Harrah’s Entertainment has decided to get rid of some of their slot machines, leading many to believe there was a conflict between the casino operator and International Game Technology, which makes the slots being taken out.
Other experts in the industry are pointing to the fact that Harrah’s has done a lot of statistical research and does what is in the best interest of their casino and ultimately their company, which has nothing to do with an agreement with the slot machine maker.
“We try to offer our customers the games they like to play, which we determine through volume of play and regular surveys of our guests,” said Gary Thompson, a spokesman for Harrah’s Entertainment.
If a game at Harrah’s, or any casino for that matter, under performs that casino will fix the problem by doing away with the game or replacing it.
“The experiment has given Harrah’s a significant amount of data to work with to make decisions on participation games in other markets,” said Brian McGill, gaming analyst for Wachovia. “With this is mind, we were not surprised to see Harrah’s pull out a significant number of Wheel of Fortune games.”
The numbers don’t lie in the casino business and the numbers are what casinos stand by, which is why the most likely reason for the latest actions by Harrah’s was purely a budgetary one.