Gaming News @ NIGA 2023 • March 30, 2023

GAMING News

Velvix Reveals New Games at Show

BOOTH #2013

An interview With Chris Wieners, Managing Director, Velvix

GN: What’s in store for visitors to the Velvix booth this year?

CW: We are excited for our second year exhibiting here at IGA This year, visitors to our booth can expect to see brand new games not yet showcased at any gaming show to date We’re excited to showcase games that are available today as well as a few sneak previews of titles that will launch later in 2023. What’s more, we are now able to showcase where our games are live on casino floors across multiple jurisdictions.

GN: How has Velvix evolved over the last 12 months? What has changed since the last trade show for the company?

CW: The most important evolution since the last show is the fact our machines are now operational We have several properties in both California and Oklahoma that are carrying our games, including both standalone and progressive jackpot titles The company is aggressively expanding, with new properties in both markets, as well as launches to be announced soon in new jurisdictions across the United States.

Continued on Page 9

Gary Platt Manufacturing Brings Unsurpassed Seating Comfort to Casino and Hospitality

When players are comfortable, they enjoy themselves longer and no chair is more comfortable than those from Gary Platt Manufacturing

A recent live, in-casino test conducted over several weeks compared slot performance with Gary Platt chairs and competitive products Test results showed a three percent increase in time-on-device and an 11 percent increase in coin-in

Comfort and performance are two reasons why Gary Platt recently celebrated a milestone achievement for the gaming industry when the company produced its 1,000,000th casino chair

The new Sportsbook Club has innovative flat tablet arms, making it easier and more comfortable than ever for fans to mark racing forms, keep up on the action on their laptop or phone, or enjoy food and beverage

The chair has options for tablets on each arm or a choice of right or left A removable stainless steel cup holder snugly fits inside the tablet or directly into the arm. There are also a multitude of charging options including two USB ports, a power outlet, or the new wireless c h a r g i n g f e a t u r e t h a t w i l l k e e p p l a y e r s charged and ready for phone-betting action

X-keys – Controlling the Industry One Button at a Time

By Michael Hetherington, President, P I Engineering

X-keys are a family of USB programmable keyboards, keypads and controls Any key on an X-keys can trigger an action on a computer It can typically mean one-button access to tools, filters and macros The dedicated keys on an X-keys make you more efficient and lets you keep your mind on the production instead of the software X-keys devices can emulate USB keyboard, mouse, game controller or multimedia commands. These commands can even be stored in X - k e y s o n - b o a r d m e m o r y a n d s e n t w i t h o u t installing special drivers or software on the host device X-keys work on Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and Android Additionally, many popular production applications have directly integrated X-keys For developers wishing to include support, we offer our free SDK allowing X-keys to be integrated into any system W e h a v e a b r o a d r a n g e o f u s e c a s e s f o r Xk e y s a n d t h e l i s t i s s t i l l g r o w i n g I n t e g r a t o r s c a n n o w e a s i l y s e t u p s i m p l e , s t r a i g h t f o r w a r d c o n t r o l p a n e l s f o r c h u r c h e s , c o u n c i l c h a m b e r s ,

Continued on Page 9

Benefits of the SKECHERS Direct Corporate Shoe Program

Are you tired of costly slip and falls? Are you frustrated with your current shoe program? The SKECHERS Direct Corporate Shoe Program is the answer! This program is cost-free with no minimum purchasing requirements or setup fees – your employees buy directly from SKECHERS and save!

SKECHERS will put together a custom ecommerce site and will customize the selection based on your casino’s uniform policy. Your employees can purchase shoes online with free shipping and free returns or by shopping at any of the 500+ SKECHERS retail stores in the United States and Canada

“This cost-free program has some incredible benefits and will provide your employees with a substantial disc o u n t o n s a f e , c o m f o r t a b l e a n d durable trend-right footwear resulting in improved worker safety, morale and overall efficiency,” says National Sales Manager Harold Surabian.

The SKECHERS Direct program is available to casinos and properties with 200 or more employees and who are based in the United States or Canada The program offers employees a year-round 30 percent discount on SKECHERS slip-resistant work shoes

Zitro Announces Appointment of Mike Mitchell as Distinguished Designer

Zitro announced the appointment of M i k e M i t c h e l l a s D i s t i n g u i s h e d Designer. Mitchell will lead the company’s development in hardware design and the creation of new game content for the U S market

D e r i k M o o b e r r y , C h i e f E x e c u t i v e O f f i c e r o f Z i t r o U S A , w e l c o m e d h i s appointment, saying: "I am thrilled to have Mike joins us officially His reput a t i o n , t a l e n t a n d i m p r e s s i v e t r a c k record make him a v a l u a b l e a c q u i s ition for Zitro Mike b r i n g s v a l u a b l e i n s i g h t s o b t a i n e d through his extens i v e e x p e r i e n c e i n the gaming industry, and we are confident he will be an e x c e l l e n t a d d i t i o n to our team With his unique expertise in game design, we are well positioned to ensure the continued success of our innovation strategy and respond to the g r o w i n g m a r k e t d e m a n d f o r Z i t r o ' s products ”

Mike Mitchell has over 28 years of experience in leading positions within the gaming industry, as well as in game

studio creation and team development

His early career includes seven years at Anchor Gaming where he served as

D i r e c t o r o f G a m e D e v e l o p m e n t Mitchell also served for 20 years as Vice President Game Development at Bally T e c h n o l o g i e s / S c i e n t i f i c G a m e s ( n o w Light & Wonder) Mitchell’s career highlights include award-winning, top perf o r m i n g c a s i n o c a b inets and games as well a s b e i n g t h e l e a d designer and develope r o f t h e i n d u s t r yc h a n g i n g W a v e S l o t Machine He has also been awarded 32-plus g a m i n g a n d s l o t m a c h i n e d e s i g n patents

“ I t i s w i t h g r e a t enthusiasm that I am stepping into the role o f D i s t i n g u i s h e d Designer of Zitro I look forward to b r i n g i n g v a l u e i n t e r m s o f s t r a t e g y , innovation and game development as we enter the next growth stage in the United States,” stated Mike Mitchell

F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , g o t o w w w z i t r o g a m e s c o m o r s t o p b y booth #741.

Customized and Competitive Worker’s Compensation for Casinos

Tribal gaming entities have many considerations when protecting property, employees and covering liability exposures, especially since they are not a o n e - s i z e - f i t s - a l l r i s k m o d e l

a s i n o s need to work with a trusted broker on key risks and design an insurance program around those risks Property, liability and workers' compensation policies should be uniquely crafted to protect tribal assets, while considering cult u r a l p r e f e r e n c e s A T r i b a l W o r k e r s ' Compensation (TWC) program should be selected without sacrificing the ability to determine its level of coverage

Tribal gaming entities can avoid the fraud and abuse that's prevalent in state systems through a sovereign TWC program. There are several worker’s compensation carriers serving tribal gaming entities, so your broker should provide multiple options to ensure you aren’t paying too much It’s a best practice to get a new quote annually

AMERIND’s Tribal Workers Compensation Program

s a i d “ F r o m a c o s t p e r s p e c t i v e , AMERIND is very competitive with larger insurance companies A policy costs less than the competitors, making it an easy choice,” he continued. “AMERIND s e r v e s a n i c h e m a r k e t – T r i b a l

Every day each of us experiences an extraordinary variety of sound that is, in many ways, personal to us The alarm tone that wakes us up, the conversations we have with people – each of these are uniquely experienced individually and personally While we can’t individually manage all of our aural exposure, we certainly c a n h a v e o u r p r e f e rences.

N o r m a l e a r s c o nt a i n a r o u n d 1 5 , 5 0 0 s e n s o r y h a i r c e l l s t h a t s i t a l o n g s i d e a m e m b r a n e t h a t v i b r a t e s w i t h e a c h i n c o m i n g s o u n d E a c h f r e q u e n c y o f s o u n d v i b r a t e s t h e h a i r c e l l s i n s p e c i fi c l o c a t i o n s , w h i c h i s w h y w e a r e a b l e t o h e a r d i f f e r e n c e s i n s o u n d s W h i l e d i f f e r e n t s o u n d s v i b r a t e d i f f e r e n t p a r t s o f o u r m e m b r a n e , l o u d e r s o u n d s i n c r e a s e t h e a m p l i t u d e o f t h e v i b r a t i o n . When it comes to hearing loss, the majority is sensori-neural loss, where inner and outer hair cells have been damaged This leads to an inability to hear soft sounds, while still being able t o h e a r ( a n d b e s e n s i t i v e ) t o l o u d sounds So, while a person experiencing hearing loss can still have a dynamic range of hearing, it is a much smaller

range than a person with normal hearing.

The standard for today’s hearing a i d s a n d a m p l i f i e r s i s a t e c h n o l o g y c a l l e d W i d e D y n a m i c R a n g e Compression (WDRC) WDRC logically amplifies softer sounds more than louder sounds, in an effort to balance what the user hears It gives the most amplification to soft sounds, less to a v e r a g e s o u n d s a n d e v e n l e s s t o l o u d sounds Ears that are experiencing hearing loss have a decreased range of what they can hear and WDRC attempts to g e n e r i c a l l y b o o s t t h e r a n g e o f s o f t sounds

L u c i d i d e n t i f i e d t h e n e e d f o r a more nuanced approach that highlights a n d d i f f e r e n t i a t e s a w i d e r r a n g e o f sounds, while optimizing comfort and natural sound. Its innovative technology focuses on an adaptive dynamic range optimization approach Where

W D R C b o o s t s s o f t n o i s e s t h e m o s t , Lucid technology gives the same amplif i c a t i o n t o s o f t , a v e r a g e a n d l o u d sounds It focuses on the average loudn e s s o f c o n v e r s a t i o n a l s p e e c h a n d

A M E R I N D ’ s T r i b a l W o r k e r ’ s Compensation product is an alternative to state programs and empowers tribal entities to take full control of their worke r s ’ c o m p e n s a t i o n p r o g r a m T h e AMERIND Worker’s Compensation program maintains the Tribe’s sovereignty and is tailored to offer maximum effectiveness while reducing overall claim expenses The product is customized, c o m p e t i t i v e l y p r i c e d a n d r e l i a b l e Insuring through AMERIND eliminates the need to comply with state law. Similar to state workers’ compensation p r o g r a m s , b e n e f i t s i n c l u d e m e d i c a l expenses, lost wages, death benefits and disability benefits AMERIND provides online access to real-time claim i n f o r m a t i o n , a n e x p e r i e n c e d c l a i m s team with the expertise, deductible and self-insured retention (SIR) options

Making Good Decisions for Indian Country

Dan Kain, business executive with the Puyallup Tribe, said he knew from his first meeting he had shared values with AMERIND “The Tribe retained AMERIND over a decade ago based on AMERIND’s ability to provide the best coverage and rates, and, more importantly, its ability to protect the Tribe and its assets,” Kain

G o v e r n m e n t s a n d B u s i n e s s e s T r i b e s Protecting Tribes – it’s a motto that describes them well because they are so engaged in Indian Country They always approach our discussions with the attitude that we’re all in this together They want to vet your needs and then make good decisions ”

AMERIND – Your 100 Percent Owned and Trusted Insurance Partner

An AM Best A- (Excellent) rated company, AMERIND offers a comprehensive line of affordable insurance products d e s i g n e d t o f i t t h e n e e d s o f I n d i a n Country Founded in 1986 as an act of u n i t y a m o n g m o r e t h a n 4 0 0 T r i b e s , A M E R I N D i s t h e o n l y 1 0 0 p e r c e n t Tribally owned insurance provider. The New Mexico-based AMERIND has saved Tribe’s millions of dollars – all while strengthening Native American communities and economies and elevating Tribal sovereignty AMERIND also provides strategic planning for broadband deployment by Tribal governments and business enterprises throughout Indian Country

F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , g o t o w w w . a m e r i n d . c o m , c a l l

SecuGen’s Low-Cost, Compact Bluetooth Fingerprint Reader

By Jeff Brown, Vice President of Sales, SecuGen Corporation

What is Unity 20 Bluetooth?

The Unity 20 Bluetooth is the world’s first elegantly designed, low-cost, fully p r o g r a m m a b l e B l u e t o o t h f i n g e r p r i n t reader It is sleek and small enough to be carried in your pocket as a mobile fingerprint reader or placed at a workstation as an ergonomic desktop reader

It’s a versatile scanner that can securely transfer fingerprint data wireless-

Velvix (Cont’d. from p. 1)

GN: Very exciting – it is such a major a c h i e v e m e n t t o g e t t h e p r o d u c t launched and live on floors Can give us a hint as to how the products are performing?

CW: I can tell you that our clients are very happy with the results, as are the players we have spoken to Players are always excited to try new games I think our cabinets and unique graphics stand out from the crowd, as has gameplay We are incredibly excited to be getting new titles out soon in both existing and new casino operations Some of the g a m e s s h o w c a s e d a t t h i s I G A s h o w

ly to mobile devices and computers alike

But it can also process and store encrypted fingerprints within the device without having fingerprint data ever leaving the device. This can help ensure that sensitive biometric data stays secure within the users’ possession at all times, which can be important for sensitive transactions

What’s so appealing about it?

Most Bluetooth products on the market are about as attractive as a deck of cards

The Unity 20 Bluetooth reader, on the

have never been seen before, and we’re very excited to get feedback from operators this week

GN: What does the future look like for Velvix?

CW: The future looks very bright! Still a young company, Velvix is quickly expanding into new operations throughout the United States The past six months has included a focus on getting our first machines launched and driving valuable player feedback The next steps for us include expanding our market share in the jurisdictions where we currently have licenses and developing new opportunities across other states that

other hand, is a stunning device with a simple but intuitive single-button interface and three small LEDs Our team has been able to achieve this while keeping the price of the product very low and suitable even for large-scale deployments

With support for Android and iOS, the Unity 20 Bluetooth can be paired with most smartphones or tablets as an efficient solution for roaming enrollment and authentication of groups of people without having to deal with bulky machines No longer requiring cables that can lead to clunky tethering, the Unity 20 Bluetooth was designed so that an administrator can hold it in one hand while presenting it to a user to place their finger comfortably to scan

include tribal gaming operations From a game design perspective, our team will continue to develop and launch various new titles each quarter, including advancing our library of both standalone and progressive jackpot games We are incredibly excited about the future and looking forward to becoming a household name in the EGM industry.

GN: What makes IGA so unique for your company? What do you hope to get out of the show?

What’s under the hood?

The Unity 20 Bluetooth can be used right out of the box using the prei n s t a l l e d F i n g e r p r i n t M a n a g e m e n t System software Alternatively, it can be completely custom programmed to suit the needs of the targeted user base Within the slim, sleek white case, the reader has a 1 GHz CPU and complete L i n u x d e v e l o p m e n t e n v i r o n m e n t , including SecuGen’s fingerprint capture and NIST MINEX-compliant template e x t r a c t i o n a n d m a t c h i n g a l g o r i t h m s , and the OpenSSL cryptography library

For more information, go to www secugen com, call 415 302 8417 or email sales@secugen com

where Class III machines and tribal gaming go hand-in-hand For this reason, the IGA show is one of our most important, allowing us to introduce new product and meet with Tribal Gaming leaders from around the country Our team has worked hard to ensure IGA features new game and product launches, allowing us to gain valuable feedback from operators to help us shape our game designs as we move forward IGA is and will continue to be a show that offers the best way to connect with our customers in the tribal gaming space

c o r p o r a t e s t r e a m i n g i n s t a l l a t i o n s , a n d s c h o o l s f o r a f r a c t i o n o f t h e c o s t o f a t r a d i t i o n a l b r o a d c a s t s w i t c h e r P o r t r a i t a n d w e d d i n g p h o t o g r a p h e r s l o v e t h e d e d i c a t e d k e y s f o r p r o c e s si n g t h o u s a n d s o f i m a g e s S t a g e l i g h t -

Gary Platt (Cont’d from p 1)

The seat is a generous 21 inches w i d e ; q u i c k - c h a n g e s e a t a n d b a c k means repairs are fast and easy and will not cause disruption to the gaming action. Optional sports-style stitching adds an athletic design flair.

Also on display will be a wealth of s e a t i n g s o l u t i o n s f r o m G a r y P l a t t ’ s

SKECHERS Direct (Cont’d from p 1)

and safety toe footwear All SKECHERS slip-resistant work shoes are tested to meet or exceed industry standards.

Included in the program is SKECHERS $5,000 slip-and-fall warranty that helps protect your company from costly

Lucid Technology (Cont’d from p 4)

places this information within the listener’s dynamic range So, rather than compress every sound to fit within the d y n a m i c r a n g e , L u c i d t e c h n o l o g y adapts the sounds to fit naturally within the listener’s range

i n g d e s i g n e r s u s e X - k e y s b o t h t o d e s i g n a n d r u n c o m p l e x s h o w s . C o l o r i s t s a n d v i d e o e d i t o r s u s e X - k e y s t o m a k e t h e i r w o r k f l o w m o r e e f f i c i e n t M e d i c a l p r o f e s s i o n a l s u s e t h e m t o s i m p l i f y w o r k f l o w i n m a m m o g r a m i m a g i n g C h u r c h e s a n d o t h e r h o u s e s o f w o r s h i p u s e X - k e y s t o r u n A V a n d

S i e r r a N e v a d a H o s p i t a l i t y d i v i s i o n H o s p i t a l i t y c h a i r s a r e n o t o r i o u s l y uncomfortable Gary Platt changed the industry by creating the Sierra Nevada Hospitality line, filled with hundreds of models for every hospitality area: bar, b a n q u e t , c o n v e n t i o n , d i n i n g , o f f i c e , wedding and more.

B e y o n d f u n c t i o n , S i e r r a N e v a d a Hospitality chairs are highly customiz-

slip and falls In addition, employees will benefit from SKECHERS quarterly friends and family days events on shoes for the entire family, including kids’ shoes, walking shoes, running shoes and more (30 percent off on more than 3,000 styles)

You may also offer your employees a payroll deduction program for their

Lucid Technology creates a personal hearing ecosystem that each person can use to create their own preferred l i s t e n i n g e x p e r i e n c e T h e n e w LucidShape™ technology feature allows for comprehensive real-time personali z a t i o n a n d t h e a b i l i t y t o m a n a g e acoustics across any listening environ-

CW: Velvix is fully focused on tribal casino operations in the United States We have purposely built a sales pipeline t h a t f o c u s e s s o l e l y

t i o n s

X-keys (Cont’d from p 1) l i v e s t r e a m i n g s y s t e m s . T h e y r e l y o n a l o t o f v o l u n t e e r h e l p , s o h a v i n g c l e a r l y l a b e l e d d e d i c a t e d k e y s s h o r t e n s t r a i ni n g t i m e a n d m a k e s o p e r a t o r s m o r e a c c u r a t e W e a r e u s e d b y c o m p a n i e s t o i m p r o v e e f f i c i e n c y i n t h e i r p r o c e s s c o n t r o l s o f t w a r e

The great thing about X-keys is that

able, from seat to back shape to leg d e s i g n a n d c o l o r t o f a b r i c a t i o n a n d materials Like Gary Platt’s casino seating, every chair in the Sierra Nevada H o s p i t a l i t y c o l l e c t i o n i s c u s t o m designed and hand crafted to each customer’s unique and exact specifications.

The hospitality line is pillow soft thanks to its exclusive Platt-foam The unsurpassed comfort comes from Gary

shoe purchases, which would enable them to spread the cost of their shoes over multiple paychecks This part of the program is entirely optional for the employer and you need not offer a payr o l l d e d u c t i o n p l a n t o e n a b l e y o u r employees to enjoy all of the other benefits of the SKECHERS Direct Corporate

ment. The app builds on the current four hearing aid preset programs and allows individual personalization that is very specific

A s t h e t r e n d t o p e r s o n a l i z a t i o n continues to improve through technology, in this ever-evolving world, one thing remains constant: the demand for

F o r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n , e m a i l enquiries@velvix com, call 310 362 3650 or stop by booth #2013.

they work with just about anything, from programming two keys with the simple copy/paste commands to prog r a m m i n g a n e n t i r e s t r i n g o f c o mmands to one key It just works

For more information, go to www xkeys com or email sales@piengineering com

Platt’s exclusive cold-cured foam for a sit that is luxuriously soft The foam process ensures consistency in the shape, density and quality; it is highly elastic, so it retains its firmness even after years of use. Additionally, there is a 10-year guarantee this foam will not bottom out.

For more information, call 775 824 0999 or go to www garyplatt com

Shoe Program

The SKECHERS Direct program also provides mobile truck visits to your properties in Las Vegas, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana and Mississippi.

For more information, call 855 759 7463 or email info@skechersdirect com

a d i s c r e e t , c o m f o r t a b l e h e a r i n g enhancement solution that can quickly adapt to personal preferences in realtime This level of comfort and personalization would not be possible without the continued advances of the proprietary Powered by Lucid® technology ecosystem