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September/October 2016 // PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL //
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gaming standards associa-
tion (gsa) new standards
Since 1998, the Gaming Standards As-
sociation (GSA) has created standards
proven to decrease costs, streamline
development, and speed time to mar-
ket. Now GSA is releasing 11 stan-
dards designed to further enhance the
global gaming industry and unleash
the creativity of its developers.
“GSA’s members have collaborated
intensely during the last couple of years
and agreed to release the next set of
standards which are vastly improved.
GSA has been seeking ways to lower
the barriers to implementation of our
standards. This new set of standards
has now reached a level of maturity in
our industry to the benefit of suppliers,
operators, and regulators,”
said GSA
President Peter DeRaedt.
Among the 11 new mature standards
recently released by the GSA were
two breakthrough standards that
enable Player-to-System Interactions
to be streamlined with common PUI
templates. PUI (Player User Inter-
face) v1.0 and EMDI (EGM Media
Display Interface) v3.0. These directly
address operators’ business needs, get-
ting new content to players. The new
standards streamline both develop-
ment and implementation of equip-
ment and systems that drive operator-
player communication.
“The Player User Interface Committee
has been very clear in expressing opera-
tors’ challenges and needs. Among those
is a strong desire for more significant
player-to-system interactions at the
gaming device,”
said Committee Chair
John Taylor.
“Our committee worked
very hard to establish these two standards
to abridge both development and imple-
mentation surrounding player user inter-
face equipment, and to allow operators
to take full advantage of this exciting
technology to benefit their players.”
The landmark and award-winning
G2S® (Game-to-System) Standard new
v3.0 makes the gaming industry’s lead-
ing standard much easier—easier to
implement, easier to test, and easier to
operate. Further, new extensions have
been added to support gaming opera-
tors’ modern business needs. The new
G2S 3.0 is one of 11 standards GSA
recently released, all of which were
designed specifically to further en-
hance the global gaming industry and
unleash the creativity of its develop-
ers. Each of the standards is available
for free to all GSA members on GSA’s
website
,www.gamingstandards.com.
amazon moves into online
gaming
Amazon-owned Twitch acquired
Curse, a gaming content and re-
source hub visited by more than 30
million people each month. Founded
in 2006, Bay Area-based Curse had
raised nearly $60 million to date
for its platform that gives users PC
gaming-related information and
add-ons like videos, guides, forums,
communication apps, streaming tools,
mod managers, and more. It operates
more than 45 sites like LoLnexus and
Gamepedia. In February, Amazon
released Lumberyard, a free, cloud
connected game engine and moved it
into a state-of-the-art game studio and
streaming facility.
■
Vernon Kirk Interview
…
continued from page 30
V. Kirk:
There is a Delaware Attorney
General advisory letter that states fantasy
sports are games of chance, not skill, and as
such, according to Delaware Law, are a lot-
tery, and must be under the administrative
and regulatory control of the Lottery. Fan-
tasy sports companies insist they are a game
of skill, and to concede otherwise would
cloud their participation in much larger
states than Delaware. Delaware residents
already have great sports betting options,
possibly causing the fantasy sports opera-
tors to focus more on other states.
The Delaware Lottery model is unique in the
U.S. for having the widest variety of games
distributed through the widest variety of dis-
tributional channels …What do you think is
least understood about it?
V. Kirk:
Delaware Law states that there
be only two kinds of gambling in Dela-
ware—Lottery and horseracing. If there is
prize, consideration and chance, it is a lot-
tery and must be operated by the Lottery.
Anything else, like games of skill, is illegal.
What challenges do you think are under-
estimated, what solutions are not being ad-
equately embraced?
V. Kirk:
Honestly, the Delaware Lottery
has always had tremendous support from a
succession of administrations and has been
given the freedom to manage gaming from
a professional perspective. We appreciate a
high level of harmony with our stakehold-
ers who share the objective of building a
professional gaming operation that meets
the needs of consumer with the highest
standards of player protection and respon-
sible gaming.
What has the implementation of the Multi-
State Internet Gaming Agreement and the
multijurisdictional, progressive video lottery
network taught you about the challenge of
forging multi-jurisdictional collaboration?
V. Kirk:
Anything can be accomplished
with cooperation. We are different jurisdic-
tions, but working together for a common
goal embraces that diversity and allows us
to solve problems. A clear focus on the out-
comes that benefit our respective stakehold-
ers gives us all the will to overcome obstacles
and create mutually agreeable solutions.
■