Star Pubs & Bars machine income up 3%

By Nikkie Sutton

- Last updated on GMT

Success: Star Pubs & Bars has puts it gaming machine growth down to its mobile app
Success: Star Pubs & Bars has puts it gaming machine growth down to its mobile app
Machine income has risen for Star Pubs & Bars by 3% in the past 12 months making it the only leased pub company whose pubs have grown machine income year on year.

Star has put this down to schemes introduced in 2015 including the mobile app BDMs were given to help analyse machine data when they are with licensees.

The app enables BDMs to share a snapshot of machine income, the machine gaming duty (MGD) owed and reclaimable VAT.

Thanks to this success, the pubco has made the app available to machine suppliers as well as BDMs, which it claims has helped BDMs and licensees the chance to increase earnings.

Star also saw the number of amusement with prizes (AWPs) machines rise in its estate for the first time.

Opportunities to grow

Star Pubs & Bars machines manager James Sharpe said: “The app has helped BDMs and licensees to identify issues and opportunities to grow income as it highlights when income is up or down and enables it to be compared against wet sales.

“It has also helped by working out MGD which was a headache for licensees previously and the reason given for wanting AWPs removed.

“We don’t charge for management services or take royalties so any savings are passed directly to licensees.”

Licensing fee costing licensees thousands

In December, the British Beer & Pub Association called for a rise in fruit machine stakes and prizes​, and for contactless payments to be allowed to help pubs meet consumer demands.

Last month (January), Business in Licensing and the Gambling Business Group came together in a bid to remove the fee pubs have to pay​ to inform licensing authorities if they want to use their automatic entitlement on gaming machines.

The motion would save pubs and machine suppliers £50 per notification, saving the UK pub sector at least £500,000 a year.

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