Method and apparatus for providing electronic credits at a gaming device without first requiring payment therefor

• US 20050187012A1
• Filed: 05/24/2004
• Published: 08/25/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/1998
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Original Assignee: IGT (International Game Technology)
• Inventors: Jorasch, James A., Tedesco, Daniel E., Fincham, Magdalena M., Tulley, Stephen C., Gelman, Geoffrey M., Bemer, Keith, Alderucci, Dean P., Walker, Jay S.
• Granted Patent: US 8,096,872 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 463/25
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/12 Hotels or restaurants
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/34 Betting or bookmaking, e.g. Internet betting
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/32 for games, toys, sports, or amusements
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3239 Tracking of individual players
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3244 Payment aspects of a gaming system, e.g. payment schemes, setting payout ratio, bonus or consolation prizes
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3248 involving non-monetary media of fixed value, e.g. casino chips of fixed value
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3251 involving media of variable value, e.g. programmable cards, programmable tokens

Abstract

In accordance with some embodiments, apparatus and methods are disclosed for providing electronic credits to a player of a gaming device. The electronic credits are provided in response to an occurrence of an event other than an outcome of a game play. Further, the electronic credits are provided without requiring the player to first provide payment therefore. In some, the number of electronic credits may be determined based on information associated with at least one of the player, the gaming device, and a casino associated with the gaming device. In some embodiments, the an offer for the electronic credits is output to the player at the gaming device and the electronic credits are added to a credit meter balance of the gaming device upon the player'"'"'s acceptance of the offer. In some embodiments, the player is required to provide a payment for the electronic credits at a time subsequent to the time at which the electronic credits are provided to the player.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

determining an occurrence of a predetermined event,

wherein the predetermined event is not an outcome of a game conducted on a gaming device; and

causing, in response to the occurrence, a number of electronic credits to be added to a credit meter balance of the gaming device,

wherein the electronic credits are added to the credit meter balance without a player of the gaming device having first provided payment therefore.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that the player has initiated a predetermined action.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein determining that the player has initiated a predetermined action comprises:

determining that the player has requested to receive an addition of electronic credits without providing payment therefore.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein determining that the player has initiated a predetermined action comprises:

determining that the player has indicated a wager amount that is greater than a current balance of electronic credits, the current balance of electronic credits comprising a balance of electronic credits in the credit meter balance before the addition of the electronic credits.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein determining that the player has initiated a predetermined action comprises:

determining that the player has inserted money into the gaming device.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein determining that the player has initiated a predetermined action comprises:

determining that the player has indicated a wager which, if lost, will result in at least one of a credit meter balance equal to zero and a credit meter balance less than a predetermined number.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining a likelihood that the player is about to end a gaming session at the gaming device.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining that the player has actuated a cash out mechanism of the gaming device.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining that the player has obtained a predetermined number of losing outcomes in sequence.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining that the player has not obtained a winning outcome within a predetermined period of time.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining that a balance of electronic credits associated with the player is within a predetermined range.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the predetermined range comprises a range between a predetermined number and zero.

13. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining, based on past gambling behavior of the player, that the player is likely to soon end the gaming session.

14. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the likelihood comprises:

determining that the player has removed or attempted to remove a slot club player card from the gaming device.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that an amount wagered by the player is at least equal to a predetermined amount.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the amount wagered by the player comprises an amount wagered by the player over a plurality of gaming sessions.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the amount wagered by the player comprises an amount wagered by the player during a current gaming session.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that a score indicating the player'"'"'s eligibility to receive electronic credits without providing payment therefore is an acceptable score.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising:

determining the score indicating the player'"'"'s eligibility to receive electronic credits without providing payment therefore.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein determining the score comprises:

accessing data indicative of at least one of

(i) the player'"'"'s past gaming activities, and

(ii) the player'"'"'s past re-payment for electronic credits received by the player without the player having provided payment therefore.

21. The method of claim 19, wherein determining the score comprises:

receiving the score from a computing device.

22. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that the player has accepted an offer for the addition of the electronic credits.

23. The method of claim 22, further comprising:

causing an offer for the addition of the electronic credits to be output to the player; and

receiving, from the player, an indication of at least one of an acceptance and a rejection of the offer.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

determining whether to output the offer.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether an amount of money won by the player during at least one of a predetermined number of game plays and a predetermined period of time satisfies a predetermined criterion for outputting the offer.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether an amount of money lost by the player during at least one of a predetermined number of game plays and a predetermined period of time satisfies a predetermined criterion for outputting the offer.

27. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether an amount of money wagered by the player during at least one of a predetermined number of game plays and a predetermined period of time satisfies a predetermined criterion for outputting the offer.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether an amount of money paid out to the player by the gaming device during at least one of a predetermined number of game plays and a predetermined period of time satisfies a predetermined criterion for outputting the offer.

29. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining a credit history of the player.

30. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining an amount of money the player currently owes to a casino associated with the gaming device.

31. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether valid information for contacting the player is available after the player leaves the gaming device.

32. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether the player is a guest of a casino associated with the gaming device.

33. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining data indicative of the player'"'"'s past stays at a casino associated with the gaming device.

34. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether a rating associated with the player qualifies the player to receive the offer,

wherein the rating is indicative of past gambling activity by the player.

35. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether an amount of money spent by the player at a casino associated with the gaming device is at least a predetermined amount.

36. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining a performance of a casino associated with the gaming device.

37. The method of claim 24, wherein determining whether to output the offer comprises:

determining whether the player has submitted an application to become eligible to receive the offer.

38. The method of claim 23, further comprising:

determining a number of electronic credits to offer to the player.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein determining a number of electronic credits to offer to the player comprises:

determining a number of electronic credits to offer to the player based on information associated with at least one of the player, the gaming device, and the casino associated with the gaming device.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein the information associated with the player comprises a value of collateral provided by the player for the electronic credits.

41. The method of claim 23, wherein causing an offer for the addition of the electronic credits to be output to the player comprises:

causing the offer to be displayed on a display device associated with the gaming device.

42. The method of claim 41, wherein the display device comprises a display device of a peripheral device associated with the gaming device.

43. The method of claim 41, wherein the display device comprises a secondary screen of the gaming device.

44. The method of claim 23, wherein causing an offer for the addition of the electronic credits to be output to the player comprises:

causing the offer to be displayed via a player device associated with the player.

45. The method of claim 23, wherein causing the offer for the addition of electronic credits to be output to the player comprises:

causing audio information associated with the offer to be output via an audio device associated with the gaming device.

46. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that a result of a determination of an amount of credit available on a credit card associated with the player indicates that the amount of credit is sufficient to provide payment for the electronic credits at a later time, if such payment becomes necessary.

47. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that all electronic credits associated with a monetary bill previously inserted into the gaming device have been lost by the player.

48. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining that the gaming device has paid out less than a predetermined percentage of money wagered by the player within a predetermined period of time.

49. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining the occurrence of a predetermined time.

50. The method of claim 49, wherein determining the occurrence of a predetermined time comprises:

determining that a predetermined period of time has passed since an occurrence of a previous event.

51. The method of claim 50, wherein the previous event comprises an output, to the player, of an offer to add electronic credits to the credit meter balance.

52. The method of claim 50, wherein the previous event comprises a previous addition of electronic credits to the credit meter balance, wherein the player had not provided payment for the previous addition of the electronic credits.

53. The method of claim 1, wherein the previous event comprises:

an initiation of a gaming session by the player.

54. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the occurrence of the predetermined event comprises:

determining the occurrence of a predetermined event at a gaming device different from the gaming device being played by the player.

55. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined event is associated with a player different from the player associated with the credit meter balance to which the electronic credits are added.

56. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the number of electronic credits to be added.

57. The method of claim 56, wherein determining the number of electronic credits comprises:

determining the number of electronic credits to be added based on information associated with at least one of the player, the gaming device, and a casino associated with the gaming device.

58. The method of claim 57, wherein the information associated with the player comprises a value of collateral provided by the player.

59. The method of claim 56, wherein determining the number of electronic credits comprises:

determining a number of electronic credits that the player has at least one of accepted and requested.

60. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

causing, at the end of a gaming session, a payment amount to be deducted from an amount of winnings associated with the player, the payment amount comprising payment for the number of electronic credits added to the credit meter balance.

61. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

causing an indication of a payment amount due from the player as payment for the number of electronic credits to be stored in a memory.

62. A method, comprising:

determining an occurrence of a predetermined event,

wherein the predetermined event is not an outcome of a game conducted on a gaming device; and

causing, in response to the occurrence, at least one token to be output to a player of the gaming device, the at least one token being representative of a number of electronic credits to be added to a credit meter balance of the gaming device,

wherein the token is provided to the player without the player first having provided payment therefore.

63. The method of claim 62, wherein the at least one token comprises a cashless gaming receipt recognizable by at least one gaming device as being representative of a number of electronic credits to be added to a credit meter balance of the at least one gaming device.

64. The method of claim 62, wherein the at least one token comprises at least one coin acceptable by at least one gaming device as payment in exchange for a number of electronic credits.

65. The method of claim 62, wherein the at least one token comprises at least one casino token acceptable by at least one gaming device as payment in exchange for a number of electronic credits.

66. A method, comprising:

conducting, at a gaming device, a gaming session of a player;

determining that the player is eligible to receive an offer for a number of electronic credits,

wherein the determining is based on information associated with at least one of the player, the gaming device, and a casino associated with the gaming device;

determining the number of electronic credits to be included in the offer;

outputting the offer to the player;

providing the number of electronic credits to the player, without requiring the player to first provide payment in exchange for the number of electronic credits; and

storing an indication of the number of electronic credits provided to the player.

67. A method, comprising:

receiving an identifier identifying a casino player;

determining whether the player owes payment for at least one of (i) a number of electronic credits previously added to a credit meter balance of a gaming device being played by the casino player, and (ii) a token representative of a number of electronic credits, the token having been previously provided to the casino player;

outputting to the casino player, if it is determined that the player owes the payment, a message reminding the casino player of the owed payment.

68. The method of claim 67, wherein the message further provides the casino player an opportunity to provide the payment.

69. The method of claim 67, wherein the message is output via a display device associated with a gaming device into which the casino player has inserted a slot club tracking card that includes the identifier.

70. The method of claim 67, further comprising:

receiving at least a portion of the payment from the player; and

storing an indication of the at least a portion of the payment in association with the identifier.