ATLANTIC CITY — Casino customers will soon be able to toast their winnings — or swallow their losses — with drinks ordered directly from their slot machines.
In the first of its kind for Atlantic City, New Jersey gaming regulators Wednesday approved an automated "beverage on demand" system for the four casinos owned by Caesars Entertainment Corp., formerly known as Harrah's Entertainment Inc.
Slot players at Bally's Atlantic City, Caesars Atlantic City, Harrah's Resort and Showboat Casino-Hotel will be able to select alcoholic beverages or soft drinks from an interactive video display on their machines. Caesars Entertainment is touting the system as a way for customers to "seamlessly request" a drink without interrupting their gambling. The company plans to introduce the new system in the first quarter of 2011. It will be available on all slot machines at the four casinos, once they go live with electronic downloadable credits. Caesars Entertainment did not disclose the cost.
Using the automated system, gamblers would no longer have to flag down a cocktail server to ask for a drink. Cocktail servers, however, will still be needed to bring back the drinks after they are ordered.
The state Casino Control Commission wanted to make sure the new system would not lead to even more layoffs in a recession-ravaged industry that has cut nearly 10,000 jobs in the past five years.
"A real person still brings the drink, right? We don't want to get rid of too many people," Commissioner Michael C. Epps said before the board gave its approval.
The "beverage on demand" system is the latest technological innovation to help casinos pamper their customers — including eliminating old-fashioned coupons with the use of downloadable credits to loyalty cards that reward patrons with free hotel rooms, meals and other perks based on their level of spending.
"That's what it is all about. It's purely customer enhancement," said Michael A. Magazzu, a corporate attorney for Caesars Entertainment.
Slot patrons will insert their Total Rewards player loyalty cards from Caesars Entertainment to activate a standard beverage menu on the video display. Later, they will also have the option of selecting from a customized "My Drinks" menu based on their previous orders. Caesars Entertainment said safeguards will be in place to cut off customers who appear to be drunk or to prevent minors from getting alcoholic beverages, including having cocktail servers ask patrons for identification.
Although the CCC said this is brand new in Atlantic City, the same or similar automated drink-ordering systems are already available on slot machines at casinos in Indiana, Mississippi, California and Arizona and will be introduced in Pennsylvania in March. "Customer feedback in each of those jurisdictions has been overwhelmingly positive," Caesars Entertainment said in papers submitted to the Casino Control Commission.
