Gaming America
Some like it slot: the world of slot media influencers
by Gaming America · March 20, 2023
Some like it slot: the world of slot media influencers
by Gaming America · March 20, 2023
Gaming America talks to two of the biggest names in this niche sector – BC Slots Founder Brian Christopher and Slotaholic Founder Josh Duffy.
In the world of slot media personalities, there is plenty of diversity in personality. Gaming America spoke with Brian Christopher, YouTuber and Founder of his self-titled slot machine brand, and Josh Duffy, the man behind the Slotaholic YouTube channel. While both slot enthusiasts have plenty in common – regarding their passion and personability – the differences were more noticeable. Christopher spoke to us from a professional studio set-up (complete with a pro-gamer chair) from his home office in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Duffy, fresh from a paid-for visit to Las Vegas, was busy setting up his retail store in New Orleans for Mardi Gras festivities as we talked.
A huge part of Duffy’s charm and burgeoning YouTube subscriber base is tied to his aura of informality. Christopher shares this a little but has also leveraged his explosion in popularity to tackle some serious issues.
SOCIAL INFLUENCERS
As an official advocate for American Nonsmokers’ Rights (ANR) and supporter of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE), Christopher has spearheaded efforts to eliminate smoking in casinos. Christopher said that, coming from Canada, he was shocked to find that smoking was still legal in so many US casinos.
He tells Gaming America: “It was kind of disgusting – I go into the casinos as much as I have to for work. It was definitely having an effect on my health and my staff’s health. I just couldn’t understand and I did a lot of research on it. We’re down to only 13% of the US population smoking right now, so why is it so prominent in casinos?
"There’s really a big myth and belief that gamblers are all smokers or smokers are all gamblers. It’s just not true so I’m trying to prove that theory. The facts are facts and so I decided, as of this year, to strictly promote smoke-free casinos.”
Christopher has backed the courage of his convictions and launched an exclusive, smoke-free, Brian Christopher Slots space in the Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas. This may be one of the strongest demonstrations of the power a YouTube influencer can have over land-based casinos. The expansion of Christopher’s pre-existing curated slot machine space involves growing its number of titles from 25 to over 85; this will be the first entirely smoke-free gaming area in Downtown Las Vegas. The slots influencer spoke about his Plaza endeavor and how he hopes it will influence other land-based operators in Las Vegas. He said: “I’m sure lots of downtown casino properties are going to be watching to see the success of this, to see how it goes. I’m really eager to showcase this.”
On February 13, Christopher took his concerns to the New Jersey Statehouse where he conducted a testimonial in front of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. Here he made his view on smoking in casinos abundantly clear, lamenting the practice and stating: “Without a change in state law, I will not be visiting Atlantic City casinos, or using my platform to promote the otherwise fantastic entertainment experience they provide. While this means turning down some business opportunities, I believe in this cause – and my business continues to thrive."
Meanwhile, Duffy has been running his business Bourbon Pride for 12 years now, raising money for local charities and social causes that are close to his heart. The shop offered hundreds of dollars to unemployed people at the height of the pandemic, through charity raffles. At the time, Duffy said: “I just know that any financial help is going to move someone during these times. It’s going to be such a great joy to see people receive the money and the blessing they need.”
Duffy and his partner, Joseph, say they love to regularly donate to local animal shelters such as Zeus Rescue and Metairie Small Kittens, as well as local LGBT groups and charities. He notes that YouTube channels are most beneficial in a philanthropic sense when they are able to livestream from retail locations. However, he has rarely been able to shoot live so has had to put this on the back-burner for now; Harrah’s New Orleans is a six-block walk from his home, but he’s only able to shoot there once a month. Duffy remarks: “Should Harrah's New Orleans allow me to film more frequently, I would certainly include more live streams – which I believe would benefit my channel’s visibility.”
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS, BUT WHERE NEXT?
Before Duffy was being whisked off for an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas by Jackpot Party Casino, he was just another YouTube content creator, one among millions. But, as the author Haruki Murakami once said, “you have to start somewhere. Perfection doesn’t happen right away.”
Over the past five years, growing followers was never of paramount importance to Duffy. He believes he’s enjoyed growth that has been slow and steady with "speedy momentum scattered throughout each year." He followed the main tenet all social media influencers must abide by – be eminently watchable and forge a hardcore base of fans. He says Slotaholic has been a learning journey, giving him the chance to gain new editing skills and build authentic relationships with his clientele. His immediate dreams remain modest, as he desires to collaborate with fellow content creators, travel to more popular casinos across the country that remain unvisited by Slotaholic and 'continue to grow organically.'
Despite the inherent informality that comes with Duffy, there is no doubt he possesses an entrepreneurial spirit, having run Bourbon Pride for over a decade. As he says, “I’m going to move forward with this as a business because I was already a business owner. I thought it’d be fun if I approached it like a brand, so ‘Sip, Spin and Win’ was born right away.” Duffy emphasizes that he always knew Slotaholic would be best approached as a brand rather than a hobby.
Christopher is undeniably business-savvy, having founded BC Ventures as the business-facing side of his operations. He says: “BC Ventures in the coming years involves a lot more expansion. One area we want to branch out into is the digital world, maybe with more of our slot machines or promoting more digitally as well. Our merchandise has always done really well, so we want to keep growing on that side of things.”
However, Christopher knows he remains a YouTuber first and foremost and he doesn’t expect his viewers to engage with BC Ventures. He remarks: “They just need to know BC Slots because that’s what they’re watching. BC Ventures is not fan-facing and our fans don’t need to know what it is.” His focus is on being the face of his brand (quite literally when looking at the BC Slot machines, on which his face is plastered).
Keeping in mind his duties as a media personality, Christopher leaves the operational side of BC Slots to the company’s partner Gaming Arts, the manufacturer of the slot. BC Slots is available in about 35 casinos and three cruise ships. It is up to Gaming Arts to sell the games, lease them and have discussions with the casinos; Brian says he has "no part in that.” He wants BC slots to be ‘everywhere’ but is uninvolved in the process of vying for approval from gaming commissions.
HERALDING A NEW AGE OF SLOTS
There exists a preconception of the average slot player that is rather unflattering. As Christopher says: “The stereotype is that slot players are always little old ladies.” But he argues that the slot machine industry has successfully been targeting the 20-30-year-old demographic and the new generation of slot players will be younger than the previous one.
Christopher comments: “Casinos have become a lot more hip these days, they’ve gotten much better. I mean, the concert venues for one, just to get people in there. The food options are incredible these days and all the other amenities they have. They’re definitely trying to target the younger generations.” He says his fans lean toward ‘Mailie Meloy’ (a popular author among millennials) and that casinos will be targeting this same audience. Christopher wants to highlight the most fun aspects of playing slots and dispose of the ‘little old lady’ stereotype when it comes to slot machine fans.
Duffy takes his responsibility as an influencer seriously, saying that his focus is always on educating his audience about slots. He adopts a practical approach to gambling, as he outlines here: “I’m a sponge, so I learn games, I don’t forget the symbol or forget the top pay symbol. There’s a symbol at the bonus features now and I get very analytical with my content.”
The Slotaholic Founder also wants to pass on this ‘slot-savviness’ to his subscribers. He points to his videos on the 7 Up Challenge and 100 spins, which have a heavy element of information sharing in them, with Duffy providing tricks and tips on-screen and showing what the most recent trends look like. This means players have a better understanding of what the true potential of a game is.
Duffy comments: “A lot of influencers will post just their big wins or their jackpots; I’m friends with those people and it hurts my soul sometimes when we go out gambling because they’re just looking for the next big win to share on YouTube. I’m more here to educate the players and say, ‘Hey, this is realistic. I’m no different than you.’ Is it about luck? Maybe, but it’s really about timing.” Duffy tells Gaming America that if he was to have an ‘influencer legacy’ it would be as the YouTube channel that a younger generation of slot gamblers can rely on for educational purposes.
When meeting fans he likes to gain feedback to see if this is indeed the case: “They say they watched the channel, so I ask ‘what do you think about my 100 Spins videos? What do you think about the stats I’m providing?’ They have no quarrel with it. They appreciate that I do that and they enjoy seeing that someone actually takes some time and dives into the methodical side of things.”
‘Methodical’ may not be the first adjective that springs to mind when you think about slot social media influencers but there is no doubt that this sector, while niche, is a ripe one for the business-minded. As Christopher’s appearance at the New Jersey Statehouse attests to, popularity on social media can translate into real power in influencing the gambling industry at large.
In the world of slot media personalities, there is plenty of diversity in personality. Gaming America spoke with Brian Christopher, YouTuber and Founder of his self-titled slot machine brand, and Josh Duffy, the man behind the Slotaholic YouTube channel. While both slot enthusiasts have plenty in common – regarding their passion and personability – the differences were more noticeable. Christopher spoke to us from a professional studio set-up (complete with a pro-gamer chair) from his home office in Las Vegas. Meanwhile, Duffy, fresh from a paid-for visit to Las Vegas, was busy setting up his retail store in New Orleans for Mardi Gras festivities as we talked.
A huge part of Duffy’s charm and burgeoning YouTube subscriber base is tied to his aura of informality. Christopher shares this a little but has also leveraged his explosion in popularity to tackle some serious issues.
SOCIAL INFLUENCERS
As an official advocate for American Nonsmokers’ Rights (ANR) and supporter of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE), Christopher has spearheaded efforts to eliminate smoking in casinos. Christopher said that, coming from Canada, he was shocked to find that smoking was still legal in so many US casinos.
He tells Gaming America: “It was kind of disgusting – I go into the casinos as much as I have to for work. It was definitely having an effect on my health and my staff’s health. I just couldn’t understand and I did a lot of research on it. We’re down to only 13% of the US population smoking right now, so why is it so prominent in casinos?
"There’s really a big myth and belief that gamblers are all smokers or smokers are all gamblers. It’s just not true so I’m trying to prove that theory. The facts are facts and so I decided, as of this year, to strictly promote smoke-free casinos.”
Christopher has backed the courage of his convictions and launched an exclusive, smoke-free, Brian Christopher Slots space in the Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas. This may be one of the strongest demonstrations of the power a YouTube influencer can have over land-based casinos. The expansion of Christopher’s pre-existing curated slot machine space involves growing its number of titles from 25 to over 85; this will be the first entirely smoke-free gaming area in Downtown Las Vegas. The slots influencer spoke about his Plaza endeavor and how he hopes it will influence other land-based operators in Las Vegas. He said: “I’m sure lots of downtown casino properties are going to be watching to see the success of this, to see how it goes. I’m really eager to showcase this.”
On February 13, Christopher took his concerns to the New Jersey Statehouse where he conducted a testimonial in front of the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee. Here he made his view on smoking in casinos abundantly clear, lamenting the practice and stating: “Without a change in state law, I will not be visiting Atlantic City casinos, or using my platform to promote the otherwise fantastic entertainment experience they provide. While this means turning down some business opportunities, I believe in this cause – and my business continues to thrive."
Meanwhile, Duffy has been running his business Bourbon Pride for 12 years now, raising money for local charities and social causes that are close to his heart. The shop offered hundreds of dollars to unemployed people at the height of the pandemic, through charity raffles. At the time, Duffy said: “I just know that any financial help is going to move someone during these times. It’s going to be such a great joy to see people receive the money and the blessing they need.”
Duffy and his partner, Joseph, say they love to regularly donate to local animal shelters such as Zeus Rescue and Metairie Small Kittens, as well as local LGBT groups and charities. He notes that YouTube channels are most beneficial in a philanthropic sense when they are able to livestream from retail locations. However, he has rarely been able to shoot live so has had to put this on the back-burner for now; Harrah’s New Orleans is a six-block walk from his home, but he’s only able to shoot there once a month. Duffy remarks: “Should Harrah's New Orleans allow me to film more frequently, I would certainly include more live streams – which I believe would benefit my channel’s visibility.”
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS, BUT WHERE NEXT?
Before Duffy was being whisked off for an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas by Jackpot Party Casino, he was just another YouTube content creator, one among millions. But, as the author Haruki Murakami once said, “you have to start somewhere. Perfection doesn’t happen right away.”
Over the past five years, growing followers was never of paramount importance to Duffy. He believes he’s enjoyed growth that has been slow and steady with "speedy momentum scattered throughout each year." He followed the main tenet all social media influencers must abide by – be eminently watchable and forge a hardcore base of fans. He says Slotaholic has been a learning journey, giving him the chance to gain new editing skills and build authentic relationships with his clientele. His immediate dreams remain modest, as he desires to collaborate with fellow content creators, travel to more popular casinos across the country that remain unvisited by Slotaholic and 'continue to grow organically.'
Despite the inherent informality that comes with Duffy, there is no doubt he possesses an entrepreneurial spirit, having run Bourbon Pride for over a decade. As he says, “I’m going to move forward with this as a business because I was already a business owner. I thought it’d be fun if I approached it like a brand, so ‘Sip, Spin and Win’ was born right away.” Duffy emphasizes that he always knew Slotaholic would be best approached as a brand rather than a hobby.
Christopher is undeniably business-savvy, having founded BC Ventures as the business-facing side of his operations. He says: “BC Ventures in the coming years involves a lot more expansion. One area we want to branch out into is the digital world, maybe with more of our slot machines or promoting more digitally as well. Our merchandise has always done really well, so we want to keep growing on that side of things.”
However, Christopher knows he remains a YouTuber first and foremost and he doesn’t expect his viewers to engage with BC Ventures. He remarks: “They just need to know BC Slots because that’s what they’re watching. BC Ventures is not fan-facing and our fans don’t need to know what it is.” His focus is on being the face of his brand (quite literally when looking at the BC Slot machines, on which his face is plastered).
Keeping in mind his duties as a media personality, Christopher leaves the operational side of BC Slots to the company’s partner Gaming Arts, the manufacturer of the slot. BC Slots is available in about 35 casinos and three cruise ships. It is up to Gaming Arts to sell the games, lease them and have discussions with the casinos; Brian says he has "no part in that.” He wants BC slots to be ‘everywhere’ but is uninvolved in the process of vying for approval from gaming commissions.
HERALDING A NEW AGE OF SLOTS
There exists a preconception of the average slot player that is rather unflattering. As Christopher says: “The stereotype is that slot players are always little old ladies.” But he argues that the slot machine industry has successfully been targeting the 20-30-year-old demographic and the new generation of slot players will be younger than the previous one.
Christopher comments: “Casinos have become a lot more hip these days, they’ve gotten much better. I mean, the concert venues for one, just to get people in there. The food options are incredible these days and all the other amenities they have. They’re definitely trying to target the younger generations.” He says his fans lean toward ‘Mailie Meloy’ (a popular author among millennials) and that casinos will be targeting this same audience. Christopher wants to highlight the most fun aspects of playing slots and dispose of the ‘little old lady’ stereotype when it comes to slot machine fans.
Duffy takes his responsibility as an influencer seriously, saying that his focus is always on educating his audience about slots. He adopts a practical approach to gambling, as he outlines here: “I’m a sponge, so I learn games, I don’t forget the symbol or forget the top pay symbol. There’s a symbol at the bonus features now and I get very analytical with my content.”
The Slotaholic Founder also wants to pass on this ‘slot-savviness’ to his subscribers. He points to his videos on the 7 Up Challenge and 100 spins, which have a heavy element of information sharing in them, with Duffy providing tricks and tips on-screen and showing what the most recent trends look like. This means players have a better understanding of what the true potential of a game is.
Duffy comments: “A lot of influencers will post just their big wins or their jackpots; I’m friends with those people and it hurts my soul sometimes when we go out gambling because they’re just looking for the next big win to share on YouTube. I’m more here to educate the players and say, ‘Hey, this is realistic. I’m no different than you.’ Is it about luck? Maybe, but it’s really about timing.” Duffy tells Gaming America that if he was to have an ‘influencer legacy’ it would be as the YouTube channel that a younger generation of slot gamblers can rely on for educational purposes.
When meeting fans he likes to gain feedback to see if this is indeed the case: “They say they watched the channel, so I ask ‘what do you think about my 100 Spins videos? What do you think about the stats I’m providing?’ They have no quarrel with it. They appreciate that I do that and they enjoy seeing that someone actually takes some time and dives into the methodical side of things.”
‘Methodical’ may not be the first adjective that springs to mind when you think about slot social media influencers but there is no doubt that this sector, while niche, is a ripe one for the business-minded. As Christopher’s appearance at the New Jersey Statehouse attests to, popularity on social media can translate into real power in influencing the gambling industry at large.
CDC Gaming Reports
Social media influencers find increasing acceptance from gaming industry
by Rege Behe · March 21, 2023
Social media influencers find increasing acceptance from gaming industry
by Rege Behe · March 21, 2023
While trying to establish an acting career in 2009, Brian Christopher’s life changed during a casino visit. Not because he hit a huge jackpot. Nor did he meet an agent and sign a lucrative acting deal.
Christopher’s life changed when he filmed his slot play and posted it on YouTube. It did surprisingly well and he started to post more videos.
“I thought that would be the end of it, but those videos just took off,” he says. “Never in a million years had I any plans to make this a career.”
Fast forward to 2023. Christopher is arguably the gaming-industry’s most popular influencer. His BC Slots’ platforms on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok have 1.5 million followers and subscribers; his videos have been viewed more than a billion times. BC Slots employs a staff of 10 and Christopher’s schedule is booked for about 85 percent of 2023, despite a decision to visit only smoke-free casinos and gaming spaces.
He even has his own branded slot machine, Brian Christopher’s Pop’ N Pays, developed by Gaming Arts, and a dedicated non-smoking area that bears his name on the gaming floor at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in downtown Las Vegas.
As casinos increasingly compete for entertainment dollars, Christopher and other influencers add value simply by appearing at venues.
“Social media has transformed our daily lives, including the casino experience,” said Plaza Hotel & Casino CEO Jonathan Jossel via email. “People want to share the fun they have playing, the thrill of winning, and watch others do the same.
“We’ve found that many of our players enjoy watching social media personalities playing their favorite game. That’s why we embrace social media influencers. Brian Christopher is a trailblazer in this regard with his YouTube videos and we’re proud to work with him and build on our successful partnership with his expanded space in the new smoke-free casino area debuting later this spring as part of our Main Street Reimagination project.”
*****
When Kelly Koffler started filming table games play two and a half years ago, she admits it was a learning experience – and not only getting the right angles, lighting, and sound for videos posted on her Beyond Blackjack platforms. The former schoolteacher, who has a master’s degree in education, admits that she’s a “flawed player, as most of us are.” But her conversational approach has translated into more than 50,000 followers across platforms that include Koffler’s channel Slots 500 Club.
Well-versed in blackjack, Koffler took a different approach when playing other games such as Mississippi Stud, Ultimate Texas Hold’ Em, or pai gow poker.
“I thought it would be cool if I learned to play on film,” Koffler says, “because the problem with learning before and then going to a table and trying to show how to play is that you forget what people don’t know. I wanted to go to a table and ask the questions in tutorials that people would never ask. Can I touch my cards? Can I show my cards to other players? Etiquette is one of the most intimidating parts of a table game. I wanted to learn about that on camera, so people could learn with me.”
Koffler employs another device that endears her to followers: She laughs constantly, maintaining a cheerful disposition even if she’s on a losing streak. She doesn’t enjoy losing, but Koffler maintains that watching a video where a person is complaining or angry isn’t purposeful.
One of the reasons that Koffler can maintain her equilibrium is that she never bets beyond her means.
“If I lose only $300 or $400, I’m going to be upset about it, because that’s within my budget,” she says. “I think some of these other (influencers) have these huge budgets and it’s not a good feeling for anyone to lose $2,000 or $3,000. It’s not a good look to show people this is the feeling you’re having about a game from a gaming perspective.
“It doesn’t make the game look good to see people leave the table so upset and angry. And from a viewer’s perspective, it’s not very entertaining to see people unhappy.”
*****
Josh Duffy was having a few drinks with friends a few years ago, talking about his nascent YouTube channel that featured him playing slots. Before he knew it, a name for the channel, Slotaholic, emerged, as did a tagline that perfectly described the gist of his endeavor: Sip, Spin, and Win.
“I know branding and I know marketing,” says Duffy, a musician who also owns a retail gift store on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. “We wanted something fun and we came up with Sip, Spin, and Win pretty quickly.”
Duffy’s approach to filming is akin to hosting a party with his best friends. Like an exuberant cousin posting family videos on social media, Duffy’s tone is always upbeat, even if he’s losing.
“As a child I was very shy. But as I kept getting on stage (as a musician), I realized that we’re all the same,” he says. “We all just want to be entertained and have fun, so that’s what I try to do through the videos.”
Duffy also insists on posting videos when his results aren’t optimal.
“If I’m not winning big or it’s a mediocre win or a losing video, I still post it. That’s the reality of gaming,” Duffy says.
Duffy admits that he’s not in the same league as other influencers who wager much larger amounts; he usually limits his slot bets to $2-$4 per spin. But what he shares with Christopher, a successful actor in his native Canada for 20 years (starting at age 11) before moving to the U.S., and Koffler, the former schoolteacher, is a palpable sense of ease on camera. They come across as friends or neighbors, not media stars.
“I think a lot of people probably watch me, because I make the game unintimidating,” Koffler says. “My sizing isn’t intimidating, it’s more like an average person. Also, I don’t claim to play everything perfectly.”
*****
It wasn’t that long ago that a person filming in a casino set off alarms and was quickly confronted by security. But as more influencers gain followings on social media platforms, casinos are increasingly willing to host them.
According to El Cortez General Manager Adam Wiesberg, the downtown Las Vegas casino and hotel was the first in Vegas to allow livestreams from table games, which started five years ago. The El Cortez has rules for filming posted on its website, including gaming prior approval, only showing gameplay, and no use of equipment beyond cell phones or small cameras. The hotel and casino also asks that influencers refrain from using off color, political or controversial comments.
Filming also is limited to slots except for special approval provided to select influencers.
“We continue to be one of the premier locations for influencers to create gaming content,” Wiesberg says via email. “There are challenges to allowing filming in the casino, but we’ve found that it does help with brand exposure and it provides a great organic marketing platform. It requires oversight and hands-on management, but we feel it’s worth it.”
Sometimes, filming involves a lot more than just walking into a casino, setting up a camera, and pushing play. Brian Christopher can’t walk into a casino unnoticed. That’s what happens when you have 1.5 million followers, the most avid among them known as Rudies, a riff on one of Christopher’s catch phrases, “That’s rude” when a promising spin doesn’t pay off.
“Even if I go to a casino and no one knows I’m going to be there, I’ll run into fans,” Christopher says, noting that he recently was at a casino in Washington state and “couldn’t walk five feet without getting asked for a photograph.”
Without the right mindset, such attention could be annoying. But Christopher embraces, and is grateful for, the recognition.
“I love that time to connect with the audience,” he says, noting that on a recent BC Slots-themed cruise, 550 “Rudies” represented 18 percent of the passengers. “The cruises are wildly successful and beyond comprehension,” he added, noting that later this year, he’ll embark on a cruise that visits Australia and New Zealand.
While she’s not yet at Christopher’s level, Koffler is starting to be recognized during casino visits. During a recent visit to Seven Feathers Casino Resort in Canyonville, Oregon, and then a trip to Las Vegas, she admits to being exhausted by the end of the trip.
But no matter how tired she is, Koffler tries to remain upbeat.
“You can’t ever just zone out. People come up to you and want to talk, because they feel like they know you,” she says. “I wasn’t even playing toward the end of the trip, just hanging out with friends and having meetings. There were times when people came up to me and I was having a conversation, and they were so excited it instantly changed my mood, feeling that you’re making people happy, making them smile.
If there’s criticism of influencers, it’s the accusation they aren’t playing with their own money and their play is comped. Christopher says he gets comped “like all players do, based on play.” But because he wagers so much money, the remuneration often covers some expenses.
“With all my coin-in, I get free rooms, food, freeplay, and the gifts like toasters,” he says with a laugh.
Koffler also admits that she’s comped because of the frequency of play and bet sizing, but it’s generally just rooms and food.
“I definitely wish that the casinos would give more recognition to influencers in terms of free play and/or resort credit as a ‘thank you’ for marketing their casinos,” Koffler says. “But other than the really huge channels, that doesn’t generally happen. And I guess I understand that maybe it would be hard to keep track of, since anyone could basically say they’re filming for a channel. There would have to be some oversight to that, but it sure would be nice.”
*****
As audiences continue to grow, so does the impact of influencers on the gaming industry. Duffy and Koffler, through their good-natured play, are models of the best way to gamble: even-handedly and most of all responsibly, not wagering beyond their means.
But Christopher has taken his influence to another level. In February 2023, he appeared before the New Jersey Senate’s Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee to advocate for smoke-free casinos. His testimony came one day after Christopher said he would no longer visit casinos and gaming spaces that weren’t smoke free.
The feedback he’s received, from casino patrons and especially workers, has been overwhelmingly positive.
“A lot of my fans are thanking me for what I’m doing,” Christopher says, “Someone needs to do something, because everyone’s fed up with it. A lot of a people just feel like they just don’t have a choice. They can drive five or six hours to a smoke-free casino or go to their local, which is 15 minutes away, and suffer through it.
“We’re at a point where only 12-1/2 percent of the country smokes. It no longer makes sense and it can no longer be the argument that (casinos) will lose money because (of smoking bans). The majority should be ruling here.”
Rege Behe is lead contributor to CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at rbehe@cdcgaming.com. Please follow @RegeBehe_exPTR on Twitter.
Gambling Industry News
Brian Christopher Testifies in Support of Atlantic City Casino Workers Pushing for Smokefree Workplace
by Ciaran McEneaney · February 16, 2023
Slots influencer Brian Christopher has spoken out in support of NJ casino workers who are pushing for a complete ban on smoking on gaming floors.
Slots influencer Brian Christopher (AKA BCSlots) has testified to the New Jersey Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee in support of Atlantic City casino workers who are pushing for a complete ban on smoking on gaming floors.
According to current legislation, all workers in the state are entitled to work in a smoke-free environment. However, casinos have been using a legal loophole to allow patrons to smoke on the gaming floor. The loophole has existed now for the past 17 years and allows smoking on 25% of casino gaming floors.
Casino workers have garnered support from both lawmakers and high-profile names within the industry such as Christopher who recently launched the first smoke-free slots area in Downtown Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Brian shared a copy of his testimony with Gambling Industry News:
Good afternoon, and thank you to the members of the Committee for the opportunity to testify.
My name is Brian Christopher. I am the largest social influencer for Casinos in the world, known as Brian Christopher Slots. I post daily videos playing slot machines, reaching millions of avid casino visitors a month – with male millennials being my top demographic – the very customers casinos care deeply about and are desperate to attract. I’m one myself, by the way.
As part of my job, I travel across the country and partner with casinos to excite and educate the most vibrant, diverse, and deeply engaged community of players. So far, our videos have been viewed nearly a BILLION times over.
Now, imagine growing up in a world where walking into a room full of cigarette smoke is simply not normal. Throughout my travels, I have spoken to numerous new and younger employees at casinos that went smokefree over COVID who told me there was no way they would consider working there if they brought smoking back. If casinos truly do care about their patrons’ health, as they reminded us daily in the heat of the pandemic when they were compelled to implement measures to keep us safe, then there should be no room for smoke indoors. And if casinos truly do want to attract the next generation of players and workers, then the time is now, when only 13% of the population smokes.
I love New Jersey. In fact I’ve worked with numerous properties in Atlantic City, and I was the first streamer at the opening of Hard Rock. I am also a longtime proponent of smokefree casinos and the worker-led movement that CEASE has started right here in New Jersey. But as of this year, I am only partnering with smokefree casinos. I do not promote smoking casino floors, period.
I made this decision after my staff and I, who work in casinos day in and day out, came down with weekly ailments and coughs – this made me feel responsible. After conducting a public survey of my followers, we found an overwhelming preference for smokefree casinos: 94% of frequent gamblers prefer smokefree casinos, including 88% of those who smoke. Among higher income and more frequent gamblers, a higher percentage of them are nonsmokers. Just this past week, I took 550 of my fans on a cruise that offered a smokefree casino on board. When I told them on stage that I would be addressing you today, the entire amphitheater erupted in cheers. So many of them, both smokers and non-smokers, came up to me privately and thanked me for speaking up on behalf of the community. They don’t understand why casinos are the exception for smoke. The math and the science are crystal clear, while a set of antiquated business fears just don’t add up.
Unfortunately, without a change in state law, I will not be visiting Atlantic City casinos, or using my platform to promote the otherwise fantastic entertainment experience they provide. While this means turning down some business opportunities, I believe in this cause – and my business continues to thrive. A lot of casinos that went smokefree during COVID and have remained smokefree are reaping the benefits.
Smokefree casinos ARE good for business and are preferred by players. The pandemic has changed everything around this issue. It is time to close the casino smoking loophole in New Jersey law and finally keep workers and guests safe from secondhand smoke.
Thank you.
Christopher also spoke to Gambling Industry News of the response to his testimony:
The response was super positive from those on the panel, and mostly supportive. Those on the ‘other’ side of the debate had nothing to add, aside from agreeing that smoking is bad and kills people. But that they ‘think’ it will cost jobs. If the pandemic showed us anything, it was that people still gambled. People go to casinos to gamble.
Smokers go to casinos to gamble too. They can smoke at home, but they want to gamble. If they can’t smoke while gambling, they will step outside.
Senator Vitale was amazing and is hopeful this will be brought to a vote within 2 months. It sounds like there is overwhelming support for this and it would pass, and the Governor also said he would sign it if it landed on his desk. So I’m very hopeful.
Support among lawmakers for a complete smoking ban is indeed at an all-time high with Sen. Joseph Vitale, the committee’s chairperson stating:
“It’s immoral for the owners of casinos to think their employees are expendable. If you smell it, it’s in your lungs.”
The Casino Association of New Jersey submitted written testimony outlining its opposition.
“An immediate smoking ban in New Jersey casinos, while smoking is still permitted in casinos in neighboring states, against the backdrop of an already weakened and worsening economic climate, would endanger thousands of jobs and jeopardize millions of dollars in tax revenue dedicated to seniors and the disabled of New Jersey.”
However, as Christopher suggested, the potential loss to revenue may not be as great as the association states. Several casino operators in other US states have taken the unexpected move to implement their own smoking bans despite no legal bans being in place. Rivers Casino in Philadelphia opted to uphold a smoking ban that was implemented during the pandemic. The move followed a similar announcement from Parx Casino meaning that there are now five casinos in Pennsylvania alone that prohibit smoking on the casino floor.
Slots influencer Brian Christopher (AKA BCSlots) has testified to the New Jersey Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee in support of Atlantic City casino workers who are pushing for a complete ban on smoking on gaming floors.
According to current legislation, all workers in the state are entitled to work in a smoke-free environment. However, casinos have been using a legal loophole to allow patrons to smoke on the gaming floor. The loophole has existed now for the past 17 years and allows smoking on 25% of casino gaming floors.
Casino workers have garnered support from both lawmakers and high-profile names within the industry such as Christopher who recently launched the first smoke-free slots area in Downtown Las Vegas at the Plaza Hotel & Casino.
Brian shared a copy of his testimony with Gambling Industry News:
Good afternoon, and thank you to the members of the Committee for the opportunity to testify.
My name is Brian Christopher. I am the largest social influencer for Casinos in the world, known as Brian Christopher Slots. I post daily videos playing slot machines, reaching millions of avid casino visitors a month – with male millennials being my top demographic – the very customers casinos care deeply about and are desperate to attract. I’m one myself, by the way.
As part of my job, I travel across the country and partner with casinos to excite and educate the most vibrant, diverse, and deeply engaged community of players. So far, our videos have been viewed nearly a BILLION times over.
Now, imagine growing up in a world where walking into a room full of cigarette smoke is simply not normal. Throughout my travels, I have spoken to numerous new and younger employees at casinos that went smokefree over COVID who told me there was no way they would consider working there if they brought smoking back. If casinos truly do care about their patrons’ health, as they reminded us daily in the heat of the pandemic when they were compelled to implement measures to keep us safe, then there should be no room for smoke indoors. And if casinos truly do want to attract the next generation of players and workers, then the time is now, when only 13% of the population smokes.
I love New Jersey. In fact I’ve worked with numerous properties in Atlantic City, and I was the first streamer at the opening of Hard Rock. I am also a longtime proponent of smokefree casinos and the worker-led movement that CEASE has started right here in New Jersey. But as of this year, I am only partnering with smokefree casinos. I do not promote smoking casino floors, period.
I made this decision after my staff and I, who work in casinos day in and day out, came down with weekly ailments and coughs – this made me feel responsible. After conducting a public survey of my followers, we found an overwhelming preference for smokefree casinos: 94% of frequent gamblers prefer smokefree casinos, including 88% of those who smoke. Among higher income and more frequent gamblers, a higher percentage of them are nonsmokers. Just this past week, I took 550 of my fans on a cruise that offered a smokefree casino on board. When I told them on stage that I would be addressing you today, the entire amphitheater erupted in cheers. So many of them, both smokers and non-smokers, came up to me privately and thanked me for speaking up on behalf of the community. They don’t understand why casinos are the exception for smoke. The math and the science are crystal clear, while a set of antiquated business fears just don’t add up.
Unfortunately, without a change in state law, I will not be visiting Atlantic City casinos, or using my platform to promote the otherwise fantastic entertainment experience they provide. While this means turning down some business opportunities, I believe in this cause – and my business continues to thrive. A lot of casinos that went smokefree during COVID and have remained smokefree are reaping the benefits.
Smokefree casinos ARE good for business and are preferred by players. The pandemic has changed everything around this issue. It is time to close the casino smoking loophole in New Jersey law and finally keep workers and guests safe from secondhand smoke.
Thank you.
Christopher also spoke to Gambling Industry News of the response to his testimony:
The response was super positive from those on the panel, and mostly supportive. Those on the ‘other’ side of the debate had nothing to add, aside from agreeing that smoking is bad and kills people. But that they ‘think’ it will cost jobs. If the pandemic showed us anything, it was that people still gambled. People go to casinos to gamble.
Smokers go to casinos to gamble too. They can smoke at home, but they want to gamble. If they can’t smoke while gambling, they will step outside.
Senator Vitale was amazing and is hopeful this will be brought to a vote within 2 months. It sounds like there is overwhelming support for this and it would pass, and the Governor also said he would sign it if it landed on his desk. So I’m very hopeful.
Support among lawmakers for a complete smoking ban is indeed at an all-time high with Sen. Joseph Vitale, the committee’s chairperson stating:
“It’s immoral for the owners of casinos to think their employees are expendable. If you smell it, it’s in your lungs.”
The Casino Association of New Jersey submitted written testimony outlining its opposition.
“An immediate smoking ban in New Jersey casinos, while smoking is still permitted in casinos in neighboring states, against the backdrop of an already weakened and worsening economic climate, would endanger thousands of jobs and jeopardize millions of dollars in tax revenue dedicated to seniors and the disabled of New Jersey.”
However, as Christopher suggested, the potential loss to revenue may not be as great as the association states. Several casino operators in other US states have taken the unexpected move to implement their own smoking bans despite no legal bans being in place. Rivers Casino in Philadelphia opted to uphold a smoking ban that was implemented during the pandemic. The move followed a similar announcement from Parx Casino meaning that there are now five casinos in Pennsylvania alone that prohibit smoking on the casino floor.
CDC Gaming Reports
New Jersey: Influencer Brian Christopher testifies against smoking in casinos
by Rege Behe · February 13, 2023
New Jersey: Influencer Brian Christopher testifies against smoking in casinos
by Rege Behe · February 13, 2023
Gaming social influencer Brian Christopher went to New Jersey Monday, but not to film himself playing slots at one of Atlantic City’s casinos.
Instead, Christopher appeared before the New Jersey Senate’s Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee to voice his support for smoke-free casinos. In January 2023, Christopher stated he would no longer visit casinos and gaming spaces that weren’t smoke free.
“Every other workforce (in New Jersey) has enjoyed a smoke-free working environment for the past 17 years, aside from casinos, and it is time to close the loophole,” Christopher wrote in a statement.
Christopher’s BC Slots social-media sites, including YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok, have more than 1.3 million subscribers and attract more than 5 million unique page views per month. His promotional deals include dedicated spaces on the gaming floor of the Plaza Hotel & Casino in downtown Las Vegas and Carnival Cruise Lines.
Christopher is also an official advocate for the American Nonsmokers’ Rights.
His appearance Monday was in conjunction with a protest organized by Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE) at the New Jersey State House in Trenton. The Senate hearing is the first committee to consider closing the smoking loophole granted to casinos.
In prepared testimony released to the media before the hearing, Christopher stated that he had spoken to employees at casinos that went smoke free during the pandemic who vowed not to return if smoking was re-instituted.
“If casinos truly do care about their patrons’ health, as they reminded us daily in the heat of the pandemic when they were compelled to implement measures to keep us safe, then there should be no room for smoke indoors,” Christopher wrote. “And if casinos truly do want to attract the next generation of players and workers, then the time is now, when only 13% of the population smokes.”
Christopher noted that he has previously partnered with various Atlantic City properties, but will not return if smoking is permitted on gaming floors. He made the decision to boycott casinos that allow smoking because of “weekly ailments and coughs” suffered by his staff and himself.
Christopher’s testimony was scheduled to include the results of a public survey conducted by BC Slots that found 94% of frequent gamblers prefer smoke-free casinos, including 88% of those who smoke.
The Curious Gambler
Brian Christopher Interview: Writing From Aboard the Carnival Breeze
by Manuel Martinez · February 8, 2023
We ask the world’s leading casino content creator a few quick questions about his plans for 2023
This week I had the pleasure of interviewing casino influencer Brian Christopher of BCSlots.com. For those of you who’ve been living under a rock for the last couple of years and don’t know Brian, I can assure you that he is a pretty big deal in the casino world!
Brian is perhaps most known for his fun and entertaining videos where he heads to different casinos and films himself playing slot machines, giving us viewers a sneak peek into his experiences. He’s got a huge following on social media and millions of views of his videos, and thanks to his organic reach, Brian has won gambling awards and also attracted the attention of world-leading brands who want to partner with him.
Right now, Brian is on a Carnival Magic with his 157 fans (how cool is that!?). Check out one of his latest YouTube videos from where he’s playing slots with Marco:
All in all, Brian is an incredibly impressive entrepreneur whose team of talented people produce some of the best casino content out there.
I got the opportunity to ask Brian a few questions to understand what he’s up to in 2023 and learn more about his most recent BC Slots ventures.
First of all, congrats on your success! I just checked and you have 1.3M followers across FB, YouTube, and Instagram, which is insane!
|
BC. Thanks! We’re up to 1.5M including Tiktok as well!
That’s impressive! Did you ever think you would reach such a vast audience with your content? BC. Never! I never had a plan for this to pan out this way, nor did I ever dream that this could become a career. It has surprised everyone including myself. |
Last year you partnered with Gaming Arts to build Pop’N Pays More. In the press release, you mentioned that your fans have been asking for this sort of game for a while. What has been the response from the fans? Do you have plans for any new games in Vegas or online in 2023?
BC. Our fans are absolutely loving the game. In fact, I’m on a Carnival Cruise right now as I write this, and it has been impossible for me to get on my slot machine as there’s always people playing all three of them. We hope to continue our success of this game into another one in the future. Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More is now live in 13 States, 40 casinos on 3 cruise ships!
Tell me about your Carnival’s Casino live streams. In a video, I watched from December (entitled “rising up big bonuses”) you play for 30 minutes, and the video has 90k views already. What is it about these videos that make people love them so much? And how are they treating you on these cruises? It must be amazing being an influencer for Carnival Cruise!
BC. It’s quite exciting to be the exclusive partner for Carnival Corp for casinos. On board I currently have 540 fans joining us this trip, which represents about 15% of those on the cruise! It’s an incredible feeling, and it’s amazing to be able to spend a whole week with them. It gives them a chance to see me play and film, but also to hang out with me and get to know me better.
All of our fans who sign up on our site (BCSlots.com/Cruises) get an introductory offer including free drinks in the casino, $50 in freeplay, free upgrades, and more. So yes, they take very good care of us. On board, I also host two giant parties for everyone with free cocktails and appetizers, as well as a slot tournament and mega group pull.
Your latest news is centered around creating a smoke-free gaming environment – which I totally agree with. What prompted you to campaign for a healthier casino floor?
BC. I’ve never been one to shy away from something I believe in. When only 13% of the population smokes, it no longer makes sense that 100% of people should be forced to breathe in these harmful chemicals. I have made this pledge for myself, my staff, my fans, and the staff at casinos and future generations. Those people coming of age to gamble now have never been in a smoking building before in their entire lives. They don’t want to be there, nor can you expect them to work in that environment either.
You are building a portfolio of brands with BC Ventures – what’s in the pipeline for the next coming years? Do you see a gap in the market for new games or products?
BC. We will continue to lead the way for promoting casinos both in casinos and online, showcasing the newest and most exciting products. I think the next biggest things for casinos will be cashless slot machines and tables. They have not been that exciting thus far, and need to become simplified for ease.
Slot Manufacturers keep wanting to increase the size of games and innovate newer physical games all the time. As a player, we really could care less if a new game comes out on a RX204 Max Cabinet (made that up haha) or not. We just want a good engaging game to enjoy. They need to focus more on the content.
Finally, any tips for someone starting out in the iGaming and gambling content space?
It is SO expensive. I’ve seen numerous channels start and fail because they ran out of money. Less than 1% of YouTube channels make a living out of it, and that doesn’t take into account slot channels that have to pour thousands of dollars into it. So only film what you can afford to lose, and do it for the fun of it. There’s always room for more in this niche, so just be yourself, do the best you can do, and don’t lose your shirt along the way.
You can follow Brian by visiting the social media platforms below:
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/BCSlots/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/bcslots/
Twitter https://twitter.com/bcslots
YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@bcslots
Bonus.com
Casino Smoking Opponents Find a New Ally in Slots Influencer Brian Christopher
by Chav Vasilev · January 13, 2023
Casino Smoking Opponents Find a New Ally in Slots Influencer Brian Christopher
by Chav Vasilev · January 13, 2023
Brian Christopher, a prominent gaming influencer on social media, announced that he is joining the casino anti-smoking movement. Going forward, he says he will promote only smoke-free venues and events.
Christopher elaborated: "It is time for gaming to join the ranks of the best entertainment venues, restaurants, and bars that went smoke-free years ago. The health of those who work and play in casinos should be just as important as in any other industry. With only 13% of the US population smoking nowadays, it no longer makes sense that 100% of patrons should have to be exposed to harmful chemicals."
The announcement comes when many casinos are deciding whether or not to bring back indoor smoking as COVID-19 restrictions lift. An increasing number have been choosing a smoke-free future.
Who is Brian Christopher?
Brian Christopher is the top social influencer in the gaming world. He posts videos of himself playing slots online and in person for his 1.1 million followers. These include over 500,000 subscribers to his YouTube channel, which gets five million monthly views.
Christopher regularly tests new games, talks casino strategy with his followers, and explains how games work. However, the videos that attract the most interest are the ones where he discusses budgeting and how to play responsibly.
His online success has translated onto the casino floor with the creation of a branded slot: Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More. This first-of-its-kind crossover has proven hugely successful and is showing up in many casinos, including Harrah’s. Players can also find it on select Carnival Cruise Line ships.
Another sponsorship Christopher has landed himself is a dedicated bank of 25 slots at Plaza Hotel & Casino in downtown Las Vegas. In that “BC Slots” section, his fans can play games he’s picked out as his favorites. He also hosts periodic meet-and-greet events with his fans.
Downtown Vegas Will Get Its First Smoke-Free Area
As part of his move to promote smoke-free venues, the Plaza Hotel & Casino is expanding that partnership. The new BC Slots section will expand to over 85 machines from the current 25. It will also feature special ventilation and separate outdoor access from the new Main Street façade. This is to allow players to enjoy slots in that section without having to walk through smoking areas of the casino or be exposed to any second-hand smoke wafting in.
Lisa Melmed, marketing manager at the Plaza Hotel & Casino, elaborated: "BC Slots at the Plaza has been very successful. Guests enjoy playing the games that they have seen Brian play in his videos, and many appreciate the fact that his dedicated area is smoke-free. Given the continued popularity of BC Slots at the Plaza, we are excited to open Brian Christopher Slots as our new and expanded smoke-free and social media-friendly casino addition next to our iconic dome entrance."
The move is a significant milestone for Sin City, marking the first smoke-free area in downtown Las Vegas. Although casino smoking is still the default in Nevada, the Plaza has realized that it represents an opportunity for differentiation. Many players, especially those of younger generations, prefer a smoke-free casino experience.
Depending on the response, the strategy may prompt other casinos in the downtown area to follow suit. These include the original Golden Nugget Casino and other iconic Fremont Street properties.
What Does The Future Hold For Smoking Inside Casinos?
COVID-19 was one of the most challenging times for Last Vegas and the casino industry. But one side effect that caught attention was smoke-free casinos. Years ago, anyone would tell you that you can’t have casino and smoke-free in the same sentence, but that’s changing.
As people become more conscious about their health, many seek smoke-free areas, including casinos. Recent reports show that change is happening. Las Vegas-based C3 Gaming, for instance, found that smoke-free casinos actually perform better than those that allow smoking, contrary to the conventional wisdom in the industry. Furthermore, there are more casino-goers who will prioritize non-smoking policies than who will seek out casinos that allow it.
Additionally, casino employees are also becoming more concerned and vocal about their health. Enrollment is increasing in anti-smoking groups like Casino Employees Against Smoking’s Effects (CEASE). That New Jersey-based organization hopes to bring awareness and implement smoking bans inside Atlantic City casinos for the sake of guests’ and employees’ health.
Another nonprofit organization, Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, has been actively working with government organizations and casinos.
Such efforts are paying dividends. There are now over 1,000 smoke-free gaming venues in the US.
Yogonet Gaming News
Casino gaming influencer Brian Christopher pledges to only promote smoke-free casinos
by Yogonet Gaming News · January 10, 2023
Casino gaming influencer Brian Christopher announced Monday he is exclusively promoting smoke-free casinos and gaming spaces from here on out. His channel on YouTube and Facebook reaches more than 5 million monthly unique viewers, "showcasing his journey to entertain players while prioritizing the health of staff and casino goers alike."
Christopher has pledged to continue his work at casinos as an official advocate for American Nonsmokers’ Rights (ANR) Foundation, and as a supporter of Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE).
Cynthia Hallett, president and CEO of the American Nonsmokers’ Rights Foundation, stated: “We thank Brian Christopher for his unwavering support of casino workers and joining us in the fight for smoke-free casinos.”
“As we continue our campaign to make all casinos smoke-free indoors, Brian Christopher’s commitment to promoting only smoke-free gaming spaces will help raise awareness of this serious issue and the conditions casino workers are forced to endure,” she added.
As part of Christopher’s pledge to smoke-free gaming, in the coming months, he will be launching the updated Brian Christopher Slots at Plaza, a brand new casino expansion on the front of the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
The new and improved version will grow his curated slot machine titles from approximately 25 to 85+. It will be the first-ever smoke-free gaming area in Downtown Las Vegas, featuring outdoor access through the Plaza’s reimagined Main Street facade, complete with independent ventilation.
Lisa Melmed, marketing manager at the Plaza Hotel & Casino, also commented: “BCSlots at the Plaza has been very successful. Guests enjoy playing the games that they have seen Brian play in his videos, and many appreciate the fact that his dedicated area is smoke-free.”
“Given the continued popularity of BCSlots at the Plaza, we are excited to open Brian Cristopher Slots as our new and expanded smoke-free and social media-friendly casino addition next to our iconic dome entrance,” she further stated.
Last year, Brian Christopher formed BC Ventures, an umbrella company to house and grow various strategic initiatives including a mutually exclusive partnership with Carnival Cruise Line. Existing and future projects in this portfolio will be managed under the same principle of prioritizing smoke-free experiences.
“It is time for gaming to join the ranks of the best entertainment venues, restaurants and bars that went smoke-free years ago. The health of those who work and play in casinos should be just as important as in any other industry.,” Christopher said. “With only 13% of the US population smoking nowadays, it no longer makes sense that 100% of patrons should have to be exposed to harmful chemicals.”
“As BC Ventures takes the pledge in 2023, I am happy to share that we are almost fully booked with smoke-free casino visits for the year, as we continue to attract younger demographics with our premium experiences. Millennials and Gen Z grew up in a smoke-free world — and they demand it,” the influencer concluded.
The news comes on the same week as New Jersey casino workers urged Governor Phil Murphy to call on legislative leaders to pass a bill that would get rid of smoking in Atlantic City gaming properties.
In a letter from the co-founders and co-leaders of CEASE, workers urged Murphy to push lawmakers to pass bipartisan legislation to close the casino smoking loophole by April 15. The date marks 17 years since the legislature passed the Clean Indoor Air Act, which specifically excluded casinos.
Casino News USA
Brian Christopher to Launch First Smoke-Free Gaming Area in Downtown Las Vegas
by Danny Tang · January 10, 2023
Brian Christopher to Launch First Smoke-Free Gaming Area in Downtown Las Vegas
by Danny Tang · January 10, 2023
Plaza Hotel & Casino's expanded Brian Christopher Slots gaming floor will be the first smoke-free slots area in Downtown Las Vegas.
Slots influencer Brian Christopher has announced that he will launch Las Vegas’ first entirely smoke-free gaming floor in Downtown Las Vegas.
The updated Brian Christopher Slots at Plaza will see a casino expansion at the front of the Plaza Hotel & Casino become the area’s first completely smoke-free gaming environment. The existing slots titles available will grow from 25 to 85+ and will feature outdoor access through the Plaza’s main entrance.
Speaking of the new expansion and his company BC Venture’s decision to promote an entirely smoke-free environment, Christopher told Casino News USA:
“Ever since the pandemic shut down casinos across the country, health was supposedly at the forefront of everyone’s mind. Sticking to that, it’s well past time for casinos to go smokefree so that 100% of the population doesn’t have to breathe in toxic chemicals from 13% of those who smoke.
It’s not a movement against smokers, it’s a movement for all people and for the next generation of gamblers who did not grow up in a smoking world.”
Lisa Melmed, marketing manager at the Plaza Hotel & Casino added:
“BCSlots at the Plaza has been very successful. Guests enjoy playing the games that they have seen Brian play in his videos, and many appreciate the fact that his dedicated area is smokefree. Given the continued popularity of BCSlots at the Plaza, we are excited to open Brian Christopher Slots as our new and expanded smokefree and social media friendly casino addition next to our iconic dome entrance.”
The news was also welcomed by The American Non Smokers Rights Foundation as Cynthia Hallett, president and CEO said:
“We thank Brian Christopher for his unwavering support of casino workers and joining us in the fight for smokefree casinos. As we continue our campaign to make all casinos smokefree indoors, Brian Christopher’s commitment to promote only smokefree gaming spaces will help raise awareness of this serious issue and the conditions casino workers are forced to endure.”
The move by BC Ventures and the Plaza Hotel & Casino comes just after smoking bans and loopholes made the news in several states during 2022. In April Rhode Island Representative Teresa Tanzi sponsored a bill that would place a complete ban on smoking in all casinos. However, despite the bill going to a committee, it failed to make it to a vote by the end of the 2022 legislative session.
Similarly, a legislative attempt to close a loophole that allowed Atlantic City casinos to permit smoking on their premises has yet to pass. Although the majority of lawmakers agreed that smoking should be banned to protect the health of casino workers, an amendment to the ‘New Jersey Smoke-Free Air Act’ is still in a committee and is pending a vote. Meanwhile, a panel discussion to look into the matter was scrapped in September of 2022 after casino executives pulled out.
However, 2022 also saw one casino operator take matters into its own hands as Rivers Casino Philadelphia introduced a permanent smoking ban at its property despite there being no legal obligation to maintain a temporary ban that was implemented during the global pandemic.
CDC Gaming Reports
Gaming Influencer Brian Christopher will only appear at smoke-free venues in 2023
by Rege Behe · January 9, 2023
CDC Gaming Reports
Gaming Influencer Brian Christopher will only appear at smoke-free venues in 2023
by Rege Behe · January 9, 2023
YouTube and Facebook celebrity and gaming influencer Brian Christopher is taking a stand against smoking in casinos.
Christopher Monday announced that going forward, he will only promote smoke-free casinos and gaming spaces.
“It is time for gaming to join the ranks of the best entertainment venues, restaurants and bars that went smokefree years ago,” Christopher said in a statement. “The health of those who work and play in casinos should be just as important as in any other industry. With only 13 percent of the US population smoking nowadays, it no longer makes sense that 100 percent of patrons should have to be exposed to harmful chemicals.”
Christopher, who posts videos of himself playing slot machines on his YouTube and Facebook pages, Brian Christopher Slots, reaches 5 million unique viewers per month. A section of the slot floor at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Downtown Las Vegas bears his name, and he has an exclusive partnership with Carnival Cruise Lines.
He also is an official advocate for the American Nonsmokers’ Rights (ANR) Foundation and supports Casino Employees Against Smoking Effects (CEASE).
“We thank Brian Christopher for his unwavering support of casino workers and joining us in the fight for smoke-free casinos,” said ANR President and CEO Cynthia Hallett. “As we continue our campaign to make all casinos smoke-free indoors, Brian Christopher’s commitment to promote only smoke-free gaming spaces will help raise awareness of this serious issue and the conditions casino workers are forced to endure.”
The Plaza Hotel & Casino will expand the space devoted to Christopher curated slots from approximately 25 to more than 85, making it the the first entirely smoke-free gaming area in Downtown Las Vegas.
“BCSlots at the Plaza has been very successful,” said Plaza Hotel & Casino Marketing Manager Lisa Melmed. “Guests enjoy playing the games that they have seen Brian play in his videos, and many appreciate the fact that his dedicated area is smoke-free.”
Christopher noted that he is almost fully booked for visits to smoke-free casinos in 2023 “as we continue to attract younger demographics with our premium experiences,” he said. “Millennials and Gen Z grew up in a smoke-free world — and they demand it.”
USA Casino
#1 Slots Streamer Brian Christopher Talks Business & Offers Casino Streaming Tips
by USA Casino · October 15, 2022
#1 Slots Streamer Brian Christopher Talks Business & Offers Casino Streaming Tips
by USA Casino · October 15, 2022
Slots streamer Brian Christopher (AKA BCSlots) is a professional gambling streamer and one of the top casino influencers in the world – renowned for playing slots and sharing the action with a vast global audience of fans regularly. His authentic and charming persona propelled Christopher towards becoming one of the most dominant casino entertainers of 2022.
While others in the space sometimes fake their way to glory, Christopher and his team legitimately grew the BCSlots.com brand to an audience of 1.3 million subscribers over multiple platforms. BCSlots streams get ~ 6 million monthly unique viewers, and 600k average daily video views.
BCSlots continues to grow, and has partnerships with cruise companies, and gaming companies (there’s even a BCSlots branded slots game “Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More” which can be played in a growing number of U.S casinos and on cruise ships worldwide).
We had a brief Q&A with Brian who offered tips for content creators, and explained some of the challenges & realities of the casino content creator business – as well as the importance on sponsorship
USA-Casino.com: How did you get started as a casino content creator, and how long until you were able to monetize and go “all in” on content marketing & treating BCSlots as a business?
BCSlots: I’ve been posting slot videos for 6 years.
As soon as ANY channel turns on monetization, they are automatically considered a business. After one month of uploading, I was invited into the partner program to start monetizing, but it took a long time before I turned a profit. Playing slots is a very expensive hobby, so anyone thinking they can just upload videos to offset their losses is in for a real surprise.
Very few channels are able to turn a profit, which is why sponsorship like our ones with Carnival and Plaza are so important.
That allows us to pay our employees a very good wage with benefits.
Ten families now rely on us for their livelihoods, so we need to make sure we run it smoothly and smart!
USA-Casino.com: What words of advice, or tips can you give for other casino games lovers who want to build an audience, or existing content creators and streamers dreaming big – looking to make a career out of streaming / entertainment?
BCSlots: Don’t gamble in order to make videos. If you’re already a gambler and wish to film them for fun, do so. As I said, it’s SUPER expensive and now more than ever the competition is so fierce. So pour your love and soul into it, just not your bank account! Most importantly, be yourself. Then no matter what anyone says, you know you’re doing your honest and true self, and the rest is just noise.
USA-Casino.com: Thoughts on “fake streamers” on Twitch / YT, and any tips how to avoid dealing with scammers as a streamer / website owner.
BCSlots: This is the first time I’ve heard this term. I imagine this either refers to people who pretend to be playing in a casino but are at home, or are playing with crypto currency provided by the site? I would never watch or support these channels, and to be clear I ONLY use my own funds to gamble with.
When I lose $10,000 on PlayChumba.com or in a casino live stream, that’s at my own dime.
Every day we block about 3-10 fake Brian Christopher accounts, it’s super annoying and tedious. Yet people must fall for them, as these accounts don’t stop coming.
I wish people would learn that if you win a prize, you never have to pay for it. Only messages coming from our account, that is VERIFIED with a blue checkmark, are real. And we never give out cash winnings or ask for personal banking or credit info.
Business Insider
Gaming Arts to Showcase its Largest Portfolio of New Games Ever at G2E 2022
by Business Insider · October 6, 2022
Business Insider
Gaming Arts to Showcase its Largest Portfolio of New Games Ever at G2E 2022
by Business Insider · October 6, 2022
Gaming Arts, one of the fastest growing gaming suppliers in North America, will have its largest booth ever at G2E 2022 along with introducing the biggest portfolio of innovative new games in company history. Also on display will be a long list of proven top performers and new technical innovations from Gaming Arts. Please visit Gaming Arts at booth 1853 at G2E.
Gaming Arts to Showcase its Largest Portfolio of New Games Ever at G2E 2022.Just one of the headliners at G2E will be the new Pop'N Pays More!™ series of games for its beautiful and sleek VertX™ 49" portrait cabinet which include Piñatas Ole™, Big Top™, and the recently launched, and massively successful, Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More!™. This game is already performing at up to 4x house average on gaming floors across the country and has been shortlisted as a finalist for the GGB "Slot of the Year" award.
Brian, America's no. 1 slot influencer with over 320 million views, collaborated closely with the top game designers at Gaming Arts to produce this amazing new game. Brian will be at the Gaming Arts booth from 11am to 2pm on Tuesday and intermittently throughout the show and will host an exciting slot tournament on Tuesday and Wednesday at 3pm. The slot tournament will be live streamed and the lucky winner each day will receive a fabulous dream cruise of their choice from our wonderful partner, Carnival Cruise lines. Entries may be made at the Gaming Arts booth 1853 at G2E 2022.
Kung Fu Empress™, the adorable little empress that is taking the country by storm, will also be on prominent display. This energetic and vibrant game is proving to be a fast favorite among players with performance to match. From incredible animations to an upbeat soundtrack, this game stands out amongst other games on casino floors and as the Kung Fu Empress battles her enemies, the bigger the enemy, the bigger the win!
Future favorites Egyptian Gems™ series, the Cash Quest™ series, Winning Wings series and GO Games! series, will also be prominently featured on the show floor. Also, not to be missed are the brand new, Big Fat Dragon™, the Lucky Pick™ series along with many more. These are just a few examples of why Gaming Arts is known as one of the most innovative companies in the gaming space.
As for new games for the Gaming Arts' patented HaloTop® wheel cabinets, a series of new games will be on display including Spooky Spins™, Fortune Flip™, Giant Gold Bar™, Triple Double 7s™ and more. In addition, Gaming Arts will also be showcasing the incredible Ocean Phoenix™ game from its Taiwanese partner, Jumbo Technologies. This truly unique 6 player arcade style game is the first-of-its-kind to enter the North American market and has demonstrated exceptional performance at all locations.
On the electronic table games (ETG) front, Gaming Arts' Casino Wizard's™ popularity across gaming floors from coast to coast has led to the creation of Casino Wizard VIP™, the world's most advanced and feature rich ETG. A first of its kind, Casino Wizard VIP™, includes everything players loved about the original and expands upon it by adding 4 new titles, for a total of 8 games. These include: Pai Gow Poker, Triple Card Poker, Super Big 6 Wheel and the Gaming Arts' proprietary game, Swap 'Em Poker™, along with the original game lineup of blackjack, craps, roulette and baccarat to fill out this incredible "Pit in a Box™" ETG. Most games also include proprietary high-hold side bets, special bonuses and numerous opportunities for players to win exciting progressive jackpots.
In addition to its vast library of amazing slots and ETGs, Gaming Arts continues as the world leader in bingo and keno games and related technologies. On display at G2E, the company will be showcasing its latest innovations in the bingo and keno spaces, including the world's first TITO enabled self-serve EZ-Keno kiosk along with its "Super Win" and "Super Promo" technologies for bingo and casino promotions.
COO Jean Venneman shared, "Casino floors and our customer needs are constantly evolving and Gaming Arts is focused on anticipating players diverse needs as well as customer expectations. With the successful launches of unique games such as the social slot influencer-focused Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More™, Casino Wizard VIP™ and arcade-style Ocean Phoenix™ game, it is clear that customers' expectations are changing, and it is exciting to be one of the front runners in this ever-expanding space."
Gaming Arts plans to continue to expand their extensive library of games, offering a huge variety of titles across multiple cabinets and creating games that can be enjoyed by all players. At the forefront of gaming innovation with new technologies, beautiful cabinets and themes that are state-of-the-art, Gaming Arts is confident that they will continue to exceed customer and player expectations.
David Colvin, Chairman and Founder of Gaming Arts, commented, "This G2E promises to be our most ambitious show ever and I could not be prouder of the entire team at Gaming Arts and the unique corporate culture we have developed. Although we may not be the largest manufacturer in the gaming space, I believe that our culture of innovation and creativity are unmatched, leading to truly amazing new games and technologies which can be seen and enjoyed across North America and beyond."
CDC Gaming Reports
Faces of Gaming: Brian Christopher - From actor, Uber driver, and cater waiter to slot celebrity
by Tom Osiecki · October 1, 2022
Faces of Gaming: Brian Christopher - From actor, Uber driver, and cater waiter to slot celebrity
by Tom Osiecki · October 1, 2022
The thing about Brian Christopher is this: What you see is what you get. It’s his superpower, what sets him apart.
Christopher has the enviable job of streaming videos to a vast audience of fans while playing slots on a regular basis. Early on, his authentic, honest, and affable style put Christopher on a path to become a dominant casino influencer. And from this simple concept, Christopher grew Brian Christopher Slots, a giant in the evolving casino-influencer space, with 1.3 million subscribers over multiple platforms, 5.9 million monthly unique viewers, and 600,000 average daily video views.
From Uber to influencer
“I visited Vegas for the first time about six years ago. So I went to YouTube to find out what casinos I should visit and what games to play. I found people were uploading videos of themselves playing slot machines. I thought that was really weird; why would anyone ever want to watch that? A few hours later, I was still watching and realized the appeal of it.
“I decided that when I was in Vegas, I’d record some of these for fun. I filmed myself playing a couple of games and put them on my YouTube acting channel. That was it. I was done and never planned to upload another slot video. About a week later, I looked back and I had over a thousand subscribers, thousands of views, and tons of people in the comments asking when the next video was coming out.
“So I was like okay, maybe I’ll put out some more. Then I was invited to the YouTube Partner Program, where you can start monetizing videos. I was an actor who’d just moved to the United States from Canada. I was working for Lyft and Uber. I was a cater waiter.
“Now, I was making more money on my YouTube videos than at those jobs to support my acting. I knew I was onto something. I started going back to the casino getting more video content, uploading more regularly, and making it look more professional. I really haven’t stopped since,” said Christopher.
YouTube, cruises, and a slot machine
An actor since age 12, Christopher parlayed videoing himself playing slots into YouTube and Facebook channels, merchandise sales, exclusive cruises on Carnival Cruise Lines, a Brian Christopher-themed slot section at the Plaza Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, and a Brian Christopher-branded slot game recently released by Gaming Arts.
The rising influence of influencers
The concept of casino influencers seems like an obvious idea.
Millions of people enjoy playing slots on a regular basis. Why not have a place where they can enjoy watching what they enjoy doing and learn about the variety of games and new games coming on the market?
I recently spoke with Christopher about the reason for the rising influence of influencers in the casino industry.
“I’m not an ad, right? I’m not a casino saying, ‘Stay here, eat that.’ People see a living talking person who speaks their language and is at their same level. For us, our audience is such a big part of what we do. Every single week, we’re hosting meet-and- greets. We’re going all over, connecting with people on a human level. The great part is that it’s just me. I’m not putting on a show. I’m not an actor playing a part. I’m just having fun.”
With a business model that emphasizes the personal touch, Christopher has a full schedule of appearances at major casinos across the country. He offers them videos, live premieres, livestreamed group slot pulls, slot tournaments, meet-and-greets, branded slot-floor design, contests, sweepstakes, VIP player offers, and a targeted newsletter.
A Younger Audience
Brian Christopher Slots has 536,000 YouTube subscribers and 640,000 Facebook followers. A look through his media kit reveals an audience that definitely trends younger and skews male—a market that has been long coveted by casinos.
“It doesn’t make any sense. Usually, Facebook is known to be older and more female. And it’s great. I’m a male Millennial, so that helps you know why they connect with me. I think that when we first started and when everything was shut down, people were just looking for content. Millennials started enjoying the entertainment that I provided and Facebook started targeting that audience,” Christopher related.
The core experience
With a massive streaming audience and a work ethic that includes hundreds of personal appearances, I asked what makes up the core of the Brian Christopher experience.
“It’s inclusiveness. It’s authentic. It’s fun! It’s community, really. We connect with everyone from every walk of life around the love of slot machines. We all come from different walks of life. We all have different political views. We’ve all had different struggles in our lives, but we can connect over this and it’s beautiful.”
A Slot influencer with his own slot machine
Over the summer, Las Vegas-based slot manufacturer Gaming Arts released Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More!, a slot machine co-created by Christopher. The game features Christopher’s images and catch phrases known by his fans, called Rudies.
“I wanted some fun features on the game, some interactive things happening. They were totally on board with everything I suggested. Everything that you see on the game is a perfect collaboration between us and Gaming Arts,” Christopher stated.
In a press release on the game, Christopher added, “We’re a perfect match. We’re both super-innovative and forward-thinking. As my fans already loved the original Pop’N Pays games with their constant action, fun bonuses, free games, and catchy music, Gaming Arts was the obvious choice to partner with.
“It’s been just about two months now and we’re in over 20 casinos in eight different states,” said Christopher.
Cruise exclusive
Christopher recently struck an exclusive deal with Carnival Cruise Lines.
You’ll be able to see him play at sea across the Carnival Cruise Line fleet, which is now the exclusive cruise partner of Brian Christopher Slots. He’s also Carnival’s exclusive casino-gaming influencer.
Plaza experience
Expanding from digital media to brick-and-mortar casinos, Christopher has a branded slot section at the Plaza Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
“As of 2023, we’re going to be working exclusively on smoke-free gaming floors. So the Plaza chose to build an expansion on our existing space, which is super-exciting. The Brian Christopher Slots at Plaza area will now go from about twenty-eight slot machines to closer to eighty.
“I oversee selecting the games that go in the area. I pick all my favorite games, games that I love and that my fans would love.
“It’ll have its own entrance from the street at the front of Plaza, which will be completely smoke-free. So that partnership has been really great for us both. It’s been a long time coming.”
Playing with a purpose
Christopher is known for being outspoken about several causes. Recently, he received the Harvey Milk Foundation Visibility Award from the Harvey Milk Foundation.
“I was surprised to be contacted by Harvey Milk’s nephew, Stuart Milk. It’s about what I do in my videos. What I do is just show myself as my authentic self. I’m a gay man. I’m married to a man. We’ve been together for 19 years. We have a great relationship and we share our photos and a love of each other on social media, and everyone sees that.
“That visibility is why we got the Visibility Award. That’s pretty incredible,” Christopher exclaimed.
“One of my favorite experiences was a fan telling me, that because of me, when their son came out to them as gay, they were able to accept him. They’d never met a gay person and said they would have disowned their son before. But after seeing my love of Marco and how ‘normal’ we were, they realized we’re all the same and that love is love.”
Smoke-free commitment and photo bombing
In 2023, Christopher, a longtime proponent of smoke-free casinos, will appear exclusively at smoke-free facilities—putting his own money where the smoke isn’t.
“I believe in it. I think it’s the future. A lot of casinos that went smoke-free during COVID and have remained smoke-free are seeing the benefits. We’re already over 60% booked out for next year. I know we’ll be fine. Even our Carnival Cruises next year will have a smoke-free casino onboard,” Christopher related.
Not surprisingly, Christopher has campaigned for allowing photos in casinos.
“It’s still crazy to me that you can get kicked out of a casino if you take a photograph of you and your friends having fun. Or videoing a bonus or taking a video of a jackpot you just hit and sharing it with your friends on social media. It makes absolutely no sense that they would say no.
“A lot of casinos have come around to it now. A lot of them are now saying you can take a photo, you can take your videos, whatever you want.
“It’s definitely been a tremendous help toward changing that mindset.”
Oh Nelly!
If you’re walking through a casino and hear people yelling, ‘Oh Nelly!”’ after a big win, “Line it UP!” in anticipation of a winning spin, and other Brian Christopher catch phrases, including “Do it to it!,” “It’s all about timing!,” and “Rude,” know that you’re in the company of the growing trend of casino influencers.
After all, what you see is what you get with Brian Christopher fans.
For more information on Brian Christopher Slots, visit www.bcslots.com.
Indian Gaming
Yaamava' Installs World Premiere of Light & Wonder's Jewel of the Dragon Franchise
by Indian Gaming · September 28, 2022
Indian Gaming
Yaamava' Installs World Premiere of Light & Wonder's Jewel of the Dragon Franchise
by Indian Gaming · September 28, 2022
HIGHLAND, CA – Yaamava’ Resort & Casino at San Manuel and Light & Wonder have announced the world premiere of a new slot franchise, Jewel of the Dragon™. The new theme will feature hold-and-respin, “what you see is what you get” mechanics, and the titles Red Phoenix™ and Valley of the Tiger™ are now live at Yaamava’ Resort & Casino at San Manuel. The third title, A Thousand Warriors™, will debut later this year.
“We aim to offer a best-in-class gaming experience by continuously adding the newest slot machines to our 7,000-plus slot floor,” said Kenji Hall, Yaamava’ Resort & Casino Chief Operating Office of Gaming. “Our players will be thrilled that they can be the first to experience this exciting new slot franchise.”
All three titles use gems as their indicator of a player’s progress towards their hold-and-respin goal, while also acting as triggers for smaller bonuses themselves. When six gem triggers happen, the hold-and-respin feature begins. Players begin with three free spins trying to collect additional gems. Each new gem resets the free spin counter to three again. If a player gets 15 gems, filling up every slot, the grand jackpot is theirs.
To celebrate the installation of the new slot, Yaamava’ Resort & Casino partnered with content creator Brian Christopher to showcase the world premiere. Christopher, the host of Brian Christopher Slots on YouTube and Facebook, has over 1.3 million followers online, attracting almost 6 million unique viewers every month. He recently played the game as part of his live streams from Yaamava’ on both media platforms.
“It’s always super exciting for our fans to see us showcase brand-new games to them live,” said Christopher. “Getting that immediate feedback from them on the games really makes it an immersive experience.”
The multi-denomination slot is located on the second floor of Yaamava’ Resort & Casino near Serrano Vista Café.
Play USA
Brian Christopher Hosts First Group Slot Pull On His Pop'N Pays More Game
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 21, 2022
Brian Christopher Hosts First Group Slot Pull On His Pop'N Pays More Game
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 21, 2022
Live online slots player and YouTube star Brian Christopher visited Jamul Casino in the San Diego area over the weekend to launch three of his own branded slot machines.
The new Pop’N Pays More slot machines were installed on Sept. 14 with many guests rushing to play them immediately.
To commemorate the occasion, Christopher hosted group slot pull events on Sept. 17. This was the very first time doing a group pull on his new Pop’N Pays More slot machines.
This was Christopher’s third visit to Jamul Casino for a group slot pull, and participants and organizers agreed the event was as successful as previous meets-and-greets.
Brian Christopher Pop’N Pays More group slot pull
There were three group slot pulls taking place on Saturday at Jamul Casino scheduled for 12 p.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
The first was a $200 slot pull that featured:
- 22 players (including Brian Christopher)
- $20 max bet per spin
- 10 spins per person
Cindy Gilbert from San Diego did a pull with Brian Christopher and was among 21 people who played with him. She said: “We shared the wins and losses, and we won, which meant I got my money back. And he’s wonderful. Christopher is the nicest guy, and I’m so proud of him.”
There were 24 players for the $300 slot pull, while 22 participants took part in the $500 slot pull.
Christopher took part in all group pulls, and since he agreed to cover taxes for his group for wins under $5,000 total profit, he was the one spinning the reels on the players’ behalf.
Players reserved their spot in the group slot pull by paying a fee ($9.99) ahead of time when signing up. Christopher welcomed everyone to take turns playing the designated slot game.
“A win’s a win,” said Peggy G. from Escondido, who was happy to share her first experience: “This was my first group pull, and I’ll definitely do it again. Southern California has some great casinos that are good to get away without having to drive to Vegas.” She also said she came to “play with an entertainment budget,” as Brian Christopher constantly reminds his audience to play responsibly.
The event was the sixth BC Slots group pull for Richard Crowell from Los Angeles, who was lucky number one in line for the $200 session at noon. He said: “Brian Christopher is a man that shows that you can make a living out of what you love. With a person like Marco backing you, you can do anything in life you enjoy.”
One player who was participating in the group slot pull on Saturday brought a birthday group of their own as they celebrated their 50th birthday.
Brian Christopher’s loyal following
With over 1.1 million followers on social media and 300 million views on his YouTube channel, Christopher has created a unique way for retail casinos to connect with a diverse audience. And most of his biggest fans found Christopher through his YouTube channel as they searched for online slots.
BCSlots has gained numerous super fans who follow him to group pulls, especially in the Southern California area where he resides. His fans are split between all genders and ages, from 21 to 80.
In a joint effort with Las Vegas-based software supplier Gaming Arts, the slot influencer created and launched Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More at the Plaza Hotel & Casino. He will be returning to Plaza Casino again for another group slot pull on September 27.
As a matter of fact, BCSlots’ events page features a running list of locations, so players can keep track and know where Brian will drop next.
Play USA
Brian Christopher To Visit Jamul Casino Sept. 17 For His Famed Group Slot Pulls
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 14, 2022
Play USA
Brian Christopher To Visit Jamul Casino Sept. 17 For His Famed Group Slot Pulls
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 14, 2022
Slot and casino influencer Brian Christopher is coming to a California casino this weekend. Christopher will be at the Jamul Casino in the San Diego area to launch three branded slot machines.
Christopher, the host of the No. 1 slot channel on YouTube, will host a Brian Christopher slots group pull using one of his Pop’N Pays More slots for the first time.
Christopher has previously visited the Jamul Casino in July 2021 and March 2022. According to the organizers, past events were quite successful, with great turnouts, including meet-and-greets.
|
Brian Christopher Jamul Casino group slot pull appearances All slot machine enthusiasts are welcome to participate in group slot pulls at Jamul Casino on Saturday. These are the following events:
There can be only one person per registered spot in the group pulls, and each person must contribute $200, including Christopher himself. In addition to the player’s gambling money, each person must buy a $9.99 ticket. Since all the events are currently full, players are advised to check back at a later time. If someone cancels, their spot immediately becomes available on a first-come, first-served basis. |
|
What is a group slot pull?
A group slot pull is an event where a group of people will pool their money together to play a specific slot machine. For instance, $200 per person for a group of 25 people would translate to $5,000 to put in a slot machine, increasing the chance of winnings.
Once the event starts, a host — in this case, Brian Christopher — charges a fee ($9.99) to deter people from signing up and then canceling last second. Everyone will take turns playing the designated slot machines.
Christopher agrees to cover taxes for wins under $5,000 total profit. Over and above that amount, approximately 35% will be held back for taxes. So, if the group hits $10,000 in overall wins, Brian will cover the taxes on the first $5,000, and the group will split the taxes on the second half.
The remaining money depends on how much the group has won or lost.
How to play Pop’N Pays brand slots
Each group gathers around the machine, and Christopher spins the reels on their behalf.
The Brian Christopher Pop’N Pays More has 1,047 pay lines and features expanding reels 2-5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. Apart from Christopher, other symbols include sevens, cups, spinning reels, lemons, cherries and a slot machine.
Moreover, a bonus game offers up to 15 free spins, which can be retriggered. The main goal is to hit three line-it-up coins on the screen at the same time.
Group slot pulls are an experience
Why do so many people participate in casino group slot pulls? It’s a fun and exciting way to play slots.
Christopher brings the slot group pulls experience to a new level for viewers and players. His crazy reactions to winning are always fun to watch, and if he hits the jackpot, it’s almost as fun as winning your own.
What makes Christopher so unique is his approachable personality. He has over 500,000 subscribers who look forward to his daily videos and once-a-week live streams where he shares his experience.
And, apart from having fun, people like to participate because of many reasons, such as:
If you miss out on the group pull, his Pop’N Pays More machines are here to stay, so don’t forget to check them out on your own some other time.
A group slot pull is an event where a group of people will pool their money together to play a specific slot machine. For instance, $200 per person for a group of 25 people would translate to $5,000 to put in a slot machine, increasing the chance of winnings.
Once the event starts, a host — in this case, Brian Christopher — charges a fee ($9.99) to deter people from signing up and then canceling last second. Everyone will take turns playing the designated slot machines.
Christopher agrees to cover taxes for wins under $5,000 total profit. Over and above that amount, approximately 35% will be held back for taxes. So, if the group hits $10,000 in overall wins, Brian will cover the taxes on the first $5,000, and the group will split the taxes on the second half.
The remaining money depends on how much the group has won or lost.
How to play Pop’N Pays brand slots
Each group gathers around the machine, and Christopher spins the reels on their behalf.
The Brian Christopher Pop’N Pays More has 1,047 pay lines and features expanding reels 2-5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. Apart from Christopher, other symbols include sevens, cups, spinning reels, lemons, cherries and a slot machine.
Moreover, a bonus game offers up to 15 free spins, which can be retriggered. The main goal is to hit three line-it-up coins on the screen at the same time.
Group slot pulls are an experience
Why do so many people participate in casino group slot pulls? It’s a fun and exciting way to play slots.
Christopher brings the slot group pulls experience to a new level for viewers and players. His crazy reactions to winning are always fun to watch, and if he hits the jackpot, it’s almost as fun as winning your own.
What makes Christopher so unique is his approachable personality. He has over 500,000 subscribers who look forward to his daily videos and once-a-week live streams where he shares his experience.
And, apart from having fun, people like to participate because of many reasons, such as:
- The social factor, as the experience makes the game more fun.
- Higher stakes are involved, as players have a chance to win more money without risking their own.
- Better chances of winning, especially for those who usually play low-stakes slots by themselves.
If you miss out on the group pull, his Pop’N Pays More machines are here to stay, so don’t forget to check them out on your own some other time.
Gambling Industry News
#1 Slots Streamer BCSlots Shines With Own Branded Slot Game & Biz Partnerships - Exclusive Q&A
by Gambling Industry News · September 5, 2022
#1 Slots Streamer BCSlots Shines With Own Branded Slot Game & Biz Partnerships - Exclusive Q&A
by Gambling Industry News · September 5, 2022
In 2022, It’s probably fair to say that content creator Brian Christopher (AKA “BCSlots”) is the biggest name in the slots streaming industry.
Christopher has turned his passion for slots into an international brand with over a million subscribers across his slots-focused social-media channels, and in excess of 5 million monthly content views. It’s certainly not a stretch to say that BCSlots is one of the most well known and influential slots players online.
BCSlots, Carnival Cruises, $1M Slot Tournament & More
In 2022 BCSlots inked a deal with Carnival Cruise Line to become an official cruise partner and gaming influencer – and also announced plans of launching a BCSlots-branded slot machine on Carnival ships.
Christopher has been booked for a number of upcoming Carnival Cruises, including one which hosts a remarkable $1M slot tournament – the largest ever held at sea (on Mardi Gras, November 5, 2022).
In the upcoming months, he will also take sail on the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic, and Carnival Dream to play and stream from Carnival Casinos, as well as showcasing the 5-star gambling experience, entertainment, amazing food and facilities on board Carnival Ships.
Brian Christopher’s Pop ‘N Pays More
Casino games studio Gaming Arts worked with Brian Christopher to develop & launch a BCSlots branded slot in July 2022.
In August 2022 it was announced that Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More slot had been launched in a number of land-based casinos in the US.
The Pop ‘N Pays More game can be found at:
- Plaza Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas
- Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas
- M Resort, Las Vegas
- Gila River Wild Horse Pass
- Harrah’s AK-Chin
- Desert Diamond West Valley
- Casino Arizona
- Talking Stick, Arizona
The eagerly awaited game will make its cruise premiere in the Carnival casinos where Christopher is scheduled to participate, including Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic, and Carnival Dream. It is believed that Christopher’s New Year’s Eve cruise on Carnival Breeze will feature the game.
BCSlots Interview & Q&A
Brian was kind enough to answer some questions from the GamblingIndustryNews.com team:
GamblingIndustryNews.com: You have played thousands upon thousands of different slots and gaming machines in countless American casinos – you surely know what players love – and now you have launched your own branded slot Pop n Pays More – with Gaming Arts. What kind of input did you have with the designers and programmers of the game – and how did that translate into magical and cool features on your branded slots title?
BCSlots: Pop’N Pays was already a proven game that my fans came to love, so helping to create the sequel: Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More was a dream for me. I had complete creative control, so long as it fit the mathematics and fit of the game. They were super accommodating of my requests which helped me bring out things like the ‘RUDE’ feature, where Brian will reach down and provide a much needed symbol, or the ‘shakey shakey’ where a bonus or big win lands automatically on your spin.
GamblingIndustryNews.com: How do you see streamers and content creators fitting into the future of iGaming marketing?
BCSlots: Like with every other goods and service out there, we are a perfect fit. When it comes to entertainment, we aim to provide top quality videos that make our fans feel like it is themselves hitting that spin button. The channel is not about watching someone else gamble, but learning how to play games and be a smart gambler. They get the thrill of the ups and downs – which is important! I show massive wins, and massive losses. It keeps it real!
GamblingIndustryNews.com: You must be excited with your Carnival Cruises partnership “Brian Christopher Slots Cruises” – which includes a packed agenda of five-star travel, entertainment, and work! Tell us about this – and have you enjoyed cruise-life before?
BCSlots: We are super proud of our mutual exclusivity with Carnival. It shows that we’re a perfect match for each other, and that they truly believe in making the experience for cruising gamblers the best it can be.
When people sign up at BCSlots.com/Cruise on our site for the Fun Match program, they can upload their offers from land-based casinos where carnival can turn that into discounted or even free cruises (less taxes and port fees). Even if they don’t have any offers to share, first timers still get a discounted cruise, $50 in freeplay, free drinks in the casino and invites to our special events on board! We always have a blast together.
I have been cruising for almost 2 decades and have really come to enjoy them. They’re super affordable vacations for friends, couples or families where your room, food and some entertainment are all inclusive in the price.
GamblingIndustryNews.com: Favorite casino you have visited?
BCSlots: The one I’m currently playing at. Every casino has its perks, like the Plaza in Las Vegas where they are currently constructing the brand new Brian Christopher Slots area – the very first smoke-free gaming area in downtown Las Vegas featuring all of my favorite games!
GamblingIndustryNews.com: What’s the biggest jackpot you have hit while recording (game, stakes etc) – we have seen some beefy wins on your YouTube channel? Also how much $ was the biggest 1 spin you have done on a slot? did you win ?
BCSlots: Biggest Win was around $24,000 on a $50 bet on Dollar Storm. Biggest bet ever was $250 on Dragon Cash or Lightning Link – with some wins and some losses. Definitely not worth the payback I put in, but exciting to play and watch.
Playing online at PlayChumba.com, my biggest win was $250,000 on a $180 bet! That was a dream hit, not likely to every match or beat again.
GamblingIndustryNews.com: Have you got any new and exciting BCSlots plans for the future?
BCSlots: Yes!! Until they’re revealed I can’t say anything. Best bet is to check our website BCSlots.com and to sign up for our newsletter on the contact page. Then they’ll be the first to know. That’s also where we post our events our fans can join on and see the locations of our Pop’N Pays more game at BCSlots.com/POP
GamblingIndustryNews.com: Thanks for sharing your knowledge & insights with us – and good luck with your projects!
Play USA
Brian Christopher Slot Machine Enjoys Blockbuster Success, Outperforms Casino Averages
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 2, 2022
Play USA
Brian Christopher Slot Machine Enjoys Blockbuster Success, Outperforms Casino Averages
by Katarina Vojvodic · September 2, 2022
Brian Christopher is known for playing live slots online, so getting his own physical slot machine game that his fans and followers could play was a great move. Now, it’s paying off in a big way.
Christopher partnered with inventive slot manufacturer Gaming Arts and debuted his new slot machine Pop’N Pays More at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas in July.
With attractive animations and unique sound effects, Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More proved to be a huge success. It unrolled in a total of 17 locations and has been running two to four times casino floor averages in just one month.
The explosive success of Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More slot machine
Christopher found tremendous success when he began playing live slot games on YouTube under BCSlots, which ballooned his social media presence on Twitter, TikTok and other platforms. He is known for his quirky personality and interaction with his dedicated fanbase.
His partnership with a gaming company was a natural evolution, and Las Vegas seemed like the perfect place for the unveiling party for his slot machines. He is the first influencer to create his own slot machine.
With more than 500 thousand subscribers, Brian Christopher gets more than 5 million views each month.
The response to Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More!™has so far been quite successful with performance numbers in many cases, consistently running more than four times the house average.
Chief Operating Officer of Gaming Arts Jean Venneman commented: “We’re really excited to be working with Brian. He’s been an amazing partner to collaborate with, and we’re confident that his fans and players alike will really enjoy this exciting new game.”
Brian Christopher didn’t comment to PlayUSA, but shared via press release: “We’re a perfect match. We are both super innovative and forward-thinking. As my fans already loved the original Pop’N Pays games with their constant action, fun bonuses, free games and catchy music, Gaming Arts was the obvious choice to partner with.”
|
How to play Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More Designed by Vegas-headquartered Gaming Arts, Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More!™ is full of surprises. It revolves around Brian Christopher and features exciting animations and enticing sound effects. The Brian Christopher comes with 1,047 ways to win and a unique feature that can expand reels 2, 3 and 5 or up to 8 symbols high. Once fully expanded, there are 16,384 ways to win on every single spin. Moreover, players can activate a rapid free game feature offering up to 15 free spins, which can be retriggered. Throughout the gameplay, Brian Christopher’s avatar pops up as cash-on-reels symbols, saying his most popular catchphrases. These include: “Oh Nelly!” after a big win, “Line it UP!” when expecting a winning spin, “Rude” if a symbol lands just short of a combination, and other quotes like “Do it to it!” and “It’s all about timing!” |
|
Where are Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More slot machines located?
Players already had a chance to enjoy a massively successful launch with game placements in US casinos, including:
The upcoming installations are also scheduled for:
Brian Christopher’s brand, slot machine games expanding
As Christopher is constantly expanding his brand and partnering with casinos all over the US, more affiliations are expected to follow.
For instance, after partnering with Plaza Hotel, where his machine made its grand debut, the casino opened an entire smoke-free slot gaming area and named it Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza.
In the coming months, Gaming Arts will continue installing the new Brian Christopher game along with adding the other new Pop’N Pays More! games, Piñatas Olé and Big Top, across the rest of the country.
Christopher has made appearances with live streaming videos at various locations, hosting group slot pulls, and free slot pulls. These debuts, events, and meet-and-greets are always a unique opportunity for fans to meet with the No. 1 streamer, take photos and get his autograph. The reception by Brian’s followers has been very well received, with wait times up to several hours and lines over 300 people long, all done happily by his group of admirers.
As Christopher recently partnered with Carnival Cruise Line, he will join the company’s fleet on several cruises over the next two years. The slots influencer will play in Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream, having his games livestreamed from all these ships.
Players already had a chance to enjoy a massively successful launch with game placements in US casinos, including:
- Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas
- Palms Casino Resort Las Vegas
- M Resort Spa & Casino Las Vegas
- Gila River Wild Horse Pass in Arizona
- Harrah’s AK-Chin in Arizona
- Desert Diamond West Valley in Arizona
- Casino Arizona
- Talking Stick in Arizona
- Agua Caliente Rancho Mirage in California
- Agua Caliente Palm Springs in California
- Agua Caliente Casino Cathedral City in California
- Yaamava’ in California
- Hard Rock Tulsa in Oklahoma
The upcoming installations are also scheduled for:
- Morongo in California
- Coushatta in Louisiana
- Grand Casino Hinckley in Minnesota
- Saratoga Black Hawk in Colorado
Brian Christopher’s brand, slot machine games expanding
As Christopher is constantly expanding his brand and partnering with casinos all over the US, more affiliations are expected to follow.
For instance, after partnering with Plaza Hotel, where his machine made its grand debut, the casino opened an entire smoke-free slot gaming area and named it Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza.
In the coming months, Gaming Arts will continue installing the new Brian Christopher game along with adding the other new Pop’N Pays More! games, Piñatas Olé and Big Top, across the rest of the country.
Christopher has made appearances with live streaming videos at various locations, hosting group slot pulls, and free slot pulls. These debuts, events, and meet-and-greets are always a unique opportunity for fans to meet with the No. 1 streamer, take photos and get his autograph. The reception by Brian’s followers has been very well received, with wait times up to several hours and lines over 300 people long, all done happily by his group of admirers.
As Christopher recently partnered with Carnival Cruise Line, he will join the company’s fleet on several cruises over the next two years. The slots influencer will play in Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream, having his games livestreamed from all these ships.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
YouTuber slot machine outperforming casino floor averages
by McKenna Ross · August 26, 2022
YouTuber slot machine outperforming casino floor averages
by McKenna Ross · August 26, 2022
A slot machine featuring the likeness of a social media influencer is outperforming casino floor averages, just over one month after its initial debut in Las Vegas.
YouTube personality Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More, developed by Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts, is running two- and as much as four-times casino floor averages across some of its 17 locations nationwide, according to the manufacturer.
“This whole process has been an eye-opening affirmation that our collaboration with Brian and his team for a groundbreaking game like this was a great idea,” Gaming Arts CEO Mike Dreitzer said in an email. “We hope to continue to work with them on many more fun projects such as this one going forward.”
Christopher, who has more than five million monthly viewers, suspects the success has to do with the interactivity of his community.
“I think that’s why they’re so engaged with all the events we do, in our comments, in our videos, on our cruises together,” he said. “When they find out that there’s a slot machine near them, it’s a way for them to be a part of the experience, to play the game that they see Brian playing and feel a part of our community a little bit more.”
The game launched locally at the Plaza, the Palms and M Resort in early July. It’s also in casinos in Arizona, California and Oklahoma. It will soon be installed in Louisiana, Minnesota and Colorado. The full list is available online.
Christopher’s game is also expected to make its debut on several Carnival cruise ships, according to a Thursday news release. It would be the first sea-based site for the game.
Pop’N Pays More consists of expanding reels, a rapid free game and details for Christopher’s followers to notice. His avatar frequently pops up and his voice can be heard saying his popular catchphrases.
It’s those catchphrases that have led to some of Christopher’s favorite moments watching fans play. Sometimes he’ll sneak behind people playing at the machine and repeat one of the avatar’s sayings.
“They don’t immediately know that it was me because Brian on the slot machine is always saying those things,” he said. “I’ll say something like, ‘Line it up!’ and it’ll take them a second, they’ll turn around and the reaction and the joy — it’s really exciting. What’s almost even more exciting is maybe even half the time, they don’t even know who I am. They’re playing the game because it’s a fun game.”
McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
YouTube personality Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More, developed by Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts, is running two- and as much as four-times casino floor averages across some of its 17 locations nationwide, according to the manufacturer.
“This whole process has been an eye-opening affirmation that our collaboration with Brian and his team for a groundbreaking game like this was a great idea,” Gaming Arts CEO Mike Dreitzer said in an email. “We hope to continue to work with them on many more fun projects such as this one going forward.”
Christopher, who has more than five million monthly viewers, suspects the success has to do with the interactivity of his community.
“I think that’s why they’re so engaged with all the events we do, in our comments, in our videos, on our cruises together,” he said. “When they find out that there’s a slot machine near them, it’s a way for them to be a part of the experience, to play the game that they see Brian playing and feel a part of our community a little bit more.”
The game launched locally at the Plaza, the Palms and M Resort in early July. It’s also in casinos in Arizona, California and Oklahoma. It will soon be installed in Louisiana, Minnesota and Colorado. The full list is available online.
Christopher’s game is also expected to make its debut on several Carnival cruise ships, according to a Thursday news release. It would be the first sea-based site for the game.
Pop’N Pays More consists of expanding reels, a rapid free game and details for Christopher’s followers to notice. His avatar frequently pops up and his voice can be heard saying his popular catchphrases.
It’s those catchphrases that have led to some of Christopher’s favorite moments watching fans play. Sometimes he’ll sneak behind people playing at the machine and repeat one of the avatar’s sayings.
“They don’t immediately know that it was me because Brian on the slot machine is always saying those things,” he said. “I’ll say something like, ‘Line it up!’ and it’ll take them a second, they’ll turn around and the reaction and the joy — it’s really exciting. What’s almost even more exciting is maybe even half the time, they don’t even know who I am. They’re playing the game because it’s a fun game.”
McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
Slot influencer Brian Christopher is to take his platform to the high seas after being named Carnival Cruise Line’s exclusive gaming influencer.
Over the next two years, Christopher will travel across the globe with Carnival, taking part in many of their sea-based casino offerings and tournaments, live-streaming along the way.
This will include the $1m slot tournament cruise hosted on Carnival’s Mardi Gras, the company’s largest cruise ship which offers roller coaster rides and water parks to its cruisers. The tournament is set to be the biggest slot tournament ever held at sea.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” commented Jonathan Lask, VP of casino and performance marketing at Carnival.
Christopher has over a million subscribers across his Youtube and facebook platforms, where he live streams himself playing various slot titles.
His rise to fame within the industry has seen him receive his own branded titles and host numerous tournaments around US casinos, including taking charge of a $30,000 tournament held at San Manuel casino.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” added Christopher.
Christopher’s deal with Carnival will not only see him showcase Carnival’s casinos to his fans as he will be advertising the entire cruise experience including their dining, entertainment, shopping and spa experiences.
Over the next two years, Christopher will travel across the globe with Carnival, taking part in many of their sea-based casino offerings and tournaments, live-streaming along the way.
This will include the $1m slot tournament cruise hosted on Carnival’s Mardi Gras, the company’s largest cruise ship which offers roller coaster rides and water parks to its cruisers. The tournament is set to be the biggest slot tournament ever held at sea.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” commented Jonathan Lask, VP of casino and performance marketing at Carnival.
Christopher has over a million subscribers across his Youtube and facebook platforms, where he live streams himself playing various slot titles.
His rise to fame within the industry has seen him receive his own branded titles and host numerous tournaments around US casinos, including taking charge of a $30,000 tournament held at San Manuel casino.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” added Christopher.
Christopher’s deal with Carnival will not only see him showcase Carnival’s casinos to his fans as he will be advertising the entire cruise experience including their dining, entertainment, shopping and spa experiences.
Gambling Insider
Yep, a slots streamer now has his own exclusive cruise partner
by Gambling Insider · August 25, 2022
Yep, a slots streamer now has his own exclusive cruise partner
by Gambling Insider · August 25, 2022
Slots streamer Brian Christopher has been named the exclusive casino gaming influencer of Carnival Cruise Line Casinos, with Carnival Cruise Line fleet now Brian Christopher Slots’ exclusive cruise partner.
Christopher, who has over one million subscribers across his social media channels, will attend a range of Carnival cruises over the next two years, including the $1m Slot Tournament Cruise, Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream.
As well as broadcasting livestreams from inside these casino cruises, Christopher will also give his viewers a look at additional on-board amenities, including spa, shopping and dining options.
Carnival VP of Casino and Performance Marketing Jonathan Lask said: “Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet.”
Furthermore, Carnival has been named the at-sea launch partner for Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More slot machine. The title is expected to debut on New Year’s Eve, and will be available on a range of Carnival cruises.
Christopher said: “This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect.”
Christopher partnered with Supplier Gaming Arts to create Pop’N Pays More in May of this year. The title had a land debut in July at the Plaza Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, with the game featuring Christopher’s likeness, catchphrases and favourite gaming graphics.
This partnership goes to show just how popular gambling streamers can become.
Cruise Industry News
Carnival Partners with Slots Influencer Brian Christopher
by Cruise Industry News · August 25, 2022
Cruise Industry News
Carnival Partners with Slots Influencer Brian Christopher
by Cruise Industry News · August 25, 2022
Slots influencer Brian Christopher has partnered with Carnival Cruise Line as their exclusive slots influencer and will be joining the company’s fleet on several cruises over the next two years, according to a press release.
Christopher, who has a monthly following of over five million will set sail aboard Carnival’s fleet in the coming months. He will highlight the $1 million Slot Tournament Cruise, which also marks the biggest tournament ever at sea, aboard the Mardi Grass departing on November 5, 2022, according to the company.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” said Brian Christopher.
The slots champion will also play in casinos aboard the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream in the coming months, while his games will be livestreamed from Carnival’s casinos.
The cruise line will also be the at-sea casino launch partner for Christopher's "Pop'N Pays More" slots machine, which will debut in casinos across Carnival's fleet. Besides being available onboard the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream, guests will also have the chance to try their luck on the slots machine during Christopher’s New Year’s Eve sailing on the Carnival Breeze.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” commented Jonathan Lask, vice president of casino and performance marketing, Carnival Cruise Line.
Christopher, who has a monthly following of over five million will set sail aboard Carnival’s fleet in the coming months. He will highlight the $1 million Slot Tournament Cruise, which also marks the biggest tournament ever at sea, aboard the Mardi Grass departing on November 5, 2022, according to the company.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” said Brian Christopher.
The slots champion will also play in casinos aboard the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream in the coming months, while his games will be livestreamed from Carnival’s casinos.
The cruise line will also be the at-sea casino launch partner for Christopher's "Pop'N Pays More" slots machine, which will debut in casinos across Carnival's fleet. Besides being available onboard the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic and Carnival Dream, guests will also have the chance to try their luck on the slots machine during Christopher’s New Year’s Eve sailing on the Carnival Breeze.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” commented Jonathan Lask, vice president of casino and performance marketing, Carnival Cruise Line.
Cruise Hive
Influencer With Over 1 Million Followers Partners With Carnival
by Melissa Mayntz · August 25, 2022
Influencer With Over 1 Million Followers Partners With Carnival
by Melissa Mayntz · August 25, 2022
Many cruise travelers enjoy time in the casino on their oceangoing getaways, and there’s a new lucky partnership between Carnival Cruise Line and one of the world’s leading gaming influencers, Brian Christopher. This will give players worldwide insights into shipboard slot play and a chance to strike it rich with playing tips.
New Influencer Partnership
More than five million monthly social media viewers love to watch Brian Christopher play slot machines at land-based casinos across the United States, absorbing his tips for responsible play and insights into how slot machines work along with his charismatic personality.
Now, Christopher is bringing his gaming expertise to the high seas, and his more than one million followers and new fans will able to see him play on various ships as the new exclusive casino gaming influencer for Carnival Cruise Line.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” said Jonathan Lask, Carnival's vice president of casino and performance marketing.
A native of Toronto, Canada, and now a resident of Palm Springs, California, Christopher has built his gaming influencer business to jackpot levels, with more than 635,000 followers on Facebook, 530,000 on YouTube, and 49,000 on Instagram – an astonishing total of more than 1.2 million subscribers and followers and growing.
Christopher showcases his game play in a positive and personable manner, while offering reviews of different machines and insights into his own gaming experiences.
Onboard Carnival Cruise Line’s ships, Christopher will do the same – showing eager cruise travelers and interested fans the fun available in Fun Ship casinos.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” said Christopher.
Christopher will set sail aboard multiple Carnival cruises in 2022 and 2023, including joining the upcoming $1M Slot Tournament Cruise, the biggest slot tournament ever at sea, on the cruise line’s flagship, Mardi Gras.
That signature sailing is a 7-night Eastern Caribbean itinerary, departing Port Canaveral on November 5, 2022, and visiting Nassau, Amber Cove, and Grand Turk.
Christopher will also bring his slot play to Carnival Breeze, Carnival Magic, and Carnival Dream.
On each sailing, Christopher will livestream slot play to his followers, as well as share videos showing the dining, entertainment, shopping, and spa venues on board each vessel – a surefire win for anyone interested in a cruise vacation.
New Slot Machine Coming to Carnival Ships
Carnival Cruise Line will also be the at-sea casino launch partner for Christopher’s “Pop’N Pays More” slot machine, released in July 2022 and already available at gaming establishments throughout the United States, including in Las Vegas, Palm Springs, and other top casinos. The game features 1,047-ways-to-win, and is sure to be a hit in onboard ship casinos.
The game features multiple reel expansion play with even more ways to win, and at full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin.
In addition to energetic play, Christopher’s “Pop’N Pays More” slot machine also has his own voiceovers, catch phrases, and animations, capitalizing on his energy and following.
The new machine will debut with Christopher’s sailings, bringing even more winning fun to Carnival Cruise Line.
Cruise Radio
Carnival Cruise Line To Introduce New Slot Machine With Casino Gaming Influencer
by Sarah Bretz · August 25, 2022
Cruise Radio
Carnival Cruise Line To Introduce New Slot Machine With Casino Gaming Influencer
by Sarah Bretz · August 25, 2022
Carnival Cruise Line has announced a new partnership with casino gaming influencer Brian Christopher, who boasts over 5 million monthly viewers on social media.
Christopher, who is the biggest slots influencer in the world, is set to sail on several Carnival voyages over the next two years, including the $1M Slot Tournament Cruise — the biggest slot tournament ever at sea — on Mardi Gras on November 5, 2022. He’s also set to sail and play in casinos on Carnival Breeze, Magic, and Dream in the coming months.
His followers will be able to join him at sea in real time as he livestreams from Carnival’s casinos. Christopher will also share videos showing the dining, entertainment, and other offerings available on board.
Carnival Cruise Line will also be the at-sea casino launch partner for Christopher’s “Pop’N Pays More” slot machine. The machine will make its cruise debut where he is set to play — on Breeze, Magic, and Dream — and is expected to be available on the New Year’s Eve sailing on Carnival Breeze.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” said Jonathan Lask, Carnival’s vice president of casino and performance marketing.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” said Christopher.
Christopher, who is the biggest slots influencer in the world, is set to sail on several Carnival voyages over the next two years, including the $1M Slot Tournament Cruise — the biggest slot tournament ever at sea — on Mardi Gras on November 5, 2022. He’s also set to sail and play in casinos on Carnival Breeze, Magic, and Dream in the coming months.
His followers will be able to join him at sea in real time as he livestreams from Carnival’s casinos. Christopher will also share videos showing the dining, entertainment, and other offerings available on board.
Carnival Cruise Line will also be the at-sea casino launch partner for Christopher’s “Pop’N Pays More” slot machine. The machine will make its cruise debut where he is set to play — on Breeze, Magic, and Dream — and is expected to be available on the New Year’s Eve sailing on Carnival Breeze.
“Brian Christopher Slots exemplifies the fun that Carnival is known for and is the perfect ambassador for the rewarding experience we bring to our valued casino guests across our fleet,” said Jonathan Lask, Carnival’s vice president of casino and performance marketing.
“This partnership will bring next-level fun to all slot players out there and bridge our land-based adventures with the best excitement at sea. The entire experience is a great match with Brian Christopher Slots and the action my fans expect,” said Christopher.
Yogonet Gaming News
INTERVIEW WITH THE SLOTS INFLUENCER Brian Christopher: "When casinos work with us, they can be guaranteed that their product will be seen by 100% gamblers, from all over the world"
by Juan Ignacio Grille · August 19, 2022
INTERVIEW WITH THE SLOTS INFLUENCER Brian Christopher: "When casinos work with us, they can be guaranteed that their product will be seen by 100% gamblers, from all over the world"
by Juan Ignacio Grille · August 19, 2022
Brian Christopher, also known as BCSlots, has recently become the first slots influencer to create and launch his own branded slot machine, rolling out first in Las Vegas last month, and currently expanding into California, Colorado, Louisiana, Arizona, Oklahoma and Minnesota, and more to come. With over 1.1 million followers over multiple social media platforms, 300 million views worldwide and 5.1 million unique monthly viewers on his YouTube channel, Christopher, who even has cruise line giant Carnival as exclusive partner, has developed an innovative way for traditional casinos to connect with all ages and genders.
In partnership with Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts, they have launched Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More at the Plaza Hotel & Casino of Las Vegas. This casino had already debuted a dedicated area for the influencer last year, and the Plaza in June unveiled the details of four large-scale projects including downtown’s first smoke-free and "social media friendly" gaming area featuring an agreement with Christopher. "I have been pushing for casinos to become more camera friendly for years and Plaza has embraced that," he tells Yogonet in an exclusive interview, adding that he has committed to partnering only with smoke-free spaces by next year, amid ongoing debates around smoking ban at casinos across the U.S.
What’s your assessment so far of Pop'N Pays More’s debut as a first-of-its-kind, influencer-branded slot? Which challenges have you faced, and what learnings or key takeaways could you share with us in this brand-new segment opening for the industry?
Winning on slots is all about luck and timing with zero skill involved. Creating this slot machine with Gaming Arts took some luck, timing and a LOT of skill! We are over the moon happy with its initial launch as it continues to hit more casinos across the country. Gaming Arts took a big chance on me, and I'd say it has already by far outshot our expectations. When you have the reach that we do, coupled with a love and understanding of what makes slots so enjoyable, I think we've come up with something super fun and unique.
In February 2021, the Plaza Hotel & Casino of Las Vegas saw the debut of the “Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza” gaming area in Downtown Las Vegas. Now the same casino is opening downtown’s first smoke-free and "social media friendly" gaming area in partnership with you. What’s the differential value, and possibly disruptive features in these areas? What was the criteria behind their design; how have you contributed to that process?
I made the pledge a year ago that by 2023 I would be partnering exclusively with smokefree spaces and so Plaza took that challenge to heart. I have shared all of our stats with them including the fact that only 13% of the US population smokes these days. Being the first person or company to do anything first may seem a bit scary, but I am convinced the time is right to take this head on. My space is growing from just 28 slot machines to around 80. This will allow us to bring in the newest and greatest slot machines for all to enjoy - and to capture on their phones! I have been pushing for casinos to become more camera friendly for years and Plaza has embraced that. We live in a social society, so it only makes sense. The design was conceived by Plaza and I am actively working with them throughout the process. All slot machines in the area are those I choose that I know my fans and others will adore.
Palms Casino Resort reopened in April under the first tribal casino ownership in Las Vegas, and now it has hosted your new branded slot’s roll-out. How have you built your relationship with the new owners?
Palms is owned by San Manuel who I have had a longstanding relationship with, so they reached out to me first (well, Gaming Arts). Most often, it is the new casinos who approach and ask us to come and help launch their new space. The main issue that we run into (if you can call it an issue), is that we are booked solid 6 months in advance and are already 50% booked for 2023. So planning in advance is key!
Other installations were made in California, Oklahoma, Arizona and Minnesota, all jurisdictions where tribal gaming's presence is very strong. What does tribal gaming represent for your project? Could you share some further details of the new slot’s debut in those states?
Tribal casinos are integral to our business. We love our relationships with the tribes and they continue to grow each year as word gets out on what we do. Launching the game at three casinos in Las Vegas was super exciting and brought hundreds of people out. We then launched our games in 5 further casinos in Arizona to sold out meet and greets as well as in Oklahoma. We're off to Minnesota next, with more states being added to the list. We are keeping a running list of locations on BCSlots.com/Pop so our fans know where it will drop next!
Why have you decided to become a slots influencer?
I didn't decide to, it just happened. I posted a few videos for fun and never thought anything about it. To my surprise, they blew up - so I shot more. The more I posted, the bigger I grew and this is what continued for the past 6 years. We now have a team of 10 employees that has grown from casino slots, to online slots and even on board cruises with our exclusive partner Carnival.
What’s your target audience in your social media channels, how would you describe them?
We literally hit every single age group and are split between all genders. That's what is so great - is that slot machines are exciting to 21 years olds and 80 year olds alike. I don't curse when I lose (and I lose a lot!), and we're just there to have fun. I promote responsible gambling as well and always remind my audience to use an entertainment budget. So win or lose, we have a blast.
Why have you chosen Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts for this new slot, and how was the process and criteria to define its features?
Gaming Arts really understood me and my brand, and they basically gave us free range to come up with anything we wanted. Even right down to a few weeks prior to launch, I made a few last-minute choices that really stood out in the game and made a huge difference. They were the dream company and we really worked well together. We had bi-weekly meetings to review everything from what music I wanted, what sounds, symbols, movements, features, etc, that I felt my audience would like best.
How would you define your relationship with casino operators, manufacturers, and players? Do you face any conflict of interests when trying to keep a healthy and synergistic bond with all parties?
Everyone has always been super supportive of what we do on our channels. They know that when they work with us, they will get family oriented content (no cursing or irresponsible gambling) that is fully positive and fun and will show off the best (and worst) parts of every game and casino. I don't hold anything back, and don't edit out clips when I lose. I am real and so are my wins and losses. That is what builds trust with both our partners and our audience.
Ari Fox, co-founder of the Casino Esport Conference, has recently told us that the problem with casinos' user acquisition is that they don't connect to a community, which he sees as a key asset in the esports industry, for instance. Do you see any trend or pattern in that sense today; how would you help forge a community around traditional casinos? What opportunities and added value does this open up for casino operators, specially in terms of customer acquisition? What new customer segments or bases could they attract if they partner up with you?
Every day I drive by billboards for casinos. Some billboards cost them over a million dollars a year. I can honestly say that they have never encouraged me to turn my car around and hit their casino. They have no idea how many people see that billboard, and what percentage of them are gamblers. There is no sense of ROI. When they work with us, they can be guaranteed that their casino or product will be seen by 100% gamblers, from all over the world (predominantly in the US). And when we host events at their casino, we will bring hundreds of fans in person. We have built an incredible community, a fanbase so large that within days and sometimes within hours, our events sell out. We have over 5.1M unique monthly viewers and they are here for it! Our audience hits all demographics as well across all ages and gender with fans from 21 up until their 90's!
Yahoo
Brian Christopher, America's No. 1 Slot Influencer, and Gaming Arts Successfully Launch New Slot Game: Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More!
PRNewswire · August 17, 2022
LAS VEGAS, Aug. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Earlier last month, slot manufacturer Gaming Arts launched a very unique new slot game, Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More!™. Besides great game play, what makes this slot game so unique is that Gaming Arts has partnered with Brian Christopher, America's no. 1 slot influencer, to design this new game from the ground up that revolves around Brian Christopher, complete with many fun and exciting animations, voice overs and much, much more!
|
To date, the response to Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More!™ has been outstanding!
Although just released last month, the game has enjoyed a massively successful launch with game placements including: Plaza Hotel & Casino, Palms Casino Resort and M Resort in Las Vegas, Gila River Wild Horse Pass, Harrah's AK-Chin, Desert Diamond West Valley, Casino Arizona and Talking Stick in Arizona, Agua Caliente Rancho Mirage, Agua Caliente Palm Springs, Agua Caliente Cathedral City and Yaamava' in California, and Hard Rock Tulsa in Oklahoma. Upcoming installations are also slated for Morongo in California, Coushatta in Louisiana, Grand Casino Hinckley in Minnesota and Saratoga Black Hawk in Colorado. |
|
In the coming months, Gaming Arts will continue installing the new Brian Christopher game along with adding the other new Pop'N Pays More! games, Piñatas Olé and Big Top, across the rest of the country. To date, the response to Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More!™ has been outstanding with performance numbers in many cases, consistently running more than 4X house average.
For many of these locations, Brian has made appearances with live streaming videos, hosting group pulls and free slot pulls, along with the unique opportunity for fans to meet with Brian and take photos. The reception by Brian's fans has been astonishing with wait times up to several hours and with lines over 300 people long, all done happily by his legion of followers!
The Brian Christopher game with 1,047-ways-to-win, has a feature that very often expands reels 2-5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. In addition, there is a rapid free game feature offering up to 15 free games with frequent re-triggers. For added entertainment, throughout game play, Brian Christopher's avatar pops up as cash-on-reels symbols, uttering his most popular catch phrases including: "Oh Nelly!" after a big win, "Line it UP!" in anticipation of a winning spin and other favorites including "Do it to it!", "It's all about timing!" and "Rude" where a symbol lands just short of a combination!
The collaboration between Brian Christopher and Gaming Arts is a natural fit as Gaming Arts is a supremely inventive slot company with an understanding and appreciation for how the rapidly evolving social media will influence gaming in the years to come. Gaming Arts has proven itself as a top industry innovator with a long list of successful slots, including the extremely popular Kung Fu Empress™ and the world's most advanced electronic table games (ETGs), Casino Wizard™, as well as the soon to be released Casino Wizard VIP™.
Brian Christopher's more than 5 million monthly viewers on social media have received this first-of-its-kind partnership with open arms. Brian and the Gaming Arts design team delivered a game loaded with features appealing to both superfans and general slot players alike. This winning formula has earned rave reviews and generated unprecedented interest among players. They are not only coming out to the casino properties that have installed the game to date, but they are also asking their local casinos to add it to their gaming floors!
For many of these locations, Brian has made appearances with live streaming videos, hosting group pulls and free slot pulls, along with the unique opportunity for fans to meet with Brian and take photos. The reception by Brian's fans has been astonishing with wait times up to several hours and with lines over 300 people long, all done happily by his legion of followers!
The Brian Christopher game with 1,047-ways-to-win, has a feature that very often expands reels 2-5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. In addition, there is a rapid free game feature offering up to 15 free games with frequent re-triggers. For added entertainment, throughout game play, Brian Christopher's avatar pops up as cash-on-reels symbols, uttering his most popular catch phrases including: "Oh Nelly!" after a big win, "Line it UP!" in anticipation of a winning spin and other favorites including "Do it to it!", "It's all about timing!" and "Rude" where a symbol lands just short of a combination!
The collaboration between Brian Christopher and Gaming Arts is a natural fit as Gaming Arts is a supremely inventive slot company with an understanding and appreciation for how the rapidly evolving social media will influence gaming in the years to come. Gaming Arts has proven itself as a top industry innovator with a long list of successful slots, including the extremely popular Kung Fu Empress™ and the world's most advanced electronic table games (ETGs), Casino Wizard™, as well as the soon to be released Casino Wizard VIP™.
Brian Christopher's more than 5 million monthly viewers on social media have received this first-of-its-kind partnership with open arms. Brian and the Gaming Arts design team delivered a game loaded with features appealing to both superfans and general slot players alike. This winning formula has earned rave reviews and generated unprecedented interest among players. They are not only coming out to the casino properties that have installed the game to date, but they are also asking their local casinos to add it to their gaming floors!
|
Jean Venneman, Chief Operating Officer of Gaming Arts commented, "We're really excited to be working with Brian," Venneman continued, "He's been an amazing partner to collaborate with, and we're confident that his fans and players alike will really enjoy this exciting new game."
Brian Christopher added, "We're a perfect match. We are both super innovative and forward thinking. As my fans already loved the original Pop'N Pays games with their constant action, fun bonuses, free games and catchy music, Gaming Arts was the obvious choice to partner with." |
Gaming has adopted a stunning new social media-driven era.
The personality-based concept of reality TV met the world of casino and online gaming in early July. Las Vegas debuted a slot machine named for, of all things, a social influencer.
Brian Christopher, known for amassing an online cheering section to watch him gamble, has become more than just the face of this novel concept. He’s the machine.
Gaming Arts’ Brian Christopher Pop N’Pays More slots debuted at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. It’s a logical follow-up to the creation of a casino slot area dedicated to his favorite games there last year.
Social media is no longer a mere link between outlets like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok. Nor is it simply a vehicle to drive casino revenue. It’s an interactive gaming niche.
Christopher attracts more than 5.1 million unique viewers and more than 1.3 million global subscribers, who watch him play slots and cheer him on. He symbolizes where the social media-gaming marriage is heading. His stature caps a decade-long movement that mirrors the growth of this new synergy.
It’s a partnership that would have yielded staggering odds had it been a futures bet 10 years ago.
Planting the Seed
“The advent of social media essentially killed traditional marketing,” says Erika Taylor Montgomery, CEO of Three Girls Media in Yelm, Washington, about 75 minutes south of Seattle. “It has completely revolutionized the way brands are marketed in the casino industry.”
Montgomery’s life journey parallels the ascent of the new communications age. She was a television news anchor in San Francisco, juggling early-morning hours around the schedule of young children. Montgomery eventually evolved out of television and formed the company in 2005 that now has 10 employees (Three Girls is not tied with a particular number of people; Montgomery thought the name was catchy.)
Three Girls Media has several clients in varied businesses. Some are in the casino industry, including Red Wind casino in Olympia, Washington. The company has monitored industry changes, especially the dramatic impact of Covid in 2020. Home-based employees became a dream fit for social-media content.
“What happened as a result of Covid is that more people are on mobile devices and computers than ever before,” she says. “Having a really good social media strategy is critical for reaching clients in the gaming and casino industry.”
Montgomery favors the use of video, especially short messages of up to 60 seconds. The video quality does not need to reflect the expensive bells and whistles associated with television production. Smartphones will do nicely, thank you.
“Your message does not have to be slick and posh,” Montgomery asserts. “Any good smartphone is capable of taking fantastic video. What stops companies from succeeding in this space at times is the belief that you have to come up with something that is professionally produced with fancy lighting and multiple cameras. You don’t need that now.”
Instead, the video should reveal the human element behind the brand. Montgomery believes customers love to see one concept repeatedly in videos—people.
“One thing I love is video that gives a behind-the-scenes look at what people do not get to see on the casino floor,” Montgomery says. “Take them behind the scenes in a restaurant. Give people a sneak peek. Let them hear from the people who work on the brand.
“People love to see the human side of what’s behind a brand.”
Montgomery believes this human portrayal augments traditional video that spans the realm of showcasing big winners, announcing tournaments and informing customers of upcoming events.
There’s another reason to love video, Montgomery asserts. Marketing messages can spread like wildfire among like-minded customers.
“There is one study revealing that 85 percent of social media users want more video from brands,” Montgomery asserts. “People also share video twice as much as any other content.”
Demographics are important too. Younger people may flock to TikTok, which has a “mind-blowing average of 14 hours a month on the app” by approximately 1 billion monthly users, Montgomery indicates.
Older decision-makers may prefer an outlet like Facebook. Montgomery indicates that sharp companies recognize the ability to spread the word without spreading the bread.
“At its core, social media is free,” she says. “You can choose to spend thousands of dollars in traditional advertising or you can decide that just posting something and giving you an organic presence is absolutely free.”
Setting the Table
About four years ago, boxing commentators for streaming giant DAZN were stunned. They had been assigned to conduct extensive interviews and televise the pro debut of someone named Jake Paul.
It was contrarian.
DAZN had spent over $500 million annexing the services of Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin, two of the sport’s superstars, in an attempt to control the business. It was big names only.
What was this attention to a fighter making his pro debut? The answer: eyeballs.
Paul, according to industry estimates, has more than 30 million viewers between YouTube, Instagram and Twitter. He’d gained attention with a 2017 video titled “It’s Everyday Bro,” portraying a white rapper and a young group of cronies extolling the virtue of social media hits and a fancy car.
The video was effective in a unique way. According to Wikipedia, it has more than 5.5 million dislikes, 19th of all time. It once was in the Top 5.
Pre-fight press conferences involved comparisons of YouTube followers between Paul and his opponents. Forget the nuance of the Sweet Science. A fighter can’t simply talk smack. It should be social-media smack.
Paul has vaulted into prominence, gained respected boxing trainers around him and now openly talks about fighting Mike Tyson or Floyd Mayweather. Somewhere, at some point, Paul will obtain a stratospheric payday by virtue of mastering the new medium.
Christopher, comparatively, is far more subdued, but he is the gaming master of this universe right now.
He is not an over-the-top media personality. But he is the first to link two powerful concepts, the reach of social media and the intoxication of slot machines. Christopher lets the game’s bells, whistles, payouts and near-misses drive the content of his presentation. He adds conversational wit, enough to occupy attention without diverting attention from the game.
Christopher is indeed the individual that personifies the social-media wave. He made a 2016 video for a hobby and, voila, became an internet juggernaut. The native of Canada, who now lives in Palm Springs, California, struck oil with the concept of captivating people long enough to watch him play slots. Christopher narrates live videos from varied casinos, in which he gambles thousands of dollars of his own money.
YouTube and Facebook followers attend the events via social media and weigh in their support.
“Adults like gamers and video games,” Christopher observes. “They like watching other people play, just as the way you might envision kids who like to see other kids play with their toys. The experience for someone watching can be along the lines of what might it be like if it was you in that position. I could win five grand or I could lose five grand. I can have $100 going on any spin.
“I was lucky right from the beginning,” Christopher indicates. “It was about being in the right place at the right time. About a month afterward, the channel started soaring. It was popular and just kept growing.”
Soon afterward, he became part of the YouTube partner program and was able to monetize his efforts. Christopher now travels the country, bringing visibility to a particular property via the social-media outlets. In turn, he can monetize the efforts via meet-and-greets or by striking a deal with a property along the lines of an entertainer.
One reason for Christopher’s success is a socially conscious blueprint. He tries to reflect the realities of the mass audience.
Once casinos began to reopen from the pandemic, for example, Christopher tactfully embraced it.
“I jumped on the first plane after a casino in Coeur d’Alene (Idaho) was back open,” he recalls. “I wanted to show my audience what it was like to be in a casino. It was the first time they had been seeing me in which a mask was on my face. People could see me getting my temperature taken and then what the machines looked like and what the casinos looked like with the dividers.
“I didn’t take any money from sponsorships (or casinos). It was simply a matter of letting people see that the casinos were going to be operating.”
A breakthrough phase in his emergence occurred last year. The Plaza designated a gaming area in his name. There are 27 machines in the Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza area.
A first-of-its-kind collaboration, they established the Plaza as the ultimate destination for slot machine enthusiasts looking to play the games that they have watched on the social media influencer’s channels.
“Social media has transformed our daily lives, including the casino experience,” says Jonathan Jossel, CEO of the Plaza Hotel & Casino. “People want to share the fun they’re having, the thrill of winning, and watch others do the same. Brian Christopher is a trailblazer in this regard with his YouTube videos, and we are proud to partner with him.”
The nearly 2,500-square-foor gaming space accommodates guests 21 and older and is styled with fun backdrops for selfies, group shots and Instagrammable moments. It also enables social media posting of videos by controlling the music volume and playing only copyright-friendly songs that can be posted on social platforms.
Each game in the space was carefully selected based on the most iconic moments from over four years. The games are all Christopher’s favorites, and were hand-selected by him.
The success of the slot area led to the big leap, Christopher’s own machine, which Gaming Arts is launching in Nevada, California, Arizona, Oklahoma and other locations, he indicates. Features of the game, which he helped develop, include the reels growing seven spins out of 10. A Brian Christopher head is a valued commodity, especially if it lines up over a reel. If a player has two Christopher heads, and needs one more, another Christopher head may appear out of nowhere and create a payday.
“The key aspect of the game is to keep the audience entertained,” Christopher says. “I think music plays a big part in that. Bonuses play a big part as well. People want action.”
Christopher takes his stature seriously. He agrees with Montgomery’s observation that production does not have to be slick and posh. But he wants to stay ahead of competition, and has added a second camera to his video presentations. One captures the game, the other is on him.
Throughout the industry, it will be interesting to see where the social-media parade heads next. Other properties with Christopher slots are likely in a gaming niche that has gained wings.
A new frontier has opened up.
Casino Center
BIG DISPLAY, BIG PLANS Gaming Arts highlights its new VertX Grand cabinet with a trio of strong new games
by Frank Legato · July 25, 2022
For slot-makers lately, great new games and great new cabinets have gone hand in hand. Many of those new cabinet presentations these days are in large formats—and game developers have used those giant canvases to create some of the best new game experiences on the slot floor.
That’s the way it’s been with the VertX Grand cabinet from Las Vegas–based Gaming Arts. The VertX Grand, unveiled last summer, features an ultra-bright, 4K 49-inch portrait monitor, theater-quality sound, an ultra-bright LCD button deck, programmable LED play buttons, and attention-grabbing LED side lights.
Developed during the pandemic shutdowns of 2020, the format is hitting its stride this summer with three great games that take full advantage of that larger-than- life presentation.
“We’ve been really pleased with the performance of our game titles on our VertX Grand cabinet,” says Jean Venneman, chief operating officer of Gaming Arts. “The cabinet has shown to perform well on the floor, and it is visually stunning. And now we’ve got three additional new games that we think players are going to really, really enjoy.”
[...]
BRIAN CHRISTOPHER’S POP’N PAYS MORE
Gaming Arts, like a lot of slot manufacturers these days, has been aided in building popularity for new games by the new crop of “slot influencers”—YouTube stars who live stream slot play on new games, hosting their own play with enthusiastic narration of wins, losses, bonuses and game features, with some having far-reaching groups of fans and followers.
The top YouTube slot influencer is Brian Christopher, whose YouTube channel BCSlots has some 479,000 subscribers and has logged a remarkable 318 million views since its 2016 launch. Christopher himself, who has some 41,500 Instagram followers, has become a slot guru of sorts across America. Millions of fans have watched his videos—the average view time is an incredible 18 minutes— and have become familiar with his favorite slots any number of catch phrases he uses to get players excited about features of a given slot game.
The Plaza, located in Downtown Las Vegas, even has a special zone devoted solely to Christopher’s favorite games—a space he often uses to gather crowds of his fans to live-stream new games.
On July 7, he is doing that with his very own signature game—Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More—which Gaming Arts designed with substantial input from Christopher himself.
“We are really appreciative of Brian and what he does,”Venneman says. “We were a very young slot supplier when we launched the original Pop’N Pays series in 2019.Brian found the game, loved the game and really helped promote the game on his channel. We feel that he really did aid and assist in getting that game out into the market and added to its success, by showing his enthusiasm for the game.”
When it came time to move the Pop’N Pays series—a family of games distinguished by fun themes and entertaining features—to the new VertX Grand cabinet, it was a no-brainer to create a Brian Christopher signature slot. “We’ve collaborated very closely with him to create a game that he loves,” says Venneman, “and to use his brand in a wonderful way that I think his player base will truly enjoy. It has endless voice-overs using many of his well-known sayings, and a lot of the imagery that’s related to him and his brand.”
Christopher says he was involved in designing the game from start to finish. “Pop’N Pays was already a hit among my fans, so when they asked me about partnering on a new version, I jumped on it,” he says. “They had already worked out what they wanted for their other iterations of Pop’N Pays More—Piñatas Ole and Big Top—and although you will notice many differences between them and my game, all three games in the series are remarkable.
“I offered up ways to add more features, and a ton more interaction. I was able to offer input on the music, the wording, symbols, sounds and performance. Nothing was off limits, so long as it kept to the Pop’N Pays brand.”
The Brian Christopher slot, with 1,047 ways to win in the base game, has a feature that expands reels 2–5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. There is a free game feature offering up to 15 free games with frequent re-triggers.
Throughout game play, Brian Christopher’s avatar pops up as cash-on-reels symbols. And he essentially hosts his own game, using his most popular catchphrases. “Oh Nelly!” after a big win. “Line it UP!” in anticipation of a winning spin. “Do it to it!” “It’s all about timing!” And one of the most clever and frequent: after a near-miss where a symbol lands just short of a combination—“Rude!”
“Aside from a few hidden Easter eggs that I’ll allow my fans to find, the Brian character can be super generous,” Christopher says. “If you’re missing one bonus symbol, Brian can say his catchphrase ‘Rude!’ and provide the third bonus symbol! If you have a full row of popping Brians but are missing an important one, Brian can place another one. In the bonus, the popping Brians can put up two or even three fingers to signify two or three prizes instead of the usual one in regular spins.”
“We’re really excited about working with Brian,” says Venneman.“ He’s been an amazing partner to work with, so we’re hopeful that his fans and players alike really enjoy this exciting new game.”
“We’re a perfect match,” adds Christopher. “We are both super innovative and forward thinking. As my fans already loved Pop’N Pays due to its constant action, fun bonuses and catchy music, this was the obvious choice.”
[...]
That’s the way it’s been with the VertX Grand cabinet from Las Vegas–based Gaming Arts. The VertX Grand, unveiled last summer, features an ultra-bright, 4K 49-inch portrait monitor, theater-quality sound, an ultra-bright LCD button deck, programmable LED play buttons, and attention-grabbing LED side lights.
Developed during the pandemic shutdowns of 2020, the format is hitting its stride this summer with three great games that take full advantage of that larger-than- life presentation.
“We’ve been really pleased with the performance of our game titles on our VertX Grand cabinet,” says Jean Venneman, chief operating officer of Gaming Arts. “The cabinet has shown to perform well on the floor, and it is visually stunning. And now we’ve got three additional new games that we think players are going to really, really enjoy.”
[...]
BRIAN CHRISTOPHER’S POP’N PAYS MORE
Gaming Arts, like a lot of slot manufacturers these days, has been aided in building popularity for new games by the new crop of “slot influencers”—YouTube stars who live stream slot play on new games, hosting their own play with enthusiastic narration of wins, losses, bonuses and game features, with some having far-reaching groups of fans and followers.
The top YouTube slot influencer is Brian Christopher, whose YouTube channel BCSlots has some 479,000 subscribers and has logged a remarkable 318 million views since its 2016 launch. Christopher himself, who has some 41,500 Instagram followers, has become a slot guru of sorts across America. Millions of fans have watched his videos—the average view time is an incredible 18 minutes— and have become familiar with his favorite slots any number of catch phrases he uses to get players excited about features of a given slot game.
The Plaza, located in Downtown Las Vegas, even has a special zone devoted solely to Christopher’s favorite games—a space he often uses to gather crowds of his fans to live-stream new games.
On July 7, he is doing that with his very own signature game—Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More—which Gaming Arts designed with substantial input from Christopher himself.
“We are really appreciative of Brian and what he does,”Venneman says. “We were a very young slot supplier when we launched the original Pop’N Pays series in 2019.Brian found the game, loved the game and really helped promote the game on his channel. We feel that he really did aid and assist in getting that game out into the market and added to its success, by showing his enthusiasm for the game.”
When it came time to move the Pop’N Pays series—a family of games distinguished by fun themes and entertaining features—to the new VertX Grand cabinet, it was a no-brainer to create a Brian Christopher signature slot. “We’ve collaborated very closely with him to create a game that he loves,” says Venneman, “and to use his brand in a wonderful way that I think his player base will truly enjoy. It has endless voice-overs using many of his well-known sayings, and a lot of the imagery that’s related to him and his brand.”
Christopher says he was involved in designing the game from start to finish. “Pop’N Pays was already a hit among my fans, so when they asked me about partnering on a new version, I jumped on it,” he says. “They had already worked out what they wanted for their other iterations of Pop’N Pays More—Piñatas Ole and Big Top—and although you will notice many differences between them and my game, all three games in the series are remarkable.
“I offered up ways to add more features, and a ton more interaction. I was able to offer input on the music, the wording, symbols, sounds and performance. Nothing was off limits, so long as it kept to the Pop’N Pays brand.”
The Brian Christopher slot, with 1,047 ways to win in the base game, has a feature that expands reels 2–5 up to eight symbols high. At full expansion, there are 16,384 ways to win on every spin. There is a free game feature offering up to 15 free games with frequent re-triggers.
Throughout game play, Brian Christopher’s avatar pops up as cash-on-reels symbols. And he essentially hosts his own game, using his most popular catchphrases. “Oh Nelly!” after a big win. “Line it UP!” in anticipation of a winning spin. “Do it to it!” “It’s all about timing!” And one of the most clever and frequent: after a near-miss where a symbol lands just short of a combination—“Rude!”
“Aside from a few hidden Easter eggs that I’ll allow my fans to find, the Brian character can be super generous,” Christopher says. “If you’re missing one bonus symbol, Brian can say his catchphrase ‘Rude!’ and provide the third bonus symbol! If you have a full row of popping Brians but are missing an important one, Brian can place another one. In the bonus, the popping Brians can put up two or even three fingers to signify two or three prizes instead of the usual one in regular spins.”
“We’re really excited about working with Brian,” says Venneman.“ He’s been an amazing partner to work with, so we’re hopeful that his fans and players alike really enjoy this exciting new game.”
“We’re a perfect match,” adds Christopher. “We are both super innovative and forward thinking. As my fans already loved Pop’N Pays due to its constant action, fun bonuses and catchy music, this was the obvious choice.”
[...]
Pasadena Star-News
Influencer Brian Christopher to unveil slot machine modeled after him at at Agua Caliente Rancho Mirage
by Charlie Vargas · July 14, 2022
Influencer Brian Christopher to unveil slot machine modeled after him at at Agua Caliente Rancho Mirage
by Charlie Vargas · July 14, 2022
A casino influencer has extended his presence beyond social media and into a slot machine.
Brian Christopher, aka BCSlots, first showcased the new game, Pop’N Pays More, at Las Vegas’ Plaza Hotel & Casino on Wednesday, July 6 and live-streamed it to his thousands of viewers on YouTube.
Christopher plans to unveil his first slot machine in California at Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage on Sunday, July 17, at 2 p.m.
Christopher will appear at Sunday’s event, at which the casino will offer ACE Club members a chance to test out the game with free spins. A press release from the casino also said that the machine will be live at Agua Caliente Palms Springs and Agua Caliente Cathedral City shortly after the event.
In a phone interview, Christopher said that he loves going to Agua Caliente and that he and his team decided to choose the Agua Caliente properties as their first California locations due to their support of his work.
“They’ve been a strong supporter of my YouTube and Facebook pages, so it seemed like the perfect fit for the California premiere,” Christopher said.
Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts created the slot machine, which incorporates aspects of Christopher and his channel, such as his catchphrases and images of his face.
“There’s a ton of features that will keep people excited throughout the game,” Christopher said. “It’s not just about waiting for the bonus because on any spin something could happen.”
Pop’N Pays More is the most recent addition to Christopher’s brand. In recent years, several Southern California casinos have recognized social media influencers’ capital and embraced them. Christopher is in the process of expanding his slot machine to other states such as Arizona, Minnesota, and Oklahoma.
“We’re open to it being everywhere it can,” Christopher said. “As it goes through every gaming commission for approval in each state, we’ll look into getting to any casino that will take it.”
Beat The Fish
Brian Christopher Unveils First-Ever Influencer-Branded Slot Machine
by Milica Zivic · July 14, 2022
Brian Christopher has unveiled his new slot machine, developed by Gaming Arts. It is the first-ever slot game based on a social media influencer.
In the casino world, we’ve seen slot machines based on all sorts of celebrities. Musicians and movie stars have been featured in hundreds of slot games now we’re seeing the release of the first-ever branded slot based on a social media influencer, as Brian Christopher (known as BCSlots on YouTube) has unveiled his new slot machine at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
About Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More Slot Machine
Yesterday, BCSlots showcased his new Pop’n Pays More slot machine live at the Plaza Hotel and Casino. His face features front-and-center on the cabinet, which was designed by Gaming Arts – a leader in land-based slot machines.
“Gaming Arts is delighted to partner with Brian Christopher Slots in the first ever collaboration of this type. This game is as groundbreaking as it is fun, combining our proven successful brand with the one-of-a-kind influencer, Mr. Brian Christopher” – Jean Venneman, COO of Gaming Arts.
The Pop’n Pays series is already very popular at casinos Across America and Brian Christopher’s new game takes things to a whole new level. The main feature of this game is the reel expansion, as reels randomly stretch upwards to award more ways to win. According to his preview, every 7 in 10 spins should see a feature triggered.
He live streamed the entire event, and it drew his largest-ever online crowd. More than 19,000 viewers tuned in to watch Brian Christopher, with his friends, family and slot fans, show of the slot machine’s features.
Where You Can Play Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More
If you’re excited to try out this first-of-its-kind slot machine, it will launched at several casinos in the coming days. At the time of writing, the full list of casinos that will carry Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More is:
Standing Out in A Competitive Gaming Market
The casino market continues to grow, with more and more game development studios throwing their hats into the ring. This means that studios have to work hard to ensure that they stand out from the crowd in order to attract players to their games on a crowded casino floor.
About Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More Slot Machine
Yesterday, BCSlots showcased his new Pop’n Pays More slot machine live at the Plaza Hotel and Casino. His face features front-and-center on the cabinet, which was designed by Gaming Arts – a leader in land-based slot machines.
“Gaming Arts is delighted to partner with Brian Christopher Slots in the first ever collaboration of this type. This game is as groundbreaking as it is fun, combining our proven successful brand with the one-of-a-kind influencer, Mr. Brian Christopher” – Jean Venneman, COO of Gaming Arts.
The Pop’n Pays series is already very popular at casinos Across America and Brian Christopher’s new game takes things to a whole new level. The main feature of this game is the reel expansion, as reels randomly stretch upwards to award more ways to win. According to his preview, every 7 in 10 spins should see a feature triggered.
He live streamed the entire event, and it drew his largest-ever online crowd. More than 19,000 viewers tuned in to watch Brian Christopher, with his friends, family and slot fans, show of the slot machine’s features.
Where You Can Play Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More
If you’re excited to try out this first-of-its-kind slot machine, it will launched at several casinos in the coming days. At the time of writing, the full list of casinos that will carry Brian Christopher’s Pop’n Pays More is:
- Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada
- Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada
- M Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada
- Grand Casino in Hinckley, Minnesota
- Agua Caliente in Palm Spins, Cathedral City and Rancho Mirage in California
- Gila River Resort and Casino in Wild Horse Pass, Arizona
- Harrah’s Ak-Chin in Maricopa, Arizona
- Talking Stick Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona
Standing Out in A Competitive Gaming Market
The casino market continues to grow, with more and more game development studios throwing their hats into the ring. This means that studios have to work hard to ensure that they stand out from the crowd in order to attract players to their games on a crowded casino floor.
Brand slot games are always a big hit, with celebrities like Britney Spears, Ellen Degeneres and Dolly Parton having released their own games. So, Gaming Art had to really think outside of the box in order to put a new spin on celeb-centric slot machines. We’re sure that Brian Christopher’s slot machine will start a new trend with other influences creating their own branded games soon.
Casino Life Magazine
Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More, Brand New Slot Machine Launches at Agua Caliente Casinos, First Place to Play in California
by Casino Life Magazine · July 8, 2022
Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More, Brand New Slot Machine Launches at Agua Caliente Casinos, First Place to Play in California
by Casino Life Magazine · July 8, 2022
Brian Christopher aka BCSlots, the ultra-famous Slots influencer with over 300 Million Views Worldwide on his YouTube channel, and locally famous Palm Springs resident, has launched his very own branded slot machine game - Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More™.
In an exclusive partnership with Agua Caliente Casinos, the Rancho Mirage casino location will be the First Place to Play in California!
To celebrate, Brian Christopher himself will be making a special appearance at Agua Caliente Resort Casino Rancho Mirage on Sunday July 17th at 2pm. Agua Caliente Casinos’ ACE Club members will have the opportunity to take Free Spins on these new slot machines! All three Agua Caliente Casinos properties; Rancho Mirage, Palm Springs, Cathedral City, will feature Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More™ after Sunday’s launch event.
About Brian Christopher Slots
Brian Christopher is the leading influencer in the casino gaming world. He publishes daily videos playing slots in casinos and online, showing millions of fans how to have a great time using an entertainment budget. His content excites and educates the most vibrant, deeply engaged, and demographically diverse community of gaming enthusiasts. To learn more, please visit BCSlots.com.
Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More™
https://www.bcslots.com/pop.html
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Influencer immortalized: YouTuber Brian Christopher now has a slot to call his own
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · July 7, 2022
Las Vegas Review-Journal
YouTuber's slot machine unveiled on Las Vegas casino floor
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · July 7, 2022
YouTuber's slot machine unveiled on Las Vegas casino floor
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · July 7, 2022
In true YouTuber fashion, Brian Christopher’s slot machine was played for the first time with one hand on the button and another holding a phone, livestreaming it all to thousands of viewers.
The social media influencer unveiled Pop’N Pays More, a slot machine featuring his likeness and created by Las Vegas-based manufacturer Gaming Arts, at the Plaza on Wednesday night.
Stars like Madonna and characters like Homer Simpson have been the subject of slot machine licensing deals for years. But a licensing deal with an internet celebrity, and one already familiar with slots and gaming, is something new.
“As a slot manufacturer, we keep our ear to the ground and see what’s going on out there,” CEO Mike Dreitzer said. “We were very impressed by the remarkable popularity of Brian and his legion of fans, and he’s a triumph.”
The YouTube personality already reaches about 1.1 million followers over multiple social media platforms — and has made an impression on Las Vegas. Three of the new machines sit in the Brian Christopher Slots section of the Plaza as he and the casino have partnered on projects for years.
The area, the first smoke-free area in downtown Las Vegas, will be renovated to be “social media friendly” later this year by welcoming cameras, giving more control over music volume and adding interactive elements designed to make people want to take photos.
“I think it’s important to adapt with the time and social media, YouTubers are very important features in today’s society,” Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel said. “Nobody isn’t taking pictures of everything that they see, so why deny that? Obviously, you have to follow game protection, you have to respect people’s privacy. But as long as you’re doing it within your own space, we want to encourage it and embrace it. That’s what we do.”
Christopher said he was proud of the game and his fans’ support. He said Wednesday’s livestream was his channel’s biggest audience of the year, with 19,000 live viewers. It gained hundreds of thousands more in less than a day.
“My fans absolutely love the constant action of the game with the numerous features and use of my catchphrases,” he said Thursday.
On Wednesday, fans and gawkers gathered around Christopher, his husband and his parents each playing on the machines during the livestream.
California resident Juli Mangun said she and her husband came to town to watch the unveiling. They met him previously through meet-and-greets and group pull events.
“He uses that catchphrase, ‘Rude,’ but he’s not rude,” she said. “It’s like being with this little family. You watch every day or so, you get to know the others and other fans.”
Pop’N Pays More will operate in several casinos, including M Resort and Palms locally and tribal casinos in Arizona, Oklahoma and Minnesota.
“This market is very competitive,” Dreitzer said. “We’re obviously looking for ways to bring interesting value to buyers. They want good content and it’s always getting better and better. We thought that this was a great way, given where social media is.”
This story has been updated to add additional detail.
McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
Gaming America
YouTube personality Brian Christopher launches slot machine at Plaza in Las Vegas
by Gaming America · July 7, 2022
The licensing agreement with the internet star marks one of the first of its kind.
YouTube personality Brian Christopher has launched his slot machine, Pop’N Pays More, at the Plaza in Las Vegas. The first play was livestreamed for thousands of viewers via a cellphone.
Pop’N Pays More was created by Gaming Arts, a Las Vegas-based manufacturer and features Christopher’s likeness. Three new slot machines were installed in Christopher’s section of the casino. Christopher has partnered with Plaza on other casino projects for years.
Licensing deals with celebrities are not a new concept. Artists like Madonna and pop culture icons like Homer Simpson have been a part of slot machine licensing agreements for many years. However, a deal with an internet celebrity and social media personality is a relatively new concept.
This deal is also unique because of Christopher’s familiarity with slot machines and gaming.
Gaming Arts CEO Mike Dreitzer commented: “As a slot manufacturer, we keep our ear to the ground and see what’s going on out there. We were very impressed by the remarkable popularity of Brian and his legion of fans, and he’s a triumph.”
The Plaza is currently renovating to become a “social media friendly” space later in the year. The area will be smoke free as well and will provide an interactive space for guests and players who want to take photos by allowing them to bring cameras inside.
Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel said: “I think it’s important to adapt with the time and social media, YouTubers are very important features in today’s society.
“Nobody isn’t taking pictures of everything that they see, so why deny that? Obviously, you have to follow game protection, you have to respect people’s privacy. But as long as you’re doing it within your own space, we want to encourage it and embrace it. That’s what we do.”
Dreitzer went on to comment about market trends and the influence social media has had in product development.
He concluded by saying: “This market is very competitive. We’re obviously looking for ways to bring interesting value to buyers. They want good content and it’s always getting better and better. We thought that this was a great way, given where social media is.”
Pop’N Pays More will be featured in several more casinos around the country, including M Resort and Palms locally and tribal casinos in Arizona, Oklahoma and Minnesota.
Christopher has an internet following of more than one million fans that span across several social media platforms.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
With over 1M online followers, this influencer is now making his mark on casino floors
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · July 6, 2022
With over 1M online followers, this influencer is now making his mark on casino floors
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · July 6, 2022
Social media influencers exist across every platform, industry type and personality nowadays and gambling is no different.
Palm Springs-based YouTuber Brian Christopher has been a leader in slot-playing videos since his channel Brian Christopher Slots — followed by more than 500,000 subscribers on that site and more than 600,000 on Facebook — started six years ago.
His popularity is now culminating in tangible spots across casinos. Last month, he announced a partnership with the Plaza that will result in a nonsmoking area with his name on it. And this week, slot manufacturer Gaming Arts will unveil Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More, an expansion of Pop’N Pays featuring his likeness.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal spoke with Christopher by phone while he visited a Maryland casino for his channel in late June. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Review-Journal: How did you first start posting and when did you realize you could make a career out of it?
Christopher: I started my YouTube channel back in 2016. I just uploaded a few videos from one trip for fun. I think I put about five videos on my first and then I was done. I had no plans to upload any more videos after that. However, the videos themselves, they did very well. To my surprise, I got tons of subscribers from that.
I decided to upload some more videos after that, just to do a bunch of them again all at once on one day. They were all, like, three minutes long or so. And once again, these videos took off. I was invited from YouTube to join the partner program right then so I started making money on these videos.
Gambling is always extremely expensive and it’s a losing sport. YouTube was great but that doesn’t sound like very good business to make some money back and still lose money, so I was very cautious about it. Even then I saw it as a part-time gig to help support my acting career, maybe, but never in a million years did I think that this could become my job.
Year over year we’ve just been doubling in size almost. Now, we have nine members of staff. Every single week we’re at a different location, or in a different city or state, promoting another casino. While we’re on property, we’re filing all those videos with them. We’re also hosting livestreams and meet-and-greets, all other kinds of events like slot tournaments or group pulls together.
What is a common misconception or challenge about this career path?
I’m very careful about the way I gamble and play. I play with my “entertainment stash” — business budget, really. Because, I mean, I have to be able to make a video. So when people ask me, ‘What’s your budget for the weekend?’ I don’t have a straight answer for them. It’s more like, you need to play within your budgets. You’re doing it for fun. I’m doing it for work.
How has your channel evolved over the years?
When I started, there were only a handful of channels doing what I do. It was always my goal to try and up the game a bit, make it look a bit more professional, work on editing my thumbnails, and get into a groove of something. Then after about six months, I’m like, ‘OK, what can I do better now, to make it look nicer or innovate?’ Because over the years, now there’s thousands of these gambling channels that are essentially looking at the big guys and seeing what we’re doing, then trying to mimic or copy styles or themes we’re doing. So I have to keep reinventing myself to stand out and be different and unique.
So over the years, I have tried doing 360 videos. About a year and a half ago or so, we added a second camera because everyone always wanted to see my reactions. We’ve done our livestreams simulcast through Facebook and YouTube frequently, and upping our resolution on our videos to make them look better. We’ve done different kinds of challenge ideas to make it exciting, and just being able to travel to different locations every week definitely sets us apart from our competition. Most of the other channels will stay just with their local casino or head to one casino in Vegas or something like that. We’re always traveling and hosting events and those are really exciting videos, too.
You traveled even during the early months of the pandemic, and it looked like a good opportunity for you to show people what things looked like during that point of the pandemic. What was it like to be the eyes, ears and respiratory system of your viewers?
I felt like it was my responsibility to show them thatbecause they all rely on me to give them the casino information. When the first casino was reopening, I wanted to be there because I knew that there’d be so many questions about what it was like to be in a casino now. I booked the first flight I could to get out there safely. I did my livestream and talked them through the whole process.
It was really eye-opening for the viewers to see what it was like. That was the early stages, I wanted to do that and I also felt really bad for all the casinos that were shut down for a few months, all the workers that lost their money and wages. I reached out to tons of casinos offering my services for free. I didn’t want to charge anything. Then I donated all of my Super Chat donations from all my livestreams to the casinos so they could give it to their staff as a little thank you for them hanging out.
My fans definitely appreciated seeing it. I know immediately everyone was like, “Oh I’m not going to do that.” Eventually, I mean years later, that came around because we had no choice.
You have a new partnership with a slot machine, Pop’N Pays MORE — with your likeness on it. Licensing for machines is, of course, very common, but it seems like you’re the first — or one of the first — of the internet celebrities to be on it. How unique is this?
Definitely the first, which is incredibly humbling and exciting. I hope it’s the first of many that we do. I know our fans are super excited about those games. Pop’N Pays is already a tried-and-true brand, and our fans love that game. I feel like I was able to add my voice, both literally and figuratively, into this machine to make it a lot more fun, to add some new experiences in it and many more ways for them to win in this game. The bonus itself is so exciting. There’s a lot of action on most of your spins, as well, which is unique to the game.
I recorded over 200 sayings for this. They had a list of things for me to say that they’ve heard me say in my videos, and I have my own list of extra things and even came up with some more during that. Sayings that were congratulating them on hitting the progressive jackpot; all my favorite sayings on there, like the word “rude” I say a lot in my videos or “Oh, nelly!” when I get excited about something. There are a few little easter eggs that some of our superfans might actually find as well.
What do you think this says, more symbolically, about the overlap of internet culture and slots or gambling to have an internet personality on a machine?
I think it speaks to what we do as influencers. You see it in other realms, like MrBeast has his own chocolate bars, he has burger joints now. It’s a proven concept, like when our fans see something that we do, they want to be a part of that experience, whether it’s even just us showing off a new T-shirt. Because I’m so well-known for slot machines and the love of them, if I love a game and was part of putting it together, you just know that our fans are going to search that game out to play.
We have numerous locations that we’re going to be flying out to over the first few weeks just to promote the game, but it’s going out to many, many more casinos across the country. Time will tell how it overly performs in the end, but if the original success of Pop’N Pays is anything, this one’s definitely going to take it to the next level.
Do you meet people at the casino or casino executives who are confused about influencing?
There’s definitely tons of casinos who still don’t understand what an influencer is. Those are the ones who if you go check out their social media, they’re showing you a picture of a drink, a picture of a steak. Like, they just don’t get it. Whereas there are other casinos out there that really get involved, and they’ll showcase players wins and things that actual players want to see. I don’t get that excited by a steak meal or something that we’ll see on Facebook. That’s not gonna get me to go to your casino. If you want me to gamble there, show me some gambling stuff.
We have a proven track record. I’ve been doing this for six years now. We can provide all kinds of stats to casinos to show them our worth and our value to them. All it takes is one trip to a casino to really see how valuable we are and what we can bring. And then immediately they’re gonna want us to come back, for sure.
How do you use your platform to persuade casinos into smoke-free policies?
I’ve been saying this for years. Unfortunately, thanks to COVID, that opened people’s eyes to it. There were a lot of them that decided to open a smoke-free to start with. It was kind of like a blessing in disguise because they actually saw that, “Wow, we can do just as well. Our audience actually prefers it and our workers definitely prefer it.” Because young workers these days, they did not grow up seeing cigarette smoke anywhere and all of the sudden, we expect them to just show up and breathe that in the whole time. No one wants to do that.
I feel happy about myself pushing it. I feel like I’ve been responsible for encouraging because he knows to remain smoke free. In a lot of my contracts, I’ve stipulated that you need to remain smoke free for me to continue coming to visit with you. This push with Plaza, I think is definitely a step in the right direction and I hope it’ll be a proven one to show everybody how popular it will be and how it doesn’t really affect the excitement of a casino.
What do you think is in the future for gaming and influencing?
Our new (social media friendly) space opening up in The Plaza, the renovated area itself will have all kinds of influencers who want to come and share their experiences there. I know everyone will be looking at it, especially in downtown Vegas, to see how well it performs.
In any casino that has allowed us to come and film inside of them, they’ve definitely reaped the benefits from that. They know that that’s the place to go to film that because that’s where Brian Christopher goes. And Brian Christopher has told them that they’re allowed to film there. So they go there. They don’t get harassed by security, they can have a good time and showcase their fun with their friends.
McKenna Ross is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms. Contact her at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
Southern California Gaming Guide
Brian Christopher's Pop'N Pays More Game Debuts in July at Agua Caliente Casinos and Yaamava' Resort & Casino (Page 23)
by Southern California Gaming Guide · July 1, 2022
Industry leaders from Armadillo Studios – EveryMatrix, Relax Gaming, Evoplay & Gaming Arts discuss the increasing importance of influencers/streamers in the gaming industry
How important are influencers/streamers as a marketing medium for game manufacturers?
Razvan Haiduc:
They are very important. Getting the word out and advertising your product to the correct audience is becoming difficult and expensive in this increasingly competitive market. There is simply too much content coming out, so using your marketing budget wisely to reach your audience and differentiate your message is paramount. This is where streaming and influencers come into play. By some standards, this is still a brand new marketing channel, especially for the iGaming sector – but it is likely the most effective and (if used correctly) accurately targeted channel currently in existence. It reaches the end user directly – be it a user already familiar with the content (in the case of specialised streams) or demographics not yet exposed to the content (in the case of more generally oriented streamers).
Jean Venneman:
I think the rise of this category of influencers is great for the industry, especially for the manufacturers. It is an effective way for a viewer to get an unbiased, real-time experience of a slot game that can’t be mimicked in a demo video. Via the influencer, the viewer can go along for that emotional journey of wins and losses, and get a real sense of what kind of “ride” they can expect, how the bonuses work and how often they could potentially see them. It also helps create awareness of where the game is available for play. Of course, not all play sessions end positively for the influencer, so it’s important that they play a theme more than once.
Vladimir Malakchi:
Streamers and influencers play an important role in iGaming promotion. It's unusual to come across an operator that doesn't work with influencers. It's a win-win situation for all sides since operators create traffic and streamers get material. All they have to do now is package it up and put it out there creatively. Collaboration with streaming celebrities and other personalities seems logical for game developers since it provides the target audience with an already positive attitude towards a product. Marketing campaigns that capitalise on the influence of streamers often provide a fivefold increase in game revenue and a 30% increase in player numbers. We have approximately 45 streams of our games quarterly, generally resulting in a reach of 16.5 million potential players.
Marija Hammon:
In the last year or so, it has become quite apparent to us that leveraging streamers is an incredibly smart and savvy way for iGaming providers to reach players directly. We could see more and more people were turning towards platforms such as Twitch and YouTube to get information about new game releases, while being entertained at the same time. These streamers can bring light to games or features that might well have been overlooked had it not been for their keen eye. In this day and age, it’s fair to suggest that this exciting community of entertainers can make or break a game, so it’s important for studios such as ourselves to work harmoniously alongside them to ensure we can generate additional buzz around our product line.
What do game manufacturers look for in a streamer/influencer?
Razvan haiduc:
We can’t speak for every studio out there, but game developers should look at three main things when choosing a streamer or influencer. First, it’s important to look at the platform used, as some streaming platforms have limitations on the type of content that can be shown. Then, it’s important to understand the streamer. Ideally, it’s someone who’s specialised in the product, that can give feedback and do a reasonably accurate and enjoyable presentation. Or it can be someone who’s specialised in multiple products or content types and has a large following, so that they can put the game in the front of many eyeballs. Finally, we need to look at the cost – depending on the popularity of the influencer or streamer, budgets can expand and we must ensure that the benefits are worth the invested amount.
Jean Venneman:
As with anyone that the public relies on for information and suggestions, it’s important that the influencer is being honest and unbiased in their opinion and experience on a game. Objective comments are welcome and can be helpful to the manufacturer of the game. Future game design decisions could be impacted based on comments about what an influencer likes or doesn’t like.
Vladimir Malakchi:
One of the key criteria that have to be taken into consideration upon searching for the ideal influencer has to be the casinos they work with. A game developer is interested only in closing a deal with an influencer who plays at online casinos where their games are present. The goal is to drive traffic to the websites where your products are on offer. Another determining factor is markets where streamers have already established a presence. A match between our target markets and a streamer's emphasis regions is essential. More specifically, some of them require a licence, which is another major factor to consider. To summarise, geo, audience, the number of views, and the way a streamer distributes their content are what we take into consideration when choosing a person to work with.
Marija Hammon:
We wouldn’t be telling the truth if we didn’t say one of the first things game manufacturers look for in a streamer is a strong community and loyal following. Ultimately, we all want to ensure that our content is being viewed by a fanbase hungry for exciting slot content. However, it’s equally important to us that these streamers possess qualities such as professionalism, consistency in their approach and objectivity. The latter being one of the most important factors – the moment someone decides to prioritise one studio over another, credibility goes out the window. It’s also tremendously helpful to work with streamers that are genuinely entertaining and passionate about the subject matter. It doesn’t matter how many subscribers or viewers a streamer has if they’re not showing enthusiasm and passion.
Do B2B suppliers employ streamers/influencers directly, or do they rely on streamers/influencers to cover their games organically?
Razvan Haiduc:
As suppliers of B2B content, we would be really happy if streamers organically picked up our products, but the reality is that the more successful a streamer becomes, the higher the percentage of sponsored content. Employing a full-time streamer is perhaps not something we would consider, especially as a B2B provider. Our products cover a lot of markets and languages, so our marketing needs to take that into account. A better approach is to maintain active relationships with multiple influencers/streamers and target the marketing efforts based on required coverage, product or market specifics and local regulations.
Jean Venneman:
I can only speak for Gaming Arts, where we recently announced a partnership with Brian Christopher, who is one of the most visible and successful, if not the most visible and successful slot influencer. We will be featuring his branding on one of his favourite Gaming Arts themes, “Pop N Pays™” with a version called “Brian Christopher’s Pop N Pays More™.” We feel he has a large and loyal fan base that will seek out and enjoy this game.
Vladimir Malakchi:
At Evoplay, we've come across instances where streamers are the first to spotlight our games and show their audience how to play them. For us, it comes as no surprise that our games draw the attention of the entire entertainment industry, not only the iGaming sector. However, as a business, we continue to expand our B2C partnership network, while constantly on the lookout for fresh faces to help communicate the value of our products to a wider audience. We have a particular strategy for building mutually beneficial relationships with digital influencers, just as we do with other businesses.
Marija Hammon:
This can work in two ways. Firstly, there are streamers that’ll take payment in return for spending a considerable amount of time playing a game, during which the supplier might also offer affiliates sponsorships in the form of prizes they can hand out to their viewers. On the other hand, there are streamers that just pick up whatever game they feel like playing that day. Usually these are smaller streamers, looking to make a name for themselves. In many ways, these streamers are just as valuable as those that have tens of thousands of viewers – the key indicators we are looking for is their enthusiasm and that they care about their audience. In terms of reliability, I wouldn't say suppliers inherently rely on streamers, but that additional visibility is certainly worth having.
What do B2B suppliers have to do differently with streamers, as opposed to operators and affiliates?
Razvan Haiduc:
An operator (and to a lesser extent, an affiliate) has a very well-defined audience. Their goal is not to advertise an individual game, but multiple, to promote the platform and user experience as a whole. Sometimes, the focus ends up on specific games (for example streaming during a tournament or for particular player acquisition offers), but that is usually incidental. In the case of B2B suppliers, things are a bit different – we need to cover bigger markets and appeal to larger audiences. We cannot efficiently target the end user directly, so we need to cast a bigger net. Short sponsored streams with established streamers in multiple markets and languages are one way to do that. Alternatives are extensive reviews or instructional streams by specialised streamers with large international followings.
Jean Venneman:
As a manufacturer, we’d obviously love to see the influencers spend a lot of time on our games and sharing that experience with their audience. So just like our customers, if we hope that the influencer will give our new themes a chance, it could really help raise awareness of that new theme.
Vladimir Malakchi:
There isn't much of a difference for us in terms of whom we choose as partners. In all circumstances, our partnership strategy is based on the same principle: creating trusting and friendly relationships with both companies and individuals. We approach any business as if we are the people who stand behind it, and if it turns out that we share a common ground, nothing can prevent us from fruitful cooperation. It is easy for us to form long-term and respect-filled relationships as businesses want to work with us due to our seamless reputation in the market.
Marija Hammon:
To succeed with streamers, B2B suppliers have to ensure we have a good grasp of what the community is looking for. You can’t just throw any old game at a streamer and expect success overnight. It’s up to us as suppliers to create outstanding games. Streamers want entertainment value from games that produce high wins, which lead to memorable, thrilling and suspenseful moments for their audience. Naturally, this isn’t the same design we would employ for all player groups, so from a pure positioning point of view, we need to drive games that you feel are going to resonate within this scene. From a commercial standpoint, the discussion is also a very different one to that of an operator due to the propositional value, which is different to standard affiliation, where the aim is to direct attention to content. At the end of the day, what we all need to do is ensure that key USPs and game details are informed effectively so that players are receiving the right information. As long as that’s ensured, partnerships between the supplier and streamer should be strong and fruitful for all.
Indian Gaming
Gila River - Wild Horse Pass to Host Meet & Greet with Slot Influencer Brian Christopher
by Indian Gaming · June 29, 2022
Gila River - Wild Horse Pass to Host Meet & Greet with Slot Influencer Brian Christopher
by Indian Gaming · June 29, 2022
CHANDLER, AZ – Gila River Resorts & Casinos – Wild Horse Pass will host a meet and greet with slot influencer Brian Christopher on Sunday, July 10 from 2-4pm. Christopher is touring Arizona to debut his new slot machine Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More™ from Gaming Arts. The Wild Horse Pass location is the first casino in Arizona to debut the new game.
“We are thrilled to partner with Gaming Arts and Brian Christopher on the new release of Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More,” said Ismael Barrera, Corporate Director of Slots at Gila River Resorts & Casinos. “We are honored Gila River was selected as the first casino in Arizona to showcase his new game. We are looking forward to hosting him and his loyal followers to a wonderful experience at Gila River Resorts & Casinos.”
“Gila River Resorts & Casinos has always been a great partner for us,” said Mike Smykowski, Director of Sales for Gaming Arts. “When identifying locations to launch our newest game, we knew that Ismael Barrera and his team would offer a perfect launch location for this one-of-kind and highly anticipated game. We are looking forward to our newest game, Brian Christopher’s Pop’N Pays More, to be featured on Gila’s casino floor”.
Pop’N Pays More is a collaboration with gaming manufacturer, Gaming Arts, and is an expanded version of Pop’N Pays.
CDC Gaming Reports
Frank Floor Talk: Brian Christopher and Gaming Arts launch a new game together
by Buddy Frank, CDC Gaming Reports · June 22, 2022
If you’re wondering which new toy to buy for a young child, you’d be smart to watch videos from Ryan Kaji. He’s a “toy influencer” and has 16 million followers. Forbes estimates his net worth in 2022 at $100 million (not bad for a 10-year-old).
If you were selling makeup, Kim Kardashian with 206 million Instagram followers would be a good choice for promotion. But Portuguese athlete Cristiano Ronaldo has more followers than anyone at over 315 million. When the soccer star suggested that his followers stop drinking sugary Coca-Cola, the soda’s stock dropped $4 billion in a single day.
If you love video games, your go-to source is Sweden’s Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg. He’s the Number One (non-celebrity) internet influencer. On social media he’s known as “PewDiePie.” He has 111 million subscribers.
Hopefully, you have become aware that “influencers” are also having a profound impact on our casino world. They’ve gone from unknown to indispensable almost overnight (actually about five years). A positive review from one of these opinion leaders can turn an average slot game into a top performer.
These reality stars produce videos of their own slot play using real money (often live and unedited), showing the highs and lows of various machines. There are about a dozen popular personalities in the “slot influencer” space. But no one comes close to Brian Christopher. He has 1.3 million subscribers worldwide, a popular web site (https://www.bcslots.com ) and his viewers have watched his videos 700 million times.
Casinos now hire Christopher to play on their floors. Tradeshows seek his appearances. Carnival is working with him to host ocean voyages (“Brian Christopher Slot Cruises”). His new videos are posted daily, and you just aren’t au courant unless you own a “Rude” t-shirt (explanation below).
During the pandemic, when most casinos were closed, several slot machine manufacturers invited Christopher into their shuttered showrooms to hear his opinion of their new, un-released games. The obvious question becomes: instead of just evaluating existing products, why doesn’t someone ask Christopher to help them create a new slot machine?
That’s what veteran slot designer Jean Venneman, Chief Operating Officer at Gaming Arts, couldn’t help but wonder. They had invited Christopher to their Las Vegas office to thank him for some unsolicited positive reviews he’d produced on GA’s “Hamster Libre” and “Pop ‘N Pays” games. During their meeting, they mentioned that they were launching a new “VertX Grand 49” cabinet and were looking for game ideas.
It became a perfect match. Gaming Arts was small and nimble enough to put Christopher’s suggestions quickly into reality. “It came together naturally and made so much sense,” Venneman said. She had spent years developing games with IGT and Scientific Games. “We just decided to add Brian to our newest version of our already popular ‘Pop ‘N Pays’ on the new cabinet.”
While it is a safe bet that Britney Spears and other celebrities didn’t have much input on the game mechanics or bonus features of their “signature” products, that’s not the case with Christopher. Venneman gave him high credit when she gushed, “He knows his stuff and knows what makes a good game.”
Christopher had equal praise for the pairing. “Gaming Arts has been the perfect partner. They put a lot of trust in us, and they worked with us right down to the wire where I made a couple of tweaks to the game in the last week or two. They’ve been quick to act, and it’s been a great partnership.”
“We got Brian’s voice clips and imagery throughout the game,” Venneman added. “Our normal popping balloon bonuses have been replaced by Brian’s head popping out the prizes with Brian’s voice calling out the amounts.”
The VertX Grand cabinet features a 49” ultra hi-def 4k portrait screen with a 27” video topper (it’s just under 8 ½ ft tall). The sound is also top notch, with 2.1 channel audio and a powerful subwoofer. The new game is classified as “premium” but will be available in a variety of lease or purchase formats.
The theme is officially called “Brian Christopher’s Pop ‘N Pays MORE”. The game launch begins with a live streaming event from downtown Las Vegas’ Plaza Hotel & Casino at 5p.m. on July 6. That will be followed by a launch party open to the public on Friday evening, July 8, also at the Plaza (tickets are available at Christopher’s web site). That will mark the start of a multi-state release tour where Christopher will appear at several individual casinos as they introduce the game to their customers. Venneman called that an industry first.
Christopher was quick to say that his work with Gaming Arts would not influence or diminish his reviews of other competitors in the industry. He said he works with all the suppliers and offers honest reviews (good or bad; win or lose) from his actual game play (which is generally live and unedited).
Christopher lives in Palm Springs, CA, but the Las Vegas Plaza has become his second home. There, they dedicated an 80-game section of their floor to slots that Christopher personally selected: the “Brian Christopher Slots” area.
Just two weeks ago, the Plaza announced a major renovation which includes an expanded 2,500 sq. ft. non-smoking section (encompassing the BC Slots area) with new entrances, bar offerings and a Pinkbox Doughnuts shop.
Gaming Arts has been around since 2009, when they started as a leading supplier of bingo and keno products. In 2018, they hired now-CEO Mike Dreitzer as president (ex-Ainsworth). He quickly brought in Venneman and game developer Keith Kruczynski (ex-IGT & Bally). The company’s first slot hit was Pop ‘N Pays, released in 2019. Unfortunately, it arrived just as COVID shut down the industry. Regardless, in the latest May 2022 Game Performance Report from Eilers & Krejcik, Gaming Arts recorded seven of their new titles in the Top 25 of “New Games-Emerging Suppliers.” Two of the original Pop ‘N Pays variants remain on today’s Top Indexing Emerging Suppliers list three years after their release.
Chances are good that with Christopher’s input and influence, their latest game could end up on top of all those lists.
[NOTE: In many of his early videos, when Christopher just missed a bonus or a jackpot, he would often say, “That was rude.” When he asked fans to suggest a name for his new fan club, the overwhelming winner was “The Rudies,” thus the popularity of his “Rude” tee shirts.]
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Plaza renovations promise to ‘transform’ Main Street facade
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 14, 2022
Plaza renovations promise to ‘transform’ Main Street facade
by McKenna Ross, Las Vegas Review-Journal · June 14, 2022
The Plaza facade is getting a makeover that promises to bring in new guests looking for a treat — or a simply a great picture.
The downtown Las Vegas property, which celebrated its 50th anniversary last year, announced several large-scale projects Tuesday that will transform the facade under its famous dome.
By 2023, visitors will be greeted by four additions: the Carousel Bar under the Plaza dome, a smoke-free gaming area, a rooftop patio at Oscar’s Steakhouse and a new branch of the Vegas-based Pinkbox Doughnuts.
“(Former Mayor Oscar Goodman) likes to say it’s a 12-year overnight success,” Jonathan Jossel, CEO of the Plaza Hotel & Casino, said during a news conference. “But when you look at what’s happening around here and the great changes happening downtown that are starting to take shape, we’ve always felt that Main Street would be the best street in downtown. That’s actually started to happen, with the bulk of the Arts District from the south. We see it every day, and that makes it a really exciting place to be.”
Officials said construction on the “multimillion dollar” renovations that will “transform the Main Street facade” will begin later in June and is projected to be complete by year’s end.
At the center of the renovated Main Street facade will be the Carousel Bar. The 2,500-square-foot outdoor venue under the famous Plaza lights will feature crafted cocktails and be decorated with life-sized Vegas-themed elements, including moving carousel horses, spinning martini glasses and more. The venue facing the west Fremont Street Experience entrance will have an outdoor cooling system and seating for nearly 100 guests, according to the Plaza.
Next to the bar will be the entrance to downtown’s first smoke-free and social media-friendly gaming space. Through a collaboration with YouTube slot influencer Brian Christopher, the 2,500-square-foot area is intended to be the spot where fans can play the games they saw on Christopher’s channels.
Plaza officials said the space is particularly accommodating to social media posting because the venue will be able to lower the section’s music volume or play only copyright-friendly music better suited for social platforms. It will also include photo space with fun backdrops, intended to feel like “sensory overload” for maximum social media intrigue.
Christopher said he exclusively partners with nonsmoking areas in his business and was proud of the Plaza for taking the step.
“The way the world is going right now is moving to smoke-free,” he said. “Only 13 percent of the U.S. population smokes, so they’re getting ahead of the curve and I couldn’t be more proud for what they’re doing here.”
Above the new gaming space will be Oscar’s patio, a rooftop deck accessible through the existing Oscar’s Steakhouse lounge. The patio will add about 225 seats and overlook Main and Fremont streets.
Lastly, an oversized 3-D doughnut under the porte-cochere will lead to the new Pinkbox Doughnuts. The Vegas company will sell its full line of more than 70 doughnut flavors and create an exclusive menu of alcoholic doughnut milkshakes for the location. The 1,200-square-foot store’s interior will mirror other locations across the valley with pink floors, 3-D sprinkles and other signature decor.
The 51-year-old property was built on the site of an historic railroad depot in downtown Las Vegas and sits across from the Fremont Street Experience.
Both the Plaza and Oscar’s Steakhouse will remain open during construction.
Las Vegas Sun
No more cherries and lemons: Technologically advanced slots appeal to younger crowd
by Bryan Horwath, Las Vegas Sun · February 6, 2022
As he meandered through Red Rock Resort, Aaron Bettale gravitated toward a slot machine featuring animated video of stampeding buffaloes and explosions of gold coins, ringing bells and the refrain of a disembodied voice exclaiming, “Buffalo.”
“I like the flashy stuff,” Bettale, who is in his 20s, said as he examined the Buffalo Link machine. “I don’t like the ones that just have the three sevens.” For casino operators, gamblers like Bettale, who recently moved to Las Vegas from Colorado, represent the coveted young adult demographic. The hope is young players can be cultivated into lifelong casino patrons. The average age of U.S. casino customers declined from about 50 in 2019 to 43 last year, according to the American Gaming Association. And 25% of casino patrons were under age 29, the group noted. The trend can at least partly be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic, said Jon Hanlin, a senior vice president of commercial strategy and business analytics for slot manufacturer Aristocrat Gaming. After movie theaters, concert halls, nightclubs and other entertainment venues closed during the early months of the pandemic in 2020, casinos were some of the first to reopen, Hanlin said. “That created a new bubble of people who had never frequented casinos before,” Hanlin said. Sign-ups for casino players club cards have skyrocketed among 21- to 35-year-olds, he said.
Red Rock has recently introduced a number of games geared toward young adults, including a skills-based offering called Megamatch-Jelly Kingdom, a cross between a video game — similar to Candy Crush Saga — and a traditional slot machine. Jelly Kingdom, which is now on the casino floors at six Station Casinos properties, is made by an Australian company called Wymac Development. Sally Bernard, a Las Vegas local who works as vice president of business development for Wymac, said young people “are more interested in slot machines these days compared to before the pandemic.”
“There are many variables to understand slot demographic behavior and how and why things have changed over time. When looking at data over the last dozen years prior to COVID-19, it had been on a steady decline,” she said. Another Wymac skill-based game, Fortunes of the Brave-Dragon Forge, recently went through testing at Green Valley Ranch in Henderson, Bernard said. The game, which has a feature where players can create a customized character, is expected to be formally introduced later this year. Last year, Aristocrat shipped out slot machines based on the 2021 remake of the science fiction movie “Dune” to some Las Vegas casinos, Hanlin said. The game was released about the same time as the remake, creating a cross-promotion opportunity at some Station Casinos properties with theaters. “We noticed that people coming out of the movie were more likely to try the game out,” Hanlin said. “We tried to capture that younger segment with our ‘Dune’ machines.” “Something else that has driven a younger audience is the willingness of casinos to allow for filming on the floor,” said Hanlin, who has previously worked as a regional vice president of slots for Caesars Entertainment.
“When I was a casino operator, we’d tell people to put their phones down. That’s changed in the last three or four years,” Hanlin said. “People are filming and I can tell you they’re not posting anything about losing on social media. They’re posting about hitting jackpots. It creates a younger vibe.” Brian Christopher, a California resident and slots aficionado who runs a YouTube page with more than 450,000 subscribers, is one of the most well-known personalities in the slot machine social media world. Aristocrat welcomed Christopher last year to its Las Vegas complex to play the Buffalo Link game before it hit the casino floor. “Even just in the past year and a half, our audience has gotten a lot younger,” Christopher said. “The pandemic may have helped a little in the beginning when people just needed a place to go, but it’s more than that. Right now, it’s the male millennial that is driving the YouTube page and my videos.” Christopher said his YouTube channel, which features live game demonstrations and video blogs, can help familiarize people with the casino scene. He said certain casinos seemed to “get it” by having an active presence on social media channels, which can help to market to a younger demographic. In Las Vegas, he mentioned the Plaza and Cosmopolitan as being forward-thinking in that regard.
“My fans make the comment a lot that they try new games that we highlight,” Christopher said. “What we do is important in helping people understand what’s going on. It can be very overwhelming to sit at a slot machine that you’ve never played before. We’re no longer talking about a three-wheel game.” “There are fun and exciting games with fun and exciting bonuses,” Christopher said. “If I look at the games that my parents or grandparents played, they don’t excite me. Now, we’re always on our mobile devices or in front of a TV screen and these games match that.” Michael Green, an associate professor of history at UNLV who follows the region’s gaming industry, said technological advances in the presentation and complexity of slot machines have played a big role in attracting more millennial and Generation Z players.
“Younger people have grown accustomed to smartphones and devices on their wrists, and slots have advanced technologically too,” Green said. “I think back to when people used to stand there, pull a handle and watch a wheel spin and pop up cherry, cherry, lemon. The technology has advanced a lot.”
It seems hard to believe, but I’ve now been out of the casino industry almost six years. Being an old person, I still visit casinos on a regular basis (more on that age demographic thing later). I keep in touch with a number of my former colleagues and suppliers and get an occasional industry newsletter in my inbox from time to time. A recent one had a link to a story in the Las Vegas Review-Journal that I thought was super interesting: The Plaza downtown was opening an area of their slot floor dedicated to a YouTuber named Brian Christopher.
As a nerd, I’m normally pretty open to new gaming trends, but I never fully understood the desire to watch other people play video games on Twitch (and other services). To see that a major casino in Vegas was partnering with someone who records himself playing slot machines was surprising to me, given what I know about casino marketing and security. I started following the BC Slots channel on YouTube about a month ago and I have to admit I now understand the appeal.
So what’s this all about?
While there are probably hundreds of slot machine YouTubers out there now, what Brian Christopher has accomplished so far is impressive. The 40-year-old is originally from Toronto, moved to Los Angeles and now lives in Palm Springs (more on his backstory here). His branding appears to have changed over time – he owns BrianGambles.com and casinoswag.com, for example – and joined YouTube way back in 2006 (he went full-time with BC Slots in 2016).
As of March 2021, his videos have more than 222 million views, with 358,000 subscribers to his channel. His fans are called “Rudies” and he gets financial support from them via Patreon, where people can pay anywhere from $5 to $1200 a month, and from contributions during live chats. Other financial aspects of his business, including sponsorships and appearance fees, are not disclosed. His YouTube account was suspended briefly in 2018 (along with many other gaming channels), as documented in this story from The Atlantic.
Christopher has an appealing video presence (he was an actor before YouTube), with many catchphrases popular among the Rudies. Many of these end up on merchandise that he sells online. In addition to the partnership with The Plaza, he has hosted promotions with many regional casinos and at least one slot manufacturer (Aristocrat). He’s mentioned on recent videos that he attended the G2E conference, an industry trade show not open to the general public.
BC Slots has a small staff in Palm Springs and outsources aspects of the operation (video editing and social media management were specifically mentioned in an interview). Videos are posted daily to the YouTube channel, he does periodic live streams on YouTube and Facebook and has regular content on Instagram and Twitter as well. Assistant Britt appears in most videos, while his husband Marco makes less frequent appearances. Other routines include handing out free “lucky wristbands” to fans and hosting group pulls, where participants normally pay $200-$500 for a set amount of spins (usually on a high-limit machine).
So what is my take on all of this from the perspective of a former casino operator? My initial reaction was “there is no way security would allow this to happen” in Minnesota. Casino security guards are notorious for yelling at people who take pictures on their slot floors (let alone video). On one of his old blog posts, Christopher lists casinos he has visited (including several in Las Vegas that he said were rude and that he would never return to <cough>Caesar’s Palace<cough>). My guess is that those visits involved security getting involved before marketing knew what was going on.
Getting back to the age demographic thing, the entire time I worked in the casino industry, leaders and pundits were afraid of the aging demographic. All the best players were getting older and dying off and there was this constant fear of trying to appeal to younger generations. I always felt this was a little misplaced, because 1) your older players still have a lot of money and 2) younger people will get older and want to eventually do some of these same things. The success of BC Slots (and other gaming YouTubers) show that younger players can get interested in these “traditional” games just like their parents (and grandparents). What will be interesting to see is if the casinos decide to start producing this content themselves. The videos are a great way to train players on new games and generate excitement that can drive future visits.
I love the production value of the videos that Christopher produces. He doesn’t edit out the losses and only show bonuses and jackpots (although I think he does project a luckier-than-average overall image). I also applaud him using his platform to promote causes like Smoke Free Casinos, an effort I’ve long supported (and which may finally get some traction post-pandemic). The partnership with The Plaza is very clever – the section has his favorite games, you can watch videos of him winning jackpots on those games and you can earn your own lucky wristband with 100 points of play in that area. Another recent promotion gave $100 in free play to the first 300 people that mentioned his name in Palm Springs (all were gone the first day). It’s also great that he has a link to NCPG in every video.
So what’s not to like? Security directors will surely see many more copycats try to film without permission. In general, I’d like to see those policies change anyways – from a marketing standpoint, it’s important that guests can share images and videos of them having fun. It’s good for the guest and good for the casinos. I think we are mostly beyond the days of people not wanting to be pictured at a casino (which is not to say guest privacy isn’t important). There are also copyright issues with filming in a casino for profit – some of his videos have to be edited to conceal logos from clothes or mute a song playing in the background. Seems like most of the slot manufacturers are good with their intellectual property being shared and promoted (although I wonder if that will change if some games start to get bad publicity).
The other issue I have with BC Slots is bet size and disclosure. Personally, I’ve always been a minimum bet slot player who likes to maximize time on machine (it is, after all, entertainment). It rubs me the wrong way that BC highlights max betting in all his videos and tends to make light of those that don’t follow suit. While casinos love max bet players, the majority of people can’t afford it and shouldn’t gamble that way. Granted, videos with $25 spins are much more exciting to watch than those with 40-cent spins, but I think it’s unfair if there is no disclosure that some (or all) of that play is coming from the house. From his FAQ page:
How much money do you gamble with & where do you get it from? Well money is a delicate subject as it’s very personal. I will say however that I am very smart with money. I strictly use an entertainment budget to play with and understand how slot machines work (more on that below). Also a lot of my money gets recycled from previous trips and the key is knowing when to CASH OUT. And just like I don’t ask or know how much my sister and brother make at their jobs, I’m not going to get into finances with complete strangers either 😉
It’s a whole lot easier to do ten pulls on a $100 slot machine if that $1000 was given to you by the casino, no?
That said, I do enjoy watching these videos and will likely continue to do so.
Time will tell if it changes the way I play in real life or not. I did try a few new games on my last casino trip based on things I had seen in the videos (although definitely not at those same denomination and bet levels). I think it would also be really interesting if someone compiled statistics/analytics on his videos (index of games played, amounts won/lost, bonuses hit).
In my opinion, there is an amazing lack of information on slot machines online that makes it hard for people to learn about what games they would like (volatility, best odds, payouts, rules). That is probably the biggest benefit to casinos from YouTubers like this – people can see how the games are played before they risk their own money. Hmm…maybe there is a new side hustle in my future…
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Wheel of Fortune still top slot 25 years later
by Richard N Velotta, Las Vegas Review-Journal · August 5, 2021
You hear it all the time across the casino, the siren’s call to come play. Wheel … of … Fortune!
The game’s sound effects, tones and melodies peeled from the popular television game show are just one of the reasons IGT’s most popular slot machine has endured for 25 years. Since June 15 and over the next several months through Dec. 1, the company is observing “25 Weeks of Wheel of Fortune,” a silver anniversary tribute to the brand that includes special giveaways through the Wheel Facebook page. IGT says Wheel of Fortune marked the first licensed slot machine brand and is a forerunner for many more themed games featuring prominent movies, television shows and celebrities. And while Wheel of Fortune has a big visual impact on the casino floor with its 250 different game variations — some of them in cabinets that are more than 11 feet tall — it’s the sounds they make that seem to keep fans coming back.
Wheel zone
“You can’t walk across a casino floor without hearing it,” said Boris Hallerbach, IGT’s director of product management for premium products in Reno. “It’s like the games are calling out to the players.” That’s the same impression Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel has. The downtown property has the Wheel of Fortune Slots Zone where a mix of different variations of the machine are grouped together. “It’s iconic,” Jossel said. “It’s the sound of the game, everyone knows those noises of the Wheel of Fortune game, whether you hear them in the airport or in the casino. It’s the first sound you hear when you get to Las Vegas and the last sound you hear when you leave. It’s almost synonymous with Vegas, that Wheel of Fortune song and the sound of those reels.” But those sounds traveled a lengthy path to get to the casino floor. By Hallerbach’s account, it began when former IGT Chairman Charles Mathewson attended an awards dinner and by “happy accident” sat next to an executive from Sony Pictures Television. During the dinner, they chatted about the potential of teaming to develop a game show collaboration on a slot machine. It wasn’t a slam-dunk deal. In 1996, when the details were being worked out, gaming still carried a stigma. “Getting an entertainment and television company to consider their content on slot machines was a little difficult,” Hallerbach said. “Sensitivity to how we represented the slot game and the experience was important and we wanted to have some separation from the television show and the slot machine.” While 1996 is acknowledged as the year Wheel of Fortune was born, a significant development occurred a decade earlier that eventually would create much of Wheel’s success.
Wide-area progressive jackpots
IGT introduced wide-area progressive jackpots, essentially linking machines from a broad area that feed money into one prize pool. IGT introduced the concept with another king of the slot floor, Megabucks. Ten years later, Wheel of Fortune would borrow the wide-area progressive system, assuring that some of the game’s biggest winners would become millionaires. The earliest Wheel of Fortune game that came out didn’t even have a wheel. It was just a three-reeled mechanical-reel nickel slot game with the game-show theme.
Anchor’s role
Around that time, a small Las Vegas company, Anchor Gaming, had a patented wheel that was a perfect fit to incorporate into Wheel of Fortune play. Anchor made slot games, including its Wheel of Gold, and operated casinos in Cripple Creek and Black Hawk, Colorado, and a tribal casino in California. But its biggest contribution to the industry was supplying the wheel that made Wheel of Fortune famous. IGT at first leased the rights to use the wheel. But in 2001, IGT had grown to a dominating international presence and acquired Anchor in a stock deal for $1.1 billion, forming, at the time, Nevada’s largest publicly traded company. “We used that wheel from Anchor in the process and created the game that combined the Wheel of Fortune brand with strong IGT base games like Double Diamond and created something that really struck a positive nerve with players,” Hallerbach said. “It was the first brand in slots and people with their familiarity with the show on television every night I think had an instant affinity to the Wheel of Fortune slot game.” With the popularity of the Wheel slot and the TV show climbing, IGT’s network of studios began inventing variations of the game that turned out to be as popular as the earliest versions. IGT introduced the video version of Wheel in 2001. As technology improved, IGT added more pay lines and mixed in more denominations for play, attracting a wider audience for the game. In 2006, IGT introduced the “Wheel of Fortune Super Spin,” a vehicle to get more people to the game’s bonus features faster. In 2009, thanks to those wide-area progressive jackpots, Wheel delivered its largest jackpot of all time, $14.4 million, to a gambler in Biloxi, Mississippi. Cabinets and displays got bigger for the game. Some versions had seats for multiple players. The graphics got crisper and more realistic. When IGT first promoted its True 3D screen products in 2016, the TV show’s Vanna White met and took pictures with people attending the Global Gaming Expo trade show in Las Vegas that year. She received the ceremonial Key to the City of Las Vegas as part of the celebration.
MegaTower arrives
IGT followed with the Wheel of Fortune MegaTower, standing just over 11 feet tall, in 2017, and in 2018, the company introduced a new visual element of the game, True 4D, in which elements of the game seemingly jump off the video screen and into the player’s lap. A total 250 different variations of the game currently are offered, and today players can sit down and play while the voices of host Pat Sajak along with co-host and letter-turner Vanna White interact with them. Players might also hear Jim Thornton, the television show’s announcer, whose voice also appears on Wheel slot games. For proprietary reasons, IGT officials won’t say how many Wheel of Fortune games are installed on casino floors across North America where the game is most popular, but Nick Khin, IGT’s chief operating officer for gaming, said it’s in the thousands. “Players are very loyal to the product; they trust the game because it’s been on casino floors for so long,” Khin said. “They’re very comfortable with it and many players have a relationship with the game that goes back a long time. Players will come to the casino specifically looking for that game.” The sounds, the progressive jackpots and the familiarity of the game has enabled Wheel of Fortune to develop a diverse player base. Another way IGT keeps Wheel in front of people is through lottery tickets. IGT is one of the largest worldwide operators of lottery games. In the United States, the company sells lottery tickets in 25 states. West of the Mississippi River, they can be bought in Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, New Mexico, Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, Minnesota and Texas.
Social media influencer
Possibly the most recognizable Wheel of Fortune slot machine player in the country is social media influencer Brian Christopher, a Toronto actor who moved to Southern California to try to make it in Hollywood and ended up becoming a YouTube sensation. “One day, I posted a couple of funny videos of me gambling and those videos ended up going viral,” Christopher said of the birth of bcslots.com and his company, BC Slots. Christopher travels around the country, mostly in the Southwest, and comes to Las Vegas several times a year, making YouTube videos of him playing and explaining slot machines. “I show how you win, how you lose and the excitement of just playing,” he said. He admits the variations of Wheel of Fortune are his favorites and notes that when he produces a livestream of him playing, one of his more than 500,000 fans invariably ask him to play a Wheel game. As much as possible, he obliges. “I think we all grew up with Wheel of Fortune at home and the excitement around it,” he said. “It was always a family game and something all ages could all enjoy together. I think everyone’s dream is to spin the wheel. Now you have a chance to do that in the casino. “Honestly, spinning wheels is always an exciting part of any slot machine, so when you mix the two things together you get this amazing game,” Christopher said. “And, of course, we’ve all come to love Vanna White and you see her in a lot of the newer games, interacting with the guests. There’s always the excitement of maybe this will be the one spin where I hit it big.” Christopher started off playing the low-denomination Wheel games and branched out as he became more financially stable with the sale of BC Slots merchandise on his website — hats, T-shirts, sweatshirts, lucky wristbands and, more recently, masks. A few years ago, Christopher was in the middle of a livestream when he won $10,000 playing Wheel of Fortune. He duplicated the feat in June while playing at Park MGM, a new favorite for him because he’s become an advocate for smoke-free casinos. When Plaza’s Jossel had Christopher on as a guest on his “On the Corner of Main Street” podcast, Christopher was asked what the future held for BC Slots and he half jokingly suggested that a resort produce a Brian Christopher-themed hotel room or slot machine area. Jossel took him up on the idea and produced an area in the Plaza casino — smoke-free, of course — that features Christopher’s favorite slot games. The only thing missing is a Wheel of Fortune game, but that’s OK with him because Plaza’s Wheel of Fortune Zone is right near him on the floor.
What’s next?
So what’s next for the nation’s most popular slot machine? Right now, IGT is enjoying the attention of the “25 Weeks of Wheel of Fortune” promotion that ends Dec. 1. IGT’s studios are working to come up with more game variations. “For 25 years, IGT has artfully captured the fun, excitement and authenticity of the Wheel of Fortune brand through its world-class Wheel of Fortune Slots portfolio,” said Suzanne Prete, Sony Pictures Television’s senior vice president of global licensing and brand management. “Wheel of Fortune Slots’ jackpot-paying legacy and capacity to entertain people across diverse generations, geographies and channels perfectly align with the global Wheel of Fortune brand.” Asked about the prospect of developing a skill-based game that involves solving a Wheel of Fortune word puzzle as they do on the game show, Hallenbach and Khin said there are no plans in the works — but Christopher thought it would be a cool feature if it could be done.
CDC Gaming Reports
NIGA Tradeshow: Influencers can generate buzzworthy events for casinos
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · July 22, 2021
NIGA Tradeshow: Influencers can generate buzzworthy events for casinos
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · July 22, 2021
Brian Christopher and Lucky Lady HQ are sought-after casino guests. They aren’t whales who gamble enormous amounts of money or valued patrons who frequently visit properties. Christopher and Lady Luck – whose real name is Francine Maric – bring something equally, if not more valuable, to casino properties.
“They’ve got a lot of followers, they’re interactive, they’re talking to people, and most importantly for casinos, they’re gamers,” said Justin Shank, owner of Shank Marketing Services Wednesday during the panel discussion “The Marketing of Influence” at the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention in Las Vegas. “They’re people who play casino games, with people interacting with them, watching them.”
Christopher’s YouTube channel has more than 407,000 subscribers, known as Rudies, who watch him play slots at the more than 100 casinos he’s visited. When he started five years ago, Christopher had to beg casinos to permit him to film live events.
“More and more, they’re reaching out to us,” he said, noting casinos now help him set up livestreams, meet-and-greets, and other events at their properties. “We just work with them on whatever their needs are to make sure they’re comfortable with what we’re doing.”
Maric quit her day job in April 2021 to devote herself fulltime to her Lady Luck HQ channels on YouTube and Instagram. A high-stakes player, her average bet range is $50-$100. Maric’s audience is 70 percent male and between 21 and 60 years old, with 50 percent from countries outside the U.S.
“I’m super-excited about it,” Maric said.
Shanks says the most popular influencers, including Christopher and Maric, can command fees between $5,000 and $20,000, to appear at a property. That might seem like an exorbitant amount of money to watch someone play a slot machine (Maric sometimes plays table games), but Shank says the content that influencers produce on their channels essentially stays online forever.
“It’s the same as if you’re hosting a comedian or any other type of entertainment on site,” Shank said. “This is an entertainment value you’re adding to your property floor. It’s kind of the marriage between influencers as an advertising element and as well as a promotional element for the property, one that will directly equate to bigger numbers on the gaming floor while they’re there.”
Last August, as gaming operators were reopening properties after being closed during the COVID pandemic, Christopher appeared at one of Shank’s client casinos. As soon as he entered the casino, Christopher drew a huge crowd.
“We’ve become so popular that when we do livestreams, so many fans rush to the casino, we actually do viewing parties now in the casino in a separate room with big screens,” Christopher says, noting his meet-and-greets often attract 200 fans, with more trying to get in.
Moderator Julia Carcamo, president of the casino marketing and consulting agency J. Carcamo and Associates, said because many influencers will sign up devotees through their own channels, they can provide the names of fans, and perhaps player card numbers, to gaming operators.
“You can immediately create a group to start tracking (players),” she said. “My recommendation would be to have ambassador cards and to be ready to card people you may not have information on. It’s a very trackable investment.”
Influencers also can pay dividends through social media campaigns. Shank says hosting casinos can create a buzz via Facebook, Instagram or other channels prior to appearances of popular and photogenic influencers such as Christopher or Maric.
The other good thing about influencers it that, unlike a band or comedian, they don’t need a lot of equipment or personnel.
“They’ve got their own camera equipment, they’ve got their people, and they’ve got their own style,” Shank says. “Everybody has their own way of doing things. Being self-contained means you have to put less people on the floor. It’s not a like a big concert where you have to staff it up massively.”
CDC Gaming Reports
Nonsmoking advocates insist smoking bans are good for casinos
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · April 28, 2021
CDC Gaming Reports
Nonsmoking advocates insist smoking bans are good for casinos
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · April 28, 2021
Mayor LaToya Cantrell of New Orleans was a councilwoman six years ago when she led an effort to ban smoking in casinos, bars, and restaurants in the city. Everywhere she went Cantrell was told that there was no way the measure would pass.
Instead, the New Orleans Smoke-Free Air Act passed by a 7-0 vote.
“We had the courage to stand up for our musicians who were saying their lungs were their instruments,” Cantrell said during a Wednesday conference call hosted by Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights. “We stood up for restaurants and bars and casinos, people who said we shouldn’t have to die to earn an honest living.”
In New Orleans, the indoor smoking ban affected just one casino – Harrah’s New Orleans – the only property operating within the city limits. Harrah’s created an outside smoking plaza for its customers.
Cantrell was one of several advocates who insist that nonsmoking casinos are not an impediment to the operators’ bottom lines, and are a boon to the health of employees. ANR President and CEO Cynthia Hallett said that because most brick-and-mortar casinos eliminated smoking because of health mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic, now is the time to continue those policies.
“We are urging casinos to keep these policies in place, even once the pandemic is behind us,” Hallett said.
Casinos have long resisted pleas to ban smoking, fearing they will alienate smokers. But according to slot influencer Brian Christopher, CEO of BC Slots who has more than 700,000 followers on his YouTube channel, those fears are misplaced. BC Slots surveyed its club members, and 19% of respondents were smokers.
“But a majority of them preferred nonsmoking casinos,” Christopher said, adding that 95% of all respondents stated a preference for nonsmoking casinos.
At least one casino that has banned smoking has no regrets. In November 2014, Ho-Chunk Casino Madison in Wisconsin decided to survey club members about their smoking preferences. The results were surprising.
“Gambling and smoking seemed to go hand in hand, but what we found out was 70% of our clientele was in favor of us going smoke-free,” said Missy Tracy, municipal relations coordinator for the casino.
Ho-Chunk went smoke-free in August 2015, and revenues “took a nice big dip,” Tracy said. “But by the fifteenth month, we exceeded revenue and we became our nation’s flagship casino. … Our headcount went down, but our coin in went up.”
Tracy added it’s also been easier to recruit new employees, many of whom are millennials who prefer to work in a non-smoking environment.
CDC Gaming Reports
Smoking at casinos declines as COVID-19 and health concerns force casinos to re-evaluate policies
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · April 8, 2021
Smoking at casinos declines as COVID-19 and health concerns force casinos to re-evaluate policies
by Rege Behe, CDC Gaming Reports · April 8, 2021
Casino operators have long been resistant to banning smoking indoors, wary of alienating a segment of gamblers who prefer to light up while playing slots, blackjack, or other games. But in 2015, Ho-Chunk Gaming Madison in Wisconsin decided to go non-smoking. Shortly after the prohibition was enacted, executive manager Dan Brown was talking to a colleague outside the casino when a car arrived. A woman exited the vehicle and the driver started yelling, waving a pack of cigarettes at Brown. “He said, 'I will never be back,’ and literally just peeled out of the parking lot,” Brown says, laughing. “There were people who were pretty outspoken about it, but what was really encouraging were the number of comment cards thanking us.”
For the last three years, Brown says Ho-Chunk has set record revenue numbers. With the COVID-19 pandemic causing many brick-and-mortar casinos to enact smoking bans due to state-mandated health and safety restrictions, the long debate about smoking in casinos appears to have reached a turning point.
In a recent partner call, Brian King of the Centers for Disease Control’s Office on Smoking and Health said that the pandemic “resulted in an increase in smokefree casino adoption” at more than 200 commercial and tribal casinos. “With these policies that were decided during a time of closure, the benefit is that it allows these casinos that were already doing extensive cleaning for safety to reopen smoke free and really maximize that sense of having a safe, clean environment,” said Bronson Frick, the director of advocacy for the nonprofit groups Americans for Nonsmokers Rights and the Americans Nonsmokers Rights Foundation Incorporated in 1984, the ANR produces programs that advocate for the prevention of harmful effects of secondhand smoke and smoking among youth and adults. Gaming operators, in efforts to address concerns about second-hand smoke, have long implemented measures to placate nonsmokers.But according to Frick, the inherent problem with designated smoking areas, smoking rooms, and ventilation systems is simple: They don’t work. “They don’t stop the smoke from spreading and none of those approaches address the health hazard of second-hand smoke,” Frick says.
While gaming customers can ostensibly make attempts to avoid smoking areas, casino workers have little choice if they are assigned to work in smoking sections. Workers can lobby employers to work in non-smoking sections, but sometimes they have no recourse.Indoor smoking, Frick says, can be a detriment to “recruiting a talented, diverse workforce. But more importantly to retaining those workers once they onboard, particularly younger workers who were maybe recruited by their friends. Nobody wants to work in a smoking section.” Brown notes the Ho-Chunk smoking ban was enacted after considering the makeup of its future customer base. According to the CDC, only 8% of adults between 18 and 24 smoke, compared to 16.7 adults ages 25-44, and 17% of adults between 45 and 64.
“We have to be looking to the future and what kind of market are we going to try to cultivate,” Brown says. “At the time we enacted the ban the millennials were the hot ticket, and that’s an active group, they’re outdoors doing things, they’re into healthy lifestyles. It was a very conscious decision to be sure that we keep them in mind in terms of tomorrow’s market segment.” But do patrons want to eliminate smoking? According to Brian Christopher, the founder of BC Slots and, a slots influencer who has a slots room named after him at the Plaza Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, the answer is an unequivocal yes. Christopher collaborated with ANR to develop a survey that gauges how slots players feel about gambling. “We wanted to find out the truth, because most casinos don’t make that effort,” Christopher says. “They literally just walk in their own casinos and see smoke, so they think everyone is smoking.”
The results of the survey include:
· 70% of gamblers admit they are bothered by smoking in casinos
· 95% of respondents think smoking is a health hazard
· 88% of smokers would choose a non-smoking casino over a smoking casino, provided there was an outdoor option, such as a smoking patio
While only 13% of U.S. citizens smoke, it skews slightly higher with gamblers, with 19% admitting they smoke. But that still means 81% of casino patrons don’t smoke. Christopher says the pandemic has forced casino operators to reassess their commitment to customer safety. The installation of high-tech HVAC systems, air purifiers, and mask requirements are welcome developments. But one more step is needed. “If safety was their No. 1 priority, there would be no smoking,” Christopher said, adding he especially feels bad for casino employees working in smoking sections. “I just came back from being at a smoking casino for five days and I’ve been coughing now for two weeks. It’s just not good, and working in it has got to be a lot worse for (employees).”
Rege Behe is lead contributor to CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at rbehe@cdcgaming.com. Please follow @RegeBehe_exPTR on Twitter.
Small Screen
Top YouTube Channels for Casino Lovers
by Small Screen Staff · July 22, 2021
It isn’t uncommon for people to look to YouTubers when they need to learn more about a specific area of interest. You’ll find lots of fantastic resources for casinos if you are a fan of gambling video content. Obviously, most of the content will be about famous non-UK casinos similar to ones you can find on NonGamStopBets. However, it takes a lot of thorough searches to spot the best out of the lot. Here are the top YouTube channels for casino lovers:
BRIAN CHRISTOPHER
Brian Christopher is the host of the top-rated BCSlots DAILY YouTube channel, and you will find every single episode useful if you enjoy slot games. As a social media influencer whose video content revolves around the fun and highly rewarding world of the casino, Brian has more than 155,000 subscribers and records over 92 million views on every video. Brian has been a Forbes article subject, but it is fun to know he only started the YouTube channel as a hobby in 2016.
At the time, he was still a Hollywood actor. Once he realized that his subscriber count had begun to grow, he finally gave up his day job and fully committed to his channel. Much of his channel’s success is attributed to the fact that he posts his videos daily, but that’s not to dismiss their brilliance in any way. Travelling across the United States, Christopher Brian’s content primarily shows live streams of him visiting various casinos, losing, winning, and reacting in his trademark manner. He’s really great at what he does that he now has a fan club, who call themselves the Rudies.
VEGASLOWROLLER
Look past the funny name, and visit this YouTube channel with more than 80,000 subscribers. VegasLowRoller is one hugely popular YouTube personality who offers excellent content. His videos have an estimated combined view count of about 51 million, which tells so much about their quality. Based in Las Vegas, this channel is focused on his love affair with casino slots (popularly known as the one-armed bandit or fruit machine). He often travels around the many casinos in the city, filming his juicy wins and sharing them with everyone who cares to follow his channel. Although he calls himself a low roller, he’s still very successful, and that makes his content ideal for anyone who loves slots and needs the motivation to try a couple.
AMERICAN CASINO GUIDE
If the American Casino Guide sounds familiar, it’s because it has been published every year since 1992 and has been the number one bestselling publication in America on the subject of gambling and casinos. It has a very famous YouTube channel counterpart, with more than 85,000 subscribers and nearly 29 million regular views. Author Steve Bourie runs this YouTube channel, and it provides viewers with useful strategies and tips on how to be a super, more intelligent gambler, touching everything from baccarat to poker.
Poker is possibly the most loved and renowned gambling game, and a few historians claim it dates as far back as a 10th-century Chinese emperor! On the other hand, baccarat is a simple casino game where you get to draw three cards and place a bet on whether the dealer or you will be favoured. Covering every aspect of the play in a detailed manner is a very useful channel for players who want to play for real soon.
ROCKNROLLA’S GAMBLING CHANNEL
Although his choice of language is quite colourful and may not be the perfect choice for a more conservative player, this remains one YouTube personality who knows how to carry his viewers along with him as he experiences every high and low. Engaging, genuine, knowledgeable, and never attempting to avoid betting it all, his channel is a perfect place for some fantastic viewing.
SO, WHY SHOULD YOU WATCH IT?
Some people can easily feel an aversion to entitling other’s to success simply for doing what they enjoy. But while the YouTube high rollers live every day to share videos of themselves doing just that, you can’t deny the fact that their win count both in views and in their game is impressive. Plus, there’s a boatload of varied content out there with a dedication to a casino that it can’t be cake work to make the top ranks the way these guys have done.
However, it’s super easy to see how dedicated they are to what they do and how much knowledge they want to share with viewers with their engaging and honest presentational styles. Many other YouTubers put in a lot of work to create and deliver fantastic casino content, but these are a few of the ones you can bet your bottom dollar on.
CDC Gaming Reports
Frank Floor Talk: What's a slot influencer?
by Buddy Frank, CDC Gaming Reports · March 16, 2021
Frank Floor Talk: What's a slot influencer?
by Buddy Frank, CDC Gaming Reports · March 16, 2021
What skills do you need to become one of the well-known and highly paid folks in the casino industry? How about acting, filmmaking, driving for Uber and playing slot machines?
That’s what Brian Christopher did, and now he’s one of most important folks in all of gaming. But, he’s not a CEO, CFO or ‘C” anything. He’s not even a “whale host.” He’s a “slot influencer,” and that category is quickly becoming one of our most important positions.
If you haven’t heard of Christopher and other slot influencers, you’re not alone. But you are also not an avid slot player or a progressive marketing pro. In your defense, this narrow profession is truly in its infancy. But not in importance. That’s why marketing consultant Julia Carcamo recently created a virtual series of eight webinars events titled “Winning Influencer Marketing.” The sessions are part of J. Carcamo & Associates’ “Casino Marketing Boot Camp,” exploring new and established techniques.
As this story was written, they’ve canned five webinars on “Marketing Influencers” and featured Christopher himself on the week of March 18th.
While the term may be new, the idea of using celebrities or personalities to pitch products is not. Mark Twain hawked fountain pens in the late 1890s. Doris Day lent her name to steamrollers for International Harvester in the 1960s. And today George Clooney is the front man for Nespresso.
You’d probably never heard of Salton electric grills until they decided to pay George Foreman a staggering $200M over the years to pitch what has now become the hottest-selling appliance ever, the “George Foreman Grill.”
But using celebrities to promote casinos has been limited. To highlight the opening of the Melco Crown casino on Macau’s Cotai Strip in 2014, the owners paid Robert DeNiro and Leonardo DiCaprio $13M to do a promotional film directed by Martin Scorsese. But that was a rare event.
It’s the internet that has taken things to a whole new level in almost every industry, including ours. Ryan Kahi, who is still in elementary school, is a “toy influencer” known as just “Ryan” to his 28.9 million YouTube subscribers. Forbes pegged his annual salary at $26M. Did I mention he is nine and still in elementary school?!
But he’s nothing compared to “PewDiePie.” His real name is Felix Kjellberg. He started his professional career as a hot dog salesman. Today he makes nearly $60 million a year as a “video game influencer.” That works out to just under $29,000/hour, or just slightly above the federal minimum wage of $7.25.
While Brian Christopher is not in PewDiePie’s league, he is the Number One slot influencer today. He has 350,000 subscribers on YouTube and another 275,000 fans on Facebook. Most importantly, those subscribers watch because they love slot machines. They subscribe because they want to learn about the latest slot games, how bonuses work; and they want to be part of the “reality show” that is Brian’s casino adventures. In contrast, it is doubtful that any of PewDiePie’s or Ryan’s fans will ever be visiting your casino (at least not for a decade or two).
In a recent “LV Review Journal” article, Jonathan Jossel, the CEO at the Plaza Casino in downtown Las Vegas, said, “Social media has transformed the casino experience, and we are very excited to partner with Brian on this unique space that I know our guests will enjoy.” They had such confidence in Christopher’s prestige that they dedicated an entire section of their floor to him. “For years, my fans have been asking which games were my favorite, and now I finally have a place where they can experience it for themselves,” Christopher said in a Plaza news release. “The new ‘Brian Christopher Slots’ at the Plaza is like having my own miniature casino. I hand-selected the games that represent everything I love about playing slot machines.”
It’s not just casinos that are on board. The game makers (the manufacturers of slot machines) are perhaps even bigger fans of slot influencers. Meghan Sleik, Director of Partnership Marketing and Communications at Aristocrat, said on a recent “Boot Camp” panel that the pandemic shutdowns last spring brought a new appreciation of the slot influencers that went both ways.
“The influencers were virtually out of content since all the casinos were shutdown. So, we opened our showrooms to them. While there was no money at risk, they (the influencers) did get to play the new games that we’re going to launch upon re-openings.” She added that it also helped them internally, “With the input from the influencers, we were able to keep our R&D department and game designers busy with good input about what was working and what was not.”
Interestingly, in the world of influencers and camera-equipped cell phones, she said that game designers often think about giving players the time to get out their phones when big bonuses are about to happen. That wasn’t even a design consideration a few years ago.
On the same panel, Daria Wu, the Slot Director at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas, said it is important to train your staff to assist the influencers. While everyone on the panel had stories about security officers evicting slot influencers attempting to film slots back in the early days, the problems now, she said, are more related to handling the crowds and onlookers that accompany their live sessions. “With COVID-19 restrictions in place, we wanted to make sure that everyone is following the proper guidelines and that the live sessions reflect that.”
Jay Ellenberger, the Director of Casino Operations at Oregon’s Seven Feathers Hotel & Casino, added, “We needed to manage people and their spacing to make sure we placed the influencers in the right areas.”
All seven of the panelists in the “Influencer Marketing” webinar titled “The Slots & Operations Experts” agreed that, at first, they had no idea just how popular some of these folks were. They were surprised at the crowds they could draw just to watch and be a small part of someone else’s slot playing experience.
Each of them also stressed the importance of educating their team to be prepared for this new age of digital captures with good lighting, sound and, especially, the availability of high-speed internet on the casino floor.
There’s also a lot of work behind making it all happen in an entertaining way. “My friends are shocked by my success. I mean, all I do is play slot machines,” Christopher says, “What they don’t see is that managing a massive YouTube Channel is a full-time job, and I have had to hire a talented Editor and a hard-working Social Media Manager, just to keep up! I’m not complaining though, I love what I do – I was born to be online.”
He produces a dozen videos a week, each viewed by an average audience of 300,000. And it’s not just a Las Vegas thing. He says that 25% of his audience is international, including Canada (Christopher’s original home) as well as Australia and New Zealand.
There are several other prominent influencers with similar formats and impressive crowds of followers. Scott Richter from Colorado is also known as “Raja” on his “Big Jackpot” channel. He, too, celebrated 300,000 subscribers recently.
Sarah, aka the “Slotlady,” is another slot influencer approaching 200,000 followers. Recently, she has made some joint appearances with Christopher. Unlike Brian, she only uses her first name and seldom shares much about her personal life. The same goes for “NG Slot” out of Los Angeles who doesn’t share his real name but has also racked up 200,000 or more subscribers.
One reason reviewers praise Christopher as the industry’s best is that, despite a similar number of followers as others, Brian shares almost everything about his life. His videos are truly a casino version of a reality show. “My Dad doesn’t play slots at all, but he watches all my videos to learn more about what I’m doing and where I’m going. I don’t mean that we don’t talk and share privately, it’s just that he hears more about my adventures day-to-day on the slot videos.”
If it sounds like he’s been doing this for years, you’d be right. But only for five years. He began by simply watching random videos online shot by various players because he wanted to learn more about slots. With his background in filmmaking, he realized he could do a better job than what he saw at the time. It only took about a month before he made more money with the videos than he did with his day job as an aspiring actor/Uber driver.
He learned quickly. Aristocrat’s Sleilk said its almost embarrassing that, “I sometimes feel that the slot influencers know more about how our games work than many of us who work here.”
It’s the education element that earns praise from many casino operators. Ellenberger praised Christopher and other influencers for teaching his own staff about slots. “We cover the basics in orientation, but they can learn so much more by watching the videos.”
How do influencers make their money? According to Christopher, advertisers using his site are the biggest source of his income. Surprisingly, it’s not casinos or slot makers placing the majority of the ads. Using Google’s artificial intelligence algorithms, the ads will be unique for each user depending on their own “likes.” If you are a fan of both slots and ukuleles, you might find ads on “BC Slots” for ukulele lessons. Likewise, you may find commercials for cosmetics, air compressors, QVC or NFL football depending on what, and where, you’ve searched online in the past.
Christopher also sells a lot of merchandise, most of it with the brand “Rude.” To quote from the fan page, “The Rudies Club is a private group of people who have a common interest and love for gambling and especially my channel, Brian Christopher Slots, on YouTube. The name itself was voted on by its members and chosen based on my regular use of the catchphrase ‘RUDE’.” Accordingly, Christopher sells t-shirts, hoodies, ‘lucky’ wrist bands, bumper stickers and the like.
So how do you decide if Raja or Sarah or Brian or another influencer would be the right one to help you build brand awareness at your casino? Sleik says there are two important points in making that evaluation:
If there’s a good match, an influencer could be a positive force in your future revenue growth.
Stories abound that even table games players and/or video poker fans with little past interest in traditional slots were “converted” after just a few exposures to these YouTube stars.
So forget GM or CFO. The quickest way to fame and fortune in the casino world may be to spread a little influence on the slot floor.
That’s what Brian Christopher did, and now he’s one of most important folks in all of gaming. But, he’s not a CEO, CFO or ‘C” anything. He’s not even a “whale host.” He’s a “slot influencer,” and that category is quickly becoming one of our most important positions.
If you haven’t heard of Christopher and other slot influencers, you’re not alone. But you are also not an avid slot player or a progressive marketing pro. In your defense, this narrow profession is truly in its infancy. But not in importance. That’s why marketing consultant Julia Carcamo recently created a virtual series of eight webinars events titled “Winning Influencer Marketing.” The sessions are part of J. Carcamo & Associates’ “Casino Marketing Boot Camp,” exploring new and established techniques.
As this story was written, they’ve canned five webinars on “Marketing Influencers” and featured Christopher himself on the week of March 18th.
While the term may be new, the idea of using celebrities or personalities to pitch products is not. Mark Twain hawked fountain pens in the late 1890s. Doris Day lent her name to steamrollers for International Harvester in the 1960s. And today George Clooney is the front man for Nespresso.
You’d probably never heard of Salton electric grills until they decided to pay George Foreman a staggering $200M over the years to pitch what has now become the hottest-selling appliance ever, the “George Foreman Grill.”
But using celebrities to promote casinos has been limited. To highlight the opening of the Melco Crown casino on Macau’s Cotai Strip in 2014, the owners paid Robert DeNiro and Leonardo DiCaprio $13M to do a promotional film directed by Martin Scorsese. But that was a rare event.
It’s the internet that has taken things to a whole new level in almost every industry, including ours. Ryan Kahi, who is still in elementary school, is a “toy influencer” known as just “Ryan” to his 28.9 million YouTube subscribers. Forbes pegged his annual salary at $26M. Did I mention he is nine and still in elementary school?!
But he’s nothing compared to “PewDiePie.” His real name is Felix Kjellberg. He started his professional career as a hot dog salesman. Today he makes nearly $60 million a year as a “video game influencer.” That works out to just under $29,000/hour, or just slightly above the federal minimum wage of $7.25.
While Brian Christopher is not in PewDiePie’s league, he is the Number One slot influencer today. He has 350,000 subscribers on YouTube and another 275,000 fans on Facebook. Most importantly, those subscribers watch because they love slot machines. They subscribe because they want to learn about the latest slot games, how bonuses work; and they want to be part of the “reality show” that is Brian’s casino adventures. In contrast, it is doubtful that any of PewDiePie’s or Ryan’s fans will ever be visiting your casino (at least not for a decade or two).
In a recent “LV Review Journal” article, Jonathan Jossel, the CEO at the Plaza Casino in downtown Las Vegas, said, “Social media has transformed the casino experience, and we are very excited to partner with Brian on this unique space that I know our guests will enjoy.” They had such confidence in Christopher’s prestige that they dedicated an entire section of their floor to him. “For years, my fans have been asking which games were my favorite, and now I finally have a place where they can experience it for themselves,” Christopher said in a Plaza news release. “The new ‘Brian Christopher Slots’ at the Plaza is like having my own miniature casino. I hand-selected the games that represent everything I love about playing slot machines.”
It’s not just casinos that are on board. The game makers (the manufacturers of slot machines) are perhaps even bigger fans of slot influencers. Meghan Sleik, Director of Partnership Marketing and Communications at Aristocrat, said on a recent “Boot Camp” panel that the pandemic shutdowns last spring brought a new appreciation of the slot influencers that went both ways.
“The influencers were virtually out of content since all the casinos were shutdown. So, we opened our showrooms to them. While there was no money at risk, they (the influencers) did get to play the new games that we’re going to launch upon re-openings.” She added that it also helped them internally, “With the input from the influencers, we were able to keep our R&D department and game designers busy with good input about what was working and what was not.”
Interestingly, in the world of influencers and camera-equipped cell phones, she said that game designers often think about giving players the time to get out their phones when big bonuses are about to happen. That wasn’t even a design consideration a few years ago.
On the same panel, Daria Wu, the Slot Director at the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas, said it is important to train your staff to assist the influencers. While everyone on the panel had stories about security officers evicting slot influencers attempting to film slots back in the early days, the problems now, she said, are more related to handling the crowds and onlookers that accompany their live sessions. “With COVID-19 restrictions in place, we wanted to make sure that everyone is following the proper guidelines and that the live sessions reflect that.”
Jay Ellenberger, the Director of Casino Operations at Oregon’s Seven Feathers Hotel & Casino, added, “We needed to manage people and their spacing to make sure we placed the influencers in the right areas.”
All seven of the panelists in the “Influencer Marketing” webinar titled “The Slots & Operations Experts” agreed that, at first, they had no idea just how popular some of these folks were. They were surprised at the crowds they could draw just to watch and be a small part of someone else’s slot playing experience.
Each of them also stressed the importance of educating their team to be prepared for this new age of digital captures with good lighting, sound and, especially, the availability of high-speed internet on the casino floor.
There’s also a lot of work behind making it all happen in an entertaining way. “My friends are shocked by my success. I mean, all I do is play slot machines,” Christopher says, “What they don’t see is that managing a massive YouTube Channel is a full-time job, and I have had to hire a talented Editor and a hard-working Social Media Manager, just to keep up! I’m not complaining though, I love what I do – I was born to be online.”
He produces a dozen videos a week, each viewed by an average audience of 300,000. And it’s not just a Las Vegas thing. He says that 25% of his audience is international, including Canada (Christopher’s original home) as well as Australia and New Zealand.
There are several other prominent influencers with similar formats and impressive crowds of followers. Scott Richter from Colorado is also known as “Raja” on his “Big Jackpot” channel. He, too, celebrated 300,000 subscribers recently.
Sarah, aka the “Slotlady,” is another slot influencer approaching 200,000 followers. Recently, she has made some joint appearances with Christopher. Unlike Brian, she only uses her first name and seldom shares much about her personal life. The same goes for “NG Slot” out of Los Angeles who doesn’t share his real name but has also racked up 200,000 or more subscribers.
One reason reviewers praise Christopher as the industry’s best is that, despite a similar number of followers as others, Brian shares almost everything about his life. His videos are truly a casino version of a reality show. “My Dad doesn’t play slots at all, but he watches all my videos to learn more about what I’m doing and where I’m going. I don’t mean that we don’t talk and share privately, it’s just that he hears more about my adventures day-to-day on the slot videos.”
If it sounds like he’s been doing this for years, you’d be right. But only for five years. He began by simply watching random videos online shot by various players because he wanted to learn more about slots. With his background in filmmaking, he realized he could do a better job than what he saw at the time. It only took about a month before he made more money with the videos than he did with his day job as an aspiring actor/Uber driver.
He learned quickly. Aristocrat’s Sleilk said its almost embarrassing that, “I sometimes feel that the slot influencers know more about how our games work than many of us who work here.”
It’s the education element that earns praise from many casino operators. Ellenberger praised Christopher and other influencers for teaching his own staff about slots. “We cover the basics in orientation, but they can learn so much more by watching the videos.”
How do influencers make their money? According to Christopher, advertisers using his site are the biggest source of his income. Surprisingly, it’s not casinos or slot makers placing the majority of the ads. Using Google’s artificial intelligence algorithms, the ads will be unique for each user depending on their own “likes.” If you are a fan of both slots and ukuleles, you might find ads on “BC Slots” for ukulele lessons. Likewise, you may find commercials for cosmetics, air compressors, QVC or NFL football depending on what, and where, you’ve searched online in the past.
Christopher also sells a lot of merchandise, most of it with the brand “Rude.” To quote from the fan page, “The Rudies Club is a private group of people who have a common interest and love for gambling and especially my channel, Brian Christopher Slots, on YouTube. The name itself was voted on by its members and chosen based on my regular use of the catchphrase ‘RUDE’.” Accordingly, Christopher sells t-shirts, hoodies, ‘lucky’ wrist bands, bumper stickers and the like.
So how do you decide if Raja or Sarah or Brian or another influencer would be the right one to help you build brand awareness at your casino? Sleik says there are two important points in making that evaluation:
- Look at examples of their work on YouTube or other formats
- Have them share some basic demographics of their fan base
If there’s a good match, an influencer could be a positive force in your future revenue growth.
Stories abound that even table games players and/or video poker fans with little past interest in traditional slots were “converted” after just a few exposures to these YouTube stars.
So forget GM or CFO. The quickest way to fame and fortune in the casino world may be to spread a little influence on the slot floor.
Best US Casinos
YouTube social media influencer designs casino's slots floor
by Jeremiah Booker, Best US Casinos · February 27, 2021
10 years ago, you might have never guessed that a YouTuber playing slot machines would be a big deal. However, slots social media influencers have become quite popular.
Brian Christopher is one of the more-popular influencers. He’s amassed a YouTube following of over 336,000 thanks to his entertaining videos.
Christopher has become so big in the gaming world that he recently got the chance to design a casino’s real money slots area. You can read more on Christopher along with the details on his new venture.
“Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza” Launches in Las VegasThe Plaza Hotel & Casino Las Vegas has teamed up with Christopher to present a newly designed slots section. Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza features many of the YouTuber’s favorite slot machines in one spot.
Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel spoke with the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Baily Schultz on the new gaming area. Jossel had this to say:
“Social media has transformed the casino experience, and we are very excited to partner with Brian on this unique space that I know our guests will enjoy.”
Some of the notable slot machines that are available in this space include Cleopatra II, Dollar Storm, Huff N Puff, and Lightning Zap. A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to celebrate the launch of this slots area, which includes 16 machines in all. Brian Christopher stated:
“For years, my fans have been asking which games were my favorite, and now I finally have a place where they can experience it for themselves, the new Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza is like having my own miniature casino. I hand-selected the games that represent everything I love about playing slot machines.”
More on Brian Christopher
Christopher has been streaming his slots play for several years. He visits land-based casinos and provides glimpses of popular slot machines.
For example, one of his videos shows him playing Buffalo Gold and Dragon Cash for $25 per spin. Those who watch videos like these get to see games that they might not have played before along with high-stakes play.
After all, most gamblers can only afford to bet $1 or less per spin. Few have the bankroll to survive long with $25 spins.
Christopher’s videos have helped him draw over 302 million views to date. He’s arguably the most-influential slots influencer in the game today.
Slots & Casino Gaming YouTube Channels Are GrowingSlot machines are solo affairs that pit you against the games. Watching somebody else play slots doesn’t seem like it would be a thrill.
However, it actually does resonate with many gamblers. YouTubers like Christopher have gained large followings just by visiting casinos and playing slots.
SlotsLady is another popular influencer who has many followers. She often plays slot machines in downtown Vegas—rather than at the glitzier Vegas Strip venues.
Despite her name, SlotsLady also plays a fair amount of casino table games. She shows clips from blackjack, casino hold’em, and Let It Ride sessions.
The SlotsBoom channel showcases slot machines everywhere from Vegas to southern California. It offers in-depth explanations of how bonus rounds and other features work.
Launched in 2008, RocknRolla has been in the industry since the early days of YouTube. He plays a broad range of games, including blackjack, poker, roulette, and slot machines.
Casinodaddy is a popular YouTube channel that operates out of Europe. The three Swedish brothers who make up Casinodaddy offer highlight reels of their gambling sessions, including funny moments and big payouts.
What Will You Get Out of Following Casino YouTubers?
You can see that plenty of gamblers are gaining fame and fortune through their channels. But what exactly do they have to offer? Here are the main benefits to watching gaming YouTubers.
See Cool Casino Games
Unlike with online casinos, you can’t preview land-based casino games from home. You also can’t play them for free either.
They visit brick-and-mortar casinos and stream the games they’re playing. As a result, you get to see different land-based slot machines without even leaving the house.
Learn the Basics
The casino is an intimidating place when you’re new to gambling. You may wonder around aimlessly looking at all of the slots and table games.
As with SlotsBoom and VegasLowRoller, some YouTubers gear content towards beginners. They show everything from how certain slots bonuses work to the basics of blackjack.
Of course, you can learn some of this through basic research. However, social media influencers provide visual game instructions and familiarity with the casino environment.
Pick Up Gambling Tips
You can find slots strategy and tips for many other casino games across the internet. But you might also enjoy getting advice from YouTubers too.
A live streamer might play casino hold’em, for example, and provide tips afterward. They could also give advice on other strategic table games, such as blackjack, Caribbean stud, and three-card poker.
Check Out the Casinos
As mentioned before, visiting casinos takes time and money. You might not have enough cash to take a 2-hour casino trip—let alone fly out to visit Las Vegas or Atlantic City.
If you’re planning a future gambling trip someday, though, then you may appreciate seeing the casinos in advance. Watching a YouTube channel gives you a great look at a casino’s gaming floor.
Have Some Fun
You don’t always have to get something out of watching slots channels. Instead, you can just kick back and have fun.
If you’re a gambler, you may appreciate seeing a slots or blackjack session through the eyes of somebody else. You can critique their play, enjoy seeing new games, and celebrate in their big wins.
Will Gaming Social Media Influencers Stay Popular?
No slots YouTuber is anywhere close to taking over Felix “PewDiePie” Kjellberg (108 million subscribers) any time soon. However, this niche as a whole is definitely growing.
Back when RocknRolla started in 2008 hardly anybody was watching slots YouTubers. Things have changed greatly in this regard today.
Speaking of which, Christopher shows just how popular slots influencers have become. He has, after all, now designed a section of the Plaza’s slots floor.
Other slot machine YouTubers could also be in line for trend-setting moves like these. That said, you shouldn’t expect to see popular slots social media influencers going anywhere. They’ll only continue growing their audiences.
Should You Care About Social Media Influencers?
I don’t use social media much, and most of the old time gamblers I spend time around don’t either. For this reason, I don’t care much about what the social media influencers have to say about slot machines or gambling.
But I also know that the younger generation of gamblers uses social media a lot more than I do. And I also know that some of these influencers have a large sway over what some gamblers do and where they play.
If you’re a business owner you need to be aware of social media influencers. But if you’re just a gambler and don’t currently use social media much, there’s no need to start paying attention.
In the end, whether you care about watching real people gamble and what they have to do with slot machines is up to you.
Check Out Social Media Gamblers on YouTube
The slots YouTubing industry has become quite notable. Case in point, the Plaza Hotel and Casino tabbed Brian Christopher to choose some of their slot machines.
Christopher is a worthy choice for this honor. After all, he boasts more than 336k YouTube followers and 302 million-plus views.
The Plaza and Brian Christopher Slots may very well start a trend. It’s certainly possible that other casinos will partner with gambling YouTubers in various ventures.
The Vegas Bash
YouTube slot room opens in downtown Las Vegas
by Peggy Leon, The Vegas Bash · February 26, 2021
YouTube slot room opens in downtown Las Vegas
by Peggy Leon, The Vegas Bash · February 26, 2021
Everybody loves a good slot parlor in Las Vegas. The flash of bright lights, the merry jingle that dances into your ears with every spin. Slot machine lovers have even more reasons to adore Las Vegas now. A new slot room by famous Youtuber Brian Christopher is open Downtown.
Brian Christopher Slots at The Plaza
This quirky slot room is conveniently located in Vegas at The Plaza. The 850 square-foot area hosts enough slot machines to accommodate several players at a time.
Considering the slot room has only been functional for a short time, the large numbers it's already attracting can be attributed to Brian's online influence. He has a massive following of more than 500,000 online friends who avidly watch him play slot machines worldwide. His influence is massive. The Plaza has recorded a significant boom in traffic since the slot room opened its doors end of January. Most of the people visiting the room are players, but many Brian Christopher fans visit the Plaza hoping to meet their slot machine star.
According to Christopher, his audience is primarily made up of young males who look to him to find out which slot machines they should play. Many of them will make a point to visit his top recommended spots, and his slot room will be no exception.
The Press-Enterprise
5 construction and opening updates for Las Vegas
by Alex Groves, The Press-Enterprise · February 19, 2021
Contrary to the popular expression, what happens in Las Vegas doesn’t necessarily stay there, especially if that thing is news about long awaited projects and attractions — and there’s a lot to share on that front lately.
Casino operators and developers have recently been reversing course on a lot of the decisions they made earlier in the pandemic. Resorts that have been shuttering midweek plan to go back to full-time operation, attractions have opened up for tourists for the first time and the finish line is in sight for long awaited projects.
Here’s a look at what’s happening in Sin City.
1. MGM Resorts to resume midweek operations
MGM Resorts International announced Wednesday, Feb. 17, that it would resume 24/7 hotel operations beginning March 3 at its properties that had been closing midweek, including Mandalay Bay, Park MGM and The Mirage.
Those properties had been closing as travel waned due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, but MGM Resorts’ CEO and President Bill Hornbuckle said in the news release that the company was beginning to see “positive signs” about the public’s interest in traveling.
That increased interest, coupled with progress on vaccinations and decreasing numbers of COVID-19 cases, made resuming full-week operations an important step for the company, according to Hornbuckle.
2. Virgin Hotels Las Vegas announces planned opening
After pushing back its planned Jan. 15 opening date because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, Virgin Hotels Las Vegas now plans to open on Thursday, March 25, according to a news release from JC Hospitality, the company that owns the property.
Richard “Boz” Bosworth, president and CEO of JC Hospitality, said in a statement that confidently announcing a new opening date has been a journey.
“Today we are not only celebrating the fact that we finally get to welcome back guests to the most exciting resort to open in Las Vegas in years, but we also get to bring our team members back to work,” the statement from Bosworth said.
The property will have 1,505 rooms, a five-acre pool area, event lawn and a theater that can fit 4,500 people.
It will also have the first tribally operated casino in the city with Mohegan Sun Casino at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, according to a news release. The 60,000-square-foot casino will have slots, table games, high-limit areas and a race and sports book.
3. Sin City’s newest art installation
A supermarket-themed art exhibition featuring installation-filled rooms and more than 250 unique art projects opened for the first time to the public on Thursday, Feb. 18.
Omega Mart, which bills itself as “America’s Most Exceptional Grocery Store,” opened in AREA15, an arts and entertainment district located minutes from the Las Vegas Strip. It’s the second permanent installation from Meow Wolf, a Santa Fe-based arts and entertainment company. More than 300 artists helped create the attraction, according to the news release.
Pictures of the space have already made their way to Instagram. Some parts of the exhibit seemed to be supermarket-themed, with surreal artworks filling mock store shelves. Other parts of the exhibit had an otherworldly kind of feel with glowing hallways and geometric structures rising to the ceiling.
Pandemic-related safety precautions were in place at the exhibit, including keeping ticket sales exclusively online, limiting capacity to 25% and requiring visits to wear face masks, get their temperature checked and maintain social distancing.
Tickets were $45 general admission (with discounts available for children, seniors, military and Nevada residents) and could be purchased by visiting the attraction’s website.
4. Brian Christopher expands his influence
When it comes to casino slot machines, influencer Brian Christopher has become a well-recognized authority. His YouTube channel has amassed more than 330,000 followers and Christopher even has his own dedicated fan club. Now his brand is expanding.
The Plaza Hotel & Casino debuted the new “Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza” gaming area late last month. The new area features some of Christopher’s favorite slot machines, including Cleopatra II, Dollar Storm, Lightning Zap, Huff N Puff and others.
The area started with 16 machines when it debuted, but more were expected to be added, according to a news release.
5. The Strat opens new High Limit Room
The Strat Hotel, Casino & SkyPod celebrated the opening of a new high limit lounge and the beginning of Lunar New Year with a traditional lion dance on Feb. 14.
The 3,600-square-foot lounge has eight table games, an on-site casino host, tea service and five high-definition TVs around its center columns, according to a resort news release.
Table games include two double-deck blackjack games, one six-deck blackjack table where the dealer stands on soft 17 and five baccarat tables.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
YouTube influencer Brian Christopher's slot area already a hit at Plaza
by Bailey Schulz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · January 29, 2021
When slot machine YouTuber Brian Christopher told Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel that he should launch his own slot room at the Plaza, he didn’t think the suggestion would be taken seriously.
The social media influencer bounced the idea while recording an episode of the Plaza’s podcast, “On the Corner of Main Street,” with Jossel in September.
Turns out, Jossel liked the idea.
“I had an email the next day saying, ‘How do we make this happen?’” said Christopher, who has more than 500,000 online followers who watch him play slot machines around the world. “We went full-throttle with it.”
Four months later, “Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza” is up and running. Industry watchers say the space follows a growing trend of separated slot areas and could help drive foot traffic in Las Vegas.
Drawing in visitors
The space, which opened Wednesday, is already bringing in more foot traffic to the Plaza.
The YouTuber said he has been running into fans “nonstop” since he got into town, including one couple who told him they canceled their hotel reservations at a Strip property to stay at the Plaza once they learned about the slot area.
Christopher expects the 850-square-foot slot area to continue to draw more visitors, especially younger players, to Las Vegas.
“Our No. 1 audience on Facebook are male millennials … in that 24- to 34-year-old range. And they’re loving what they’re seeing,” Christopher said. “If they see Brian playing at the Plaza in downtown Vegas, that’s exactly where they want to go when they come. They look to me to find out where they should be going.”
Rick Eckert, managing director of slot performance and analytics at Eilers & Krejcik Gaming, said Christopher can be viewed as the biggest independent casino host in the country.
“The amount of people he can reach by saying something positive about your casino or posting a big win can really be influential,” he said. “For somebody to brand an area of the floor dedicated to Brian Christopher and his YouTube channel, just seems like a great idea. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more of these pop up.”
Joshua O’Connell, a 38-year-old subscriber from Connecticut, said he plans to visit the slot area on his next Las Vegas trip.
Each slot machine has a QR code that links to a video of Christopher playing the same game. O’Connell said such special touches bring back memories for him and thousands of others who have been following Christopher’s videos over the last four years.
“It creates a connection between the slot machine and Brian’s moment and now your moment,” he said. “There’s that emotional connection to those stories. … When you watch people playing slots day after day, you get to know them. They become like a virtual friend.”
A growing trend
The Plaza started forging connections with YouTubers about two years ago, after realizing the large audiences they draw. Jossel said that popularity has led to an”incredible” first two days for the slot area.
“He’s a star in that community, and I see it as a great way to partner as far as our brand and his brand coming together,” he said. “To give (his fans) a one-stop shop to play his game or run into him … it’s a natural fit. So far, it’s been a very, very encouraging two days.”
Christopher showed off the area and its 16 slot machines on YouTube livestreams Wednesday and Thursday. He said his YouTube and Facebook picked up a combined 10,000 subscribers in those two days, and Wednesday was his “biggest livestream of all time.”
The space is the second themed slot room the Plaza has launched this year. The downtown hotel-casino also opened a nearly 3,000-square-foot space dedicated exclusively to Wheel of Fortune-themed slot machines this month.
“They seem to be in tune to what players like myself are into,” O’Connell said. “It’s interesting to see the Plaza taking some of these steps to offer something different.”
Eckert said these segmented slot areas are a growing trend that allow casino floors to better serve and communicate with players. Other examples include the Strat’s Link Slot Lounge or the Rampart Casino’s Buffalo Bar.
“Players that are true gamblers and not just entertainment players really know what they’re looking for,” he said. “It just makes it easier to market to those players.”
Casino.org
Plaza Casino to open slot area with Brian Christopher, targets younger players
by Ed Silverstein, Casino.org · January 29, 2021
The gaming area at the downtown property will provide players the chance to try their luck on the popular games they have seen Christopher play in videos posted on YouTube and Facebook.
It will open with 16 slot machines, and more will be added to the mix in the coming months. Slot games at the new Plaza space include: Cleopatra II, Dollar Storm, Lightning Zap, and Huff N Puff.
Christopher’s online channels have over 302 million views and some 528,000 followers, his company says. Often in videos, he is shown playing slots worldwide.
The gaming space at the casino will formally be known as “Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza.” A ribbon-cutting for the gaming area is to take place at 4:30 pm Friday.
A Draw to Younger Players
“This is just trying to provide entertainment to a much younger group of gamblers,” said the Rev. Richard McGowan, a finance professor at Boston College who closely follows gambling trends, to Casino.org.
Slots have traditionally been associated with older age groups,” McGowan said. “So Brian Christopher made playing slots acceptable for a much younger age group.”
But there’s another benefit to the partnership, according to James P. Whelan, a psychology professor at the University of Memphis, where he also directs the Institute for Gambling Education and Research.
“From the psychological end, people will be drawn to things that they believe will be enjoyable,” Whelan told Casino.org. “Certainly, it will draw the attention to those familiar with Brian Christopher’s YouTube page.”
For decades, slots have been a draw for Las Vegas’s gaming properties. Last month, a lucky slot player at Las Vegas’s Suncoast Hotel and Casino got a historic present Christmas Eve after winning almost $15.5 million during a brief stop at the Boyd Gaming property.
GGR Remains Low in Vegas
But the new gaming space at the Plaza comes as Truist Securities recently reported that December gross gaming revenue (GGR) on the Strip was down 51 percent when comparing year-over-year. That represents “the worst Y/Y figure since a 61 percent decline in June,” Truist’s Barry Jonas said in a note to investors.
Slot GGR was down 55 percent year-over-year on the Strip, he added in the report about December totals.
In contrast, GGR for downtown Las Vegas declined 28 percent year-over-year in December. Jonas said it was “likely impacted by decreased tourism and visitation.”
GGR on the Strip in November totaled $349.8 million, according to the Nevada Gaming Control Board. That’s a 32.5 percent reduction from November 2019.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
Slot machine influencer teaming up with Plaza on new gaming area
by Bailey Schulz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · January 27, 2021
Slot machine YouTube channels have been growing in recent years, with certain videos capturing millions of views. Now, one of the most popular influencers in the space is teaming up with the Plaza to launch a new gaming area.
“Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza” brings some of Christopher’s favorite slot machines in one space. His social media channels, which show him playing slots around the world, have over 302 million views and more than 500,000 followers.
“Social media has transformed the casino experience, and we are very excited to partner with Brian on this unique space that I know our guests will enjoy,” said Plaza CEO Jonathan Jossel in a Wednesday news release.
The space’s new web page, www.bcslotsatplaza.com, features videos of Christopher playing each game inside the new space. Games were chosen based on some of his videos most “iconic moments,” and include Cleopatra II, Dollar Storm, Lightning Zap and Huff N Puff, according to the release.
The area is set to open with 16 slot machines with a ribbon cutting ceremony at 4:30 p.m. Friday, with more installations set for the coming weeks. Fans can get a sneak peek of the space Wednesday and Thursday at 5 p.m., when Christopher previews the space through a YouTube live stream.
“For years, my fans have been asking which games were my favorite, and now I finally have a place where they can experience it for themselves,” Christopher said in the news release. “The new Brian Christopher Slots at the Plaza is like having my own miniature casino. I hand selected the games that represent everything I love about playing slot machines.”
Visitors who earn 100 points on their Plaza Reward player’s card will have the chance to receive an exclusive wristband with Christopher’s signature while supplies last.
The Toronto Star
Rude! This Burlington man became a YouTube sensation playing slots and it’s now his full-time job
by Morgan Bocknek, The Toronto Star · December 3, 2020
Did you ever think you could base a career off of gambling? More specifically: did you ever think you could make a living entirely on playing slot machines? Brian Christopher certainly didn’t. But not only has he made it his livelihood, he’s a rock star in the gambling world.
Christopher, 39, grew up in Burlington, Ont. His YouTube channel has 190 million views as of Nov. 17 and an average of 207,000 daily views. His channel is growing exponentially and, on Nov. 15, he reached 300,000 subscribers. He’s celebrating by gambling $30,000 on slots via a live stream on Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. on Live.BCSlots.com at San Manuel Casino in Highland, Calif.
But Christopher didn’t start a YouTube slot channel on purpose, at least at the beginning. In early 2016, he was living in Los Angeles with his husband, Marco, working as an actor (as well as driving for Uber, Lyft and working for a catering company, as actors do). He’d appeared regularly on the small screen: Hallmark’s “The Christmas Parade,” a Tim Horton’s commercial, as well as various TV shows, including CTV’s “The Listener,” and BBC’s “Copper.” So when he recorded himself playing slots while on his second ever vacation to Las Vegas, it was on a whim.
“I decided I would record some of my slot play because I had seen people doing it on YouTube. And I thought that would be kind of fun to do. But I didn’t really think much of it, there was no plan of action of ‘I’m gonna make this my job,’ it was just ‘let me film this for fun,’” Christopher said.
On April 18, 2016, Christopher posted his first video, which he said he thought only his friends and family would watch. Within a month, his following was growing so rapidly that he was invited to the YouTube partner program, allowing him to earn money from his videos. YouTubers in the program make an average of $3 to $5 per 1,000 views, meaning a video with one million streams would net up to $5,000, according to software company Intuit.
“I decided you know what, maybe I should follow this and see where it takes me. And I’m glad I did,” he said.
Christopher made YouTube his full-time job. He started booking trips and travelling to casinos to film content. He decided he wanted to upload a new video every day, as no one else who was filming themselves playing slots was posting at that pace.
“I think that’s what really definitely helped my channel grow very rapidly as well. I had no idea where this was gonna take me, but I’m like, ‘This is so much fun.’ I love to gamble and I love to entertain and I’m doing everything together,” he said.
After one year, Christopher hired a video editor. He worked hard: on top of posting daily, he took classes on how to best use YouTube, attended conferences and constantly reached out to casinos across the U.S. to see if they were interested in hosting him. He was also genuinely good at being in front of the camera from the get-go, which he credits to his acting experience.
“I always pretend my audience is right there with me. It’s just me basically talking to them the whole time.”
In the first year, Christopher lost money overall on the machines, but said he knew he was going to profit soon, and not from the slot machines themselves.
“I was OK with (not profiting) at the time, because it was an investment. I could see, month over month, my viewership was growing, my income was growing, and I knew there was going to be a point where they would cross and I’d start making more money.”
He also routinely tells viewers that it is impossible to make money just by playing slots.
“Slot machines are designed to take your money. So I always tell people: ‘If you’ve made a dollar, cash out, take your money and run. Because you’ve already beat the system.’”
As his audience grew, so did their appetite for Christopher. They latched onto phrases he’d repeat. Christopher’s first catchphrase was “rude,” whenever he didn’t win on a spin. This became the foundation of his fan club, the Rudies, and the words Christopher would attach to his merchandise. This past June, Christopher continuously mispronounced the word “banzai” as “banza” whenever he won while playing a Karate Kid-themed slot machine during a livestream. His team, now a staff of five with an office, had shirts for sale featuring the word before the stream had ended.
Christopher’s most dedicated fans don’t just watch his videos. Many follow him on all social media platforms. While subscribing to a YouTube channel is free, many of his fans pay to join his tiered fan club, run through Patreon, where users choose incremental monthly fees to have more access to creators.
In Christopher’s case, $5 a month gets you access to a private Facebook group; $10 means he’ll follow you back on social platforms and give you access to monthly live chats. $20 gets you all that, plus occasional postcards. Christopher has over 2,000 members of his fan club. He also gives his fans the opportunity to gamble with him in real life.
“He continues to evolve to ensure his channel doesn’t get stale,” said Joshua O’Connell, 38, based in West Haven, Ct., who operates Know Your Slots, an educational gambling blog.
“I had been watching slot videos on YouTube for a few years by the time I found Brian. YouTube would periodically recommend new channels I had not encountered and Brian came up quite early in his channel’s existence. When he got started there were still only a handful of people doing it and now there’s hundreds,” O’Connell said.
O’Connell first went to a meetup Christopher hosted in New York City in late 2017 and said he’s been to “easily a dozen” meetups since.
O’Connell attended the first “Rudies Weekend” and combined money with another Rudie. They ended up winning O’Connell’s first and only “hand pay,” meaning a win of $1,200 or more. This amount has to be filed with the U.S. federal government and casino staff will typically bring cash winnings over by hand.
“Some of my experiences with other fans are among the most fond memories I have from visiting casinos in recent years,” he said.
Even with the COVID-19 pandemic tearing through the United States, Rudies are still coming to see Christopher play slots. The main differences are they’re physically distant and masked, often wearing a Brian Christopher branded mask. To date, they’ve sold over 15,000 masks.
The Centers for Disease Control, a United States federal agency, has put forward detailed considerations for reopening and reducing virus spread. Christopher notes that these rules vary by state. Though his channel had a bit of a lull in March, he’s now halfway booked through the next year. Christopher says some casinos currently see his channel as a way to promote how they have safely reopened with protective measures in place.
Christopher notes operators that told him a year ago they weren’t interested in hosting him have now changed their tune, often seeing it as a way to show patrons how they have safely reopened.
“You can put a billboard up or commercial up on the TV network. And maybe like 10 per cent or five per cent of people that watch it are actually your customers whereas, you know, when I put something up, 100 per cent of people watching are gamblers,” he said.
Another major industry that Christopher will pioneer through reopening is United States cruises. He’ll be celebrating his 40th birthday aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise liner for the “Rudies Cruise” in February, which is completely sold out online.
Royal Caribbean is currently running “test cruises” docked in the United States to prove to their customers and regulators that they can now operate safely, and plan to start sailing again once they have approval from the CDC. As of late last month, over 100,000 people had signed up for these trials.
“It’ll be a different feeling than our last few, but hopefully it’ll be great,” says Christopher.
Though he can travel through many states, he’s been unable to visit home, cancelling a trip to visit his family in September, unable to take two weeks off work to quarantine. But one of his next goals is to break into his home turf.
“They seem to be a little more hesitant to allowing a camera in the casino, but I’m hoping that one day we’ll be able to break (into the) market,” he said.
Christopher, 39, grew up in Burlington, Ont. His YouTube channel has 190 million views as of Nov. 17 and an average of 207,000 daily views. His channel is growing exponentially and, on Nov. 15, he reached 300,000 subscribers. He’s celebrating by gambling $30,000 on slots via a live stream on Dec. 10 at 8 p.m. on Live.BCSlots.com at San Manuel Casino in Highland, Calif.
But Christopher didn’t start a YouTube slot channel on purpose, at least at the beginning. In early 2016, he was living in Los Angeles with his husband, Marco, working as an actor (as well as driving for Uber, Lyft and working for a catering company, as actors do). He’d appeared regularly on the small screen: Hallmark’s “The Christmas Parade,” a Tim Horton’s commercial, as well as various TV shows, including CTV’s “The Listener,” and BBC’s “Copper.” So when he recorded himself playing slots while on his second ever vacation to Las Vegas, it was on a whim.
“I decided I would record some of my slot play because I had seen people doing it on YouTube. And I thought that would be kind of fun to do. But I didn’t really think much of it, there was no plan of action of ‘I’m gonna make this my job,’ it was just ‘let me film this for fun,’” Christopher said.
On April 18, 2016, Christopher posted his first video, which he said he thought only his friends and family would watch. Within a month, his following was growing so rapidly that he was invited to the YouTube partner program, allowing him to earn money from his videos. YouTubers in the program make an average of $3 to $5 per 1,000 views, meaning a video with one million streams would net up to $5,000, according to software company Intuit.
“I decided you know what, maybe I should follow this and see where it takes me. And I’m glad I did,” he said.
Christopher made YouTube his full-time job. He started booking trips and travelling to casinos to film content. He decided he wanted to upload a new video every day, as no one else who was filming themselves playing slots was posting at that pace.
“I think that’s what really definitely helped my channel grow very rapidly as well. I had no idea where this was gonna take me, but I’m like, ‘This is so much fun.’ I love to gamble and I love to entertain and I’m doing everything together,” he said.
After one year, Christopher hired a video editor. He worked hard: on top of posting daily, he took classes on how to best use YouTube, attended conferences and constantly reached out to casinos across the U.S. to see if they were interested in hosting him. He was also genuinely good at being in front of the camera from the get-go, which he credits to his acting experience.
“I always pretend my audience is right there with me. It’s just me basically talking to them the whole time.”
In the first year, Christopher lost money overall on the machines, but said he knew he was going to profit soon, and not from the slot machines themselves.
“I was OK with (not profiting) at the time, because it was an investment. I could see, month over month, my viewership was growing, my income was growing, and I knew there was going to be a point where they would cross and I’d start making more money.”
He also routinely tells viewers that it is impossible to make money just by playing slots.
“Slot machines are designed to take your money. So I always tell people: ‘If you’ve made a dollar, cash out, take your money and run. Because you’ve already beat the system.’”
As his audience grew, so did their appetite for Christopher. They latched onto phrases he’d repeat. Christopher’s first catchphrase was “rude,” whenever he didn’t win on a spin. This became the foundation of his fan club, the Rudies, and the words Christopher would attach to his merchandise. This past June, Christopher continuously mispronounced the word “banzai” as “banza” whenever he won while playing a Karate Kid-themed slot machine during a livestream. His team, now a staff of five with an office, had shirts for sale featuring the word before the stream had ended.
Christopher’s most dedicated fans don’t just watch his videos. Many follow him on all social media platforms. While subscribing to a YouTube channel is free, many of his fans pay to join his tiered fan club, run through Patreon, where users choose incremental monthly fees to have more access to creators.
In Christopher’s case, $5 a month gets you access to a private Facebook group; $10 means he’ll follow you back on social platforms and give you access to monthly live chats. $20 gets you all that, plus occasional postcards. Christopher has over 2,000 members of his fan club. He also gives his fans the opportunity to gamble with him in real life.
“He continues to evolve to ensure his channel doesn’t get stale,” said Joshua O’Connell, 38, based in West Haven, Ct., who operates Know Your Slots, an educational gambling blog.
“I had been watching slot videos on YouTube for a few years by the time I found Brian. YouTube would periodically recommend new channels I had not encountered and Brian came up quite early in his channel’s existence. When he got started there were still only a handful of people doing it and now there’s hundreds,” O’Connell said.
O’Connell first went to a meetup Christopher hosted in New York City in late 2017 and said he’s been to “easily a dozen” meetups since.
O’Connell attended the first “Rudies Weekend” and combined money with another Rudie. They ended up winning O’Connell’s first and only “hand pay,” meaning a win of $1,200 or more. This amount has to be filed with the U.S. federal government and casino staff will typically bring cash winnings over by hand.
“Some of my experiences with other fans are among the most fond memories I have from visiting casinos in recent years,” he said.
Even with the COVID-19 pandemic tearing through the United States, Rudies are still coming to see Christopher play slots. The main differences are they’re physically distant and masked, often wearing a Brian Christopher branded mask. To date, they’ve sold over 15,000 masks.
The Centers for Disease Control, a United States federal agency, has put forward detailed considerations for reopening and reducing virus spread. Christopher notes that these rules vary by state. Though his channel had a bit of a lull in March, he’s now halfway booked through the next year. Christopher says some casinos currently see his channel as a way to promote how they have safely reopened with protective measures in place.
Christopher notes operators that told him a year ago they weren’t interested in hosting him have now changed their tune, often seeing it as a way to show patrons how they have safely reopened.
“You can put a billboard up or commercial up on the TV network. And maybe like 10 per cent or five per cent of people that watch it are actually your customers whereas, you know, when I put something up, 100 per cent of people watching are gamblers,” he said.
Another major industry that Christopher will pioneer through reopening is United States cruises. He’ll be celebrating his 40th birthday aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise liner for the “Rudies Cruise” in February, which is completely sold out online.
Royal Caribbean is currently running “test cruises” docked in the United States to prove to their customers and regulators that they can now operate safely, and plan to start sailing again once they have approval from the CDC. As of late last month, over 100,000 people had signed up for these trials.
“It’ll be a different feeling than our last few, but hopefully it’ll be great,” says Christopher.
Though he can travel through many states, he’s been unable to visit home, cancelling a trip to visit his family in September, unable to take two weeks off work to quarantine. But one of his next goals is to break into his home turf.
“They seem to be a little more hesitant to allowing a camera in the casino, but I’m hoping that one day we’ll be able to break (into the) market,” he said.
The Press Enterprise
How to win slots and influence people
by Alex Groves, The Press Enterprise · November 6, 2020 at 9:34am
Influencer Brian Christopher is all smiles outside Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020. The popular YouTuber has an office not far away in Palm Springs. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
A few years ago, Brian Christopher had just moved to Los Angeles from San Francisco to build his acting career and planned his first trip to Las Vegas. When he did a quick search of YouTube for information on what casinos he should visit, Christopher found himself sucked into watching videos of people playing slot machines.
“I thought it was kind of weird that anyone would watch that kind of stuff, but I checked it out and I kept watching it so I said, ‘Oh maybe when I get up to Vegas, I’ll film a couple and put them on my YouTube acting channel just for fun’,” Christopher said. “So I did that for fun and it turned out to be more than that.”
Those videos blossomed into Christopher’s full-time career as an influencer. He’s turned his YouTube channel and various social media accounts into a business where he reaches a vast audience of a niche interest: casinos and slot machines.
Christopher makes videos of himself playing slot machines, showing off casino amenities and, more recently, talking about safety measures being taken by the casinos during the novel coronavirus pandemic. More than four years since that fateful trip to Las Vegas, he has racked up nearly 300,000 subscribers for his YouTube channel, Brian Christopher Slots, and has three full-time staffers helping him expand his increasingly popular brand.
Now, Christopher not only finds himself stopped by fans on gaming floors but also frequently invited out by the casinos to make videos.
“More and more they’re reaching out to us as they become more familiar with what we do,” he said. “I think when I first started doing this a casino would shy away from a camera being on their slot floor, but now that we have 180 million views on our channel, they realize, ‘Hey wait a minute, he’s onto something here.’ And we can utilize that.”
Building the brand
Before dedicating his YouTube channel to slot play, Christopher might have only visited a casino three or four times a year. Now, he visits casinos weekly, primarily in Southern California and Las Vegas.
Each visit usually spans about three nights. During the day he’s continuously filming content to be edited later and for two of the nights, he’ll stream his live slot play for 90 minutes each.
Christopher uses his own money to gamble with, but does earn free play with his player’s club cards like those any gambler can sign up for at various properties.
At his Palm Springs office, Christopher said, there’s a ton of preparation work. He’s always in meetings with casinos, slot manufacturers and other partners and working with his staff to make sure his videos have catchy titles that will draw the attention of audiences.
There’s also a merchandising side to what Christopher does: YouTube views on their own aren’t lucrative, so to support his business he does a mixture of sponsorships, fan clubs and products.
Christopher said his fan shop sells between 1,000 and 2,000 products a month. Merchandise on his website includes T-shirts, face masks, wrist bands, souvenir poker chips and lanyards.
He has also has a very active fan club of about 2,000 people. There are varying membership tiers ranging in cost from $5-$20 monthly. The most basic tier gives fans access to a special private Facebook page where they can see behind-the-scenes posts and special livestreams.
For the highest tier, Christopher will follow fans back on Facebook, Snapchat or Instagram; do monthly private live chats with his fans; and send his fans signed postcards that either feature his photo, or a photo he took, every three months.
YouTubing during the pandemic
Many of Christopher’s recent videos have been dedicated to casino safety measures during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“Because of what I do people look up to me for advice on things related to the casinos and so I really wanted to make it a point to visit these casinos,” he said.
He estimated he’s visited 25 casinos in different parts of the country so far since casinos reopened after closing due to the coronavirus.
In his videos, Christopher will take his fans through the motions of what it’s like to visit casinos during the pandemic from before you enter to what it looks once you get onto the gaming floor itself.
Christopher said most casinos take the same safety measures, including mandatory masks and requiring social distancing, but some casinos have gone the extra mile. Some measures he thought were particularly interesting were the casinos changing out pens between each customer; putting cards indicating when a machine had just been cleaned in the slots for player’s club cards; and temperature checking guests before they even exited their vehicles.
A personal touch
Christopher said he isn’t afraid to get personal in his videos, telling stories about his life when he’s not spinning the reels. He said he’s frequently stopped by fans who talk to him about the experiences he’s shared as well as his positive energy in videos.
“That means the world to me that we can have that kind of impact by just playing slot machines and having a good time,” he said.
“I thought it was kind of weird that anyone would watch that kind of stuff, but I checked it out and I kept watching it so I said, ‘Oh maybe when I get up to Vegas, I’ll film a couple and put them on my YouTube acting channel just for fun’,” Christopher said. “So I did that for fun and it turned out to be more than that.”
Those videos blossomed into Christopher’s full-time career as an influencer. He’s turned his YouTube channel and various social media accounts into a business where he reaches a vast audience of a niche interest: casinos and slot machines.
Christopher makes videos of himself playing slot machines, showing off casino amenities and, more recently, talking about safety measures being taken by the casinos during the novel coronavirus pandemic. More than four years since that fateful trip to Las Vegas, he has racked up nearly 300,000 subscribers for his YouTube channel, Brian Christopher Slots, and has three full-time staffers helping him expand his increasingly popular brand.
Now, Christopher not only finds himself stopped by fans on gaming floors but also frequently invited out by the casinos to make videos.
“More and more they’re reaching out to us as they become more familiar with what we do,” he said. “I think when I first started doing this a casino would shy away from a camera being on their slot floor, but now that we have 180 million views on our channel, they realize, ‘Hey wait a minute, he’s onto something here.’ And we can utilize that.”
Building the brand
Before dedicating his YouTube channel to slot play, Christopher might have only visited a casino three or four times a year. Now, he visits casinos weekly, primarily in Southern California and Las Vegas.
Each visit usually spans about three nights. During the day he’s continuously filming content to be edited later and for two of the nights, he’ll stream his live slot play for 90 minutes each.
Christopher uses his own money to gamble with, but does earn free play with his player’s club cards like those any gambler can sign up for at various properties.
At his Palm Springs office, Christopher said, there’s a ton of preparation work. He’s always in meetings with casinos, slot manufacturers and other partners and working with his staff to make sure his videos have catchy titles that will draw the attention of audiences.
There’s also a merchandising side to what Christopher does: YouTube views on their own aren’t lucrative, so to support his business he does a mixture of sponsorships, fan clubs and products.
Christopher said his fan shop sells between 1,000 and 2,000 products a month. Merchandise on his website includes T-shirts, face masks, wrist bands, souvenir poker chips and lanyards.
He has also has a very active fan club of about 2,000 people. There are varying membership tiers ranging in cost from $5-$20 monthly. The most basic tier gives fans access to a special private Facebook page where they can see behind-the-scenes posts and special livestreams.
For the highest tier, Christopher will follow fans back on Facebook, Snapchat or Instagram; do monthly private live chats with his fans; and send his fans signed postcards that either feature his photo, or a photo he took, every three months.
YouTubing during the pandemic
Many of Christopher’s recent videos have been dedicated to casino safety measures during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
“Because of what I do people look up to me for advice on things related to the casinos and so I really wanted to make it a point to visit these casinos,” he said.
He estimated he’s visited 25 casinos in different parts of the country so far since casinos reopened after closing due to the coronavirus.
In his videos, Christopher will take his fans through the motions of what it’s like to visit casinos during the pandemic from before you enter to what it looks once you get onto the gaming floor itself.
Christopher said most casinos take the same safety measures, including mandatory masks and requiring social distancing, but some casinos have gone the extra mile. Some measures he thought were particularly interesting were the casinos changing out pens between each customer; putting cards indicating when a machine had just been cleaned in the slots for player’s club cards; and temperature checking guests before they even exited their vehicles.
A personal touch
Christopher said he isn’t afraid to get personal in his videos, telling stories about his life when he’s not spinning the reels. He said he’s frequently stopped by fans who talk to him about the experiences he’s shared as well as his positive energy in videos.
“That means the world to me that we can have that kind of impact by just playing slot machines and having a good time,” he said.
Los Angeles Daily News
Southern California casinos welcome social media influencers who can bring in a crowd
by Alex Groves, The Press Enterprise · November 5, 2020
Brian Christopher plays a slot machine at Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020. Christopher’s YouTube channel, Brian Christopher Slots, has nearly 300,000 subscribers and has had more than 180 million views. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
There’s a certain kind of guest coveted by many of Southern California’s casinos, one who gets special access to the gaming floor, first dibs at a new restaurant or complimentary spa treatments and hotel stays.
But these perks aren’t being showered on just high rollers anymore; they’re increasingly being provided to social media influencers, whose currency is measured in views and followers rather than credit lines or stacks of cash.
As the role of social media continues to increase in society, casinos have increasingly embraced influencers — people who promote products or experiences for their niche but relatively large audiences on social media — hoping that their posts and videos will translate to more visitors walking through the casino doors.
Casinos such as San Manuel Casino near Highland, Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa near Cabazon and Harrah’s Resort Southern California in Northern San Diego County have brought influencers in for visits to expand their marketing reach, sometimes sharing new amenities or promotions at the properties and other times capitalizing on an idea from the influencer.
This shouldn’t be a surprise: Influencers have come into their own as marketing forces in the last few years in a range of industries, and so it’s unsurprising that casinos would want in on the action.
It’s a marked change from the early 2000s when people were often bothered by the idea that a blogger was being paid or doing product placement in their writing, said Heather Honea, chair of the marketing department at the Fowler College of Business at San Diego State University. However, with today’s social media influencers, people accept that the job is basically product placement — as long as the products endorsed fit the influencer’s brand.
According to guidelines issued by the Federal Trade Commission, influencers have to disclose when they’ve been paid or received something of significant value in exchange for their endorsement. However, if they receive a product for free with the expectation that they’ll promote or discuss the product, they don’t have to disclose that.
To attract influencers, casinos might promise lavish experiences or grant the influencer early access to a new amenity.
At Harrah’s Resort Southern California, time is spent getting to know influencers and what it is they’re looking to promote before they’re brought on the property so that a specialized itinerary can be put together to capitalize on the partnership, said Amber Lussier, Harrah’s director of resort marketing.
At Harrah’s, part of the marketing is telling the story of its own city, “Funner,” which has included honorary celebrity mayors such as David Hasselhoff and Rob Riggle. The swearing-in of the new mayor of Funner is one of the biggest influencer events at the resort.
“We really roll out the red the carpet and we customize everything that we do for them so when they show up, they’re going to walk out to a cabana that’s fully decked out with maybe a foot bath and their favorite beer in a bucket of ice and some balloons and decorations,” Lussier said.
San Manuel Casino has worked with influencers for almost five years, said General Manager Peter Arceo, and they have become an important part of the casino’s marketing strategy, particularly when the complex opens a new venue or amenity.
Fitting the brand
Some casinos are more selective in their approach to influencers.
Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa only does two or three engagements with influencers a year, according to Executive Director of Marketing Simon Farmer.
He said that the casino looks at a variety of factors beyond how many followers an influencer may have. Casino officials will consider the influencer’s content, how they represent themselves, what demographics they’re speaking to and where their audience is located. He said that if an influencer does not draw in an audience that’s traditionally apt to gamble or visit a casino, or if that audience is in a different geographic area, then they may not be the best choice to work with.
“It’s not simply reach or exposure for the sake of exposure that we’re looking for; we’re looking for effective exposure,” Farmer said.
Honea said that having a small audience isn’t necessarily a bad thing either.
“It can be really valuable to get a little more niche where they have a really committed set of loyal followers,” she said.
Michael Felci, public relations manager for Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, said Fantasy Springs doesn’t currently work with influencers. He said getting people in to play on the gaming floor is the most important thing and that Fantasy Springs’ research indicated there wasn’t enough of a crossover between their gaming customer base and social influencers.
“We haven’t seen enough data on that to make it a relevant thing for us at this point,” he said.
Casinos get influencer-friendly
Brian Christopher is a well-known YouTube influencer whose channel, Brian Christopher Slots, has amassed an audience of nearly 300,000 loyal fans.
He frequently visits casino floors in Southern California and elsewhere in the country to film videos of himself checking out the newest and most popular slot games. His channel and videos have grown more sophisticated over time, and now he also livestreams from gaming floors.
“We’re always trying to go the next step and see what else we can do that’s new and different and exciting,” he said.
Filming slots may not seem that groundbreaking when everyone has a video camera on their phone, but what Christopher is doing was — and still is — taboo. Many casinos still shy away from filming on the gaming floor, but some are warming up to it.
Arceo said Christopher was the first influencer San Manuel worked with after loosening the policy on taking photos and videos of slot play nearly 5 years ago.
Since that time, because of Christopher’s popularity, and San Manuel’s easy-going policy, the casino has seen more influencers putting together similar content — and they seem to be getting results.
“When we see people coming in within a day or two, or sometimes hours after a broadcast, then we know it works because it’s stimulated someone to get out of their house or wherever they’re at, walk in the door and search for the game that they just saw someone playing online,” he said.
The impact of the pandemic
Some casinos have even utilized influencers to help with their communication during the coronavirus pandemic.
When San Manuel reopened after a months-long closure on June 15, they invited Christopher and several other influencers to spread the word about the reopening and the casino’s safety precautions.
“We just said, ‘Look, when you come here, feel free to tell your followers what the difference is’,” Arceo said.
In his video, Christopher shared details about San Manuel doing two temperature checks and said he thought it was smart that staff had been professionally trained to ask COVID screening questions. Another YouTuber was quick to point out the thermal cameras and plexiglass.
And having someone else share that made all the difference, Arceo said.
“We can say it all day long, but I think when people see real people talking about it then it’s received better that way,” he said.
Lussier said she saw the number of influencers visiting Harrah’s decrease after it reopened from its coronavirus closure in May, which she attributed that to people being cautious about traveling and staying in hotels.
“We’ve seen a steady increase throughout the year, and now I feel like we’re cranking,” Lussier said. ” We’re almost back to where we were pre-COVID.”
Arceo anticipates that social media influencing will continue to rise in prominence and more people will adopt it as part of their strategy.
“I think most people don’t understand it,” he said. “They shy away from it because they don’t understand how it works, but I think just like anything else, once people get the hang of it and see how successful others have been with it, I think they’ll follow suit.”
But these perks aren’t being showered on just high rollers anymore; they’re increasingly being provided to social media influencers, whose currency is measured in views and followers rather than credit lines or stacks of cash.
As the role of social media continues to increase in society, casinos have increasingly embraced influencers — people who promote products or experiences for their niche but relatively large audiences on social media — hoping that their posts and videos will translate to more visitors walking through the casino doors.
Casinos such as San Manuel Casino near Highland, Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa near Cabazon and Harrah’s Resort Southern California in Northern San Diego County have brought influencers in for visits to expand their marketing reach, sometimes sharing new amenities or promotions at the properties and other times capitalizing on an idea from the influencer.
This shouldn’t be a surprise: Influencers have come into their own as marketing forces in the last few years in a range of industries, and so it’s unsurprising that casinos would want in on the action.
It’s a marked change from the early 2000s when people were often bothered by the idea that a blogger was being paid or doing product placement in their writing, said Heather Honea, chair of the marketing department at the Fowler College of Business at San Diego State University. However, with today’s social media influencers, people accept that the job is basically product placement — as long as the products endorsed fit the influencer’s brand.
According to guidelines issued by the Federal Trade Commission, influencers have to disclose when they’ve been paid or received something of significant value in exchange for their endorsement. However, if they receive a product for free with the expectation that they’ll promote or discuss the product, they don’t have to disclose that.
To attract influencers, casinos might promise lavish experiences or grant the influencer early access to a new amenity.
At Harrah’s Resort Southern California, time is spent getting to know influencers and what it is they’re looking to promote before they’re brought on the property so that a specialized itinerary can be put together to capitalize on the partnership, said Amber Lussier, Harrah’s director of resort marketing.
At Harrah’s, part of the marketing is telling the story of its own city, “Funner,” which has included honorary celebrity mayors such as David Hasselhoff and Rob Riggle. The swearing-in of the new mayor of Funner is one of the biggest influencer events at the resort.
“We really roll out the red the carpet and we customize everything that we do for them so when they show up, they’re going to walk out to a cabana that’s fully decked out with maybe a foot bath and their favorite beer in a bucket of ice and some balloons and decorations,” Lussier said.
San Manuel Casino has worked with influencers for almost five years, said General Manager Peter Arceo, and they have become an important part of the casino’s marketing strategy, particularly when the complex opens a new venue or amenity.
Fitting the brand
Some casinos are more selective in their approach to influencers.
Morongo Casino, Resort & Spa only does two or three engagements with influencers a year, according to Executive Director of Marketing Simon Farmer.
He said that the casino looks at a variety of factors beyond how many followers an influencer may have. Casino officials will consider the influencer’s content, how they represent themselves, what demographics they’re speaking to and where their audience is located. He said that if an influencer does not draw in an audience that’s traditionally apt to gamble or visit a casino, or if that audience is in a different geographic area, then they may not be the best choice to work with.
“It’s not simply reach or exposure for the sake of exposure that we’re looking for; we’re looking for effective exposure,” Farmer said.
Honea said that having a small audience isn’t necessarily a bad thing either.
“It can be really valuable to get a little more niche where they have a really committed set of loyal followers,” she said.
Michael Felci, public relations manager for Fantasy Springs Resort Casino in Indio, said Fantasy Springs doesn’t currently work with influencers. He said getting people in to play on the gaming floor is the most important thing and that Fantasy Springs’ research indicated there wasn’t enough of a crossover between their gaming customer base and social influencers.
“We haven’t seen enough data on that to make it a relevant thing for us at this point,” he said.
Casinos get influencer-friendly
Brian Christopher is a well-known YouTube influencer whose channel, Brian Christopher Slots, has amassed an audience of nearly 300,000 loyal fans.
He frequently visits casino floors in Southern California and elsewhere in the country to film videos of himself checking out the newest and most popular slot games. His channel and videos have grown more sophisticated over time, and now he also livestreams from gaming floors.
“We’re always trying to go the next step and see what else we can do that’s new and different and exciting,” he said.
Filming slots may not seem that groundbreaking when everyone has a video camera on their phone, but what Christopher is doing was — and still is — taboo. Many casinos still shy away from filming on the gaming floor, but some are warming up to it.
Arceo said Christopher was the first influencer San Manuel worked with after loosening the policy on taking photos and videos of slot play nearly 5 years ago.
Since that time, because of Christopher’s popularity, and San Manuel’s easy-going policy, the casino has seen more influencers putting together similar content — and they seem to be getting results.
“When we see people coming in within a day or two, or sometimes hours after a broadcast, then we know it works because it’s stimulated someone to get out of their house or wherever they’re at, walk in the door and search for the game that they just saw someone playing online,” he said.
The impact of the pandemic
Some casinos have even utilized influencers to help with their communication during the coronavirus pandemic.
When San Manuel reopened after a months-long closure on June 15, they invited Christopher and several other influencers to spread the word about the reopening and the casino’s safety precautions.
“We just said, ‘Look, when you come here, feel free to tell your followers what the difference is’,” Arceo said.
In his video, Christopher shared details about San Manuel doing two temperature checks and said he thought it was smart that staff had been professionally trained to ask COVID screening questions. Another YouTuber was quick to point out the thermal cameras and plexiglass.
And having someone else share that made all the difference, Arceo said.
“We can say it all day long, but I think when people see real people talking about it then it’s received better that way,” he said.
Lussier said she saw the number of influencers visiting Harrah’s decrease after it reopened from its coronavirus closure in May, which she attributed that to people being cautious about traveling and staying in hotels.
“We’ve seen a steady increase throughout the year, and now I feel like we’re cranking,” Lussier said. ” We’re almost back to where we were pre-COVID.”
Arceo anticipates that social media influencing will continue to rise in prominence and more people will adopt it as part of their strategy.
“I think most people don’t understand it,” he said. “They shy away from it because they don’t understand how it works, but I think just like anything else, once people get the hang of it and see how successful others have been with it, I think they’ll follow suit.”
Brian Christopher has his own channel on You Tube, Brian Christopher Slots, with nearly 300,000 subscribers and more than 180 million views. He plays slot machines all over Southern California. Pictured is Christopher doing one of his live shows at Agua Caliente Resort Casino Spa Rancho Mirage on Thursday, Oct. 8, 2020. (Photo by Terry Pierson, The Press-Enterprise/SCNG)
Virtual G2E
Property leaders discuss ‘the ‘scramble drill’ in closing and reopening casino
by Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports · October 14, 2020
Property leaders discuss ‘the ‘scramble drill’ in closing and reopening casino
by Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports · October 14, 2020
Top left, moderator Brian Christopher; bottom left, Hollywood Toledo GM Justin Carter; top right, Firekeepers CEO Kathy George; bottom right, Coeur d’Alene CEO Laura Stensgar.
When word came down in mid-March that Ohio’s gaming market was closing due to the spreading coronavirus pandemic, Hollywood Casino Toledo General Manager Justin Carter sent members of his team to the neighboring Home Depot to purchase heavy-duty locks for the building’s front doors.
The property operates 24/7, so the deadbolts were rarely used.
“When you have to lock the doors to a casino, that’s never a good thing,” Carter said during an hour-long panel discussion Wednesday, which served as a prelude to this month’s Virtual Global Gaming Expo.
“Fortunately, we had an idea (the closing would be announced). We were able to move quickly because we had to close by midnight,” Carter said. “The scramble drill started.”
Nearly 1,000 commercial and tribal casinos in 43 states closed throughout March when governors, regulators, and tribal governments ordered the shutdown in an effort to slow the pandemic. Roughly 90% of the properties have reopened.
Laura Stensgar, CEO of Coeur d’Alene resort in Idaho, said her state’s shutdown was only anticipated to last a couple of weeks but went on for five weeks until the property reopened in early May. Coeur d’Alene, which is operated by the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, was the first casino in the country to reopen.
“We wanted to ensure safety and always be looked upon as a good community member,” said Stensgar, noting the tribe and management reviewed numerous government and Centers for Disease Control health and safety guidelines and the protocols authored by Wynn Resorts in Las Vegas.
Carter and Stensgar were joined by Kathy George, CEO of Firekeepers Casino in Michigan, during the discussion titled. “Leading through COVID-19.” The session was moderated by social influencer Brian Christopher, who publishes BCSlots.com.
The Virtual G2E is scheduled for Oct. 27-29 and is a substitute for the annual G2E conference and tradeshow in Las Vegas, which was canceled due to the pandemic.
The discussion covered both the issues surrounding closing down a property during an emergency, but also how to reopen safely under new guidelines. At the outset, Christopher asked the three property leaders if the casinos’ revenues had increased year-over-year. All three answered yes.
George said the key was the Firekeepers’ employees, who had many additional job duties in wake of the ongoing pandemic.
“They embraced all the business protocols and we hired extra staff to clean and sanitize areas of the property,” George said. “We felt the need to increase communication more with both our customers and our employees.”
She added that some of the new communications efforts will continue beyond the pandemic.
Carter said he found himself doing different jobs to help get the Hollywood property open. The casino was one of the first entertainment locations to open in the Toledo area when the state allowed gaming to restart in early June.
“We were able to learn from what others were doing,” he said. “It was all hands on deck to do any job we could so we could reopen our facility. We wanted to create an environment of fun and service while protecting people and making them feel safe.”
That said, Hollywood Toledo had “gallons of hand sanitizer” and “secured very bit of alcohol wipes” to add to the health and safety guidelines.
All three executives their customer make-ups had changed, with properties skewing younger and others attracting an older crowd. Stensgar said a good portion of the Coeur d’Alene’s customer base comes from neighboring Canada, the border crossing has been closed due to the pandemic.
“We have been able to regain revenues because we’re attracting true gamers. Some customers came from competitors that had not opened,” Stensgar said.
The return of non-gaming entertainment is being viewed as a potential boost for next year.
George said Firekeepers’ entertainment line-up all picked out new dates for 2021. Stensgar said comedian Bill Engvall is the property’s first planned headliner for Feb. 26, 2021.
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” she said.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
CDC Gaming Reports
Three casino operators to share COVID-19 reopening experiences for virtual G2E kick-off
by Howard Stutz, CDC Gaming Reports · September 16, 2020
The virtual Global Gaming Expo will kick-off on Oct. 14 with a discussion involving three casino operators with first-hand experience reopening their regional and tribal gaming properties following the COVID-19 pandemic shut down this spring.
Producers of G2E – the American Gaming Association and Reed Exhibitions – said the event is a prelude to the two-day virtual conference, scheduled for Oct. 27-28, with a program that includes keynote addresses, education sessions, pre-planned meetings, and networking opportunities.
In the Wednesday morning (8 a.m. PT, 11 a.m. ET) session, Justin Carter, general manager of Hollywood Casino Toledo in Ohio; Kathy George, CEO of Firekeepers Casino in Michigan; and Laura Stensgar, CEO of Coeur d’Alene resort in Idaho, will participate in the discussion on how the pandemic has impacted employees, communities, and business.
Nearly 1,000 commercial and tribal casinos in 43 states closed when governors, regulators, and tribal governments ordered the shutdown during the middle of March in an effort to slow the spreading coronavirus pandemic. Nearly 90% of the properties have reopened.
Brian Christopher, a social influencer for casinos and slot machines who publishes BCSlots.com and two channels on YouTube, will lead the discussion on how the casino operators lead through the crisis and create strategies to move forward.
Christopher wrote a commentary for CDC Gaming Reports in August detailing his visit to 21 casinos in nine states following the more than two months of shutdowns.
“From the kickoff keynote to our last networking session, the goal for G2E 2020 is to provide insights, connections, and business opportunities that participants cannot find elsewhere and directly support our industry’s recovery,” Cait DeBaun, AGA’s senior director of strategic communications and responsibility, said in a statement.
The virtual G2E is replacing the annual three-day event in Las Vegas that was canceled by organizers in July due to global travel restrictions and currently unknown guidance on large public gatherings during the pandemic.
G2E’s two-day program will offer networking, business opportunities, and feature content from thought leaders to share perspectives on pressing gaming industry topics, including COVID-19 recovery, modernization of payments, tribal gaming, and the expansion of legalized sports betting in America.
G2E’s virtual platform will also enable exhibitors and buyers to conduct business through virtual showrooms, product demos, AI-driven matchmaking, and one-on-one meetings.
“Every year, G2E spotlights the latest trends through education and product discovery and facilitates personal connections that empower gaming companies and industry leaders for success,” said Korbi Carrison, G2E’s event director. “This year will be no exception. We’re excited for the opportunity G2E’s virtual format gives us to expand the universe of speakers and reach larger audiences worldwide.”
Additional details can be found at https://www.globalgamingexpo.com/virtual-event/.
G2E, the casino industry’s largest conference and tradeshow, was planned for October 5-8 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas. Current Nevada state regulations ban public gatherings of 50 people or more and the state also saw a spike of COVID-19 infections during the summer.
G2E attracts nearly 30,000 attendees annually from across the globe, including top executives and managers from the industry’s largest manufacturers and gaming equipment providers. The world’s top casino operators, sports betting companies, and FinTech and digital payments facilitators, are often represented at G2E.
Organizers said they have scheduled the 2021 G2E from October 4-7 at the Sands Expo.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
Producers of G2E – the American Gaming Association and Reed Exhibitions – said the event is a prelude to the two-day virtual conference, scheduled for Oct. 27-28, with a program that includes keynote addresses, education sessions, pre-planned meetings, and networking opportunities.
In the Wednesday morning (8 a.m. PT, 11 a.m. ET) session, Justin Carter, general manager of Hollywood Casino Toledo in Ohio; Kathy George, CEO of Firekeepers Casino in Michigan; and Laura Stensgar, CEO of Coeur d’Alene resort in Idaho, will participate in the discussion on how the pandemic has impacted employees, communities, and business.
Nearly 1,000 commercial and tribal casinos in 43 states closed when governors, regulators, and tribal governments ordered the shutdown during the middle of March in an effort to slow the spreading coronavirus pandemic. Nearly 90% of the properties have reopened.
Brian Christopher, a social influencer for casinos and slot machines who publishes BCSlots.com and two channels on YouTube, will lead the discussion on how the casino operators lead through the crisis and create strategies to move forward.
Christopher wrote a commentary for CDC Gaming Reports in August detailing his visit to 21 casinos in nine states following the more than two months of shutdowns.
“From the kickoff keynote to our last networking session, the goal for G2E 2020 is to provide insights, connections, and business opportunities that participants cannot find elsewhere and directly support our industry’s recovery,” Cait DeBaun, AGA’s senior director of strategic communications and responsibility, said in a statement.
The virtual G2E is replacing the annual three-day event in Las Vegas that was canceled by organizers in July due to global travel restrictions and currently unknown guidance on large public gatherings during the pandemic.
G2E’s two-day program will offer networking, business opportunities, and feature content from thought leaders to share perspectives on pressing gaming industry topics, including COVID-19 recovery, modernization of payments, tribal gaming, and the expansion of legalized sports betting in America.
G2E’s virtual platform will also enable exhibitors and buyers to conduct business through virtual showrooms, product demos, AI-driven matchmaking, and one-on-one meetings.
“Every year, G2E spotlights the latest trends through education and product discovery and facilitates personal connections that empower gaming companies and industry leaders for success,” said Korbi Carrison, G2E’s event director. “This year will be no exception. We’re excited for the opportunity G2E’s virtual format gives us to expand the universe of speakers and reach larger audiences worldwide.”
Additional details can be found at https://www.globalgamingexpo.com/virtual-event/.
G2E, the casino industry’s largest conference and tradeshow, was planned for October 5-8 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas. Current Nevada state regulations ban public gatherings of 50 people or more and the state also saw a spike of COVID-19 infections during the summer.
G2E attracts nearly 30,000 attendees annually from across the globe, including top executives and managers from the industry’s largest manufacturers and gaming equipment providers. The world’s top casino operators, sports betting companies, and FinTech and digital payments facilitators, are often represented at G2E.
Organizers said they have scheduled the 2021 G2E from October 4-7 at the Sands Expo.
Howard Stutz is the executive editor of CDC Gaming Reports. He can be reached at hstutz@cdcgaming.com. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.
CDC Gaming Reports
21 casinos. 9 states. 107 days. This player’s journey of staying COVID-19 free.
by Brian Christopher, CDC Gaming Reports · August 18, 2020
Brian Christopher at Coeur D’Alene Casino
I’d like to take a gamble that I have visited more casinos in the U.S. since they re-opened post COVID-19 than anyone else.
Since attending the first major casino re-opening by Coeur D’Alene Casino in Idaho the first week of May, I have visited a total of 21 casinos across nine states. I have done so with the utmost care and precaution, while ensuring to follow all state guidelines. Having been tested numerous times, I have never held a trace of antibodies and continue to test negative as recent as a few days ago at the time of writing this article.
As a social influencer for casinos, my followers look to me for guidance and answers. So, I took it upon myself to show them what life is like now in casinos. The results varied – some casinos went above and beyond their required duties, while others fell far behind.
The best casinos I visited implemented the following rules:
And most importantly…
The properties who exceeded my expectations took extra steps including providing a clean pen for every guest when signing receipts (putting the dirty one to a “sanitize later” pile), wiping down the counters between each guest, taking temperature checks from peoples cars prior to entering the property and allowing patrons to press the ‘service’ button in order to get a slot machine. Some went too far in my opinion, like not providing soap or shampoo in the hotel room or making the room key expire every single day in order to have guests take a new temperature check to get the key. Of course, I’d much prefer they go too far than not far enough.
The casinos I visited that put the least effort into making a safe environment had no mask policy in place (though were eventually forced to), removed “some” amount of chairs from the gaming floor, and had zero enforcement for mask wearing or social distancing. There were even some dance floors open with zero masks worn.
In the casinos that allowed it, smoking proved to be a major issue that negated other preventative measures.
Aside from the fact the US is one of the few countries left in the world that has no nationwide restrictions on smoking indoors, being a non-smoker in a smoking casino and wearing mask was completely horrific. It also proved to me that by allowing patrons to smoke in casinos basically gave them a hall pass to walk around mask-free so long as a cigarette was in their hand.
Fast-forward over 100 days from the first re-openings and I’m sad to report that while COVID-19 cases are on the rise, many casinos have eliminated most of their original implementations. Casinos have gone from turning off every other slot machine and/or removing half of the chairs to the approach that seems to say ‘We prefer to leave all slot machines turned on and let the players decide how to social distance on their own’. The ones I talked to claimed they felt bad turning off machines that some people would specifically want to play.
My safety should not be a gamble when walking into a casino. I have visited 21 casinos with varying levels of rules in place and have managed to stay safe and healthy while enjoying casino amenities. By sticking to the guidelines of wearing a mask (triple-layered are cheap and effective), washing your hands often and not touching your face, you can help mitigate risk.
Casinos are among the most populated areas allowed open at the moment, so another wave coming could result in them being shut down again. Just this week, increasing cases in Illinois have prompted the government to enact an earlier closing time on casinos in the St. Louis-area. To ensure they remain open, casinos simply must put the health and safety of all its customers and staff first.
Brian Christopher is a top social media influencer for casinos and slot machines. He manages BCSlots.com and two channels on YouTube with a combined audience of over 300,000. He can be reached at brian@bcslots.com.
Since attending the first major casino re-opening by Coeur D’Alene Casino in Idaho the first week of May, I have visited a total of 21 casinos across nine states. I have done so with the utmost care and precaution, while ensuring to follow all state guidelines. Having been tested numerous times, I have never held a trace of antibodies and continue to test negative as recent as a few days ago at the time of writing this article.
As a social influencer for casinos, my followers look to me for guidance and answers. So, I took it upon myself to show them what life is like now in casinos. The results varied – some casinos went above and beyond their required duties, while others fell far behind.
The best casinos I visited implemented the following rules:
- Went smoke-free (over 150 casinos have!) and moved the smoking section to outdoors only
- Turned off every other slot machine
- Temperature checks and questions about exposure at the door
- Socially distanced tables at restaurant and closed bartop seated service
And most importantly…
- Staff followed AND enforced the above policies
The properties who exceeded my expectations took extra steps including providing a clean pen for every guest when signing receipts (putting the dirty one to a “sanitize later” pile), wiping down the counters between each guest, taking temperature checks from peoples cars prior to entering the property and allowing patrons to press the ‘service’ button in order to get a slot machine. Some went too far in my opinion, like not providing soap or shampoo in the hotel room or making the room key expire every single day in order to have guests take a new temperature check to get the key. Of course, I’d much prefer they go too far than not far enough.
The casinos I visited that put the least effort into making a safe environment had no mask policy in place (though were eventually forced to), removed “some” amount of chairs from the gaming floor, and had zero enforcement for mask wearing or social distancing. There were even some dance floors open with zero masks worn.
In the casinos that allowed it, smoking proved to be a major issue that negated other preventative measures.
Aside from the fact the US is one of the few countries left in the world that has no nationwide restrictions on smoking indoors, being a non-smoker in a smoking casino and wearing mask was completely horrific. It also proved to me that by allowing patrons to smoke in casinos basically gave them a hall pass to walk around mask-free so long as a cigarette was in their hand.
Fast-forward over 100 days from the first re-openings and I’m sad to report that while COVID-19 cases are on the rise, many casinos have eliminated most of their original implementations. Casinos have gone from turning off every other slot machine and/or removing half of the chairs to the approach that seems to say ‘We prefer to leave all slot machines turned on and let the players decide how to social distance on their own’. The ones I talked to claimed they felt bad turning off machines that some people would specifically want to play.
My safety should not be a gamble when walking into a casino. I have visited 21 casinos with varying levels of rules in place and have managed to stay safe and healthy while enjoying casino amenities. By sticking to the guidelines of wearing a mask (triple-layered are cheap and effective), washing your hands often and not touching your face, you can help mitigate risk.
Casinos are among the most populated areas allowed open at the moment, so another wave coming could result in them being shut down again. Just this week, increasing cases in Illinois have prompted the government to enact an earlier closing time on casinos in the St. Louis-area. To ensure they remain open, casinos simply must put the health and safety of all its customers and staff first.
Brian Christopher is a top social media influencer for casinos and slot machines. He manages BCSlots.com and two channels on YouTube with a combined audience of over 300,000. He can be reached at brian@bcslots.com.
CDC Gaming Reports
Smoking ban would prove casinos want to protect health
by Mark Gruetze, CDC Gaming Reports · July 20, 2020 at 4:00 pm
A leading YouTube influencer on a mission to extol the fun and excitement of slot machines has a message for casinos: If you’re serious about protecting health, ban smoking now.
“This is the best time to make this change,” says Brian Christopher, who has more than 300,000 YouTube followers for daily videos showing him playing slots at casinos throughout the United States. “If we make this change right now (after the coronavirus closures), people will come back. And they will stay and they will play. Nobody’s going to give up gambling just because they can’t have a cigarette while doing it.”
He says a survey on his site, available here, backs up his claim. The survey, written in conjunction with the American Nonsmokers Rights Foundation, is still accepting responses. As of July 18, Christopher says, 1,300 people had filled it out, with these results:
Christopher, originally from Canada, now lives in Los Angeles, where he moved several years ago in hopes of starting an acting career. That path hasn’t worked out yet, but he started posting videos of himself playing slots after a family trip to Las Vegas. In about three months, he had 4,349 subscribers and was invited to join the YouTube partner program, according to his blog. He put acting on hold and now has two YouTube channels, plus 70,000 followers on Facebook and 20,000 on Instagram. He says he’s the world’s number-one influencer on slot machines and casinos.
A few months after starting his YouTube slots channel, he attended the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, saw the ANRF booth and offered to help its campaign. The foundation is a non-lobbying, educational, nonprofit organization that provides resources for schools, health departments, medical organizations, and others interested in issues involving smoking and secondhand smoke. Its projects include SmokeFreeCasinos.org, which focuses on secondhand smoking risks to staff and customers in America’s commercial and tribal casinos and other gaming facilities.
A former smoker, Christopher says America’s smoking rules flabbergasted him. “My jaw hit the floor when I saw people smoking in casinos still,” he says. “I had no idea that people could still do that anywhere in the world.”
The foundation has sponsored some of Christopher’s casino trips, as have casinos and slot manufacturers. Christopher says all his gambling money comes from his own pocket.
His current travel plans include a stop in Oklahoma, five days in Maryland, then on to Oregon and back to Oklahoma for four days. He posts at least one 30- to 90-minute video every day and does two to four live streams per week.
He declines to give his age publicly, but classifies himself as a Millennial, the generation that supposedly doesn’t enjoy slot machines. “I love everything about slots,” he says. “It’s the thrill, the excitement. And it’s something I’ve done with my friends a lot.”
Casinos trying to attract Millennials should do a better job of soliciting their opinions and listening to them, he says, rather than doing what they think is exciting. “We (Millennials) are different birds, and we do like to keep our money more,” he says. “We’ve learned that from our parents.”
He says his father worked his life at a job he did not like, staying only because it paid a good wage.
“He instilled in me to make sure you follow your dreams and your passions and be happy and not follow the buck. I think that’s what our generation is all about. We do want to have fun, but we also want to be responsible about it and not throw all our money away.”
He noted that more than 150 casinos nationwide have become nonsmoking, at least temporarily, since the coronavirus shutdowns. He urges casinos to make that change permanent.
“It’s really important to look outside of the United States at countries that have made the change and have made it work,” he says. The smoke-free approach protects staff, reduces sick days, and cuts expenses such as ventilation and cleaning.
“Honestly, if you really want to earn long-term gamblers,” Christopher adds, “wouldn’t you want them to live longer?”
“This is the best time to make this change,” says Brian Christopher, who has more than 300,000 YouTube followers for daily videos showing him playing slots at casinos throughout the United States. “If we make this change right now (after the coronavirus closures), people will come back. And they will stay and they will play. Nobody’s going to give up gambling just because they can’t have a cigarette while doing it.”
He says a survey on his site, available here, backs up his claim. The survey, written in conjunction with the American Nonsmokers Rights Foundation, is still accepting responses. As of July 18, Christopher says, 1,300 people had filled it out, with these results:
- 20 percent of respondents are full-time smokers (the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the most recent nationwide figure is 13.7 percent).
- 78 percent say now is the time to make casinos smoke-free.
- 82 percent of the smokers say they would patronize non-smoking casinos that offer an outdoor area with slot machines where smoking is allowed.
- 94 percent of respondents believe secondhand smoke is harmful to health.
Christopher, originally from Canada, now lives in Los Angeles, where he moved several years ago in hopes of starting an acting career. That path hasn’t worked out yet, but he started posting videos of himself playing slots after a family trip to Las Vegas. In about three months, he had 4,349 subscribers and was invited to join the YouTube partner program, according to his blog. He put acting on hold and now has two YouTube channels, plus 70,000 followers on Facebook and 20,000 on Instagram. He says he’s the world’s number-one influencer on slot machines and casinos.
A few months after starting his YouTube slots channel, he attended the Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas, saw the ANRF booth and offered to help its campaign. The foundation is a non-lobbying, educational, nonprofit organization that provides resources for schools, health departments, medical organizations, and others interested in issues involving smoking and secondhand smoke. Its projects include SmokeFreeCasinos.org, which focuses on secondhand smoking risks to staff and customers in America’s commercial and tribal casinos and other gaming facilities.
A former smoker, Christopher says America’s smoking rules flabbergasted him. “My jaw hit the floor when I saw people smoking in casinos still,” he says. “I had no idea that people could still do that anywhere in the world.”
The foundation has sponsored some of Christopher’s casino trips, as have casinos and slot manufacturers. Christopher says all his gambling money comes from his own pocket.
His current travel plans include a stop in Oklahoma, five days in Maryland, then on to Oregon and back to Oklahoma for four days. He posts at least one 30- to 90-minute video every day and does two to four live streams per week.
He declines to give his age publicly, but classifies himself as a Millennial, the generation that supposedly doesn’t enjoy slot machines. “I love everything about slots,” he says. “It’s the thrill, the excitement. And it’s something I’ve done with my friends a lot.”
Casinos trying to attract Millennials should do a better job of soliciting their opinions and listening to them, he says, rather than doing what they think is exciting. “We (Millennials) are different birds, and we do like to keep our money more,” he says. “We’ve learned that from our parents.”
He says his father worked his life at a job he did not like, staying only because it paid a good wage.
“He instilled in me to make sure you follow your dreams and your passions and be happy and not follow the buck. I think that’s what our generation is all about. We do want to have fun, but we also want to be responsible about it and not throw all our money away.”
He noted that more than 150 casinos nationwide have become nonsmoking, at least temporarily, since the coronavirus shutdowns. He urges casinos to make that change permanent.
“It’s really important to look outside of the United States at countries that have made the change and have made it work,” he says. The smoke-free approach protects staff, reduces sick days, and cuts expenses such as ventilation and cleaning.
“Honestly, if you really want to earn long-term gamblers,” Christopher adds, “wouldn’t you want them to live longer?”
Global Gaming Business
Slot Stars Bring New Audience to the Gaming Floor
by Frank Legato · December 8, 2019
Photo Courtesy by Global Gaming Business
The phenomenon of YouTube “slot influencers” has more casinos allowing filming on the slot floor. Among the most popular: Brian Christopher (l.), whose BCSlots YouTube channel has more than 200,000 subscribers and more than 4 million views per month.
Gambling in a casino traditionally was an anonymous activity. Players didn’t want to be known, to the point that many have resisted joining slot clubs to retain their anonymity. Consequently, outside of planned marketing, casinos traditionally forbade customers from even taking pictures inside a casino.
In general, you won’t get thrown out of a casino for snapping a cellphone photo of a slot jackpot these days, although in most places, it’s still officially frowned upon—and some casinos still forbid even a simple Instagram moment.
However, as more casinos warm up to the benefits of social media, those old traditions are beginning to fade. Some casinos now not only permit pictures, but a once-unthinkable practice—random video of gambling inside a casino.
The rise of YouTube and other social networks led to a new type of celebrity—the “YouTube star,” also called a “social media influencer.” These are people who establish credibility in a certain activity or industry and develop a large audience of followers on a social network. The No. 1 YouTube channel is Pewdiepie, run by Swedish comedian Felix Kjellberg, who hosts videos to more than 100 million followers worldwide in which he introduces and plays video games.
It was only a matter of time before the YouTube phenomenon reached casinos, where a number of channels are now run by “slot influencers” who pick a slot game and stream iPhone videos of themselves spinning reels, getting bonus rounds and winning jackpots. They host the sessions as if they were hosting a TV show or sporting event, doing play-by-play for every spin and getting excited like a sports announcer when big wins hit. And YouTubers eat it up, with slot-influencer YouTube videos garnering hundreds of thousands of views.
Some of the slot influencers are like rock stars on a casino floor, with instant recognition from fans who spend hours watching videos introducing the newest slot games. One of the most popular is Brian Christopher, whose BCSlots YouTube channel boasts more than 200,000 subscribers and more than 4 million views per month.
In the three years since Christopher began using an iPhone to film his own slot play, his fans have amassed 124 million views of his videos. The majority of Christopher’s fans are aged 18 to 44. Two-thirds are male, and most watch on their phones. In other words, Christopher’s followers are in the sweet spot of the younger demographic casinos are beginning to court to eventually replace the older female demographic that’s dominated the slot floor traditionally. And many casinos are beginning to welcome him with “open filming policies.”
Christopher, a former actor, launched his YouTube channel as a hobby in 2016. It’s now his full-time job. He tours casinos across the country, drawing crowds as he streams video of slot games in action. He even has an executive assistant who provides a second camera angle. Fans cheer him on as he plays, and thousands watch online. His YouTube channel hosts more than 1,700 videos, and they also are available on bcslots.com, his website. He has more than 10,000 email subscribers.
Casinos are taking notice. Mohegan Sun recently flew Christopher to Connecticut for that property’s first-ever live stream of slot play. While most big Las Vegas Strip casinos still forbid video, Christopher and other influencers are welcomed at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas because he brings his fans in the door with him, and his business is beginning to spread across the country as the pre-internet barriers begin to tumble.
“I wasn’t the first person to upload my slot play,” Christopher told GGB News. “There are a few channels that had already started doing that, but after my channel started, it definitely started going in a whole new direction.
“Cosmo is the only location on Strip that has an open filming policy. A few others have allowed some filming on occasion, including the Linq, Wynn, Aria and MGM, but it’s not necessarily the rule. I have yet to start visiting local casinos, but we have commenced reaching out to them recently. We have worked with multiple casinos in Michigan, Indiana, Atlantic City, Maryland, Oklahoma, Reno, Vegas, California and New York—around two dozen casinos and growing.”
Christopher says the growth of his fan base was 100 percent organic. “It was word of mouth, mainly,” he said. “I was completely shocked when my numbers started rising so fast at the beginning, because I was new to the whole YouTube world. And it just keeps growing, and whenever I see fans, most of them say, ‘Oh my sisters or my husband used to watch you all the time and now I watch.’”
Slot influencers also are the only people who can actually make a living playing slot machines, through ads on their YouTube pages, subscriptions, and swag sold on their websites. “Sometimes we’ll have sponsors for some videos, and there are other ways of generating income,” Christopher said.
While the number of casinos that allow folks like Christopher to do their thing is growing, he says San Manuel Casino in Highland, California and the Cosmopolitan and Plaza in Las Vegas are currently his biggest hosts.
“Social media influencers have been around since the early days of blogging,” Peter Arceo, general manager of San Manuel Casino, told GGB News. “I have always been on the lookout for positive influencers in our industry. I get excited when I see people having fun in videos from our floor and enjoying the thrilling atmosphere that our team works very hard to create for our guests.
“Working with influencers allows us to show how much fun our casino can be for slot players. Some audiences prefer to receive information through the lens of a person that they have come to trust and whose content they enjoy, rather than content published directly from a casino. Allowing an influencer to convey their perspective and their experience to their audience is just another way for us to reach those people.”
“I can absolutely say that the Cosmopolitan was the first in Vegas to embrace the slot filming community,” said Kevin Sweet, vice president of slot operations and marketing at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in an interview with GGB News. “There was always a stigma that filming in a casino was completely illegal, which simply wasn’t true. We live in a social age. It’s 2019, and everyone has a cellphone. We can’t run from technology or the world around us. It was common sense from my perspective to find a way to let this type of activity happen in our casino.
“I’ve been pretty active with the slot influencer community since early 2016. I am in full support of anything that increases the popularity and reach of casino gaming, and slot-playing videos being posted on YouTube or live-streamed certainly do that.”
Sweet said there are simple ground rules, such as limiting filming to handheld devices and limiting videos to a player and one machine, but the activity boosts business, so it’s welcome.
The influencers appreciate it. “At the San Manuel and the Cosmo, anyone can just record their slot play if they want to or take photos, and they’re encouraged to do so,” Christopher said. “I was stopped by a security guard at the Cosmo and he said, ‘I just wanted you to know that what you’re doing is totally fine with us.’ And because of that, all my fans go to those two casinos.”
San Manuel’s Arceo says the influencer phenomenon has broadened the casino’s audience. “It has widened the audience of people who have become familiar with the San Manuel Casino brand,” he said. “People from as far away as Hawaii have talked to me about Brian. In fact, my cousins in Hawaii have told me that they watch his videos and can’t wait to visit the casinos that Brian has featured.
“We’ve done controlled tests, and in one case allowed Brian to host an event that was attended purely by his audience. The results were great, which is why we continue to work with influencers.”
Sweet reports similar results at the Cosmo. “For every one complaint or issue we encounter in this space, there are 25 interactions where a customer asks a member of my slot team about a machine location because they saw their favorite streamer playing it at my casino and now they want to go play it,” he said. “I don’t think it’s attracting any one particular demographic. This isn’t a millennial play, in my opinion. This is a play for people who like gambling, who like to see nice slot jackpots, and for people who share an interest and want to belong to a larger community.”
According to Christopher, while there is still widespread resistance to filming or even photographing slot play, things are slowly changing. “I know fans who have been removed from casinos because they didn’t want to delete a (jackpot) photo off their phone. And, I’ve been removed from the casino once before because I filmed a bonus.
“We’re slowly breaking down those barriers. We just filmed in Palm Springs, and it was the first time that they allowed such a thing, and part of it was due to the fact that they had some new people coming in because of social media. They recognize the power of an influencer.”
“Some of these influencers themselves partner with cruise lines and bring hundreds of people out for weeklong cruises; it’s very impressive,” said the Cosmopolitan’s Sweet. “Maybe I should hire them as casino hosts.”
Gambling in a casino traditionally was an anonymous activity. Players didn’t want to be known, to the point that many have resisted joining slot clubs to retain their anonymity. Consequently, outside of planned marketing, casinos traditionally forbade customers from even taking pictures inside a casino.
In general, you won’t get thrown out of a casino for snapping a cellphone photo of a slot jackpot these days, although in most places, it’s still officially frowned upon—and some casinos still forbid even a simple Instagram moment.
However, as more casinos warm up to the benefits of social media, those old traditions are beginning to fade. Some casinos now not only permit pictures, but a once-unthinkable practice—random video of gambling inside a casino.
The rise of YouTube and other social networks led to a new type of celebrity—the “YouTube star,” also called a “social media influencer.” These are people who establish credibility in a certain activity or industry and develop a large audience of followers on a social network. The No. 1 YouTube channel is Pewdiepie, run by Swedish comedian Felix Kjellberg, who hosts videos to more than 100 million followers worldwide in which he introduces and plays video games.
It was only a matter of time before the YouTube phenomenon reached casinos, where a number of channels are now run by “slot influencers” who pick a slot game and stream iPhone videos of themselves spinning reels, getting bonus rounds and winning jackpots. They host the sessions as if they were hosting a TV show or sporting event, doing play-by-play for every spin and getting excited like a sports announcer when big wins hit. And YouTubers eat it up, with slot-influencer YouTube videos garnering hundreds of thousands of views.
Some of the slot influencers are like rock stars on a casino floor, with instant recognition from fans who spend hours watching videos introducing the newest slot games. One of the most popular is Brian Christopher, whose BCSlots YouTube channel boasts more than 200,000 subscribers and more than 4 million views per month.
In the three years since Christopher began using an iPhone to film his own slot play, his fans have amassed 124 million views of his videos. The majority of Christopher’s fans are aged 18 to 44. Two-thirds are male, and most watch on their phones. In other words, Christopher’s followers are in the sweet spot of the younger demographic casinos are beginning to court to eventually replace the older female demographic that’s dominated the slot floor traditionally. And many casinos are beginning to welcome him with “open filming policies.”
Christopher, a former actor, launched his YouTube channel as a hobby in 2016. It’s now his full-time job. He tours casinos across the country, drawing crowds as he streams video of slot games in action. He even has an executive assistant who provides a second camera angle. Fans cheer him on as he plays, and thousands watch online. His YouTube channel hosts more than 1,700 videos, and they also are available on bcslots.com, his website. He has more than 10,000 email subscribers.
Casinos are taking notice. Mohegan Sun recently flew Christopher to Connecticut for that property’s first-ever live stream of slot play. While most big Las Vegas Strip casinos still forbid video, Christopher and other influencers are welcomed at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas because he brings his fans in the door with him, and his business is beginning to spread across the country as the pre-internet barriers begin to tumble.
“I wasn’t the first person to upload my slot play,” Christopher told GGB News. “There are a few channels that had already started doing that, but after my channel started, it definitely started going in a whole new direction.
“Cosmo is the only location on Strip that has an open filming policy. A few others have allowed some filming on occasion, including the Linq, Wynn, Aria and MGM, but it’s not necessarily the rule. I have yet to start visiting local casinos, but we have commenced reaching out to them recently. We have worked with multiple casinos in Michigan, Indiana, Atlantic City, Maryland, Oklahoma, Reno, Vegas, California and New York—around two dozen casinos and growing.”
Christopher says the growth of his fan base was 100 percent organic. “It was word of mouth, mainly,” he said. “I was completely shocked when my numbers started rising so fast at the beginning, because I was new to the whole YouTube world. And it just keeps growing, and whenever I see fans, most of them say, ‘Oh my sisters or my husband used to watch you all the time and now I watch.’”
Slot influencers also are the only people who can actually make a living playing slot machines, through ads on their YouTube pages, subscriptions, and swag sold on their websites. “Sometimes we’ll have sponsors for some videos, and there are other ways of generating income,” Christopher said.
While the number of casinos that allow folks like Christopher to do their thing is growing, he says San Manuel Casino in Highland, California and the Cosmopolitan and Plaza in Las Vegas are currently his biggest hosts.
“Social media influencers have been around since the early days of blogging,” Peter Arceo, general manager of San Manuel Casino, told GGB News. “I have always been on the lookout for positive influencers in our industry. I get excited when I see people having fun in videos from our floor and enjoying the thrilling atmosphere that our team works very hard to create for our guests.
“Working with influencers allows us to show how much fun our casino can be for slot players. Some audiences prefer to receive information through the lens of a person that they have come to trust and whose content they enjoy, rather than content published directly from a casino. Allowing an influencer to convey their perspective and their experience to their audience is just another way for us to reach those people.”
“I can absolutely say that the Cosmopolitan was the first in Vegas to embrace the slot filming community,” said Kevin Sweet, vice president of slot operations and marketing at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, in an interview with GGB News. “There was always a stigma that filming in a casino was completely illegal, which simply wasn’t true. We live in a social age. It’s 2019, and everyone has a cellphone. We can’t run from technology or the world around us. It was common sense from my perspective to find a way to let this type of activity happen in our casino.
“I’ve been pretty active with the slot influencer community since early 2016. I am in full support of anything that increases the popularity and reach of casino gaming, and slot-playing videos being posted on YouTube or live-streamed certainly do that.”
Sweet said there are simple ground rules, such as limiting filming to handheld devices and limiting videos to a player and one machine, but the activity boosts business, so it’s welcome.
The influencers appreciate it. “At the San Manuel and the Cosmo, anyone can just record their slot play if they want to or take photos, and they’re encouraged to do so,” Christopher said. “I was stopped by a security guard at the Cosmo and he said, ‘I just wanted you to know that what you’re doing is totally fine with us.’ And because of that, all my fans go to those two casinos.”
San Manuel’s Arceo says the influencer phenomenon has broadened the casino’s audience. “It has widened the audience of people who have become familiar with the San Manuel Casino brand,” he said. “People from as far away as Hawaii have talked to me about Brian. In fact, my cousins in Hawaii have told me that they watch his videos and can’t wait to visit the casinos that Brian has featured.
“We’ve done controlled tests, and in one case allowed Brian to host an event that was attended purely by his audience. The results were great, which is why we continue to work with influencers.”
Sweet reports similar results at the Cosmo. “For every one complaint or issue we encounter in this space, there are 25 interactions where a customer asks a member of my slot team about a machine location because they saw their favorite streamer playing it at my casino and now they want to go play it,” he said. “I don’t think it’s attracting any one particular demographic. This isn’t a millennial play, in my opinion. This is a play for people who like gambling, who like to see nice slot jackpots, and for people who share an interest and want to belong to a larger community.”
According to Christopher, while there is still widespread resistance to filming or even photographing slot play, things are slowly changing. “I know fans who have been removed from casinos because they didn’t want to delete a (jackpot) photo off their phone. And, I’ve been removed from the casino once before because I filmed a bonus.
“We’re slowly breaking down those barriers. We just filmed in Palm Springs, and it was the first time that they allowed such a thing, and part of it was due to the fact that they had some new people coming in because of social media. They recognize the power of an influencer.”
“Some of these influencers themselves partner with cruise lines and bring hundreds of people out for weeklong cruises; it’s very impressive,” said the Cosmopolitan’s Sweet. “Maybe I should hire them as casino hosts.”
CDC Gaming Reports
Adams Analysis Q2 2020: Influencers and A New Spectator Sport
by Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports · June 26, 2020
A new category of influencers has emerged recently: YouTube slot players. The host of a YouTube video goes to a casino and plays slot machines while making a videocast of the action. Followers and subscribers sit at home and watch the action. If they like what they see they may go out and play the games themselves. Subscribers pay a monthly fee to have full access to the videocasts and a two-way dialogue with Brian.
One of this new variety of influencers, spinning the slot reels, is Brian Christopher, who has been playing slot machines and recording that for his YouTube videocasts for four years. The followers enjoy the opportunity to learn about new slot machines, see different casinos, and get the vicarious thrill of watching spinning reels and feeling the rush of anticipation. Brian has 250,000 followers and is starting to get the attention of casinos and slot companies.
While he plays, Brain explains games, themes, symbols, pay-lines, and bonuses. He keeps up a rapid-fire, non-stop, play-by-play narrative of hope, despair, and joy. “Come on, sevens, right now! Ooh, almost, so close. I need that bonus now. Uggh, a near miss, maybe next spin. Oh my god! Oh god, look at that, amazing, I can’t believe it!” When he walks toward the next game, he begins a new storyline, which might start “Now, I am going to play [name of game], I played it yesterday and won. It is an IGT game and I love it.” His narrative sounds like the internal dialogue of a regular slot player, at least as I imagine that.
While Brian is playing and talking, his followers post messages to him. He reads some of the messages and responds live. People comment on the games he is playing, suggest others, wish him luck, and invite him to visit their favorite casino. One woman even invited him to help her have a baby, “Oh, you are sooo handsome.” YouTube slot players like Brian also talk about the casino, food, employees, social distancing, and their family. Brian is careful not to show other players unless they wish to be on camera. He also limits actual footage of the casino floor in accordance with casino policy.
Brian’s YouTube channel is under his own name, but other influencers have names like Slot Queen, NG Slot, Slot Cats, King Jason Slots, Windy City Frenzy, and Neily 777. At the moment, Brian seems to be the top star in the field, a position he probably solidified in April. On April 27th the Coeur d’Alene casino in Idaho was the first casino in the country to reopen. Brian was on hand and broadcasting, which gained him national attention. His presence was reflective of his sense of marketing – there are no accidentals in his activities.
Brian has created a successful business by marketing images of himself playing in casinos. He seems to have tapped into a phenomenon that few people even knew existed: lots of people like to watch other people play slot machines. And in the process, he has gained the power of influencing which slot machines people play.
There have always been people who influenced other people. The clothes that Jackie Kennedy wore shaped the fashion of her time, just as the wardrobe, attitude, and lifestyle of Lady Gaga, Madonna, Cher, and hundreds of other famous entertainers have done. The men who exert the most influence over fashion are athletes, although rappers certain have an impact. Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and LeBron James became very rich not only because of their athletic abilities but due to their value to advertisers. “Be Like Mike!” – and millions of young men tried to do just that. It is conceivable that without Michael Jordan, Nike might have slid into obscurity along with most other athletic shoe companies of the 1980 and 1990s. Instead, it is a $120 billion clothing giant.
Celebrity endorsements have been around for a very long time. A hundred years ago, famous people started appearing in magazines touting cigarettes, soap, soup, coffee, cars, breakfast cereal, crackers, cameras, tea, toothpaste, watches, gasoline, and thousands of other products. In the early years, a celebrity would make simplistic statements like, “I smoke Camels, they are mild, refreshing and they agree with my throat.” Fred Astaire, Phil Silvers, Dennis O’Keefe, Dick Haynes, Dick Powell, Henry Fonda, Margaret Piazza, Ava Gabor, and Maureen O’Hara all embraced Camels with words like that.
Beginning in the 1930s, radio and television joined in the fun. Opera and popular singers sang company ditties with the same enthusiasm that they brought to other songs. Dinah Shore encouraged us to “See the USA in your Chevrolet” and Nat King Cole sang of the joys of using Wildroot Cream Oil Hair Tonic. It seemed that almost no product was off-limits for a star to use and no celebrity was above accepting advertisers’ dollars. By the 1980s, marketing had become more sophisticated. Celebrities were still shown with the product, but their endorsements were more subtle.
Television was the perfect medium for celebrity endorsements, showing a celebrity actually using a product. Those commercials – or to more exact, the money paid to show those commercials – made television possible. Without those products, television would never have come to dominate the culture the way that it did before the internet arrived. Today the internet is slowly but certainty supplanting television as the place we all go for information and for entertainment. It is ubiquitous, available everywhere we go. With its constant presence comes instant feedback. The 24-hour news cycle of television news is, on the internet, closer to a 24-second news cycle – as soon as something happens it is being shared online.
It might not hold center stage any longer, but television changed our national culture. It created a nation of spectators. Television made it possible to sit at home and watch a presidential inaugural parade, historic votes in congress, famous funerals, demonstrations, and the fireworks around the world on New Year’s Eve. But perhaps most importantly, television allowed a fan to attend almost any sporting event in the country.
Television creates a culture of watching, not doing. The only thing that television encouraged members of the audience to do was to use the products it advertised. People watching sporting contests on televisions are not encouraged to jump up and go play sports. Rather, they are enticed into sitting at home and watch the action while eating and drinking. The internet extended the events that can be attended vicariously, adding big things (riots, arrests) and, now, small ones (birthday parties, family game nights, drinking together). It also added new places where a celebrity could sell products – anywhere a screen was in use, whether on a home computer, a tablet, or a smartphone.
The internet also gave rise to a new kind of celebrity – a self-appointed taster of life and an influencer of others. Like Brian Christopher, influencers sell subscriptions to watch them live an exciting life, as well as getting income from product placement and endorsements. Except for being self-appointed, an influencer is not much different from a 1930s movie star smoking cigarettes and telling his/her fans that a Camel is a great smoke. Both are motivated by money, the desire to create a larger fanbase, and the ability to charge advertisers for their recommendations.
That brings me back to Brian Christopher and slot influencing. In marketing himself, he appears to have targeted three different audiences. His fans are of course the primary target – he needs their monthly subscriptions to pay his staff, travel expenses, and his own salary. Without those loyal subscribers, it would be difficult to influence anyone.
Brian plays slot machines in real-time and talks about the games – he names them as he plays, and he identifies the game manufacturer. When he wins, regardless of how small the win, he talks up the game and celebrates. His comments excite his followers and subscribers and influence them to seek out those same games when they are in a casino. That makes slot manufacturers another target.
Brian does not always name the manufacturer; that’s his choice. He sets limits on his play on any game, either a specific amount of money to be wagered or lost, or a time limit. When he reaches that limit, Brian moves to another slot machine. His choice of games is entirely his own. Without violating any trust between himself and his subscribers Brian could choose one manufacturer’s games more often than another; identifying the manufacturer when it suits his purpose. As his popularity grows, why wouldn’t manufacturers offer to sponsor him? It would be a great way to introduce new games to an enthusiastic and dedicated base of potential players.
Casinos are the third target of Brian’s marketing. When he went that Idaho casino, it was in coordination with the casino’s management because the casino thought that Brian’s presence would help them publicize the opening. In an interview with the local press, he said he was also in discussions with other casinos to be at their openings. In one videocast, he was wearing a mask and discussing some of the social distancing and other safety measures the casino had introduced. It was a good way for the casino to show what it is using to protect customers. At the same time, Brian showed it was possible to be out playing slot machines and having a good time. And Brian wins again with yet another potential source of revenue.
Where all of this will lead is an interesting question. It might lead to relatively little – mostly evaporating into cyberspace when people return to their normal lives, once the COVID-19 crisis is over. On the other hand, the crisis may have grown the slot watching fan base and made possible a more permanent, viable institution. If Brian and the others like him do continue to gain popularity, the casinos and slot companies are certain to take more notice.
Direct connections between a would-be gambler and the game maker, and between a would-be gambler and the casino, would solve an old problem. It has always been a challenge to use advertising to show the excitement of casino gambling to prospective customers. Paid actors aren’t quite the way to do it; and it is either illegal or bad policy, or both, to film random gamblers in action.
Willing, enthusiastic gamblers with a gift for gab and a desire to be celebrities can create direct lines from manufacturers and operators to would-be gamblers. In a perfect world, Brian gets rich and famous, the casino shows off its fun atmosphere, and the slot company demonstrates the excitement of its games. And at home, quietly watching the action and seeing thrill of the spin, vicariously, are potential slot players.
Las Vegas Review-Journal
YouTube slot machine stars to help bring back Vegas tourists
by Bailey Schultz, Las Vegas Review-Journal · May 2, 2020
Casinos across the country have been shut down for weeks, but that hasn’t stopped Joshua O’Connell and others from experiencing the rush of a slot machine jackpot.
The Connecticut resident sets aside time every day to watch his favorite slot machine YouTubers, a growing niche of the internet where creators film their slot play.
“You get that authentic moment of the win (in these videos),” O’Connell said. “I watch because I get to learn what’s new (with slots) … and the personalities coming through make the channels. It’s a nice pick-me-up in the day.”
O’Connell used to watch an average of four videos every day, but his viewing time has been cut in half in recent weeks. New uploads have dropped dramatically since the YouTubers lost the ability to create more content inside casinos, resulting in a major drop in views and pay for some.
“We can empathize with those furloughed and waiting to return to work,” said Heidi Clemons, half of the husband-wife duo behind The Slot Cats channel. “Our income is down about two-thirds from where it was a year ago.”
A growing community
A growing community of slot-focused content creators have started to make a living off YouTube, posting videos of them risking — and sometimes winning — large sums of money in casinos across the U.S.
When YouTuber Brian Christopher uploaded his first slot video four years ago — a shaky video titled “’Lightning Strikes’ — HUGE WIN on Vegas Slots! $3,75/Bet” filmed inside Paris Las Vegas and Planet Hollywood casinos on the Las Vegas Strip — he expected a couple of views from friends. Instead, the video garnered Christopher thousands of views and roughly 1,000 subscribers in only one week and propelled his career as a full-time YouTuber.
“I did not expect those videos to explode the way they did,” said Christopher, a Canadian actor who had been driving for Lyft in Los Angeles before his channel took off.
He had roughly 245,000 subscribers as of February, and business had been successful enough for him to sell merchandise — including lanyards, rubber wristbands and autographed headshots — and hire five employees.
While all U.S. commercial casinos have been shut down temporarily, that hasn’t stopped Christopher and others from posting content, at least for the time being.
He said his team films up to two months in advance and can sustain his regular posting schedule until mid-May.
“We are happily working from home, as is advised, and also hosting premiere lives of prerecorded videos and streaming live online slots,” Christopher said.
Bringing in business
Even when casinos were open, finding a place to film wasn’t always easy. Casinos have a reputation for strict anti-camera policies, but Christopher said that has started to change in recent years.
“We’ve slowly been able to convince them that it’s actually a good thing for them for us to promote them,” he said. “We’re getting to the point now where casinos are now finding us and approaching us.”
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas’ vice president of slots, Kevin Sweet, said he began working with the slot YouTube community in 2016. He has personal relationships with at least three YouTubers and encouraged them to film slot play back when casinos were open.
“It absolutely brought us new business (when the casino was open),” he said, adding that he has lost count of how many times guests have asked where to find a slot machine they saw someone playing on YouTube.
Slot manufacturers also have discovered the benefits of working with slot vloggers.
Jonathan Jossel, CEO of the Plaza, told the Review-Journal that the downtown property had embraced the slot YouTuber community. He said the Plaza saw a spike in business and gained a stronger social media presence after it started allowing them to film in the property.
He thinks they will be just as important to business once the casinos are allowed to reopen.
“We will continue to work with them for sure,” Jossel said. “Having them communicate that casinos are open, fun, and safe thanks to extra precautions and efforts is going to be important.”
Sweet agreed, saying that the industry will be able to recover faster with more people advocating that casinos have taken the necessary steps to protect employees and guests.
“Each casino will undoubtedly share with their guests the precautions they are taking, but those guests with a large social media following can only help to echo those efforts and broaden its reach,” Sweet said. “We of course look forward to welcoming (the social media influencers), along with the rest of our guests.”
$9,000 for one video
The YouTubers in this article wouldn’t disclose exactly how much money they make off their channels, but it’s lucrative enough for many to have left their day jobs, even as they regularly spend large amounts of money on casinos and travel expenses.
“It’s probably one of the most expensive channels you can run on YouTube because it’s a losing sport,” Christopher said. “You lose tens of thousands of dollars a year gambling. It took awhile before we became profitable.”
A YouTube channel needs 4,000 watch hours and 1,000 subscribers over the past 12 months before it can enter the company’s partner program and monetize videos.
While the money that videos earn per thousand ad views is fickle, some can end up being worth thousands of dollars.
Francine Maric, who runs the Lady Luck HQ channel, posted a video in January explaining how a viral slot video from September hit nearly 2 million views and made her almost $9,000.
Many YouTubers have found other income avenues. Some, like the user behind Sarah Slotlady, have a Patreon page that allows fans to pay $5 to $25 each month to suggest slot games or access behind-the-scenes videos. Others, like Maric, offer merchandise. Her fans can buy $16.99 Lady Luck HQ crew socks or a $14.99 mug with a cartoon image of her face.
She also offers a channel membership to fans, starting at $4.99 a month, that gives subscribers extra perks such as special emojis they can use when commenting on her videos.
“It’s just a more social way to connect with your audience but also turn it into a business,” Maric said.
Coronavirus impact
But many slot YouTubers’ pay has taken a hit amid the shutdowns as they have to cut back on new videos.
Heidi Clemons said she has had to reduce her posting schedule to three videos a week, instead of seven.
March views for The Slot Cats — run by Heidi Clemons and her husband, Fred Clemons — were down nearly 60 percent year over year, from 370,000 views to 150,000.
The couple face even more challenges in the coming weeks; the two were set to run out of unused videos to post last week.
Heidi Clemons said finances would be more of a concern if she hadn’t won a $20,000 jackpot the week before the shutdown.
“It was good timing,” she said.
Christopher said income from his videos has gone down about 40 percent since the shutdown. He pointed to a drop in advertising revenue for YouTube, causing a trickle-down effect that hurts his ad revenue.
According to a Wednesday regulatory filing from Alphabet, parent company of Google, YouTube ads revenue growth was “slightly offset” by a decline in revenue growth in March, driven by the effects of COVID-19.
“The marketing dollars aren’t there because no one can sell anything,” Christopher said. “I’m not going to complain, though. I’m still able to make income and pay all my employees their normal wages.”
Why so many watch
It’s been about seven years since O’Connell first started watching slot videos. A lot has changed since the early days, he said, pointing to the growing number of content creators and improved production quality.
“It’s exciting seeing how far (the channels have) come in just a few years,” he said.
A Reno-based YouTuber who goes by Diana Evoni said people are drawn to slot videos for a variety of reasons.
Some live miles from any casinos. Others don’t have the money to play themselves but still want to experience the rush of hitting a jackpot. But most are just looking for entertainment.
Las Vegas-resident Jim Hilliard watches at least one or two slot videos every day. One of his favorite channels is Evoni’s — he pays for a channel membership and said he and his wife plan to visit Reno at some point to try out some of the machines featured in her videos.
“It’s helped us identify the places we like to play,” he said. “You feel like you’re one with the game and the player (in these videos). … You learn from the videos, which really makes it fascinating when you don’t get the chance to see the game in person.”
Maric likened it to watching video games online — which get thousands of views on YouTube and Twitch — or watching an NFL game on ESPN. Viewers could play the games if they wanted to, but many think watching is just as fun.
Christopher said his subscribers are the reason he plans to be one of the first customers once casinos lift their shutdowns.
“I miss the interactions with the fans,” he said. “I need more content, but I also want to be there reporting to people, letting them know what the casinos are like and the steps they’re taking to make sure the casinos are safe for everybody.”
Others, like Evoni, plan to wait a bit longer before returning. She said she misses interacting with friends and fans but doesn’t want to risk spreading the coronavirus to her 86-year-old mother.
“There’s a lot to worry about,” she said. “If our (confirmed cases count) goes up in Reno … I’m going to have to wait a long time.”
The Spokesman-Review
‘We’re here, live in Idaho’: Well-known gambling YouTuber streams experience at reopened CdA Casino
Jared Brown, The Spokesman-Review · May 10, 2020
When well-known gambling YouTuber Brian Christopher reached out to the Coeur d’Alene Casino this month about streaming live video of him playing gaming machines at the first casino to reopen after nationwide pandemic-related closures, managers were hesitant.
The casino had never allowed anyone to film their experience inside, marketing director Yvette Matt said.
Luckily for Christopher, he had a track record with Matt from her previous job at the San Manuel Casino in California, which used his videos to promote new machines.
Allowing Christopher to film, Matt said, was a win-win, because Christopher was running out of content from several weeks of casino closures and the Coeur d’Alene Casino wanted to educate people about its safety measures.
“I feel it’s kind of like my duty to help support them during this time,” said Christopher, who has 250,000 subscribers on his main YouTube channel and has reached out to dozens of casinos. “I thought it would be a good opportunity to show everyone in the U.S. what it’s like to be in a casino right now.
“I want to kind of put them at ease,” Christopher, who is from Los Angeles, added during an interview. “We can get through this together.”
He started doing YouTube full time a few years ago in the months after videos he posted for fun of him playing slot machines in Las Vegas found a following. His viewership kept growing and now his channel sees more than a million views each week.
“It’s super rewarding to have a voice, to have a position to make a difference,” Christopher said about his job as a YouTuber. “I’m very grateful that I’m able to do something.”
Christopher arrived at the Spokane International Airport Tuesday after testing negative for COVID-19 in California right before his trip. He then drove straight to the reservation casino in a car he rented.
“It was beautiful scenery on my drive,” Christopher said, adding that he wants to return and explore more of the outdoors.
Employees followed Christopher during his videos to ensure he held to his policy of just recording himself and the machines, not other people. Matt was with him to make sure he had correct information to give YouTube viewers about casino precautions.
“His fans would say, ‘Do you feel comfortable? Are you afraid to be out in a casino?’ ” Matt remembered. “He was like, ‘No, I’m not afraid at all.’ ”
The casino reopened May 1 with strict social distancing and cleaning guidelines in place after maintaining wages and benefits for employees for weeks. The reservation and Benewah County have had no confirmed COVID-19 cases.
The facility quickly hit capacity during its first day back open and some waited in line for as long as 45 minutes to get inside due to strict limits on capacity. The casino has seen a lower volume of steady traffic since, Matt said.
Christopher made a point not to announce his travel plans, so hundreds of fans wouldn’t travel to see him, as they usually do. He also said during videos that he wouldn’t greet fans or take photos, though some people did recognize him at the casino.
Matt said she didn’t think Christopher’s presence brought a noticeable increase in traffic while he was there.
In his first video, which was streamed by more than 4,000 people, Christopher described how his temperature was checked, the mask requirements and the hand-washing stations.
“It’s amazing to be back,” he said during the video.
He also decided to donate to casino staff about $1,600 he raised from viewers who sent him money during two livestreams from Idaho. Funds from a third video went to COVID-19 research efforts, according to Christopher.
“I think it was a pretty cool experience, and I would hope that maybe moving forward we work with him again,” Matt said. “Then we could actually do a promotion with him where we encourage people to come see us.”
Christopher returned to Los Angeles on Saturday and plans to visit more casinos as they reopen in the coming weeks.
He said he reached out to Northern Quest Resort & Casino, which opened Tuesday and does not allow video on the gaming floor. He was turned down for a number of reasons, according to the facility.
Northern Quest, Coeur d’Alene and Kalispel casinos are among 14 other casinos that have opened across the country in the last week, according to the American Gaming Association. They are the only facilities open on the West Coast.
“Northern Quest has extremely limited marketing and advertising campaigns in internal markets only at this time,” Julie Holland, a casino spokesperson said in an email. “While we understand that Northern Quest is one of the only casinos currently open for business in the United States, we don’t encourage cross-country travel.”
Christopher said he’s used to being turned down, as well as being the first person to film in a casino.
“They are coming around to it because they are realizing the power of social media,” he said.
Strictly Slots Magazine
The Slot Influencer: Brian Christopher turns playing slots into a successful business
Most people play slots as a form of entertainment. They know that, while they may win from time to time, in the long run the house has got you beat. But there is another way to make money from the slots, and Brian Christopher has tapped into that rich vein. He travels from casino to casino playing his favorite games, just like so many of us. The difference is, he shares his adventures on YouTube.com—and makes money doing it.
How popular is he?
“I have quickly become the top influencer for slot machines and casinos on YouTube,” said Brian. “I average 2 million views per month—with millennials accounting for more than half of my viewers—and my videos are watched in 213 countries worldwide, with the U.S. representing 73 percent of the traffic.
“Who would have thought that watching someone else play slot machines would be so popular? But when you think of it, it makes complete sense. The #1 channel on YouTube with 57 Million subscribers is Pewdiepie – a guy who plays video games. So me playing slot machines is basically the same thing… only more elevated, because it involves money! You could say I’m like a Pewdiepie of Slots, only with G-Rated language.”
Of course, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to get to the top—and even more to stay there.
“I upload at least one video every day, and each week I’ll throw in additional live streams either gambling in a casino or as a Q&A from home. I came up with regular daily themes like Millionaire Mondays where I play games with jackpots over a million dollars, Thousand Dollar Thursdays where I gamble with $1000 cash, or Get High Fridays where I only play High Limit Games.
“My friends are shocked by my success. I mean, all I do is play slot machines. What they don’t see is that managing a massive YouTube Channel is a full-time job and I have had to hire a talented Editor and a hard-working Social Media Manager, just to keep up! I’m not complaining though, I love what I do – I was born to be online.”
Beyond regular gambling videos, Brian often partners with casinos and slot
manufacturers to showcase new games, online apps, host special events or feature new and exciting amenities. It’s the perfect win-win scenario for all parties, because it allows the most progressive companies in this space to tap into their ideal market base—gambling millennials. “No other platform, be it TV, radio, or billboard advertising, has the ability to engage their target audience the way that I do. Everyone who watches me is a gambling and casino enthusiast, or is interested in joining in the experience,” said Brian.
If you watch his channel, don’t expect some sugar-coated video, where it’s all winning all the time. Brian takes viewers on a fun, and sometimes raucous, but realistic journey with him as he plays.
“My channel is all about keeping it real. I show all of my wins and losses and don’t hide the fact that statistically, I will lose in the long run. My fans love that they can literally see themselves in me. In fact, I treat all of my recordings as if I’m playing right beside them, with sayings like ‘I hope WE get the bonus’ or ‘WE won!’ It also helps me not feel as crazy talking to myself at a machine. And yes, I get a lot of stares.”
Most people play slots as a form of entertainment. They know that, while they may win from time to time, in the long run the house has got you beat. But there is another way to make money from the slots, and Brian Christopher has tapped into that rich vein. He travels from casino to casino playing his favorite games, just like so many of us. The difference is, he shares his adventures on YouTube.com—and makes money doing it.
How popular is he?
“I have quickly become the top influencer for slot machines and casinos on YouTube,” said Brian. “I average 2 million views per month—with millennials accounting for more than half of my viewers—and my videos are watched in 213 countries worldwide, with the U.S. representing 73 percent of the traffic.
“Who would have thought that watching someone else play slot machines would be so popular? But when you think of it, it makes complete sense. The #1 channel on YouTube with 57 Million subscribers is Pewdiepie – a guy who plays video games. So me playing slot machines is basically the same thing… only more elevated, because it involves money! You could say I’m like a Pewdiepie of Slots, only with G-Rated language.”
Of course, it takes a lot of hard work and dedication to get to the top—and even more to stay there.
“I upload at least one video every day, and each week I’ll throw in additional live streams either gambling in a casino or as a Q&A from home. I came up with regular daily themes like Millionaire Mondays where I play games with jackpots over a million dollars, Thousand Dollar Thursdays where I gamble with $1000 cash, or Get High Fridays where I only play High Limit Games.
“My friends are shocked by my success. I mean, all I do is play slot machines. What they don’t see is that managing a massive YouTube Channel is a full-time job and I have had to hire a talented Editor and a hard-working Social Media Manager, just to keep up! I’m not complaining though, I love what I do – I was born to be online.”
Beyond regular gambling videos, Brian often partners with casinos and slot
manufacturers to showcase new games, online apps, host special events or feature new and exciting amenities. It’s the perfect win-win scenario for all parties, because it allows the most progressive companies in this space to tap into their ideal market base—gambling millennials. “No other platform, be it TV, radio, or billboard advertising, has the ability to engage their target audience the way that I do. Everyone who watches me is a gambling and casino enthusiast, or is interested in joining in the experience,” said Brian.
If you watch his channel, don’t expect some sugar-coated video, where it’s all winning all the time. Brian takes viewers on a fun, and sometimes raucous, but realistic journey with him as he plays.
“My channel is all about keeping it real. I show all of my wins and losses and don’t hide the fact that statistically, I will lose in the long run. My fans love that they can literally see themselves in me. In fact, I treat all of my recordings as if I’m playing right beside them, with sayings like ‘I hope WE get the bonus’ or ‘WE won!’ It also helps me not feel as crazy talking to myself at a machine. And yes, I get a lot of stares.”
Comped Travel
Brian Christopher’s YouTube Channel takes “hand pay” to “paycheck”
Stace · July 22, 2020
For most of us who play slots, we expect to put our money into the machine and hope to get paid. Imagine, just for a second, how amazing it would be to get paid to put your money into the machine, and then get paid when you win! If that sounds like a dream, then meet the man living that dream: YouTube Channel Creator and Star and “Slot Machine Influencer,” Brian Christopher! Listen to podcast version.
URComped CEO Craig Shacklett recently had the chance to interview the YouTube Star. For Christopher, his self-described “entrepreneurial instinct” inspired him to transform his love of slot machines and take that passion and monetize it by creating YouTube gaming videos (1:52).
Christopher explains to Shacklett how it “literally took about a month” (2:08) for him to realize that his project could become something that would generate income when he began to see his YouTube subscriber numbers rapidly grow. These numbers led to an invitation to join YouTube’s partnership program. Even though Christopher says he was familiar with YouTube, this area was new to him. That partnership program enabled YouTube to attach advertisements to his videos (2:34). For Christopher, this was especially fortuitous. His YouTube channel was now making a little bit more than he had as an Uber and Lyft driver, which, as he says “was supporting my acting career” (2:45). As the YouTube channel began to take off, he says he had to put his dreams of acting on the backburner to take advantage of the incredible opportunity in front of him.
Christopher explains that he had always dreamed of making the move to Southern California from his native Canada to pursue his goal of becoming a movie star. He says he and his husband, Marco, had long planned the move, and he worked hard, wanting to make sure he had a professional enough resume before making the move to the Golden State. Christopher was forced to work for free for his first several months waiting for his work visas to come through. He says just as his acting career began to take off in Hollywood, so too did his YouTube channel. Timing, as they say, is everything!
So how does one go from acting in the Great White North to becoming an actor/slot machine influencer? For Christopher, it began with a love of gambling (5:02). The legal age for playing Bingo in Canada is 18 and playing slots is 19. Christopher says that he began with Bingo and as soon as he reached 19, he headed into the casinos and to the slot machines, where he fell in love.
While Christopher is one of the major names when it comes to slot machine influencers, he wasn’t the first. Craig wanted to know how Brian Christopher came to be the leader in the YouTube slot machine world. Shacklett was curious how Christopher took the existing concept and expanded it to the level that he is at today.
Christopher cites YouTuber Phillip DeFranco as one of his favorite personalities to watch and listen to. In addition to finding inspiration in DeFranco’s channel, Christopher says he “started seeking out classes to take and books to read, and to learn more about how it all works” (6:18). In addition, he began to attend conferences, including the G2E (the Global Gaming Expo–which Craig explains is “the biggest conference in the world where a lot of bigwigs from casinos around the world and casino vendors are all there” (7:29), where he gained confidence in the connections he had made and in what he was doing. He explains, “I was definitely confident. Because of the growth happening so quickly, there was a little buzz around the channel. So I was able to use that to get in and make some contacts at the beginning. And one of the contacts I actually made there at the beginning was a great contact. But we didn’t work together for about two-and-a-half or three years after that. But we stayed in contact the whole time. And we always knew there’s going to be some time where we would work together. And so it shows you that those little baby steps and those nudges you do at the beginning of will pay off.”
For Christopher, the red carpet is not always rolled out to meet him when he contacts a casino about recording slot play in their venues. As he explains (8:22), “most of them don’t allow recording at all. And some of them are open to the idea. But most of the time, I have to do a lot of nudging and convincing.” Christopher says he will often point out that they can “watch any one of my two thousand videos and see what I do, and you’ll notice that I’m not doing anything bad. It’s actually good for you.” The hardest thing, he says, “is just convincing people that don’t know the importance of social media, how important it really is” (8:48).
Like most of the gaming industry, Christopher says his YouTube channel’s revenues also suffered because of advertisers who pulled ads during the pandemic shutdown. He explains that his company shoots videos 2-3 months in advance, so they were able to continue to upload new content but were definitely ready to get back to work. For Christopher, that work came in the form of Coeur D’alene Casino in Idaho, which was among the first casinos to reopen. Christopher explains that the casino management wasn’t exactly excited about being put front and center of this new normal, but Christopher explained how their new safety protocols could be seen as a model, and in the end, the casino received positive feedback all around.
Christopher is not only an avid slot influencer, he is also an advocate of what he believes in. As he explains to Craig, he is an advocate of mask usage as we navigate this pandemic. Additionally, he is a staunch believer in non-smoking casinos. He says, “I’ve got dozens and dozens of emails from casinos repeatedly saying, ‘Your health is our number one priority. The health and safety of our people. And we’re doing… We’re speaking with all the health experts and everything else.’ And I’m like, ‘I want to call BS on it’ and be like, ‘If you really care about our health and safety, you would ban smoking in your casino.’ You can have outdoor patios. There are many casinos that even have outdoor patios with slot machines or… That works. But when you’re making the staff and the patrons breathe it in non-stop. That’s not really fair to everybody. So I’m loving the changes that are happening and I hope that continues. And masks need to be mandatory everywhere if you want to just flatten this curve. I keep reading that the worst is still yet to come and that’s pretty darn scary. The last thing we want is for all these things to close up again. And we’re talking about entertainment here, right? Casinos are supposed to be fun and entertaining. So if you really want to have your entertainment, then put on a darn mask already” (13:44).
While Christopher is excited about his advocacy work, it is still the slots that brought him where he is today. But lest we think that his life is hanging out in the casino dropping coins, Christopher says gaming only counts for about 5% of his work. He says most of his time is spent shipping merchandise (including masks, btw) from his offices. In addition, his time is spent negotiating on the phone with casinos as he tries to gain access into their venues so he can shoot the games we all want to play. After that, there’s also video editing, promotions, scheduling–in other words, it’s a real job (although a pretty cool one!).
Check out Brian Christopher’s amazing videos at bcslots.com–and be sure to check in with your URComped travel host to sign up for one of the URComped sailings with Brian and his “Rudies.” You never know–you just might hit the next hand pay he features in one of his videos!
VoyageLA
Meet Brian Christopher of BrianGambles.com
Editor, Contributor · August 14, 2018
Today we’d like to introduce you to Brian Christopher.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Brian. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
When I booked my first trip to Las Vegas, I looked to Youtube to find out what games to play and at which casinos. To my amazement (and shock!), there were videos of people playing slots online! Why would anyone want to watch that? Well apparently I did, and I watched a lot. It encouraged me to try my hand at it too. I only uploaded my videos for fun but spruced them up with intros and outros to make them more enjoyable. After they went viral (for my subscriber base!), I made some more and they too went viral! So I kept up with them and I suppose I did something right because I now get a million views a week!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
A lot of what I have done has been uncharted territory. I had to figure everything out on my own. I would buy film equipment like green screens and lighting – with zero clues how to use them. I even dabbled in 360 videos for a while. The biggest hurdle is finding the time to get everything done, which is why I’m on the hunt for more staff!
BrianGambles.com – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I upload videos daily of me playing slot machines. I also hold events all over the world like meet and greets, slot tournaments, cruises and group slot pulls. I’m super proud in how far we as a channel have come, and how our amazing ‘Rudies’ family has grown. The Rudies is my fan club, and they are just awesomely supportive and positive. They named themselves off of one of my catchphrases ‘Rude!’ (when the slots don’t quite line up how I’d like them. My channel is a bit different in that it’s all about the viewer’s experience.
They’re not literally sitting in the chair playing, but I do my best to make them feel a great part of the experience. I try and be as personal and interactive as I can which is also why I hold so many events. I absolutely LOVE getting face time with them.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
In June my YouTube Channel was shut down without cause. It was ONE day before my 4 week East Coast tour of 8 casinos. Rather than freak out and cancel the tour, I boarded my plane and kept my cool. It all paid off because the next day my channel was back and I was able to live stream and I hit my BIGGEST Jackpot LIVE by hitting $10,000 on Wheel of Fortune (the biggest number on the wheel)!
Contact Info:
- Website: BrianGambles.com
- Email: contact@briangambles.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/JustBrianC
- Facebook: Facebook.com/JustBrianC
- Twitter: Twitter.com/JustBrianC
- Other: Snapchat.com/add/JustBrianC
YouTube: BCSlots.com
Forbes
YouTube Slot Controversy Shows The Perils Of Your Side Hustle
by David G. Schwartz, Contributor · June 11, 2018 at 8:58am
It happened without warning.
On June 3rd at 7:28 in the morning, Brian Christopher got an email from “The YouTube Team” telling him that his video, “Smokin' Hot Gems, BIG WIN Mammoth Power Slot Machine Pokies w Brian Christopher” had been taken down for violating content restrictions on “violent or dangerous acts that have an inherent risk of serious physical harm or death.” This was his first strike. Seconds later, he got another email telling him that “due to repeated or severe violations” of YouTube’s community guidelines, his account had been suspended. His channel, which he had been building for two years, had vanished. Hundreds of his videos, all of which feature him playing slot machines and winning jackpots, were wiped out.
Just like that, a big piece of Christopher’s life—he spends about eight to 12 hours a day on his channel, and employs three people who help him—was gone. Erased. Deleted.
Around the same time, Scott “The Raja” Richter, whose slot channel, The Big Jackpot, features videos like “Biggest Live Jackpot In History | $600 A Pull | Black Widow @ The Cosmopolitan” logged on and found that his channel, too, was gone.
Christopher and Richter had used YouTube to turn a money-losing pastime, playing slot machines, into a respectable side hustle, even a level of celebrity. Richter’s videos have clocked more than 2 million unique monthly views, and his channel has more than 115,000 subscribers. He even has a dedicated fan club, known as the Bomb Squad (after Richter’s trademark “#BOOM” graphic that accompanies each big win). Christopher has about 50 million total views and 82,000 subscribers, with his videos drawing thousands of views a day, and his own fan club, the Rudies. Bomb Squad and Rudies alike, in addition to commenting on videos and offering advice during live feeds, follow their mentors to casinos around the country and even go on cruises with them. One highlight of these events is the “group pull,” where players pool their cash and take turns pressing play on a high limit slot.
In addition to revenue generated directly from YouTube (which Richter says, for a popular channel, can reach as high as $20,000 a month) both Richter and Christopher sell a range of merchandise, from bobbleheads to coffee mugs to shot glasses. While this may have started out as a hobby, it has clearly become something bigger. Christopher, for instance, found out about his channel being removed while traveling for a planned multi-state East Coast tour.
Andy Warhol famously said back in 1968 that in the future, everyone would be world famous for fifteen minutes. Fifty years later, we’re in the future, and Warhol was half right. Everyone’s not world famous for fifteen minutes. Instead, they are famous to their fanbases of a few hundred thousand for as long as they can keep cranking out new content. Platforms like YouTube have redefined the nature of celebrity itself. It’s no longer about musical or athletic talent, looks, or even being in the right place at the right time. It’s about being able to market original content that drives clicks.
You have a good idea of what it takes to get fired from your job: punching the boss is out, as is destroying company property, showing up drunk, or doing all three. But in the side hustle economy, where you let people watch you play slots, drive them to the casino, or even write about what they do there, the rules—to the extent that there are rules—are much less transparent. Both channels had been, presumably, making good money for YouTube. As far as the creators knew, they were doing exactly what the platform wanted them to: generate and promote original content that brings clicks.
“It was like a stab in the back.” Christopher says. “I devoted my entire life to YouTube. I gave them 1,100 videos and made them a lot of money. For them to turn around and shut me down with zero explanation hurts.”
Christopher immediately filed an appeal. “I didn’t know what I was appealing,” he explains, “since I didn’t know what I did wrong.” He just told the anonymous authority that his channel was clean and promoted responsible gambling. Hours later, he got a curt email informing him his appeal was denied—again, with no explanation of what policies he had violated.
Then, without an apology or any other acknowledgement, both channels were reinstated. Christopher simply got a brief email that said that, after a re-review, it was determined that his videos did not, in fact, violate any guidelines. That’s good news for Richter, Christopher, the Bomb Squad, and the Rudies, but the entire situation shines a light on the very real dangers of the side hustle economy.
The side hustle economy is a natural reaction to the collapse of the old work economy. It’s increasingly rare to score a solid 9 to 5 job right out of school, clock a few decades, and retire with a secure pension and gold watch, all the while enjoying financial security. More and more people are turning to a variety of side hustles—freelance work, MLMs, YouTube videos, even writing—in an effort to stay ahead of the game.
The side hustles I’m thinking about are different from simply working a second job hostessing or parking cars because they usually involve a significant outlay of resources—sometimes financial but always time. This species of hustle is also dependent on what we can loosely call “tech” but is more accurately a form of digitally-assisted connectivity. YouTubers like Christopher and Richter, documenting their thousands of dollars in slot jackpots for tens of thousands of fans are at one end, with Lyft and Uber drivers and designers selling custom drawn logos on fiverr at the other.
In theory, side hustling gives creative, ambitious, or just broke and bored people a chance to turn their time and effort into money. In practice, it’s not always that easy, and with so much of the hustle dependent on impersonal, impenetrable tech, it is an incredibly unstable base on which to build a brand, let alone a future. You might cultivate a great presence as a Lyft driver, but when self-driving cars are ready to roll, it’s over, no matter how hard you've worked. Or an inoffensive piece of your content trips a digital wire somewhere, and you’re flagged, then suspended, with no clear path to appeal.
We still don’t have any idea why the channels came down: was it really part of an orchestrated harassment campaign by a rival, as some fans alleged, or was it just both channels running afoul of an algorithm? After all, with 300 hours of video uploaded to the channel every minute, no human can sit and watch them all for violations. And, remember, computers can do operations quickly and efficiently but don’t have common sense or empathy. So your passion project that you’ve been pouring your life into for the past few years with decent results and no controversy might get flagged or your channel removed, just because a machine read something into it that you never intended. There are humans involved in the policy violation process (10,000 of them at YouTube's last count), but, with about 3 million videos flagged for review each month, that’s still about 1,000 videos a day per human—if humans never took days off.
Perhaps appropriately for Richter and Christopher, the side hustle economy that we all participate in might have something in common with playing slot machines. Because even when we fear it might be a negative expectation game, when we see other people hitting the jackpot, we have no choice but to get back to the grind.
For his part, Christopher’s return to YouTube is not without issues. While his videos were restored, they were not remonetized, meaning that he can’t make any money from them. He was assured that they would be remonetized in 24 to 48 hours but, five days later, it had not happened. So, like the rest of us, it’s back to posting content, but with no guarantee that it will pay off.
Worse, the phantom violation makes brings a nagging uncertainty to his life. “It just leaves it open for them to do it again,” Christopher says. “I have zero way of getting any answers from anybody.”
There is one silver lining in all this. The night that his channel returned, Christopher was back playing slots live on YouTube. Alongside his Rudies, both in person and on livestream, Christopher hit the biggest jackpot of his life, $10,000.
The look on his face when those reels line up…that’s what we’re all chasing, and that tells us why, even if it’s a lot of work with an uncertain pay off, we’re going to keep chasing our side hustles.