Casino equipment and lottery services provider International Game Technology Plc (IGT) says some of the firm’s cashless technology has been installed at Resorts World Catskills in upstate New York, a property ultimately controlled by Malaysia-based casino investor Genting group. IGT’s Resort Wallet gives casino customers the option of a “contactless, safe, and effortless cashless gaming experience,” said the technology company in a Wednesday press release.
A number of industry observers has said that supply of “cashless and contactless” technology for financial transactions by casino players is likely to be a growing business segment amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Demand for contactless player funding technologies has already accelerated, according to some gaming suppliers.
The IGT release quoted Ryan Reddy, the group’s vice president for global systems and payments products, as saying: “IGT’s Resort Wallet solution gives Resorts World Catskills the early-adopter advantage among commercial casinos in the state of New York, with the debut of cashless gaming at their property.”
The Resort Wallet product is part of the IGT Advantage product suite, and is available as an add-on module for casino operators using the IGT Advantage casino management system, stated the company.
According to the release, players would “benefit from the safety of minimising cash handling and the convenience of accessing funds any time.”
The company added the product “also generates greater operational efficiencies by reducing cash handling costs and associated safety and security risks”.
IGT said in a separate release that it would publicise some of its “high-growth potential” products, such as “cashless gaming technologies, sports betting and digital gaming”, at the virtual version this year of Global Gaming Expo (G2E), a casino industry trade show and conference usually held in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the United States.
The in-person event will not take place this year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The firm’s “IGT Advantage” casino management system and cashless “Resort Wallet” were examples of products that could “help operators modernise the player experience, increase player safety and reduce in-casino dependency on cash handling and in-person interactions,” said the firm.
