Play Meter

AMOA plans two-part seminar
The A.M.O .A. trade show this
year will feature a two-part seminar
series with the first half being devoted
to the controversial . jukebox copy-
right law and the second half devoted
to amusement center operations.
Panel members for the copyright
law seminar will be Susan Aramayo ,
chief of the licensing division of the
U.S . Copyright Office , and Nicholas
Allen , A.M.O .A.'s chief counsel.
Operators will be given the chance to
voice their opinions and to ask
questions about the new law, since
it will be mainly a question -and-
answer session .
The amusement center panel
discussion will be made up of three
manufacturers and a monitor who
will try to cover the follOWing
subjects: (1) how to make money
with existing amusement center
equipment ; (2) what to do with the
obsolete amusement center equip-
ment; (3) what is a good mixture of
pins, video, and game equipment ;
(4) what is the correct placement of
equipment (that is, how can an
operator create the proper flow of
traffic in his arcade and what is the
best location for the change counter;
(5) what makes for a good location ;
and (6) what is the future of
amusement centers.
In addition , the A.M.O .A has
announced that it has already
booked some entertainers for the
annual banquet stage show Novem-
ber 12.
The Ritchie Walton Revue -a
17-member musical troupe which
performs everything from jazz to
country , pop, patriotic , and Broad-
way songs- will be on hand to
entertain . Also country saxophonist
Tommy Wills has already been
signed to appear at the festivities .
Billy Kelly , after an absence of
three years , will once again emcee
the production .
The ladies luncheon will feature
singer Renee Matthews who will
perform with a piano accompani-
ment.
The exposition is slated for
November 10-12 at the Conrad
Hilton Hotel and is considered to be
the highlight event for the coin
machine amusement industry in the
United States.
Bee Gees, Crystal Gayle win JB Awards
The Bee Gees , with its many hit
songs from the movie "Saturday
Night Fever ," has copped this year's
JB (Jukebox) Award as artists of the
year . But it was Crystal Gayle's
"Don 't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue"
which , by drawing more votes than
any other single release , won the JB
Award for the top record of the year.
Five JB Awards are given annually
by jukebox operators across the
country in recognition of the year's
top earning records . Operators make
their selections in an annual balloting
conducted by the A.M.O .A, the
industry's
national
association .
simplify some more
total number of licenses and then
place them on any machines he
wanted to without worrying about
serial numbers- the less amount of
paperwork the faster an operator
would be able to comply."
There have also been strong
complaints on the requirement of a
certified check . One operator has
said that paying the copyright fees by
certified check at the beginning of
each year is a fair request , but
subsequent payments by certified
check for two or three machines
forces an additional fee on the
operator. The question is asked :
Why couldn't the Copyright Office
accept a company check at this
point? Even the IRS accepts personal
checks .
Objections were particularly heavy
in the area of the possibility of
PLAY METER , October, 1978
location list requirements (which had
not been decided upon at the time of
the A.M.O .A. survey . See the lead
story of this issue for the Copyright
Royalty Tribunal's unfavorable ruling
on that matter) .
Operators objected to location lists
on the grounds that this is
confidential information , to say
nothing of the fact that it would be a
burdensome job, adding more
paperwork, red tape , and expense .
Again and again, the question
operators asked was: "Why can't
they keep this thing simple? We want
to comply with the law ," many
operators said , "and we are trying,
but the procedure is burdensome .
The A .M.O. A. survey results also
reported that small operators, in
particular, found the requirements
counter-productive .
A.M.O .A. President Don Van
Brackel will make the award
presentations November 12 before
the banquet stage show that marks
the conclusion of the A.M.O .A.'s
annual trade show at the Conrad
Hilton Hotel in Chicago .
In the other three categories,
Debbie Boone's "You Light Up My
Life" won the award for the top pop
record of the year , Bonnie Tyler's
"It's a Heartache" was named the top
country record of the year, and
"Boogie Night" by Heatwave was
picked the top soul release for
jukeboxes.
In last year's balloting , Kenny
Rogers's smash hit "Lucille" garnered
three of the five awards, the first time
any record has accomplished that
feat .
Other single records which were
nominated by the AM .O .A. Awards
Committee as finalists in the balloting
were as follows : "Heaven 's Just a Sin
Away ," Kendalls ; "You 're the One ,"
Oak Ridge Boys; "Blue Bayou ,"
Linda Rondstadt ; "Use ta be My
Girl," O 'Jays; "Brick House," The
Commodores ; "Lady Love," Lou
Rawls ; "You're the One That I
Want," Olivia Newton -John and
John Travolta ; "Here You Come
Again ," Dolly Parton ; "I J~st Want to
be Your Everything ," and "Shadow
Dancing ," Andy Gibb; and " Night
Fever" and "Stayin' Alive ," Bee
Gees .
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