| Published on May 9, 2008
Slot machines were introduced in the 1890's by a man called Charles Fey. There hasn't change much about them, they still work the same way. All you need to play is some coins and some free time. It seems that for the new generation, which is raised on action-packed video games, slot machines are not enough anymore, because they are too effortless.
Gamblers between the age of 21 and 40 don't spend much time at the slot machines they rather prefer to play blackjack or poker. Nevertheless casino owners don't want to give up the hope that things could change.
In the USA, players spend about $ 1 billion every day on a million of slot machines. Casinos get just 5 to 10 %, the rest goes to winners. This is how slot machines bring almost three-quarters of the year gambling income in the US. That's why casino operators want to attract the young generation to spend more money at the slot machines otherwise it will lose a great income in the years to come. The problem is that it's not that easy to convince the new generation to play the slot machines, though this generation is used to play more difficult games. Some industry experts have an idea. They were thinking of adding elements to improve the slot machines. There is already a new machine in development, it's called "Pong" and it should be released in August. Another similar project made by Atari is the "Breakout", which was realized and introduces by Bally already last month.
Other developers want the new slot machines to be equipped with joysticks, flat panel display screens and other innovations.
But there is a revolution to come, as industry innovators are talking about slot machines that will allow players to compete against each other as in the internet video games. That means that there will still be the old good slot machines, but with a lot of innovation inside.