Play Meter

Atari sales soar
over $7.9 million
in fiscal half-year
Atari Inc. of Los Gatos, Cal if-
ornia, leading manufacturer of com -
puterized video amusement games, an-
nounced achievement of record sales
for the first half of its 1975 fiscal year .
Sales reached $7 ,958,000, ending No-
vember 30, 1974, for the previous 6
month s with sales of $1,684,000, for
November . The figures represent an
81 % increase in sales over the same
time period of a year ago.
Atar i Cha irman Nolan K . Bushnell
attributes the record business to the
introduction of a number of innova-
tive games. Gran Trak , the coin in·
dustry's first video driving game pre-
viewed in early summer, has estab-
lished itself as the all -time money
winner as high receipts are recorded by
operators, Bushnell said .
Atar i has since produced Touch -Me,
its f irst non-video m ind boggier - an
attract ion matching sig ht and sound .
Atar i, known for creative and innova-
tive products introduced Pin- Pong, a
video game simulating the realistic
play of the classic p in ball machine.
Pin- Pong, considered a factor to the
sales success, is complete with side
flippers, video targets, flashing lights
and unusual tones and sounds.
Owak is the newest addition to
Ata ri 's line of video skill games. It's a
one-player attraction with video ducks
flying up and around the screen and a
dog that retrieves fallen ducks. Owak
comes complete with authentic duck
sounds.
M OA conventioneers
tour Rock-Ola plant
Nearly one hundred jukebox oper-
ators attending the 1974 Music Oper-
ator's Association convention saw
first-hand how jukeboxes are made
during conducted tours of the Rock -
ala plant in Ch icago.
" The operators saw every produc-
tion step from the arrival of raw
materials to the final test before a
jukebox is packed and shipped," Ex -
ecutive V ice President Edward G.
Dor is said .
" Operators saw how metal, plastics,
miles of colorful wire and literally
thousands of electronic and mechan-
Rowe goes quad
Rowe-AMI " ha s the only true, full
quad system available on jukeboxes,"
Dan Denman of Rowe International
Inc. claims.
Rowe's quad units have been avail -
able to operators with the R-74 series
since late in 1974, but information on
the units was not incl uded in materials
obtained from the firm for usc in Play
Meter's January issue phonograph
specifications chart.
The R-74's (Classic and Arlington)
can be equipped with an optional SO
system which Rowe chose o': er other
systems because of its del ivel 'I of true
four -source quad, which "is as dis-
tinctly different from 'two -channel'
quad as stero is from monaural ,"
Denman sa id .
The SO system was also chosen for
48
its compatibility with both stereo and
monaural records and Rowe "is the
only jukebox manufacturer utilizing
this system," according to Denman.
"In addition to the SO system for
the R-74 series, Rowe has made avail -
able different version of quad for the
Crestwood console and also for the
R-74 where desired, " Denman added.
Ouad sound is impressive because
of the sense of "live" wrap-around
sound it creates through the use of
four different speaker locat ions en -
circling the listener, Denman said,
" whether there are four separate chan -
nels of music or only one or two ."
In some areas, quad if a mean ingful
concept in merchandis ing music, he
went on, and operators in such areas
are finding that it develops additional
business.
ical parts are precisely crafted into
jukeboxes," accord ing to Doris. "They
also watched as every part and every
component underwent severe tests be-
fore beng installed in a jukebox."
" Although the visitors were im-
pressed by giant forming presses and
high -speed automated mach i nes, they
were absolutely fascinated by the final
test each Rock -ala jukebox undergoes
before packaging," Dor is said.
" A patented, computerized tester
subjects the jukebox to the worst
possible conditions, then checks every
circuit and every function for any type
of weakness."
"Even the slightest flaw sets off
lights and buzzers," according to
Rock -ala 's executive vice pres ident.
"And since the computerized tester
has a built-in memory bank, it 're-
members' every part or component
that requires attent ion . No jukebox is
approved for shipment until all adjust-
ments have been made."
Follow ing the plant tour many of
the visitors heard a demonstration of
Rock -ala's new "Ouad-Phon ic" sound.
The new sy stem envelops listeners in a
capsule of brilliant sound that repro -
duces the fidel ity and presence created
dur ing the actual record ing of the
mus ic.
Pico distributes
US Billiards in Cal.
U. S. Bill iards, Inc. has a new d is-
tr ibutor in the Southern Cal iforn ia
area . Pico Indoor Sports, 2251 W. Pico
Blvd ., Los Angeles, has been selected
the exclusive distr ibutors for U . S.
Bill ia rds in Southern Cal ifornia, K .
Chr is Loumakis, president of the Pico
firm, announced .
" I bel ieve that U. S. Bill iards' new
Butcherblock and Parquet style pool
tables, as well as their Air Hockey, are
go ing to make a big hit with local
operators," Loumak is said .
In add it ion to U. S. Billiards
products, Pico Indoor Sports also
handles videos from Mirco Games and
D igital Games.
PUI' • • tR