News

Global Cash Access bets on appeal of ATM/slot hybrid

September 14, 2003

PAUMA INDIAN RESERVATION,Calif. – Casino Pauma is the first casino in the nation to put wireless ATM terminals on its slot machines, a practice that some predict could propel the North County tribe into the forefront of a controversy in the gambling industry.

According to a report in the San Diego Union-Tribune, the machines print out a magnetically coded voucher that can bankroll further play or be cashed at a casino cage. The system allows gamblers to access money up to their banks' daily limits, usually $300 or $400 a day. Customers are charged a $3 fee, a portion of which goes to the casino.

Pauma officials and Global Cash Access (GCA), the Las Vegas manufacturer of the QuikPlay system, say the terminals provide convenience with built-in safeguards to discourage compulsive gambling.

"Our world all around is going to a cashless society. This is the next step," said Joe Darley, Casino Pauma's slot director. "You don't have to leave your machine if you want to play more, and you don't have to carry cash into the casino."

Bill Connelly, vice president of GCA, said QuikPlay has safeguards beyond the keypad prompt message, "Think. Be responsible." Players who know they have a problem can ask to be excluded from the system. Plus, he said, an ATM card has a daily cash limit.

Many industry observers and some casinos, however, believe slot ATMs could be bad for customers and the industry's image, according to the Union-Tribune.

"Most people in the industry think it's a terrible idea," said Bill Eadington, who directs the University of Nevada Las Vegas' Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming. "The closer you get a client's bank account to the gaming floor, the more socially risky the gaming becomes, both in perception and reality."

Pauma installed ATMs on 123 of its 750 slots in late June as a test run for Global Cash Access, which developed the QuikPlay system in partnership with IGT, the nation's largest slot manufacturer. (See related stories No cash, no coin needed with new casino ATMs, Casino Pauma pilot site for QuikPlay ATM and Global Cash Access sees (s)lots of potential in ATM hybrid)

The system was recognized as one of the Top 20 Most Innovative Gaming Products by Casino Journal. (See related story Global Cash Access QuikPlay ATM wins gaming honor)

Technically, the devices aren't ATMs because they dispense vouchers instead of cash. Much like scrip terminals, they are subject to regulations for point-of-sale debit terminals rather than ATMs.

GCA's Connelly said Casino Pauma was chosen for the test because of its medium size and volume. Connelly told the Union-Tribune that a second trial is planned in a larger California tribal casino he would not name.

The company is testing the system in California because the state's Indian gaming compacts don't preclude the technology, so the venture could be launched under the auspices of a tribal regulatory commission. In Nevada, the system would be subject to a lengthier state regulatory process.

An independent laboratory that tests and certifies gambling equipment gave the Pauma system its final approval this month, an industry requirement that clears the way for permanent installations there and elsewhere, Connelly said.

Several casinos in California, Nevada and other states are interested, he said. "We think it's a trend that's going to happen."

The issue already has prompted Nevada's state Gaming Control Board to consider implementing slot ATM regulations. The move is opposed by compulsive gambling groups, which want more research on consequences.

Major operators such as MGM Mirage are also leery.

"I think most of us in the commercial casino industry identify this as a threshold that few of us are willing to cross," said Alan Feldman, MGM Mirage senior vice president.

"In our view, there's nothing wrong with -- if you run out of whatever money you have -- taking that minute to walk over to the (cash) machine and making an affirmative decision to continue," he said.

Pauma's Darley said that on busy nights, getting up to go to one of the casino's two ATMs usually means losing your seat at a slot machine.

Rob Hunter and Fred Preston of Las Vegas' Problem Gambling Center said that, at the behest of GCA, they interviewed and surveyed more than 100 recovering gambling addicts about ATMs on slot machines. Most said the devices would have little or no effect on their behavior.

"They said it doesn't matter if it's 10 feet away or 100 feet away or a block and a half away, they were going to get the money," said Hunter, the clinic director.

Because his clients are severe problem gamblers, Hunter said, the study didn't address the potential effects on average players.

Tony Cabot, a Las Vegas attorney specializing in gambling law, said ATMs are less controversial than credit cards, which customers already can use for cash advances at most casino cages.

With ATMs, "You can only spend what you have," Cabot said. "The fear with any of this technology is that people will gamble more than they can afford to lose, and it makes it a lot easier. And I think for a small number of patrons that could be the case."