To clarify the comment about Bally's buying a gaming company: my TD ameritrade account had a news release they had bought Games4You:
Bally Technologies Acquires 'Games4you' Team to Join Its Global Game Development Group in Designing Innovative Game Content
9:02a ET January 20, 2010 (Business Wire)
Bally Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: BYI), a leader in slots, video machines, and casino-management systems for the global gaming industry, today announced the acquisition of the employees previously with Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Games4you, L.L.C., a leading-edge supplier of gaming and engineering solutions for the casino gaming industry. The former Games4you team members are now full-time Bally employees based in Arizona.
The Games4you team is a strategic addition to Bally's Games business, which includes reel-spinning slot machines, video slots, wide-area progressives, and Class II, lottery, and central-determination games and platforms.
The acquisition of Games4you's team will extend Bally's game-development capabilities and enable the Company to create even more cutting-edge game content for the global gaming industry. The Games4you team brings Bally a creative synergy of game developers, mathematicians, animators, graphic artists, illustrators, and media techs -- many who have worked together for a number of years. They have extensive experience in creating both new intellectual property and identifying and licensing today's most engaging brands to create standout games for casino operators.
"After seeing the power and innovation of Bally's game-development team, we are ready to combine our strengths to bring hot games and cool solutions to the Bally portfolio," said Dave Tucker, Managing Director/Owner of Games4you and now Director of Software Development at Bally. "The leadership team of Bally Technologies is bringing vision to the gaming industry, and we are excited to become a key part of building on the Company's 78-year heritage of innovation."
Jason Stage, Managing Director/Owner of Games4you and now Director of Software Development at Bally, added, "To truly bring the next generation of games to our industry, you must have the full power of a company with leading system and server-based technology, innovative game technology, a full IP library, strong financial resources, and a leadership team with vision to partner with...we have found that partner in Bally Technologies."
Most of Games4you's employees previously worked for Atronic Americas and Atronic International and formed Games4you after Atronic was acquired by Lottomatica Group and their Americas headquarters moved to Las Vegas, Nev. Bally has opened an office in Scottsdale for the Games4you team, augmenting Bally's base of regional game-development centers in the Silicon Valley; southern California; Las Vegas and Reno, Nev.; and India.
"The addition of Games4you complements Bally's award-winning global team of game content and hardware developers, and extends our ability to deliver the industry's most compelling games," said Gavin Isaacs, Chief Operating Officer of Bally Technologies. "Games4you's proven experience in delivering cutting-edge games that delight players and drive revenue for casino operators will only strengthen Bally as a leading provider of creative and high-performing games."
