Those who know the German language will tell you that the German word Pfeil means arrow in English. NRI is celebrating the return of its arrow to further strengthen its sales team, that of Mr. Michael Pfeil. Michael has many years of experience in the payment systems market with both payment systems manufacturers and distributors.

During the Malaga show, the Gauselmann Group won the award “Foreign business of the year”. Michael Gauselmann (pictured) accepted the award during a special lunch ceremony, making his thanks in Spanish and pointing out some important landmarks in the company’s history.

Dr. Franz Wohlfahrt, CEO of Novomatic Group, has announced that Uwe Christiansen of NSM-Löwen Entertainment GmbH has resigned effective 30 April 2007.

Giant Austrian-listed betting group Bwin Interactive believes it has spotted a loophole in the Czech law, which currently bans domestic companies from providing internet betting services. Bwin claims that the existing law only serves to block domestic companies and does not cover those operating from abroad.

Further to the press release issued by Bell-Fruit Games on April 12 2007, the House of Lords made known its decision by way of report from the Appeal Commission on June 11 2007, that Nova’s petition for leave to appeal to the Lords should be refused.

The Deith name is almost synonymous with the British amusement industry. For five decades now the family has been represented among the higher echelons of the UK distribution scene, although recent changes at Deith Group have seen the family’s involvement in the market lessen somewhat. Company founder Leon Deith has left the firm, and indeed the industry, to develop one of his long- standing hobbies into a business idea. In a somewhat surprising move, Leon has left the bells and whistles of coin-op behind and entered the champagne-swilling and canapé-crunching world of the fine art dealer.

If we take the theories of Charles Darwin to hold water (which, remarkably, is by no means a given in this day and age, with the state- sanctioned return of creationist teaching to schools on both sides of the Atlantic), then the existence and evolution of man, and every other species currently present on this planet for that matter, is the result of a constant battle, a fight for natural resources – food, air, light etc – that those around today have so far won and the likes of the dinosaurs and dodos have lost.

A National Currency Poll taken in late April has revealed that Americans prefer historic icons for the new $1 coin rather than political leaders. The study, conducted by Coinstar Inc. tested for consumer awareness, interest and thoughts on the new coin. Although 60% of the public knows about the new dollar coin, only 16% are choosing to use them so far.

Following the tragic massacre of 32 students and faculty members at Virginia Tech in April, the video game violence debate has resurfaced. Media outlets reported that the killer, Seung-Hui Cho, was an avid fan of violent video games. Research that has been reported in previous columns has stated that this issue has remained in the forefront of the scientific and psychological communities.

Cogetech, one of the 10 companies that was granted a licence to operate Newslot in Italy, has renounced its role as technological partner in the Rovereta gaming establishment in San Marino.

The third Italian Pro Game Show will be open to the playing and betting public for the first time, having previously being reserved for the companies in the sector and for the professionals.

On April 11, the examination of the new Bill to open up casino gaming in more regions of Italy found its way to the Commission for Productive Activities of the Chamber. This Parliamentary Bill was introduced by the Member of Parliament, Salvatore Raiti, and supported by Leonluca Olando, Salvatore Cardinale, Giuseppe Palombo, and Giacomo Baiamonte and responds to a similar initiative introduced into the Chamber of Deputies in 2005 by the Sicilian Region.

Although it seems that there is no more space for any new associations within the gaming sector in Spain, reality always comes as a surprise. The latest to join the lists is ACORDJOC (Catalan Association of Gaming Operators). AcordJoc has been formed with the objective of satisfying the requirements of the small and medium-sized companies within the amusement sector.

The new regulation on arcades, which has the approval of the representatives from the companies in the sector, has been approved by the Consell Valencia, after receiving a favourable report from the Consell Jurídic Consultiu, and also the approval of the Autonomous Commission on Gaming.

This year Madrid has started the process of legalising its betting business. Madrid initiated the process on January 8, but as yet no one group of companies has appeared with a guaranteed income of Euros 12 million, the amount needed to become the operator of this type of gaming.

The UK ban on smoking in pubs and other indoor public places, which is due to come into operation on July 1, has brought a “we’ll have to wait and see” from most people connected with the pool table industry. From my knowledge of many pool players over the past 25 years I would imagine the enthusiasts who play in league or knockout competitions will continue to play their pool in licensed premises. In recent years, more and more facilities such as public transport and their waiting rooms, have borne ‘no smoking’ signs with no visible decline in their use by the public.

IGT has chosen Densitron’s DPX-116 computer board for its stylish new M-P Series multi-player gaming systems. The new gaming systems were a big attraction at the Global Gaming Expo, ICE and NIGA trade shows and are some of the most exciting products in the increasingly popular multi-player segment.

Touchscreen specialist Merit Entertainment has announced the release of its Megatouch ION and Force 2007.5 software. This upgrade, free for systems currently running 2007 software, includes Merit’s new card game Outlaw Poker, and a related symbol version, Cattle Drive. In addition to these games, Merit has added a tournament version to Luxor, its number one ranked Megatouch game.

3M, the diversified technology company, has announced that its most rugged capacitive touch product, ToughTouch II, is now available with optional privacy film to help protect financial data or transaction information displayed on ATM and ticketing machine screens from prying eyes.

The hotly anticipated sequel to Raw Thrills’ AAA video driver, The Fast and the Furious, F&F Drift has been launched in Europe by exclusive distributors Brent Sales/Namco Europe. Linkable up to eight units, the game features 19 action packed tracks, of which seven are completely new, a choice of 12 new ‘tricked out’ street racing cars and all 12 original soundtracks from the hit movie which provided the inspiration for the arcade experience.

According to the statement of Hangzhou City Hall, the sum of the game locations in Hangzhou is planned to be limited to less than 100, and the management of the demonstrative game locations will also being launched from April 1 till the end of 2007.

The 14th GTI Asia Taipei Expo took place in Hall 1 of the Taipei World Trade Centre on May 10-12; every exhibitor prepared for the exhibition and developed the latest products actively before the opening of the show so as to fulfill the demands of overseas buyers by offering the best and multi-faceted products.

The Polish government is preparing to license and regulate online gambling. A recent European Court of Justice ruling in favour of British bookmakers who had been banned from operating in Italy without a licence is expected to be the trigger for European countries to begin regulating the online gambling industry within their borders or face trouble with the European Commission.

Ritzio Entertainment Group has announced the results of its operations in Romania and its entrance into new markets of the Czech Republic and Belarus. Building on its competitive advantages to achieve a fast market share growth, within eighteen mouths Ritzio Entertainment Group has succeeded to become the third largest gaming operator in Romania.

Smoking is under attack from all sides, with national smoking bans in public places popping up all over Europe. This summer England and France will be the latest to ban smoking in public places. Where do you stand on this issue? Is it a blow to the freedom of the individual to smoke, or a victory for the majority not to have to breathe in the smoke of the individual?

Pan Amusements has designed a pirate-themed animated feature for a new customer attraction at the huge Bluewater Shopping Centre in Dartford, UK. The amusement is situated on a section of the lake at the main entrance to the shopping centre – an ideal spot. Visitors pay to guide remote controlled boats around two animated themed areas.

The CIrsa Group has announced slightly improved results for the last financial year. Turnover for the group was Euros 1.657 million in 2006, which represents an increase in sales of 5.8 per cent, supported by good performances of its operations in the amusement machine and casino sectors.

Sound Leisure, manufacturer of the world’s widest range of digital jukeboxes, is the first company to complete the Envirotronix programme, created by Electronics Yorkshire and designed to help electronics companies meet increasingly complex environmental requirements.

Comatel, the former Spanish distributor for Funworld has released a statement following the court case it brought, claiming the Austrian giant broke its distriubtion agreement.

MachineGuard, the security federation for the UK gaming and leisure industry, has announced the launch of a unique crime reduction initiative set to tackle the problem of workplace crime and aid businesses in making sounder recruitment decisi

The 13th GAMEXPO International Gaming and Amusement Exhibition will take place at SYMA Sport & Event Center, Hall A in Budapest, Hungary from September 11-13, 2007.

At this year’s Malaga show, Photo Play and Carfama presented the entire PRO Generation together for the first time. In Spain, the new Photo Play Racer PRO proved to particularly popular especially in its online version.

Nova Productions Limited has responded to the press release issued by Bell Fruit following the dismissal of its appeal by the Court of Appeal. “The Court of Appeal Judgment came down firmly on the side of the copyist in a case of non-identical textual copying and in so doing it followed an earlier decision of the High Court in Navitaire which concerned airline booking systems,” said Nova’s Managing Director Peter Robinson.

ATEI, together with ICE and ICEi, is in contention to be named Trade Show Of The Year, having been short listed in the prestigious Association of Event Organisers (AEO) Excellence

IAEA - the Irish Amusement Equipment Association held its AGM on March 6, 2007 during the AmEx 2007 exhibition. The Association decided to change its name to IGAA - the Irish Gaming & Amusement Association to reflect developments in the industry in recent years.

Following John Higgins’ victory in the World Snooker Championships, the focus now switches to the amateur game, where Strachan is also the leading cloth supplier. Having recently concluded contracts with the International Billiards & Snooker Federation (IBSF) and the Asian Confederation of Billiard Sports (ACBS), the company’s latest product – 6811 Tournament Select – will be used for the first time at a series of competitions in Asia.

The organiser of the Hot Games show has announced that this year’s show will take place at the Taipei World Trade Center (TWTC), Taipei, Taiwan from September 7-9.

This date has been chosen because many Taiwanese and overseas compaines often release their new products in the second half of the year.