February marks the 40th anniversary of the entry into the UK coin machine industry of Arthur Thomas, who has become something of a legend in the business, both in the UK and in Europe, as a designer of games.
Thomas, now operating as AET Games Design and living in Cardiff, told InterGame that he was actually working for food company Cross and Blackwell in 1968 when he was persuaded to leave the sales and marketing job there.
"It was Mike McCarthy who got me to leave that job," he said. "Mike went on to form companies like Thesis in the 1970s and is today one of the biggest developers of hotels, shopping malls and office blocks in Wales."
Thomas, who has a track record that encompasses his own companies in Gemini, Gowerpoint and 3G Games, is one of the few people in the business who has worked as a senior executive in sales, marketing, manufacturing and in games design.
His most successful periods as a manufacturer were undoubtedly when he started Gemini with John Evans as a partner and later with Gowerpoint, which he sold to (now) Lord Michael Ashcroft when he was chairman of Hawley, later to be re-named ADT.
Over the years, Thomas has licensed many major manufacturing companies with his patents and games in both the UK and Europe and estimates that around 200,000 AWPs have been produced with his features incorporated on them. He ruefully adds: "Many of them were NOT licensed!"
He has a colourful history in litigation, taking on some of the biggest names in the industry over copyright issues. "I spent four years in litigation with Barcrest between 1993 and 1997 with my Best Nudge Win patent, which was eventually settled out of court.
"My QC at the time was Michael Fysh, who is now the senior patent judge in the UK. He subsequently presided as judge in the Dyson versus Hoover patent case which was famous."
He has been on the receiving end of litigation too, remembering being a defendant representing Gemini against Carfield in the Nudge trademark case at the Appeal Court in London, which Gemini eventually won.
"Harry Dransfield, who had 51 per cent of Carfield at the time, was still buying machines from me even though they were the machines involved in the litigation case and actually gave me advice on how to win the case."
Thomas can reminisce for hours on the characters he has met in the industry over the years. "I have loved every minute of it. If I could have afforded it, I would have worked in this industry for nothing because it has been a hobby.
"I am proud to say that all of the legends and celebrities that I have met in the industry were personal friends and, importantly for a veteran, the young bucks who have taken their place give me respect! And, incidentally, many of them are doing a very good job."
During the London ATEI show, Thomas was asked which were his most commercial patent and games designs. He brought them down to four: the Reels to Video Screen patent in 1982, which was subsequently made by Maygay in 1992 and IGT in 1999; the Best Nudge Win patent in 1982; the Stake Gamble patent in 1983 which is now familiar on many UK AWPs; and the Reels to Pinball game for Italy in 1996, licensed to Unidesa and which the Spanish company later took 30,000 into the Spanish market.
More recently, Thomas designed a new SWP video control device and is still involved in day-to-day designs for machines which continue to be sought by manufacturers. He noted: "At the London show this year hardly anyone knew me. I remember the great Maurice Collings (founder of Ace in the early 1960s) who came to the show at Blackpool a few years after he had retired. He said then ‘Maurice Collings…who is Maurice Collings?’ The same is already being said of me!"
