- New Offerings Highlight Multimedia Games’ Progress in Serving New Class III Gaming Markets -
- Featured Products Address Growing Slot Floor Segments Including New Community Game, Next Generation Slot Tournament System, New Five-Reel Mechanical Reel Games and Advanced Sound System for Multimedia Games’ Popular Cabinet Series -
AUSTIN, Texas — (BUSINESS WIRE) — November 11, 2009 — Multimedia Games, Inc. (Nasdaq: MGAM) (“Multimedia Games” or the “Company”) will debut an expanded product lineup for Class III gaming markets at the ninth annual Global Gaming Expo (G2E®) from November 17-19 in Las Vegas, Nevada (Las Vegas Convention Center, Booth 1610). Multimedia Games’ portfolio of Class III offerings on display at G2E reflects the Company’s focus on developing new games and products that benefit customers and address growing areas of the slot floor. They also reflect the continued success Multimedia Games is achieving in its new product development plan that was implemented late in calendar 2008. In addition to the new Class III products debuting at G2E 2009, Multimedia Games will showcase new games that further the Company’s support of Class II and other electronic bingo gaming markets.
Anthony Sanfilippo, President and Chief Executive Officer of Multimedia Games, commented, “Our commitment to product excellence and customer support and satisfaction will be fully evident at G2E. Over the past year we have made significant progress in advancing our Class III portfolio by developing unique products with intuitive play features that offer high levels of entertainment and excitement. Our expanded Class III portfolio addresses important, growing areas of the slot floor and offers operators high appeal, differentiated games that generate strong coin in. We expect these new products will build on the success we have achieved to date in our efforts to expand into new markets as we execute on a strategy to leverage and accelerate the Company’s core product development resources.”
2009 G2E Product Offerings
Multimedia Games will debut an advanced version of its slot tournament system, its newest community game, a new line of 5-reel mechanical reel games and a new 3-reel mechanical reel multi-tier progressive game, as well as new audio capabilities for its popular Player Series™ gaming cabinets. The Company will also demonstrate two Apps for the iTunes® App Store at G2E that leverage popular Multimedia Games gaming brands, intellectual property and content in an exciting new medium. The new products on display at G2E include:
- TournEvent™: An advanced, next generation version of Multimedia Games’ innovative slot tournament system (formerly called Casino Commander® Tournament System), TournEvent features new functionality that further enables casino operators to quickly and seamlessly create entertaining tournament environments featuring eye-catching real-time leader boards and countdown displays on slot machines and on overhead displays. TournEvent is deployed on a bank of games that can each run independently or together as a group, allowing the slot floor manager to switch seamlessly from in-revenue gaming to out-of-revenue tournaments at the push of a button. The self-contained Control Center at the end of the bank allows the tournament administrator to trigger tournaments, register players and set session length, number of sessions and number of players per session. In addition, customized advertising can be loaded and pre-scheduled to run on the system’s various displays. New enhancements for players include the addition of a high impact, dual-sided, overhead sign package with enhanced graphics, which creates anticipation during the event and an enhanced sense of excitement. Throughout the tournament, leader boards display real-time tournament standings and live player reactions from cameras embedded in the slot cabinet are displayed as each session concludes.
- New Community Bonus Game: Following on the success of the Company’s horse-racing themed game for the community gaming segment, Sport of Kings™, Multimedia Games will introduce its newest community bonus game, Slot Car Speedway™. Slot Car Speedway provides players with attractive graphical elements and an emotive audio/visual experience driving a strong connection to one of America’s favorite passions – the automobile. The game represents an evolutionary step forward for Multimedia Games as the underlying technology renders the 3D race in real-time without a pre-determined outcome, allowing every race to play out differently thus adding new levels of excitement to the player experience. The community bonus round is enabled as players bet 25 lines (1-5 credits per line) and a 15-credit side bet (per bet per line) to accumulate “tickets” when three scattered ticket symbols appear. Players place their bets on one or more of the 8 unique cars and, every 8 minutes, the Call to Race sounds. Players track the cars racing around the course on the overhead display and receive a guaranteed multiplier of the bet based on race results.
- 5-Reel Mechanical Reel Games: Multimedia Games’ first-ever 5-reel mechanical reel games enjoy a unique configuration in the Company’s Player HD™ cabinet. The wider play area of the Player HD enables the use of the same player-popular 3-1/2 inch wide mechanical reels featured in traditional 3-reel mechanical reel games. The new, visually stunning 5-reel games include configurable reel backlighting and offer operators the ability to individually front light each reel. Multimedia Games is introducing its new series of 5-reel mechanical reel games with 3 themes – Dragon’s Wild®, Triples® and Jalapenny-o®.
- 3-Reel Mechanical Reel Multi-Tier Progressive Game: Leveraging one of the Company’s most enduring proprietary brands, Mega Meltdown™ features a 3-reel, 1-line mechanical reel base game and a 6 tier progressive game that is sure to light a fire under players. The Mega Meltdown Progressive is awarded when the player bets the max and the Mega symbol lands on the payline on the first reel in a winning combination.
- Meltdown Core Reaction and Safari Sunrise Apps: Multimedia Games will extend the availability of two of its popular proprietary titles with the debut of new Apps featuring Meltdown Core Reaction® and Safari Sunrise®. The new Apps were developed for Multimedia Games by 5000ft, Inc., an independent video game software developer based in Reno, NV, and are anticipated to be available to iPhone® and iPod Touch® users through the iTunes® App Store later this month for $1.99 each.
Meltdown Core Reaction App: A 5-reel, 30-line video game that features the signature Meltdown® re-spin in which certain wins spin up to 5 times, paying winning combinations – including multiple jackpots. Game play highlights include the Toxic Barrel Bonus game where players get to pick 3 out of 9 barrels in the radioactive dump for big bonus prizes. Best of all, if the original triggering spin included more than 3 Toxic Barrel symbols, the entire bonus prize gets nuked, for a total award of up to 5,500x the credit wagered.
Safari Sunrise App: A 5-reel, 30-line game featuring a free spin bonus that players won’t be able to stop playing. The level of player interaction when determining the number of spins, the extra Wild symbol, and the multiplier for the free spin bonus truly make Safari Sunrise a unique game.
- Player FX™ Sound System: At G2E 2009, Multimedia Games is also debuting its new Player FX Sound System developed in conjunction with audio innovator Cambridge SoundWorks. The Player FX Sound System will be exclusively integrated into the Company’s popular Player Series gaming cabinets and delivers an audio experience that we believe will attract players, enhance the innovative game content and inject games with higher levels of engagement and excitement.
Mr. Sanfilippo commented, “Our new approach to product development is resulting in solutions that provide immediate benefits for casino operators as reflected in the advanced capabilities of our TournEvent slot management system. Slot tournaments are an important component of a casino’s marketing and promotion efforts and we believe TournEvent sets the industry standard for functionality and player appeal. In addition, with our existing market-proven Class III video slot titles, the debut of Slot Car Speedway, our newest offering for the community gaming segment, our first ever 5-reel mechanical reel games and a new audio system which enhances our popular Player Series cabinets, we will demonstrate at G2E a broad range of exciting products for current and prospective new customers. Finally, with the introduction of our Meltdown Core Reaction and Safari Sunrise Apps, we will extend the availability of two of our most enduring brands as well as introduce these exciting entertainment experiences in a new medium.”
Benefiting from New Processes and Procedures for Entering New Markets
Mr. Sanfilippo added, “Late last year, we began implementing an entirely new player-focused approach to our game development efforts including establishing dedicated Class III game development studios, enhancing our pre-development testing of new game concepts and utilizing player and industry feedback, all of which is providing inputs for generating the exciting new range of Multimedia Games’ products on display at G2E this year.”
In addition to the new game development process, Multimedia Games has instituted changes to the organization that the Company believes will continue to benefit its expansion into new Class III markets. These changes include a build out of the Company’s sales staff that is now led by accomplished executives with Class III gaming experience and the centralization of all new licensing efforts under the office of the Company’s General Counsel. Further, the Company recently added two new positions to further support its Class III expansion:
- Brad W. Johnson – Vice President, Product Management. Mr. Johnson joined Multimedia Games last month and brings more than 15 years of product marketing experience to Multimedia Games including extensive gaming industry and systems expertise. In his new role at Multimedia Games, he will be responsible for managing the Company’s strategic development initiatives for key new products during all phases of development. Mr. Johnson will manage the development roadmap as new products are created and will be responsible for the creation of messaging strategies and launch activities as these products are commercialized.
- JP Cody – Vice President of Legal Affairs - Intellectual Property. Mr. Cody will join Multimedia Games next week and has more than 15 years experience in strategic intellectual property planning as well as management of patents, trademarks and licensing relationships. In his new role, he will manage the Company’s extensive and growing portfolio of IP and licensing relationships.
Mr. Sanfilippo concluded, “At the same time we are advancing our product development efforts, we continue to evolve our marketing tools, sales force and infrastructure to support our efforts to move into Class III markets. The additions of Brad and JP to our organization reflect our commitment to approach new market opportunities with appropriate resources and expertise. We are pleased to welcome these accomplished executives to Multimedia Games and look forward to benefiting from their expertise as we expand our business.”
About Multimedia Games
Gaming technology developer and distributor, Multimedia Games, is a creator and supplier of comprehensive systems, content and electronic gaming units for Class III and Class II Native American gaming markets, as well as for commercial casinos and charity and international bingo markets. Multimedia Games has approximately 17,000 gaming units in operation domestically and internationally installed on revenue-sharing arrangements. The Company also supplies the central determinant system for approximately 13,000 video lottery terminals (“VLTs”) installed at racetracks in the State of New York. Multimedia Games is focused on the further development of new gaming systems and products for the markets it currently serves as well as for new domestic and international market opportunities. Additional information may be found at www.multimediagames.com.
Cautionary Language
This press release contains forward-looking statements based on Multimedia Games' current expectations and projections of future events and facts and circumstances present as of the date of this press release. All forward-looking statements are intended to qualify for the safe harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The words “will,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “forward,” “begin,” “strategy,” “launch,” “implement,” “commit,” “progress,” “advance,” “grow,” “build,” “execute,” “debut,” “approach,” “result,” “solutions,” “enhance,” “institute,” “support,” “continue to,” “evolve,” “expand,” “initiative,” “focus,” “intend,” “pursue,” "believe" or the negative or other variations thereof or comparable terminology as they relate to Multimedia Games and its products and markets are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements include, among other things, references to future actions, new projects, strategies, future performance, outcomes of contingencies and future financial results of either Multimedia Games or its customers.
These forward-looking statements reflect the current views and assumptions of Multimedia Games, and are subject to various risks and uncertainties that cannot be predicted or qualified and could cause actual results in Multimedia Games’ performance and / or the outcome of its initiatives to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risk inherent to implementing new strategies, products, and / or initiatives, including but not limited to, player preferences and reactions, casino employment of the games, location of the games on the casino floor, and the risk of equipment malfunction; the possible negative effects of local and national economic conditions on both commercial and tribal gaming markets; unfavorable changes in laws, regulatory requirements or unanticipated enforcement action against us, our games or customers, and/or adverse decisions by courts, regulators and/or governmental bodies; delay or prevention of our entry into new markets due to the inability of Multimedia Games or its key employees to secure or maintain required licenses or approvals, or other issues; unfavorable changes in the preferences of our customers or their end users resulting in the removal of our games; software or hardware malfunction or fraudulent manipulation thereof; inability to successfully introduce new and existing games and/or systems into new and existing markets; failure to attract and/or retain key employees; failure to expand our installed base in certain markets or the failure to achieve improved performance of our games or systems; management may not be able to effectively implement new operations, finance, sales, products, and marketing initiatives and/or the outcomes of these initiatives may differ materially from their stated objectives; and the Company’s ability to comply with restrictions contained in its credit facility. Other important risks and uncertainties that may affect the Company's business are detailed from time to time in the "Certain Risks" and "Risk Factors" sections and elsewhere in Multimedia Games' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Multimedia Games disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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Multimedia Games, Inc.
Ginny Shanks
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Joseph N. Jaffoni
Richard Land
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