Play Meter

Issue: 1981 April 01 - Vol 7 Num 6

AOE Seminars/March 12-14:
A menu for the industry
By RAY E. TILLEY
Building on the success of the first ·
ever offering of 1980, Amusement
Operators Expo '81 has been
stocked with many improvements
suggested by the enthusiastic
attendees of the first show, said
Ralph C . Lally II, publisher and editor
of PLAY METER, the AOE sponsor.
First, the AOE returns to New
Orleans and displays at the Hyatt
Regency Hotel's opulent facilities
near the Louisiana Superdome
complex. For three days, March 12·
14, AOE will be the scene of coin-op
business information sharing, new
product introductions, and sales of
the equipment. Ninety-eight percent
of 1980 attendees have indicated
they will return for AOE '81 , and
many exhibitors and operators will
be on hand for the first time in the
industry's growing springtime show.
"The seminar program has been
expanded with a wider range of
educational sessions, covering
business management, technical
repair, and everything in between,"
said Lally. Seminars will run from
9:00 to 10:30, mornings, with the
exhibit hall open from 10:30a.m.-
4:30 p.m. each day and afternoon
seminars scheduled for 4:40- 6:30
p.m. daily.
A registration form has been
provided to each subscriber to
PLAY METER. Further information
is available by contacting the
Amusement Operators Expo 's
organizers, Conference Manage-
ment Corp., Stamford, Connecticut
06901 ; phone 203/ 356-1900.
The kickoff program will be a
special, free "Early Bird" general
session on Wednesday, March 11 ,
before the show's official opening, to
begin at 6 p.m.and run to 7:30 p.m.
"Challenges and Responses: It's
Time for Industry Action" is the
theme of the Early Bird meeting
which features noted industry lawyer
Rufus King , Stern Electronics
President Gary Stern, and Charles
S . Paul, vice president and general
counsel of Atari, Inc ., as leaders of
the informal discussion of problems
the industry faces, going into the new
decade. A get-acquainted cocktail
session at 5 p.m. precedes the
meeting. While the seminar is free of
charge, registrants were asked to
indicate on their registration forms
whether attendance was planned.
Another free session comes on
Thursday, March 12, at 6 p.m., called
" The Quick Fix," with Millie
McCarthy, president of the New
York State Coin Machine Associa-
tion , and a panel of industry
personalities in a frank discussion of
coping with negative images of the
coin-op trade. Attendees should also
note their desire to attend this
session on their registration forms .
Fees for other educational
seminars/ workshops listed below
are $15 each for advance registration
(before February 13) and $25 for
later registration . Attendance in as
many as six sessions can be
scheduled.
Here are the courses in the AOE
Seminars:
Thursday Sessions: 9-10:30 a .m.
Seminar 101
Arcade Design and Construction: A
Practical Approach. The first of a
Operators' ears were keen in the popular seminars of the 1980 AOE. Amusement Operators Expo/'81 provides a packed
schedule of coin-op business info sessions, and times do not conflict with exhibit hours.
PLAY METER NEWS UPDATE
5
Topics: Field Service- Coin-Op Avertising- Location Cost Analysis
-
Arcade Design -
two-part session, 201 being on
Thursday afternoon, 4:30, this is
designed to acquaint the owner/
operator with the details of effective
design and construction of an
arcade. Seminar leader will be
Steven J. Bodenstein , vice
president/development for S ix Flags
Amusement Centers, Inc . An
attendee must register for both parts
of the program.
Seminar 102:
Field Service: Keeping Simple
Problems Simple. For the operator
who does not require a full-time
technician, here is a seminar to equip
him with the details of a basic
maintenance program that he can
handle alone. Seminar leader is Doc
Lofaso, independent game techni-
cian of Resada, California, who will
discuss the planning necessary in a
sound field service program.
Seminar 103
Advertising for the Coin -Op
Business. Carol Kantor, president
of Business Builders marketing
agency, will delve into key points to
be considered in making advertising
decisions.
Seminar 104
Signature Analysis: The Future of
Troubleshooting. In the first of a
four -part program, Jim Sneed will
cover the means of isolating digital
logic faults at the component level.
The tracking of signals and the con-
version of lengthy bit streams into
four-digit hexidecimal "signatures";
will be highlighted during this techni-t
cal series . An individual must;
register for all four parts of this .
program, continuing in sessions 204,
304, and 404.
Seminar 105
Location Cost Analysis . Tying
course material together with
sessions on depreciation (305) and
business profitability (604), Charles
C. Ross has expanded his popular
seminars of 1980's AOE and will
show how to use depreciation tools
in analysis of the location. A method
will be offered in place of "seat of the
pants" thinking, said Ross, for
"showing how to divide costs to each
location and determining whether a
location should be kept or whether
you should pull out."
Thursday Sessions: 4:30-6 p.m.
Seminar 201
Arcade Design and Construction: A
Practical Approach/ Part 2. Steven
Bodenstein presents the second in a
two-part session on the details that
go into effective design and
6
Equipment Purchasing -
construction of an arcade. Registra-
tion is required for 101 also.
Seminar 202
New Equipment Purchasing for the
1980s. Fred S kor , president of
World Wide Distributors, examines
the various factors that lead to a wise
purchasing decision in the face of
rising costs.
Seminar 203
Shopping Centers and Arcade
Leasing. Jon Daugherty of LeMans
Development Co. will moderate a
panel of national arcade company
executives and shopping center
developers in d iscussing the
shopping center, one of the prime
factors in the growth of the
amusement machine industry .
Factors in finding and selecting loca-
tions within a shopping center,
negotiating the lease, and analyzing
the costs will be covered.
Seminar 204
Signature Analysis: The Future of
Troubleshooting/Part 2: Jim Sneed
continues the four -part series
designed for the technician.
Registration is required also for
sessions 104, 304, and 404 .
Seminar 205
The Pinball Tournament : A
Practical Approach.
Douglas E.
Grear, president of the American Pin-
ball Association, will present an in-
depth discussion of the steps in
setting up the tournament. The
seminar will deal with increased
location revenue through forming
pinball leagues.
Friday Sessions: 9-10:30 a .m.
Seminar 301:
Equipment Marketing in Arcades.
Basic guidelines of value in terms of
in-house marketing will be discussed
by Steven Bodenstein , vice
president/ development with Six
Flags Amusement Centers. Location,
visibility, price, and incentives will be
covered in this session .
Seminar 302
Training Personnel: An Investment
that Pays Immediate Dividends.
Art Seglin, instructor in Hudson
County (New Jersey) Area
Vocational Technical School, will
detail the development of an
effective training program, including
discussions on what is available for
training personnel and how to keep
technicians up-to·date on technical
changes.
Seminar 303
Internal Cash Controls and the
Absentee Owner. How can you deal
with cash losses when you, as owner,
Shopping Centers -
cannot be on the premises all the
time? Jon Daugherty will lead dis-
cussion on the various systems
available within the industry which
are designed to alleviate losses. Also,
the use of polygraph, coin-count
metering systems, and collection
procedures will be explored.
Seminar 304
Signature Analysis: The Future of
Troubleshooting. Third in a four-part
series which begins Thursday
morning (session 104); in-depth
material for the technician.
Seminar 305
Depreciation Facts and Fallacies.
Charles C . Ross will examine depre-
ciation and its impact on coin-op
business profitability. Some mis-
conceptions of which depreciation
methods are best for an operator will
be covered at length. The attendee
will be given an understanding of
how depreciation should be seen
from the accounting standpoint.
Materials will be handed out; a
notepad and pens will be needed.
Friday Sessions:4:30-6 p.m.
Seminar 401
Creative Marketing and General
Promotion in the Coin -Op Business.
Carol J. Kantor will give an overview
of creative techniques to meet the
marketing objectives of the
amusement games industry. Toward
each owner/ operator developing a
specific marketing and promotion
plan to meet the needs of his
location, Kantor will present guides
to setting up and promoting special
events, getting publicity, and
evaluating the results.
Seminar 402
Keep the Ball Rolling and the Aliens
Moving . Art Seglin will instruct
attendees in troubleshooting
tech niques through the use of a
limited amount of test equipment.
Emphasizing "up time," the
differences between in-shop and on-
location servicing will be seen in light
of making better mintenance
decisions.
Seminar 403
The Profitable Distributorship .
Chuck Arnold, general manager of
the Northeast Region for Rowe
International, in this session for
distributors only will examine gross
profits as they relate to games,
music, and vending.
Seminar 404
Signature Analysis: Final part. The
technique that is to the computer era
as the Simpson 260 VOM was to the
electro-mechanical era is detailed by
PLAY METER NEWS UPDATE

Download Page 5: PDF File | Image

Download Page 6 PDF File | Image

Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).

Pro Tip: You can flip pages on the issue easily by using the left and right arrow keys on your keyboard.