One of the big stories to come out of this year’s G2E was Shuffle Master’s rebirth as SHFL entertainment, reflecting the company’s shift toward multiple revenue streams outside their world-renowned product base of shufflers. They’re as well-known now for their table game innovations or, in some territories, their slots, as they are shufflers. And so a star is born.
SHFL’s CEO, Gavin Isaacs, has led the company into a new era with a focus on people, relationships and technology, building on the solid base left by his predecessor and bringing his own touch to the gaming giant.
Gavin discussed the new name to investors during the UBS and Deutsche Bank Gaming Investment Forum at G2E, emphasizing how the new name incorporates SHFL’s mission and its impact in the casino gaming industry.
“We have built a solid reputation over the past 30 years as a leading provider of casino gaming solutions to our customers all over the world. We believe that our image and name should pay homage to our roots, while at the same time encompass who we are today and accurately reflect all that we have to offer now and in the future,” said Isaacs. “We are truly an entertainment company, providing products that encourage and support a dynamic gaming experience for players and innovative solutions for our customers.”
According to Isaacs: “‘SHFL’ pays tribute to the name of the company chosen by our founder, John Breeding, and the Company’s legacy product, card shufflers. ‘SHFL’ is the Company’s NASDAQ ticker symbol, which was selected by the company when it was publicly listed, an important milestone in our history. ‘entertainment‘ embodies what we provide to the industry with our expanded product lines, namely proprietary table games, e-tables, slot machines, utility products, and iGaming solutions.”
Isaacs also cited SHFL entertainment’s broad and expanding portfolio of content, its entrance into new markets and new verticals like iGaming, and the Company’s financial stability. In September, SHFL entertainment announced recurring revenue growth for the fifteenth consecutive quarter and zero net debt for the first time in eight years.
For customer information, SHFL’s previous website (www.shufflemaster.com) will forward to the new site (www.shfl.com), as will all shufflemaster.com email addresses. feature trigger that ignites the player’s anticipation during game play.
Upon its introduction at the Australian Gaming Expo, Adrian Halpenny, President of Shuffle Master Australasia, commented: “We are thrilled to be able to offer such an iconic brand as The Flintstones. Our game development team worked very hard to deliver a final product that demonstrated meticulous attention to detail in order to maintain the high quality and authenticity of the television series. As a result, The Flintstones is a breakthrough product that is not only highly enjoyable to play as a traditional gaming machine, but also brings the much-loved characters to life with entertaining and engaging features.”
Another familiar name on the SHFL slots was Pink Panther Returns, alongside equally strong slots like Cats, Hats & Bats, Hubble, Bubble & Trubble, Epic Quest, Random Magic, Karnak, Duo Fu Duo Cai Linked Progressive. All of the titles offer unique features like new mathematical models, new jackpot triggers, and new themes.
A real highlight of the show overall was SHFL’s Blackjack side bets on show. House Money looks like an absolute banker; players win the side bet if they get a straight, pair, straight-flush or Ace-King suited in their first two cards; then the player has the option to add their winnings to the standard Blackjack wager, and play continues.
SHFL also unveiled the DeckMate 2 poker room shuffler, which offers significant performance and security improvements over its predecessor,
