Branded Slots

1How Software Suppliers Acquire Licenses

Casino software suppliers cannot commercially use trademarked images, characters, or themes without permission; otherwise, trademark owners can pursue legal action for infringement. Before building a slot around a specific film or TV show, they must first acquire licenses from the companies that hold the rights to these properties.

The two parties enter into a legally binding contract under which the software company pays a licensing fee to the trademark owner for the right to use the trademark. Land-based casinos were the first to introduce branded slots to their gaming floors.

Similar branded slots are sometimes created by different manufacturers, as is the case with The Price Is Right and Elvis games by IGT and WMS. IGT launched The Price Is Right branded machines in the early 1990s after acquiring a license from the owners of the popular TV contest show.

2Expiration of the Licenses and Renewal

After the original license expired, the show’s owners began negotiating a new licensing agreement with the manufacturer WMS. The process is similar for branded slots inspired by famous musicians such as Elvis. When the original licenses expire, the parties that hold the rights to the musician’s name, songs, and likeness begin negotiating new agreements with other slot manufacturers.

These licenses remain valid for a limited number of years. An agreement may contain a clause stating that the licensee has the option to renew after paying the required fee again. The licenses are usually exclusive, meaning that no two slot designers may create games with the same trademarked theme at the same time.

3How Developers Choose the Right Brand

However, slot developers cannot simply choose any recognizable name and use it as a theme. The selected brands must appeal to a broad reel-spinning audience; otherwise, they are unlikely to have a meaningful impact on profits.

The demographics of casino-goers must be taken into consideration. For example, it would make little sense to build a game around a franchise such as High School Musical when its target audience consists of children aged 8 to 14 who are not legally old enough to gamble.

Branded slots are not reserved exclusively for land-based casino visitors. Software studio Microgaming was among the first companies to launch branded online games, starting with its 2004 release Lara Croft: Tomb Raider.

Competitor NetEnt followed suit and established valuable partnerships with major film studios such as 20th Century Fox, Columbia Pictures, and Universal Pictures. Over the years, the Swedish supplier has brought some of the most iconic franchises and films to the slot reels, including The Invisible Man, Scarface, and Planet of the Apes.

Playtech has also kept pace with the growing competition in branded games. The company is known for Marvel-based slots such as Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, and The Avengers. These games were hugely popular among players several years ago.

After Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion in 2009, it declined to renew Playtech’s licensing agreement when it expired, deeming the partnership incompatible with the family-oriented image of the movie giant.

Playtech was forced to remove its branded Marvel content as of April 2017. Nevertheless, the gambling company continues to release branded slot content after signing licensing agreements with entertainment giants such as Warner Brothers. These agreements paved the way for slots based on iconic franchises such as Terminator and The Matrix.