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- BALLY TECHNOLOGIES, INC. TO ACQUIRE SHFL ENTERTAINMENT, INC.
- Fisticuffs sure to be a knock-out on mobile
- BlueBat Unveils Its BlueBox Social Gamification Engine to Help Casinos and Gambling Game Developers Increase Engagement
| BALLY TECHNOLOGIES, INC. TO ACQUIRE SHFL ENTERTAINMENT, INC. Posted: 17 Jul 2013 02:43 PM PDT
The transaction, which was unanimously approved by both the SHFL and Bally Boards of Directors, combines two best-in-class, highly complementary and customer-centric gaming technology companies with a shared focus on innovation.  Gavin Isaacs, SHFL's Chief Executive Officer “We believe that now is the right time to join forces with Bally as there is a unique opportunity to combine each other’s many strengths, particularly our talented teams who have been the key drivers of success for each organization. It also represents an opportunity for our shareholders to receive a significant premium for their shares,"said Gavin Isaacs, SHFL's Chief Executive Officer. "Like SHFL, Bally focuses on creating both entertaining player experiences through high-performing content and state-of the-art technological solutions to increase productivity on the casino floor. United, we become a larger, stronger organization that we believe will best position the company for future growth. Equally important, we share a common vision to build the industry's leading supplier based on delivering superior products, solutions and services to customers around the world." "Both Bally and SHFL have long histories of proven innovation, excellent  Ramesh Srinivasan Bally Technologies President & CEO customer service and successfully anticipating and adapting to changes within our industry,which makes bringing our two companies together a great strategic fit," said Ramesh Srinivasan, Bally's President and Chief Executive Officer. "The transformational acquisition of SHFL – which joins two high-caliber, talented and creative teams – will further enhance our ability to deliver future growth and serve our customers. SHFL's intellectual property, renowned brands and industry-leading suite of diverse, high performance products will enable us to offer an unparalleled offering of gaming products and services, which – when combined with our content, technology,operational capabilities and respective geographic footprints – will provide the most comprehensive product portfolio offered around the world." Additional Transaction Details Bally will acquire all of the outstanding shares of SHFL for a per share price of $23.25in cash, representing a total enterprise value of approximately $1.3 billion, including debt of $8 million and cash of $41 million as of April 30, 2013.The transaction is subject to approval by SHFL's shareholders, required regulatory and other approvals and customary closing conditions. The transaction is expected to close no later than June 15, 2014. Bally has obtained committed financing to complete the acquisition and the transaction is not subject to a financing contingency.
Bally is hosting a conference call and webcast today for its investors at 8:30 a.m. EDT(5:30 a.m. PDT). The conference call dial-in number is 1-866-843-0890 or 1-412-317-9250 (International); pass code 1154979. The webcast can be accessed by visiting BallyTech.com and selecting "Investor Relations." Interested parties should initiate the call and webcast process at least five minutes prior to the beginning of the presentation. Gavin Isaacs also will be participating in the conference call. Financial and Legal Advisory Macquarie Capital served as SHFL's exclusive financial advisor and Skadden, Arps,Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP served as legal counsel to SHFL. Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Groton Partners served as financial advisors and Gibson,Dunn & Crutcher LLP served as the legal advisor to Bally. Wells Fargo Bank, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs Bank USA and Union Bank, N.A. provided the committed financing for the transaction. About SHFL entertainment,Inc SHFL entertainment, Inc. is a leading global gaming supplier committed to making gaming more fun for players and more profitable for operators through product innovation, and superior quality and service. The Company operates in legalized gaming markets across the globe and provides state-of-the-art, value-add products in five distinct categories: Utility products, which include automatic card shufflers and roulette chip sorters; Proprietary Table Games, which includes live games, side bets and progressives; Electronic Table Systems, which include various e-Table game configurations; Electronic Gaming Machines, which include video slot machines; and newly introduced iGaming, which features online versions of SHFL's table games, social gaming, and mobile applications. The Company is included in the S&P Small Cap 600 Index. Information about the Company and its products can be found on the Internet at www.SHFL.com, or on Facebook and Twitter. Forward Looking Statements This communication may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements may be typically identified by such words as "may," "will," "should,""expect," "anticipate," "plan," "likely," "believe," "estimate," "project," "intend,"and other similar expressions among others. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in the forward-looking statements. Although we believe that the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, any or all of our forward-looking statements may prove to be incorrect. Consequently, no forward-looking statements may be guaranteed and there can be no assurance that the actual results or developments anticipated by such forward looking statements will be realized or, even if substantially realized, that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, SHFL entertainment, Inc. (the"Company") or its business or operations. Factors which could cause our actual results to differ from those projected or contemplated in any such forward looking statements include, but are not limited to, the following factors: (1) the risk that the conditions to the closing of the merger are not satisfied (including a failure of the shareholders of the Company to approve, on a timely basis or otherwise, the merger and the risk that regulatory approvals required for the merger are not obtained, on a timely basis or otherwise, or are obtained subject to conditions that are not anticipated); (2) litigation relating to the merger; (3)uncertainties as to the timing of the consummation of the merger and the ability of each of the Company and Bally Technologies, Inc. ("Bally") to consummate the merger; (4) risks that the proposed transaction disrupts the current plans and operations of the Company; (5) the ability of the Company to retain and hire key personnel; (6) competitive responses to the proposed merger; (7) unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the merger; (8) the failure by Bally to obtain the necessary debt financing arrangements set forth in the commitment letter received in connection with the merger; (9) potential adverse reactions or changes to business relationships resulting from the announcement or completion of the merger; and (10) legislative, regulatory and economic developments. The foregoing review of important factors that could cause actual events to differ from expectations should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with statements that are included herein and elsewhere, including the risk factors included in the Company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended October 31, 2012, and our more recent reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the"SEC"). The Company can give no assurance that the conditions to the Merger will be satisfied. Except as required by applicable law, the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statement, or to make any other forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,future events or otherwise. Additional Information and Where to Find It This communication is being made in respect of the proposed transaction involving the Company and Bally. The proposed transaction will be submitted to the shareholders of the Company for their consideration. In connection with the proposed transaction, the Company will prepare a proxy statement to be filed with the SEC. The Company and Bally also plan to file with the SEC other documents regarding the proposed transaction. THE COMPANY'S SECURITY HOLDERS ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT REGARDING THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND ANY OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION.When completed, a definitive proxy statement and a form of proxy will be mailed to the shareholders of the Company. The Company's shareholders will be able to obtain, without charge, a copy of the proxy statement (when available)and other relevant documents filed with the SEC from the SEC's website athttp://www.sec.gov. The Company's shareholders will also be able to obtain,without charge, a copy of the proxy statement and other relevant documents(when available) by going to the Company's Investor Relations website page athttp://ir.shfl.com or by contacting Investor Relations by mail to SHFL entertainment, Inc., Attn: Investor Relations, 1106 Palms Airport Drive, Las Vegas, NV 89119, or by phone at (702) 897-7150. The Company and its directors and executive officers may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from the Company's shareholders with respect to the meeting of shareholders that will be held to consider the proposed Merger. Information about the Company's directors and executive officers and their ownership of the Company's common stock is set forth in the proxy statement for the Company's 2013 Annual Meeting of Shareholders,which was filed with the SEC on February 1, 2013. Shareholders may obtain additional information regarding the interests of the Company and its directors and executive officers in the proposed Merger, which may be different than those of the Company's shareholders generally, by reading the proxy statement and other relevant documents regarding the proposed Merger, when it becomes available. You may obtain free copies of this document as described in the preceding paragraph.
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| Fisticuffs sure to be a knock-out on mobile Posted: 17 Jul 2013 02:15 AM PDT
July 17, 2013 – Fisticuffs has long been enjoyed as an online video slot and now gamers can continue the fight on mobile as Net Entertainment adds the offering to its TouchTM catalogue. Lights, bells and belts all help deliver the finest gaming experience around. Fisticuffs Touch™ is a 5-reel, 10-line video slot featuring Win Both Ways and a Boxing Feature re-spin where Wilds remain on the reels for the re-spin. The boxing feature begins when the Diagonal Wild and the Straight Wild appear next to each other in a diagonal or horizontal position on the reels. "Innovation is at the heart of Net Entertainment's mission to provide better games and Fisticuffs TouchTM is another example of our pioneering work," comments Simon Hammon, Chief Product Officer of Net Entertainment. "Our online mobile portfolio is constantly growing to reflect the increased importance of the sector within the industry."
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| Posted: 17 Jul 2013 01:34 AM PDT
July 16, 2013 – Vancouver, British Columbia; BlueBat Games, an independent studio that helps game developers and casino brands socialize their games on browser-based and mobile platforms, today officially announced its BlueBox Engine. BlueBox is a developer-centric social gamification engine that increases player engagement via proven social gamification strategies and mechanics. Designed from the ground up with online casinos in mind, it enables casino operators to leverage the social network effect and hook players into real life rewards. An estimated 173 million players per month currently engage with social casino games, and that number is quickly increasing. According to a late 2012 Morgan Stanley report, social casinos and social gambling games will potentially become a $7 Billion industry within the next two years. BlueBat helps land-based and online casinos extend their brands and build loyalty by helping them benefit from this social network effect to create explosive growth.
BlueBox exists as a communication layer between network-specific APIs and the front-end presentation layer or interface seen by players. It utilizes REST-style API architecture, enabling games to be published on multiple platforms or social sites such as Facebook, Google or BlueBat's own network of affiliated sites via one integration point; regardless of whether a game's native platform is Unity, Flash or HTML 5. This results in faster, less expensive development cycles and protection from the ever-changing protocols of each social platform. One such social network recently integrated into BlueBox is the Los Angeles-based GoPlay, a leading destination site for social casino games such as slots, bingo and poker. GoPlay's platform also enables casinos to embed free-to-play games onto their own sites and reward players with real-world incentives at their land-based locations. Top BlueBox Engine features include: o Core Services: Basic fundamental services, such as user information, portrait and friend list retrieval. o Social Gamification Services: Key tools that allow players to build their identity, manage privacy, form new connections & relationships, and communicate only what they wish to fellow players. o Economy Services: A powerful economy engine for monitoring and control of currency exchange ratios & balances. All in-game items are treated as currencies, allowing greater control over a true virtual economy. o Credit Services: For players to purchase in-game virtual goods using real money, it's necessary to implement and adhere to the various payment systems and procedures of each social network. BlueBox simplifies this by allowing developers to easily define or modify costs; and by reducing payment processing to a simple function call. o OAuth Services: Specifically designed to address the challenges of working with Facebook’s mandatory OAuth authentication system, BlueBox handles all user and application authentication processes behind-the-scenes. o Truly Platform-Agnostic: REST-ful API lets applications built on any platform – Unity, Flash or HTML5 – communicate with the BlueBox back-end. o Excel-based Analytics: BlueBox's data-driven architecture provides searchable, sort-able analytics that empowers designers with total control over all aspects of their games. "We believe designers should be freed up to focus on the game itself, as opposed to dealing with multiple APIs and conflicting protocols," commented Huang. "BlueBox does the 'heavy lifting', so our clients keep their focus on more important things like great game play, customer satisfaction and ROI." The BlueBox Engine including full GoPlay integration is currently available for licensing, with additional platforms and social networks to be integrated in the near future. Pricing is based on an affordable SaaS model, which scales proportionately to a game's player base. Please visit www.bluebatgames.com for more information.
About BlueBat Games Based in Vancouver, British Columbia, BlueBat Games is the team behind the BlueBox Engine, a platform-agnostic social gamification engine for casinos and social gambling game developers. Founded in 2011 by video game industry veterans Kenny Huang and Tim Harris, BlueBat first released Lucky's Bank Penny Slots on Facebook as proof of concept of its social casino engine. In 2012, BlueBat Games was selected as one of five start-ups to take part in GrowLab's 2012 Accelerator Program. About the BlueBox Engine The BlueBox Engine is a developer-centric, platform-agnostic social gamification engine for casinos and gambling game developers that increases player engagement via proven social gamification strategies and mechanics. It was specifically designed from the ground up for online casinos, enabling casino operators to leverage the social network effect and hook players into real life rewards. BlueBat provides easy-to-use interfaces and API's; and the ability to publish games onto multiple social platforms such as Facebook, iOS and Android with a single integration point to significantly shorten development time and costs.
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