Press Release June 29, 2005

The games French people play…

Arts, pleasure, voyages, suspense and a lot of love – five very important parts of life and for the French, an everyday matter of course. They are experts on the arts, enjoy life to the full, love to travel, and suspense is as important as the wonderful aspects of love.
What does this have to do with Video Slot Games? More than you would expect.
When Austrian Gaming Industries GmbH (AGI), the wholly owned subsidiary of Novomatic AG, was awarded a suppliers licence for Video Slots in France it was clear within the first hour which games would be supplied there.
The 9-line, 5-reel video games, which registered the highest earnings in France are, besides many others, Heart of Gold™, which uses Dali-esque graphics and mystic sound elements and has therefore seen tremendous success in France; the exciting adventure-trips of Columbus™; Queen of Hearts™, the game of love – a kind of French speciality – in which angels and red hearts play the leading roles; and Treasure Ant™, where an armada of busy little ants collect a full range of attractive bonus prizes to multiply the big Treasure.
Maybe those games are successful because they mirror the French way of life.

The French prefer to play on the high-tech Gaminator®, which incorporates the full range of Coolfire™ platform functionalities and features a space saving cabinet in elegant silver of only 440mm depth. Two extra large TFT screens tilted to each other for increased player convenience display exciting 3D animations and complex graphics for an enhanced gaming experience. The modular design allows configuration options for the use of reels plus TFT monitor and dual screens. Touch interface, player tracking options and superior stereo sound complete the product features.

Jens Halle, Managing Director of AGI is very positive about the French market: “We have already had fantastic sales success with our popular Video Poker machines in France years ago. A very important characteristic of the French that you should keep clearly in mind is the importance of quality. With our image as a worldwide pioneer in quality, design and high-tech we have a big advantage which we will never rest upon. The success in France strengthens our high commitment into research and development. With our sales partner Bally France we will continue to enforce our triumphant success“.

Contact information:
Petra Blaschka
Phone: +43 2252 606 415
E-mail: pblaschk@novomatic.com