NEWS
lltEfS
. The New J e rsey Casino Co n trol Commis sion has app roved a three-
month e x tension of Bally' s t empo r a ry casino p ermit to operate Park
\I
Place in Atlantic City. This wi l l allow o p eration at l e ast through
Dec ember 29. Hearings on a p erma n ent license are expe cted to be
completed b y that date. The state 's g aming enforcement division had
recommended: denial of a pe rma nent licens e f o r Bally--which has
a $300 million investment in t he 83 pe r cent owned casino and
hotel. Bally officials have said t he y are confident that the
allegations shadowing the permit will be dispelled . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . Michigan operators f a ced the thre at of a 4 percent sales
tax on amusement machines i n t he s t a te government's new fiscal
year beginning in October. A finan cial crunch on the state
treasury was leading the l eqis l a tors to c onsider new source,s
of needed rev enues. An end t o sales t a x e xemp tion on services
was one alte rnative--and t h at would entail the application of
4 percent tax on amusement machines. The Music Operators of
Michigan (MOM) association wa s gathering steam for a lobbying
action but advised members a g a inst contacting legislators now .. . .
. . . . Sparky Electronics h as a new a ddress and a new, larger
facility at 64-62 Dry Harbor Road, Middle Village, New York
11378 . The service firm sel l s its own video overlay and
modifications for Space I nva ders and Asteroids . In an open
house October 5, Sparky s h owed off a Galaxian modification
and advised that a Missile Command modi£ic ation kit may be '
coming out shortly . The new quarters at Middle Village provide
ample space for research a nd development expansion, manufac turing,
a nd production, said Sparky . Teleph one : (212 )45 9 -0950 . . . . ...... .
. . IAAPA now has an office in the n a ti on's capital. The associa-
tion's new Government Relation s office i s loc ated at 1025 Vermont
Ave . , , Suite 330, Washington , D. C . 2 0 0 0 7 . John Graff, a specialist
in government affairs and assoc iation work , is the full-time counsel
and director of IAAPA government relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . Game-A-Tron is moving toward a s tronge r position in the gaming
devices industries, said I rv Jeffrie s, sale s manager. It became a
public company in July and sought larger pro duction facilities.
New games from the New Britain , Connecticut fi rm are Cosmickaze,
Stage !• and Asteroid Express. The s e , plus its video game Zap and
gaming machines Blackjack, Draw Po k er, and Thoroughbred Derby, will
be on show at the AMOA conven tion i n Chicago. " Soon we'll be number
2," Jeffries vowed ........ . ....... . .. . .... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ........ .
150
PLAY METER , December, 1980