy hour” for players. Banyan’s mystery bonus system can be configured for multiple casinos, multiple banks in one casino, or as a stand-alone system.
Gaming control boards already regulate Banyan’s technology, Seelig says, although server-based gaming is still booting up. Like all technological adjustments, this one will take some time.
