Laurent Gaubout has joined WMS International as Commercial Operations Manager, based in the company's Barcelona. HQ

After opening its first gaming club in Bremen in August, Ritzio International continues to invest in Germany. It is seeking to increase its operations across the country, with a chain of Vulkan Stern Automatencasinos, a German version of Ritzio's key brand ‘Volcano'.

Loss-making Tropicana Entertainment, LLC, which is facing Chapter 11 bankruptcy, hired Scott C Butera as President. Butera is seeking to stave off creditors and improve the company's capital structure and operating results. He has already obtained an extension from creditors who were seeking to call in a $960 million bond.

Locations for the four legs of the Asian Poker Tour have been confirmed as Manila in the Philippines, Seoul in South Korea, Macau in the People's Republic of China, with a venue yet to be confirmed in Singapore.

Aten-year relationship between Nottingham-based marketing group Perspektiv and fellow UK company Gala Coral Group has just been extended by a two-year contract.

Aristocrat Technologies Europe has identified the Balkans and south east Europe as a prime area of growth over the next 12 months, following what the company is describing as a hugely successful showing at Gaming Expo Belgrade with local distributor, Euroslot.    

Skip Davis has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer of Gary Platt Manufacturing. Based at the company's Reno, Nevada headquarters, Skip has been with the company since October 2003 serving as Vice President of Operations. His new responsibilities include planning and directing all aspects of operations, administration, personnel, and sales.

Octavian International is launching a ‘Powered by Novomatic' variant of the Maverick 1000, its flat-pack Electronic Gaming Machine (EGM) and games kit.

Gaming industry veteran Gregory Timm has joined the JCM Global sales force and will represent the company's products to clients in the company's Arizona, New Mexico and Las Vegas territories.

Tim Britt is joining Las Vegas Gaming Inc (LVGI) as Chief Technology Officer and Chief Information Officer.

Win Systems International, a global technology supplier to the gaming and lottery industries, has entered into an agreement with Konami Gaming to use Konami content in certain of WIN's pending projects in Europe and Latin America. 

In response to recent enquiries, Trump Entertainment Resorts, Inc, has noted that the company remains focused on its strategic plan for operating, and improving performance at, all of its casino hotels, including completing the new tower at the Trump Taj Mahal. At this time, the company is not party to any agreement to sell any of its casino hotel properties.

Atronic International has moved its Latin America office to larger premises in Lima, Peru in order to accommodate a larger team. Atronic's General Manager for Latin America, Oscar London said: "the bigger space will allow the Peru team to offer a better service to Atronic customers."

The UK problem gambling charity GamCare joined with eCommerce and Online Gambling Regulation and Assurance (eCOGRA) pooled in London during April to train casino managers on the principles of responsible gambling, and how to identify and handle problem gamblers.

Lock specialists Camlock Systems has appointed Torquil Mackintosh European Sales Executive. Prior to joining Camlock, Mackintosh held positions spanning export sales, UK sales, and technical project management during a 13 year spell with Dzus Fasteners Ltd, where he acquired a comprehensive knowledge of fasteners and locks. 

Members of Pokertek's founding and executive teams have shown their confidence in Pokertek Inc's prospects by personally investing $2 million to help fund the continued growth of the company.

John Strzemp, Executive VP and Chief Financial Officer of Wynn Resorts, Limited, has been promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer.

Elixir Gaming Technologies has boosted its executive team by hiring experienced management and gaming industry executives, all of whom are based in Asia.

The first RFID readers that resulted from a deal between Progressive Gaming International Corporation (Progressive Gaming), and Gaming Partners International Corporation (GPI) are expected to be available to casino operators imminently.

Danish Internet company Balslev Media bough the German domain name http://www.casino.de/ for Euro 400,000 - US $591,000. This is understood to set a new record price for a German domain name.

Lisa Jensen has joined the G2E sales team as the national accounts manager. Jensen brings more than 15 years experience in managing sales, client relations and contract negotiations for businesses within in the gaming and trade show industries.

Bally Technologies scooped four of the Top 20 Most Innovative Gaming Technology Products Awards, judged by an independent panel and organised by Casino Journal.

TransAct Technologies recently showcased its printers at the Club Manager's Association Australia (CMAA) Hospitality Exposition in Sydney. TransAct's award winning Epic 950, designed to meet the needs of international gaming customers, showed off features which include TicketBurst technology, which eliminates potential player interference by completely printing and bursting the gaming voucher before it is presented to the customer.

Unicum Gaming claims to have attracted lively interest with the performance and price of its products at recent shows in Bogota (FADJA 2008) and San Diego (Indian Gaming expo).

Trident Systems Inc, is to offer interactive signage displays using 3M MicroTouch DST touch technology from 3M Touch Systems in screen sizes ranging from 32" to 46".

Table game developer TableMAX and eBet, which develops and markets systems for managing slot machine networks, have signed a partnership agreement.

I’m fed up with the latest media buzz-phrase ‘credit crunch’. Using this soft-soaping, as most news agencies in the UK are, is skirting around the fact that, globally, we appear to be teetering on the edge of quite a nasty recession. I’m curious though – are the people responsible, the individuals that sold mortgages en masse to bad credit risks in the US and UK, being punished in any way? Are the decision makers being brought to book? Not that I’ve seen…

What would my father think if he was here today? That question comes to mind when I read about America’s current economic struggles. The money doldrums seem to even be reaching the amusement and gaming industries.

So, at long, long last, after all the many false starts and delays we finally had the announcement to the House of Commons of the 16 new Gambling Act 2005 casinos going ahead; 8 so-called “large” and 8 so-called “small” (only three years after the Act was originally passed!).

As the celebrations for the tenth anniversary of FADJA, the Colombian expo, enter Latin American gaming lore and the first Mexican gaming event ELA 2008 gets ready to open its doors in Monterrey in May, we travel back to Amsterdam for the European Gambling Briefing during May 13 and 14.

Con la celebración del décimo aniversario de Fadja 2008 ya en los anales de la historia del juego, y con ELA 2008, el primer evento del sector programado para mayo en la ciudad de Monterrey, México, nos aprestamos a volver a Europa para aguardar casi en la misma fecha de mayo la conferencia del juego European Gambling Briefing durante los días 13 y 14 de mayo en Amsterdam.

David Koloski is Marketing Director for two of Harrah’s Las Vegas Strip properties, Imperial Palace and Bill’s. He took time out to explain to Casino International what the job really entails, and why the implementation of the company’s customer bonusing scheme in these properties is so exciting.

Casino management systems are playing an increasingly important role in helping casino operators gain a competitive edge and boost revenue. They allow operators to get a clearer picture of customers and their behaviour, help target marketing and make it more effective – and above all, have the potential to improve the player experience...

The software giant has come up with a work of genius – its Microsoft hospitality strategy. On the Windows OS, it brings together trusted industry partner solutions to create a custom package for the modern resort casino, and it's fully scalable so there's value for everyone. Microsoft's Matt Muta spoke with Casino International about the offering.

Kiev has become one of the favourite weekend haunts of Ukrainian and Russian tourists. However, a trip to Kiev for a visit to a casino is quite a different matter…

The organizers of the Andean Gaming Fair FADJA 2008 declared the event a resounding success for the exhibitors and for themselves. Expo director José Aníbal Aguirre said that there was a great response from the gaming sector and that the expo consolidated its position as a showcase for the industry.

TransAct Technologies has announced that IGT has selected Transact’s Epic 950 printer as the default Ticket-In Ticket-Out printer for all new IGT games. The term of the default status will begin immediately and extend through June 30, 2010.

MEI’s CASHFLOW has, after an extensive evaluation period, been selected as the preferred note validator by Aristocrat Technologies, beginning with their new Viridian cabinet.

TableMAX has installed its Progressive Blackjack product at Quapaw Casino in Miami, Okla. The game, featuring a progressive jackpot, has been successfully operating on the casino floor, attracting players and increasing the fun in the already exciting casino.

Sweden's Casino Cosmopol recently reviewed their table management and cage system – and opted for PGI's Casinolink Table, Casinolink Cage and Casinolink Pit solutions. When Casino Cosmopol in Sweden took the decision to review their table management and cage system, their preference was for a supplier they had already dealt with, who had a comprehensive understanding of their casino operation and had successfully installed a number of key systems for them previously.