Scientific Games Corporation - Expanded Operations: 1992–95

Expanded Operations: 1992–95

In fiscal 1992, Autotote had revenues of $48.4 million—two-thirds in the United States—and net income of $5.7 million. It was providing about 60 percent of the tote boards in the United States, receiving a percentage (about 0.5 percent) of the sum of wagers placed. Moreover, Autotote had become the leader in the field not only in on-track but also inter-track betting. In 1992, it won a contract to provide on-site betting parlors for all three major California racetracks, so that between races at one track patrons could bet on races being held at the other two. The company was also poised to introduce a new system, called Probe, that was the first fully integrated system not only for pari-mutuel betting but also video lotteries, keno, nonracing-sports betting, and any other form of legal betting involved with odds.

In 1993, Autotote was selected to operate Connecticut's off-track betting (OTB) system, which was being privatized. The company, which was already providing systems for keeping track of the Connecticut OTB bets, now took over operation of the betting parlors as well, paying the state a flat fee of about $20 million and making annual payments based on total dollars wagered. In the spring of 1995, it opened a $9 million, Las Vegas-style New Haven emporium called Sports Haven, where patrons could view and bet on races throughout North America and also patronize a bar wrapped around a cylindrical aquarium stocked with exotic sharks, dine at an upscale restaurant, dance the night away at a discotheque, or shop for sports memorabilia.

Autotote also was adding to its significant level of operations abroad. It signed a contract in 1992 to supply 10,000 lottery terminals to an Italian lottery based on horse racing. In June 1993, Autotote acquired the ETAG Group of Switzerland, a leading supplier of European computerized wagering systems, for $10.5 million, and in September of that year it completed its acquisition of Tele Control GmbH, an Austrian company providing lottery systems in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and Switzerland, and wagering systems for racetracks in Germany and Austria. In fiscal 1993, the company had net income of $9.5 million on revenues of $84.9 million.

In 1994, Autotote acquired Marvin H. Sugarman Productions Inc. and its affiliate, Racing Technology Inc., for 500,000 shares of common stock. Sugarman Productions was the largest simulcaster of live horse and greyhound racing events to OTB patrons in North America. In January 1995, Autotote acquired certain assets of IDB Communications Group Inc.'s broadcast division for $13.5 million in cash and subleases for satellite transponders, or channels. A spokesman for Autotote said the transaction would allow it to telecast simultaneously races from more than 60 horse and dog tracks in North America.