Casinos remain keenly interested in the machines because of the incredible savings they represent. Andrew Hatherly, analyst with Las Vegas Investment Advisors, notes that these costs are accelerating because of the explosion of the nickel slot machine. These slot machines now represent 28 percent of Nevada's total slot inventory, up from 25 percent. While total slots grew by 4 percent, nickel slots grew 18 percent. There's certainly a big push for coinless now.
Casinos have a tremendous stake in getting rid of metal currency on the floor.
When a player wins a big jackpot at a convenience store slot, for example, the player must often wait more than an hour for a service person to show up to pay the player, Prater said. When we put the ticket system in, players don't just embrace it, they stampede toward it. Prater acknowledged that several informal surveys conducted by slot-oriented magazines indicate a vast majority of players don't want to see coins removed from slots. But the convenience factor for the player is dramatic. Anchor Gaming, a partner company of IGT, is also expected to launch its own version of coinless gaming soonn, and Alliance is working on its own system as well.