FutureLogic, Inc., today announced that the company will mark a milestone in the thermal printing industry this year, celebrating 25 years in business. Founded in 1983, FutureLogic has established a leadership position in the TITO printer market through technological innovation and outstanding customer service.
FutureLogic began doing business as an electronic design consulting business, and created its first custom printer for the medical device market in 1995. FutureLogic printers also helped facilitate the development of supermarket couponing systems that are used to retain and reward shoppers. Today the company designs and manufactures thermal printers for casino gaming, medical, RTAL, gas pumps, promotional equipment, kiosk, and industrial applications.
In the gaming industry, FutureLogic has been setting performance standards since 1999 – winning ten industry awards in the past three years. “FutureLogic developed and launched the first TITO gaming printer, in collaboration with IGT designers, for the introduction of EZ-Pay,” says Nick Micalizzi, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for North America. “Today we have more installed TITO printers than all other manufacturers, and currently estimate that more than four billion tickets per year are printed across the Americas, Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia."
Although TITO technology has been widely adopted in U.S. casinos and some countries around the world, it is still a developing market in other parts of the world. One of the company challenges is to ensure that those regions receive the engineering, technical service and regulatory support that has made FutureLogic the leader in gaming printers worldwide. FutureLogic International has enjoyed significant growth over the last three years and market penetration in Europe and Asia has exceeded all expectations. The company has also grown operations in Latin America, and recently expanded operations with a sales, service and distribution center in Macau.
“Our goal is to be our customers’ best printer resource, worldwide. This means direct global support coupled with in-depth local knowledge,” said John Edmunds, Vice President of International Sales & Marketing. “Choosing FutureLogic is not just about specifying a reliable, high performance product – it’s also about the world-class support behind the FutureLogic name; whether that’s rapid turnaround on new firmware and ticket design requests for a casino opening, or on-the-ground support for major TITO trials and installations.”
In addition to establishing engineering and technical service operations in key markets around the world, FutureLogic is working hard at developing new technologies and implementing emerging OEM design requirements. “Our collaboration with industry-leading game manufacturers around the world has been an important factor in our ability to improve printer functionality and develop the interfaces required for next-generation electronic games,” said Micalizzi. “Our new GEN2 Universal printer, for example, anticipates new standards for the hottest trend in gaming–downloadable games.”
The GEN2™ Universal printers provide a migration path and support all current and emerging game types by incorporating three game ports, including RS232, NetPlex and USB 2. As a platinum member of GSA, FutureLogic participates in the development of communication standards and reference designs, sits on the Board of Directors, and chairs the GSA’s GDS (Gaming Device Standards) committee.
Another key development from FutureLogic is the PromoNet solution, a template-based promotional coupon system. “PromoNet will help casinos design and manage a wide range of promotional campaigns from the convenience of a workstation PC, and can be used with any gaming machine that is equipped with the GSA version of FutureLogic’s popular GEN2 Universal or GEN2 VST Universal printer,” said Edmunds. “With non-gaming revenue becoming more important to casino resorts and complexes, linking reward programs across multiple leisure experiences, as well as casino floors, will provide operators with new marketing opportunities.”
Edmunds noted the GSA open protocol allows casinos to leverage existing GEN2 Universal hardware across the casino floor, eliminating the need for costly modifications to printers and/or communication protocols. PromoNet is being developed in concert with the GSA standards and FutureLogic anticipates it will be installed in harmony with the release of certain GSA standards.
“Although FutureLogic currently dominates the TITO market, our focus remains on developing technologies that improve reliability, add value, and expand printer functionality,” said Micalizzi. “We see continued growth in the global gaming market and are positioned to deliver the engineering expertise, local support and exceptional customer service required to advance the evolution of cashless technology.”
About FutureLogic
Founded in 1983 and headquartered in Glendale, Calif., FutureLogic designs and builds high-reliability electromechanical assembly solutions for nearly every printing need. As the undisputed leader in super-robust thermal printer technology, FutureLogic is the industry's premier supplier of thermal printers for casino gaming, promotional equipment, kiosk, industrial, RTAL, gas pumps and medical applications. FutureLogic has installed more than 900,000 gaming printers, which produce approximately 4 billion vouchers annually. In July 2004 the company founded FutureLogic Europe Ltd to provide direct sales and engineering support for the growing OEM thermal printer markets in Europe. In October 2006 FutureLogic expanded its global support network into the Asia Pacific market, with a new sales and service center in Macau, China. More information on the company is available at www.futurelogic-inc.com.