Reward offered for stolen equipment
There's a $2 ,000 reward for
anyone having information leading
to the arrest or conviction of the
persons who high jacked a forty-foot
trailer loaded with coin -operated
amusement equipment September
13.
The trailer, which was being
off-loaded at Un iverse Affiliated in
Hillside , New Jersey at th e time of
the theft , contained 95 machines.
F.B.1. and local la w enforcement
authorities reportedly have suspects
in th e case but have as yet been
unable to apprehend them. Authori-
ties believe the trai ler was headed
south, possibly for eith er South
Carolina or Tenn essee .
Operators sho uld note that twelve
of the stolen games are without
backgl asses since they had already
been unloaded before the theft took
place .
The stolen equipment (and the
number of each) is as follows:
Dealer's Choice (3) , Oxo (3) ,
Fantastic (2) , Dipsy Doodle (2) ,
Firecracker (2), Cham ps (10) , A migo
(23) , Rogo (21) , Air Aces (23) ,
W izard (5) , Fo ur Millio n B .C . (1).
Persons with inform ation should
contact Barry Fei nblatt of Universe
Affiliated at (20 1) 686·5 163 .
Seven-Point Checklist
The following seven points were compiled by the Music Operators of
Michigan and present an excellent checklist of arguments locations owners
should be aware of before they purchase their own amusement
equipment:
Mr. Bar Owner, are you considering buying your own amusement
machines, vending machines, or jukebox? If you are, please give
consideration to the following points.
t. If owning your own equipment was such a great idea, every tavern
owner in the state would own his own equipment. The reason this hasn't
happened is because the experienced tavern owner knows he makes more
money in the long run with an operator.
2. The contract you sign with a fast talking salesman is immediately sold
to a finance company who is under no legal obligation to keep any
promises made to you by the salesman . The salesman has his money.
Since the promise of service is free, can you give any reason why, when
you are having trouble with your machines on a Friday or Saturday , a
service man would drive 100 to 150 miles round trip to fix your machines.
For that matter, why would he ever fix vour machines?
3 . Contracts have been found which do not confor~ with the truth in
lending laws. The reason being, the interest charges are at 181f2 percent
and in some cases equal to 25 percent. They do not want you to see these
interest rates because a kick-back of 4 or 5 percent of the interest charges is
given back to the seller. The higher the interest he can charge you , the
more money he makes. That is why the interest rate is hidden. The fine
print in these contracts often stipulates that in case of non-rayment, the
finance company can attach your property or bank account i they feel the
equipment is not worth the balance owed.
4 . Exorbitant prices with mark ups of 300 and 400 percent are
common . The equipment sold is in some cases foreign imports of low
quality, in which case, parts and supplies are hard to obtain. Depreciation
on equipment is very rapid . Often you can owe much more than the
equipment is worth. They tell you that owning your own equipment will
add to the value of your tavern. A knowledgeable tavern buyer knows that
non-operator equipment is a detriment to his business and does not want
the equipment you have paid for so dearly.
5. In most cases, your operator has done business with you for five , ten,
or even twenty years and Is a local businessman. Who should you believe?
The man you have found trustworthy and reliable and have known for a
long period of time, or the man you have seen two or three times and Is
seiling "Pie In The Sky."
6 . One of the favorite ploys of the high pressure salesman is to tell the
prospect not to call his operator In advance about removing his equipment .
The salesman says this will prevent the operator from removing his
machines before the new equipment can be Installed. Actually, the real
reason Is because the salesman Is afraid that If he allows the tavern owner
to call his operator before the new machines are Installed , the operator will
tell the tavern owner the truth about the equipment he is buying and that
will stop the sale.
7 . If you are cOllvlnced about buying your own machines, you owe It to
yourself to talk to your operator. He may save you thousands of dollars.
He can refer you to hometown people who have been taken In by this sales
pitch. Talk to them and judge for yourself.
12
M.O.M. initiates
ad program
The Music Operators of Michigan ,
along with its sister association , the
M i~ h igan Tobacco-Candy Distribu-
tors and Vendors Association, has
initiated an education and advertising
program aimed at stopping location
owners from buying their own
amusement eq uipment.
Two advertisements which have
been distributed to me mber opera-
tors (and , ultimately , to their
locations) present capsulized argu-
ments about why locations are better
off with an operator than th ey are
with owning their own equ ipment.
One advertisement shows a
breakdown of each amuse ment
dollar - with the location getting its
fifty percent share and the opera-
tor - after his expenses , taxes , new
eq uipme nt purchases, etc . - pocket-
ing only fi ve cents from th at
amuse ment dollar. Then the ad-
vertise ment asks, "Is it worth it to
you - the break-ins, pilferage , taxes,
license fees, repairs, and main-
tenance - for an additional fi ve cents
on each do llar?" The other advertise-
ment warns location owners about
high-pressured sales tactics used in
selling over-priced eqUipment to
locations on the promise that the
eq uipment will earn large profits for
them .
Also , the M.O .M. ed ucation
program incl udes a seven-poin t
checklist of th ings location owners
should consider before they buy their
own equipment.
QUOTABLE:
To err is human; to really foul
things up requires a computer-
Anonymous
PLAY METER , October, 1978