The Summit Gaming Customer Appreciation Open House has gained a reputation for offering worthwhile seminars, especially for the machine technicians.
But this year the event featured two different presentations from officials of Montana's Gambling Control Division: Investigations Supervisor Tom Oberweiser on preventing win ticket fraud (his earlier presentation to the Gaming Industry Association was covered in detail in the March edition of the Tavern Times) and Al Arvish, GCD project manager for the new electronic reporting system for the state's video gaming machines.
Arvish used a live internet link to the state's reporting system and a projector to show the audience what the screens look like, what data will be needed and how the system functions in general.
The consensus seemed to be that the system was extremely user friendly, very intuitive, functional and easy to navigate. At the conclusion, some audience members looked at each other with expressions that seemed to say, "That's it?"
In essence, when first coming on-line, operators will have to create a basic record for each machine they will be reporting. That will take a one-time input of machine ID numbers, the coin increment the machines plays in and other basic information such as machine owner, location and so on.
An initial set of meter readings will have to be entered, then soft meter readings entered either weekly or semi-weekly thereafter. At the end of the quarter, enter soft meters and hard meter readings.This will calculate total-in, total played, total won and total paid, which in turn will calculate the machine "hold" or gross revenues and the 15 percent tax due on that amount.
Operators can also do their three-way reconciliations, file "letters of withdrawal," and secure machine permits as well as file tax reports.
Arvish said those currently using an Excel or similar spreadsheet can continue to do so by simply performing a cut-and-paste routine, moving the data from a personal computer to the state's web reporting page.
Many of the options features operate with traditional drop-down windows which list the options. For example, when you need to enter a new machine game program, you can go to the "program" button, click it and a list of approved programs will drop down; you move your cursor down the list and select the correct program.
Arvish said an operator's first quarter reported electronically would require traditional paper reporting as well as that is considered a test period. "After that, it's for real," Arvish said.
All data entered can be retrieved and printed for personal records and the program will print receipts for all transactions. Electronic payment or "e-checks" can be made out and cut early and post dated so the transaction does not occur until the day the payment is actually due.
Payment can also be made with a credit card but Arvish noted the card processing fee will be reversed to the card user. And some banks may also now charge a fee for processing e-checks, he said.
Surprising to this reporter, there are several small new processing fees that are attached to transactions which are intended to pay for the system development, Arvish said. They range from $2 for small operators to $10 for the largest.
He said he foresees a day when almost every transaction with gambling regulators can be conducted while seated at a personal computer, even permitting poker tables. But that will only come when the video games are on line, which should be complete no later than early 2010, he added.
Already over 12,000 machines from 1,142 locations are reporting electronically, Arvish said.
Source: The Montana Tavern Times, May, 2008, published monthly by Continental Communications, 125 W. Granite St., Suite 102, Butte, MT 59701.