As Funworld takes its product offering online Helen Fletcher finds out what new opportunities the coin-op operator can look forward to
Funworld of Austria, renowned for its Photo Play terminal, has taken a new direction - aiming to develop unique products which operators can profit strongly from, no matter where the player is playing.
There are four product groups to which this specifically refers to: Photo Play, Funwin - the new skill platform - sports betting and poker. All of them have online technology in common, which plays an integral part in bridging the gap between the coin-op amusement sector and online gaming.
Funworld’s major strategy moving forward, is to link these two sectors and provide customers with a large market of potential business. It first started providing networked machines 11 years ago through the Photo Play terminal, which has continued to enhance over the years and has since broadened its product portfolio into the online sector through sports betting and poker.
The online skill platform Funwin in particular, provides a lot of possibilities for new co-operations because of its pure skill orientation and innovative features like the head-to-head multiplayer tournaments that can be played in real-time. Players can also start their own tournaments, something new to the industry, and challenge each other in exciting jackpot tournaments.
According to Thomas Keitz, general manager Funworld Germany, the main advantage of online gaming to the operator is that it allows the binding of players and the creation of communities through long-lasting relationships that can be established with online marketing and communication tools.
"Playing against others from all over the world in real-time and building up friendships is especially appealing to players and an experience that makes online gaming special," Keitz said. "Online gaming also reduces the costs of updates and administration. Connected terminals can be actualised via online updates easily and very quickly so operators do not have to spend a lot of time and money on this as they would if they had offline machines."
For Funworld online connection makes even regular game updates and special features such as the multiplayer function possible. "It is no longer enough for the coin-op industry to offer one offline terminal at one location," said Keitz. "The migration of players onto the internet can only be prevented if the games industry manages to develop adequate offers that create communities out of single players and bind these players for a long time."
On the other hand Funworld notes that there are millions of players out there who cannot be reached with offline terminals but play online for money. With this in mind, these players form a new target group of high potential for the coin-op industry as they can be reached with online terminals or platform solutions like Funwin - that can be played in bars and pubs as well as at home.
The world of coin-op and online are, however, still two separate markets right now, meaning that operators in the coin-op industry cannot easily benefit from the billion dollar market of online gaming.
As the distribution of online terminals is limited to bars and arcades, operators of offline terminals have no chance of reaching this big market.
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Their only chance is with online solutions such as Funwin or Touch2Web where players can play at home as well as in bars or pubs. Touch2Web is an internet terminal offering a unique e-payment solution for selected online services such as the Funwin skill platform. This direct payment solution takes the players’ barriers of online payments away and allows them to pay directly on the terminal, even if all corresponding online payment functions are also available. On Touch2Web customers get easy access to the most popular social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter as well as a variety of other internet services such as You Tube.
"It is a must for the coin-op sector to approach the online world as the demand and habits of players change," said Keitz. "Operators of arcades and similar locations can benefit from the popularity of online gaming if they find ways to bridge the gap between both worlds via innovative online product and marketing strategies as Funworld offers with Funwin.
"The coin-op industry must encourage its players to play in the bar or pub as well as at home. Thereby the terminal must be used as a distribution and marketing channel and an adequate web presence has to be established.
"On the other hand operators must address the new target group of online gamers via newsletters, blogs, forums, bonus codes and so on and interest them on a regular basis to establish long-term relationships from which they can profit strongly."
According to Funworld this can be done technically via a special registration account, with which one and the same game offer can be used on amusement machines in locations as well as on PCs in an internet café or at home. The key is apparently to create one technological identity and to use this on diverse platforms providing games of current topics and interests.
"Traditional coin-op amusement will always have its eligibility as long as it meets the parameter of anonymity and customised supply-side," continued Keitz. "But in the future it will become much more important for the coin-op industry to provide an offering that is not only interesting and demanded by the players, but can also be used all over.
"By doing so, the traditional coin-op amusement industry will break through its traditional limits of time and space and enter a new world, for which new products that conform to requirements have to be developed. Funworld will continue to serve different target groups and markets with a broad offer of customised products meeting current trends and players’ needs and habits."
First published April 2010
