G2E

I never EVER thought I would say this but here it is: I am completely Vegas-ed out. I know — all of you are in shock but it's really true. I don't know if I will feel differently in time for ISC West but right now, I'd say no way.

The gaming show was good and I had some interesting appointments with Honeywell, Cisco, Dallmeier and Sting (their motto is 'we'll be watching you') among others. I'll be sharing some video in the coming weeks on our new SDNtv feature. The real highlight of this event is always the educational sessions and if you are in security and surveillance and have not attended (and have the budget), I encourage you to do so. There are some great topics and speakers.

This blog is going to go dark (to use a Vegas word) for the next week or so as I am heading out on my first true vacation in two years. My plan is to work as little as possible, although who knows, you may see a new post from me tomorrow.

I am at the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas this week — I know, I said just two months ago that I wouldn't be back in Las Vegas until ISC West, but when an opportunity presents itself ...
G2E, as it is commonly known, started off today with its Training and Development Institute and I sat in on a great session titled "Training Surveillance Personnel: Best Practices." It was moderated by Jessie Beaudoin, surveillance property manager at Stratosphere Hotel & Casino and the panelists were Derk Boss, corporate vice president of surveillance and compliance officer for American Casino & Entertainment Properties; Michael Thomson, director of surveillance at Harrah's Northern Nevada; and Steve Allensworth, director of surveillance at Peppermill Casino in Reno. Here are the highlights from their panel.

*Jessie started out the discussion by stating that training is absolutely critical for each and every surveillance employee. He said when he started out he was handed a table games manual, showed a map of cameras and was asked, "Are you ready to work a shift on your own?"

*Mike said he started a training program for all surveillance staff that requires them to learn how to deal each table game. The employees are rewarded with a pay increase when they pass a certain level. Mike said productivity increased 4,000 percent after putting this program in place.

*Space is a premium in surveillance. A few audience members raised their hands when Mike asked them if their monitor room was a size of a closet. Steve said most casinos don't think about surveillance in the development stages and it is difficult to secure space after the fact.

*Derk said the biggest cases he has worked on have been due to internal theft. He said the employee or executive that has resorted to fraud or embezzlement is going to cost you more than anything else. "We have dealt with frauds that are more than $100,000."

*Steve said the game that causes casinos the most trouble is blackjack. Roulette and craps follow.

*Derk said it is important for surveillance professionals to attend conferences and network with their peers to build their knowledge base. Certifications are also a viable option. With more and more casino employees coming into the environment with college degrees, it is important for surveillance to show career initiative as well. "We have to be sitting at the executive table and certifications are a way to get there," he said.

On another interesting note, there was talk at the convention center that surveillance practitioners don't think of themselves as security. It's not something I have heard before. Any feedback?

OK, I'm finally done with Las Vegas for the year. And in some strange way, I will miss the sound of slot machines 24 hours per day; the iPod commercial that continually runs across the jumbo screens at the Fashion Show mall; the imploding buildings and fireworks at 2:30 a.m.; the expensive cab rides; and everything else that comes along with this crazy city.

Anyway, some good news came out of the gaming expo.

*There are currently $22 billion in Las Vegas casino projects in the works, which I'm sure boosted confidence in the market. One of them is a huge project called City Center, which is currently under construction.

*This year's show included an expanded security and surveillance pavilion. Although the casino market has been slow to embrace IP-based technology, partly due to gaming regulations, most exhibitors focused on showcasing their IP wares. Pelco pushed its Endura line, Bosch talked about the message of convergence, and IndigoVision and Cisco also plugged the benefits of IP.

*Away from the show floor, surveillance and security practitioners filled rooms to hear experts discuss a myriad of topics ranging from shootings on casino properties to the move from analog to digital technology, and the challenge with protecting soft and hard count rooms.

*In an educational session on Tuesday afternoon, Per Lundkvist, chief security and risk officer for AB Svenska Spel, which operates four casinos in Sweden, talked about his company's transition from analog to digital. The company is currently in the second phase of this deployment.

*Back in the exhibit hall, Petards announced that The 101 Casino plans to install its surveillance solution to enable security guards to have 24-hour remote viewing capabilities following the remodeling of its facility. The company's VMS will be integrated with IP cameras from Axis and IQInVision, as well as Lenel's access control solution.

*Pivot3 also announced a reseller agreement with Petards. With this agreement, Petards will resell Pivot3's storage as part of its video recording and management system.

*Panasonic announced a new alliance with North American Video to push its initiative in this space further.

All around I thought G2E was a great conference from an educational perspective and it will be interesting to see if the security and surveillance pavilion continues to grow. Until next year ...

The exhibit hall at G2E opened yesterday with more than a little fanfare. Although ASIS does a great job opening its annual seminar — I particularly enjoyed the marching band in San Diego — the gaming show brought out the big guns, Tony Soprano to be more accurate. Yep, James Gandolfini opened up the show here followed by lots of confetti (I just found more in my bag as I was packing up to head to the airport.)

The show floor was a sensory overload of slot machines, lighting fixtures, gaming tables, comfy long-term player's seats, RFID gaming chips and lot of IP-based security technology from companies like Pelco, Honeywell, Bosch, Petards, Cisco Systems and IndigoVision. I counted more than 50 exhibitors in this year's expanded security and surveillance pavilion, creatively dubbed Eye in the Sky.

There's more to report, of course, but I have a plane to catch. I'll be sure to follow up later.