Digital-jukebox giant TouchTunes Music Corporation played another winning hand at the Las Vegas AMOA Show, drawing more than 1,100 visitors to its exhibit booth and 1,400 industry guests to its “Ultimate”-themed events, the company reports.
Operators bought more than 1,100 of the company’s digital-downloading jukeboxes during the show.
TouchTunes, which now has an industry-high 20,000 Internet jukeboxes installed and online, said the record attendance was fueled by its new product introductions, promotions, and hospitality events that culminated with drawings for 15 free, limited-edition digital-downloading jukeboxes.
“We wanted to reward our operators on both a personal and business level by showing them a great time at the show and giving them chances to win some revenue-maximizing digital jukeboxes,” said Dan McAllister, TouchTunes senior vice president, sales and marketing.
TouchTunes earned an AMOA Innovator Award at the show for its Allegro floor-model digital jukebox equipped with the newly unveiled Gen 3 operating system. Features include downloadable personal playlists, which patrons create on the jukebox and online at www.myTouchTunes.com, and hard drive “morphing” for streamlined music programming and route management. TouchTunes was the only jukebox company to win one of this year’s three Innovator Awards.
The first 300 TouchTunes booth visitors who pre-registered with the company before the show received trendy Ogio brand nylon backpacks adorned with TouchTunes’ logo and containing gifts, including a classic rock CD from the Warner Music Group and a hip-hop disc from the EMI Group.
At a drawing held during TouchTunes’ Ultimate Finale party September 28 at Bally’s Las Vegas, 15 limited-edition Allegro jukeboxes were awarded to operators. The brightly colored jukeboxes displayed an auto-racing theme, with vivid blue, red, and yellow highlights on the front and black-and-white checkered flags on the sides.
TouchTunes recruited operator Angela Gonzalez of D&B Vending, El Paso, Texas, to draw the winning tickets.
While winners were drawn at random, it was not by chance that TouchTunes tapped Gonzales for assistance. She and her husband Manny, newcomers to the coin-machine industry, acquired their first jukebox of any type at last year’s AMOA show — by winning one at TouchTunes’ drawing.
Their free jukebox took in so much money — $26,000 in the first year alone — that they bought nine more from TouchTunes over the same period to serve their growing roster of locations, many of which cater primarily to young Hispanic patrons with a taste for mainstream rap and hip-hop music, the operators say.
The jukebox-winning operators were:
• Andrew Lee, BSA Vending, Hayward, CA (winner of 2 jukeboxes)
• Jim Reed, Patton Vending, Modesto, CA
• Steve Apker, Outer Limits, San Jose, CA
• Ron Bolger, Howard Music, Davenport, IA
• Don Waldron, Northgate Amusements, Springfield, IL
• Guy Cole, Punctuality Vending, Kalkaska, MI
• Ken Wilcox, CT Vending, Brokenridge, MN
• Dickie Martin, J & J Vending, Sanford, NC
• Jim Lakey, VVS Inc., Cozad, NE
• Art Barnes, Orwigsburg Vending, Auburn, PA
• Chris Vecchione, Apple Vending/Power to the Games, Bensalem, PA
• Steve Fritz, Staff Amusements, Hanover, PA
• Bill Goldberg, East Coast Vending, Morton, PA
• Fred Wood, State Amusements, State College, PA
Operators acquired their raffle tickets by visiting TouchTunes’ booth, attending its show events, and by buying jukeboxes any time during 2006 or placing an order at the show.
TouchTunes presented its 2006 President’s Awards to operators with some of the largest TouchTunes routes, “in recognition of the role they’ve played in the success of our company and the growth of coin-operated digital music,” said John Perrachon, TouchTunes president and CEO.
A platinum award, given to operators of 300 or more TouchTunes jukeboxes, went to Nebraska Technical Services of Omaha.
Gold Awards, for operators of 100 to 299 jukeboxes, went to the following companies:
• McGee Amusements, Inc., Ridgefield, NJ
• Four Star Vending, Danvers, MA
• Midwest Coin Concepts, St Cloud, MN
• I.F. Lafleur, Devil's Lake, ND
• T & G Music Inc., Titusville, FL
• D & R Star, Rochester, MN
• Stanton Automatics, Auburn, NY
• A.J. Video Amusements, Baltimore, MD
• Bill's Vending Service, Sewell, NJ
• Abraham & Sons Amusement, Peoria, IL
• T & M Distributing, Willimantic, CT
• Automatic Coin Vending, Chester, PA
• L & P Vending, Barboursville, WV
The following operators, with 50 to 99 TouchTunes jukeboxes, received Silver Awards: Rich and Junnie's Coin Inc., Dubuque, IA; CIC Corporation, Mountainside, NJ; South Texas Vending Inc, Brownsville, TX; Penn Vending, Bensalem, PA; Gekay Sales and Service Co., Inc., Ludlow, MA; Metro Games,Irving, TX; Games Unlimited /United Games, Milbank, SD, ;Twin States Music, Inc., Hudson, WI; Beyers & Brown, South Daytona, FL; Patton Vending, Modesto, CA; Theisen Vending, Golden Valley, MN; Northgate Amusement, Springfield, IL; Sunstar Vending, Brooklyn, NY; Diltz & Sons LLP, Mishawaka, IN; Don Lindy, Chicago, IL; McDonald's Amusements, Little River, SC; SJV Entertainment/Desert Gaming, Henderson, NV; and Playtime Amusements, Santa Monica, CA.
lso receiving Silver Awards: Amusement Unlimited, Eugene, OR; Anchor Amusement Co., Jacksonville, FL; Cox Music, Davenport, IA; Manhattan Amusement, New York, NY;
Rosemary Coin of MB, Myrtle Beach, SC; Venco Business Music, Bland, VA; Sutton Amusement, Wilmington, NC; Pride Vending, Salem, OR; D & Z Vending, Orlando, FL; Jukebox Inc., Waukee, IA; Mendota Valley Amusements, Inver Grove Heights, MN; Allied Games, Beloit,. WI; Number One Vending, Jacksonville, FL; Amusement Services, Billings, MT: Velasquez Automatic Music, Chicago, IL; Mike's Amusements, Lansing, IL; and Dial Amusements, Barrington Hills, IL.
A new category of awards this year recognized operators whose jukebox routes are 100 percent TouchTunes, with at least 25 units in operation: Owen Music, Vero Beach, FL; Rosemary Coin of MB, Myrtle Beach, SC; T & G Music, Titusville, FL; Brass Ring, Rockford, IL; Dial Amusements, Barrington Hills, IL; Camden, Cedar Rapids, IA; Tim-Todd, Wauconda, IL; BSA Vending, Hayward, CA; Arcadian Enterprises, Cape Coral, FL; Alpha One Omega One, Aurora, CO; Shootin' the Bull, San Diego, CA; and SJV Entertainment, Las Vegas, NV.
Distributor of the Year honors went to Moss Distributing, Des Moines, IA.
About 700 guests attended the gala event, which offered an open bar, appetizers, dessert, and music provided by a TouchTunes jukebox.
Vendors who helped underwrite the hospitality included AT&T, Bose Corporation, Firestone Financial, ICT, Superior Exhibits and Design, Nixon & Banderhye, SeSac, Seagate, Microsource, Videotron, Adlib Metal, Crown, Optimal, General Touch, Positron, Color Kinetics, Warner Music Group, and EMI Group.
As at past AMOA shows, TouchTunes donated a jukebox to a raffle benefiting the AMOA Education Foundation’s Wayne E. Hesch Memorial Scholarship.
For product and sales information, call TouchTunes toll-free at (888) 338-5853 or e-mail
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On the Net: www.touchtunes.com.
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RELEASE - AMOA2006 (