Kirk Sanford News

When it comes to servicing the gaming industry it seems that cooperation, at least in this instance, can be more profitable than competition, or so believe the companies of USA Processing, First Data Corp. and BankAmerica Corp.’s Merchant Services Inc. who sought government regulatory approval for their joint venture in the transaction processing marketplace.

“There was a lot of synergy,”

says Kirk Sanford, the spokesman for USA Processing of Sunnyvale, California.

“Our working together was something actually suggested by our customers.”

Cooperation did not come as a huge surprise since the paths of these companies often crossed while supplying service and products to the gaming industry. USA Processing spokesman Kirk Sanford would not disclose the role his company would play in this new joint venture, but he did explain that USA processing is an independent payment company working with the gaming, banking and retailing industries.

Kirk Sanford, CEO of Global Cash Access of Sunnyvale, California has refrained from getting involved in the internet gambling industry. Although his company, GCA, services the vast majority of casinos in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean with point-of-sale terminals for easy and fast cash access for customers, Sanford believes gambling on the internet is another kettle of fish altogether.

“Internet gambling is a gray area we would rather not get into at this point. There is probably a lot of money that can be made, but for us it just doesn’t weigh against the risks associated with it.”

In the year 1998 the on-line version of gambling did $651 million worth of business, and was projected to earn at least $811 million in 1999. The prediction for the year 2001 was estimated to be about $2.3 billion.

Global Cash Access (GCA) received the 2003 Top 20 Most Innovative New Gaming Products Award from Casino Journal for its cash services product QuickJack Plus. QuickJack Plus is GCA’s highly user-friendly interface located in the casinos, and it allows the patrons to cash in a variety of the tickets and vouchers they receive, as well as perform all the required ATM, debit and credit card, and players’ club cash activities. Furthermore, QuickJack Plus can be augmented with many other functions that each gaming property may require. Joining together with NRT Technology Corporation for the QuickJack Plus interface, Global Cash Access was able to increase its tally of Casino Journal awards to five. Kirk Sanford, chief executive officer of GCA was “thrilled,” to quote him, to be honored once again. During Sanford’s tenure as CEO, GCA has been at the forefront of the gaming technologies.

Casino Journal has, for 7 years, awarded its Top 20 Most Innovative New Gaming Products Awards to each year’s most innovative gaming products. In 2003, Global Cash Access (GCA) was included among the winners of the Top 20 Most Innovative New Gaming Products Awards of 2003 for two of GCA’s products. These two awards join the previous three awards that GCA has received for its products in the past. In awarding GCA these awards, Casino Journal recognizes the innovation and great potential of  two new products, QuickJack Plus and Plus QuikCash Plus (QCP) Web. In 2003 when the awards were made, QCP Web, had been installed at 124 casinos on 1,200 terminals. QCP Web is a full-service transaction processing system, and QuickJack Plus is a user-friendly interface for many of the various gaming patron activities while at the casinos. Kirk Sanford, CEO of GCA, said that the awards marked GCA’s efforts to “deliver forward-thinking products that improve operations, increase revenues and enhance the gaming experience.”

Kirk Sanford was thrilled once again by the recognition his company, Global Cash Access (GCA) received from the gaming community. In 2003, GCA was awarded two prizes for two of its individual products that were recognized as being among the Top 20 Most Innovative Gaming Products of 2003. Casino Journal has made these awards since 1996, acknowledging GCA’s two products QCP Web and QuickJack Plus. Visit our “In The Public Eye” page for this and other news.

You might think the phrase “responsible gambling” is an oxymoron, but at casinos in Detroit they are about to enter into the second phase of a two phase program to promote just that: Responsible Gambling.

Kirk Sanford of Global Cash Access in partnership with the National Council on Problem Gambling is making a huge effort to educate and counsel the public so that an enjoyable hobby or pastime does not turn into an addictive problem.

Accounting for approximately 95% of all cash access machines at casinos, all GCA machines will have Point-of-Decision messages printed on sticker and receipts, and 60% of the machines will also have telephone handsets which connect to a 24-hour “help-line” service center. Using the code word ‘think’ will signal to the service representative to automatically connect the customer to the National Council on Problem Gambling Hotline.

In addition, the program to promote responsible gambling also allows customers to exempt their credit cards so that if a request is made by the customer to withdraw more than a set amount of money, the withdrawal will be denied.

To learn more about this service you can see our page “Casino Cash Machines Offer Exclusion.”