Articles

2009 will be a historic year in the United States. On Jan. 20, 2009, Barack Obama will be sworn in as the first U.S. President of African-American descent. President-elect Obama's swearing-in will usher in a new administration faced with challenging economic circumstances. The new administration will have to contend with the dramatic economic events of 2008, which have spiraled the world economy into a recession.

It is relatively common in United States for a felony conviction to automatically bar an applicant from gaming licensure, at least for a significant period of time. The "no felon" prohibitions are often trumpeted as a hallmark of strict licensing standards that assure the public of a clean gaming industry. It also has a beguiling simplicity: Why allow criminals to participate in a business where integrity is critical?

Though you’re probably all nursing your New Year’s hangovers by now, as I sit down to write this letter, I have just finished writing a few holiday greetings to friends and business associates—and I have to admit, I have struggled not to sound a little Bah Humbug. With the grim economic news of the last six months, it was difficult to muster some positivity and cheer. 

 In the rich natural setting of the Puget Sound Region and the Cascade Mountains, the people of the Snoqualmie have found strength and healing. Persevering through more than 150 years of dispossession from their homeland, the Snoqualmie finally gained federal recognition in 1999 and ultimately regained rights to a small piece of land east of Seattle along Interstate 90 in 2006.

From Small Town USA to highly industrialized China, there’s hardly an establishment that hasn’t been touched by the financial crisis. And the gaming industry and its suppliers are no exception. The biggest decrease in consumer spending since Sept. 11 is only one of the many factors woven together to create the current environment of the gaming industry.

Last year the National Indian Gaming Association worked tirelessly on Capitol Hill to protect tribal sovereignty from any legislation or regulation that would have negatively impacted Indian country. We expect the upcoming year to be no different. As a national organization representing 184 Indian nations, our biggest priority is to protect and defend Indian sovereignty, and there should never be any doubt about our commitment to this principle.

Check out these new table games and gear available now for your casino floor! Featured in January 2009 are the Three Card Poker Progressive table by Shuffle Master, the hand-held electronic Wheel-R-Dealer, PokerTek's accurate and efficient PokerPro, TableXchange by FutureLogic, and IGT's 1-6-8 Pai Gow Poker electronic game.

As we continue our journey through various customer relationship management (CRM) and business intelligence (BI) systems, something becomes obvious: Each vendor has a solution that provides the same basic elements. Report writing tools, including pre-written reports, are standard. These will get you up and running and provide access to basic information.

During trying economic times, every live game manager is looking for ways to decrease labor costs without decreasing revenue production. Applying this strategy can be somewhat frustrating, especially when an operation has previously chopped its staffing budget down to the bone. How can the casino executive schedule and staff his casino floor to save money while not jeopardizing his live game revenue potential?

Check out these new Class III slot titles from major manufacturers! Featuring Wicked Wilds by Konami, Wild Native Spirit by A.C. Coin & Slot, Inca Reef by Ainsworth, Bally's Spin & Win, Aristocrat's The Sopranos, Southern Belle by IGT, Stargate SG-1 by Atronic, Spielo's Jewelly, and Wild Ninja by Cadillac Jack.