How automated poker is attracting new players to the gaming floor.
Online poker poses a dilemma for land-based operators. Although the growing popularity of poker among the online community introduces a whole new generation of players to the game, unless a land-based operator also has a stake in a poker site there’s very little tangible benefit.
It is, however, a new demographic that simply cannot be ignored if land-based operators wish to continue attracting new and younger players. Getting them away from their computer screens and onto the gaming floor is a real challenge, particularly as the live table environment can be intimidating for players more familiar with the anonymity of internet poker rooms.
Just as slot machines manufacturers are embracing elements of video games in order to appeal to a broader range of potential customers, multiplayer manufacturers are taking inspiration from online gaming to attract a new audience. Automated poker tables are helping operators to bridge this gap by introducing online players to live games through the kind of technology that appeals to them.
Slovenian multiplayer manufacturer Alfastreet offers a 10-player automated poker machine, which is relatively compact and boasts a variety of technologically advanced features. The company’s Albert Radman told InterGaming that the main markets for its machine are eastern Europe and South America. However, automated poker is also proving popular in France, Italy and Spain.
"It is a mistake to believe that the hardcore live game players are switching to automated machines," he said. "These players will take much longer to see the advantages in technologically-advanced and computer-run poker tables."
Typically, he said, those who choose to play on automated tables tend to be more familiar with this type of technology than those who prefer traditional card tables.
Radman continued: "Today, automated poker tables attract a new breed of players, many of them coming from online poker rooms. These are the players that are comfortable with the technology and they are looking to test their skills in the live environment. The rest are new players, driven by the popularity of the game and looking to become a great poker player."
Hungarian manufacturer Playsystem has developed its own Texas Hold’em tables, known as Gold’em Poker Digital tables. These are available in either four and six-player fun tables or six and 10-player cash tables. According to the company’s Brian Marks, the company has seen significant growth in Mexico and South America, as well as across Europe. He agrees that automated tables attract a broad range of players wary of playing on live dealer tables.
"They appeal to any player who wants to play poker without the chaos normally found in most live poker rooms and the constant worry of mistakes by dealers and players during games spoiling their enjoyment," he said.
Austrian manufacturer Novomatic has taken this concept even further by directly targeting the growing number of online poker players to get them away from their computers. In 2009, Casino Kassel in Germany became the first casino in the world to offer Novomatic’s TX-01 electronic live poker table, a fully automated 10-player Texas Hold’em game. The table features an embedded 57ins TFT display, with each player station equipped with a high-resolution touchscreen monitor. Based on the Indigo Novo Unity II platform, TX-01 allows operators to switch easily between unlimited, limited and pot limited Texas Hold’em.
"The decision for the new TX-01 electronic live game table was taken due to a very concrete strategic reasoning," explained Peter Schneider of Kurhessische Spielbank Kassel. "We wanted to offer the ever growing community of online poker players a highly attractive and much more secure alternative to the internet. This poker table offers live poker fun in the secure environment of a licensed casino that is subject to the regulatory authorities and all their control procedure. It is actually very easy: we offer first class poker entertainment plus top security.
"Our slogan ‘from the internet to the casino’ primarily addresses the target group of online poker players aged 18-37. The Novo Texas Hold’em Poker has created a sort of round table and an ideal environment not only for making new friends but also for direct competition, the use of ‘poker face’ skills and for authentic live gaming entertainment. The great demand for our new poker table thoroughly confirms our strategy."
The synergy between online and live poker is evident in Slovenian multiplayer specialist Gold Club’s Poker Texas Hold’em machine, which the company designed with the comfort of players in mind.
"It combines the interactive benefits of traditional poker, which offers the social interactive crucial to the game, with the advantages of superior computer and graphics technology," a spokesperson for Gold Club told InterGaming.
The company’s poker table provides 10 player positions, each equipped with 15ins touchscreen monitors, and a central 46ins LCD screen. The credit in and out transactions are performed with bill acceptors, TITO, credit card or cashless systems.
"The wellbeing of players who occupy the gaming table for several hours is very important to us," the spokesperson continued. "So we designed the ergonomic appearance of the gaming machine to the greatest extent possible.
"Whoever sits on our gaming table has excellent visibility of the plasma screen, a large space for players’ legs and perfectly positioned inclined touchscreen monitors. Besides its interactivity, it also gives individual privacy."
Poker has been one of the gaming industry’s great success stories and although the boom in interest experienced in the US may have seemingly reached its peak, the game is proving immensely popular in less mature markets. With operators seeking to cut costs and many forced to contend with a shortage of skilled dealers, automated poker equipment provides and effective solution.
Austrian manufacturer Amatic Industries offers two main automated poker products, ShowDown Poker and ShowDown7 Autonomic Poker. The 10-player ShowDown Poker table features a large screen monitor centrally positioned to give a clear overview to players. ShowDown7 Autonomic Poker, meanwhile, is a six-player game aimed at smaller locations such as arcades and bars.
Georg Steiner, sales and marketing director at Amatic, told InterGaming: "We’re giving both the operator and player the right choice with two focused electronic poker solutions."
According to Steiner, there are enormous benefits to operating an automated poker table for operators, particularly in the current climate.
"The benefits of operating an automated table compared with a live table with a dealer are that they are more economic and they offer greater ease of control, maintenance and reliability," he said.
Axtra Poker’s 10 E-Poker systems can be linked to a multi-level progressive jackpot system, designed to draw more players to the gaming floor and increase turnover. The number of tables that can be connected to the system is unlimited and, while operators can determine the base amount and increment structures. The company’s Csaba Rendessy explained that the system is less expensive to operate than a network of live dealer tables.
"The system does not require a dealer or croupier, the game is played exactly the same way as conventional Texas Hold’em poker without the need for real chips or playing cards, so it is very cost effective and cheating is completely eliminated," he told InterGaming. "In a traditional poker room with 10 live poker tables more than 10 dealers are required, plus there’s at least two hostesses to serve drinks and a poker manger to watch over them. To operate the Axtra E-poker tables you only need one poker room manager and the hostesses. This makes a big difference, especially during the current financial crisis.
"Our goal was to break into the market with a top grade product at a very reasonable price and we believe we did just that. Our development team is always ready to customise the software to the operators or local government requirements."
Rendessy said that his company’s poker products, which are already in operation in the Czech Republic and is the final licensing stages in Benelux and France, increase the number of hands played per hour without compromising security. The tables provide accurate statistics for all the game data collected, offer a clear view of the chip count and total pot amount and eliminates inaccuracy.
"Electronic poker tables provide players with a unique poker playing experience, very similar to a live poker game or online poker, while enjoying fast action with no mistakes," he said.
Albert Radman of Alfastreet agrees, adding that automated poker equipment provides additional security features.
"Players feel more confident because they trust the technology to handle all aspects of the game," he said. "There is no need for extra personnel and they can be operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week with no room for human error.
"Also, live games are restricted to casinos, while automated games fit into most existing gaming clubs. This offers more potential to attract a greater number of players."
At the other end of the spectrum then, are players who love the social interaction afforded by poker and enjoy playing it in non-casino settings. One company exploring the possibility of bringing automated poker to smaller venues, such as pubs, is TAB Austria.
"Poker is a very social game - to win money is not the only incentive for people to play it," said the company’s Dietmar Straubinger. "A lot of people just love to visit their favourite pub and play poker with their friends and acquaintances. So the move from casinos to the amusement sector was sort of preprogrammed. Players want to have fun and to match each other."
TAB has developed a multigame table known as Fun4Four, which features Texas Hold’em, Knock Off Poker and many other games. The table enables four players to play simultaneously and switch between their preferred games.
Straubinger said: "Fun4Four is a multigame table that combines a casino feeling with automated procedures in the amusement scene. Our research and development departments constantly work on new games, features and products that are forerunners in the market. The new version 2.6 for the Fun4Four is evidence of that. With the software update you can immediately enjoy the magnificent range of games in breathtaking full-HD graphics. Razor-sharp images and crisp colours provide the games with a new dimension.
"Due to the multi-touch response of our Fun4Four machine we provide unique gameplay for up to four players. The rich variety of games on offer attracts players with a varied mix of strategy, cards, skill and quiz games, and is rounded off with classics such as Texas Hold’em and blackjack.
"We want to impress our customers with our diversity, innovation and creativity."
Despite some poker purists choosing to steer clear of touchscreens and virtual dealers, live table operators have been quick to see the benefits offered by new technologies. Gaming Partners International recently added RFIDPoker to its existing portfolio of casino chips and table game products in order to improve accuracy and increase the speed of various actions on the poker table. The system consists of a slim antenna concealed under the table layout that provides error-free, automatic and constant reading of the poker pot, calculates charges and rakes, and provides essential data and statistics such as game analysis, table performances, round-up lists and daily totals.
"The beauty of GPI RFIDPoker is the combination of traditional poker games, with all the excitement and conviviality of a live game, and the interaction of the technology with RFID chips and monitor screens," Christophe Leparoux, GPI’s international sales and marketing manager, told InterGaming. "Actually, poker players are usually a younger crowd, fond of technology and they love it. For the operator, this is a great opportunity to attract these players and maybe to lead them towards other types of live games within the industry."
According to Leparoux, the benefits of utilising RFID technology on live tables speak for themselves.
"The main benefit is definitely speed, as an average 25 per cent more hands per hour are recorded on sites equipped with RFIDPoker; the whole game is also protected with RFID chips against forgeries or fraudulent activities, while table performances are recorded and monitored."
GPI’s system has already become well established in casinos throughout Europe, including several properties operated by the Joa Group.
"The tables work perfectly and we have recorded on average at least 15 per cent more hands per hour," said Laurent Jourdain, vice president of table games at the Joa Group. "We expect a ROI of about six to eight months, depending on the volume of play at each table."
Such innovations are helping operators to maximise revenues generated by traditional table games. Although new automated tables are attracting a whole new set of customers to land-based casinos, they do not seem to be replacing live tables but instead provide a valuable addition to the gaming floor. A combination of both - where regulations allow - could prove to be an effective way of broadening the customer base and streamlining casino operations.
First published in the April issue of InterGaming.
