nEWS BRIEFS
(continued)
Konami has purchased 400,000 shares of Centuri stock, giving the Japanese firm 500,000 shares in
the company, or about 5 percent ownership. Centuri has fielded several Konami hits in the United
States, including Time Pilot, Gyruss, Scramble, Frogger, and the current hit Track & Field. New colla-
. borations carry both companies' names on the games. Kagemasa Kozuki, president of Konami, will
take a seat on the Centuri board of directors.
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To broaden the scope of commodities it taxes, the Japanese government is considering a tax on
coin-operated amusements, according to the Japanese trade press. The government already taxes
pachinko and slot machines.
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Mary Ann Moore has been named operations manager of Nationwide Vending Services. The
Upland, California, firm was started this summer to service national vending contracts through local
operators. The firm recently announced it had signed contracts with Jerrico Inc. of Lexington, Ken-
tucky, giving Nationwide Vending locations in all 50 states, according to President Fred Pollak . Among
the company's accounts are AMTRAK and T.G.I. Friday' s. Nationwide Vending selects local operators
throughout the country to service locations as subcontractors.
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Starcom Inc., the triumvirate of companies which produces Dragon 's Lair-Biuth Group Ltd .
(animation), RDI (engineering) , and Cinematronics (manufacturing and marketing)-is changing its
name to Magicom Inc. as it prepares to deliver its next game, Space Ace. According to the company,
Space Ace will be more of an action game, playing about 50 percent faster than Dragon's Lair.
--·--
Simon Dieth , whose father presides over Ruffler and Dieth, one of England' s largest coin-op
distributors, has joined the Lake Success, New York, office of R.H. Belam as wholesale equipment
manager. Dieth will handle the movement of equipment between Belam and other distributors. Dieth
said he is working in the United States to get a "street level " understanding of the American coin-op
market.
--·--
Bob Owens has been named national franchise director for Putt-Putt Golf & Games of Fayette-
ville, North Carolina. Owens has been with the company for several years in a variety of operations,
promotions, and management positions.
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" Pee Wee" Fleshner has returned to the International Billiards Inc. sales staff to represent the
company's products in Texas and Louisiana. Fleshner had previously been with the Houston-based
company for five years.
--·--
--·--
Ross Knapp has been named vice president of sales for Tech Vend Marketing, t he Norcross,
Georgia, manufacturer of the Mini Clinic, a blood pressure and heart rate monitor.
A-1 Ashtray Company has changed its name to A-1 Products Company, reflecting a broadened
product line which , in addition to the firm's line of ashtrays, now includes a cup and can holder, a
coin box alarm, and other items. A-1's Stan Pearson said he's offering products that " would not
ordinarily be sold by other distributors."
--·--
Startime Video Jukeboxes will offer discs from Polygram and RCA. Video Music lnternational,the
jukebox maker, announced those contracts, as well as agreements with CBS, Atlanti c, and
Elektra/ Asylum had recently been signed .
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Cathie Zacharias has been named manager of sales support and operations at Wico Corporation.
She was formerly assistant manager of customer service at Wico.
116
PlAY METER. February 1. 1984