Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | June 2008 44 single rule, borrowed from Craps where the 12 is barred on the“don’t come / don’t pass” bet, it manages to avoid collecting commission with effectiveness, practicality and pure elegant simplicity. Here is the trick: when the Bank wins with a 7 made of three cards, it is a “push” on the bank. That’s it. As long as those three must-have conditions are met, then you have what is known as a “Dragon Seven” (more on this later). This little piece of DNA or casino innovation changes everything that needs to be changed, namely, no more collecting of 5% commission on winning Bank bets. Everything that is related to the commission collection process magically disappears; from figuring out the amounts to collecting it,fromdisagreements todoubts andcalls toSurveillance, and from customers complaining to the Table Inspector or Pit boss fighting with the customer. All of this disappears and the qualitative indicators of the game become superb in the eyes of the player. The dealers are less stressed, the supervisors now have time to take care of the customer’s needs without risking the integrity of the game and the customers, yes, the customers, are also happy and stress free so they hopefully will also do what we want them to do—stay and play longer at the table. Qualitative advantages for customers are oftentimes quickly dismissed by frustrated casino managers or supervisors. However, if each customer stays at the table for just an additional 30 minutes of play because they are having a good time, the results will show in the revenue increase or hold percentage of the game. Remember, time is money and EZ Baccarat can result in more HPH and seat time. The developers of EZ Baccarat also point out some of the benefits to the customers and why they believe that many players will want to convert to the EZ Baccarat game. The equivalent commission percentage in EZ Baccarat is 4.94% versus the traditional 5%, which even though small is still advantageous to the customer. Correspondingly, the overall house odds go from 1.058 % to 1.018% which is also a reduction—albeit very small—in favor of the customer. In addition, the player will now enjoy a hassle free, commission free game along with a chance to cash in on the new Dragon Seven bet which pays 40 to 1. Casino innovation for table games is fairly rare. RFID Chips are another innovative new product. Theremay be others on the horizon so stay vigilant and be prepared to capitalize on innovative new products for both your casino and your players. EZ Baccarat is off to a great start and is beginning to appear in casinos in Las Vegas, Macau and many Native American casinos. If anyone would like additional information, please feel free to contact the author. Steve Karoul is a leading casinomarketing consultant and amember of the Gerson Lehrman Group Council consulting on casinos. Steve can be reached by phone: (1-860) 536-1828 or email: [email protected]. You can also visit Steve’s website: www. euroasiacasino.com EZ Baccarat